HOUSE VOTES TO CREATE AG DROUGHT AND CLIMATE RESILIENCE OFFICE

DENVER, CO– The House today passed HB21-1242, sponsored by Representative Barbara McLachlan, on third reading and final passage by a vote of 40-23. The legislation creates the Office of Agricultural Drought and Climate Resilience in the Department of Agriculture.

“We have to do what we can to mitigate and prepare for the increasingly severe droughts and other devastating climate events that are threatening our agriculture industry and producers,” said Rep. McLachlan, D-Durango. “This office will help agriculture producers, who are leading the way in climate resilience best practices, to get ready for and respond to the changes that are already impacting the industry and help encourage more producers to implement strategies to minimize the impacts of climate change.”

HB21-1242 creates an office in the Department of Agriculture to help the industry respond to and mitigate the impacts of climate change and increasingly severe droughts. Frequent droughts are placing increasing pressure on Colorado’s already strained water supply and ecosystems that drive the agriculture industry. The office would provide voluntary technical assistance and incentives to help the producers prepare for, mitigate, adapt to, and respond to hazardous events related to drought or our changing climate.