Advocacy in Action

Farm assistance

With a funding deadline approaching this week, lawmakers in the House and Senate continue to advance spending packages to avoid another government shutdown. Many in the agriculture industry were hopeful the spending packages would include additional economic assistance and a year-round sales authorization of E15, or 15% ethanol fuel blend. 

A coalition including the American Farm Bureau Federation and the Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance, of which California Farm Bureau is a part, sent a letter this month urging lawmakers to move forward on much-needed support as farmers and ranchers continue to grapple with high input costs and other economic pressures.

California Farm Bureau has been focused on pressuring officials to provide more equitable support for specialty crop programs, which have not seen the same degree of financial assistance as other commodities. A California Farm Bureau “Action Alert” garnered more than 1,200 letters to Capitol Hill within a day. As of last week, both measures were stripped from the most recent House funding package, meaning there is likely more work to be done following the passage of any final deals. 

Government purchases

During her remarks at the American Farm Bureau Federation Annual Convention earlier this month, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said the U.S. Department of Agriculture plans to buy $80 million worth of several specialty crops, including $20 million each of pistachios, almonds, grape juice and raisins.

The purchases will be used to direct U.S.-grown or -produced commodities into local and regional nutrition programs and food banks. Additional details of the purchases have not yet been released. California Farm Bureau will share updates as more information becomes available.

WOTUS rule

California Farm Bureau submitted comments this month in general support of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed revised “waters of the United States” rule, or WOTUS, which was release last fall. The three objectives of the new rule are to fully implement the 2023 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Sackett v. EPA, which narrows the scope of federal protection for certain wetlands and other waters; cut red tape and lower the cost of business; and protect water quality by striking a balance between state and federal authority. 

The proposed rule includes definitions for the terms “relatively permanent,” “continuous surface connection” and “tributary.”

California Farm Bureau also provided oral comments at EPA’s virtual public meeting in December and prepared a Farm Team alert for members to submit comments. 

Brown Act Transparency

California Farm Bureau recently raised concerns to a local groundwater sustainability agency regarding the exclusion of its appointed agricultural member from participating in certain board actions. Because the Brown Act requires full and open participation of all seated board members, the lack of agricultural representation during board decisions may constitute a transparency issue. While this involves one GSA, the issue is broadly relevant because many GSAs rely on agricultural members to provide critical stakeholder input. Farm Bureau will continue to monitor GSA practices to ensure fair and compliant decision making. 

Species protection

The California Fish and Game Commission on Feb. 11-12 is expected to vote on a petition to list the Southern California and Central Coast mountain lion populations as threatened or endangered under the California Endangered Species Act. The commission will evaluate the petition, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s status report and all information in the administrative record to determine whether listing is warranted for the species. Members of the public may participate in person or via webinar or teleconference. 

Nitrogen requirements

The California State Water Resources Control Board’s second statewide agricultural expert panel continues to meet to discuss nitrates leaching to groundwater from irrigated agriculture and possible nitrogen-related regulatory limits on nitrogen application and nitrogen discharge. 

The panel’s recommendations will be compiled into a draft report that will soon be released for a 30-day comment period. The final expert panel meeting is scheduled for March 11. Farmers and ranchers are encouraged to attend and provide public comments on current on-farm nitrogen-related practices. More information can be found at http://waterboards.ca.gov/water_issues/programs/agriculture/2025-expert-panel.html.

New World screwworm

The U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service last week announced the New World screwworm initiative that will allot up to $100 million in support of innovation projects aimed at enhancing sterile fly production, strengthening preparedness and response strategies, and other projects that help safeguard U.S. agriculture. Priority areas include sterile fly production, novel traps and lures, and potential treatments and therapeutics for NWS infection. Interested applicants are encouraged to submit proposals prior to the Feb. 23 deadline. More information can be found at www.aphis.usda.gov/funding/new-world-screwworm-grand-challenge-funding-opportunity.

Foreign-owned farmland

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has launched a new online portal designed to streamline the reporting of transactions involving U.S. agricultural land owned by foreign persons or entities. The portal builds on the Trump administration’s National Farm Security Action Plan, which seeks to strengthen and modernize reporting requirements for foreign-owned agricultural land.

