CAWG eNews 10/17/19: State water board approves long-term plan for CV farmers + more news

October 17, 2019

YOUR SOURCE FOR CAWG AND INDUSTRY NEWS. FOR CAWG MEMBERS ONLY.

UNIFIED WINE & GRAPE SYMPOSIUM

Tuesday, Oct. 22 at 9 a.m. PDT > Registration and Housing Open

Hotels rooms go fast, so reserve as soon as it opens! CAWG members receive up to a $200 discount (per employee) on their Unified registration. Call the CAWG office at 916-379-8995 if you need your discount code.

> REGISTRATION

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Sponsorship and Advertising Opportunities

Promoting your brand at the 2020 Unified Wine & Grape Symposium is an opportunity you can’t miss! This year’s temporary venue at Cal Expo opens new possibilities for sponsorship and advertising. Think outside the box with your promotions! Deadline for sponsorship is Nov. 29.

> SPONSORSHIP & ADVERTISING PACKET

> ADVERTISING OPPORTUNITIES

>CUSTOMIZED PROMOTION? Contact Jenny Devine

TOP NEWS ITEMS

Government Relations Report

MIXED BAG RESULTS FOR LABOR BILLS

The deadline has come and gone for Gov. Newsom to act on legislation this year, so let’s look at some of the key bills related to labor. Some significant vetoes include the following:

SB 1 (Atkins, D-San Diego) was a far-reaching bill that, in part, would have allowed state agencies to adopt emergency regulations to reverse any perceived rollbacks in federal labor law. (NOTE: This bill would have also negatively impacted voluntary water agreements, existing water projects, and water flows for agriculture.)
AB 1468 (Carrillo, D-Los Angeles), would have added a new private right of action to various labor law violations, whether intended or not.
AB 171 (Gonzalez, D-San Diego), would have created inconsistent standards for sexual harassment that would result in unnecessary litigation and joint liability for sexual harassment of workers by contractors.
AB 589 (Gonzalez), would have required all employers to provide employees with an unnecessary notice about their perceived rights regarding immigration related documents.

Newsom also signed some bills that we wish would have been vetoed.

AB 51 (Gonzalez) bans employment arbitration agreements as a condition of employment.
AB 9 (Reyes, D-Los Angeles) extends the statute of limitations from 1-3 years for claims of employment discrimination.
SB 142 (Wiener, D-San Francisco) creates new standards for lactation accommodations in the workplace. (NOTE: AB 1976 (Limón, D-Santa Barbara) already created new standards less than a year ago and the law has not been given adequate time to be implemented.)

These new laws take effect Jan. 1, 2020.

LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

Bills recently signed/vetoed by Gov. Newsom

> OCT. 12 UPDATE

> OCT. 11 UDPATE

CV-SALTS APPROVED BY STATE WATER BOARD

This week, state water regulators approved a long-term plan for Central Valley farmers which is intended to reduce fertilizer and salt discharges. The plan tightens the rules to require that water quality standards be met within 35 years rather than 45 years. The initial proposal would have given users in the Sacramento River, San Joaquin River and Tulare Lake basins up to 45 years to eliminate nitrates discharges.

The State Water Resources Control Board approved the package of rules known as Central Valley Salinity Alternatives for Long-Term Sustainability, or CV-SALTS . Board members voted 3-1 to tighten the rules.

Dorene D'Adamo, vice chair of the water board, was the lone NO vote, arguing that there's not a technological solution to meet either the 35- or 45-year schedules for reducing nitrates. Options include reducing fertilizer use or switching to crops that require less fertilizer, diluting concentrations by recharging groundwater supplies, or planting crops capable of absorbing extra nitrate from the soil.

“What I fully expect is that I'm going to hear from agriculture saying, 'What are you guys thinking?' and it's going to be another nail in the coffin on people in the industry saying farming in California just doesn't make any sense,” D'Adamo said.

-Michael Miiller / [email protected] / 916-379-8995

New AVA Proposed in California

Alisos Canyon could be a new American viticultural area in California. The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) on Oct. 15 published a proposed rule in the Federal Register for the establishment of the approximately 5,774-acre Alisos Canyon AVA in Santa Barbara County. It is located entirely within the Central Coast viticultural area. The proposal is in response to a petition from Wesley D. Hagen on behalf of local vineyard owners and winemakers. Comments on this proposal must be received on or before Dec. 16, 2019.

> DETAILS AND COMMENTS

Dolcini Appointed DPR Director

Val Dolcini has been appointed director of the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) by Gov. Newsom after serving as the agency’s acting director since June 3. Dolcini has been Cal EPA deputy secretary of agriculture since March 2019. He has extensive experience in government over the past few decades, with positions at USDA’s Farm Service Agency and in the offices of two former California governors and two California Congressional representatives.

DPR Testing: 95 Percent of Fresh Produce Samples Met National Pesticide Residue Standards

DPR’s 2018 Pesticide Residues in Fresh Produce report shows that 95 percent of samples were legal and either had no detectable pesticide residues or residue levels below U.S. EPA tolerance levels. DPR collected 3,666 produce samples from 25 countries representing 140 types of fruits and vegetables.

43 percent of all produce samples had no detectable residues at all.
52 percent had residues detected within the legal level.
5 percent of all the samples had pesticide residues in excess of the established tolerance or had trace amounts of pesticides not approved for that commodity.

Oct. 17 Farm Bill Hearings Online

Biotechnology, Horticulture, and Research Subcommittee

“To Review Implementation of USDA Farm Bill Research Programs”

> VIDEO AND TESTIMONY (click on live stream)

Full U.S. Senate Ag Committee

“Implementing the 2018 Farm Bill”

> VIDEO AND TESTIMONY

Trinchero's Torkelson Named 2019 Wine Executive of the Year

Congratulations to Bob Torkelson, president and CEO of Trinchero Family Estates (CAWG member), on being named 2019 Wine Executive of the Year by Wine Enthusiast. The magazine honored him for his “devotion, determination and diversification efforts to keep Trinchero Family Estates on the cutting edge.”

> WINE STAR AWARD ARTICLE

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CAWG & CAWG PAC EVENTS

Celebrate the Leadership of CAWG Chair Bill Berryhill and Outgoing Directors

JOIN US FOR A CAWG CELEBRATION ON NOV. 7!

We will recognize outgoing CAWG chair Bill Berryhill and outgoing CAWG directors for their leadership and years of service. Harvest will be wrapping up, so it's a perfect time to gather for a wonderful occasion.

> DETAILS

EDUCATION

Applications are Open for Beginning Farm and Ranch Management Program

The Center for Land-Based Learning/California Farm Academy offers a professional training program that aims to fill important farm manager positions. The state-registered program lasts about two years, with 3,000 hours of paid on-the-job training and 250 hours of coursework. Upon completion, apprentices will graduate to a journeyman level in the occupation of a beginning farm and ranch manager. Farmers (employers) can hire an apprentice via the application process or if you have an employee who would be a good fit for this program, then they can be enrolled in the program.

> PROGRAM DETAILS