End of legislative session includes farm-related bills ByKevinHecteman
bills were authored by Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, D-SanDiego, and Sen. Ben Allen, D-Santa Monica. CFBF and other agricultural organi- zations pointed out the ramifications for food producers and food safety. “What Farm Bureau stressed, along with other ag groups, is that these plas- tics play an important role to further the state’s other goals, such as reducing the amount of food waste that’s happening, being able to protect public health—es- peciallywhen the consumer base ismore interested recently in having no-touch produce options,” CFBF policy advocate Taylor Roschen said. Though packaging used in field pack- ing would have been exempt, Roschen said, products going to coolers and pack- inghouses would not. Producers would have incurred greater expenses, and those would have found their way to the supermarket, she noted. “I think we would have also seen it translate to rising food costs, which at a time right now, when people are so food insecure and financially insecure—it’s just not an appropriate time for this really ambitious policy,” Roschen said. In the end, the bills failed by narrow margins shortly before the deadline. “It was a testament to how import- ant our Republican and Democratic members who value ag are in the
Legislature,” Roschen said. A bi l l that would help repair the Friant-Kern Canal was sent to the gov- ernor’s desk. SB 559, from Sen. Melissa Hurtado, D-Sanger, would require the state Department of Water Resources to report to the Legislature by March 31 on any federal funding approved in Congress to make repairs to the canal. The report would be required to include a proposal for the state to pay a share of the cost, not to exceed 35%, and detail how the money should be spent. The Legislature sidetrackedAB 6, from Assemblywoman Eloise Gomez Reyes, D-Colton, which would have authorized the state attorney general to bring civil action under his or her own authority for acts of water pollution. The lawpresently requires a complaint to be received be- fore the attorney general can bring suit. “It’s always crazy the last days and hours of the legislative session—and this year was one for the books, advocating remotely for SB 559 and to stop the at- torney general’s attempt to increase his authority in AB 6,” said Danny Merkley, CFBF director of water resources. “It took a true team effort within Farm Bureau, colleagues representing other agricultur- al and irrigation groups, and legislators who understood our concerns.” On the employment-policy front, a COVID-19-related workers’ compen- sation insurance bill sent to the gover- nor would create an outbreak-based presumption of work-related illness for people who might not have caught COVID-19 on the job. The employer would have an opportunity to rebut the claim. The bill, SB 1159 from Sen. Jerry Hill, D-San Mateo, specifies agricultural fields among the places of employment covered under its provisions. SB 1383 from Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson, D-Santa Barbara, aims to per- manently expand child- and school-re- lated leaves specified in the Labor Code fromemployers of 25 ormore to employ- ers of five ormore. The bill alsowould ex- pand the list of reasons for which leave must be offered, to cover natural disasters
or other problems, and would add a pri- vate right of action for violations. AB 685, also awaiting action from the governor, would require employ- ers to repor t to Cal/OSHA and the state Department of Public Health any COVID-19 infections they “knew or should have reasonably known of,” ac- cording to the bill’s text. Failure to do so would be a criminal violation. Bryan Little, director of employment policy for CFBF and chief operating of- ficer of CFBF affiliate Farm Employers Labor Service, said agricultural organi- zations will ask Gov. Gavin Newsom to veto the bill. “We oppose AB 685 because it has vague reportingobligations forCOVID-19 cases that may or may not be work-relat- ed, andwouldencouragepublic shaming of employers by possibly reporting that informationpublicly by employer name,” Little said. Abill mandating quarterly, rather than annual, reporting of the use of granular chlorpyrifos from the Department of Pesticide Regulation also reached the governor’s desk. SB 86, from Sen. María ElenaDurazo, D-Los Angeles, would also require county agricultural commission- ers to report potential reasons for quar- terly changes in chlorpyrifos use. AB 1788, from Assemblyman Richard Bloom, D-SantaMonica, takes aimat an- ticoagulant rodenticides and the effects theyhaveonwildlife that eat rodentskilled by the original product. Roschen said an exemption for agricultural use was se- cured, and described that as crucial “for food safety and the safety of employees.” “The exemption that we were able to get was for all ag sites”—pump stations, processing facilities, canneries, distribu- tioncenters andwarehouses, andpacking sheds, she said. Thematerial is restricted andmust beusedbyaqualifiedapplicator. Gov. Newsomhas until Sept. 30 to sign or veto the bills on his desk. (Kevin Hecteman is an assistant ed- itor of Ag Alert. He may be contacted at khecteman@cfbf.com.)
Amarathon final night of the state leg- islative session led to a stack of bills on the governor’s desk concerning farming and agricultural employers—and the demise of others that agricultural advo- cates say would have harmed farmers and ranchers. California Farm Bureau Federation Administrator Jim Houston said CFBF policy advocates followed legislative ac- tivity into the wee hours of the morning Sept. 1, as the Legislature finalized bills due Aug. 31. “The Government Affairs team was all hands on deck well past midnight, standing up for farmers and ranchers,” Houston said. “It was gratifying to see all the teamwork and dedication come to fruition, and even though some bills passed, we stopped a lot more. It was ul- timately a successful year for agriculture.” The list of potentially troublesome leg- islation that failed included a pair of bills aimed at food packaging. Assembly Bill 1080 and Senate Bill 54 attempted to regulate single-use packaging, products made of plastic, or cardboard or paper lined with plastic. Materials used for fresh produce, such as clamshell containers, plastic bags, film packaging and plastic-lined paper bags, would have been required to be compostable, reusable or recyclable. The
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A third county has joined the Housing for the Harvest program, which pro- vides temporary hotel accommoda- tions for farm and food-processing em- ployees who need to self-isolate during the pandemic. T h e S a n t a B a r b a r a C o u n t y Department of Public Health will part- ner with the local Family Service Agency to manage the program, according to the California Department of Food and Agriculture. CDFA said last week Santa Barbara County would join Fresno and San Joaquin counties, which became the first to launch the Housing for the Harvest program.
The programprovides temporary hotel rooms for people who have tested pos- itive for COVID-19 and do not require hospitalization, or who have been ex- posed and cannot properly self-isolate at home. CDFAsaid farmemployeesor foodpro- cessingworkers in Santa Barbara County who need Housing for the Harvest ser- vicesmay call the Family Service Agency at 805-325-5341. Personal information gathered through the processwill be kept confidential, the department said. More information about the pro- grammay be found at covid19.ca.gov/ housing-for-agricultural-workers.
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4 Ag Alert September 9, 2020
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