classified generally to this chapter (§ 499a et seq.). For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 4998(a) of this title and Tables.

The Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937 (7 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), referred to in subsec. (a)(1), is act June 3, 1937, ch. 296, 50 Stat. 246, as amended, which is classified principally to chapter 26A (§ 671 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 674 of this title and Tables. The Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937 reenacted and amended the Agricultural Adjustment Act, title I of act May 12, 1933, ch. 25, 48 Stat. 31, as amended, which is classified generally to chapter 26 (§ 601 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 601 of this title and Tables.

CODIFICATION

Section was enacted as part of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990, and not as part of the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act, 1930 which comprises this chapter.

§ 499c. Licenses

[See main edition for text of (a)]

(b) Application; fees; creation and limitation of Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act Fund; availability of fund for administrative expenses; budget requirements; notice of increase in annual fee; filing of views and objections to increase Any person desiring any such license shall make application to the Secretary. The Secretary may by regulation prescribe the information to be contained in such application and to be furnished thereafter. Upon the filing of the application, and annually thereafter, the applicant shall pay such fee as the Secretary determines necessary to meet the reasonably anticipated expenses for administering this chapter and sections 491, 493 to 497 of this title, but in no event shall such fee exceed $400, plus $200 for each branch or additional business facility operated by the applicant in excess of nine such facilities, as determined by the Secretary. Total annual fees for any applicant shall not exceed $4,000 in the aggregate. Such fee, when collected, shall be deposited in the Treasury of the United States as a special fund, without fiscal year limitation, to be designated as the "Perishable Agricultural Agricultural Commodities Act Fund", which shall be available for all expenses necessary to the administration of this chapter and sections 491, 493 to 497 of this title, referred to above. Any reserve funds in the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act Fund may be invested by the Secretary in insured or fully-collateralized interest-bearing accounts or, at the discretion of the Secretary, by the Secretary of the Treasury in United States Government debt instruments. Any interest earned on such reserve funds shall be credited to the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act Fund and shall be available for the same purposes as the fees deposited in such fund. The amount of money accumulated and on hand in the special fund at the end of any fiscal year shall not exceed 25 percent of the projected budget for the next following fiscal year. Financial statements prescribed by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget for the last completed fiscal year, and as estimated for the current and ensuing fiscal years, shall be included

in the budget as submitted to the Congress annually. The Secretary shall give public notice of any increase to be made in the annual fee prescribed by him hereunder and shall allow a reasonable time prior to the effective date of such increase for interested persons to file their views on or objections to such increase.

[See main edition for text of (c)]

(As amended Nov. 28, 1990, Pub. L. 101-624, title XIII, § 1361, 104 Stat. 3568.)

AMENDMENTS

1990-Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 101-624 substituted “. Any reserve funds in the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act Fund may be invested by the Secretary in insured or fully-collateralized interest-bearing accounts or, at the discretion of the Secretary, by the Secretary of the Treasury in United States Government debt instruments. Any interest earned on such reserve funds shall be credited to the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act Fund and shall be available for the same purposes as the fees deposited in such fund. The" for “: Provided, That the" and ". Financial" for ": Provided further, That financial”.

§ 499d. Issuance of license

(a) Authority to do business; termination; renewal

Whenever an applicant has paid the prescribed fee the Secretary, except as provided elsewhere in this chapter, shall issue to such applicant a license, which shall entitle the licensee to do business as a commission merchant and/or dealer and/or broker unless and until it is suspended or revoked by the Secretary in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, or is automatically suspended under section 499g(d) of this title, but said license shall automatically terminate on any anniversary date thereof unless the annual fee has been paid: Provided, That notice of the necessity of paying the annual fee shall be mailed at least thirty days before the anniversary date: Provided, further, That if the annual fee is not paid by the anniversary date the licensee may obtain a renewal of that license at any time within thirty days by paying the fee provided in section 499c(b) of this title, plus $5, which shall be deposited in the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act fund provided for by section 499c(b) of this title: And provided further, That the license of any licensee shall terminate upon said licensee, or in case the licensee is a partnership, any partner, being discharged as a bankrupt, unless the Secretary finds upon examination of the circumstances of such bankruptcy, which he shall examine if requested to do so by said licensee, that such circumstances do not warrant such termination.

[See main edition for text of (b) to (e)] (As amended Dec. 13, 1991, Pub. L. 102-237, title X, § 1011(2), 105 Stat. 1898.)

