Wild Pigs Topic Of Forum, Legislation Pending Newsom's Signature

BAY AREA, CA — The problem of wild pigs in California is a topic of legislation awaiting the signature of Gov. Gavin Newsom.

It is also the topic of an online forum the state is planning for Thursday. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) in a Tuesday announcement said the forum will run via Zoom from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., but the agency has not yet provided any details about how the public can access the online meeting.

The topic of wild pigs is relevant statewide, with the animals having been found in 56 of California's 58 counties. They are known for being destructive to property and land — using their snouts to forage for food and rooting up soil.

Human-wildlife interactions in the Bay Area among wild pigs are highest in Santa Clara County, according to background materials included for Thursday's meeting. Santa Clara County includes the area that is now the city of Morgan Hill, but was previously known in the 1800s as Ojo del Agua de la Coche, Spanish for "pig spring," the city notes on its website.

The pig problem prompted Senate Bill 856, introduced by state Sen. Bill Dodd, D-Napa, which seeks to loosen regulations and lower hunting fees for killing the feral hogs — including allowing someone to kill an unlimited number of pigs and prohibiting someone from intentionally releasing a pig to live in the wild.

SB 856 gathered strange political bedfellows, with the animal rights group Humane Society of the United States and various hunting groups both opposing the bill. The California Farm Bureau Federation and other farming interests, along with the city of Napa, are among its supporters, according to a Senate floor analysis of the bill.

SB 856 passed with zero no votes in both the state Senate or Assembly and was sent for the governor's signature in late August, but Newsom has not yet signed it into law.

CDFW and the California Fish and Game Commission's online public forum planned for the topic doesn't have access information yet, but the agencies said in their announcement Tuesday that the event "is intended to elicit a broader discussion about wild pigs in California by presenting a scientific framework that supports open and respectful discussion, educating one another about wild pig issues and vetting potential solutions with various experts in the field."

The announcement Tuesday by the CDFW and the state's Fish and Game Commission did not mention the pending legislation in front of the governor, but Eric Sklar, a St. Helena-based member of the state commission, was quoted in Dodd's announcement about the bill being sent to Newsom's desk.

"He worked diligently with all stakeholders to find common ground and the bill reflects that," Sklar said of Dodd. "If enacted, this bill will begin to tackle the scourge of feral pigs."

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