Energy and water are fundamental to a thriving economy, and a long-term plan for both should be one of the primary issues addressed by government. Unfortunately, today our national energy policy is being held hostage by oil interests, preventing us from developing alternative sources that will yield greater political stability and a cleaner environment. In addition, we are battling with four other states for water rights to the limited Colorado River. Although our population is increasing, the Colorado River isn't. This means that we will eventually run out of water, and our economy and quality of life will suffer.

We need to move away from an oil-based energy policy and gas-guzzling vehicles. And we need to eliminate our dependence on the Colorado river. We can achieve these goals without compromising our quality of life.

California is unique in that our geography contains both huge expanses of unusable sunny desert and 1,000 miles of coastline. The answer is simple: Develop solar power generation stations in the southern desert, and use it to power desalination plants on the coast. This plan provides multiple important benefits for California:

1. We reduce our dependence on oil, which leads to greater political and economic stability by limiting the flow of funds to the volatile Middle East and to out-of-state energy companies that take advantage of us today.

2. We reduce emissions, resulting in cleaner air and lower rates of respiratory health problems such as asthma.

3. We develop new technologies and industries that can be exported to other states and countries, improving our economy.

I plan to create tax incentives for California companies to invest in solar and desalination technologies. California is a leader in so many areas already. It's only natural that we should take the lead in these endeavors as well. Some of the largest companies in the world are energy companies. Let's have some of them right here in California.