YOUR DUES DOLLARS AT WORK A MID-YEAR TEMPERATURE CHECK ON CCA’S LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES by CCA Vice President of Government Affairs Kirk Wilbur June 2 was the “house of origin” deadline in the California Legislature, the date by which bills needed to pass off the floor of the chamber in which they were introduced to advance in the first year of the 2023-24 Legislative Session (some bills which didn’t meet that deadline will become “two-year bills,” viable so long as they pass off the floor before the end of January in the second year of Session). With one half of the legislative process behind us, this month is a good time to check in on the status of CCA’s 2023 legislative priorities. The Legislature will begin its summer recess on July 14, which is also the deadline by which policy committees must complete their consideration of legislation. Given that timeline, the statuses of the bills detailed below are likely to have changed since press time, so what follows should simply be read as a reflection of the first half of the legislative year. (Also note that this update does not include every bill that CCA has taken a position on this year but does detail CCA’s highest-priority legislative targets.) After reconvening on August 14, legislators will have one month to consider legislation in appropriations committees and on the Assembly and Senate floors, after which Governor Gavin Newsom will have until October 14 to sign or veto legislation. Look for a final recap of 2023 legislation in the November edition of California Cattleman. CCA-OPPOSED AB 99 (Connolly) – State roads and highways: integrated pest management Current Status: Will be heard in Senate Transportation Committee June 27. Vote History: Passed the Assembly 55-16. This bill would require the California Department of Transportation to adopt a statewide policy to use “integrated pest management” limiting roadside pesticide application in any county in which the Board
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of Supervisors has voted to limit or discontinue roadside application of pesticides. Such a policy could be detrimental to pest management on farms and ranches adjacent to CalTrans-managed roadsides. CCA-SUPPORTED AB 408 (Wilson) – The Climate-Resilient Farms, Sustainable Healthy Food Access and Farmworker Protection Bond Act of 2024 Current Status: Awaiting referral in Senate Rules Committee. Vote History: Passed the Assembly 67-9. This $3.365 billion bond bill includes several allocations that seek to promote livestock grazing in recognition of its ecological benefits, including $35 million to CalFire for equipment and infrastructure to support prescribed grazing, $60 million to CDFA to promote carbon sequestration through methods including prescribed grazing and $40 million for community food production in urban and suburban areas which can include “livestock grazing in open space.” CCA-OPPOSED AB 460 (Bauer-Kahan) – State Water Resources Control Board: interim relief Current Status: Will be heard in Senate Natural Resources & Water Committee June 27. Vote History: Passed the Assembly 43-20. Though it has been messaged as a bill to disincentivize violations of curtailment orders by increasing fines for illegal diversions, AB 460 is much more sweeping in its scope. The bill would allow virtually any person to petition the State Water Resources Control Board for an interim relief order against a water rightsholder for alleged violations of virtually any water right or water quality statute, and would allow the Board to impose draconian fines with minimal due