By Nick Rudowich, AEM Director of State Affairs —
2025 looks to be a year of progress for the equipment manufacturing industry in California. Decisions on issues (ranging from purchasing grants to help users obtain new and more efficient agricultural equipment to emissions standards for equipment engines) will have a major impact on current and future policy in the Golden State.
Here are a few key policy areas to keep an eye on:
FARMER Renewal
The California Funding Agricultural Replacement Measures or Emissions Reduction (FARMER) program is up for renewal in 2025 and is part of a larger cap-and-trade discussion happening in Sacramento. The FARMER Program has a track record of success and leverages private matching funds, encouraging early adoption and can drive transformative change in the agricultural sector. To date, the state’s investment in FARMER has been leveraged to generate over $1.5 billion in private match funding. At a time of economic uncertainty where our investments must be maximized, FARMER meets the mark. At the same time, over one-third of its funding has supported small farms of under 100 acres, exemplifying its commitment to farmer equity and the economic vitality of California’s family farms. This investment is a strategic economic decision, ensuring California’s farmers remain competitive while meeting climate and air quality goals.
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) is responsible for oversight and implementation of the program through local Air Districts. FARMER has reduced over 28,000 tons of NOx, 1,600 tons of PM, and 388,000 metric tons of CO2 equivalent emissions annually.
Evolving Autonomous Equipment Policy
California is a leading state when it comes to the use of autonomous agricultural equipment. AEM and its in-state partners have been working with the California Occupational Safety and Health (CALOSHA) to help educate the department on new and evolving autonomous equipment and its impact.
As with other states across the country, California and its agricultural economy are continuing to increase focus on worker safety and other workforce issues. Autonomous agricultural equipment will increase worker safety by removing agricultural workers from risky situations and move them to more productive roles. Further, when those farmers cannot find the necessary workforce, autonomous agricultural equipment can help step in and fill a void to keep farms running efficiently.
Compliance: Emissions
The equipment manufacturing industry has done well in adopting and conforming to new and evolving emissions regulations throughout the world. Recently, CARB has proposed to move equipment engines to new Tier 5 requirements. Finding a solution that works for both CARB and the industry to properly transition from Tier 4 CARB engines to Tier 5 engines is a significant consideration for the equipment manufacturing industry moving forward. With the engine being a critical component of any piece of equipment, the impact of how the industry moves from Tier 4 to Tier 5 cannot be understated.
AEM is taking the necessary steps in speaking with CARB officials and the Newsom administration to help the equipment manufacturing industry meet the goals that CARB has set out with its Tier 5 proposal.
