On November 19, 2024, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) announced that the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources (ENR) advanced 10 bills he introduced to conserve California public lands, mitigate wildfire risk, expand the use of prescribed fire, strengthen drought resiliency, and support wildlife. The bills, which include the following, will now be considered by the full Senate.
On November 20, 2024, the Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) released the annual fiscal outlook for California’s 2025-26 Budget. Legislators took action during the 2024-25 budget process to address an anticipated deficit in the 2025-2026 budget year. While the broader economy has been sluggish, high-income Californians have seen significant income growth, driven significantly by stock market gains. This increase has led to unanticipated income tax revenues; however, the reliance on stock market performance makes the sustainability of this revenue growth uncertain at best. This higher-than-anticipated revenue growth has resulted in a roughly balanced budget for 2025-2026, in the view of the LAO, with a smaller projected deficit of $2 billion. Despite the revenue growth, increased costs and spending still present significant challenges for California’s rural counties. RCRC counties, which often rely on agriculture, tourism, and natural resources may not benefit equally from the income growth seen in their high-income urban counterparts.
While the 2025-2026 budget outlook is considered to be relatively balanced compared to 2024-25, the LAO anticipates very little room for expanding existing programs or funding of new initiatives or programs. Additionally, significant pressures on rural counties in healthcare and social services, areas in which costs continue to rise, could further exacerbate economic disparities in the long-term. RCRC will continue to advocate strongly for the long-term and short-term fiscal needs of our member counties as the 2025-2026 budget process unfolds. The LAO’s Fiscal Outlook for 2025-2026 is available here.
For additional information, contact RCRC Senior Policy Advocate, John Kennedy.
On November 18th, California’s Sixth Appellate District Court of Appeal granted a request by RCRC and the California State Association of Counties to publish its decision in Working Families of Monterey County v. King City Planning Commission (Case No. H051232).
In April 2021, Grocery Outlet proposed building a new grocery store in King City. Objecting to the project, a representative of the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 5 challenged the Planning Commission approval and use of a Class 32 CEQA categorical exemption for in-fill development.
On November 13th, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael S. Regan announced the appointment of 18 new members and reappointment of 6 members to the Farm, Ranch, and Rural Communities Federal Advisory Committee. The FRRCC provides independent policy advice and recommendations to the Administrator on crucial environmental issues affecting agriculture and rural communities. Of note, two members of this Advisory Committee are from RCRC counties. New member, Maria Fernanda Abilgaard (AgroFresh, Fairfield) of Solano County joins existing member, the Honorable Eddie Crandell, Lake County Supervisor and RCRC Board Delegate, on the committee.
On November 8th, the Department of the Interior announced that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has published proposed updates to strengthen conservation and management of greater sage-grouse habitat on public lands in 10 Western states, including California....
On November 7th, U.S. Representative Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael) indicated that he had “just been assured by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that it would release the [2023 Salmon Fishery Disaster Relief] funds to the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commision by the end of 2024 for dispersal”.
On Thursday, November 14th, California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara announced that his office had sent the final version of his proposed regulations on catastrophe modeling for insurance ratemaking to the state Office of Administrative Law for approval. The new...
On Tuesday November 12th, the Senate approved, by unanimous consent, the Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act (S. 2581). This bipartisan measure, reintroduced in 2024 by Senators Crapo (R-ID), Wyden (D-OR), Risch (R-ID), and Merkley (D-OR), would reauthorize the Secure Rural Schools program through 2026.
Following Senate approval of S. 2581, focus now turns to the U.S. House of Representatives. To help ensure the reauthorization of the Secure Rural Schools (SRS) program, House members need to hear from local leaders about SRS’s importance for rural communities.
On November 4, RCRC submitted formal comments and suggested modifications to CalRecycle’s updated draft single use packaging regulations.
SB 54 (Allen) of 2022 requires manufacturers of single use packaging and food service ware to take responsibility for the management and recycling of the products they introduce into the stream of commerce. CalRecycle was required to determine which categories of covered materials are recyclable and compostable and SB 54 requires all local jurisdictions to include those materials identified by CalRecycle in their collection and recycling/composting programs (unless they receive an exemption or extension from CalRecycle). Those 19 counties with fewer than 70,000 residents (and cities within those counties) may exempt themselves from this requirement.
