PD/GWSS Assessment & Referendum
Pierce's Disease and Glassy-Winged Sharpshooter Assessment
In 2001, an annual, value-based assessment on winegrapes was established to fund PD/GWSS research and related activities. The PD/GWSS Board was also established at that time. The Board advises the California Department of Food and Agriculture on the best use of assessment funds, ensuring dollars are spent wisely and productively to find solutions to PD, GWSS, and other designated pests and diseases of winegrapes.
The Board has invested over $57.7 million since 2001 on research and outreach. The Board sets the annual assessment rate, with a maximum of $3.00 per $1,000 of value. The annual assessment rate has averaged $1.34 per $1,000 of value and remains steady at $1.25 for the 2024 harvest, for the third year in a row.
2025 PD/GWSS Referendum: Ballots Due May 13
The PD/GWSS Referendum is conducted every five years and growers are now voting on extending the PD/GWSS Assessment for another five years through 2031. Ballots are due May 13. The last referendum passed with 78% approval of voters.
Voter Eligibility and Timeline
To establish the list of eligible grower voters for the 2025 vote, CDFA requested all wineries and winegrape processors to submit the names, mailing addresses, and assessment values of all producers who paid the assessment on grapes crushed during the 2024 harvest. Every winegrape producer who paid the 2024 assessment will receive a ballot by mail in April. Growers operating multiple entities will receive separate ballots for each. Each ballot should be completed and mailed back by May 13.
Passage Requirements
At least 40 percent of the eligible voting entities must cast ballots for the referendum to be valid. Passage of the referendum requires either:
- Of those who vote, 65 percent vote “yes,” and the “yes” voters must have paid the majority of the assessment that was paid by those who voted;
OR - Of those who vote, a majority vote “yes,” and the “yes” voters must have paid 65 percent or more of the assessment that was paid by those who voted.
For More Information
Contact the CDFA Marketing Branch at (916) 900-5018 or email Miranda Townsend at Miranda.Townsend@cdfa.ca.gov or Denise Sanchas at Denise.Sanchas@cdfa.ca.gov.