Governor’s Office News Release

As global inflation and war in Europe drive up costs across the country, California Governor Gavin Newsom is proposing a $300.7 billion budget to provide relief from rising inflation, ensure public safety, address homelessness, transform public education, and combat climate change. The Governor’s California Blueprint includes an $18.1 billion inflation relief package to get money back into the pockets of Californians and bring down costs for families. 
 
“Backed by a robust surplus and grounded in our unshakable values, we’re paving the California Way forward to prosperity and progress for all. With historic investments, we’re doubling down on our formula for success and making sure no one is left behind – supporting working families and businesses, tackling climate change, expanding health care access, making our communities safer, and more,” said Governor Newsom. “While gridlock persists in Congress and right-wing fanatics turn statehouses across the country into laboratories of hate and oppression, here in California, we’re putting in the work to grow our economy and implement real, inclusive policy change to create a brighter future for all.”

• $18.1 Billion Inflation Relief in direct payments to help address inflation, help people pay their utility bills and rent, and reduce costs like health care and child care. 
• $47.1 billion climate commitment – an increase of $32 billion this year – to tackle pollution, build climate resilient water supplies, reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires, ensure grid reliability and accelerate clean energy solutions, and protect communities from extreme heat. 
• $660 million to ensure public safety with funding for new officers and mental health support for law enforcement, support for victims of sex trafficking, cracking down on internet crimes against children, and tackling the opioid crisis. 
• $14.7 million to confront homelessness and the mental health crisis with investments to help get people off our streets and into the services and care they need, focusing particularly on Californians who suffer from mental health and substance use disorders.
• $37 billion to rebuild California with money for infrastructure including broadband and new housing, as well as a historic investment of $128.3 billion to transform public education.
• Billions of dollars to invest in Californians and the Governor’s pro-life agenda, including funding to: 
  • Improve our education systems with universal preschool, after school and school meals; and expanded, more affordable child care
  • Make health care more accessible and affordable through Medi-Cal expansion and subsidies, increased reproductive health care access, home visiting, and support for black infant health, youth mental health and suicide prevention, and addressing adverse childhood experiences. 
  • Clean up our environment by tackling pollution, particularly in disadvantaged communities that bear the brunt of its impacts.  
  • Ensure our communities are safe with violence prevention programs, expansive gun buyback programs and getting fentanyl and other opioids off our streets. 

Led by GDP growth of 7.8 percent, the Blueprint includes a $97.5 billion surplus. The Governor’s proposal ensures that this year’s spending will not hamstring future budgets, calling for $37.1 billion in reserves including $23.3 billion for the state’s Rainy Day Fund, and spends 94 percent of surplus revenues on one-time expenditures.  

For further information on these and other items in the California Blueprint, visit www.ebudget.ca.gov.

CDFA Secretary Karen Ross appeared this week at the first-ever Sonoma County Farm Bureau Water Summit.  She joined California Natural Resources Agency Secretary Wade Crowfoot for a discussion centering on this historic drought and the new normal with climate change.  

The two-day meeting hosted presentations on all aspects of water management, water quality, the water rights system, the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, local water issues, and other topics including new technologies and financing mechanisms.    

The secretaries fielded a wide variety of questions from the audience, including questions related to the $5.2 billion in Governor Newsom’s 2021 California Comeback Plan to support drought response and long-term water resiliency.  It was noted that just last week the Department of Water Resources announced $150 million of funding awards to support local community water projects, including $40 million for the Sonoma County Water Agency for ten water recycling projects. 

Questions about the 2014 water bond, Proposition 1, which included $2.7 billion for storage projects, provided an opportunity to explain requirements for the California Water Commission as it administers the Water Storage Investment Program for public benefit. Seven projects are being funded, and they will create 2.77-million-acre feet of additional water storage space, both above and below ground.

All this comes in addition to the $120 million invested in CDFA’s State Water Efficiency & Enhancement Program (SWEEP) since 2014. The department’s Healthy Soils Program also plays a crucial role in mitigating the challenges brought by drought and climate change by building soil carbon to increase water-holding capacity.  CDFA has just completed a funding round of $75 million in Healthy Soils grants to farmers, with another $85 million included in next year’s budget. 

Secretary Ross added to the discussion by highlighting a new paradigm the Governor set for collaborating on voluntary agreements to reduce water demand, enhance water flows, and invest in habitat restoration for species.  This is an approach modeled in 2014-2015, when Sonoma County growers, vintners, NGOs, and fish agencies voluntarily undertook actions to benefit fish and the ecosystem. These were an alternative to state-imposed curtailments. 

Late last month, state and federal water officials joined with a number of California water agencies to announce voluntary agreements to update and implement the Bay-Delta Water Quality Control Plan, and discussions continue to have more water agencies join.

The Farm to School Advisory Council and Interagency Working Group, whose guidance helped develop the recently released Planting the Seed: Farm to School Roadmap for Success, held a breakfast meeting this week for the final report to be presented to the group and to discuss next steps.

The next steps will include promoting CDFA’s 2022 California Farm to School Incubator Grant Program, which is accepting applications until July 6 for projects that cultivate equity, nurture students, build climate resilience, and create scalable and sustainable change.

CDFA Secretary Karen Ross joined California Natural Resources Agency Secretary Wade Crowfoot and other dignitaries at Stemple Creek Ranch in Tomales (Marin County) today to reaffirm shared priorities between the state and private stakeholders, and also to highlight an updated Draft 2022 Scoping Plan that lays out how the fifth largest economy in the world (California) can drastically reduce its dependence on fossil fuels while relying on natural and working lands as essential pieces to help us achieve our climate goals.  

