Legislature recognizes UCANR’s value with funding
By Taylor Roschen It feels trite at this point to call 2021 the “year of irregularity.” There has not been one family, one business, one communi- ty that hasn’t undergone profound and
o f t en conce rn- ing change. So, it’s surprising to hear some in the Legislature and the governor cel- ebrate the passage of the state budget. O n J u n e 2 8 , G o v . G a v i n Newsom signed Assembly Bill 128,
University of California Cooperative Extension farm advisor Katherine Jarvis-Shean, left, works with Solano County farmer Daniel Garcia in this file photo.The 2021 state budget fully funds UC Agriculture and Natural Resources, which provides re- search and specialists for farmers.
Taylor Roschen
the state budget bill that approves the overall framework for financing the state. During the following weeks, the Legislaturewill hammer out and present to the governor the final details for how to spend the remaining record revenues on items such as cap and trade, wildfire, drought and agriculture. For those of us who work to persuade financial tides to turn in agriculture’s favor, every budget year is a challenge. We take comfort in the familiarity of dis- comfort. Everyone recognizes that the budget drafting process is imperfect, with the hundreds of pages of text mess- ily massaged until a final document—or documents, in this case—is presented in the last hours of the fiscal year. Bu t i n a c l e a r s po t w i t h i n t he opaquenes s , t he Leg i s l a ture has agreed to use its overwhelming re- sources this year and in future years to fully fund the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources. Ag Alert® readers, UCANR supporters and staff, and the farmcommunity surely
recognize the critical role farm advisors, specialists and community education specialists serve to help farms identify pests and diseases; implement water use efficiency; improve soil health, biodiver- sity and crop efficiency; adapt to climate change; and promote agricultural ed- ucation. But due to significant funding reductions over the last two decades, UCANR has lost almost 40% of its pro- gram staff, leaving them reliant on fees, inconsistent grant funding and perpetu- ating service area deficits. Since 2019, theCalifornia FarmBureau and a powerhouse coalition of county FarmBureaus, agricultural, business and local government groups have petitioned the Legislature and the administration to rectify this wrong. This year, we collec- tively requestedanongoing commitment
of an additional $30 million for UCANR. UCANR and the services it offers are clearly in the public’s interest. In his 2021 May budget revision, Newsom proposed to restore base fund- ing for UCANR, whichwas cut during the COVID-19 pandemic, and provide only a 5% increase. His administration also proposed to delete the budget line item that specifically allowed the Legislature to direct revenues toUCANRout of reach of theUCOffice of thePresident’s control. Through the budget committee pro- cess, the Legislature rejected the removal of the line item for UCANR. Under the guidance anddeft skill of Sen. JohnLaird, D-Carmel, and the grassroots efforts of California’s farmers and ranchers, Farm Bureau’s request was honored. The Legislature has approved a $32.1million
budget increase to UCANR to be offered this year and every year. This badly needed funding will allow UCANR to hire or fill more than 120 posi- tions, offer important programmatic and business operations support, serve new regions and farms with science-based, practical field support anddevelop future leaders through 4-H. As we muddle through the remainder of thebudget process, as always, anything done canbe undone. But amid chaos and consternation over other budget prior- ities, California agriculture should take a momentary pause and declare a small but important victory. (Taylor Roschen is a policy advocate for the California Farm Bureau. She may be contacted at troschen@cfbf.com.)
VOL. 48, NO. 25
July 7, 2021
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