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A 5 percent boost would bring in another $3.6 million annually, Glenda Humiston says

Tim Hearden, Western Farm Press

January 30, 2020

4 Min Read
Beneficial birds workshop
People attend a University of California Cooperative Extension workshop on beneficial birds in orchards near Winters, Calif., in 2019.Tim Hearden

After snubbing the agency last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom has slipped a 5 percent increase for the University of California’s Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources into his $222 billion overall budget proposal for 2020-21.

The boost would mean an increase of $3.6 million annually for UCANR to begin rebuilding its ranks of researchers and educators working with growers, said Glenda Humiston, the division’s vice president.

“We are making progress,” Humiston said in an email. “More people are recognizing and giving credit to the research, public service and outreach UCANR provides to help Californians improve their lives and businesses.”

UC Board of Regents Chair John A. Perez and university President Janet Napolitano issued a joint statement on the governor’s budget plan for the UC as a whole, calling it “an important step toward covering the funds necessary to meet UC’s tripartite mission of delivering world-class education, conducting cutting-edge research and providing public service that benefits California and beyond.”

INNOVATIVE METHODS

The boost comes amid a budget that Newsom’s office says establishes expectations that the University of California and California State University will increase enrollment and degree completion through “innovative delivery methods,” including UC Extension centers.

Related:Farm Bureau gives nod to Newsom's draft budget

The budget, which must be approved by the Legislature, would set aside $9.52 billion in total funding for the UC, up from $9.4 billion in 2019-20. Of that, about $3.9 billion would be from the general fund, up from $3.7 billion last year.

Newsom offered no new money to UC extension advisors and specialists in his first budget proposal in January 2019, though he proposed $240 million in new ongoing funding for UC operation costs and other efforts.

Napolitano ended up giving UCANR $2.2 million in one-time funds in 2019 to help cover the roughly $5 million in unfunded obligations, such as mandated increases in salaries for ANR employees, division spokeswoman Pamela Kan-Rice said.

UCANR administrators have complained they’ve seen a 67 percent increase in undergraduate student enrollment since the 2000-01 fiscal year but that the division’s portion of the UC’s state funds has decreased from $70.2 million that year to $40.7 million in 2017-18. The division’s total annual budget is about $200 million.

In recent years, UCANR has taken such measures as closing the Shafter Research and Extension Center and several program administrative offices to save about $1 million, consolidated support units to save $1.8 million and reduced administration to save another $1.2 million, university officials have reported.

Related:Clif Bar funds UC's first-ever organic research institute

The university had 119 Cooperative Extension specialists as of July 2019 and 159 extension advisors as of October – about half as many academics as in the 1990s, Kan-Rice said.

FOOD CORRIDOR

Among its perks, this year’s budget includes funding for what Newsom calls a major new “food innovation corridor” in the Central Valley. The $33 million in one-time funding seeks to stimulate research and development, commercialization and innovation to support sustainable agricultural production and high-quality jobs in the San Joaquin Valley, according to the governor’s detailed budget statement.

The Department of Food and Agriculture will work with local educational institutions, the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, and regional entities to prioritize and implement parts of the initiative, according to Newsom’s office.

“I am grateful for Governor Newsom’s support for UC in his initial proposed budget,” Humiston said. “With our many partners in communities across the state, I look forward to seeing what we can accomplish together in the year ahead.”

CDFA BUDGET

Among other parts of Newsom’s proposal that affect agriculture, the CDFA would see its overall budget drop to $600.4 million, from $628.8 million last year. Of this year’s total, about $209 million would come from the General Fund.

Key elements of the budget include:

Cannabis. With a cannabis excise tax that is forecast to generate $479 million in 2019-20 and $550 million in 2020-21, Newsom will propose consolidating three licensing entities into a single Department of Cannabis Control by July 2021.

Having a stand-alone department with dedicated enforcement will centralize and align key regulatory functions to create a single point of contact for licensees and local governments, Newsom’s office argues. The governor will submit more details in the spring.

Farm to School. The budget envisions $10 million in one-time funds and $1.5 million annually thereafter for CDFA to start a farm-to-school grant program that expands healthy choices for pupils while supporting growers. The grants would help schools procure food from local and California sources.

Industry initiatives. The ledger requests another $20 million to administer State Water Efficiency and Enhancement Program (SWEEP) grants with a focus on depleted groundwater basins; an additional $20 million for the Dairy Digester Research Program and Alternative Manure Management Program; and $18 million annually for healthy soils projects for five years.

RURAL SUPPORT

Newsom’s proposal also includes support for expanding broadband in rural areas, providing safe drinking water and supporting fairgrounds as community centers in response to wildfires and floods, state Board of Food and Agriculture President Don Cameron said in a blog post.

“The governor’s budget reinforces his commitment to rural California,” said Jamie Johansson, president of the California Farm Bureau Federation.

“In his inaugural address last year, Governor Newsom promised not to leave rural California behind, and he reiterated that commitment in a meeting with our Board of Directors last summer,” Johansson said. “The proposals contained in his draft budget reflect his concerns for the future of farmers, ranchers and the rural areas they support.”

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