HomeMy WebLinkAboutRESOLUTION 2024-088 N.C.S. 07/15/2024 Docusign Envelope ID:55F7232E-69BE-4E6C-831C-F8E7C472412F
Resolution No. 2024-088 N.C.S.
of the City of Petaluma, California
RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PETALUMA AFFIRMING SUPPORT
OF FARMS,RANCHES,AND AGRICULTURAL OPERATIONS AND BUSINESSES IN PETALUMA
AND SONOMA COUNTY AND OPPOSING MEASURE J
WHEREAS, Sonoma County and Petaluma have a rich farming history dating back more than a
century, including invention of the artificial incubator in the 1880s, and thriving poultry and dairy farms, with
30,000 cows in the Petaluma area and production of 3.5 million pounds of butter and 379,776 pounds of cheese
annually in 1910, and production of millions of eggs annually in the 1920s, making Petaluma famous as the
"Egg Basket of the World,"with the Petaluma area hosting in the 1920s the three largest creameries on the west
coast,producing over 4 million pounds of butter annually; and
WHEREAS, Sonoma County's agricultural heritage continues to be celebrated annually, from the
Petaluma Butter and Eggs Day and Sonoma-Marin Fair to the Cloverdale Citrus Fair, with numerous other
Sonoma County ag and fair events in between; and
WHEREAS, the agricultural sector in Sonoma County and Petaluma proved resilient during the
depression while shifting toward larger farms after World War II; and
WHEREAS, modern agriculture in Sonoma County and Petaluma has embraced organic farming and
specialty produce, supporting farm to table restaurants and numerous farmers' markets, and hosting storied food
producers like Clover Sonoma, Strauss Family Creamery, and Petaluma Poultry, with their Rosie and Rocky
Free-range chickens; and
WHEREAS, Sonoma County farming accounts for significant economic activity and food production
for the region, with Sonoma County hosting 50 dairies, 84% of them certified organic, milking an average of
350 cows and comprising nearly 41% of California's certified organic dairies and certified organic mature dairy
cattle producing 42.4 Million gallons of milk annually valued at $114 million, with Sonoma County producing
13% of the national volume of organic milk in 2022, and annual values produced of almost $33 million in
poultry, $30 million in eggs, $20 million in cattle and calves, and $5 million in sheep,with livestock and
poultry production alone responsible for $418 million in total output, $80 million in labor income and almost
1,400 jobs annually; and
WHEREAS, Sonoma County dairies currently graze over 45,000 acres and farm 8,100 acres,
managing over 53,000 acres, and lands managed by dairies sequester almost 23 million tons of carbon dioxide
more than they would otherwise; and
WHEREAS, the Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District has worked with
owners of working farms and ranches throughout Sonoma County, especially those most at risk for conversion
to non-agricultural uses, through purchase of conservation easements to preserve the scenic and natural
resources of agricultural lands, and has invested approximately $126 million in local sales tax proceeds to
conserve more than 90 farms and ranches totaling nearly 60,000 acres, and 16 of the District's agricultural
easements are on dairy land or land that supports dairy operations, and seven of the eight active dairy farms
protected by the District could be impacted by Measure J; and
Resolution No. 2024-088 N.C.S. Page 1
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WHEREAS, Sonoma County dairy and poultry farms follow animal care standards of the National
Organic Program or third party welfare certification programs, and comply with Proposition 12 specifying
space minimums for egg-laying hens,veal and breeding hog farms; and
WHEREAS, Sonoma County Dairies are not considered point source polluters and are regulated by the
North Coast and San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Boards subject to regulations prohibiting
pollution and specifying water quality standards dairies must meet; and
WHEREAS, notwithstanding or because of Sonoma County's rich agricultural history, a coalition of
animal rights activists and others, including a Berkeley-based group called Direct Action Everywhere, some of
whose supporters have been arrested and prosecuted for unlawfully trespassing on Petaluma area-poultry farms
and entering production facilities, have qualified an initiative measure entitled Sonoma County Prohibition on
Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations, designated as Measure J, for the November, 2024 Sonoma County
general election; and
WHEREAS, if approved by the voters, Measure J would prohibit new farms and phase out within 3
years existing Sonoma County farms that qualify as Concentrated Animal Feeding operations, as defined in
Environmental Protection Agency pollution discharge regulations, in all zoning districts in unincorporated
Sonoma County outside the coastal zone, and apply to cattle, veal calves, swine, horses, sheep, lambs, turkeys,
chickens and ducks, subject to penalties of$1,000 for the first day, $5,000 for the second day, and$10,000 for
the third and subsequent days, creating a private cause of action with attorney's fees awards to enforce
violations, and imposing new,unfunded regulatory and administrative mandates on Sonoma County
government to enforce Measure J's prohibitions against local farms; and
WHEREAS, the website of Measure J's proponents lists 21 Sonoma County farms that would be
outlawed under Measure J, including 15 poultry farms and 6 dairies, with most of the targeted farms in south
Sonoma County in the vicinity of Petaluma; and
WHEREAS, some Sonoma County families have been operating farms targeted for closure under
Measure J for three and four generations, some for more than a century, and the three-year period for farms to
close under Measure J would be inadequate for such long term farm operators to recover the value of
generations and decades of investment in land management, livestock and animal husbandry,buildings,
equipment, vehicles, financing, and other investments, including generations and decades of farming expertise.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED,by the City Council of the City of Petaluma as follows:
1. Recitals Made Findings. The above recitals are hereby declared to be true and correct and are incorporated
into this resolution as findings of the City Council.
