“Ethics is knowing the difference between what you have a right to do and what is right to do.”
— Justice Potter Stewart

Most of us in our communities do not have the legal right to farm or garden on urban land beyond household consumption. AB 465 changed this. The law did the right thing by giving people a real chance to grow food in urban areas, and by giving owners of empty lots a way to do the right thing while receiving a property tax benefit.

For many years, access to land has been one of the biggest barriers for people who want to grow food, teach students, or build community gardens. Land ownership is expensive. Leasing is complex. Many families, small growers, and nonprofits have never had a fair chance to participate.

California has now changed that.

AB 465, the law that strengthened and extended the Urban Agriculture Incentive Zones (UAIZ) program, gives cities and counties a simple tool to turn vacant urban land into community farms, teaching gardens, and micro agriculture businesses.

• Cities and counties can offer property tax reductions to landowners who dedicate vacant or unimproved land to agriculture. For that time period, that land is taxed as agricultural land, which reduces the property tax.
• Eligible parcels must be 0.1 to 3 acres and located in an urbanized area of 50,000 or more residents.
• Landowners sign a 5-year contract to keep the land in agriculture.
• Land can be used for fruits, vegetables, herbs, flowers, and small livestock (where zoning allows).
• Community gardens, school gardens, youth programs, and nonprofit projects all qualify.
• Simple structures like hoop houses, greenhouses, and sheds are allowed if they support farming.

Many cities meet the population requirement and have several vacant lots.
The city only needs to adopt a UAIZ ordinance to activate these benefits.

1. Access Without Ownership
People can use underused or vacant land for gardens and farms without needing to buy it. This lowers the barrier for low-income residents and community groups to start growing.

2. Local Economic Opportunities
Urban farms and gardens create paid work, small-business opportunities, and microcontracts for neighbors. Money circulates within the community rather than leaving it.

3. Better Food Access
More fresh fruits, vegetables, and herbs are grown close to where people live. This helps families who live far from grocery stores or cannot afford high prices.

4. Real Skill Building
Residents learn practical skills such as soil care, composting, irrigation, and basic business. These skills can transfer to jobs in agriculture, landscaping, and environmental work.

5. A Path Out of Crisis
Urban farms provide people with fresh food, a small income, and a steady routine, which can reduce their reliance on food stamps and other public benefits. They also provide a safe space and community support while people rebuild their lives.

AB 465 gives communities land to grow food.
California’s composting laws give communities the soil to grow that food well.

California has already built the soil system through three laws:

• SB 1383: statewide organics recycling and procurement
• AB 2346: funding for community composting and edible food recovery
• SB 279: more freedom to compost at a small scale

(You can read the full breakdown of these laws in the October edition.)

AB 465 completes the circle by allowing compost created in the community to stay in the community and support local farms and gardens.

Cities can now:

• Turn food waste into compost
• Use that compost to improve local soil
• Support UAIZ sites with healthy soil
• Grow food for communities
• Strengthen resilience and community impact

This is how California builds a local, circular climate system.

We educated 20 elders from Cathedral City about composting laws, simple ways to participate, and easy steps they can take at home. We shared stories, laughed, smelled compost, and answered thoughtful questions.

Each person went home with a bag of compost, garden seeds, and a live zinnia plant.
This moment reminded us why community education matters.

We met with administrative staff from cities across Southern California and explained how community-scale composting plays a critical role in SB 1383 compliance and in reinvesting in communities for economic development, food security, and climate action.

We demonstrated our SB1383 procurement calculator (a project with CHATGPT; I am still working on it) and our community model.

At the International Network of Asian Pacific Islander Public Administrators (I-NAPA) reception, we learned from the leadership of Asian and Pacific Islander professionals in public administration.
We left the conference with new partnerships and inspiration.

🥗 Lunch and Learn - Jewish Family Services
Cathedral City: December 18
Desert Hot Springs: December 23
“From Food Waste to Food Wisdom”
A practical session on composting, soil, and local food systems.

California is showing that sustainable communities are possible when we use existing laws and new laws with intention. We can create local soil, local food, and local opportunity by understanding these policies simply and turning them into practical action.

At Prema’s Permaculture and Composting, our goal is to help

If you have questions, suggestions, or comments, or if you want support from our team, you may reply to this email.

If you like this, share this with a friend or a foe.

Until next time,

Prema Walker

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