Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
How Three Trump Policy Decrees Could Affect California Farmers
dan_walters
By Dan Walters, CalMatters Commentary
Published 6 months ago on
November 19, 2024

California's agricultural sector faces complex trade-offs as Trump's policies on water, trade, and immigration could reshape the industry's future. (CalMatters/Larry Valenzuela)

Share

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Voters in California’s farm belt, stretching more than 400 miles from Kern County on the south to Tehama County on the north, delivered solid majorities for Donald Trump in this month’s presidential election.

Dan Walters Profile Picture
Dan Walters

CalMatters

Opinion

They were obviously outvoted in heavily populated coastal and urban counties, so rival Kamala Harris claimed the state’s 54 electoral votes. However, it is Trump who will be moving into the White House, and of all California economic sectors, agriculture arguably has the most to gain or lose during his second presidency.

Water Policy Changes Could Benefit Agriculture

There are three policy issues particularly important to California’s farmers that Trump wants to change. If he does what he has promised, one might benefit the industry and two might damage it.

The beneficial change is what California Farm Bureau President Shannon Douglas, in a post-election statement, calls “securing a sustainable water supply.”

For years, state officials have been trying, either through regulatory decrees or negotiations, to reduce the amount of water San Joaquin Valley farmers take from the San Joaquin River and its tributaries to enhance flows through the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, thus improving its water quality to support fish and other wildlife.

Farmers are miffed that after two wet winters filled the state’s reservoirs, state federal water managers still limited agricultural deliveries.

A few days before the election, the state Water Resources Control Board issued the latest version of its water quality plan, but the supposed compromise is being critiqued by both farmers who want to minimize restrictions and environmentalists who demand a crackdown on water diversions.

Trump stepped into the issue during his first presidency, directing federal water regulators to increase agricultural supplies, and is likely to do so again.

Just before the election, Trump described California water policy, in all caps on his Truth Social website, as “INSANE POLICY DECISIONS,” which he defined as “the ridiculously rerouting of MILLIONS OF GALLONS OF WATER A DAY FROM THE NORTH OUT OF THE PACIFIC OCEAN, rather than using it, free of charge, for the towns, cities & farms dotted all throughout California.”

Trade Wars and Immigration Policies Pose Risks

The two pending issues that could backfire on farmers who voted for Trump are imposing tariffs on imports from China, which could invite retaliatory tariffs on agricultural exports, and deporting undocumented immigrants, who comprise at least half of the state’s agricultural workers.

Despite objections from California’s Republican congressional delegation, Trump hit China with tariffs during his first term and “China retaliated with import tariffs that target U.S. agriculture,” according to a report from the University of California’s Giannini Foundation of Agricultural Economics.

“For almonds and pistachios, the tariffs did not reduce the volume of U.S. exports to China,” the report continued. “However, the trade war diminished California exports of walnuts, wine, oranges, and table grapes.”

Cracking down on undocumented immigrants has been a bedrock issue for Trump throughout his political career, and he’s promised to make good on his deportation pledge immediately after taking office.

For a variety of reasons, the state’s farmers have had difficulty finding enough workers to till and harvest their crops in recent years. Immigration restrictions, California’s high living costs, and the creation of new factory jobs in Mexico are among the reasons.

California has as many as 2 million undocumented residents, many of whom work in industries ranging from construction to agriculture. The full-blown roundup Trump promises would have an immense economic effect on the state, with agriculture arguably the most vulnerable.

When Central Valley farmers were enthusiastically backing a second term for Trump, they undoubtedly were hoping for relief from water restrictions. Yet that could be the smallest impact Trump 2.0 may have on their industry.

About the Author

Dan Walters has been a journalist for nearly 60 years, spending all but a few of those years working for California newspapers. He began his professional career in 1960, at age 16, at the Humboldt Times. CalMatters is a public interest journalism venture committed to explaining how California’s state Capitol works and why it matters. For more columns by Dan Walters, go to calmatters.org/commentary.