Interest in foreign ownership of U.S. farmland has increased in recent years, as historically inconsistent reporting has raised questions about the accuracy of existing data. Alongside the portal’s launch, USDA released a 2024 summary showing that 3.6% of all privately held agricultural land in the United States is foreign owned.

Wolf program

The California Farm Bureau and three other organizations that represent California farmers, ranchers and rural residents joined in a letter to ask for $30 million in the 2026-27 state budget to fund the California Department of Fish and Wildlife Wolf Program. 

The funding is essential to ensure that California’s recovering gray wolf population continues to thrive without jeopardizing livestock production, which stewards one-third of the state’s lands and forms the backbone of the state’s rural economies. 

The California Cattlemen’s Association, Office of Kat Taylor and Rural County Representatives of California were the other groups that asked for the funding. Read the letter here.

California Farm Bureau and others have been successful in funding the Wolf-Livestock Compensation Program at $5.3 million since 2021. The program is recognized as being one of the national leaders in compensation for livestock loss from predators. There are currently 10 recognized wolf packs in the state and additional areas of wolf activity.

Drones

The Federal Communications Commission announced on Dec. 22 a ban on new foreign-made drones and drone parts from entering the United States. The action stems from two executive orders issued by President Donald Trump related to unmanned aircraft systems, or UAS. 

The FCC’s determination followed a White House-convened review involving an executive branch interagency body with national security expertise. That review concluded that certain foreign-produced  UAS and critical component parts pose “unacceptable risks to the national security of the United States and to the safety and security of U.S. persons.”

The decision does not affect consumers’ ability to continue using drones they already own, nor does it prevent retailers from selling, importing or marketing drone models previously approved through the FCC’s equipment authorization process. However, with foreign-based suppliers making up a significant portion of the UAS market, there are concerns the ban could disrupt agricultural operations that increasingly rely on drones for applications and other uses.

Avian flu

The California Department of Food and Agriculture has lifted the ban on poultry and dairy cattle exhibitions at fairs and shows, saying that the risk of highly pathogenic avian influenza associated with such exhibitions has sufficiently decreased. 

The ban was first implemented last January due to continued spread of H5N1 bird flu. At that time, more than 700 dairy herds and 60 poultry flocks in the state were affected by the disease. 

CDFA said its decision to lift the ban was “based on a comprehensive review of current H5N1 infection trends, improved understanding of transmission dynamics and enhanced mitigation measures now in place.”

CDFA said it will continue to ensure that biosecurity practices are met. To that end, the department has extended its biosecurity measures through June for organic poultry by asking California producers to continue keeping their birds indoors.

The department has also asked organic certifiers to exempt the outdoor access requirement so that organic poultry can remain certified. 

In recent months, California has detected highly pathogenic avian influenza in commercial and backyard poultry flocks, CDFA said. Detections also continue to be found in domestic and wild birds and dairies nationally. 

Commercial driver’s license

There is significant confusion about the current state of commercial driver’s licenses for nondomiciled persons in California and whether commercial driver’s licenses are being canceled. The California Department of Motor Vehicles says the extension given is valid, but the U.S. Department of Transportation argues otherwise. 

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration on Sept. 26 issued a preliminary determination of noncompliance letter to DMV relating to the issuance of commercial learner’s permits and commercial driver’s licenses for people in California whose permanent home is elsewhere. In accordance with the direction provided by the FMCSA, DMV has ceased issuing commercial learner’s permits and commercial driver’s licenses to people who are not California residents. People whose commercial learner’s permits or commercial driver’s license status has changed will receive a letter and/or email advising one of the following:

• Nondomiciled commercial learner’s permits and pending nondomiciled commercial driver’s license applications will be canceled.

• Nondomiciled commercial driver’s licenses issued out of compliance with state law and federal regulations at the time of issuance will be canceled.

• Valid/unexpired nondomiciled commercial driver’s licenses issued in compliance with state law and federal regulations at the time of issuance will remain valid until the expiration date.

DMV on Dec. 30 extended the cancellation date for some 17,000 nondomiciled commercial driver’s licenses by an additional 60 days while the state continues to work with representatives of the FMCSA to resolve concerns with the commercial driver’s licensing process prior to March 6.

