Re: [ACBA BeeTalk] Digest for the-alameda-county-beekeepers-association@googlegroups.com - 10 updates in 2 topics
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yolanda huang
Nov 20, 2025, 2:06:33 AMNov 20
to the-alameda-county-b...@googlegroups.com
reading the website - it says you need to register if beekeeping is your business. It doesn't say anything about hobby.
On Wed, Nov 19, 2025 at 3:10 PM <the-alameda-county-b...@googlegroups.com> wrote:
Elinor Levine <ele...@berkeley.edu>: Nov 19 08:36AM -0800
Any thoughts on this?
---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Alameda Ag, CDA <Alame...@acgov.org>
Date: Wed, Nov 19, 2025 at 8:33 AM
Subject: Action Required: New 2026 Apiary Registration and Fee Changes
To:
Dear Alameda County Beekeepers,
We want to let you know about important updates from the California
Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) Apiary Protection Program
regarding apiary registration requirements under California Food and
Agriculture Code Section 29043.
Beginning with the 2026 registration year, CDFA has implemented a new
online registration system and updated fee structure.
Key changes include:
- Registration and payment due date: January 1, 2026
- Late fee applied: January 30, 2026
- Fees based on 2025 colony count totals and are paid directly to CDFA
through the BeeWhere website
- Online registration and payment: BeeWhere –
https://beewhere.calagpermits.org/
All apiaries must be registered through BeeWhere, and hive location data
remains confidential.
**** IMPORTANT NOTE*: *The previous fee waiver for small-scale or hobbyist
beekeepers (1–9 colonies) has been eliminated under the new regulations.
All beekeepers, regardless of operation size, must now register and pay the
required annual fee. Please see the attached flyer for detailed
instructions.*
We appreciate your cooperation and understanding during this transition. If
you have any questions or need assistance, please contact our offices:
- Hayward Office: (510) 670-5232
- Livermore Office: (925) 551-5420
Thank you for your attention to this important update.
Sincerely,
Alameda County Department of Agriculture / Weights & Measures
Christine Hyung-Oak Lee <christi...@gmail.com>: Nov 19 09:25AM -0800
Interesting that now we ALL must register, regardless of how many hives we
have. I wonder why?
Christine
----
Christine Hyung-Oak Lee
http://www.christinehlee.com/
Substack: Cuddle Fish <https://christinehlee.substack.com/>
Instagram <https://www.instagram.com/xtinehleewriter>
On Wed, Nov 19, 2025 at 8:36 AM 'Elinor Levine' via The Alameda County
Beekeepers Association <
Philip von Furstenberg <tofu...@gmail.com>: Nov 19 10:16AM -0800
My thoughts are:
1. I don't have any beehives. That's just a box of bugs.
2. My backyard is full of insect colonies, do I have to pay for those too?
3. If you ask me to pay for something and you don't tell me what I get back
in return then guess who's not paying.
On Wed, Nov 19, 2025 at 8:36 AM 'Elinor Levine' via The Alameda County
Beekeepers Association <
Alan Pryor <alanr...@gmail.com>: Nov 19 10:21AM -0800
I had heard in the past pest control would notify you if they were treating
in the area. Ive seen 2 pest control vans pull into my neighbors yards and
they knew nothing about my registered beehives.
On Wed, Nov 19, 2025, 10:16 AM Philip von Furstenberg <tofu...@gmail.com>
wrote:
Jennifer <oakt...@gmail.com>: Nov 19 10:23AM -0800
“Fees are assessed in arrears, so your 2026 registration fee will be based
on the maximum number of colonies you had registered in 2025.”
So if you did not have any colonies registered in 2025, it seems that your
fees are $0, per the BeeWhere website.
On Wed, Nov 19, 2025 at 10:16 AM Philip von Furstenberg <tofu...@gmail.com>
wrote:
Leslie Louie <3bowen...@gmail.com>: Nov 19 10:28AM -0800
There was a discussion about this a few years ago maybe on Zoom. Points
were raised about the fee structure and the unfairness to backyard beeks
who might have 12 hives or 20-30 spread over a few locations. They would be
paying much more per hive compared to commercial beeks who would be paying
much less. The groupings of 10-50 seemed random and suggestions were for
cutoffs and fee structures to be changed. It appears these suggestions fell
on deaf ears. Yes, they say it's to notify beeks when pest applications
will be in your area. However, they acknowledged that this was really only
for commercial beeks.
So I agree with the question - what is the benefit? How would they even
enforce registration and payment? In 2025 they said there were no assessed
fees so anyone who took them at their word and registered their hives will
now be asked to pay.
Leslie
(she/her)
On Wed, Nov 19, 2025 at 10:16 AM Philip von Furstenberg <tofu...@gmail.com>
wrote:
Robert L Mathews <r...@tigertech.com>: Nov 19 10:34AM -0800
The claim is that knowing where all hives are helps them with monitoring the spread of diseases, allows them to notify people of spraying, and so on. Whether you're getting your money's worth is a valid discussion, but there is an actual state agency doing various things related to bees that needs to be funded somehow.
Before last year, you didn't have to register at all if you had fewer than ten hives. Then last year they changed it so that everyone must register and imposed the fee <https://groups.google.com/g/the-alameda-county-beekeepers-association/c/UBVa18LIB24/m/BM4A4-SZBAAJ> (which is a state fee <https://groups.google.com/g/the-alameda-county-beekeepers-association/c/jy2hUaWXiD0/m/TJNvUZbhBAAJ>, not an Alameda County thing).