2. Measure J Opposed. The City Council of the City of Petaluma hereby joins together in opposing Measure
J on the Sonoma County 2024 general election ballot, and urges all Sonoma county voters to vote "no" on
measure J. A "no"vote on Measure J will:
a. Support the region's farms that have been providing dairy, poultry and other agricultural products for
the region and the state for more than a century,and that are still celebrated throughout Sonoma County
with fairs, farmers markets, and other community events celebrating regional agriculture;
b. Protect Sonoma County's agricultural economy providing milk and other dairy products, eggs and
poultry for the region and the state, comprising nearly 41% of California certified organic dairies and
Resolution No. 2024-088 N.C.S. Page 2
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as much as 13% of the nation's organic milk, and accounting for hundreds of millions of dollars in
agricultural products sales and revenues for ag supporting businesses, and almost 1,400 agricultural
and agriculture support jobs for the local economy; and
c. Preserve the decades and generations long investments of Sonoma County farming families in their
dairy,poultry and other farming operations, and avoid the permanent loss of 15 poultry operations and
6 dairy operations in Sonoma County targeted for closure under Measure J; and
d. Safeguard the benefits of local, high quality agricultural production serving local markets, keep
agricultural products affordable and reduce the cost of transporting local agricultural products,reduce
the region's reliance on imported agricultural products and avoid generation of greenhouse gases as
well as support local food security and avoid reliance on imported agricultural products; and
e. Maintain Sonoma County's urban separators, green belts and open spaces and the scenic beauty, fire
safety, wildlife corridor and other important benefits they provide to the region through preservation
of managed agricultural lands sequestering almost 23 million tons of carbon dioxide more than they
would otherwise; and
f. Avoid the imposition of costly, unfunded regulatory and enforcement mandates on Sonoma County
government - traditionally responsible for supporting the agricultural sector - directing scarce public
funds at policing the closure of important local food producers and away from other important public
service needs.
3. Effective Date. This resolution shall become effective immediately upon its passage by a majority of a
quorum of the City Council.
Under the power and authority conferred upon this Council by the Charter of said City.
REFERENCE: I hereby certify the foregoing Resolution was introduced and adopted by the Approved as to
Council of the City of Petaluma at a Regular meeting on the 15'day of July 2024, Docusignedln:
by the following vote: �
ity ttorney
AYES: McDonnell,Barnacle,Cader Thompson,Healy,Nau,Pocekay,Shribbs
NOES: None
ABSENT: None
ABSTAIN: None
DocuSigned by: DocuSigned by:
ATTEST: �� W h- 06n,In&
City ZTe'TV Mayor
Resolution No. 2024-088 N.C.S. Page 3
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Resolution no. 2024-088 N.C.S.
Sources
1. Misti Arias, General Manager, Sonoma County Agricultural and Preservation Open Space
District,Report on Prohibition on Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations, May 9,
2024
2. CSU, Chico College of Agriculture,Agribusiness Institute,Potential Economic Impacts
of a Proposition Limiting Livestock and Poultry Production in Sonoma County, May,
2024
3. John Burns, former Publisher, Petaluma Argus Courier,Animal Activists Target Sonoma
County poultry farms and dairies, October 5, 2023
4. Anna Miller, Managing Editor,Western Livestock Journal, CA local ballot initiative
could decimate ag statewide,November 30, 2023
5. Randi Black, PhD, Dairy Advisor, University of California Cooperative Extension,
Summary of"Prohibition on Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations"Supporting
Arguments, accessed July, 2024
6. Phil Barber, Press Democrat, Sonoma County supervisors send factory farm'measure to
ballot, reluctantly, May 14, 2024
7. Robert Pittman, Sonoma County Counsel, County Counsel's Title & Summary, Sonoma
County Prohibition on Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations, September 7, 2023
8. Shami Shivaie, Gazette Gab Newsletter,Petaluma's history showcases Sonoma Countys
agricultural prowess, July 17, 2023
9. Sonoma County staff,Prohibition on Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations -A
Report to the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors on the Impacts &Issues of the
Proposed Ballot Measure, May 14, 2024
10. Diane Peterson, Sonoma Magazine,History of Petaluma Eggs, March, 2015
11. Permit Sonoma staff,Impacts of Proposed Ballot Initiative to Prohibit Concentrated
Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs), May 7, 2024
12. Ben Fox, Politico,Animal rights comes to `America's Provence'and farmers are worried,
June 9, 2024
13. Coalition to End Factory Farming, CAFO MAP,
hgps://www.endfactolyfarming.vote/cafos#cafo-map, accessed July, 2024