This extension provides additional time for DMV and FMCSA to identify a solution that allows affected drivers to continue working and serving California communities. Impacted drivers will receive letters shortly informing them of the extension.

Sage grouse

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management last month updated the sage-grouse plan for several states, including California. The revised management plans will place a greater emphasis on the important role cattle grazing plays in conservation and wildfire mitigation and tailor individual plans for specific regions as opposed to what many saw previously as a one-size-fits-all approach.

Dietary guidelines

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and U.S. Department of Agriculture last week updated the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025–2030. The guidelines provide recommendations on foods and beverages to support better health and are used to shape several federal nutrition and feeding programs.

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the updated guidelines represent a return to basics, urging Americans to prioritize whole, nutrient-dense foods—including protein, dairy, fruits, vegetables, healthy fats and whole grains—while significantly reducing highly processed foods.

The update includes a redesigned food pyramid that places red meat protein, fruits, vegetables and healthy fats near the top, while emphasizing the need to limit highly processed foods, added sugars and artificial additives. 

A fact sheet released alongside the guidelines provides additional detail on the changes, which have drawn significant media attention given their scope. 

Health and nutrition remain a top priority for the Trump administration, which has frequently cited rising healthcare costs—particularly those tied to chronic disease—as a major national challenge.

Farm aid

The U.S. Department of Agriculture last month announced the next phase of the Farmer Bridge Assistance Program , which provides monetary assistance to impacted farmers of certain commodities. 

The new phase includes the per-acre payment rates of commodities that include cotton, rice and wheat. 

The $1 billion reserved for specialty crops and sugar remains under development, the department said, and details on how those funds will be distributed have not yet been finalized. Additional information is available on the USDA Farm Service Agency website.

The first year of the 2025-26 California legislative session concluded Sept. 13. 

Bills that advanced to the governor now await signature or veto. Bills held in their house of origin may be worked on as two-year bills, meaning they are eligible to move forward in the second year of the session.

Water

The Legislature passed Senate Bill 72, by state Sen. Anna Caballero, D-Merced, which requires the California Department of Water Resources to add new analyses and storage targets to the California water plan update. California Farm Bureau supports the bill, which awaits the governor’s signature. 

The Legislature also passed Assembly Bill 263, by Assemblymember Chris Rogers, D-Santa Rosa, which codifies an instream flow emergency regulation for the Scott and Shasta rivers for five years or until the California State Water Resources Control Board develops a permanent instream flow rule. Its passage would allow the governor’s office to lift the drought declaration that has been in place for the Klamath Basin and Siskiyou County since 2021. Farm Bureau opposes it.

Meanwhile, several water bills remained in limbo at the end of the legislative session.

Senate Bill 601, by state Sen. Ben Allen, D-Santa Monica, which Farm Bureau strongly opposes, was held in the Assembly Appropriations Committee and is now a two-year bill. It requires the state water board to develop a new permitting regime for “nexus waters,” a new classification of wetland or water body.

Assembly Bill 1156, by Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland, was held in the Assembly on the final day of the legislative session and also became a two-year bill. It would allow for a Williamson Act or Farmland Security Zone contract, including on prime farmland, to be canceled at no cost to the landowner due to insufficient water supply. Attempts by Farm Bureau to narrow the bill so that it did not apply statewide were unsuccessful, and Farm Bureau remains opposed to the bill unless amended. 

Labor

The Legislature passed Assembly Bill 1136, by Assemblymember Liz Ortega, D-Hayward, which would require employers of 25 or more employees to allow employees to use up to five days of unpaid leave in a 12-month period to deal with immigration matters; require an employer to place an employee who has been detained as a result of immigration or deportation proceedings on an unpaid leave of absence for up to 12 months; and reinstate an employee released from immigration detention if within 12 months they provide valid documentation of their prior position or a comparable position.

Farm Bureau has expressed concern that such a law could force employers to document their awareness of an employee’s lack of legal status, implicating federal immigration law.

Endangered species

The Legislature passed Assembly Bill 1319, which authorizes the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to extend protections under the California Endangered Species Act to a California native species listed under the federal Endangered Species Act if the federal government takes actions to decrease federal protections for that species under the ESA. 

