3 minute read
BUNKHOUSE
SUBCOMMITTEE MAKES STRIDES TOWARD FIRE LEGISLATION THAT WILL WORK FOR RANCHERS
by CCA Executive Vice President Billy Gatlin
Three years ago, then-CCA President Mark Lacey, Independence, appointed Tony Toso, Hornitos, to chair a newly formed Fire Subcommittee. Under Tony’s leadership, a well-qualified committee of CCA members identified three priorities: 1) Increase the use of prescribed burns; 2) improve access to livestock and property during a fire event; and 3) increase the use of grazing to control fuel loads.
The Subcommittee had early success securing $1 billion in funding in 2018 to fund fuel load reduction and increase management of our state forests. Now under the leadership of Anthony Stornetta, Atascadero, the Subcommittee this year successfully secured an additional $1.5 billion over the next 3 years.
In addition, this year two CCA-sponsored bills based on the Subcommittee’s priorities were signed by the Governor. These bills will provide liability protection for burn bosses and property owners and establish a Livestock Pass program for ranchers so they can access their property and livestock during a wildfire event. The Governor also included $20 million in the state budget to pay for damage from escaped controlled burns.
CCA is continuing to work with Assemblyman Robert Rivas to expand grazing on state owned properties.
The hard work of the CCA Fire Subcommittee, along with the support of CCA members, has delivered some major wins in the last three years. These victories did not come easy, but the Subcommittee remained resilient and persevered to overcome some major obstacles. They kept striking until the iron was hot.
Perhaps most importantly we have shifted the narrative on controlled burns and ranchers’ critical role in helping the state become more fire resilient.
There’s a tremendous amount of work ahead of us to ensure the money the state has allocated for fire mitigation efforts is used effectively and efficiently. It’s also critical that ranchers remain at the center of this effort and receive the resources and regulatory relief they need to reduce fuel loads on the over 30 million acres they collectively manage.
We have a strategy, and given past success, we know we can continue to win.
In 2022 there will be additional opportunities to highlight the beneficial role of livestock in preserving open space, providing wildlife habitat and reducing greenhouse gas emissions to achieve the state’s goals to create a climate resilient California.
In its 30 by 30 Initiative and Natural and Working Lands Climate Smart Strategy, the Newsom Administration has demonstrated its ability to set audacious goals. In fact, no Governor has more goals than Newsom. What’s lacking in many of these goal setting documents is clear strategy on how to reasonably achieve these goals.
CCA and our members have an unprecedented opportunity to influence and shape these strategies moving forward. Importantly, none of these goals frame livestock or grazing in negative terms. On the contrary they highlight the beneficial role of grazing and recognize that the state cannot achieve its goals without ranchers utilizing grazing to manage and maintain the land under their stewardship.
Again, we are seeing the narrative around grazing shift. We are spending less time on defense and more time highlighting the critical benefits of grazing. This sets us up for success in 2022 and for years to come.
While these small victories are noteworthy and worth celebrating, the hard work is just beginning and, in many ways, expanding. Each victory brings new opportunity and more work.
Our success not only depends on your membership but your engagement. Every success we’ve had has been the result of a lot of volunteer hours from our CCA leadership and members. We need more hammers striking.
Please consider contacting the CCA office or a CCA officer to learn how you can get engaged. Our collective efforts will deliver small and large victories that will protect our lifestyle and businesses for years to come, ensuring a bright future for the next generation of ranchers.
– William Butler Yeats
