farmers_market_stall_fees
A bill on the governor’s desk would more than double fees the Point Reyes market pays the state per vendor, and would add fees owed for non-farmer vendors. David Briggs

The Point Reyes Farmers Market could face a large uptick in fees under a bill on Governor Jerry Brown’s desk. Authored by Assemblyman Roger Dickinson, a Democrat representing Sacramento, and passed by the state legislature in August, A.B. 1871 proposes many changes for farmers markets: punishing deceptive claims about agricultural products with a six-month jail sentence and a $2,500 fine, allowing operators to impose stricter regulations for selling at a market and requiring farmers to post a sign equivalent to “We grow what we sell” and to label organic products. The bill’s advocates said the need to tighten existing regulations was prompted by a television station’s undercover news report that revealed a Los Angeles merchant was selling fruits and vegetables he had not produced—but instead purchased wholesale or even imported from abroad—amid other reports of fraud. “It takes time to get there and do the inspection and recordkeeping,” said Stacy Carlsen, the county’s agricultural commissioner, who runs Marin’s inspections and supports the bill. That cost would be passed on to market operators come January through higher taxes on each stall. One provision mandates an increase in fees from 60 cents per farmer per day to $2 per vendor (both farmers and non-farmers) per day. “It’s more than doubling the fee,” said Allison Puglisi, the manager of the Point Reyes Farmers Market. “To add every single vendor that’s in the market, that’s horrible. It would go from $5.40 a day”—for nine farmers—“to $34 a day”—for 17 vendors, adding Pauline Greenfield’s soap, Mohamed Cherif’s hummus, Celine Underwood’s bread or Maggie Levinger and Luke Regalbuto’s ferments to the calculation. Applied over 20 Saturdays, the total could climb to $680, a huge increase for the small market of locals, Ms. Puglisi said. The market currently charges an application fee to cover the tax and administrative costs, but additional fundraising would be necessary if the bill is signed into law, she added. Gov. Brown has until Sept. 30 to decide.