Make Your Voice Heard

GV Wire encourages vigorous debate from people and organizations on local, state, and national issues. Submit your op-ed to bmcewen@gvwire.com for consideration.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Newsom Tussles With Local Officials Over Homelessness

DON'T MISS

Fresno Police Arrest Two Women Suspected in Targeted Shootings

DON'T MISS

Taylor Swift Has Regained Control of Her Music, Buys Back First 6 Albums

DON'T MISS

How Trump’s Vow to Revoke Chinese Student Visas Could Hurt California

DON'T MISS

Speaker Johnson Raises Campaign Money in Fresno

DON'T MISS

2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs: Panthers-Oilers Final Rematch, Who Is Favored and What to Watch For

DON'T MISS

Visalia House Fire Causes Evacuations, Road Closures

DON'T MISS

Brunson, Towns Carry Knicks to Victory That Cuts Pacers’ Series Lead to 3-2

DON'T MISS

NY Times Bestselling Author Celebrating Book Release at Fresno Barnes & Noble

DON'T MISS

Dodgers Acquire Former All-Star Reliever Alexis Díaz in Trade With Cincinnati Reds

UP NEXT

Fresno Police Arrest Two Women Suspected in Targeted Shootings

UP NEXT

Taylor Swift Has Regained Control of Her Music, Buys Back First 6 Albums

UP NEXT

How Trump’s Vow to Revoke Chinese Student Visas Could Hurt California

UP NEXT

Speaker Johnson Raises Campaign Money in Fresno

UP NEXT

2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs: Panthers-Oilers Final Rematch, Who Is Favored and What to Watch For

UP NEXT

Visalia House Fire Causes Evacuations, Road Closures

UP NEXT

Brunson, Towns Carry Knicks to Victory That Cuts Pacers’ Series Lead to 3-2

UP NEXT

NY Times Bestselling Author Celebrating Book Release at Fresno Barnes & Noble

UP NEXT

Dodgers Acquire Former All-Star Reliever Alexis Díaz in Trade With Cincinnati Reds

UP NEXT

Christian McCaffrey Returns to 49ers Practice, Showing No Ill Effects From Injuries

How Trump’s Vow to Revoke Chinese Student Visas Could Hurt California

38 minutes ago

Speaker Johnson Raises Campaign Money in Fresno

46 minutes ago

2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs: Panthers-Oilers Final Rematch, Who Is Favored and What to Watch For

1 hour ago

Visalia House Fire Causes Evacuations, Road Closures

1 hour ago

Brunson, Towns Carry Knicks to Victory That Cuts Pacers’ Series Lead to 3-2

1 hour ago

NY Times Bestselling Author Celebrating Book Release at Fresno Barnes & Noble

2 hours ago

Dodgers Acquire Former All-Star Reliever Alexis Díaz in Trade With Cincinnati Reds

2 hours ago

Christian McCaffrey Returns to 49ers Practice, Showing No Ill Effects From Injuries

2 hours ago

Wall Street Falls as Trump Says China Violated Tariff Terms

2 hours ago

US Consumer Spending Slows in April, Inflation Benign

2 hours ago

Newsom Tussles With Local Officials Over Homelessness

This commentary was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. Throughout Gavin Newsom’s governorship, he and ...

27 minutes ago

27 minutes ago

Newsom Tussles With Local Officials Over Homelessness

fresno shooting
29 minutes ago

Fresno Police Arrest Two Women Suspected in Targeted Shootings

37 minutes ago

Taylor Swift Has Regained Control of Her Music, Buys Back First 6 Albums

38 minutes ago

How Trump’s Vow to Revoke Chinese Student Visas Could Hurt California

46 minutes ago

Speaker Johnson Raises Campaign Money in Fresno

1 hour ago

2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs: Panthers-Oilers Final Rematch, Who Is Favored and What to Watch For

1 hour ago

Visalia House Fire Causes Evacuations, Road Closures

1 hour ago

Brunson, Towns Carry Knicks to Victory That Cuts Pacers’ Series Lead to 3-2

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend