subdivision for surplus control operations shall exert every reasonable effort to avoid losses and to secure profits, but shall not withhold any commodity from the domestic market if the prices have become unduly enhanced, resulting in distress to domestic consumers. Stockholders or members of the corporation shall not be subject to assessment for any losses incurred in surplus control operations of the corporation.

(e) A stabilization corporation shall keep such accounts, records, and memoranda, and make such reports with respect to its transactions, business methods, and financial condition, as the administration may from time to time prescribe; shall permit the administration to audit its accounts annually and at such other times as the administration deems advisable; and shall permit the administration, upon its own initiative or upon written request of any stockholder or member, to investigate the financial condition and business methods of the corporation.

(f) No loan shall be made to any stabilization corporation unless, in the judgment of the administration, the loan is in furtherance of the policy declared in section 1141 of this title. (June 15, 1929, ch. 24, § 9, 46 Stat. 14; Ex. Ord. No. 6084, Mar. 27, 1933.)

TERMINATION OF ACTIVITIES

The authority conferred by this section was abolished and the Farm Credit Administration ordered to take appropriate steps for winding up the activities of stabilization corporations by Ex. Ord. No. 6084, § 403, (6), Mar. 27, 1933, set out as note preceding section 636 of this title.

§ 1141h. Avoidance of duplication; cooperation with other governmental establishments; obtaining information and data; cooperation with States, Territories, and agencies or subdivisions thereof; indicating research problems; transfer of offices, functions, etc.-(a) The administration shall, in cooperation with any governmental establishment in the Executive branch of the Government, including any field service thereof at home or abroad, avail itself of the services and facilities thereof in order to avoid preventable expense or duplication of effort.

(b) The President may by Executive order direct any such governmental establishment to furnish the administration such information and data as such governmental establishment may have pertaining to the functions of the administration; except that the President shall not direct that the administration be furnished with any information or data supplied by any person in confidence to any governmental establishment in pursuance of any provision of law or of any agreement with a governmental establishment.

(c) The administration may cooperate with any State or Territory, or department, agency, or political subdivision thereof, or with any person.

(d) The administration shall, through the governor, indicate to the appropriate bureau or division of the Department of Agriculture any special problem on which a research is needed to aid in carrying out the provisions of this subchapter.

(e) The President is authorized, by Executive order, to transfer to or retransfer from the jurisdiction and control of the adminis

tration the whole or any part of (1) any office, bureau, service, division, commission, or board in the Executive branch of the Government engaged in scientific or extension work, or the furnishing of services, with respect to the marketing of agricultural commodities, (2) its functions pertaining to such work or services, and (3) the records, property, including office equipment, personnel, and unexpended balances of appropriation, pertaining to such work or services. (June 15, 1929, ch. 24, § 13, 46 Stat. 17; Ex. Ord. No. 6084, Mar. 27, 1933.)

§ 1141i. Examination of books and accounts; limitation on purpose of examination respecting expenditures from revolving fund. -Vouchers approved by the Governor of the Farm Credit Administration for expenditures from the revolving fund pursuant to any loan or advance or from insurance monies pursuant to any insurance agreement, shall be final and conclusive upon all officers of the Government; except that all financial transactions of the administration shall, subject to the above limitations, be examined by the General Accounting Office at such times and in such manner as the Comptroller General of the United States may by regulation prescribe. Such examination, with respect to expenditures from the revolving fund pursuant to any loan or advance or from insurance moneys pursuant to any insurance agreement, shall be for the sole purpose of making a report to the Congress and to the board of expenditures and of loan and insurance agreements in violation of law, together with such recommendations thereon as the Comptroller General deems advisable. (June 15, 1929, ch. 24, § 14, 46 Stat. 18; Ex. Ord. No. 6084, Mar. 27, 1933.)