Throughout the year, Farm Bureau and other stakeholders in the water and business sectors attempted to work with the author and sponsor to narrow the scope of the bill. Despite these negotiations, the author rewrote the bill last month, dramatically altering its impact to the CESA listing process and going far beyond the bill’s original stated purpose of ensuring there is no backsliding of protections for endangered species under the Trump administration. 

The bill was amended with troubling language that could pave the way for numerous species to be listed under the CESA. The new version of the bill cuts the California Fish and Game Commission out of the listing process and delegates that authority directly to CDFW staff, allowing them to adopt protections for any federally listed or candidate species as a “provisional candidate” without any public process.

Farm Bureau is part of a coalition of more than 40 organizations requesting a veto.

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Water

Legislation that enhances the state water plan will head to the governor’s desk for signature. 

Senate Bill 72, by state Sen. Anna Caballero, D-Merced, passed the Assembly floor last week. It enjoyed broad support from water users and agricultural stakeholders, including from the California Farm Bureau. 

The bill will add new requirements and elements in the California Water Plan, which is updated every five years by the California Department of Water Resources to include long-range water supply storage targets to meet statewide demand. 

A water quality permitting bill that Farm Bureau opposed has stalled for 2025. 

Senate Bill 601, by state Sen. Ben Allen, D-Santa Monica, was made a two-year bill after it became clear the measure would not advance out of the Assembly Appropriations Committee last month.

The bill would establish a new permitting regime at the California State Water Quality Control Board for wetlands that had previously received federal protection under the “waters of the United States” rule but lost federal protection under the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023 ruling in Sackett v. United States. 

The author may attempt to move the bill out of the Assembly Appropriations Committee in January but would likely need to make major amendments to do so successfully.

Legislation to block federal agencies from releasing stored water has failed. 

Assembly Bill 1146, by Assemblymember Diane Papan, D-San Mateo, was held in the Senate Appropriations Committee suspense file last month and will not advance to the Senate floor. 

The bill was introduced in response to the Trump administration’s actions last January to release water stored for irrigation from two Army Corps of Engineers dams in the San Joaquin Valley. 

AB 1146 would have given the water board a new power to fine federal agencies for water released “under false pretenses.” 

Farm Bureau had previously opposed the bill but moved to a neutral position after it was stripped of its major provisions.

A groundwater adjudication bill that Farm Bureau opposes has advanced to the Senate floor. 

Assembly Bill 1413, by Assemblymember Diane Papan, D-San Mateo, was voted out of the Senate Appropriations Committee last month. 

The bill would require that courts overseeing a groundwater rights adjudication in a basin with a groundwater sustainability plan rely on the plan’s finding on the basin’s “sustainable yield” when determining groundwater rights. 

Land use

Legislation that would allow Williamson Act and Farmland Security Zone contracts to be canceled at no cost to the landowner, clearing the way for large-scale solar projects, has advanced to the Senate floor. 

Assembly Bill 1156, by Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland, passed from the Senate Appropriations Committee. 

Though it was supported by large-scale solar and Kern County Farm Bureau, attempts to narrow the bill so that it did not apply statewide were unsuccessful.

California Farm Bureau opposes the bill unless it is amended. 

AB 1156 will likely proceed expeditiously through both houses and to the governor’s desk for signature as large-scale solar companies race to move projects through a pipeline before federal tax breaks end in 2027.

Agricultural employment

Assembly Bill 1109, by Assemblymember Ash Kalra, D-San Jose, was held on the Senate Appropriations Committee suspense file last month.

The bill, which California Farm Bureau opposes, would have created a new privilege between union agents and represented employees, similar to attorney-client privilege. This would have hampered employers’ ability to enforce workplace rules related to safety, harassment and other issues. 

Legislation that requires employers to release employees to deal with immigration issues has cleared the appropriations suspense file and was ordered to a third reading in the state Senate.

Assembly Bill 1136, by Assemblymember Liz Ortega, D-Hayward, would require employers of 25 or more employees to allow employees to use up to five days of unpaid leave in a 12-month period to deal with legal and administrative meetings, appointments or hearings related to immigration matters. The bill would also require employers to place employees who have been detained or incarcerated due to pending immigration or deportation proceedings on an unpaid leave of absence for up to 12 months and reinstate them to their prior positions or comparable positions for up to 12 months if they provide valid documentation.

