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 $60.1 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 Passes
With 76.56% of voters casting ballots in favor, California’s Pierce’s Disease and Glassy-Winged Sharpshooter (PD/GWSS) Assessment has been extended for another five years through 2031. The passage of the PD/GWSS Referendum also means the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s Pierce’s Disease Control Program (PDCP) and grower-led PD/GWSS Board will continue to safeguard California’s wine industry.
Voter Eligibility and Timeline
Growers vote every five years on the PD/GWSS Referendum and will vote again in 2030 to extend the PD/GWSS Assessment through 2036.
To establish the list of eligible grower voters for the 2030 vote, CDFA will request 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 2029 harvest. Every winegrape producer who paid the 2029 assessment will receive a ballot in Spring 2030. Growers operating multiple entities received separate ballots for each.
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.