RCRC’s comments on the updated draft regulations acknowledge several significant improvements based upon suggestions made by RCRC and other stakeholders, but also raise concerns about other aspects of the proposal. RCRC outlined issues with the scope of expenditures eligible for reimbursement, the expensive dispute resolution process outlined to resolve differences between local governments and the producer responsibility organization, and the enforcement process.
RCRC anticipates that CalRecycle will have to make several additional changes and release a third draft that should be subject to another brief 15-day public comment period.
For more information, contact RCRC Senior Policy Advocate, John Kennedy.
On November 4, CalRecycle released a draft program environmental impact report (EIR) for its SB 54 single-use packaging regulations. The program EIR outlines how CalRecycle believes the state’s recycling system must expand to meet the new single-use packaging collection and recycling requirements.
On November 4, CalRecycle released a draft program environmental impact report (EIR) for its SB 54 single-use packaging regulations. The program EIR outlines how CalRecycle believes the state’s recycling system must expand to meet the new single-use packaging collection and recycling requirements.
As a program EIR, developers and local governments may be able to tier off this document in complying with the California Environmental Quality Act, thereby saving time and resources that would have otherwise been needed to develop larger, more complex EIRs.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has reopened the Wolf-Livestock Compensation Program for applications for direct livestock loss compensation.
On Thursday, Governor Gavin Newsom issued a proclamation convening a special session of the California Legislature in response to the 2024 general election results. The stated reason by the Governor was to “safeguard California values and fundamental rights in the face of an incoming Trump administration. The special session will focus on bolstering California legal resources to protect civil rights, reproductive freedom, climate action, and immigrant families.”
Dates and times for the special session have yet to be released. For more information, please refer to the Governor’s proclamation, which can be found here.
On Thursday, November 7, the nonpartisan Little Hoover Commission adopted a report on California’s ongoing property insurance crisis which was issued for public review earlier in the week. The report, which was developed over the course of 2024 through hearings, interviews and public comment from impacted stakeholders, contains several recommendations to state lawmakers for addressing the insurance crisis, including:
Allowing insurers to use catastrophe models for pricing, but requiring that wildfire mitigations performed by homeowners are reflected in those models;
Creation of an independent panel of experts to evaluate the usage of those models, rather than relying on the California Department of Insurance’s internal processes; and,
Forming a state working group of wildfire experts to develop a minimum set of wildfire mitigation standards for homeowners and communities to undertake.
The report was developed without the input of California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara, who declined to participate in the process. However, many local representatives, including RCRC and RCRC member counties, gave input into the report to help paint the full picture of how the crisis is impacting rural homeowners across California.
To read the report or for more information on the study, visit the Little Hoover Commission website or contact Staci Heaton.
President Trump has won a second term and will be the 47th President of the United States. Republicans have also won back control of the Senate with a majority. However, control of the House remains too close to call, with results continuing to come in over the next several days. With these changes in mind, RCRC is analyzing potential upcoming policies from the President-elect and working to establish communication with new members in California and Congress. Throughout his campaign, President Trump has focused on immigration, taxes and tariffs, healthcare reform, and changes to the federal workforce.
In the meantime, we are headed to a lame duck session which may be somewhat truncated from the original calendar should the Republicans win both houses of Congress. Either way, a host of issues await action. Key among them are SRS funding and the Farm Bill; while both expected to be taken up with an appropriation and continuing resolution, respectively, it is not a certainty.
RCRC is also tracking California Senate and Assembly results and ballot propositions that will impact our rural communities.
As more information is gathered over the coming days, the RCRC team will work to identify opportunities at the state and federal level under the changed environment.
For further information, contact RCRC Senior Vice President of Government Affairs, Mary-Ann Warmerdam.
On October 30th, Governor Newsom signed an Executive Order to address rising electricity costs, acknowledging escalating customer bills in pursuit of the state’s carbon neutrality goals. The Executive Order identifies the legacy net energy metering (NEM) program as well as utility wildfire risk reduction efforts as major cost drivers to ratepayer increases. The Executive Order directs the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and California Air Resources Board (CARB) to improve efficiency by reallocating unused program funds back to customers and enhancing the California Climate Credit, funded by the state’s Cap-and-Trade program. On a related note, CARB recently issued a notice that a formal rulemaking and stakeholder process will commence to develop updates to the Cap-and-Trade program. Finally, the Executive Order also aims to reduce long-term costs through greater scrutiny of utility wildfire safety spending and regulatory expenses, desiring more cost-effective wildfire mitigation measures and potentially impacting utility undergrounding ambitions, which can be 3 to 7 times more expensive per mile to install than other system hardening upgrades such as covered conductors. In the upcoming legislative session, state lawmakers are expected to consider additional actions to support affordability.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is issuing payments this week to agricultural producers impacted by natural disasters, including $143 million in crop insurance indemnities for Florida producers impacted by Hurricane Milton and about $92 million for livestock producers, nationwide, who faced increased supplemental feed costs as a result of forage losses due to 2022 qualifying drought and wildfire events…
On October 30th, The U.S. Department of the Interior announced nearly $46 million in investments from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for ecosystem restoration activities that address high-priority Klamath Basin water-related challenges in southern...
