BILL NUMBER: AB 2890 CHAPTERED 09/20/02 CHAPTER 741 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE SEPTEMBER 20, 2002 APPROVED BY GOVERNOR SEPTEMBER 20, 2002 PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 31, 2002 PASSED THE ASSEMBLY AUGUST 31, 2002 AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 30, 2002 AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 29, 2002 AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 13, 2002 AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 5, 2002 AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 26, 2002 AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 17, 2002 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Wiggins (Principal coauthor: Senator Chesbro) FEBRUARY 25, 2002 An act to amend Sections 6047.4, 6047.5, and 6047.6 of, and to add Section 6047.35 to, the Food and Agricultural Code, relating to pests, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 2890, Wiggins. Pests. Under existing law, the Pierce's Disease and Glassy-winged Sharpshooter Board is charged with collecting and handling assessments on grape producers for expenditure on research and other activities related to the plant killing Pierce's disease bacteria. It is empowered to submit recommendations to the Secretary of Food and Agriculture on the expenditure of these assessments, to receive money, and adopt appropriate procedures for its operation. This bill would explicitly empower the board to coordinate its activities with the secretary's science advisory board and agricultural/governmental advisory task force and would provide, in addition, that, notwithstanding any other provision of law, the secretary, upon the recommendation of the board, may contract with any nonprofit authoritative scientific body with expertise in agricultural issues in order to expedite research relating to the eradication of Pierce's disease. Existing law requires the Department of Food and Agriculture to establish a competitive grants program to make funds available to qualified private and public entities to conduct pest management research projects. Existing law specifies procedures and requirements relating to the awarding of these grants. This bill would provide that the disbursement of research funds obtained from the assessment imposed by the Pierce's Disease and Glassy-winged Sharpshooter Board shall be exempt from these procedures and requirements. It would specify that disbursement of these research funds shall be on a competitive bid basis. Existing law imposes various requirements relating to the expenditure of research funds and requires that researchers protect the confidentiality of data and related information and materials produced in the course of these research projects, as specified. However, existing law exempts the University of California from these restrictions. This bill would make the same exception provided to the University of California applicable to other public agencies or public institutions that are subject to interagency agreements. Existing law requires the Secretary of Food and Agriculture to provide the Pierce's Disease and Glassy-winged Sharpshooter Board with a written statement of the reasons for a decision by the secretary, as specified, not to accept a recommendation of the board. This bill would no longer require the secretary to provide the reasons for the decision in a written statement, but would, in addition, require the secretary to provide the board with the reasons for the decision within 15 days of the decision. The bill would make a clarifying change to the provision. The bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 6047.35 is added to the Food and Agricultural Code, to read: 6047.35. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the secretary, upon the recommendation of the board, may contract with any nonprofit authoritative scientific body with expertise in agricultural issues in order to expedite research relating to the eradication of Pierce's disease. SEC. 2. Section 6047.4 of the Food and Agricultural Code is amended to read: 6047.4. (a) The powers of the board shall be the following: (1) Submit recommendations to the secretary on, but not limited to, the following: (A) Selection of officers. (B) Terms of office for board members. (C) Annual assessment rate. (D) Annual budget. (E) Expenditures authorized under Section 6047.5. (2) Receive money from the assessment and other sources. (3) Adopt, amend, and rescind all proper and necessary bylaws and procedures. (4) Coordinate its activities with the secretary's science advisory board and agricultural/govermental advisory task force. (b) A majority of the members of the board shall constitute a quorum of the board. The vote of a majority of the members present at a meeting at which there is a quorum constitutes an act of the board, except for actions taken pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 6047.7, which shall require a majority of the vote of the board. The board may continue to transact business at a meeting where a quorum is initially present, notwithstanding the withdrawal of members, provided any action is approved by the requisite majority of the required quorum. (c) As authorized by the board, members of the board may receive per diem and mileage in accordance with the rules of the Department of Personnel Administration for attendance at meetings and other approved board activities. SEC. 3. Section 6047.5 of the Food and Agricultural Code is amended to read: 6047.5. (a) Expenditure of the funds pursuant to this article shall be restricted to the following: (1) Reasonable administrative expenses of the board and the department, subject to the limitation in Section 6047.12. (2) The collection, enforcement, deposit, and handling of the assessments. (3) Subject to subdivision (d) of Section 6047.1, research and other activities related to the transmittal of the plant killing Pierce's disease bacteria, and its vectors, particularly the Glassy-winged Sharpshooter, including, but not limited to, research of integrated pest management and other sustainable industry practices. The disbursement of research funds collected pursuant to Section 6047.7 shall be on a competitive bid basis and shall be exempt from the requirements of Sections 12798 and 12798.6. (b) Except as provided in subdivision (c), data and related information and materials produced during the course of research conducted pursuant to this article that are in the possession of the department, the board, or any entity engaged in research funded pursuant to this article, shall be confidential and shall not be released for any purpose, except to the extent that they are included in any final publication of research, or except when required by a court order after a hearing in a judicial proceeding involving this article. (c) The restrictions in this section shall not apply to research conducted by the University of California or by other public agencies or public institutions that are subject to interagency agreements, except to the extent that they are consistent with policies of the entity engaged in research funded pursuant to this article on sponsored research and publication, which may allow for, among other things, a short period of review by the board in advance of publication. (d) Processors subject to this article and expenditure of the funds collected pursuant to this article are subject to audit by the department. SEC. 4. Section 6047.6 of the Food and Agricultural Code is amended to read: 6047.6. The secretary shall accept the recommendations of the board unless he or she determines that the recommendations are not practicable or in the interest of the industry or the public. The secretary shall provide the board with the reasons for his or her decision within 15 days if the secretary does not accept a recommendation of the board. SEC. 5. This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are: In order to speed up research of the plant killing Pierce's disease bacteria that has threatened to spread destruction to grapes and other important crops throughout the state, it is necessary that this act take effect immediately.