BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AJR 15
Author: Alejo (D), et al.
Amended: 8/31/11 in Assembly
Vote: 21
SENATE BUSINESS, PROFESSIONS & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
COMMITTEE : 7-0, 9/8/11
AYES: Price, Emmerson, Corbett, Correa, Negrete McLeod,
Vargas, Walters
NO VOTE RECORDED: Hernandez, Wyland
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 68-5, 08/31/11 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : California cut flowers
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This resolution urges the United States
government to consider the California jobs and economic
stimulus provided by the California floriculture industry
when advancing free trade agreements, specifically with
Colombia.
ANALYSIS : This resolution encourages the federal
government to consider the jobs and economic role that the
California floriculture industry provides California when
advancing free trade agreements, specifically with
Colombia. Specifically, this resolution makes the
following findings:
CONTINUED
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1. Over 75 percent of domestically grown flowers are grown
in California, accounting for almost 20 percent of all
flowers sold in the United States, directly supporting
more than 10,000 jobs in the state, and having a $10.3
billion economic impact on the economy.
2. The number of our state's flower farmers is shrinking
rapidly due to federal trade policies, specifically with
countries like Colombia that have benefitted from the
Andean Trade Preference Act and Colombian (ATPA) and
U.S. government subsidies for the past two decades.
3. ATPA countries, primarily Colombia, supplied 82 percent
of the total value of U.S. imports of fresh cut flowers
in 2009, being supported by roughly $210 million in
subsidies and other governmental supports from 2005 to
2009, as well as millions of dollars provided through
the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
Colombian exports to the U.S. increased 89 percent
between 2002 and 2010, resulting in a decline in U.S.
flower farmers.
4. Working with the California Cut Flower Commission
(CCFC), California floriculture has worked to remain
competitive by offering higher end products produced in
an increasingly environmentally sustainable manner. The
state's flower farmers use the latest in horticultural
science to increase yields and develop new varieties for
the market, while also meeting California labor and
environmental standards that are much higher than their
foreign competitors, and California flower farmers are
in the final phase of developing a new transportation,
logistics, and shipping system and center that would
reduce California floriculture shipping costs by 30
percent to 40 percent.
This resolution does not nullify any preexisting position
taken by the Legislature regarding free trade agreements.
Comments
Nationwide, consumers purchase an estimated $17 billion in
floral items every year providing $5.5 million per day in
economic impact to the U.S. economy, supporting 19,000 jobs
AJR 15
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and $2.4 million per day in salaries and wages. According
to the CCFC, many U.S. grown flowers, particularly roses,
mums, and carnations, face strong competition from imports,
largely from Colombia and Ecuador.
The Colombian cut flower industry is considered by some as
one of the success stories among developing nations.
Initially promoted and funded through the USAID in 1966,
the cut flower industry is now a major contributor to the
Colombian economy. In 2009, Colombia exported 75 percent
of its flowers to the United States. Colombia's export
success, however, has been made at the detriment of U.S.
farmers who have raised concerns relative to USAID's
ongoing financial assistance and the open market advantages
provided through the Andean Trade Promotion and Drug
Eradication Act (ATPDEA) where Colombian flowers receive
duty-free treatment when entering the U.S. As a result,
Colombian exports to the U.S. increased 89 percent between
2002, when the ATPDEA was implemented, and 2010. During
this same term, U.S. acreage under cut flower cultivation
declined by 22 percent.
Prior Legislation
AJR 27 (Torrico), Resolution Chapter 145, Statutes of 2010,
urged the U.S. Congress to oppose a free trade agreement
with Colombia. The primary basis for this position, as
documented through bill analyses, was Colombia's record on
human rights, particularly at it related to trade
unionists. This resolution proposes that the Legislature
transmit additional information to the U.S. Government and
the President relative to the Colombian FTA. In this case,
the new information focuses on its potential negative
impact to the domestic cut flower industry, its workers and
the communities in which they are located.
FISCAL EFFECT : Fiscal Com.: No
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 68-5, 8/31/11
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall,
Bill Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford,
Brownley, Buchanan, Butler, Charles Calderon, Campos,
Carter, Cedillo, Chesbro, Cook, Davis, Dickinson, Eng,
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Feuer, Fong, Fuentes, Furutani, Beth Gaines, Galgiani,
Garrick, Gatto, Gordon, Hall, Hayashi, Roger Hernández,
Hill, Huber, Hueso, Huffman, Jeffries, Jones, Lara,
Logue, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Miller, Mitchell,
Monning, Morrell, Nielsen, Olsen, Pan, Perea, V. Manuel
Pérez, Portantino, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio,
Swanson, Torres, Valadao, Wagner, Wieckowski, Williams,
Yamada, John A. Pérez
NOES: Donnelly, Grove, Hagman, Knight, Norby
NO VOTE RECORDED: Conway, Fletcher, Gorell, Halderman,
Harkey, Mansoor, Nestande
MEL:mw 9/8/11 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: NONE RECEIVED
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