AMENDMENTS

1991-Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 102-237 substituted "annual" for "anual" before "fee has been paid”.

§ 499e. Liability to persons injured

[See main edition for text of (a) and (b)]

(c) Trust on commodities and sales proceeds for benefit of unpaid suppliers, sellers, or agents; preservation of trust; jurisdiction of courts

[See main edition for text of (1)]

(2) Perishable agricultural commodities received by a commission merchant, dealer, or broker in all transactions, and all inventories of food or other products derived from perishable agricultural commodities, and any receivables or proceeds from the sale of such commodities or products, shall be held by such commission merchant, dealer, or broker in trust for the benefit of all unpaid suppliers or sellers of such commodities or agents involved in the transaction, until full payment of the sums owing in connection with such transactions has been received by such unpaid suppliers, sellers, or agents. Payment shall not be considered to have been made if the supplier, seller, or agent receives a payment instrument which is dishonored. The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to transactions between a cooperative association, as defined in section 1141j(a) of title 12, and its members.

[See main edition for text of (3) and (4)] (As amended Dec. 13, 1991, Pub. L. 102-237, title X, § 1011(3), 105 Stat. 1898.)

AMENDMENTS

1991-Subsec. (c)(2). Pub. L. 102-237 substituted ", as" for "(as" before "defined".

§ 499f. Complaint and investigation

[See main edition for text of (a) and (b)] (c) Service of complaint; hearing

If there appear to be, in the opinion of the Secretary, any reasonable grounds for investigating any complaint made under this section, the Secretary shall investigate such complaint and may, if in his opinion the facts warrant such action, have said complaint served by registered mail or by certified mail or otherwise on the person concerned and afford such person an opportunity for a hearing thereon before a duly authorized examiner of the Secretary in any place in which the said person is engaged in business: Provided, That in complaints wherein the amount claimed as damages does not exceed the sum of $15,000, a hearing need not be held and proof in support of the complaint and in support of respondent's answer may be supplied in the form of depositions or verified statements of fact.

(d) Determination by Secretary of violations

After opportunity for hearing on complaints where the damages claimed exceed the sum of $15,000 has been provided or waived and on complaints where damages claimed do not exceed the sum of $15,000 not requiring hearing as provided herein, the Secretary shall determine whether or not the commission merchant, dealer, or broker has violated any provision of section 499b of this title.

[See main edition for text of (e)]

(As amended Dec. 13, 1991, Pub. L. 102-237, title X, § 1011(4), 105 Stat. 1898.)

AMENDMENTS

1991-Subsecs. (c), (d). Pub. L. 102-237 inserted a period at end of subsec. (c) and substituted a period for semicolon at end of subsec. (d).

§ 499g. Reparation order

(a) Determination by Secretary of Agriculture of amount of damages; order for payment

If after a hearing on a complaint made by any person under section 499f of this title, or without hearing as provided in subsections (c) and (d) of section 499f of this title, or upon failure of the party complained against to answer a complaint duly served within the time prescribed, or to appear at a hearing after being duly notified, the Secretary determines that the commission merchant, dealer, or broker has violated any provision of section 499b of this title, he shall, unless the offender has already made reparation to the person complaining, determine the amount of damage, if any, to which such person is entitled as a result of such violation and shall make an order directing the offender to pay to such person complaining such amount on or before the date fixed in the order. The Secretary shall order any commission merchant, dealer, or broker who is the losing party to pay the prevailing party, as reparation or additional reparation, reasonable fees and expenses incurred in connection with any such hearing. If, after the respondent has filed his answer to the complaint, it appears therein that the respondent has admitted liability for a portion of the amount claimed in the complaint as damages, the Secretary under such rules and regulations as he shall prescribe, unless the respondent has already made reparation to the person complaining, may issue an order directing the respondent to pay to the complainant the undisputed amount on or before the date fixed in the order, leaving the respondent's liability for the disputed amount for subsequent determination. The remaining disputed amount shall be determined in the same manner and under the same procedure as it would have been determined if no order had been issued by the Secretary with respect to the undisputed sum.