Stemple Creek Ranch owners Loren and Lisa Poncia have utilized multiple state funding programs, including CDFA’s Healthy Soils Program and the Department of Conservation’s Working Lands and Riparian Corridors Program and California Farmland Conservancy Program. This funding is helping to protect the ranch from future development through a conservation easement, is helping to improve the quality of the soil as well as livestock forage, and is helping to restore a stream. All of these actions reduce or avoid greenhouse gas emissions and improve the environment.

Secretary Ross: “This ranch is a prime example of a working ranch with multiple benefits for producing nutritious food, providing wildlife habitat, and improving water quality, all while sequestering carbon and  providing climate change resiliency.”

CDFA has released its Antimicrobial Use and Stewardship (AUS) program Annual Report 2021. The report highlights how the AUS team of veterinarians, epidemiologists and specialists work toward preserving the efficacy of antibiotic drugs for both humans and animals through a comprehensive antibiotic stewardship and monitoring program.

AUS Annual Report 2021 highlights include:

• Program scope for fiscal year 2020-2021
• Livestock health promotion and infection prevention practices used in California
• Livestock antibiotics being sold and how they are used in California
• Livestock antibiotic resistance trends being evaluated and analyzed in California
• Publications written by AUS-funded researchers to help inform solutions and future needs
• AUS outreach, engagement and education, including Vaccine Handling Guidelines for veterinarians and producers

To learn more about how AUS supports animal health and a safe food supply, please visit the AUS website, subscribe to receive AUS announcements, follow AUS on Facebook, or reach out to program staff at CDFA_AUS@CDFA.CA.GOV or (916) 576-0300.

CDFA sick bird hotline: 1-866-922-BIRD (2473)

Link to CDFA Avian Flu page

California Public Service Recognition Week is May 1-7

Taken a Governor’s Office news release

Amid intensifying climate impacts, Governor Gavin Newsom today announced that the state has released an Extreme Heat Action Plan outlining a strategic and comprehensive set of state actions to adapt and strengthen resilience to extreme heat. The announcement comes on the heels of a heat wave earlier this month in Long Beach that reached a high of 101°F, nine degrees hotter than the record high in April 2014.
 
“Extreme heat driven by climate change endangers the lives and livelihoods of Californians in every corner of our state, and threatens our vital natural systems,” said Governor Newsom. “The Extreme Heat Action Plan is a critical part of California’s commitment to strengthening community resilience and will guide partnerships and investments in equitable solutions to protect all Californians.”

With the launch of this plan, the Newsom Administration is announcing an all-of-government approach to address extreme heat across four action areas:

• Building Public Awareness and Notification:  The Administration will prioritize the needs of high-risk California communities most impacted by extreme heat by increasing access to timely and appropriate information and resources that can help them stay safer. The most impacted groups include people experiencing housing insecurity, outdoor workers, older adults, young children, and people with existing health conditions. Additionally, the public awareness effort includes actions to equip communities, governments, and tribes with easily accessible data.
• Strengthening Community Services and Response: The burden of extreme heat falls disproportionately on rural and disadvantaged communities and California Native American tribes. The community services and response effort includes a suite of actions that reduce heat exposure, build communities’ capacity to respond to heat events, support local climate adaptation planning and implementation, and advance heat illness prevention standards for indoor and outdoor workers.  
• Increasing Resilience of the Built Environment: As temperatures increase and heat waves become more frequent and severe, the cascading impacts of extreme heat on infrastructure and the environment exacerbate risks to people, the economy, and the natural environment. The built environment track includes actions to protect critical energy, transportation, and other infrastructure, support heat-resilient communities through relevant regulations and codes, and scale weatherization and cooling technologies.
• Utilizing Nature-Based Solutions: Nature-based solutions deliver multiple benefits, including addressing extreme heat by cooling communities, providing strategic shade, and regulating temperature of buildings and surfaces during extreme heat events. This track includes actions to promote nature-based solutions to reduce extreme heat risks, support nature’s ability to withstand and adapt to increasing temperatures and reduce heat risk to water supply and systems.

CDFA is participating in the plan by helping to build awareness of extreme heat conditions for worker safety, working to create climate resilience centers, administering investments in the Healthy Refrigeration Grant Program, addressing animal mortality during extreme heat events, working with school districts on edible gardens and farm-to-school programs, and facilitating nature-based solutions such as building healthy soils for crop resilience, among other initiatives.

Projections from the state’s best climate science forecast that all of California will be impacted in the years and decades to come by higher average temperatures and more frequent and life-threatening heat waves, impacting public health and safety, economic prosperity, and communities and natural systems –  with profoundly disproportionate consequences for the most vulnerable Californians. Extreme heat ranks amongst the deadliest of all climate change hazards, with structural inequities playing a significant role in the capacity of individuals, workers, and communities to protect and adapt to its effects.

In partnership with the Legislature, Governor Newsom advanced an $800 million package in last year’s budget to protect California’s communities from heat. The package includes $300 million to support implementation of the Extreme Heat Action Plan and numerous other investments that protect communities, the economy, and natural systems from extreme heat. The Governor is proposing to allocate this additional funding in the 2022-23 budget to support the implementation of the Extreme Heat Action Plan.

Governor Newsom has put forward a historic $37.6 billion climate package – more than what most other countries are spending – to protect all Californians from the costs and impacts of climate change, while accelerating efforts to reduce the dependence on big polluters and fossil fuels.