BILL NUMBER: AB 2587	CHAPTERED  09/17/02

	CHAPTER  615
	FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE  SEPTEMBER 17, 2002
	APPROVED BY GOVERNOR  SEPTEMBER 16, 2002
	PASSED THE ASSEMBLY  AUGUST 28, 2002
	PASSED THE SENATE  AUGUST 27, 2002
	AMENDED IN SENATE  AUGUST 5, 2002
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MAY 23, 2002
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MAY 1, 2002
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 18, 2002

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Matthews

                        FEBRUARY 21, 2002

   An act to add Section 411 to the Food and Agricultural Code,
relating to food.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 2587, Matthews.  Food:  water usage forecasts.
   Existing law establishes the Department of Food and Agriculture
and charges it with various duties and obligations.
   This bill would require the Department of Food and Agriculture to
estimate food, fiber, livestock, and other farm products production,
as specified, and provide that information to the Department of Water
Resources for estimating related water usage, and the Chairs of the
Assembly Committee on Agriculture, the Assembly Committee on Water,
Parks, and Wildlife, and the Senate Committee on Agriculture and
Water Resources, as specified, for inclusion in a bulletin by the
Department of Water Resources estimating the state's water needs.
This bill would also state the intent of the Legislature in regard to
that bulletin.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


  SECTION 1.  It is the intent of the Legislature that the food
forecasts made by the Department of Food and Agriculture and the
Department of Water Resources shall include the following
considerations:
   (1) Neither the state nor the nation should be allowed to become
dependent upon a net import of foreign food.
   (2) As the nation's population grows, California should produce
enough food to supply the state and also continue to supply the
historical proportion of the nation's food supply, approximately 25
percent of the nation's table food.
   (3) Countries such as Japan are heavily dependent on imported
food, some of which comes from California.  California is also called
upon to ship food to prevent famines and to protect our national
interest by providing food to maintain stability elsewhere in the
world.  Consideration should be given to maintaining the state's
ability to meet these export needs.
  SEC. 2.  Section 411 is added to the Food and Agricultural Code, to
read:
   411.  (a) The Department of Food and Agriculture shall supply the
Department of Water Resources with a forecast that estimates the
amount of production of food, fiber, livestock, and other farm
products.
   (b) As part of the forecast, the Department of Food and
Agriculture's assumptions shall be based upon 20-year estimates that
include, but are not limited to, the following data:
   (1) Land use conversion rates and the amount of land available for
agricultural production.
   (2) The growing need for food, fiber, livestock and other farm
products as the state's and the nation's populations grow.
   (3) Implementation of irrigation technology and other on-farm
water conservation measures.
   (4) Advances in crop yields and production techniques.
   (5) Alternate uses of crops.
   (c) The department shall include an additional table in the
forecast that estimates the agricultural water needs based upon food
security considerations that include, at a minimum, the following:
   (1) Population growth estimates.
   (2) Production of farm products sufficient to feed the state's
population, as well as continue to provide at least 25 percent of the
nation's table food.
   (3) Production necessary to meet the growth in export markets.
   (d) To the extent feasible, the Department of Food and Agriculture
may cooperate with the Department of Finance, the University of
California, and other institutions and organizations in obtaining
information for the forecasts.
   (e) The  Department of Food and Agriculture shall furnish the
forecast to the Department of Water Resources for  estimating related
water usage, as well as to the Chairs of the Assembly Committee on
Agriculture, the Assembly Committee on Water, Parks, and Wildlife,
and the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Water Resources.  The
Department of Water Resources shall include this information in
Bulletin 160.