(b) Failure to comply with order of Secretary; suit to enforce liability; order as evidence; costs and fees If any commission merchant, dealer, or broker does not pay the reparation award within the time specified in the Secretary's order, the complainant, or any person for whose benefit such order was made, may within three years of the date of the order file in the district court of the United States for the district in which he resides or in which is located the principal place of business of the commission merchant, dealer, or broker, or in any State court having general jurisdiction of the parties, a petition setting forth briefly the causes for which he claims damages and the order of the Secretary in the premises. The orders, writs, and processes of the district courts may in these cases run, be served, and be returnable anywhere in the United States. Such suit in the district court shall proceed in all respects like other civil suits for damages,

except that the findings and orders of the Secretary shall be prima-facie evidence of the facts therein stated, and the petitioner shall not be liable for costs in the district court, nor for costs at any subsequent state of the proceedings, unless they accrue upon his appeal. If the petitioner finally prevails, he shall be allowed a reasonable attorney's fee, to be taxed and collected as a part of the costs of the suit. (c) Appeal from reparation order; proceedings

Either party adversely affected by the entry of a reparation order by the Secretary may, within thirty days from and after the date of such order, appeal therefrom to the district court of the United States for the district in which said hearing was held: Provided, That in cases handled without a hearing in accordance with subsections (c) and (d) of section 499f of this title or in which a hearing has been waived by agreement of the parties, appeal shall be to the district court of the United States for the district in which the party complained against is located. Such appeal shall be perfected by the filing with the clerk of said court a notice of appeal, together with a petition in duplicate which shall recite prior proceedings before the Secretary and shall state the grounds upon which the petitioner relies to defeat the right of the adverse party to recover the damages claimed, with proof of service thereof upon the adverse party. Such appeal shall not be effective unless within thirty days from and after the date of the reparation order the appellant also files with the clerk a bond in double the amount of the reparation awarded against the appellant conditioned upon the payment of the judgment entered by the court, plus interest and costs, including a reasonable attorney's fee for the appellee, if the appellee shall prevail. Such bond shall be in the form of cash, negotiable securities having a market value at least equivalent to the amount of bond prescribed, or the undertaking of a surety company on the approved list of sureties issued by the Treasury Department of the United States. The clerk of court shall immediately forward a copy thereof to the Secretary of Agriculture, who shall forthwith prepare, certify, and file in said court a true copy of the Secretary's decision, findings of fact, conclusions, and order in said case, together with copies of the pleadings upon which the case was heard and submitted to the Secretary. Such suit in the district court shall be a trial de novo and shall proceed in all respects like other civil suits for damages, except that the findings of fact and order or orders of the Secretary shall be prima-facie evidence of the facts therein stated. Appellee shall not be liable for costs in said court and if appellee prevails he shall be allowed a reasonable attorney's fee to be taxed and collected as a part of his costs. Such petition and pleadings certified by the Secretary upon which decision was made by him shall upon filing in the district court constitute the pleadings upon which said trial de novo shall proceed subject to any amendment allowed in that court.

[See main edition for text of (d)]

(As amended Dec. 13, 1991, Pub. L. 102-237, title X, § 1011(5), 105 Stat. 1898.)

AMENDMENTS

1991-Subsecs. (a) to (c). Pub. L. 102-237 substituted periods for semicolons at end of subsecs. (a) to (c).

§ 499h. Grounds for suspension or revocation of li

cense

(a) Authority of Secretary

Whenever (1) the Secretary determines, as provided in section 499f of this title, that any commission merchant, dealer, or broker has violated any of the provisions of section 499b of this title, or (2) any commission merchant, dealer, or broker has been found guilty in a Federal court of having violated section 499n(b) of this title, the Secretary may publish the facts and circumstances of such violation and/ or, by order, suspend the license of such offender for a period not to exceed ninety days, except that, if the violation is flagrant or repeated, the Secretary may, by order, revoke the license of the offender.

[See main edition for text of (b) to (d)] (As amended Dec. 13, 1991, Pub. L. 102-237, title X, § 1011(6), 105 Stat. 1898.)

AMENDMENTS

1991-Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 102-237 redesignated cls. (a) and (b) as (1) and (2), respectively, and substituted a period for semicolon at end.

