BILL NUMBER: SB 348 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Senator Galgiani
FEBRUARY 20, 2013
An act to amend Sections 52322, 52323, 52324, and 52325 of the
Food and Agricultural Code, relating to agriculture, and making an
appropriation therefor.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 348, as introduced, Galgiani. Agricultural seed: county seed
enforcement subventions.
Existing law, the California Seed Law, provides for an optional
subvention program under which a county may enter into a cooperative
agreement with the Secretary of Food and Agriculture to receive an
annual apportionment of funds from the secretary for maintaining a
statewide compliance level on all seed within the county. Under those
provisions, a county with no registered seed labelers may annually
receive $100, at the discretion of the secretary, and a county with
registered seed labeler operations may annually receive a subvention
based on enforcement activity generated by the registered seed
labeler operations within the county and upon the performance of
enforcement activities necessary to carry out the provisions of the
California Seed Law. Existing law makes those provisions inoperative
on July 1, 2014, and repeals those provisions on January 1, 2015.
This bill would extend the operation of these provisions until
July 1, 2019, and would repeal the provisions on January 1, 2020.
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 its provisions.
By extending the operation of these subvention provisions, this
bill would make an appropriation.
The bill would make other technical changes.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: yes. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 52322 of the Food and Agricultural Code is
amended to read:
52322. The director secretary shall
prepare an annual statement of the operating expenditures and income
related to this chapter which that
shall be presented to the board for review as soon as possible
following the termination of any fiscal year. A copy of this
statement shall be made available to any interested person upon
request.
SEC. 2. Section 52323 of the Food and Agricultural Code is amended
to read:
52323. (a) 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, 2014, and as of
January 1, 2015, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, which
becomes effective on or before January 1, 2015, deletes or extends
the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.
(b) This section shall become inoperative on July 1, 2019, and, as
of January 1, 2020, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute,
that becomes operative on or before January 1, 2020, deletes or
extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.
SEC. 3. Section 52324 of the Food and Agricultural Code is amended
to read:
52324. (a) 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)
(1) At the discretion of the secretary and upon
recommendation of the Seed Advisory Board, counties with no
registered seed labelers may annually receive one hundred dollars
($100).
(b)
(2) 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)
paragraph (1) . Apportionment to individual counties
shall be based upon the county's total units of activity performed
times the established rate.
This
(b) This section shall remain in
effect only until January 1, 2015 2020
, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute,
that is enacted before January 1, 2015 2020
, deletes or extends that date.
SEC. 4. 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 paragraph (2) of subdivision (b)
(a) of Section 52324 to each individual participating
county shall be established annually in a memorandum of understanding
between the commissioner and the secretary.
(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)
paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) 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, 2014, and as
of January 1, 2015, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute,
which becomes effective on or before January 1, 2015, deletes or
extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.
(d) This section shall become inoperative on July 1, 2019, and, as
of January 1, 2020, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute,
that becomes operative on or before January 1, 2020, deletes or
extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.