PEANUT STATISTICS 1

(7 U.S.C. 951-957)

AN ACT To provide for the collection and publication of statistics of peanuts by the Department of Agriculture

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the Secretary of Agriculture is hereby authorized and directed to collect and publish statistics of raw peanuts, shelled, unshelled, and crushed, and peanut oil, in the United States, received, processed, shipped, and owned by or in the possession of warehousemen, brokers, cleaners, shellers, dealers, growers' cooperative associations, crushers, salters, manufacturers of peanut products, and owners other than the original producers of peanuts: Provided, That the Secretary may, in his discretion, omit for any period of time to collect such statistics from any or all salters of peanuts or manufacturers of peanut products who used, during the calendar year preceding that for which statistics are being collected, less than thirty thousand pounds of shelled and unshelled peanuts. Such statistics shall show the quality of peanuts in such details as to kinds-Virginias, Runners, Spanish, and imported varieties-as the Secretary shall deem necessary for the purposes of this Act. All reports shall be submitted monthly in each year, except as otherwise prescribed by the Secretary.2 (7 U.S.C. 951.)

SEC. 2.3 Repealed.

SEC. 3. It shall be the duty of each warehouseman, broker, cleaner, sheller, dealer, growers' cooperative association, crusher, salter, manufacturer of peanut products, and owner other than the original producer of peanuts to furnish reports, complete and correct to the best of his knowledge, on the quantity of peanuts and peanut oil received, processed, shipped, and owned by him or in his possession. Such reports, when and as requested by the Secretary, shall be furnished within the time prescribed and in accordance with forms provided by him for the purpose. Any person required by this Act, or the regulations promulgated thereunder, to furnish reports or information, and any officer, agent, or employee thereof, who shall refuse to give such reports or information or shall willfully give answers that are false and misleading, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined not less than $300 nor more than $1,000, or imprisoned not more than one year, or be subject to both such fine and imprisonment. (7 U.S.C. 953.)

1 Act of June 24, 1936, 49 Stat. 1898.

2 As amended by the Acts of May 12, 1938, 52 Stat. 348; and July 17, 1957, 71 Stat. 306. This section, which related to the collection and publication of statistics as to quantity of peanuts picked or threshed by any person owning or opeerating peanut picking or threshing machines, was repealed by the Act of July 17, 1957, 71 Stat. 306.

As amended by the Acts of May 12, 1938, 52 Stat. 349; and July 17, 1957, 71 Stat. 306.

SEC. 4. The Secretary is hereby authorized to establish and promulgate grades and standards for the classification of peanuts, whenever in his discretion he may see fit. (7 U.S.C. 954.)

SEC. 5. That the information furnished under the provisions of this Act shall be used only for the statistical purposes for which it is supplied. No publication shall be made by the Secretary whereby the data furnished by any person can be identified, nor shall the Secretary permit anyone other than the sworn employees of the Department of Agriculture to examine the individual reports. (7 U.S.C. 955.)

SEC. 6. The Secretary may make rules and regulations as may be necessary in the administration of this Act and may cooperate with any department or agency of the Government, any State, Territory, District, or possession, or department, agency, or political subdivision thereof, or any person; and shall have the power to appoint, remove, and fix the compensation of such officers and employees not in conflict with existing law, and make such expenditures for rent outside the District of Columbia, printing, binding, telegrams, telephones, law books, books of reference, publications, furniture, stationery, office equipment, travel, and other supplies and expenses, including reporting services, as shall be necessary to the administration of this Act in the District of Columbia and else where, and as may be appropriated for by Congress; and there is hereby authorized to be appropriated, out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, such sums as may be necessary for such purpose. (7 U.S.C. 956.)

SEC. 7. That when used in this Act

(1) The term "person" includes individuals, partnerships, corporations, and associations;

(2) The term "Secretary" means the Secretary of Agriculture. (7 U.S.C. 957.)

