YOUR SOURCE FOR CAWG AND INDUSTRY NEWS. FOR CAWG MEMBERS ONLY. |
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- Supreme Court Won't Hear AB 5 Case
- Proposed Pesticide Notification System
- Webinar: SWEEP Grants - July 7 @ 10:00am
- CAWG 2022 Directory Now Available!
- High Gas Prices Squeezing Agriculture
- CAWG Foundation: Scholarships and Golf Tournament Photos
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Supreme Court Won't Hear AB 5 Case |
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In 2018, the California Supreme Court created new rules for determining whether services are being performed by an employee or an independent contractor. In Dynamex Operations West the court created what is known as “The ABC Test.” Then in 2019, the legislature formally put the ABC test into the Labor Code and Unemployment Insurance Code. That legislation, AB 5 (Gonzalez, D-San Diego), set off a flurry of legal challenges and ballot measures.
The most recent litigation is the California Trucking Association’s (CTA) petition for the U.S. Supreme Court to take up their appeal of a Ninth Circuit Court decision where CTA challenged whether AB 5 should apply to trucking. CTA asserted that AB 5 was preempted by federal law, which prohibits states from regulating the prices, routes and services offered by trucking companies. CTA was successful at the lower court level and obtained a preliminary injunction, which has been in place for 2 ½ years, preventing the enforcement of AB 5 against motor carriers.
Unfortunately, this week the Supreme Court declined to hear CTA’s case which will now be remanded back to trial court for further proceedings on the merits. However, it is very unlikely this could result in any favorable action by the lower court.
The bottom line with all of this is that the preliminary injunction will be lifted within the next week and trucking companies will soon need to comply with AB 5. This will significantly change the business model for most trucking companies, will no doubt drive up costs and ultimately have a negative impact on the State’s supply chain.
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Proposed Pesticide Notification Program |
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DPR is proposing to create a new internet platform where anyone can anonymously input CA addresses and receive notification (call, text, or email) of when an application of restricted materials is going to happen within 9 square miles of that location. The notification would include the name of the product, identify if application is occurring within 1 square mile of the inputted address and links to DPR’s webpage for product safety.
Unfortunately, those forums did not create the best opportunity for a balanced discussion where growers could express their views. For example, frequently, anti-pesticide advocates made personal attacks on both growers and manufacturers. Some of those advocates are demanding notification for all pesticides (even organic), the precise location of application, door hangar notifications, and much more.
CAWG is working closely with Farm Bureau and other ag organizations in providing comments to DPR. If this program must move forward, we would like to see a program that is singularly focused on the interests of the community including both residents and growers. This should not be a program driven by anti-pesticide organizations that would overwhelm the system in their attempt to gather information that they would then use to stage protests on small farms as part of their overarching goal to create a statewide ban of all pesticides.
Written public comments on the proposed program are due by the close of business on July 15th and can be submitted to ProjectNotify@cdpr.ca.gov.
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WEBINAR: SWEEP Grants - Are you Missing Out? |
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THURSDAY, JULY 7.
10:00AM - 11:00AM
ZOOM WEBINAR
The California Department of Food and Agriculture provides State Water Efficiency and Enhancement Program (SWEEP) grants to financially offset the implementation of irrigation systems that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and save water on California agriculture operations.
These saving measures include components such as: soil moisture monitoring, drip systems, switching to low pressure irrigation systems, pump retrofits, variable frequency drives and installation of renewable energy to reduce on-farm water use and energy, and more!
Join CAWG on Thursday, July 7 at 10:00am as we’ve teamed up with Tule, HotSpot Ag, and Innovative Ag Services to discuss the SWEEP Grant application process and review water conservation and greenhouse gas emission reduction technologies that qualify under SWEEP. These industry experts are gathering together to help growers successfully submit SWEEP applications.
