July 17, 2025 — The Pierce’s Disease and Glassy-Winged Sharpshooter (PD/GWSS) Board has set the PD/GWSS Winegrape Assessment rate at $1.25 per $1,000 of crop value for the 2025 harvest—the fourth consecutive year at this level.
At its summer meeting, the grower-led Board weighed economic pressures facing the industry, projected crop values and the need for continued strategic investment in pest and disease research. To avoid raising the assessment, the Board chose to reduce expenses and limit new research funding.
“We’re growers ourselves, so we feel the economic pressures firsthand,” said Randy Heinzen, PD/GWSS Board Chair. “Our priority is funding research that helps keep vineyards healthy and sustainable without adding financial strain for growers.”
The 2025 assessment is expected to bring in about $4 million to help fund research and efforts to control pests and diseases that threaten vineyard health, yields and quality. The grower-led Board works closely with the California Department of Food and Agriculture to decide how these funds are spent. Since 2001, the Board has invested $60.1 million in 311 research projects addressing pests and diseases, including PD, GWSS, red blotch, leafroll, fanleaf and mealybugs.
