SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA (October 13, 2021) – Fire insurance reform is coming to San Luis Obispo County wineries and other agriculture businesses. 

On October 12, California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara issued an Order to the state’s “insurer of last resort,” the California FAIR Plan Association, to double the wildfire property insurance coverage limit for wineries and other farm or ranch businesses. 

“This is a big deal for our agriculture community,” explained SLO County Farm Bureau Executive Director Brent Burchett. “When we brought Commissioner Lara to a Paso Robles winery back in June, we explained how the current coverage for agriculture businesses is grossly insufficient, and that insurers are failing to account for fire prevention efforts we’ve gone to great expense to employ on our farms, ranches and wineries.” 

Lara announced Tuesday he worked with California Farm Bureau members across the state over the past year to develop more comprehensive insurance reforms for ag and other rural businesses. Specifically, the Order expands the maximum FAIR Plan policy limit from $4.5 million to $8.4 million, and requires insurance companies to incorporate property owners’ fire-prevention actions when rating their risk. 

"SLO County's agricultural community has lost one of its greatest champions and advocates," said Executive Director Brent Burchett. "While our thoughts are with the Britton family on their loss, Marilyn leaves behind a proud legacy of supporting farmers, ranchers and local youth that continues to be felt today and for decades to come."

Marilyn Britton passed away peacefully in her sleep on October 8. She had a distinguished career at San Luis Obispo County Farm Bureau for over 30 years before retiring as Executive Director in 2001.

Born in 1939 in San Luis Obispo to Albert and Nadine Martin, Marilyn graduated from Atascadero High School in 1957, and from Cal Poly with a Bachelor of Science degree in Home Economics. It was at Cal Poly, in the Mustang Marching Band, where she met her husband Glenn Britton. Marilyn received numerous awards and recognitions for her service to the local agricultural community, including being named the 2018 Agriculturalist of the Year.

Per Marilyn’s wishes, no service will be held. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that expressions of sympathy be made to a cause that was near to Marilyn’s heart, the San Luis Obispo Agricultural Education Committee.

Established in 1989, the 501(c)3 nonprofit organization works with local teachers and students to raise awareness about the importance of agriculture. Contributions can be mailed to: San Luis Obispo Agricultural Education Committee, P.O. Box 1916, Templeton, CA 93465.

Read more about Marilyn’s life at slofarmbureau.org.

Each day we make a per­son­al com­mit­ment to go beyond — build deep­er rela­tion­ships, pro­vide inno­v­a­tive solu­tions, work col­lab­o­ra­tive­ly as a team, serve our com­mu­ni­ty, and be active stew­ards for the future of Glenn Burdette. Account­ing is often called a num­bers busi­ness, but we view it as a ser­vice busi­ness. We are deeply com­mit­ted to serv­ing our clients, who are respon­si­ble for our suc­cess; our employ­ees, who are the heart and soul of our firm; and our com­mu­ni­ty, where we make our homes, raise our fam­i­lies and par­tic­i­pate in activ­i­ties that enrich our lives.

Our goal is to go above and beyond for our clients, cre­ative­ly apply­ing our exper­tise and expe­ri­ence to meet their indi­vid­ual needs. We help them seize oppor­tu­ni­ties today, and offer solu­tions for their chal­lenges ahead. We serve a diverse base of large, mid­dle-mar­ket and small own­er-man­aged busi­ness­es in a wide range of indus­tries, and we are also proud to serve a num­ber of non­prof­it orga­ni­za­tions, gov­ern­men­tal agen­cies and individuals.

Com­mu­ni­ty ser­vice is inte­gral to the cul­ture of Glenn Bur­dette. Our employ­ees serve on local non­prof­it boards, and are active in cham­bers of com­merce and ser­vice clubs from San­ta Maria to Paso Rob­les. Fol­low­ing are just some of the orga­ni­za­tions that our firm and employ­ees sup­port with their time and resources:

(805) 544 - 1441 glennburdette.com

Kathryn McGinnis, Ann De Lay

Douglas Thomason, William Coy, Dale Guerra, Michael Strouss, Dan Wixom, James Cushman, Darline Lindsey, Stephen Sinton, Daniel Jaureguy, Keith Smith, William Ernst, White Ranch Co, Joe Sabol, Wallace Group

Farm Bureau members in California can save anywhere from 5-20% on select parts they use every day such as brake pads and rotors, filters, batteries, belts, hoses and many more commonly replaced automotive and equipment parts. O’Reilly Auto Parts offers a great selection of not just general automotive, but fleet and heavy duty parts as well to cover every piece of equipment on your farm or ranch.

Enjoy free delivery within a 5 mile radius of your local O’Reilly Auto Parts store and free access to our professional customer website firstcallonline.com for parts look up and ordering, vehicle specs, TSB documents, etc. To take advantage of the discount visit your local O’Reilly Auto Parts and use the CA Farm Bureau account to purchase your product. Should you want to open your own account let the representative know and they will set you up with your private account using the same discount structure. O’Reilly Auto Parts offers cash on delivery, daily charge, weekly charge, and monthly charge accounts depending on your individual needs.

Learn more here.

Our weekly E-News is sent out every Friday to our membership and local leaders. If you're interested in an effective, low-cost advertising campaign ($150 a month) please give us a call or send an email to SLO County Farm Bureau Executive Director Brent Burchett.

To watch the video click here.

In their endless effort to manage powdery mildew fungicide resistance, winegrape growers still rely extensively on a material used to protect French wine more than 150 years ago. ...

"When it is too windy or there is an inversion, you can have spray drift," said Mark Battany, UCCE viticulture advisor in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties. "If we have better data, we can reduce drift." ...

Farm Bureau members can read the full story here. Need your membership number? Send an email to info@slofarmbureau.org and we’ll look it up for you.  

Join SLO County Farm Bureau now or renew your membership online. Go to slofarmbureau.org to join, or download the membership form PDF. Have your renewal notice available to speed up the process; you will need to enter your membership number, name and ZIP code. Renewal dues may be paid online or over the phone by credit card.