Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Pollinators topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Senate ag panel advances bill to create Managed Honey Bee Health Program
Summary
The Senate Committee on Agriculture voted to pass AB 1042 to the Appropriations Committee. The bill would create a Managed Honey Bee Health Program at CDFA offering grants, incentives and technical assistance to support California’s managed beekeeping industry.
The Senate Committee on Agriculture on Monday voted to pass AB 1042 by Assemblymember Ransom to the Appropriations Committee, a measure that would create a Managed Honey Bee Health Program at the California Department of Food and Agriculture to provide grants, incentives and technical assistance to support managed pollinators.
The measure’s author and supporters told the committee that managed honey bees are essential to the state’s multi‑billion dollar fruit and vegetable industry and that more than 90 California crops rely on pollination services. Assemblymember Ransom told the committee the bill would use CDFA’s existing scientific advisory panel “to make sure that we offer support when, where, and how it is needed.”
Daniel Hartwig, president of the California Fresh Fruit Association, testified in support. “To grow crops, we tend to say that we need water, soil, and sunlight. But as a farmer myself in Fresno County I know firsthand how critical bees are to the success of our farms,” Hartwig said. He said healthy bees are essential for the quality and quantity of berries, stone fruit and other fresh produce and that a declining beekeeping industry poses a direct threat to farms and the broader agricultural community.
Industry groups registered support on the record, including the American Pistachio Growers, California Citrus Mutual, CropLife America, Western Growers, the California State Beekeepers Association, the Almond Alliance and the California Farm Bureau. Several witnesses told the committee the bill would support under‑resourced beekeepers through research, incentives and grants to maintain hive health.
Committee staff and the author described AB 1042 as building on CDFA’s existing advisory structures; the bill would direct CDFA to administer incentives, grants and technical assistance and to coordinate with the department’s advisory panel to target resources. Supporters highlighted threats to managed honey bees including habitat loss, climate change and pests such as the Varroa mite.
No witnesses registered opposition in the hearing room. After a brief committee discussion, the committee moved the bill to the Appropriations Committee. The roll call recorded five aye votes: Senators Hurtado, Alvarado‑Gill, Cortesi, McNerney and Padilla. The committee placed the measure on call to permit final vote collection and then reported it out with a 5–0 tally.
AB 1042 next proceeds to the Assembly Appropriations Committee for consideration of fiscal impacts and potential funding allocations.