Then a lot of people complained, mostly about the new fee, so at the last minute they waived the fee for hobby beekeepers <https://groups.google.com/g/the-alameda-county-beekeepers-association/c/cD_jjBLU-9w/m/0VSEo_eoCgAJ>, even though we were still supposed to register "for free" last year regardless.
So now this year they can say "it's the same thing as last year", except that they're not waiving the fee...
--
Robert L Mathews
Joan Houston <jhoust...@gmail.com>: Nov 19 12:41PM -0800
It seems to change every year. Last year fee waived; years prior it was
like $10-20 for <50 hives (hobbyist). I register every year regardless just
so I can post the FieldWatch signs w/reg# at my apiaries since one is at a
local winery and one is at a local nursery.
On Wed, Nov 19, 2025 at 8:36 AM 'Elinor Levine' via The Alameda County
Beekeepers Association <the-alameda-county-b...@googlegroups.com> wrote:
Any thoughts on this?
---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: *Alameda Ag, CDA* <Alame...@acgov.org>
Date: Wed, Nov 19, 2025 at 8:33 AM
Subject: Action Required: New 2026 Apiary Registration and Fee Changes
To:
Dear Alameda County Beekeepers,
We want to let you know about important updates from the California
Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) Apiary Protection Program
regarding apiary registration requirements under California Food and
Agriculture Code Section 29043.
Beginning with the 2026 registration year, CDFA has implemented a new
online registration system and updated fee structure.
Key changes include:
- Registration and payment due date: January 1, 2026
- Late fee applied: January 30, 2026
- Fees based on 2025 colony count totals and are paid directly to CDFA
through the BeeWhere website
- Online registration and payment: BeeWhere –
https://beewhere.calagpermits.org/
All apiaries must be registered through BeeWhere, and hive location data
remains confidential.
**** IMPORTANT NOTE*: *The previous fee waiver for small-scale or hobbyist
beekeepers (1–9 colonies) has been eliminated under the new regulations.
All beekeepers, regardless of operation size, must now register and pay the
required annual fee. Please see the attached flyer for detailed
instructions.*
We appreciate your cooperation and understanding during this transition. If
you have any questions or need assistance, please contact our offices:
- Hayward Office: (510) 670-5232
- Livermore Office: (925) 551-5420
Thank you for your attention to this important update.
Sincerely,
Alameda County Department of Agriculture / Weights & Measures
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--
Robert L Mathews
Gerald Przybylski <gtp0...@gmail.com>: Nov 19 01:41PM -0800
I think there are thousands of east-bay beekeeper/bee-havers who will
never hear about this program.
(ACBA has 500+ members. MDBA a similar number)
The Ag department has no way of informing them.
What's with penalizing the beekeepers that register 10 to 50 hives.
Their rate is twice as high as the 1-9 group.
(500 and up) commercial scale beekeepers are charged next to nothing.
There doesn't seem to be any benefit for the beekeeper described in
either the brochure or the email announcement.
Who are we subsidizing?
On 11/19/25 8:36 AM, 'Elinor Levine' via The Alameda County Beekeepers
Association wrote:
gmau...@earthlink.net <gmau...@earthlink.net>: Nov 19 08:42AM -0800
Jerry... Thank you very much for putting this together. Fascinating
topic. Sorry for dominating the Q&A session. I've just got way too many
unanswered questions about this crazy creature!... Greg
On Tuesday, November 18, 2025 at 9:50:22 AM UTC-8 Rob Mathews, 2025 ACBA
President wrote:
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Gerald Przybylski
Nov 20, 2025, 2:46:34 AMNov 20
to the-alameda-county-b...@googlegroups.com
hmmm
That's a finer point.
The important note below seems to pull in "hobbyists"
That's a finer point.
The important note below seems to pull in "hobbyists"
**** IMPORTANT NOTE*: *The previous fee waiver for small-scale or hobbyist
beekeepers (1–9 colonies) has been eliminated under the new regulations.
All beekeepers, regardless of operation size, must now register and pay the
required annual fee. Please see the attached flyer for detailed
instructions.*
So perhaps "bee-havers," those who have boxes in their yard but
don't actually manipulate the bees in them,
are omitted/exempt...
are omitted/exempt...
Robert L Mathews
Nov 20, 2025, 1:33:54 PMNov 20
to Bee Talk
On Nov 19, 2025, at 11:06 PM, yolanda huang <yogre...@gmail.com> wrote:
reading the website - it says you need to register if beekeeping is your business. It doesn't say anything about hobby.
Hi Yolanda -- I don't see where on the <https://beewhere.calagpermits.org/> website it says it only applies to businesses. Maybe I'm just missing it, but can you share what part you saw?
The underlying California regulation requiring registration just says "Every person that is the owner, broker, or is in possession of an apiary that is located within the state ... shall register", and doesn't seem to have any exceptions for hobbyist beekeepers. It says that county supervisors may optionally waive the registration fee for apiaries with under 10 hives, as Alameda did last year, but not the registration requirement.
(As a separate thing, while reading that code I found one benefit you get in exchange for registering. Section 29047 says that "Any person who owns or is in possession of an apiary may bring an action to recover damages for any injury to the apiary by reason of any pest control operation if the person has complied with [the registration rules etc.]". So if you register and then a pest control company kills your bees because they didn't check the registrations, you could sue them for that.)
--
Robert L Mathews
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