Legislative Update
Governor Schwarzenegger announced that he wouldn’t sign any non-urgent legislation until a budget agreement is reached. However, in order to meet legislative deadlines, policy committees continued to pass bills, which will ultimately result in a huge logjam of legislation hanging in limbo. During this hectic time, Ag Council has been working on several bills of importance to the membership:
- Citrus Disease Prevention - AB 281 (De Leon) Authorizes the establishment of a 17-member California Citrus Disease Prevention Committee under CDFA. The industry- funded committee would be authorized to conduct informational programs to educate residential owners of citrus fruit trees on the prevention of diseases or vectors specific to citrus. The Committee could also execute programs for surveying, detecting, and analyzing citrus diseases. After securing amendments relating to program funding and administration, we are actively supporting its passage.
- Food Safety – SB 173 (Florez) Authorizes the State Public Health Officer to adopt regulations regarding the voluntary recall of food that, without intervention, could transmit an illness that could kill or seriously affect the health of humans. The Council joined with other food processing interests in opposition to SB 173 because it mandated the implementation of a food inspection and recall process. However, we were successful in amending the bill into a voluntary program and have removed our opposition and maintain a neutral position.
- Milk Pooling – SB 362 (Florez) Provided new pool exemptions to producer-distributers as well as organic and raw milk producers. The bill would have cost California dairy producers $40 million annually in lost pool receipts. The Council strongly opposed the bill and worked with other dairy groups to secure amendments to narrow the bill to just raw milk producers, thereby reducing the cost to about $150,000 annually. Although the Council went neutral, producer groups remained opposed, and the bill failed passage in the Assembly Ag Committee.
- Water Conservation - AB 49 (Feuer) & SB 261 (Dutton) Both bills require the state to achieve a 20% reduction in urban per capita water use by the end of 2020. The bills also require conservation measures for agriculture. However, AB 49 is unworkable from our standpoint and is being strongly opposed. We’re supporting SB 261, however, because it’s more flexible and contains language offered by the Ag Council to protect the water needs of food processors located in urban areas.
- Card Check – SB 789 (Steinberg) Allows a labor organization to be certified as the exclusive bargaining representative through a “majority signup election,” as an alternative to the existing secret ballot election process. The Council is part of a large coalition of ag groups actively opposing the bill.
Other Bills of Interest
In addition to the bills mention earlier, other legislation of interest to California agriculture currently moving through the legislature include:
- Border Inspection Stations - AB 219 (Ruskin) Increases fines to $2500 on vehicle operators who fail to obtain a certificate of inspection when entering California with an agricultural shipment.
- Apple Pests - AB 443 (Galgiani) Implements the California Apple Pest and Disease Prevention Act of 2009 to ensure that apples produced or handled in the state are pest and disease free. The program would be administered by an appointed 11 person committee acting with the concurrence of the Secretary of Food & Agriculture. The committee is responsible for making recommendations to the secretary of designated pests and diseases not already present or identified in California as of January 1, 2007.
- Commercial Feed – AB 547 (Mendoza) Extends the authority to assess commercial feed license fees ranging from $100 - $600 annually until 2015. Additionally, the greater of 15% or $200,000 of the license fee revenues may be used for research and education regarding the safe maintenance, distribution and use of commercial feed.
- Organics - AB 557 (Caballero) Increases the membership of the California Organic Products Advisory Committee from 15 to 16. The additional member must be a certifier who is accredited by the United States Department of Agriculture.
- Cotton Board - AB 604 (Fuller) In order to quickly adjust to changing industry conditions, the bill permits the San Joaquin Valley Cotton Board with the concurrence of the Secretary of Food & Agriculture to periodically determine what specific sections of the district's authorizing chapter and related regulations shall be operative and for what period of time.
- Blueberry Commission - AB 606 (Ma) Authorizes the establishment of a California Blueberry Commission to promote blueberries, educate the wholesale and retail trade on proper handling, conduct and contract research on production, marketing and distribution.
- Wheat Commission - AB 735 (Assembly Committee on Agriculture) Reduces the number of producer members on the California Wheat Commission from 15 to 13 and adds two at-large members. There are also changes in the number and boundaries of the voting districts.
- Organic Fertilizer – AB 856 (Caballero) Includes organic inputs into CDFA’s fertilizer inspection program. It also changes the make-up of the Fertilizer Inspection Advisory Board to include one organic input material producer and one organic grower. There are also a number of administrative changes relating to fees and penalties.
- Agricultural Commodities - AB 905 (Assembly Committee on Agriculture) Removes the 200 pound per lot minimum exception that applies to showing proof of ownership in any transaction relating to the sale, purchase or transportation of any fruit, nut or vegetable. It will also apply to every person who sells or buys the commodity for resale, processing, or further distribution through any commercial or nonprofit enterprise. Additionally, the bill allows enforcement officials to take possession and maintain custody of products seized from individuals believed to be in unlawful passion of an agricultural commodity.
- Miscellaneous Ag Provisions - AB 945 (Assembly Committee on Agriculture) Deletes alternative certificate options for an individual horse show, competition or sales, thereby all designated shows, competitions and sales be under CDFA. The bill also extends the sunset for fruit and vegetable standardization to January 1, 2015.
- State Seed Enforcement - AB 1255 (Tom Berryhill) Extends until January 1, 2015, the authorizations to allocate annual subvention payments to the counties for enforcement of seed identification and quality standards.
- Standardization – AB 945 (Assembly Committee on Agriculture) Extends the statutory authorization for fruit, nut and vegetable Standardization Program until 2015.
- Honey – AB 1216 (Evans) Establishes new standards of identity base on the Revised Codex Standard for Honey, which defines honey and sets rules on essential composition and quality.
- Dead Animal Haulers – AB 1249 (Galgiani) Authorizes CDFA to issue a permit to licensed renderers, collection centers or animal hauler to haul carcasses to a permitted landfill in the event of an emergency, or if a licensed hauler has a certification from a licensed renderer that they can’t process the dead animal.
- Seed Inspection – AB 1255 (Tom Berryhill) Extends, until 2015, statutory authorization that allows counties to receive industry paid subvention funds for local seed enforcement activities.
- Organics – AB 1401 (Ma) Establishes the Transition to Organics Fund within CDFA consisting of monies collected from federal, industry and citizen sources. The fund will provide assistance to persons transitioning their farms from uncertified to certified organic production.
- Ag Burning – SB 382 (Florez) Provides that an agricultural burn permit within the jurisdiction of the San Joaquin Valley Unified Air Pollution Control District is invalid on days in which the district prohibits the use of wood burning fireplaces and heaters.
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