§ 1141j. Miscellaneous provisions (a) "Cooperative association" defined.-As used in this subchapter, the term "cooperative association" means any association in which farmers act together in processing, preparing for market, handling, and/or marketing the farm products of persons so engaged, and also means any association in which farmers act together in purchasing, testing, grading, processing, distributing, and/or furnishing farm supplies and/or farm business services: Provided, however, That such associations are operated for the mutual benefit of the members thereof as such producers or purchasers and conform to one or both of the following requirements:

First. That no member of the association is allowed more than one vote because of the amount of stock or membership capital he may own therein; and

Second. That the association does not pay dividends on stock or membership capital in excess of 8 per centum per annum. And in any case to the following:

Third. That the association shall not deal in farm products, farm supplies, and farm business services with or for nonmembers in an amount greater in value than the total amount of such business transacted by it with or for members. All business transacted by any cooperative association for or on behalf of the United States or any agency or instrumentality thereof shall be disregarded in determining the volume of member and nonmember business transacted by such association.

(b) Speculation prohibited. It shall be unlawful for the governor, or any officer or employee of the Farm Credit Administration to speculate directly or indirectly, in any agricultural commodity or product thereof, or in contracts relating thereto, or in the stock or membership interests of any association or corporation engaged in handling, processing, or disposing of any such commodity or product. Any person violating this subdivision shall upon conviction thereof be fined not more than $10,000, or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both.

(c) Confidential information; disclosure prohibited. It shall be unlawful (1) for any cooperative association, stabilization corporation, clearing-house association, or commodity committee, to which or to whom information has been imparted person acting on behalf of any such association, corporation, or committee, to which or to whom information has been imparted in confidence by the administration, to disclose such information in violation of any regulation of the administration. Any such association, corporation, or committee, or director, officer, employee, or member thereof, violating this subdivision, shall be fined not more than $5,000, or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.

(d) Governmental publications; predictions as to cotton prices prohibited. The inclusion in any governmental report, bulletin, or other such publication hereafter issued or published of any prediction with respect to cotton prices is hereby prohibited. Any officer or employee of the United States who authorizes or is responsible for the inclusion in any such report, bulletin, or other publication of any such prediction, or who knowingly causes the issuance or publication of any such report, bulletin, or other publication containing any such prediction, shall, upon conviction thereof, be fined not less than $500 or more than $5,000, or imprisoned for not more than five years, or both: Provided, That this subdivision shall not apply to the Governor of the Farm Credit Administration when engaged in the performance of his duties herein provided.

(e) Separability clause.-If any provision of this subchapter is declared unconstitutional, or the applicability thereof to any person, circumstance, commodity, or class of transactions with respect to any commodity is held invalid, the validity of the remainder of the subchapter and the applicability of such provision to other persons, circumstances, commodities, and classes of transactions shall not be affected thereby.

(f) Citation of subchapter.-This subchapter may be cited as the "Agricultural Marketing Act."

(g) "Agricultural commodity"; definition. As used in this subchapter, the term "agricultural commodity" includes, in addition to other agricultural commodities, crude gum (oleoresin) from a living tree, and the following products as processed by the original producer of the crude gum (oleoresin) from which derived: Gum spirits of turpentine, and gum rosin, as defined in section 92 of Title 7. (June 15, 1929, ch. 24, § 15, 46 Stat. 18; Mar. 4, 1931, ch. 520, § 3, 46 Stat. 1550; Ex. Ord. No. 6084,

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Mar. 27, 1933; June 16, 1933, ch. 98, § 55, 48 Stat. 266; June 3, 1935, ch. 164, § 12, 49 Stat. 317.)

REGIONAL AGRICULTURAL CREDIT CORPORATIONS

§ 1148. Regional agricultural credit corporations; creation; capital; management; loans; rediscounts; supervision.-The Reconstruction Finance Corporation is authorized to create in any of the twelve farm credit districts where it may deem the same to be desirable a regional agricultural credit corporation with a paid-up capital of not less than $3,000,000, to be subscribed for by the Reconstruction Finance Corporation and paid for out of the unexpended balance of the amounts allocated and made available to the Secretary of Agriculture under section 602 of Title 15. Such corporations shall be managed by officers and agents to be appointed by the Farm Credit Administration under such rules and regulations as it may prescribe. Such corporations are hereby authorized and empowered to make loans or advances to farmers and stockmen, the proceeds of which are to be used for an agricultural purpose (including crop production), or for the raising, breeding, fattening, or marketing of livestock, to charge such rates of interest or discount thereon as in their judgment are fair and equitable, subject to the approval of the Farm Credit Administration, and to rediscount with the Reconstruction Finance Corporation and the various Federal reserve banks and Federal intermediate credit banks any paper that they acquire which is eligible for such purpose. All expenses incurred in connection with the operation of such corporations shall be supervised and paid by the Reconstruction Finance Corporation under such rules and regulations as its board of directors may prescribe. (July 21, 1932, ch. 520, § 201 (e), 47 Stat. 713; Ex. Ord. No. 6084, Mar. 27, 1933; Aug. 19, 1937, ch. 704, § 5 (a), 50 Stat. 704.)

TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS

Ex. Ord. 6084 of March 27, 1933, set forth as note preceding section 636 of this title, transferred to the jurisdiction and control of the Farm Credit Administration the functions defined in section 5 (e) of the Order, as follows: "The functions of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation and its Board of Directors relating to the appointment of officers and agents to manage regional agricultural credit corporations formed under section 201 (e) of the Emergency Relief and Construction Act of 1932 (this section); relating to the establishment of rules and regulations for such management; and relating to the approval of loans and advances made by such corporations and of the terms and conditions thereof."

§ 1148a. Reduction of capital stock of regional agricultural credit corporation; revolving fund from stock proceeds.-The Reconstruction Finance Corporation is authorized, with the approval of the Governor of the Farm Credit Administration, to reduce the capital of any Regional Agricultural Credit Corporation by such action as may be suitable for the purpose. The funds made available by any such reduction shall constitute a revolving fund, all or any part of which shall be available for use from time to time by the Reconstruction Finance Corporation for the purpose of increasing, with the approval of the Governor of the Farm

Credit Administration, the capital of any Regional Agricultural Credit Corporation. (June 16, 1933, ch. 98, § 84, 48 Stat. 273.) § 1148b. Additional powers of regional agricultural credit corporations. Each regional agricultural credit corporation, created under the authority of section 1148 of this title, in addition to the powers granted prior to August 19, 1937, shall have and, upon order or approval of the Farm Credit Administration, shall exercise the following rights, powers, and authority:

(a) Places of transacting business. To conduct, transact, and operate its business in any State in the continental United States, in the District of Columbia, and in Puerto Rico.

(b) Borrow money. To borrow money (other than by way of discount) from any other regional agricultural credit corporation, the Reconstruction Finance Corporation, or any Federal intermediate credit bank, and to give security therefor.

(c) Loans. To lend any of its available funds to any other regional agricultural credit corporation at such rates of interest and upon such terms and conditions as may be approved by the Farm Credit Administration.

(d) Sale to or purchase from other like corporations. To sell to or purchase from any other regional agricultural credit corporation or any corporation formed by consolidation or merger as provided in section 1148c of this title, any part of or all the assets of any such corporation, upon such terms and conditions as may be approved by the Farm Credit Administration, including the assumption of the liabilities of any such corporation, in whole or in part. (Aug. 19, 1937, ch. 704, § 32, 50 Stat. 710.)

SAVING CLAUSE

See note under section 640a of this title.

§ 1148c. Consolidation or merger-(a) Power of Farm Credit Administration.-The Farm Credit Administration shall have the power and authority to order and effect the consolidation or merger of two or more regional agricultural credit corporations, on such terms and conditions as it shall direct.

(b) Status of corporations formed by consolidation.-The Farm Credit Administration is authorized to grant charters to, prescribe bylaws for, and fix the capital of, regional agricultural credit corporations which may be formed by the consolidation of two or more regional agricultural credit corporations, and to approve or prescribe such amendments to the charter and bylaws of any regional agricultural credit corporation as it may from time to time deem necessary. Corporations formed by the consolidation of two or more regional agricultural credit corporations, as herein provided, shall have all the rights, powers, authority, and exemptions; shall be subject to the same supervision and control; and shall have their expenses paid in the same manner as provided by law in respect to regional agricultural credit corporations organized under section 1148 of this title. (Aug. 19, 1937, ch. 704, § 33, 50 Stat. 717.)

SAVING CLAUSE

See note under section 640a of this title.