a party to the false making, issuing, altering, forging, or counterfeiting of any certificate of inspection issued under authority of this chapter, sections 491-497 of this title, or any Act making appropriations for the Department of Agriculture; or shall utter or publish as true or cause to be uttered or published as true any such false, forged, altered, or counterfeited certificate, for a fraudulent purpose, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be punished by a fine of not more than $500 or by imprisonment for a period of not more than one year, or both, at the discretion of the court. (June 10, 1930, ch. 436, § 14, 46 Stat. 537; Apr. 13, 1934, ch. 120, § 15, 48 Stat. 588; Aug. 20, 1937, ch. 719, § 12, 50 Stat. 730.) CROSS REFERENCES Certification of condition of agricultural products shipped in interstate commerce, see section 414 of this title. Investigation of quality and condition of produce received in interstate commerce, see section 492 of this title. § 4990. Rules, regulations, and orders by Secretary of Agriculture; appointment, removal, and compensation of officers and employees; expenditures; appropriations; abrogation of inconsistent statutes.-The Secretary may make such rules, regulations, and orders as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this chapter and may cooperate with any department or agency of the Government, any State, Territory, District, or possession, or department, agency, or political subdivision thereof, or any person; and shall have the power to appoint, remove, and fix the compensation of such officers and employees not in conflict with existing law, and make such expenditures for rent outside the District of Columbia, printing, binding, telegrams, telephones, law books, books of reference, publications, furniture, stationery, office equipment, travel, and other supplies and expenses, including reporting services, as shall be necessary to the administration of this chapter in the District of Columbia and elsewhere, and as may be appropriated for by Congress; and there is hereby authorized to be appropriate, out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, such sums as may be necessary for such purpose. This chapter shall not abrogate nor nullify any other statute, whether State or Federal, dealing with the same subjects as this chapter; but it is intended that all such statutes shall remain in full force and effect except insofar only as they are inconsistent herewith or repugnant hereto. (June 10, 1930, ch. 436, § 15, 46 Stat. 537.) § 499p. Liability of licensees for acts and omissions of agents. -In construing and enforcing the provisions of this chapter, the act, omission, or failure of any agent, officer, or other person acting for or employed by any commission merchant, dealer, or broker, within the scope of his employment or office, shall in every case be deemed the act, omission, or failure of such commission merchant, dealer, or broker as that of such agent, officer, or other person. (June 10, 1930, ch. 436, § 16, 46 Stat. 538.) § 499q. Invalidity of separate provisions of chapter; effect on remainder. If any provision of this chapter or the application thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid, the validity of the remainder of the chapter and of the application of such provision to other persons and circumstances shall not be affected thereby. (June 10, 1930, ch. 436, § 17, 46 Stat. 538.) § 499r. Citation of chapter.-This chapter may be cited as the "Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act, 1930." (June 10, 1930, ch. 436, § 18, 46 Stat. 538.) CROSS REFERENCE Delegation of regulatory functions of Secretary of Agriculture, see section 516a et seq. of Title 5, Executive Departments and Government Officers and Employees. Chapter 21.-TOBACCO STATISTICS § 501. Collection and publication; facts required; deteriorated tobacco. The Secretary of Agriculture is authorized and directed to collect and publish statistics of the quantity of leaf tobacco in all forms in the United States and Puerto Rico, owned by or in the possession of dealers, manufacturers, quasi-manufacturers, growers' cooperative associations, warehousemen, brokers, holders, or owners, other than the original growers of tobacco. The statistics shall show the quantity of tobacco in such detail as to types, groups of grades, and such other subdivisions as to quality, color, and/or grade for particular types, as the Secretary of Agriculture shall deem to be practical and necessary for the purposes of this section and sections 502-508 of this title, shall be summarized as of January 1, April 1, July 1, and October 1 of each year, and an annual report on tobacco statistics shall be issued: Provided, That the Secretary of Agriculture shall not be required to collect statistics of leaf tobacco from any manufacturer of tobacco who, in the first three quarters of the preceding calendar year, according to the returns of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue or the record of the Treasurer of Puerto Rico, manufactured less than thirty-five thousand pounds of tobacco, or from any manufacturer of cigars who, during the first three quarters of the preceding calendar year, manufactured less