§ 499n. Inspection of perishable agricultural commodities

(a) Employment of inspectors; fees and expenses; inspection certificate as evidence

The Secretary is authorized, independently and in cooperation with other branches of the Government, State, or municipal agencies and/ or any person, whether operating in one or more jurisdictions, to employ and/or license inspectors to inspect and certify, without regard to the filing of a complaint under this chapter, to any interested person the class, quality, and/ or condition of any lot of any perishable agricultural commodity when offered for interstate or foreign shipment or when received at places where the Secretary shall find it practicable to provide such service, under such rules and regulations as he may prescribe, including the payment of such fees and expenses as will be reasonable and as nearly as may be to cover the cost for the service rendered: Provided, That fees for inspections made by a licensed inspector, less the percentage thereof which he is allowed by the terms of his contract of employment with the Secretary as compensation for his services, shall be deposited into the Treasury of the United States as miscellaneous receipts; and fees for inspections made by an inspector acting under a cooperative agreement with a State, municipality, or other person shall be disposed of in accordance with the terms of such agreement: Provided further, That expenses for travel and subsistence incurred by inspectors shall be paid by the applicant for inspection to the United States Department of Agriculture to be credited to the appropriation for carrying out the purposes of this chapter: And provided further, That official in

spection certificates for fresh fruits and vegetables issued by the Secretary of Agriculture pursuant to any law shall be received by all officers and all courts of the United States, in all proceedings under this chapter, and in all transactions upon contract markets under Commodities Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 1 et seq.), as primafacie evidence of the truth of the statements therein contained.

[See main edition for text of (b)]

(As amended Dec. 13, 1991, Pub. L. 102-237, title X, § 1011(7), 105 Stat. 1898.)

AMENDMENTS

1991-Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 102-237 substituted “(7 U.S.C. 1 et seq.)" for "(7 U.S.C., Supp. 2, secs. 1 to 17(a))" and a period for semicolon at end.

§ 499r. Repealed. Pub. L. 102-237, title X, § 1011(8), Dec. 13, 1991, 105 Stat. 1898

Section, act June 10, 1930, ch. 436, § 18, 46 Stat. 538, provided for short title of chapter. See section 499a(a) of this title.

§ 499t. Omitted

CODIFICATION

Section, act June 10, 1930, ch. 436, § 20, as added Aug. 22, 1988, Pub. L. 100-414, § 2, 102 Stat. 1102, established Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act Industry Advisory Committee, provided for its membership, compensation, etc., directed advisory committee to review Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act program and to make findings and recommendations to Congress and Secretary of Agriculture with respect to future operations of program, with an interim report not later than Sept. 30, 1989, and a final report not later than May 1, 1990, containing results of its review and recommendations, and provided that advisory committee cease to exist on date of its final report.

ers shall maintain records utilized to prepare the aggregation for a period of 5 years. (c) Exceptions

The reporting and recordkeeping requirements of this section shall not apply with respect to cigars, cigar tobaccos, pipe tobacco, chewing tobacco in retail packaging, and snuff in retail packaging. In order to qualify for the exception under this subsection, the tobacco must have a certification that its end use is for cigars, cigar tobacco, pipe tobacco, chewing tobacco in retail packaging, or snuff in retail packaging.

(d) Scope

Records maintained under this section shall include the crop year, grade, type, country of origin, poundage, and such other information relating to the tobacco products as the Secretary determines appropriate.

(e) Reports

Records, reports, and aggregations submitted to the Secretary of Agriculture under this section shall be provided by the Secretary to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate, in a timely manner.

(f) Penalty

Any exporter who violates the provisions of this section with respect to the provision of false information or the failure to provide required information shall be subject to section 1001 of title 18 for each such violation.

(g) Confidentiality of information

The personally identifiable information contained in reports under this section may be withheld in accordance with section 552(b)(4) of title 5. Any officer or employee of the Department of Agriculture who knowingly discloses confidential information as defined by section 1905 of title 18 shall be subject to section 1905 of title 18. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to authorize the withholding of information from Congress.

(Pub. L. 98–180, title II, § 214, as added Pub. L. 101-624, title XV, § 1557, Nov. 28, 1990, 104 Stat. 3699, and amended Pub. L. 102-237, title III, § 337, Dec. 13, 1991, 105 Stat. 1859.)

CODIFICATION

Section was enacted as part of the Tobacco Adjustment Act of 1983, and not as part of act Jan. 14, 1929, ch. 69, which comprises this chapter.

AMENDMENTS

1991-Subsecs. (c) to (g). Pub. L. 102-237 added subsec. (c) and redesignated former subsecs. (c) to (f) as (d) to (g), respectively.

