BILL ANALYSIS �
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair
AB 1625 (Allen) - Transition to Organics Act.
Amended: June 18, 2012 Policy Vote: Agriculture 6-0
Urgency: No Mandate: No
Hearing Date: August 6, 2012 Consultant:
Bob Franzoia
This bill does not meet the criteria for referral to the
Suspense File.
Bill Summary: AB 1625 would establish the Transition to Organics
Act of 2012 for the purpose of providing financial assistance to
persons who transition their conventional farms to certified
organic farms.
Fiscal Impact: Unknown, likely minor costs annually to the
Transition to Organics Fund for the Department of Food and
Agriculture to administer the act.
Estimated $25,000 annually to the Transition to Organics
Fund for 100 applications for assistance.
Background: As noted by the policy committee, persons wanting to
transition from convention farming to organic farming face a
number of financial challenges. The most predominant is the
three year "wash out" period where farms must operate in organic
fashion i.e., sans conventional fertilizers, pesticides,
medicines but are not allowed organic certification or organic
labeling, which typically would recoup the higher cost of
organic production. In addition, once the farm is eligible to
receive organic certification, the farm must pay fees to obtain
organic certification.
Proposed Law: The Transition to Organics Fund would be
administered by the department for administrative and
operational expenses and for the adoption of regulations. The
Transition to Organics Fund shall consist of moneys deposited
into the fund from industry and citizen sources. No money from
the General Fund shall be deposited into the fund.
No administrative and operational expenses shall be incurred by
the department unless the Department of Finance determines that
AB 1625 (Allen)
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sufficient moneys are available to cover these expenses.
Related Legislation: This bill is similar to AB 1401 (Ma) 2009
which was vetoed by the Governor with the following message:
While I support the author's goal to assist individuals
converting to organic farming, I cannot support establishing an
assistance program and expanding the workload of the California
Department of Food and Agriculture when there is no guarantee of
a funding mechanism.
Staff Comments: Moneys in the Transition to Organics Fund shall
be reimbursed on a first come, first serve basis to provide
financial assistance to persons who are transitioning their
farms to certified organic farms. Combined with federal
National Organic Certification Cost Share Program funds, a
person could receive up to $1,000 in federal and state funds,
with state funding being a maximum of $250. If 100 persons apply
for these funds and receive the maximum payment, this bill would
have costs of $25,000 annually to the Transition to Organics
Fund.