California State Floral AssociationJuly 25, 2014
In This Issue
Calif Flora 2014
Retail Florist Video
New Payment Scam Targets Southern California Edison Customers
House Approves Tax Extenders
Sexual Harassment Prevention Training
EPA's McCarthy Meets with GOP Senate Ag Panel Members
Calif Flora 2014

 

Preserving the Past - Presenting the Future

 

The California State Floral Association

Presents.......

CALIF FLORA 2014!

 

Being Hosted by Mayesh Wholesale Florist, Riverside, CA

 

 

 

Events Include:

 

California Certified Florist Exam - October 11th

Hands-on Design Classes - October 11th

Student Design Competition - October 11th

Top Ten Design Competition - October 12th

Afternoon Design Show - October 12th

Vendor Display Booths, New Variety Displays, Silent Auction, California Certified Florist Pinning Ceremony,

CSFA Annual Meeting, And Much More!  - October 12th

 

For more information call the CSFA office at 916-448-5266; email [email protected] or visit our website at www.calstatefloral.com  

 

 

 

 

Retail Florist Video


"CSFA Member LuAnn Schwab CCF, Blooms & Bears Florist and Gifts,  makes her film debut"  - Congratulations LuAnn!

 





New Payment Scam Targets Southern California Edison Customers

Media Contact: Mashi Nyssen, (626) 302-2255

 

ROSEMEAD, Calif., Jan. 11, 2013 - Southern California Edison (SCE) is advising customers to be aware of a new telephone scam that is demanding immediate payment for allegedly past due electricity bills.

 

Imposters have been calling SCE customers telling them they must make immediate payment on past due bills or have their electric service disconnected. The callers are also demanding that payment be made through a prepaid cash card, such as a PayPal or Green Dot card.  

 

"We ask our customers to be alert to these calls that demand immediate payment and threaten service disconnection," said Henry Martinez, SCE vice president of Safety, Security & Compliance. "Customers suspecting a fraudulent call should ask for the caller's name, department and business phone number. If the caller refuses to provide this information, customers should terminate the call and report the incident immediately to local police or SCE at 800-655-4555."  

 

SCE also reminds customers to ask for identification when a stranger comes to the door or calls claiming to be a utility worker. SCE utility workers will provide verification, including their department and phone number, when asked.  

 

In most cases, home visits by SCE are scheduled by the customer and SCE will confirm the appointment in writing. If there are any concerns, SCE and law enforcement officials suggest having the utility worker wait outside until their identity can be verified.   

 

SCE customers should also note that:

  • An SCE employee will never ask for money in person.
  • Never reveal your credit card, ATM or calling card numbers (or PIN numbers) to anyone.
  • If someone calls and requests you leave your residence at a specific time for a utility-related cause, call the police. This could be a burglary set up by the caller.
  • Be suspicious of anyone who arrives at your house without an appointment asking to check an appliance, wiring, or suggesting that there may be some other electrical problem inside your residence.
  • For more ways customers can stay safe, please see www.sce.com/safety and read the safety tips section.

 

About Southern California Edison 
An Edison International (NYSE:EIX) company, Southern California Edison is the largest electric utility in California, serving a population of more than 13 million via 4.8 million customer accounts in a 50,000-square-mile service area within Central, Coastal and Southern California.

 

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House Approves Tax Extenders

A series of bills extending federal tax benefits important to farmers and ranchers were approved by the full House this week, including depreciation and conservation easement tax credits.

 

The depreciation bill makes the so-called "50%- bonus" permanent, and expands the tax deduction to vines and fruit and nut-bearing trees. The bonus allows producers to write off capital expenditures on machinery, equipment and the like in the year in which the purchase is made.

 

The bonus depreciation deduction dovetails with similar action in June making permanent increased Sec. 179 small business expensing processes. The new max deduction is $500,000, retroactive to 2013, while the current maximum is $25,000.

 

Another bill which makes permanent a tax deduction for donation of conservation easements and food donations was also part of the House action. The easement tax break is designed to encourage producers to donate the conservation acreage as part of a long-term farmland protection effort. Food donations from producers receive the deduction so that more producers can cover the cost of production, harvest and processing.

 

 

Sexual Harassment Prevention Training

AB-1825 requires all California employers with 50 or more employee to ensure any employee with supervisory responsibility (foreman, supervisors, managers, owners) participate in a 2-hour anti-harassment training every two years. AgSafe encourages all employers, regardless of size, to participate in this training.

Sexual Harassment Prevention Class:

 

August 13, 2014

*Spanish ONLY*

Harris Ranch

34505 West Dorris Avenue

Coalinga, CA 93210

Cost: Members $45 / Non-Members $65

9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.

Click Here for Flyer

Click Here to Register Online

 

August 20, 2014

*English ONLY*

Fresno Hotel and Conference Center

2233 Ventura Avenue

Fresno, CA 93721

Cost: Members $45 / Non-Members $65 

10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.

Click Here for Flyer

Sexual Harassment Prevention Webinar:

 

August 22, 2014

*English and Spanish*

Cost: Members $25 / Non-Members $40

8:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. (Spanish)

12:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. (English)

Click Here for Flyer

 

 

For more information call the AgSafe office at 209-526-4400 

 

EPA's McCarthy Meets with GOP Senate Ag Panel Members; ASA Snags Stoner for Webinar

A meeting this week between EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy and Republican members of the Senate Agriculture Committee unleashed a flood of member press releases all touting how they told the agency head what's wrong with water, greenhouse gas and other EPA rulemakings.

 

Sen. Pat Roberts (R, KS), running for reelection, accused EPA of "unfairly targeting farmers, ranchers and rural America with burdensome regulations." "Kansans tell me the agency's work to regulate fuel storage tanks, prescribed burning of the Flint Hills prairie, cap and trade, pesticide limits, fugitive dust, and our water resources, is an assault on our way of life," he said. Roberts went on to allow the "rocky relationship" between agriculture and EPA isn't new, but the latest round of proposed rules "makes many people believe the rules are driven by an anti-agriculture agenda that is hurting the Kansas economy."

 

When it came to the EPA proposed rulemaking on "waters of the U.S. (WOTUS)," Roberts said he was disturbed to hear the agency dismiss producer concerns as "myths," and was disappointed McCarthy wasn't persuaded by meetings held two weeks ago in Missouri that the rulemaking carries "far-reaching and negative impacts." Roberts has cosponsored legislation to block the rulemaking.

 

Sen. Charles Grassley (R, IA) reiterated his opposition to the WOTUS rulemaking, and seconded Roberts' contention that EPA is perceived as operating with "an unhelpful approach and general negative attitude toward agriculture." He said the meeting did little to alleviate his concerns the agency routinely doesn't listen to those most impacted by its rulemakings.

 

Going after both WOTUS and EPA's greenhouse gas/carbon capture rulemakings on power plants, Sen. Thad Cochran (R, MS), also up for reelection, announced after the McCarthy meeting he would cosponsor a resolution citing "a litany of faults with EPA's ongoing effort to finalize regulations on carbon emissions." He said the agency's efforts have "zero chance" of altering world climate trends.

 

On the WOTUS rulemaking, Cochran said, "The...proposal and the agriculture interpretive rule are a source of uncertainty, anxiety and distrust for people in rural areas...and this is particularly true in states like Mississippi whose economies are built on agriculture production; landowners want peace of mind that what they're doing is not going to be subject to more regulations."