Bill Text: CA SCR71 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Chaptered
Bill Title: The University of California Division of Agriculture and
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2012-07-11 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Res. Chapter 68, Statutes of 2012. [SCR71 Detail]
Download: California-2011-SCR71-Chaptered.html
BILL NUMBER: SCR 71 CHAPTERED BILL TEXT RESOLUTION CHAPTER 68 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE JULY 11, 2012 APPROVED BY GOVERNOR JULY 11, 2012 ADOPTED IN SENATE MAY 17, 2012 ADOPTED IN ASSEMBLY JULY 5, 2012 AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 15, 2012 INTRODUCED BY Senator Cannella (Coauthors: Senators Berryhill, La Malfa, Rubio, and Wolk) (Coauthors: Assembly Members Bill Berryhill, Ma, Olsen, Perea, Valadao, and Yamada) FEBRUARY 24, 2012 Relative to the University of California. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SCR 71, Cannella. The University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources. This measure would state the Legislature's support for the programs and initiatives administered by the University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources and would request the United States Department of Agriculture, the Regents of the University of California, and the board of supervisors in each county in the state to continue their support and funding of the division. WHEREAS, The University of California (UC) is a land-grant institution founded in 1868 whose original mandate was, "without excluding other scientific and classical studies and including military tactic, to teach such branches of learning as are related to agriculture and the mechanic arts"; and WHEREAS, The University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources (UCDANR) is a network of researchers and educators dedicated to the creation, development, and application of knowledge to local and statewide problems; and WHEREAS, The UCDANR has a physical presence in 57 of California's 58 counties and provides California residents with local access to UC resources; and WHEREAS, The UC Cooperative Extension is supporting healthy communities by developing science-based strategies whose goals include, but are not limited to, prevention of childhood obesity and diabetes, reducing pesticide usage in agriculture, offering nutrition education to limited-resource families and children, enhancing the safety of our food supply, and protecting state resources from the harmful effects of invasive species; and WHEREAS, The UCDANR Agricultural Experiment Station and the UC Cooperative Extension develop and disseminate innovations that help drive California's $35 billion agricultural industry; and WHEREAS, In 2011, Master Gardener Program volunteers and 4-H volunteers trained by the UCDANR dedicated 1.9 million hours of their time to improving the lives of young people, enhancing their communities, and providing sound research-based information to homeowners and backyard gardeners; and WHEREAS, The UCDANR has sustained substantial funding cuts in recent years; and WHEREAS, The number of UCDANR academic appointments has decreased by 18 percent from 1998 to 2008, inclusive, for advisors, specialists, and Agricultural Experiment Station academics; and WHEREAS, Budgetary constraints, vacant positions, and eliminated positions are requiring individual UC cooperative extensionists to assume responsibility for multiple counties and threatening their ability to maintain traditional service levels; and WHEREAS, California policymakers and the public at large face emerging and regulatory issues for which science-based information will be critical for effective, equitable, and transparent policymaking; now, therefore, be it Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly thereof concurring, That the Legislature supports the programs and initiatives administered by the University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the division's focus on public service; and be it further Resolved, That the Legislature requests the United States Department of Agriculture, the Regents of the University of California, and the board of supervisors in each county in the state to continue their support and funding of the University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources; and be it further Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this resolution to the author for appropriate distribution.