California Conservation Corps - History

History

The bill to create the California Conservation Corps was co-authored by California State Senator Ruben Ayala. The legislation was signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown on July 7, 1976, modeling the corps after the federal Civilian Conservation Corps that existed during the New Deal in the 1930s. Brown envisioned a department marketed specifically to the state's young people as "a combination Jesuit seminary, Israeli kibbutz, and Marine Corps boot camp." The CCC replaced the California Ecology Corps that was created by Governor Ronald Reagan in 1971 as an "alternative service" option for Conscientious Objectors during the Vietnam War.

Following the end of his governorship, Brown's successor, Governor George Deukmejian, signed legislation to eliminate the CCC's sunset clause by making it a permanent department under the California Resources Agency in 1983

Since beginning operation in the late 1970s, the CCC has employed over 95,000 young male and female corpsmembers with 54 million hours of conservation work. 6,402 miles of trails throughout the state have been constructed and 3.2 million trees have been planted.

The duties of operation falling to the CCC include trail maintenance, riparian zone restoration, tree planting and exotic plant species removal, construction, and emergency flood and wildfire response. Other organizations pay the CCC to do the work. Benefits for "corpies" include vocational training in cooking, office work, chainsaw and vehicle maintenance and the opportunity to receive a high school diploma. Scholarships for higher education are also available through the number of work hours performed and community volunteerism made.