BILL NUMBER: AB 2574 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 11, 2016
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 28, 2016
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Chávez
( Coauthor: Assembly Member
Cooper )
FEBRUARY 19, 2016
An act to add Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 1168) to Part 3.5
of Division 2 of the Labor Code, relating to veterans.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2574, as amended, Chávez. Veteran farmers and ranchers.
Existing law establishes the Labor and Workforce Development
Agency and provides that the agency consists of, among other
entities, the California Workforce Investment Board, the Employment
Development Department, and the Employment Training Panel. Existing
law establishes within state government a Department of Veterans
Affairs and a State Board Department of
Food and Agriculture. Existing law provides for a variety of state
benefits to veterans, including those relating to educational
assistance and farm and home purchases, as specified.
This bill, by July 1, 2017, would require the Labor and
Workforce Development Agency, in consultation with the Department of
Veterans Affairs and the State Board of Food and Agriculture,
a collaboration of state departments, including, but
not limited to, the Department of Food and Agriculture, the Labor and
Workforce Development Agency, and the Department of Veterans
Affairs, to develop a New Veteran Farmer and Rancher Outreach
and Assistance Plan to disseminate information to veterans in
California about, among other things, federal and state veteran
agricultural education, training, and other assistance programs, as
provided. The bill would authorize other public or private sector
resources to be included in that dissemination if the resources meet
certain requirements. The bill would also make findings and
declarations in this regard.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 1168) is added to
Part 3.5 of Division 2 of the Labor Code, to read:
CHAPTER 9. VETERAN FARMERS OR RANCHERS
1168. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) The United States Census Bureau data for 2015 estimates an
approximate global population totaling 7.25 billion people, requiring
increased capacity to provide an adequate food supply while global
resources for producing food are dwindling.
(b) The average age of farmers across the United States is on the
rise. In 1978, 16.4 percent of principal farm operators were over 65
years of age and by 2012, the average age of farmers increased to 33
percent of principal farm operators being over 65 years of age.
(c) An 8-percent national decrease in the number of farmers and
ranchers is expected to occur between the years 2008 and 2018.
(d) The current social and educational infrastructure is
inadequate to serve the needs of farmers and ranchers in California
and elsewhere.
(e) According to the 2012 United States Department of Agriculture
(USDA) Census of Agriculture, 22 percent of all farmers were
beginning farmers in 2012, with minority and historically
underrepresented communities constituting part of the continued
growth among new and beginning farmers and ranchers.
(f) There is expanding recognition of new populations considering
enterprises in farming and ranching that require a repositioning of
classrooms and targeted educational resources outreach.
(g) According to the USDA, the sales value generated by California
agriculture increased by 4.6 percent between the 2012 and 2013 crop
years. The state's 77,900 farms and ranches received forty-six
billion four hundred million dollars ($46,400,000,000) for their
outputs, ranking California as the nation's largest in cash receipts,
with the next leading states being Iowa and Nebraska.
(h) In response to the need to identify new population segments
entering farming and ranching-related fields, the federal 2014 United
States farm bill, known as the federal Agricultural Act of 2014
(Public Law 113-79), contained various landmark incentives to assist
America's veterans returning from military service to acquire skills
needed to start and manage a farm and successfully enter the business
of farming and ranching. Incentives include, but are not limited to,
education and training, technical assistance, rehabilitation, and
eligibility for USDA Microloans offering a simplified application
process and favorable interest rates.
(i) More than six million veterans reside in rural America and two
million veterans are residents of California.
1168.2. For purposes of this chapter, "veteran farmer or rancher"
means a farmer or rancher who meets both of the following
requirements:
(a) Has not operated a farm or ranch or has not operated a farm or
ranch for more than 10 years.
(b) Has served in the Armed Forces of the United States including
the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard of the United
States, Reserves, Army National Guard, and Air National Guard.
1168.3. (a) By July 1, 2017, the Labor and Workforce
Development Agency, in consultation with the Department of Veterans
Affairs and the State Board of Food and Agriculture, a
collaboration of state departments, including, but not limited to,
the Department of Food and Agriculture, the Labor and Workforce
Development Agency, and the Department of Veterans Affairs,
shall develop a New Veteran Farmer and Rancher Outreach and
Assistance Plan to disseminate information, electronically and
through America's Job Center of California locations and through any
other already available means, to veterans in California about state
veteran and agricultural education, training, and other assistance
programs, federal veteran and agricultural education, training, and
other assistance programs and resources offered through the federal
Agricultural Act of 2014 (Public Law 113-79) and any other subsequent
federal acts related to agriculture.
(b) Other public or private sector resources may also be included
in the dissemination described in subdivision (a) if these resources
(1) offer guaranteed loans or other support to new veteran farmers or
ranchers to assist in meeting their needs, including, but not
limited to, loans for farm ownership through the Veterans' Farm and
Home Purchase Act of 1974, which is known as the Cal-Vet loan
program, as well as operating loans, loans for land acquisition and
improvement and other needs, as appropriate, or (2) support eligible
traditional and nontraditional organizations serving veterans, or
veteran applicants applying and qualifying for federal funding
authorized by the federal Agricultural Act of 2014 (Public Law
113-79) and any other subsequent federal agricultural Acts.