Friday, February 1, 2008

California Ag Plan

On Wednesday the Ag Council provided testimony to the State Board of Food & Agriculture regarding issues that need to be addressed in a Strategic Plan for Agriculture in California currently in the process of being developed by the board. I participated on the agenda along with a number of other agricultural leaders including Doug Youngdahl, President & CEO, Blue Diamond Growers. Doug addressed several issues that impacted almond growers such as disaster relief, environmental regulation, compliance costs and water. I focused on several broad base issues relating to improving our pest protection system; protecting agriculture’s interest in the AB 32 implementation process; the importance of strategically distributing USDA Block Grant funds; and, improving agricultural research and cooperative extension. This planning process will take several months to complete. If successful the “living plan” will be used to guide public policy and investment priorities at the state and national levels.

AB 32 Implementation Fees

Given the State’s current $14 billion budget deficit, it comes as no surprise that the state’s implementation cost to regulate greenhouse gas emissions will be shifted away from the General Fund. Although specific proposals have yet to surface the following excerpt from Thursday’s Capitol Weekly provides a hint of things to come.

There are various proposals to set up a fee schedule. Those include what is known as a “carbon fee” — which AB32 authorizes the ARB to put into effect without legislative approval — which is imposed “on refineries, natural gas producers and others at the well head or at the end of a pipeline. A $20-per-ton fee on carbon dioxide emissions would generate about $2 billion,” said Leonard Goldberg, a lobbyist whose clients include the Utility Reform Network. The fee could also be far lower, providing enough money to finance the program as it gets developed, then increasing the amount later as a way of controlling emissions.

Separate from the carbon fee — and many believe it should be put into effect only after a carbon fee is imposed — is a potential money-producing device now in the market system that targets emitters, who buy credits — called “allowances” — that allow them to operate. One variation is to have the credits sold at auctions; another is to have some allowances given away and others sold. But however the system is devised, it needs to be done soon, experts say.

Agriculture’s Economic Contributions

For many years the Agricultural Issues Center at UC Davis has periodically published important economic data relating to California agriculture’s economic contributions. The data is compiled in "Agriculture's Role in the Economy," and it’s posted on the Center’s website at http://www.aic.ucdavis.edu.The data analyzes agriculture on both a statewide and regional basis. For example:

California agriculture has significant direct effects on the California economy. From a very broad perspective, in addition to farms, about 90,000 commercial establishments in California are related to agricultural production. Some industries, such as food and beverage manufacturing are closely linked to local farming, but others, such as restaurants, may be only weakly related to local farm production. In 2002, the combined agriculture production and processing industry in California directly accounted for:

• 4.28 percent ($97.7 billion) of the state sales output
• 3.76 percent (745 thousand) of the jobs in the state
• 2.47 percent ($22.5 billion) of labor income in the state
• 2.85 percent ($39.6 billion) of value added (labor and property income and indirect business taxes) in the state

When taking into account total direct, indirect and induced effects, the measured share of California agricultural production and processing increased to 7.3 percent of the 20 million jobs in the state, 5.6 percent of the $914.7 billion in state labor income, and 6.5 percent of the state value added. Economic activity generated in California by agriculture is large compared to most countries. Depending on the method or the currency exchange rates used to measure the value of agriculture, California ranks between fifth and ninth in the world ahead of such countries as Canada, Mexico, Germany and Spain.

2008 Valued-Added Producer Grants Announced

The Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBS) announced the availability of approximately $18.4million in competitive grant funds for fiscal year (FY) 2008 to help independent agricultural producers enter into value-added activities. The proposed projects must be for either planning projects (e.g., feasibility studies, market studies, business plans) or working capital projects (e.g., operating payroll, advertising, inventory, market introduction costs). The maximum grant amount for a planning grant is $100,000 and the maximum grant amount for a working capital grant is $300,000. DATES: Applications for grants must be submitted on paper or electronically according to the following deadlines by March 31, 2008. An application guide and other materials may be obtained at http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/rbs/coops/vadg.htm

Annual Meeting Reminder

The Ag Council’s 89th Annual Meeting scheduled March 3-5 at the Silverado Resort in Napa is quickly taking shape. The program is structured around the theme California: In Need of a Fix, and will focus on “infrastructure/public policy” issues of concern to California farmers and agricultural businesses. Confirmed speakers include:

• Dan Walters from the Sacramento Bee to discuss California’s fiscal and political challenges. 
• Ted Batkin, president of the Citrus Research Board, to address California’s invasive pest protection system.
• David Freeman, with the LA County Board of Harbor Commissioners, to discuss transportation and energy issues.

Please visit our web site at agcouncil.org for additional information and registration material.

Members - We Need Your Help

Over the nex few weeks, you will again notice some changes in our Web site. As an added value, and to better serve our members, the Ag Council will be:

• Adding logos next to member contact information for increased brand recognition
• Adding links to member Web sites, which will help your search engine rankings with same-industry links
• Adding member information pages. That's right, we're giving you an entire page on our web site to promote your business, products and services, and to link right to your web site.

We will also begin featuring one member each month in our eNEWS, monthly email communications for even more added exposure! Only members who have provided their logos and additional information will be eligible.

Don't be the only one who gets left out! Jennifer Bourn, will be completing this project for us and she will be contacting all of our members to gather their logos, Web site links, and the company/product information you would like featured on our web site.