than one hundred and eighty-five thousand cigars, or from any manufacturer of cigarettes who, during the first three quarters of the preceding year, manufactured less than seven hundred and fifty thousand cigarettes: And provided further, That the Secretary of Agriculture may omit the collection of statistics from any dealer, manufacturer, growers' cooperative association, warehouseman, broker, holder, or owner who does not own and/or have in stock, in the aggregate, fifty thousand pounds or more of leaf tobacco on the date as of which the reports are made. For the purposes of this section and sections 502-508 of this title, any tobacco which has deterioriated on account of age or other causes to the extent that it is not merchantable or is unsuitable for use in manufacturing tobacco products shall be classified with other nondescript tobacco and reported in the "N" group of the type to which it belongs. (Jan. 14, 1929, ch. 69, § 1, 45 Stat. 1079; July 14, 1932, ch. 480, § 1, 47 Stat. 662; Aug. 27, 1935, ch. 749, § 1, 49 Stat. 893.) SEPARABILITY CLAUSE Section 4 of act August 27, 1935, chapter 749, cited to text, provided as follows: "If any provision of this act, or the application of such provision The to any person or circumstances, is held invalid, the remainder of the act and the application of such provisions to persons or circumstances other than those as to which it is held invalid, shall not be affected thereby." § 502. Standards for classification; returns and blanks. Secretary of Agriculture shall establish standards for the classification of leaf tobacco, and he is authorized to demonstrate such standards, to prepare and distribute samples thereof, and to make reasonable charges therefor. He shall specify the types, groups of grades, qualities, colors, and/or grades, which shall be included in the returns required by sections 501-508 of this title. The Secretary of Agriculture shall prepare appropriate blanks upon which the returns shall be made, shall, upon request, furnish copies to persons who are required by sections 501-508 of this title to make returns, and such returns shall show the types, groups of grades, qualities, colors, and/or grades and such other information as the Secretary may require. (Jan. 14, 1929, ch. 69, § 2, 45 Stat. 1079; Aug. 27, 1935, ch. 749, § 2, 49 Stat. 894.) CROSS REFERENCE Separability clause for act August 27, 1935, cited to text, see note under section 501 of this title. § 503. Reports; necessity; by whom made; penalties.-It shall be the duty of every dealer, manufacturer, quasi-manufacturer, growers' cooperative association, warehouseman, broker, holder, or owner, other than the original grower, except such persons as are excluded by the proviso to section 501 of this title, to furnish within fifteen days after January 1, April 1, July 1, and October 1 of each year, completely and correctly, to the best of his knowledge, a report of the quantity of leaf tobacco on hand, segregated in accordance with the blanks furnished by the Secretary of Agriculture. Any person, firm, association, or corporation required by sections 501-508 of this title to furnish a report, and any officer, agent, or employee thereof who shall refuse or willfully neglect to furnish any of the information required by sections 501-508 of this title, or shall willfully give answers that are false or misleading, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined not less than-$300 or more than $1,000, or imprisoned not more than one year, or both. (Jan. 14, 1929, ch. 69, § 3, 45 Stat. 1080; July 14, 1932, ch, 480, § 2, 47 Stat. 663.) § 504. Definition of "person."-The word "person" as used in sections 501-508 of this title shall be held to embrace also any partnership, corporation, association, or other legal entity. (Jan. 14, 1929, ch. 69, § 4, 45 Stat. 1080.) § 505. Access to internal revenue records.-The Secretary of Agriculture shall have access to the tobacco records of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue and of the several collectors of internal revenue for the purpose of obtaining lists of the persons subject to sections 501-508 of this title and for the purpose of aiding the collection of the information required by sections 501508 of this title, and the Commissioner of Internal Revenue and the several collectors of internal revenue shall cooperate with the Secretary of Agriculture in effectuating the provisions of sections 501-508 of this title. (Jan. 14, 1929, ch. 69, § 5, 45 Stat. 1080; Aug. 27, 1935, ch. 749, § 3, 49 Stat. 894.) AMENDMENT Section, by a purported amendment, was reenacted without change by act August 27, 1935, cited to text. § 506. Returns under oath; administration.