Corpsmembers from the Placer Center in Auburn who assisted fire crews during the Palisades Fire. Photo courtesy of the California Conservation Corps

As the Vice Chair of the State Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee, I have seen my share of well-intentioned programs that simply didn’t work as advertised. But one program, inaugurated 50 years ago this July, stands out as a shining example of a government effort that has fulfilled its promise – the California Conservation Corps (CCC).

In fact, the CCC has exceeded expectations. It is a dramatically successful workforce development program that has transformed lives by giving young adults the skills, training, and opportunity to protect and enhance California’s environment. The CCC is open to all Californians aged 18-25, with veterans eligible up to 29 years old. Most corpsmembers serve one year, hail from urban areas, and have little or no work experience. Many have faced significant hurdles and challenges.

From floods and wildfires to earthquakes, oil spills, and pest infestations, Corpsmembers are eager and prepared to help Californians when they need it the most. In fact, since 1976, corpsmembers have put in more than 14 million hours responding to natural disasters on emergency assignments. 

Most recently, hundreds of corpsmembers were dispatched to Los Angeles County during last year’s devastating wildfires to support right alongside CAL FIRE firefighters, provide base camp support, and protect communities from post-fire flooding, landslides, and toxic material contamination. In 2017, when the Oroville Dam spillway failure prompted the evacuation of nearly 200,000 people downstream, Corpsmembers helped set up an American Red Cross shelter for evacuees. And in 2020, the CCC helped operate a food distribution service during the COVID pandemic.

When Corpsmembers aren’t responding to emergencies, they are enhancing California’s natural spaces by building and maintaining trails and bridges, working on energy projects, planting trees, improving streams and fish habitat, and improving park and recreation areas. Their footprints are everywhere – from San Diego all the way up to Fortuna on the north coast. On the outskirts of my Senate district, the CCC has a non-residential facility adjacent to the American River in Sacramento, which offers training opportunities in energy and other natural resources work. In addition, the Placer Center in Auburn operates wildland firefighting hand crews that are trained to cut fire line, lay hose, create fuel breaks, and mop up wildland fires.  

Andres Orozco, a Placer Center alum, used his new skills to land a job as a firefighter for CAL FIRE. “I face almost the same challenges here every day that I did in the CCC,” he says. “If you come for opportunities and work, you will 100 percent find it.” Others might parlay their CCC education to find jobs with the Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, or other nonprofit or private sector environmental organizations. If Corpsmembers enter the CCC without a high school diploma, the CCC helps them earn one within the program.

The CCC’s nonprofit partner, the California Conservation Corps Foundation, enhances corpsmembers’ education, training, leadership development, personal growth, and career opportunities through philanthropy. Whether it’s providing scholarships, health resources, internship placements, or simply a plane ticket home to attend a mother’s funeral, the Foundation has been supporting corpsmembers for most of the past half-century.

Recently, I was proud to support a Senate Resolution recognizing the CCC’s 50th anniversary and its long-standing impact and commitment to California’s youth, stewardship of public lands, and dedication to improving our communities. It’s a shining example of how a government program can work for all of us.