Many bills await action by governor

Issue Date: September 10, 2008

By Kate Campbell
Assistant Editor

With the state budget nearly two and half months overdue, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said he won't sign any bills until a new budget is adopted. That leaves in limbo about 850 pieces of legislation.

Also, lost in the wrangling was the opportunity to place additional propositions on the statewide November ballot, including a proposed water bond.

"While most policy matters and legislation have been put to bed for this session, the state still has no budget for the current fiscal year," said California Farm Bureau Federation Administrator Rich Matteis.

"This is an unsettling situation and I have never seen anything like it in my more than 30 years working in the Capitol."

He said Farm Bureau members and staff have engaged lawmakers on a number of fronts during the session in an effort to gain approval for legislation important to California family farmers, ranchers, rural communities and the environment.

"We've had some disappointments along the way and there are a few bills pending the governor's signature that we think will make things more difficult for farmers, but overall we've also had some remarkable successes," Matteis said.

He singled out as a Farm Bureau victory two metal theft prevention bills awaiting the governor's signature: Assembly Bill 844, carried by Assemblyman Tom Berryhill, R-Modesto, and Senate Bill 691, carried by Sen.Ron Calderon, D-Montebello.

Both passed by near unanimous margins. The bills require recyclers to implement a three-day waiting period before paying for scrap metal.

Scrap metal dealers also will be required to take a picture of material being recycled, obtain current identification and a thumbprint from sellers, obtain a disclosure of the origin of the scrap metal and provide monthly reports to local law enforcement.

The bills increase penalties against recyclers found in violation of the provisions and require convicted metal thieves to pay restitution to victims of metal theft.

Farm Bureau is urging the governor to sign the legislation to help combat the metal theft epidemic that's hurting farms and businesses throughout the state.

Under Farm Bureau-sponsored AB 2168 by Assemblyman Dave Jones, D-Sacramento, farmers who sell directly to the public from farm stands will receive greater latitude in their marketing activities. Designed to promote consumption of California-grown farm products, the bill was passed unanimously and now is awaiting signature.

Farm Bureau also supported AB 2714, carried by Assemblyman Rick Keene, R-Chico. The bill specifies that flying hay chaff or straw not be considered a loss of load for haulers under new federal and state cargo securement requirements. The bill was signed by the governor before he declared a moratorium on signing or vetoing bills.

Likewise, SB 1436, carried by Sen. Denise Ducheny, D-San Diego, and sponsored by Farm Bureau, was signed into law in July. It extends the repeal date for incidental take provisions under the state Endangered Species Act until Jan. 1, 2011. Prior to the bill being signed into law that provision was set to expire Jan 1, 2009.

"Farm Bureau was extremely successful in moving some of its policy priorities through the Legislature," said Noelle Cremers, CFBF director of natural resources and commodities. "We're pleased with the strong support from many members of the Legislature and gratified by passage of several important pieces of legislation, including bills to combat metal theft, extend the accidental take provision in the California Endangered Species Act, and make it easier for California farmers to sell agricultural products directly to consumers."

AB 541, introduced by Assemblyman Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, would provide a protocol for obtaining and testing a sample of a biotech crop to determine whether a contract breach or a patent infringement has occurred. The bill would provide that a farmer is not liable for infringement based on the presence or possession of a patented biotech plant when the farmer did not knowingly buy the plant material. This Farm Bureau-supported bill also is awaiting signature.

The right to farm will receive a boost with approval of AB 2881, carried by Assemblywoman Lois Wolk, D-Vacaville. The bill would require real estate sales to include a disclosure to anyone buying property within a mile of a farm or ranch, advising them of the agricultural activity and the presence of the state's right-to-farm law.

"While Farm Bureau has worked to get a number of valuable measures through the Legislature, of equal importance is the job of defeating bills that would harm agriculture and the ability to produce food," said John Gamper, CFBFdirector of taxation and land use.

Gamper included as successes the defeat of AB 2175, introduced by Assemblyman John Laird, D-Santa Cruz, and SB 1617, by Sen. Christine Kehoe, D-San Diego.

AB 2175 would have taken water conservation plans away from the Department of Water Resources and required that they first be presented to the California Water Commission and be effective only after it approved the plans.

SB 1617 would have imposed a $50 per dwelling fire prevention "fee" in the State Responsibility Area.

"Farm Bureau opposed this measure because we believe it would have imposed a tax and not a fee," said Gamper. "Since the bill didn't guarantee that any portion of the fee would actually be used for fire prevention activities in the jurisdiction where it is collected, the bill would likely have been challenged as an illegal tax."

He said county Farm Bureau leaders and members of the CFBF Forestry Advisory Committee were active in sidetracking this legislation.

Farm Bureau members are urging the governor to veto two bills when they reach his desk.

AB 2386, carried by Assemblyman Fabian Nunez, D-Los Angeles, would create a new, completely unsupervised process called a "mediated election." That would allow union agents to give employees ballots; tell employees to mark their ballots; tell employees to put their marked ballots in envelopes and to seal and sign those envelopes; and collect and deliver the envelopes to the Agricultural Labor Relations Board.

All this would occur without Agricultural Labor Relations Board supervision or the oversight of a so-called "mediator." The union would need only file a simple petition for such an "election," where the only choices given to voting employees are immediate unionization or an ALRB-supervised on-site election.

Additionally, AB 2386 would severely restrict a farm employer's First Amendment right to discuss his views of unionization with his employees.

CFBF is working with a broad coalition of California agricultural organizations to urge a veto of AB 2386.

SB 974, which also is pending, likely will drive up costs for farmers who export farm products. Carried by Sen. Alan Lowenthal, D-Long Beach, it would impose a $60 fee for standard 40-foot containers moving in or out of the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles. If the Port of Oakland doesn't adopt its own fee, the SB 974 fee schedule would automatically apply.

Farm Bureau and more than 400 businesses oppose the bill.

"This has been a very unusual end of session," Gamper said. "Here we are in September with no state budget, no solution to the water crisis and the governor indicating he will not sign new legislation into law prior to receiving a state budget.

"We worked hard this session on behalf of our members," he said. "Unfortunately, we're still in limbo until the budget stalemate is resolved."

A Capitol Alert update provides descriptions of key bills. Matteis said members of the Farm Team action program will receive e-mail alerts as important bills are sent to the governor's desk.

"Because of the highly unusual circumstances surrounding the close of this legislative session, it's hard to say when the logjam will break," Matteis said. "We're poised, however, to take action as measures are moved to the governor. We urge our members to stay involved and be ready to support key bills with phone calls and letters on what may be very short notice."

(Kate Campbell is a reporter for Ag Alert. She may be contacted at kcampbell@cfbf.com.)

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