-The returns provided for in sections 501-508 of this title shall be made under oath before a collector or deputy collector of internal revenue, a postmaster, assistant postmaster, or anyone authorized to administer oaths by State or Federal law. (Jan. 14, 1929, ch. 69, § 6, 45 Stat. 1080.) $507. Limitation on use of statistical information. The information furnished under the provisions of sections 501-508 of this title shall be used only for the statistical purposes for which it is supplied. No publication shall be made by the Secretary of Agriculture whereby the data furnished by any particular establishment can be identified, nor shall the Secretary of Agriculture permit anyone other than the sworn employees of the Department of Agriculture to examine the individual reports. (Jan. 14, 1929, ch. 69, § 7, 47 Stat. 1080.) § 508. Invalidity of provisions in sections 501-507; validity of remaining provisions. If any provision of sections 501-507 of this title is declared unconstitutional or the applicability thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the validity of the remainder of said sections and the applicability of such provisions to other persons and circumstances shall not be affected thereby. (Jan. 14, 1929, ch. 69, § 9, 45 Stat. 1080.) Chapter 21 A.-TOBACCO INSPECTION ACT § 511. Definitions. When used in this chapter (a) "Person" includes partnerships, associations, and corporations, as well as individuals. (b) "Secretary" means the Secretary of Agriculture of the United States. (c) "Inspector" means any person employed, licensed, or authorized by the Secretary to determine and certify the type, grade, condition, or other characteristics of tobacco. (d) "Sampler" means any person employed, licensed, or authorized by the Secretary to select, tag, and seal official samples of tobacco. (e) "Weigher" means any person employed, licensed, or authorized by the Secretary to weigh and certify the weight of tobacco. (f) "Tobacco" means tobacco in its unmanufactured form. (g) "Auction market" means a market or place to which tobacco is delivered by the producers thereof, or their agents, for sale at auction through a warehouseman or commission merchant. (h) Words in the singular form shall be deemed to import the plural form when necessary. (i) "Commerce" means commerce between any State, Territory, or possession, or the District of Columbia, and any place outside thereof; or between points within the same State, Territory, or possession, or the District of Columbia, but through any place outside thereof; or within Territory or possession, or the District of Columbia. For the purposes of this chapter (but not in any wise limiting the foregoing definition) a transaction in respect to tobacco shall be considered to be in commerce if such tobacco is part of that current of commerce usual in the tobacco industry whereby tobacco or products manufactured therefrom are sent from one State with the expectation that they will end their transit, after purchase, in another, including, in addition to cases within the above general description, all cases where purchase or sale is either for shipment to another State or for manufacture within the State and the shipment outside the State of the products resulting from such manufacure. Tobacco normally in such current of commerce shall not be considered out of such current through resort being had to any means or device intended to remove transactions in respect thereto from the provisions of this chapter. For the purpose of this paragraph the word "State" includes Territory, the District of Columbia, possession of the United States, and foreign nations. (Aug. 23, 1935, ch. 623, § 1, 49 Stat. 731.) FEDERAL RULES OF CIVIL PROCEDURE Subpoena, see Rule 45, following section 723c of Title 28, Judicial Code and Judiciary. § 511a. Purpose of chapter.-Transactions in tobacco involving the sale thereof at auction as commonly conducted at auction markets are affected with a public interest; that such transactions are carried on by tobacco producers generally and by persons engaged in the business of buying and selling tobacco according to type, grade, and other characteristics affects the prices received therefor by producers; that without uniform standards of classification and inspection the evaluation of tobacco is susceptible to speculation, manipulation, and control, and unreasonable fluctuations in prices and quality determinations occur which are detrimental to producers and persons handling tobacco in commerce; that such fluctuations constitute a burden upon commerce and make the use of uniform standards of classification and inspection imperative for the protection of producers and others engaged in commerce and the public interest therein. (Aug. 23, 1935, ch. 623, § 2, 49 Stat. 731.) § 511b. Official standards for classification; tentative standards; modification. The Secretary is authorized to investigate the sorting, handling, conditioning, inspection, and marketing of tobacco from time to time, and to establish standards for tobacco by which its type, grade, size, condition, or other characteristics may be determined, which standards shall be the official standards of the United States, and shall become effective immediately or upon a date specified by the Secretary: Provided, That the Secretary may issue tentative standards for tobacco prior to the establishment of official standards therefor, and he may modify any standards established under authority of this chapter whenever, in his judgment, such action is advisable. (Aug. 23, 1935, ch. 623, § 3, 49 Stat. 732.) CROSS REFERENCE Delegation of regulatory functions of Secretary of Agriculture, see section 516a et seq. of Title 5, Executive Departments and Government Officers and Employees. |