Farm Bureau opposes the bill unless it is amended to shorten the timeframes related to reinstatement. The organization has also expressed concern that an employer’s awareness of an employee’s immigration-related detention or incarceration might create constructive knowledge of that employee’s illegal status, implicating federal immigration law. 

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Water 

The California Farm Bureau plans to attend all meetings of the California State Water Resources Control Board’s second statewide agricultural expert panel. 

Farm Bureau was involved in the first expert panel and has heavily litigated the issue. Litigation related to the Central Coast Agriculture Order that Farm Bureau was involved in led to convening of the second expert panel. 

The state’s second statewide agricultural expert panel will meet in person and virtually Aug. 8 and Aug. 14, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., to evaluate the data collected as part of the state’s Irrigated Lands Regulatory Program and consider the approaches adopted in waste discharge requirements issued by the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board for growers in the eastern San Joaquin River watershed. 

To register to participate or to learn more, go to www.waterboards.ca.gov/water_issues/programs/agriculture/2025-expert-panel.html. 

Meanwhile, the State Water Resources Control Board last week released a revised draft update to the Bay-Delta Water Quality Control Plan and seeks public comment on the document through Sept. 10. 

The announcement begins a public review and comment period on the proposal that would update measures in the Bay-Delta plan to protect the Sacramento River, the delta and associated tributaries

The revised draft includes proposed changes based on input and comments received throughout the planning process, including additional options for flow and habitat, and refinements to the water-user-supported alternative titled “Healthy Rivers and Landscapes,” also known as the “voluntary agreements.”

State law requires that the state water board adopt water quality control plans to protect and balance beneficial uses of water, including municipal, industrial, agricultural, and fish and wildlife uses. 

The board scheduled a public hearing to receive comments on the revised document on Sept. 8 and 9 in Sacramento. 

California Farm Bureau plans to submit written comments. Additional information on opportunities to comment are available on the board’s notice.

Williamson Act

Solano County Farm Bureau member Daniel Jones provided testimony in support of state Senate Bill 5, aimed at safeguarding California’s Williamson Act lands from being swept into infrastructure financing districts. 

Jones provided testimony in support of the legislation, authored by state Sen. Christopher Cabaldon, D-West Sacramento, at a July 16 hearing before the state Assembly Committee on Local Government. 

The bill would exclude the taxes levied upon a parcel of land enrolled in or subject to a Williamson Act contract or a farmland security zone contract from allocations to an enhanced infrastructure district or community revitalization authority. The legislation passed from the committee with bipartisan support

Ultra-processed foods

California Farm Bureau continues to oppose state legislation that seeks to address public health concerns by classifying food into two categories: ultra-processed food or not ultra-processed food. 

Farm Bureau’s concerns about Assembly Bill 1264, by Assembly Member Jesse Gabriel, D-Encino, were shared last week with the Senate Environmental Quality Committee. While the bill advanced out of committee and heads to the Senate Appropriations Committee, many key issues are unresolved. 

Concerns remain about liability implications and the lack of clarity on what qualifies as ultra-processed food. Despite amendments, the bill still does not provide the technical specificity for stakeholders to be confident in its direction. Farm Bureau plans to continue working with coalition partners to voice concerns about the legislation.  

White House meeting

California Farm Bureau President Shannon Douglass joined state Farm Bureau presidents from across the U.S. and American Farm Bureau President Zippy Duvall at the White House last week to discuss issues and hear from cabinet members, administration officials and senior White House staff. 

Douglass and others participated in discussions with U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and Lee Zeldin, administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. They talked about priority issues that included the farm economy, preserving family farms, disaster assistance, trade, labor, Make America Healthy Again policies and regulatory reform.

During the meeting, Rollins said the U.S. Department of Agriculture has started a new round of disaster payments. Producers who suffered eligible crop losses due to natural disasters in 2023 and 2024 may now apply for $16 billion in assistance through the Supplemental Disaster Relief Program.

Williamson Act

Speaking before the California Senate Local Government Committee last week, Peter Ansel, senior policy director for the California Farm Bureau, said Assembly Bill 1156, which would allow industrial scale and battery projects on prime agricultural land, raises serious concerns for the long-term protection of the state’s farmland. 

