Bill Text: CA SB453 | 2021-2022 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: California State University Agricultural Research Institute grant program: Agricultural Biosecurity Fund.

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-2)

Status: (Passed) 2021-09-28 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 386, Statutes of 2021. [SB453 Detail]

Download: California-2021-SB453-Amended.html

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Amended  IN  Senate  March 10, 2021

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Bill

No. 453

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Introduced by Senator Hurtado

February 16, 2021

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An act to add Section 16462 to the Food and Agricultural Code, relating to agriculture, and making an appropriation therefor.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

SB 453, as amended, Hurtado. Agriculture: Biosecurity and Emerging Infectious Disease Fund.

Under existing law, moneys are annually appropriated to the Department of Food and Agriculture for emergency detection, investigation, or eradication of agricultural plant or animal pests or diseases and, at the discretion of the Secretary of Food and Agriculture, authorizes those moneys to be used for planning and research involving detection, investigation, eradication, and methods of quarantine compliance for agricultural plant or animal pests or diseases. Existing law requires the secretary to establish and administer a research program to control vertebrate pests that pose a significant threat to the welfare of the state’s agricultural economy, infrastructure, and the public. Existing law provides for the establishment of the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program to support competitive grants for research on the control of pests and diseases of agricultural importance through alternatives that reduce or eliminate the use of pesticides and petrochemicals and on the production, processing, and distribution of food and fiber in ways that consider the interactions among soil, plants, water, air, animals, tillage, machinery, labor, energy, and transportation to enhance agricultural efficiency, public health, and resource conservation.

This bill would create the Biosecurity and Emerging Infectious Disease Fund, the moneys in which would be continuously appropriated to the department for allocation to the CSU Foundation for distribution to the Jordan Agricultural Research Center at California State University, Fresno, for purposes of supporting research on biosecurity and emerging infectious diseases relating to agriculture and mitigating the effects of emerging infectious diseases on meat, poultry, and other agricultural production. The bill would appropriate $700,000 from the General Fund for that purpose. The bill would authorize federal, state, local, and private sources to be received by the Biosecurity and Emerging Infectious Disease Fund.

This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute for the Jordan Agricultural Research Center.

Digest Key

Vote: 2/3   Appropriation: YES   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

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Bill Text

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

 Section 16462 is added to the Food and Agricultural Code, to read:

16462.

 (a) (1) The Biosecurity and Emerging Infectious Disease Fund is hereby created within the State Treasury. Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code, all moneys in the fund are continuously appropriated to the department for allocation to the CSU Foundation without regard to fiscal year for purposes of supporting research on biosecurity and emerging infectious diseases relating to agriculture and mitigating the effects of emerging infectious diseases on meat, poultry, and other agricultural production.

(2) The Biosecurity and Emerging Infectious Disease Fund may receive funds from federal, state, local, and private sources.

(b) The CSU Foundation shall distribute the moneys appropriated pursuant to subdivision (a) to the Jordan Agricultural Research Center at California State University, Fresno, for the purposes described in subdivision (a).

SEC. 2.

 The sum of seven hundred thousand dollars ($700,000) is hereby transferred from the General Fund to the Biosecurity and Emerging Infectious Disease Fund created pursuant to Section 16462 of the Food and Agricultural Code, a continuously appropriated fund, for purposes of supporting research on biosecurity and emerging infectious diseases relating to agriculture and mitigating the effects of emerging infectious diseases on meat, poultry, and other agricultural production.

SEC. 3.

 The Legislature finds and declares that a special statute is necessary and that a general statute cannot be made applicable within the meaning of Section 16 of Article IV of the California Constitution because of the Jordan Agricultural Research Center at California State University, Fresno, a world-class research center at the flagship university in the top agricultural region in the world, is uniquely situated to investigate biosecurity and emerging infectious disease with experts in the fields of agriculture, engineering, science, and mathematics working together at this location.