Posts By: Matthew Allen
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Updates on Special Permit on Increased Weight Limits for Transportation of Ag Products
The California Department of Transportation has announced two changes of relevance for Western Growers members in regards to the special permit on increased weight limits for the transportation of agricultural products. The special permit, which increases the maximum overweight total up to 88,000 pounds for transportation of certain agricultural products, will now include ALL “perishable…
CA Bill That Changes Law for H-2A Workers Stalls in Senate
AB 857, a California bill that would change the law by expanding the definition of “voluntary” and “mandated” travel time, has stalled in the Senate for this year. It is now a two-year bill. AB 857 attempts to: add new situations whereby travel time would be required to be paid to H-2A employees require employers ...
CA Dept. of Pesticide Regulation Public Input Opportunity on Pesticide Notification System
The California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) is conducting public webinars to collect input on the design and development of a statewide system to provide notification in advance of pesticide applications. WHEN: • Tuesday, November 2, 2021, from 9-11:30 a.m. in English — with Spanish translation available • Wednesday, November 3, 2021, from ...
Newsom Partners with Biden Administration to Tackle Supply Chain Issues
Yesterday, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive order directing state agencies to coordinate with the Biden-Harris Administration Supply Chain Disruptions Task Force to address state, national and global supply chain challenges. The executive order also directs state agencies to develop longer-term solutions that support port operations and goods movement for consideration in the…
Cal/OSHA Readopts ETS
Today, the California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board voted to approve the second readoption of the COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) with significant changes and updates. Once approved by the California Office of Administrative Law, the revised ETS will be in place from January 14 through April 14. The original ETS took effect on ...
Bill to Implement Single-Payer Dies in Assembly
AB 1400, authored by Assemblymember Ash Kalra, failed yesterday to meet the deadline to pass out of the Assembly. The bill would have created the single-payer healthcare system in California under a program called CalCare. Western Growers was part of a large business coalition in strong opposition to this bill and was an early voice ...
California Adopts New Indoor Mask Policies Amid Decline in COVID Case Rates
California announced that starting March 1, masks will no longer be required for unvaccinated individuals, but will be strongly recommended for all individuals in most indoor settings. This guidance also applies to unvaccinated workers indoors; employers must still provide a face covering upon request of an employee. However, masks will still be required for everyone ...
Legislative Update: Card Check
AB 2183 (Stone) is the latest attempt by the United Farm Workers to implement card check legislation in California. This bill was introduced early in 2022 despite the veto of the previous bill on this subject, AB 616 (Stone), by Governor Newsom last year. AB 2183 is currently in the Assembly Appropriations Committee and is ...
Card Check Bill AB 2183 Heads to California Assembly Floor
AB 2183 (Stone) is the latest attempt by the United Farm Workers to implement card check legislation in California. The bill was voted out of the Assembly Appropriations Committee yesterday and is now on the Assembly Floor. This bill was introduced early in 2022 despite the veto of the previous bill on this subject, AB ...
California Holding Workshops to Develop a Statewide Pesticide Application Notification System
The California Department of Pesticide Regulation will hold three public workshops on June 27, 28 and 29, 2022 to collect feedback to inform the next phase of design and development for the state’s pesticide application notification system. The workshops will be hosted online via Zoom and facilitated by the UC Davis Center for Regional Change. Each ...
Western Growers Asks Gov. Newsom to Pause on Enforcement of AB 5
Western Growers is among more than 70 organizations who are asking California Governor Gavin Newsom to provide a short-term pause in enforcement of AB 5 via Executive Order in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court declining late last month to consider a challenge to the law brought by the California Trucking Association. In a ...
Governor Gavin Newsom Signs AB 2183, Guts Secret Ballot Process for Farmworkers
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Aug. 28 signed AB 2183, gutting the secret ballot process for farmworkers and submitting misleading “clarifying language” that is supposed to ensure worker protections. After a photo op staged at the Capitol, Newsom’s office distributed a press release explaining why the governor signed the current year’s bill with the caveat that ...
Governor Newsom Vetoes California H-2A Bill
Governor Newsom has vetoed AB 857 (by Assemblymember Ash Kalra and sponsored by the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation (CRLA)). The bill was a reintroduction of SB 1102 (by Senator Monning) which was vetoed in 2020 and would have created the California Legal Rights Disclosure Act for H-2A Farmworkers. If passed, AB 857 would have ...
DPR Releases Updated Chloropicrin Mitigation Measures
Today, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) released the final version of the updated mitigation measures for chloropicrin. DPR’s new control measures include changes to buffer zones, buffer zone credits, approved tarps, and emergency response and preparedness. Western Growers will continue to work with other industry partners to ensure the safe and continued use ...
DPR Announces Workshop to Consider Expanding Fumigant Notification Requirements
The California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) has noticed a workshop to develop regulatory concepts for a possible expansion of the field fumigation notification requirements. As part of this process, DPR is planning to evaluate the current methyl bromide notification regulations and label requirements to determine if any of those requirements should be made applicable ...
Workshops on Use of Ag Pesticides Near Schools Scheduled
The California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) will hold a series of statewide public workshops from May 28 – June 9 to hear ideas about how to address concerns about the use of pesticides around schools The department intends to use these workshops as listening sessions, and gather input that will later help to craft ...
First DPR Workshop on Pesticide Use Near Schools Starts THIS THURSDAY
The California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) will hold a series of statewide public workshops from May 28 – June 9 to hear ideas about how to address concerns about the use of pesticides around schools The department intends to use these workshops as listening sessions, and gather input that will later help to craft ...
Regulatory Update: Crop Protection Tools
The new California Legislature has arrived in Sacramento, and as a new two-year session begins, Western Growers staff is busy meeting with the newly sworn-in members of the Assembly and Senate. This is an incredibly important time of year because of the fleeting opportunity we have in welcoming the members to Sacramento and introducing them ...
California Air Resources Board Remains Extremely Active
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) continues to be one of the most active agencies within California government. A host of state and federal laws and regulations mandate that California make further progress in reducing greenhouse gas (GHG), nitrous oxide (NOX) and particulate matter (PM) emissions. These mandated reductions are in addition to the significant ...
Update on 2015 Environmental Legislation
The 2015 legislative year is nearing completion and, at the time of this writing, WG staff is awaiting final action from the governor on bills that were passed by the Legislature. This year was filled with the usual battles in the capitol corridors over health, labor and water bills. However, none of these bills or ...