SPEAKERS
- Ian Vietti, Government Funding Manager with Innovative Ag Services
- Ernie Wilson, Sales Manager at Tule
- Jimmy Nichols, President of HotSpot AG
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CAWG 2022 Membership Directory Now Available |
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The 2022 CAWG Membership Directory is NOW AVAILABLE in a full-color, digital format.
The directory will not be mailed, but can be downloaded and printed if you prefer to view it as a hard copy.
· QUICK LINKS ·
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Advertiser Index and Tabs: Quickly locate a specific advertisement! Scroll over the ad to link to their website, email, or phone number.
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Grower Members: View all CAWG growers in alpha order.
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Associate Members: View all CAWG associate members in alpha order. We encourage members to use those companies who support the winegrape industry!
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All things CAWG: View CAWG history, Board of Directors, staff & more!
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Member Index: View grower members by Crush District and associate members by supply/service category.
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High Fuel Prices Squeezing Agriculture |
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Rising fuel prices are putting growing pressure on farmers and ranchers as they grapple with increased costs of growing food and fiber. USDA estimates show that the cost of fuel, lube and electricity is expected to increase 34% in 2022 compared to 2021.
The American Farm Bureau Federation economists analyze the factors contributing to rising fuel prices in the latest Market Intel and reported the following:
- The war in Ukraine has reduced availability of global crude oil and U.S. domestic production is down while demand is increasing in the United States and abroad.
- Diesel prices rose to $5.718 per gallon in June, up $2.432 per gallon, or 74%, compared to $3.286 per gallon in June 2021.
- The current high price of diesel is more than two times the price paid before 2020.
Zippy Duvall, President of the American Farm Bureau Federation, said the following: “While some farmers are seeing increases in commodity prices, their gains are being eaten up by higher expenses. Many farmers and ranchers are concerned they won’t be able to break even, much less make a profit. It’s not just on-farm costs taking a toll. High diesel and gasoline prices, among other increased costs, all affect the food supply chain, starting at the farm and continuing to the grocery store, which means all families are ultimately paying more to put food on their tables.”
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CAWG Foundation Awards $31,000 in Scholarships |
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The California Association of Winegrape Growers (CAWG) Foundation has awarded $31,000 in college scholarships to seven students with a parent or legal guardian employed by a California winegrape grower.
“We award the CAWG Foundation scholarships each year to honor the families of vineyard employees, who are valued members of the winegrape industry. Without these workers, we would not thrive, and these scholarships show our immense appreciation,” said Davindar Mahil, chair of the CAWG Foundation board of directors.
Since the program’s inception in 1998, the CAWG Foundation has awarded $554,500 in scholarships to help students pursue higher education. Many generous donations from members of CAWG and the California wine community fund the scholarship program.
Four-Year University Scholarship Recipients / $8,000 each
Naydin Beltran Garcia, Somerset, Union Mine High School
Alexis Gonzalez, Kelseyville, Kelseyville High School
Mallory Sutherland, Bakersfield, Frontier High School
Two-Year Community College Scholarship Recipients / $2,000 each
Emily Jimenez, Kelseyville, Kelseyville High School
Melisa Magana, Lodi, Lodi High School
Esmeralda Mendoza, Shandon, Shandon High School
Robert Miller Memorial Scholarship / $1,000
Makena Martin, Atascadero, Templeton High School
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CAWG Foundation Golf Tournament | Monday, June 27 |
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The CAWG Foundation hosted their 3rd Annual Golf Tournament at Woodbridge Golf and Country Club this past Monday, June 27. It was a fun (and hot) day full of networking, games, wine tasting, awards, prizes and of course golf.
Thank you to our 126 golfers and support from local wineries and industry sponsors contributing to a successful day. Because of the hard work of the CAWG Foundation Chair, Davindar Mahil, the Foundation was able to raise over $40,000 to put towards its scholarship program.
A special thank you to our event sponsors (top sponsors listed below)!
Photos from the golf tournament can be viewed here.
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JULY
7 / SWEEP Grant Webinar
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