CHAPTER 21A-TOBACCO INSPECTION

§ 511r. Imported tobacco

[See main edition for text of (a) to (c)] (d) Place of inspection; fees and charges

The Secretary of Agriculture shall enforce the provisions of subsection (a) of this section

at the point of entry of tobacco offered for importation into the United States. The Secretary shall by regulation fix and collect from the importer fees and charges for inspection under subsection (a)(1) and subsection (e) of this section which shall, as nearly as practicable, cover the costs of such services, including the administrative and supervisory costs customarily included by the Secretary in user fee calculations. The fees and charges, when collected, shall be credited to the current appropriation account that incurs the cost and shall be available without fiscal year limitation to pay the expenses of the Secretary incident to providing services under subsection (a)(1) of this section, subsection (e) of this section, and subsection (f) of this section. Any fees collected, late payment penalties, and interest earned shall be credited to the account referred to in this section and may be invested by the Secretary of Agriculture in insured or fully-collateralized interestbearing accounts or, at the discretion of the Secretary of Agriculture, by the Secretary of the Treasury in United States Government debt instruments. Fees and charges, including late payment penalties, and interest earned from the investment of such funds shall be credited to the account referred to in this section.

[See main edition for text of (e)]

(f) End users of imported tobacco; certification, identification, etc., requirements

[See main edition for text of (1) to (3)]

(4) Subsection (d) of this section shall apply with respect to fees and charges imposed to cover the costs of such end user identification, certification, and reporting activities.

(As amended Pub. L. 101-508, title I, § 1204(c), Nov. 5, 1990, 104 Stat. 1388-11; Pub. L. 101-624, title XXV, § 2511, Nov. 28, 1990, 104 Stat. 4073.)

AMENDMENTS

1990-Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 101-624 inserted provisions crediting to account fees, penalties and interest, authorizing investment of interest earned therefrom in insured or fully-collateralized accounts or in United States Government debt instruments, and crediting interest from such investments to account.

Pub. L. 101-508, § 1202(c)(1), which directed the insertion of ", subsection (e) of this section, and subsection (f) of this section" before the period was executed by making the insertion before the period at the end thereof as the probable intent of Congress.

Subsec. (f)(4). Pub. L. 101-508, § 1202(c)(2), added par. (4).

EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1990 AMENDMENT

Section 1301 of title I of Pub. L. 101-508 provided that: "This title and the amendments made by this title [enacting section 940d of this title, amending sections 511r, 1441-2, 1444-2, 1444f, 1445, 1445b-3a, 1445c-3, 1445j, 1446e, 1446f to 1446h, 1722, 1736, 1736a, 1783, 1994, 1999, and 5822 of this title and section 136a of Title 21, Food and Drugs, enacting provisions set out as notes under sections 136w, 1421, and 1445b-3a of this title, and amending provisions set out as notes under sections 1421 and 1999 of this title] shall become effective 1 day after the date of enactment of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 [Nov. 28, 1990], or December 1, 1990, whichever is earlier."

§ 608b. Marketing agreements; exemption from antitrust laws; inspection requirements for handlers not subject to agreements

(a) In order to effectuate the declared policy of this chapter, the Secretary of Agriculture shall have the power, after due notice and opportunity for hearing, to enter into marketing agreements with processors, producers, associations of producers, and others engaged in the handling of any agricultural commodity or product thereof, only with respect to such handling as is in the current of interstate or foreign commerce or which directly burdens, obstructs, or affects, interstate or foreign commerce in such commodity or product thereof. The making of any such agreement shall not be held to be in violation of any of the antitrust laws of the United States, and any such agreement shall be deemed to be lawful: Provided, That no such agreement shall remain in force after the termination of this chapter.

(b)(1) If an agreement with the Secretary is in effect with respect to peanuts pursuant to this section

(A) all peanuts handled by persons who have not entered into such an agreement with the Secretary shall be subject to inspection to the same extent and manner as is required by such agreement; and

(B) no such peanuts shall be sold or otherwise disposed of for human consumption if such peanuts fail to meet the quality requirements of such agreement.

(2) Violation of this subsection by a person who has not entered into such an agreement shall result in the assessment by the Secretary of a penalty equal to 140 percent of the support price for quota peanuts multiplied by the quantity of peanuts sold or disposed of in violation of subsection (b)(1)(B) of this section, as determined under section 1445c-3 of this title, for the marketing year for the crop with respect to which such violation occurs.