1

PERISHABLE AGRICULTURAL COMMODITIES ACT, 1930 1 AS AMENDED

(7 U.S.C. 499a-499s)

AN ACT To suppress unfair and fraudulent practices in the marketing of perishable agricultural commodities in interstate and foreign commerce

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That 2 when used in this Act(1) The term "person" includes individuals, partnerships, corporations, and associations;

(2) The term "Secretary" means the Secretary of Agriculture;

(3) The term "interstate or foreign commerce" means commerce between any State or Territory, or the District of Columbia and any place outside thereof; or between points within the same State or Territory, or the District of Columbia but through any place outside thereof; or within the District of Columbia;

(4) The term "perishable agricultural commodity❞—

(A) means any of the following, whether or not frozen or packed in ice: Fresh fruits and fresh vegetables of every kind and character; and

(B) includes cherries in brine as defined by the Secretary in accordance with trade usages;

(5) The term "commission merchant" means any person engaged in the business of receiving in interstate or foreign commerce any perishable agricultural commodity for sale, on commission, or for or on behalf of another;

(6) The term "dealer” means any person engaged in the business of buying or selling in wholesale or jobbing quantities, as defined by the Secretary, any perishable agricultural commodity in interstate or foreign commerce, except that (A) no producer shall be considered as a "dealer" in respect to sales of any such commodity of his own raising; (B) no person buying any such commodity solely for sale at retail shall be considered as a "dealer" until the invoice cost of his purchases of perishable agricultural commodities in any calendar year are in excess of $200,000; 3 and (C) no person buying any commodity other than potatoes for canning and/or processing within the State where grown shall be considered a "dealer" whether or not the canned or processed product is to be shipped in interstate or foreign commerce, unless such product is frozen or packed in ice, or consists of cherries in brine, within the meaning of paragraph

1 Approved June 10, 1930, 46 Stat. 531. See footnote 8, paragraph 2.

3

2 The following portion is as amended by Act of April 13, 1934, 48 Stat. 584; Act of August 20, 1937, 50 Stat. 725; Act of June 29, 1940, 54 Stat. 696; and Act of October 1, 1962, 76 Stat. 673.

3 Amended by P.L. 91-107, approved November 4, 1969, 83 Stat. 182. Pub. L. 95-562, approved

(4) of this section. Any person not considered as a "dealer" under clauses (A), (B), and (C) may elect to secure a license under the provisions of section 3, and in such case and while the license is in effect such person shall be considered as a "dealer";

(7) The term "broker" means any person engaged in the business of negotiating sales and purchases of any perishable agricultural commodity in interstate or foreign commerce for or on behalf of the vender or the purchaser, respectively, except that no person shall be deemed to be a "broker" if such person is an independent agent negotiating sales for an on behalf of the vender and if the only sales of such commodities negotiated by such person are sales of frozen fruits and vegetables having an invoice value not in excess of $200,000 in any calendar year;

(8) A transaction in respect of any perishable agricultural commodity shall be considered in interstate or foreign commerce if such commodity is part of that current of commerce usual in the trade in that commodity whereby such commodity and/or the products of such commodity are sent from one State with the expectation that they will end their transit, after purchase, in another, including, in addition to cases within the above general description, all cases where sale is either for shipment to another State, or for processing within the State and the shipment outside the State of the products resulting from such processing. Commodities normally in such current of commerce shall not be considered out of such commerce through resort being had to any means or device intended to remove transactions in respect thereto from the provisions of this Act.

(9) The term "responsibly connected" means affiliated or connected with a commission merchant, dealer, or broker as (A) partner in a partnership, or (B) officer, director, or holder of more than 10 per centum of the outstanding stock of a corporation or association;

(10) The terms "employ" and "employment" mean any affiliation of any person with the business operations of a licensee, with or without compensation, including ownership or self employment. (7 U.S.C. 499a.)

