Save-the-CCC
Save-the-CCC
Fact Sheet   (Released by the California Conservation Corps Foundation January 2009)
Summary and Impact of the Governor's Proposal to Eliminate the CCC
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Governor’s Proposal:
The Governor has recommended eliminating the California Conservation Corps during the 2009/10 fiscal year
claiming the closure will result in a net savings of $17 million to taxpayers.  However, an examination of the
numbers proves that the CCC actually saves the State millions of dollars each year. The State will not save any
money by eliminating the CCC, but will instead increase California’s fiscal burden.  The Governor’s proposed
budget will destroy the oldest and most respected corps in the world – we can’t let this happen!

Call to Action:
A Save-the-CCC Committee has been formed in conjunction with the CCC Foundation.  The Save-the-CCC
Committee is a growing group of concerned individuals and organizations that feel strongly about the great
contribution that the CCC makes to California and its residents.  Our partners are committed to advocating for a
continued role for the CCC in California’s State Government.  We are requesting that letters be sent to the Governor
and your state representatives communicating the importance of protecting the CCC.

Higher Costs to the State:

  • Without the CCC, the 622,000 hours of CCC fire response work in 2008 would have cost the State $32.7 –
    $21.5 million more than the $11.2 million charged by the CCC

  • In FY 2008/09, CCC support crews responding to wildfires saved the State and United States Forest Service
    (USFS) over $17.2 million, based upon comparisons of similar out-of-state contracted crews

  • In FY 2008/09, CCC Type II fire crews saved the State and the USFS approximately $356,000 based upon
    comparisons of similar out-of-state contracted crews

  • In FY 2008/09, the CCC will save CalTrans more than $2.6 million in maintenance costs, based upon an
    estimate by CalTrans using alternative labor sources to perform the same work

Lost Jobs:        
  • 1,310 jobs for hard working young women and men would be lost (over 3,000 corpsmembers are hired
    annually)

  • Job opportunities for the almost 800 candidates on the CCC’s corpsmember waiting listwould be
    eliminated

  • Corpsmembers are paid $8 per hour (minimum wage) which equates to approximately $15,550 annually for
    wages – highly cost-effective compared to alternative labor costs

Weakened Disaster Response:
  • Over the last 18 months, the CCC fielded 512 crews, most working 21-day shifts, 16 hours/day, in response
    to 137 disasters including wildfires, oil spills, mudslides, agricultural pests, and setting up evacuation
    shelters

  • Over the past ten years, the CCC has responded to a myriad of emergency events, devoting over 2.8 million
    hours to emergency response activities

  • In 2008, corpsmembers provided a half-million hours of fire response to CalFIRE and the USFS - the
    largest fire response in the CCC’s history

  • Corpsmembers have filled more than 3.5 million sandbags during storms and floods over three decades

Loss to Local Communities:
  • 27 field operations would be closed, reducing services at a time when the economy and the environment
    call for expanding corps to all of California’s counties, but particularly to the following areas:  San
    Bernardino/Riverside Counties; San Joaquin/Stanislaus Counties; Placer/Sierra/Tahoe Counties; El Dorado
    County; Shasta/Tehama/Trinity/Lassen Counties; Glenn/Colusa Counties; Siskiyou County; Humboldt/Del
    Norte Counties; Mendocino/Lake/Sonoma Counties; Napa/Solano Counties; Santa Cruz/Monterey/San
    Benito Counties; San Luis Obispo County; Stanislaus National Forest; Klamath National Forest; Yosemite
    National Park; Kings Canyon/Sequoia National Parks

  • Loss of residential programs diminishes emergency response readiness, and significantly reduces the
    capacity to conduct public service conservation work in environmentally important rural areas in the state as
    well as eliminating options for young people from unstable home environments, gang infested
    neighborhoods or for emancipated foster youth

  • The seven current residential CCC centers alone bring in between $1.8 and $2.7 million in expenditures to
    each of their local communities – this would be lost revenue to those areas

  • 87% of the young women and men who join the CCC are unemployed at the time they join; 11% have had
    no prior job experience; 4% are homeless

Lost Opportunities for Federal Economic Stimulus Package:
  • The proposed versions of the House, Senate and President Obama’s economic stimulus package include
    opportunities for conservation corps, including natural resource conservation and energy work

  • With its long history of conservation and energy work, the CCC is positioned to help California turn the
    efforts and proposed funding sources into green jobs for corpsmembers and clean energy for California –
    putting a lot of young adults to work completing much-needed project work

  • The CCC possesses infrastructure and is ready to accept and implement projects resulting from the
    economic stimulus dollars throughout California within 60-90 days


Reduction in Environmental Project Work:
  • CCC has devoted 3.4 million hours of work on various environmental projects in the past 18 months

  • The CCC earns revenue from projects and in FY 2007/08 earned over $29 million in reimbursement

  • Elimination of the CCC would stop implementation of important environmental work including (but not
    limited to):  restoration of critical North Coast Watershed; fuel reduction to reduce the threat of wildfire in the
    Tahoe Basin and other forests and parks; trail building in local, state, and federal parks and national
    forests; erosion control; energy conservation projects; and disaster preparedness and emergency response

  • California State Parks would require an additional $1.18 million if its trail construction partnership with the
    CCC were eliminated

  • Lost Volunteer Hours:

  • Annually, CCC corpsmembers provide more than 170,000 hours of conservation work at no charge
    throughout the State, with an estimated value of $2.4 million

  • More than 23,000 volunteer hours are provided annually to local communities


Elimination of Educational Opportunities for Corpsmembers
  • CCC  Corpsmembers participate in education, training and personal development activities in their local
    communities during their non-paid hours

  • More than 50% of all corpsmembers who join the CCC lack a high school diploma

  • In the past 18 months, corpsmembers spent over 268,000 hours in educational activities, including
    remedial education, vocational education,  GED/High School diploma preparation, and community college

  • 84 corpsmembers earned $168,000 in CCC scholarships in the past 18 months

  • 511 corpsmembers earned $1,584,425 from CCC/AmeriCorps scholarships funded federally in the past 18
    months