Sacramento, Calif.—Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation allowing grape growers in Napa County to increase their self-assessment fee to raise more money for farmworker housing. The legislation had been introduced by state Sen. Bill Dodd and Assemblymember Cecilia Aguiar-Curry.

According to a statement released by Dodd’s office, Napa County’s farmworker housing program provides 180 affordable beds for farmworkers. Grapegrowers have helped fund the centers through a 2002 state law that authorizes them to impose a fee of up to $10 for each acre of planted vineyards. The three farmworker housing centers are run through a partnership with the county and the nonprofit California Human Development Corporation. Currently, the centers run with an annual deficit, which the county has helped bridge through its budget reserves. Senate Bill 240 allows Napa County grapegrowers to increase their annual assessment from $10 to $15 per acre.
 
“Our farmworkers in Napa County couldn’t be more critical to our local economy,” said Dodd. “It is essential that our farmworkers have suitable housing. I am proud that we were able to advance Napa’s innovative farmworker housing model and help make a difference for hardworking farmworkers.”

In addition to the law, which goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2018, Dodd and Aguiar-Curry helped secure $250,000 to support farmworker housing in Napa in the state budget that Gov. Brown signed last month.

“I am thrilled that the Governor supports our one-of-a-kind Napa farmworker housing program,” said Aguiar-Curry. “SB 240 is an important piece in the fight to support our hardworking farmworkers in Napa County. Workers living in Napa’s housing centers are at the heart of Napa’s agricultural community, and the core of our local economy.”