Session 2
On Tuesday June 12, the WUD Dairy Leaders met in Sacramento,
CA for our session on the California state legislation. We kicked off the trip
with dinner at the Broiler Room. This is where we were first introduced to Mr.
Gary Conover and Mr. Jim Collin.
Mr. Conover is the Lobbyist for Western United Dairymen, or
in other words, the Director of Government Relations. He is a contract lobbyist
however, which means that he has the ability to lobby for other special
interest groups that do not conflict with WUD beliefs. Along with WUD, Gary is
currently lobbying for the CA School Nutrition Coalition. He is one of 2,000
registered lobbyists in CA.
Gary was our host/tour guide for our stay in Sacramento. He
showed us all the “ins and outs” in all areas of the Capitol. He scheduled all
our activities and meetings for the 3 days. Basically without Gary, we all
would have been completely lost and confused.
Mr. Jim Collin is the chief consultant for Assemblywomen
Cathleen Galgiani. Cathleen sits as the chair for the Assembly Ag Com Board. So
therefore, Jim is a lead consultant for the board. On Tuesday night Jim and
Gary helped break down the CA state government process as best as possible.
With all the different legs and sections of the government, it was no easy
task. Jim stated himself that after 30 years of working in Sacramento, he is
still learning the process himself!
On Wednesday morning after breakfast, we started for the Capitol
where we had a tour. This was extremely eye opening. Our tour guide was loaded
with information and answered all of our questions with ease. There were so
many different areas to the Capitol that we covered that I needed to take a
second tour to get more comfortable with it. The most interesting part of the
tour was being in the senate and assembly rooms. There is so much history in
those two rooms that it was breathtaking. We concluded the tour with walking
back into the Capitol through a mess of protestors who were purposely causing
problems and getting arrested.
Immediately after the tour, we headed to the Senate Labor and
Industrial Relations Committee board meeting. Here we heard several different
labor issues. It was really interesting because when they were presented to the
board, we were able to hear both sides of the issue. So when the bill was
presented, the people who opposed the bill immediately followed with their
explanation.
Following the board hearing, we met with Assemblywomen Connie
Conway. Connie is a Republican from Visalia, CA. She is the assembly minority
leader. The most interesting thing about Connie is that her son is a dairyman
in Tulare so her ties to the dairy industry are extremely strong. That is
exactly what we need in Sacramento!
Right before lunch we met with Senator Anthony Cannella.
Anthony is one of the few republican senators. He is from Ceres, CA and is a
business owner back home with his wife and kids. Senator Cannella has two years
left before he is termed out, where he jokingly said that he plans to run for
president of the United States next.
This meeting took us right up to lunch where we met Michael
Marsh. We ate at Bistro Michel where everyone ate a french dip sandwich! We
regrouped and talked with Michael and Gary about what we thought so far.
Immediately following lunch, we had to run to the Assembly Ag
Committee hearing. We were luckily on time. If we were five minutes late, we
would have missed it all. The hearing didn’t take long. They heard one bill
about the California State Fair. They passed it and the hearing was adjourned.
I wish it would have lasted longer to get a better feel for the hearing
process. Never the less, it was still beneficial!
The most interesting legislator that we met in our time in
Sacramento was Assemblyman David Valadao. David is a republican from Hanford,
CA. Talking with David, I got a different feeling with him than I did with anyone
else we met with; almost a comfortable feeling. He was totally upfront with
everything. He talked about his family background, his time running for office,
his time in Sacramento, and his potential seat at the United States Senate. The
best part of it all is that he is a CA dairyman so he honestly knows exactly what
we are going through. The only people who know exactly what CA Dairyman deal
with, are dairyman themselves. It’s a big deal that Assemblyman David Valadao
is in Sacramento and is hopefully on his was to Washington D.C.
We also met with two democrats during our time at the
Capitol. The first democrat we met with was Assemblywomen Fiona Ma. She is from
San Francisco and is the Assembly Speaker pro Tempore. She leads the assembly
floor. Fiona was very impressive. I wasn’t sure what to expect with her.
However, surprisingly enough, she greeted us with a two page document that
listed all the ag tours that she has taken in CA. It was impressive. When I
asked her why she tours all the different ag communities in CA, she simply
state; because I want to know where my food comes from. Simple and exact! I
would love to host Fiona and whoever else is interested in learning more about
where their food comes from. The other Democrat we briefly met with was Senator
Leland Yee from San Francisco also. Our time with Leland was brief but
positive. He has supported and carried a few bills for the dairy industry.
The last couple of visits were with the Berryhill brothers,
Senator Tom and Assemblyman Bill. Tom is a republican who represents Modesto
and Bill is also a republican who represents Ceres. We met with the Berryhill
brothers separately, but both were strong supporters of many of the same
things. The two of them are strong fighters for the water issues in the central
valley farming community, which is a major issue in California. The Berryhill
families are big tree and vine farmers in Modesto, CA.
Wednesday evening we concluded with dinner at Chops
Restaurant. Chops sits directly next to the state capitol. It’s a local
favorite for the CA government community. We met a lot of legislators there.
Thursday morning, following breakfast, we were introduced on
the Assembly and Senate floors. On our way there, we took pictures with Senator
Cannella and Assemblywomen Conway. Assemblyman Valadao and Senator Cannella
introduced us on the Assembly and Senate floors. We were told that it was
supposed to be on television but I was unable to find it. Following the
introductions, session two was adjourned.
Overall, session two was a success. I did not know what to
expect and I thought it turned out well. I thought Mr. Conover did a great job
facilitating our group for the two and a half days. He gave us great insight
and great information about the legislative process. I realized how important
it was to have a voice in Sacramento. And as a lobbyist, I was impressed with
Mr. Conover! I went home with a much better understanding of how everything
works in Sacramento.
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