On October 22, 2024, the draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) for GSNR’s proposed forest resiliency project was officially released by the project’s lead agency, Golden State Finance Authority (GSFA) for public review and comment. GSFA has provided a 60-day public...
On October 17, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) announced that the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) will receive over $203 million for two highway infrastructure projects in Redwood City and Tulare, California. The federal investments will fund...
On October 23rd, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that California will receive $276 million for Fiscal Year 2025 to help communities make essential water infrastructure upgrades to safely manage wastewater, protect local freshwater resources,...
CalRecycle has extended the public comment period for the revisions to the SB 54 Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act regulations. The current 15-day comment period began on October 14, 2024, when CalRecycle released its...
District Agricultural Associations, commonly known as “county fairs”, are the community center for many of the RCRC member counties. They provide a venue for activities as diverse as emergency operation centers, including cooling/heating centers, to Quinceanera celebrations. Increasingly, these facilities struggle to maintain financial viability in the face of diminishing state investments. Many have not been updated in decades by the state even as the state looks to these facilities when establishing wildfire response centers.
The federal Farm Bill is typically taken up and renewed by the Congress on a five-year cycle since being authorized as part of the New Deal era of programs. RCRC member counties benefit from several program areas including: the Rural Development title; the Forestry...
The California Land Conservation Act of 1965, commonly referred to as the Williamson Act, is a program that was created by the State to help conserve agricultural land. The Williamson Act enabled local governments to enter into contracts with private landowners for the purpose of restricting specific parcels of land to agricultural or related open space use. In return, landowners receive lower property tax assessments based upon farming and open space uses as opposed to full market value.
On October 17th, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) approved new planning and execution processes for the state’s three major utilities: Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E), Southern California Edison (SCE), and San Diego Gas & Electric...
On October 14, CalRecycle released its much-anticipated revisions to SB 54 single-use plastic packaging draft regulations. The release triggers a 15-day comment period for the public to weigh in on the proposed changes….
On October 15, a group of eighteen U.S. Congressmembers, led by Representative Doris Matsui (D-Sacramento) and Earl L. “Buddy” Carter (R-Georgia), urged the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to extend flexibilities for telemedicine prescribing of controlled substances, so that patients continue to have access to care at the start of the new year.
On October 15, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA), Chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Fisheries, Water, and Wildlife, and Congressmember Raul Ruiz, M.D. (D-Imperial) joined federal and state leaders to celebrate the groundbreaking of the...
On September 30, 2024, Governor Newsom completed final action on bills sent to him by the Legislature for the year. Signing 1,017 bills and vetoing 189, this year marked the highest number of bills to come across the Governor’s desk during his time in office....
This week, U.S. Representatives Doug LaMalfa (R-Butte) and Mike Thompson (D-Lake) announced the introduction of the Pacific Flyway Habitat Enhancement Act, which would allow the Secretary of Agriculture to enroll additional agricultural lands in the Farm Service Agency’s Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP). CREP is a voluntary land retirement program that helps agricultural producers protect environmentally sensitive land, decrease erosion, restore wildlife habitat, and safeguard ground and surface water.
The Pacific Flyway Habitat Enhancement Act would expand lands eligible for the program to include certain qualified wetlands for which there are habitat concerns or risks. The bill would also provide incentives to farmers to engage in seasonal field flooding to better manage their working croplands while supporting wetland-dependent species.
For more information, contact RCRC Policy Advocate Sidd Nag.
Sarah Dukett
Senior Policy Advocate
Leigh Kammerich
Senior Policy Advocate
John Kennedy
Senior Policy Advocate
Staci Heaton
Senior Policy Advocate
Tracy Rhine
Senior Policy Advocate
Eric Will
Policy Advocate
Mary-Ann Warmerdam
Senior Vice President Governmental Affairs