SECTIONS 78285-78292 - California Statutes

FOOD AND AGRICULTURAL CODE

SECTION 78285-78292

78285. (a) The commission shall establish the assessment for the
following marketing year not later than January 1 of each year, or as
soon thereafter as possible. The commission shall adopt bylaws which
establish the date for payment of the assessment.
(b) The assessment shall not exceed one cent ($0.01) per pound of
all sales of asparagus by producers in the marketing year.
(c) The handler shall deduct the producer assessment from amounts
paid by him or her to the producer and shall be a trustee of these
funds until they are paid to the commission at the time and in the
manner prescribed by the commission.
(d) A fee greater than the amount specified in subdivision (b)
shall not be charged unless approved by the vote specified in Section
78271.

78286. This chapter does not apply to any person who grows
asparagus only for his or her own home use or who is not a producer.
However, any such person who markets asparagus shall file an
affidavit with the commission establishing that the person grows less
than five acres of asparagus. The commission shall then determine
whether the affidavit should be approved.

78287. Every handler shall keep a complete and accurate record of
all asparagus handled with the name of the producer whose asparagus
was handled. The records shall be in simple form and contain
information as the commission shall prescribe. The records shall be
retained by the handler for two years and shall be offered and
submitted for inspection at any reasonable time upon written demand
of the commission or its duly authorized agent.

78288. (a) The commission may specify the conditions under which
proprietary information obtained from producers may be disclosed.
Otherwise, all proprietary information obtained by the commission or
the secretary from producers is confidential and shall not be
disclosed except when required by a court order after a hearing in a
judicial proceeding involving this chapter.
(b) Information on volume shipments, product value, and any other
related information that is required for reports to governmental
agencies, financial reports to the commission or aggregate sales and
inventory information, and any other information that the commission
requires that gives only totals, but excludes individual producer
information, may be disclosed by the commission.

78289. Any assessment which is levied pursuant to this chapter is a
personal debt of every producer so assessed.

78290. Every handler shall be personally liable for the payment of
collected assessments to the commission. A failure by a handler to
collect the assessment shall not exempt the handler from liability
and shall not relieve any person subject to this chapter from the
obligation to pay the assessment.

78291. Any producer or handler who fails to file a return or pay
any assessment within the time required by the commission shall pay
the commission a penalty of 10 percent of the amount of the
assessment determined to be due and, in addition, pay 1 1/2 percent
interest per month on the unpaid balance.

78292. If the handler is a corporation, all of the directors and
officers of the corporation in their capacity as individuals shall be
included, and any liability for failure to collect or make payment
of assessments to which a corporate handler may be subject pursuant
to this chapter shall include identical liability upon each
individual director or officer of the corporation.