BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 751
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 22, 2015
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Jimmy Gomez, Chair
AB
751 (Cooper) - As Introduced February 25, 2015
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|Policy |Agriculture |Vote:|10-0 |
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No
SUMMARY:
This bill extends the Vertebrate Pest Control Research Program
and Advisory Committee within the Department of Food and
Agriculture (DFA), until January 1, 2026.
FISCAL EFFECT:
Annual special fund costs of approximately $500,000 for program
research and activities, funded through a $0.50 assessment per
pound on pest control materials. Over recent years, assessment
revenues have been sufficient to fund program research and
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activities.
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose. The Vertebrate Pest Control Research (VPCR) Program
focuses on finding safe alternative methods to control
vertebrate pests. Research and activities are funded with an
assessment on the sale of rodenticides, which raises
approximately $500,000 per year. The author asserts that
without this program, DFA would lose its authority to register
rodenticides, which could result in rodenticides becoming
unavailable in California.
2)Vertebrate Pest Control Research Program and Advisory
Committee. The VPCR Program was established in 1990 following
changes by the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
to data submission requirements for registering rodenticides
and similar products. Certain manufacturers of rodenticides
had withdrawn registration of their products with the EPA as a
result of additional costs from the data submission
requirements.
DFA created the VPCR Program and Advisory Committee to support
research and funding to meet the EPA's data requirements for
registration of rodenticides, enabling manufacturers to
continue developing and register their products for use.
Funding is supported with an assessment on pest control
materials, which DFA may set at up to $1.00 per pound. For
several years, that assessment has remained at $0.50 per
pound, which the VPCR Advisory Committee contends is
sufficient to support current research and activities.
3)Permanent Program? Given this program has existed 25 years
and continues to function at current funding levels despite
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significant headroom in the statute for DFA to raise fees, the
Committee may wish to consider whether eliminating the sunset
would provide even greater stability to the program and its
research projects.
Analysis Prepared by:Joel Tashjian / APPR. / (916)
319-2081