BILL NUMBER: AB 315 CHAPTERED 09/12/03 CHAPTER 349 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE SEPTEMBER 12, 2003 APPROVED BY GOVERNOR SEPTEMBER 11, 2003 PASSED THE SENATE AUGUST 28, 2003 PASSED THE ASSEMBLY MAY 8, 2003 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 8, 2003 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 19, 2003 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Salinas FEBRUARY 7, 2003 An act to amend Sections 52323, 52324, and 52325 of the Food and Agricultural Code, relating to agriculture, and making an appropriation therefor. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 315, Salinas. California Seed Law: funding. (1) Existing law, the California Seed Law, requires the Secretary of Food and Agriculture to pay specified sums to counties as a subvention for costs incurred in enforcing that law. Under existing law, the secretary is required to pay a total annual subvention to counties of 30% of the total assessment received by the secretary, up to $120,000. Under existing law, the fees collected pursuant to the California Seed Law are continuously appropriated to the Department of Food and Agriculture to carry out these provisions. This bill would instead require the secretary to pay a total annual subvention to counties of $120,000. (2) Existing law provides for these provisions to become inoperative on July 1, 2004, and to be repealed as of January 1, 2005. This bill would extend the inoperative date of those provisions to July 1, 2009, and the repeal date to January 1, 2010. The bill would make an appropriation by increasing the subventions in some circumstances and by continuing in effect the subventions until July 1, 2009. Appropriation: yes. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 52323 of the Food and Agricultural Code is amended to read: 52323. The department's cost of carrying out this chapter shall be funded from money that is received by the secretary pursuant to this chapter. The secretary shall also pay annually, in arrears, one hundred twenty thousand dollars ($120,000), to counties as an annual subvention for costs incurred in the enforcement of this chapter. The department's costs of administering this chapter shall be paid before allocating funds to the counties under this section. This section shall become inoperative on July 1, 2009, and as of January 1, 2010, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, which becomes effective on or before January 1, 2010, deletes or extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed. SEC. 2. Section 52324 of the Food and Agricultural Code is amended to read: 52324. The subvention program under Section 52323 is an optional program available to counties. The subvention to counties under Section 52323 shall be annually apportioned as follows: (a) Counties with no registered seed labelers shall annually receive one hundred dollars ($100). (b) Counties with registered seed labeler operations shall receive subventions based upon units of enforcement activity generated by the registered seed labeler operations within the county and upon the performance of enforcement activities necessary to carry out this chapter. The units of activity shall be determined by the secretary, taking into consideration the number of lots and kinds of seed labeled by each registered seed labeler operation within the county. The rate per unit of activity shall be established by dividing the total statewide units of activity into the annual funds available to the counties under Section 52323 after deducting the amount required for subventions in subdivision (a). Apportionment to individual counties shall be based upon the county's total units of activity performed times the established rate. In no case shall a county receive less than one hundred dollars ($100). This section shall become inoperative on July 1, 2009, and as of January 1, 2010, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, which becomes effective on or before January 1, 2010, deletes or extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed. SEC. 3. Section 52325 of the Food and Agricultural Code is amended to read: 52325. (a) Commissioners of counties that choose to participate in the subvention program shall enter into a cooperative agreement with the secretary, whereby the commissioner agrees to maintain a statewide compliance level, determined by the secretary, on all seed within the county. The cooperative agreement shall be in effect for a five-year period. The units of activity and apportionment calculated under subdivision (b) of Section 52324 to each individual participating county shall be established annually in a memorandum of understanding between the commissioner and the director. (b) The secretary, upon recommendation of the board or upon the secretary's own initiative, may withhold a portion of the funds designated to a county pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 52324 if that county fails to meet the performance standards established by the secretary and set forth in the cooperative agreement with that county. (c) The secretary shall provide a written justification to the board for any action taken by the secretary that does not fully implement a recommendation made by the board pursuant to subdivision (b). (d) This section shall become inoperative on July 1, 2009, and as of January 1, 2010, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, which becomes effective on or before January 1, 2010, deletes or extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.