YOUR SOURCE FOR CAWG AND INDUSTRY NEWS. FOR CAWG MEMBERS ONLY.

• Duplicate Reporting and Duplicate Regulations
• Join CAWG PAC in Los Olivos · Aug 25
• USDA to Mail Additional Pre-Filled Applications to Producers Impacted by 2020, 2021 Disasters
• Spotted Lanternfly Reaches Michigan, Gaining National Attention
• Smoke Sensor Stations Installed in California Vineyards
• Top Employer Questions After CDC Loosens COVID-19 Guidance
• Cheers to Scheid Family Wines on their 50th Anniversary of Winegrape Harvest in Monterey County!
• Call for Nominations: CAWG Grower and Leader of the Year

The legislature is in the last few weeks of the two-year session, and things are moving very quickly. Below are a few updates from this week:

• Last year, CAWG and other growers successfully opposed AB 364 (Rodriguez, D-Pomona) which proposes to create a state registration process for H-2A workers. This state registration would be duplicative of the existing federal process. Rodriguez dropped the bill last year, but this week he indicated he is pursuing AB 364 again before the legislature wraps up on August 31.

• This week SB 1162 (Limon, D-Santa Barbara) was also amended and the author has made it clear that she intends to require duplicate wage data reporting from growers and the farm labor contractors (FLC) providing work for those growers. This wage data is intended to identify where there are disparities in compensation based on gender, race or ethnicity. Under SB 1162, a grower using an FLC with more than 100 employees will be required to file a wage report for the employees of that FLC. As the FLC likely provides services for several growers, all of those growers will likely file the same exact report.

• AB 2243 (E. Garcia, D-Coachella) requires development of additional regulations on outdoor heat illness protection and protection from wildfire smoke. These new regulations would needlessly revisit the existing workplace safety regulations already in place. Garcia indicated in a public hearing in June that he would work with the opposition (a coalition headed by CAWG & the California Restaurant Association) to address our concerns. This week, Garcia took only minor amendments to his bill and indicated that there will be no further amendments.

A growing problem in the legislature is that all too often, as soon as an author of a bill realizes that she or he has sufficient votes to move the bill along, that author is no longer interested in resolving public policy concerns with the bill. Therefore, pursuing any amendments at all (such as avoiding needless duplication) can sometimes unfortunately hit a brick wall.

Join the CAWG PAC in Los Olivos Next Week!

WHEN: Thursday, August 25 | 3:30 pm - 6:30 pm

Join the CAWG PAC and our hosts Greg Gonzalez, Mike Testa, and Gregg Hibbits for a fundraiser at Crossroads Estate in Los Olivos on Thursday, August 25. The event will begin at 3:30 PM and will be an evening full of networking, music, great food, excellent wine, and farm equipment demos from local vendors.

CAWG PAC Flyer | Sponsor or Register Today! 

Questions:

Event: Jenny Devine · CAWG PAC: Michael Miiller

Today, The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced another installment (phase) in assistance to commodity and specialty crop producers impacted by natural disaster events in 2020 and 2021. 

More than 18,000 producers will soon receive new or updated pre-filled disaster applications to offset eligible crop losses. Approximately $6.4 billion has already been distributed to 165,000 producers through USDA’s Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) Emergency Relief Program (ERP). 

For More Information

The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD) confirmed the detection of a small population of spotted lanternfly (SLF). This represents the state’s first such detection of the invasive bug.

Michigan is home to 10,900 acres of juice grapes and 3,375 acres of wine grapes, according to the 2020 USDA-NASS Grape Survey.

If you missed it, Dr. Andrew Cline of the California Department of Food and Agriculture joined CAWG's 48th Annual Meeting to discuss the efforts of CDFA to safeguard California vineyards from the spotted lanternfly. 

READ ARTICLE

Other News Articles

• NPR: What a pest! Spotted lanternflies are spreading in the U.S.
• Desert News: This invasive bug species is a threat to the East Coast’s economy
• NBC News: See a Spotted Lanternfly? Meet the NJ Teen Behind the Perfect Squish

Sensor stations to monitor wildfire smoke and air quality were recently installed in 21 commercial vineyards in Northern California as part of a multi-year, $7.65 million grant. The grant, ''Assessment and Management of Risk Associated with Wildfire Smoke Exposure of Grapes in the Vineyard'' was awarded through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI). 

Efforts are being conducted by researchers at the University of California, Davis, Oregon State University, and Washington State University. The objective of the research grant is to easily deploy new, cost effective technologies that assess real-time grape smoke exposure in vineyards.

Read the full article published in Wine Business, written by Ted Rieger. 

ARTICLE 

Insights from Fisher Phillips

The nation’s federal health authorities marked the next chapter of the pandemic last week by significantly loosening many COVID-19 recommendations – including dropping the “six-foot” social distancing rule – thereby lightening employers’ burden to manage the virus.

While the CDC’s August 11 announcement of revised guidelines comes as a welcome step in the years-long battle against the novel coronavirus, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s time to drop your guard and pretend that COVID-19 is gone completely. Read the article published by Fisher Phillips that answers the top 10 questions you should be asking now, along with practical answers to help navigate this next phase.

READ ARTICLE

Congratulations to Scheid Family Wines, longtime CAWG member on their 50th anniversary harvest of winegrapes in Monterey County! 

The 2022 harvest kicked off early Tuesday morning, August 16th, at sunrise in the Salinas Valley. Located in the Monterey AVA, Isabelle’s Vineyard is named after founder Al Scheid’s mother and is one of the most northerly vineyards in the county. The hand-harvested premium Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes are grown specifically for the sparkling wine program of the company’s namesake brand, Scheid Vineyards, for its Isabelle Sparkling Cuvée. 

ARTICLE

AUGUST

25 - CAWG PAC Event in Los Olivos

OCTOBER 

18 - Hotels and Registration Open for Unified Wine and Grape Symposium 

JANUARY 

24-26 – Save the Date! 2023 Unified Wine & Grape Symposium 

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