Agriculture: State Water Efficiency and Enhancement Program.

Existing law, the Cannella Environmental Farming Act of 1995, requires the Department of Food and Agriculture to establish and oversee an environmental farming program that provides incentives to farmers whose practices promote the well-being of ecosystems, air quality, and wildlife and their habitat. The act requires the Secretary of Food and Agriculture to convene the Scientific Advisory Panel on Environmental Farming to advise the secretary on the implementation of the Healthy Soils Program and the State Water Efficiency and Enhancement Program, and to assist federal, state, and local government agencies, as appropriate or necessary, on issues relating to the impact of agricultural practices on air, water, and wildlife habitat, as specified. This bill would require the department, upon appropriation by the Legislature of additional funds, to administer the State Water Efficiency and Enhancement Program to provide grants to agricultural operations to implement irrigation, water reclamation, water storage, or groundwater recharge systems that reduce greenhouse gases and energy use or increase water use efficiency. The bill would require the secretary, on or before one year after receiving an appropriation by the Legislature for these purposes, in consultation with the Scientific Advisory Panel on Environmental Farming, to develop guidelines for awarding grants under the program, as specified. The bill would require the secretary, on or before January 1, 2027, and biennially thereafter, to submit a report to the Legislature, as prescribed.