Farm Bureau at work California Farm Bureau’s government affairs team is at the Capitol, advocating for farmers, ranchers and agriculture’s future. Here are some key issues Farm Bureau is focused on this week.
Workforce Assembly Bill 2183, by Assemblyman Mark Stone, D-Santa Cruz, cleared the Assembly Labor and Employment Committee on April 20 by a 5-2 party-line vote. Thebill isvirtually identical toStone’s AB 616, vetoed by Gov. Gavin Newsom last September. AB 2183 now moves to the Assembly Appropriations commit- tee. Stone claims to be negotiating with the administration on concerns raised in Newsom’s vetomessage, but noproposals have emerged. Stone frames his bill as a measure to allow mail-in ballots, but it actually lets unions seeking recognition to collect bal- lots, potentially allowing the union to se- lect voters and deny affected employees a voice indeciding for representationornot. Agriculture groups have signaled a will- ingness to discuss amail-in ballot option in addition to polling-place elections to protect employees fromcoercion. Livestock A bill that would have banned confined animal feeding operations from opening or expanding inCaliforniawill not advance outof theAssemblyAgricultureCommittee. Assembly Bill 2764, fromAdrinNazarian, D-VanNuys, was strongly opposed by the California FarmBureau. It was brought up inthecommitteeseveralweeksago,but the hearing was disrupted by a protester who supergluedherhand to thepodium. For last week’s hearing, protesters were confined to outside the Capitol, with only people testifying on bills allowed in. Ultimately, the bill was not set for a hear- ing by the committee chairman. Despite protest antics in favor of the bill, it lacked any serious legislative support. The Farm Bureau thanks Assemblyman Robert Rivas, D-Hollister, for his leadership on this issue. Climate and working lands The California Natural Resources Agency released its conservation strate- gy document last week. This report—ti- tled “Pathways to 30x30: Accelerating Conservation of California’s Nature”— lays out ways the state can conserve 30% of land and 30% of coastal waters by 2030 toprotect andenhancebiodiversity. Farm Bureau has been very active in public comment periods and indiscussionswith the Newsomadministration. The report touts the benefits of grazing practices; farmmanagement practices to increase habitat, forage and soil health; and agricultural land conservation gener- ally. However, traditional methods, such as agricultural easements andWilliamson Act contracts, will not be counted toward the 30% land goal. The agency argued those protections are temporary, do not protect thenatural conditionas theprima- ry goal, or are too small tobemapped. It is unclear how the Newsomadministration proposals are consistent with the Biden administration’s 30x30 efforts. Meanwhile, the Natural Resources Agency released theNatural andWorking
al-land conversion and increasing native seedlings. The report also suggests increased for- est thinning and reducing wildfire risks, and it highlights the carbon capacity of perennial farm crops. It suggests steps to avoid agricultural land loss, improve or- ganicwastemanagement andgroundwa-
ter recharge, and transition frompesticide use. The Newsom administration also has released a two-year $768 million budget proposal to implement portions of both reports. (A full roundup of Farm Bureau leg- islative efforts may be found online at http://cfbf.com/Farm-Bureau-At-Work.)
Lands Climate Smart Strategy, which inform the state’s work on eight land- scapes, including forests, croplands and grasslands. It will propose methods to track climate action and recommend subsequent actions. Priorities of note for farmers and ranchers include combat- ing invasive species, avoiding agricultur-
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May 4, 2022 Ag Alert 13
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