Senate BillNo. 1399


Introduced by Senator Galgiani

February 21, 2014


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

SB 1399, 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 upon recommendation of the Seed Advisory Board, 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, as specified. Existing law makes those provisions inoperative on July 1, 2016, except as specified, and repeals those provisions on January 1, 2017.

This bill would extend the operative date specified above to July 1, 2019, and would extend the repeal date to 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.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: yes. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

P2    1

SECTION 1.  

Section 52323 of the Food and Agricultural Code
2 is amended to read:

3

52323.  

(a) The department’s cost of carrying out this chapter
4shall be funded from money that is received by the secretary
5pursuant to this chapter. The secretary shall also pay annually, in
6arrears, one hundred twenty thousand dollars ($120,000), to
7counties as an annual subvention for costs incurred in the
8enforcement of this chapter. The department’s costs of
9administering this chapter shall be paid before allocating funds to
10the counties under this section.

11(b) This section shall become inoperative on July 1,begin delete 2016,end deletebegin insert 2019,end insert
12 and, as of January 1,begin delete 2017,end deletebegin insert 2020,end insert is repealed, unless a later enacted
13statute, that becomes operative on or before January 1,begin delete 2017,end deletebegin insert 2020,end insert
14 deletes or extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and
15is repealed.

16

SEC. 2.  

Section 52324 of the Food and Agricultural Code is
17amended to read:

18

52324.  

(a) The subvention program under Section 52323 is
19an optional program available to counties. The subvention to
20counties under Section 52323 shall be annually apportioned as
21follows:

22(1) At the discretion of the secretary and upon recommendation
23of the Seed Advisory Board, counties with no registered seed
24labelers may annually receive one hundred dollars ($100).

25(2) Counties with registered seed labeler operations shall receive
26subventions based upon units of enforcement activity generated
27by the registered seed labeler operations within the county and
28upon the performance of enforcement activities necessary to carry
29out this chapter. The units of activity shall be determined by the
30secretary, taking into consideration the number of lots and kinds
31of seed labeled by each registered seed labeler operation within
32the county. The rate per unit of activity shall be established by
33dividing the total statewide units of activity into the annual funds
34available to the counties under Section 52323 after deducting the
35amount required for subventions in paragraph (1). Apportionment
P3    1to individual counties shall be based upon the county’s total units
2of activity performed multiplied by the established rate.

3(b) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1,begin delete 2017,end delete
4begin insert 2020,end insert and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute,
5that is enacted before January 1,begin delete 2017,end deletebegin insert 2020,end insert deletes or extends
6that date.

7

SEC. 3.  

Section 52325 of the Food and Agricultural Code is
8amended to read:

9

52325.  

(a) Commissioners of counties that choose to participate
10in the subvention program shall enter into a cooperative agreement
11with the secretary, whereby the commissioner agrees to maintain
12a statewide compliance level, determined by the secretary, on all
13seed within the county. The cooperative agreement shall be in
14effect for a five-year period. The units of activity and
15apportionment calculated under paragraph (2) of subdivision (a)
16of Section 52324 to each individual participating county shall be
17established annually in a memorandum of understanding between
18the commissioner and the secretary.

19(b) The secretary, upon recommendation of the board or upon
20the secretary’s own initiative, may withhold a portion of the funds
21designated to a county pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision
22(a) of Section 52324 if that county fails to meet the performance
23standards established by the secretary and set forth in the
24cooperative agreement with that county.

25(c) The secretary shall provide a written justification to the board
26for any action taken by the secretary that does not fully implement
27a recommendation made by the board pursuant to subdivision (b).

28(d) This section shall become inoperative on July 1,begin delete 2016,end deletebegin insert 2019,end insert
29 and, as of January 1,begin delete 2017,end deletebegin insert 2020,end insert is repealed, unless a later enacted
30statute, that becomes operative on or before January 1,begin delete 2017,end deletebegin insert 2020,end insert
31 deletes or extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and
32is repealed.



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