UNFAIR CONDUCT

SEC. 2.5 It shall be unlawful in or in connection with any transaction in interstate or foreign commerce—

(1) For any commission merchant, dealer, or broker to engage in or use any unfair, unreasonable, discriminatory, or deceptive practice in connection with the weighing, counting, or in any way determining the quantity of any perishable agricultural commodity received, bought, sold, shipped, or handled in interstate or foreign commerce;

(2) For any dealer to reject or fail to deliver in accordance with the

November 1, 1978, 92 Stat. 2381, increased from $100,000 to $200,000 the value of fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables that retailers may purchase before they become subject to PACA license requirements; and the addition of the words "other than potatoes" provides that potato processors shall be subject to licensing under PACA as "dealers", except that no person buying potatoes for processing solely within the State where grown would be deemed to be a dealer until January 1, 1982.

4 Ibid.

5 Section as amended by Act of April 13, 1934, 48 Stat. 585; Act of June 19, 1936, 49 Stat. 1533; Act of August 20, 1937, 50 Stat. 725, 726: Act of June 29, 1940, 54 Stat. 696; Act of April 6, 1942, 56 Stat. 200; Act of July 30, 1956, 70 Stat. 726; and the Act of August 10, 1974, 88 Stat. 423.

terms of the contract without reasonable cause any perishable agricultural commodity bought or sold or contracted to be bought, sold, or consigned in interstate or foreign commerce by such dealer;

(3) For any commission merchant to discard, dump, or destroy without reasonable cause any perishable agricultural commodity received by such commission merchant in interstate or foreign commerce.

(4) For any commission merchant, dealer, or broker to make, for a fraudulent purpose, any false or misleading statement in connection with any transaction involving any perishable agricultural commodity which is received in interstate or foreign commerce by such commission merchant, or bought or sold, or contracted to be brought, sold, or consigned, in such commerce by such dealer, or the purchase or sale of which in such commerce is negotiated by such broker; or to fail or refuse truly and correctly to account and make full payment promptly in respect of any transaction in any such commodity to the person with whom such transaction is had; or to fail, without reasonable cause, to perform any specification or duty, express or implied, arising out of any undertaking in connection with any such transaction;

(5) For any commission merchant, dealer, or broker to misrepresent by word, act, mark, stencil, label, statement, or deed, the character, kind, grade, quality, quantity, size, pack, weight, condition, degree of maturity, or State, country, or region of origin of any perishable agricultural commodity received, shipped, sold, or offered to be sold in interstate or foreign commerce: Provided, That any commission merchant, dealer, or broker who has violated this subsection may, with the consent of the Secretary, admit the violation and pay a monetary penalty not to exceed $2,000 in lieu of a formal proceeding for the suspension or revocation of license, any payment so made to be deposited into the Treasury of the United States as miscellaneous receipts;

(6) For any commission merchant, dealer, or broker, for a fraudulent purpose, to remove, alter, or tamper with any card, stencil, stamp, tag, or other notice placed upon any container or railroad car containing any perishable agricultural commodity, if such card, stencil, stamp, tag, or other notice contains a certificate or statement under authority of any Federal or State inspector or in compliance with any Federal or State law or regulation as to the grade or quality of the commodity contained in such container or railroad car or the State or country in which such commodity was produced;

(7) For any commission merchant, dealer, or broker, without the consent of an inspector, to make, cause, or permit to be made any change by way of substitution or otherwise in the contents of a load or lot of any perishable agricultural commodity after it has been officially inspected for grading and certification, but this shall not prohibit re-sorting and discarding inferior produce. (7 U.S.C. 499b.)

LICENSES

SEC. 3. (a) After the expiration of six months after the approval of this Act no person shall at any time carry on the business of a com

Section as amended by Act of August 20, 1937, 50 Stat. 726; Act of June 15. 1950, 64 Stat. 217; Act of July 30, 1956, 70 Stat. 726; and Act of October 1, 1962, 76 Stat. 673, 674.