Governor Newsom’s California Comeback Plan proposes historic new investments in sustainable agriculture and healthy food systems. The budget builds on the $285 million included in the Governor’s January Budget and proposes an additional $641 million over two years for a total $926 million in strategic investments to support California’s agriculture industry as it addresses continued challenges while also producing nutritious food and advancing the state’s climate resilience objectives.
The Plan proposes $67.5 million to develop a healthier, more resilient and more equitable food system. Building on our leadership as the top agricultural state in the nation and a global climate leader, the Plan proposes a $532 million package to advance climate smart agriculture, improve drought resiliency, fund alternatives to agricultural burning, increase pollinator habitat on working lands and support conservation planning to build resilience.
Supporting an equitable recovery, the Plan calls for $42 million in new investments to support economic recovery, resiliency and high-road job growth through investing in innovation, assistance to underserved farmers, and farmer training and manager apprenticeships.
HEALTHY, RESILIENT AND EQUITABLE FOOD SYSTEMS
Governor Newsom proposes $67.5 million to develop a healthier, more resilient and more equitable food system for all Californians. This package supports a food system that provides nutritional security and education beginning in early childhood, increases food access and builds stronger local and regional supply chains through key programs:
● Farm to School – Additional $20 million investment in the California Farm to School Network for broadening the Incubator Grant Program.
● Urban Agriculture Program – $12 million to support urban farmers and community-based organizations in revitalizing urban food systems.
● California Nutrition Incentive Program – $15 million to continue nutrition incentives for low-income shoppers.
● Healthy Refrigeration Grant Program – $20 million to expand this pilot program that makes a greater variety of nutritious California-grown foods available in low-access areas.
● Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program – $500,000 to leverage federal funds for providing low-income seniors with access to locally grown fruits and vegetables at farmers markets.
CLIMATE SMART AGRICULTURE FOR SUSTAINABILITY & RESILIENCE
The California Comeback Plan proposes a $532 million package to advance climate
smart agriculture, improve drought resiliency, fund alternatives to agricultural burning, increase pollinator habitat on working lands and support conservation planning for a more resilient and robust agricultural system. The Plan includes the following investments:
● Funding Agricultural Replacement Measures for Emission Reductions (FARMER) – Additional $193 million over two years for the replacement of agricultural harvesting equipment, pumps and tractors to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
● Alternatives to open agricultural burning – $150 million to incentivize alternatives to open agricultural burning in the San Joaquin Valley.
● Healthy Soils Program – Additional $70 million to provide grants for on-farm soil management practices that sequester carbon.
● Livestock methane reduction – $60 million to reduce methane emissions in dairy and livestock operations.
● Pollinator Habitat Program – $30 million for pollinator habitat and forage on working lands.
● Technical assistance for conservation management plans – $20 million to support the development of conservation plans for climate change mitigation and resilience and to enhance water, habitat and other resources.
● Sustainable California Grown Cannabis Pilot Program – $9 million to incentivize legal legacy outdoor cannabis growers to adopt and gather data on environmental best practices.
ECONOMIC RECOVERY & HIGH-ROAD JOB GROWTH
California is committed to promoting an equitable economic recovery across the state, including rural communities, and for small and underserved producers and farmworkers. The California Comeback Plan proposes $42 million in new investments to support economic recovery, resiliency and high-road job growth through technical assistance to underserved farmers, new farmer training and manager apprenticeships:
● Technical assistance program for underserved farmers – Additional $2 million for technical assistance and grants for small and underserved farmers. This builds on technical assistance funding through the UC Cooperative Extension that was previously announced.
● New and beginning farmer training and farm manager apprenticeships program – $10 million to provide training and incubator programs for new and beginning farmers, with a focus on training farmworkers.
● Fresno-Merced Future of Food (F3) Innovation Initiative – $30 million for a regional hub to stimulate innovation on sustainable agricultural production and processing, address environmental challenges and support high-quality
jobs.
● Rural economic advisor – Specialized support for the Department of Food and Agriculture to improve California’s rural, agriculturally based economies.
KEY INVESTMENTS IN WATER INFRASTRUCTURE, DROUGHT RESPONSE
AND CLIMATE RESILIENCE
Climate change is making droughts more common and more severe. The California Comeback Plan invests $5.1 billion in drought support, water supply and natural landscape projects around the state and an additional $1 billion in direct aid for Californians who have past-due water bills. In addition, the Governor’s Plan includes:
● $5 million to provide technical assistance for on-farm water use efficiency.
● $1.5 million for drought-related economic analysis and decision-making tools for agriculture.
WATER INFRASTRUCTURE, DROUGHT RESPONSE AND CLIMATE RESILIENCE
Climate change is making droughts more common and more severe. The California Comeback Plan invests $5.1 billion in drought support, water supply and natural landscape projects around the state and an additional $1 billion in direct aid for Californians who have past-due water bills. For CDFA, this includes investments for:
● $60 million additional investments to the State Water Efficiency and Enhancement Program (SWEEP)
● $5 million to provide technical assistance for on-farm water use efficiency
● $1.5 million for drought-related economic analysis and decision-making tools for agriculture.
Additionally, the Emergency Response chapter proposed new investments of $150 million to support the development and enhancement of community resilience centers. Funding would be available to improve both local fairground and other community facilities to enhance the state’s emergency preparedness capabilities, particularly in response to climate change. Funding could be used to support infrastructure for emergency evacuation, shelter, base camps during emergency events, and critical deferred maintenance. Elements for this infrastructure may include cooling and heating centers, clean air centers, and extended emergency evacuation response centers with community kitchens, shower facilities, broadband, back-up power and other community needs due to wildfires, floods, and other emergencies or climate events.
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