Proposition 4 Climate Bond Funding for Climate-Smart Agriculture
California has experienced extreme weather in recent years that threatens our land and water resources. In November 2024, Californians voted to approve Proposition 4, a $10 billion Climate Resilience Bond, to support a variety of projects to promote climate resiliency, safe drinking water, and wildfire prevention. These funds will help farmers, ranchers, and other land managers prepare for changing weather patterns, drought, and fire.
Prop. 4 was passed in November 2024, and parts of the Bond went into effect with the Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 budget, enacted on June 27, 2025. However, key funding related to climate and agriculture programs is on hold as state agencies wait for the Legislature to authorize the rest of the state budget. Once the FY 2025 funds are authorized, state agencies like the California Natural Resources Agency (CNRA), the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA), and the Department of Conservation (DOC) can begin program development and grant solicitations.
Funding for Climate-Smart and Resilient Agricultural Systems
Proposition4 – Chapter 7 includes significant funding to promote Climate-Smart, Sustainable, and Resilient Farms, Ranches, and Working Lands,and local food systems. The approved bond allocates:
- $200 million for the Multi-benefit Land Repurposing Program (MLRP)
$65 million for soil health and carbon sequestration – mainly CDFA's Healthy Soils Program (HSP)
- $36 million in Fiscal Year 2025-2026 with additional funding in future years.
$40 million for the State Water Efficiency and Enhancement Program (SWEEP)
- $38 million in Fiscal Year 2025-2026 with additional funding in future years.
- $30 million for a new program to protect farmland and improve land access for beginning farmers
- $20 million for invasive species management projects
$20 million for year-round farmers market infrastructure
- $10 million in Fiscal Year 2025-2026 with additional funding in future years.
$15 million for the California Farmland Conservancy Program
- $2 million in Fiscal Year 2025-2026 with additional funding in future years.
$15 million for farmer equipment-sharing programs and cooperatives
- $200,000 in Fiscal Year 2025-2026 with additional funding in future years.
What Does This Mean for Farmers and Ranchers?
Producers will be able to access some of this $300 million through the California Department of Food and Agriculture's (CDFA) Climate Smart Agriculture incentive grants, conservation initiatives, and farmers' market programs. CDFA's popular programs, HSP and SWEEP, will be available to farmers and ranchers via regionally administered block grants. These grants will incentive producers to adopt new soil health practices like cover cropping, reducing tillage, and applying compost, and to improve on-farm irrigation and energy efficiency.
The Bond also authorizes new programs for farmers' market infrastructure, including mobile farmers' market vehicles, refrigeration, food preparation facilities, wireless point of sale terminals, and all-weather infrastructure for market stalls.
Farmers and ranchers across the state will benefit from these programs, with particular emphasis on socially disadvantaged producers and economically distressed communities. Prop. 4 requires at least 40% of funds to provide meaningful and direct benefits to disadvantaged and vulnerable communities. This will help ensure that rural and under-resourced regions receive equal access to programs.
These funding programs should become available in late 2025 and early 2026.
Additional Proposition 4 Funding
The Bond will also make major investments to protect and improve water resources:
- $610 million for infrastructure to improve water quality and provide safe drinking water
- $550 million for flood resilience infrastructure and programs to improve flood safety
- $386 million for groundwater recharge infrastructure
- $386 million for water recycling infrastructure
- $75 million for water storage infrastructure
- $75 million for water conservation in agricultural and urban areas
In addition to these investments, the Legislature has allocated $181 million from Prop. 4 to multiple California conservancies for forest and vegetation management across the state to improve wildfire resilience efforts.
Through these efforts, the Bond will help improve farmland, protect water resources, and increase statewide climate resilience.
For more information on Proposition 4 and to see how funds are being spent, visit CNRA's Bond Accountability site or click here to receive updates on the Climate Bond.