Unless the bill—authored by Assembly Member Buffy Wicks, D-Berkeley—is amended, Ansel said, it would repeal the requirement of a payment to cancel Williamson Act contracts for solar use easements, expediting the speculation of farmland conversion to solar energy. The bill passed out of the committee and will be heard today in the Senate Committee on Environmental Quality.

Agricultural waste

Senate Bill 279 by state Sen. Jerry McNerney, D-Stockton, passed out of the Assembly Natural Resources Committee last week. The bill, which Farm Bureau supports, would increase the amount of agricultural material that can be sent to composting. As burning is no longer allowed in the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District, farmers need alternative methods for managing their organic waste. The bill will next be heard in Assembly Appropriations.

Immigration

In recent weeks, the White House has offered mixed signals regarding how it intends to protect agriculture and other industries from its immigration enforcement efforts. President Trump has repeatedly floated the idea of allowing farmers and ranchers to vouch for long-term immigrant workers residing in the U.S., even suggesting amnesty could be a viable option.

However, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins contradicted that stance last week, saying amnesty is “completely off the table” for those currently at risk of deportation. She also suggested that about 34 million able-bodied Medicaid recipients could be used to help fill labor shortages in the agricultural sector. 

It remains unclear whether Congress will act on a comprehensive solution, said Matthew Viohl, a policy advocacy director for the California Farm Bureau, which continues to work with partners to advocate for legislative reforms.

Water quality

The North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board approved a first-of-its-kind order last week to protect waterways, groundwater and aquatic species by regulating waste discharge for about 65,000 acres of vineyards in Mendocino and Sonoma counties.

In a years-long process, the California Farm Bureau and the county Farm Bureaus of Mendocino and Sonoma submitted  comments and worked with leaders in the wine sector to make the regulation less burdensome for affected vintners, said Kari Fisher, senior counsel and director of legal advocacy for the California Farm Bureau. Because of the efforts, the board agreed to delay the decision for six months so that some local concerns could be addressed. 

The order establishes water quality regulations for owners and operators of commercial vineyards. The regulation requires implementation of on-farm practices to prevent or control discharges of sediment, nutrients and pesticides to surface water. Requirements take effect when vineyards begin enrolling under the order in July 2028.

Landline access

Assembly Bill 470, Tina McKinnor, D-Inglewood, would usurp a rulemaking to broadly consider changes related to requirements and procedures for landlines or carriers of last resort, or COLRs. There are 16 COLRs in California. AT&T is the biggest. Frontier is second. 

Parties including the California Farm Bureau have been holding meet-and-confer sessions that address potential areas of agreement related to issues raised. The AT&T-sponsored legislation presented unworkable and one-sided processes to implement the COLR revisions. AB 470 made it out of the Appropriations Committee but did not advance to the Assembly floor for consideration. Farm Bureau opposes the legislation and is collaborating with other stakeholders to defeat it.

Labor

The California Farm Bureau and five other western state Farm Bureaus last week joined in a letter to urge the U.S. Department of Labor to consider dropping its defense of the Biden-era Farmworker Protection Rule, which resides within the H-2A program. 

Farm Bureau submitted comments last year critical of the original proposal, which effectively attempts to circumvent the National Labors Relations Act by offering union-related benefits to H-2A workers. The program has long been plagued by complex regulatory requirements, which were made worse through this and several other rulemaking. With the rule tied up in litigation, dropping the legal defense of it would effectively help to reverse the rule, offering at least some reprieve for those currently using the guestworker program.

Electric vehicles

President Trump signed several resolutions last week that effectively overturned California’s electric vehicle mandate, its phaseout of medium- and heavy-duty diesel vehicle sales and a rule related to tailpipe emissions from trucks. 

Historically, California has relied on waivers from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to implement more stringent environmental regulations. However, concerns from other states that California’s policies could have nationwide effects helped drive efforts in Washington, D.C., to reverse initiatives by the California Air Resources Board.

CARB is weighing legal options to preserve portions of its emissions mandates, meaning this issue may soon head to the courts. California Farm Bureau will continue to monitor developments and provide updates to members.