Santa Rosa Councilman Chris Rogers' Sonoma Safe Ag Safe Schools Lobbies Legislature, but Does Not Appear to Be Registered as a Lobbyist, Nor With the IRS
As Executive Director to Sonoma County Conservation Action, Councilman Rogers oversees a black hole of funding supporting democratic policies guised as 'environmentalism'
Santa Rosa Councilman & CA D2 Assembly Candidate Chris Rogers is currently employed as the Executive Director to Sonoma County Conservation Action.
Sonoma Safe Agriculture Safe Schools (Sonoma SASS) is a coalition of community organizations and individuals paving the way for safer land management policies and practices primarily around our schools and communities. Working to protect public health and the environment, Sonoma SASS raises public awareness and provides community education to work toward replacing synthetic pesticides with ecologically sound and socially just alternatives.
Sonoma SASS grew out of grassroots activism that began in 2015. The coalition was officially founded and funded in 2019 with founding organizations including Conservation Action Fund for Education, Daily Acts, Families Advocating for Chemical and Toxics Safety (FACTS), North Bay Organizing Project (NBOP), Preserve Rural Sonoma County (PRSC), Sonoma County Conservation Action (SCCA), and Wine and Water Watch. Sonoma SASS has also facilitated creation of several community-lead groups including Graton Against Synthetic Pesticides, Pesticide Free Petaluma and Pesticide Free Rohnert Park. Sonoma SASS is working with similar organizations at the state and national level, facilitated by Californians for Pesticide Reform (CPR) and the Pesticide Action Network (PAN).
Current initiatives as itemized on their website include:
Our current (2022/23) initiatives include:
Working with Caltrans to stop using pesticides like RoundUp in Sonoma County and build pollinator highways.
Advocating for improved pesticide restrictions in the Local Coastal Plan.
Supporting agricultural and landscape worker's by improving access to protective gear, safety information, and medical care in the case of pesticide exposure.
Studying how pesticide use impacts water and air quality through citizen science programs and the GRAPE research project.
Advocating for advance pesticide spray notifications in agricultural areas
Educating City of Petaluma on forming their Integrated Pest Management Plan
Watchdoging County, State, and National pesticide regulations including the Healthy Schools Act, and the 2016 North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board’s Stormwater permit.
The organization appears to have their own Board of Directors.
Additionally, they have their own Advisory Board.
The current donation page indicates that all funding is being sent to Sonoma County Conservation Action’s Conservation Action Fund for Education.
On April 24, 2023, Sonoma Sass Board Director Kaun was present at the Senate Standing Committee on Human Services to speak in support of Bill SB 499, Early childhood education facilities: school facilities: School Extreme Heat Action Plan Act of 2023.
The Conservation Action Fund for Education, Sonoma SASS and Sonoma Safe Ag Safe Schools do not appear to be registered as lobbyists with Cal-Access.
The Fund is registered with the California Secretary of State as it own non-profit. The registered agent is Mr. Dennis Rosatti.
The 2022 IRS Form 990 indicates that Mr. Rosatti is the Executive Director while Councilman Rogers serves on the Board.
The entity has registered as a 501(c)(3).
Per the IRS: In general, no organization may qualify for section 501(c)(3) status if a substantial part of its activities is attempting to influence legislation (commonly known as lobbying). A 501(c)(3) organization may engage in some lobbying, but too much lobbying activity risks loss of tax-exempt status.
The activities conducted through SASS & the Fund most closely resemble lobbying, so it is odd that the organization chose to register as a 501(c)(3).
The 2022 Form 990 for Sonoma County Conservation Action claimed Mr. Rogers was only compensated $50,463 for the fiscal year. This equates to essentially $24 per hour as his sole source of income.
Being that I only had thirty minutes to research and draft this article, I wanted to provide a general high level summary of the issues I have encountered. Is Sonoma County Conservation Action being forthcoming regarding their finances? If not, do you wish for Mr. Rogers to represent taxpayers as your future Assemblyman?
“To me, the thing that is worse than death is betrayal. You see, I could conceive death, but I could not conceive betrayal.”
-Malcolm X