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reports and providing for their publication simultaneously with the ginning reports of the Department of Commerce ". , approved May 3, 1924 [7 U. S. C., sec. 413], only five shall be issued hereafter, one as of August 1, one as of September 1, one as of October 1, one as of November 1, and one as of December 1, each of which shall state the condition and progress of the crop and the probable number of bales which will be ginned, these reports to be issued simultaneously with the cotton ginning reports of the Bureau of the Census relating to the same dates, the two reports to be issued from the same place at eleven antemeridian of the eighth day following that to which the respective reports relate. When such date of release falls on Sunday or a legal holiday the report shall be issued at eleven o'clock antemeridian of the next succeeding workday. (Mar. 4, 1909, 35 Stat. 1053; Mar. 3, 1927, sec. 5, 44 Stat. 1373; 7 U. S. C., sec. 475.)

567. Reporting committee.-No such report shall be approved and released by the Secretary of Agriculture until it shall have been passed upon by a cotton crop reporting committee or board consisting of five members or more to be designated by him, not less than three of which shall be supervisory field statisticians of the Department of Agriculture located in different sections of the cotton-growing States, experienced in estimating cotton production and who have first-hand knowledge of the condition of the cotton crop based on recent field observations, and a majority of which committee or board shall be familiar with the methods and practices of producing cotton. (May 3, 1924, sec. 1, 43 Stat. 115; 7 U. S. C., sec. 475.)

568. Acreage reports.-The Secretary of Agriculture shall cause to be issued a report on or before the 10th day of July of each year showing by States and in toto the number of acres of cotton in cultivation on July 1, to be followed on September 1 and December 1 with an estimate of the acreage of cotton abandoned since July 1. (Mar. 3, 1927, sec. 6, 44 Stat. 1374; 7 U. S. C., sec. 476.)

PRODUCE AGENCY ACT

569. Destruction or dumping of farm produce; false reports; failure to account; penalty; investigation; certificate.-That after June 30, 1927, any person, firm, association, or corporation receiving any fruits, vegetables, melons, dairy, or poultry products or any perishable farm products of any kind or character, hereinafter referred to as produce, in interstate commerce, or in the District of Columbia, for or on behalf of another, who without good and sufficient cause therefor, shall destroy, or abandon, discard as refuse or dump any produce directly or indirectly, or through collusion with any person, or who shall knowingly and with intent to defraud make any false report or statement to the person, firm, association, or corporation from whom any produce was received, concerning the handling, condition, quality, quantity, sale or disposition thereof, or who shall knowingly and with intent to defraud fail truly and correctly to account. therefor shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be punished by a fine of not less than $100 and not more than $3,000, or by imprisonment for a period of not exceeding one year, or both, at the discretion of the court. The Secretary of Agriculture

shall by regulation provide for the making of prompt investigations and the issuing of certificates as to the quality and condition of produce received in interstate commerce or in the District of Columbia, upon application of any person, firm, association, or corporation shipping, receiving, or financially interested in, such produce. Such regulations shall designate the classes of persons qualified and authorized to make such investigations and issue such certificates, except that any such investigation shall be made and any such certificate shall be issued by at least two disinterested persons in any case where such investigation is not made by an officer or employee of the Department of Agriculture or of any State or political subdivision thereof or of the District of Columbia. A certificate made in compliance with such regulations shall be prima facie evidence in all Federal courts of the truth of the statements therein contained as to the quality and condition of the produce; but if any such certificate is put in evidence by any party, in any civil or criminal proceeding, the opposite party shall be permitted to crossexamine any person signing such certificate, called as a witness at the instance of either party, as to his qualifications and authority and as to the truth of the statements contained in such certificate. (Mar. 3, 1927, sec. 1, 44 Stat. 1355; 7 U. S. C., secs. 491, 492.)

570. Enforcement of provisions; prosecution of cases.-The Secretary of Agriculture is hereby authorized and directed to enforce this Act. It is hereby made the duty of all United States attorneys to prosecute cases arising under this Act, subject to the supervision and control of the Department of Justice. (Mar. 3, 1927, sec. 2, 44 Stat. 1355; 7 U. S. C., sec. 493.)

571. Rules and regulations; cooperation with States, etc.; expenditures; appropriation; other statutes.-The Secretary of Agriculture may make such rules and regulations as he may deem advisable to carry out the provisions 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 may call upon any Federal department, board, or commission for assistance in carrying out the purposes of this Act; 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 expenditure for rent, outside the District of Columbia, printing, telegrams, telephones, books of reference, books of law, periodicals, newspapers, furniture, stationery, office equipment, travel, and other supplies and expenses as shall be deemed necessary to the administration of this Act in the District of Columbia and elsewhere, and there is hereby authorized to be appropriated, out of any moneys in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, the sum of $25,000 to be available for expenditure during the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1927, and the appropriation of such additional sums as may be necessary thereafter to carry out the purposes of this Act is hereby authorized. This Act shall not abrogate nor nullify any other statute, whether State or Federal, dealing with the same subjects as this Act, but it is intended that all such statutes shall remain in full force and effect, except insofar only as they are inconsistent herewith or repugnant hereto. (Mar. 3, 1927, sec. 3, 44 Stat. 1355; 7 U. S. C., secs. 494, 495, 496.)

572. Invalidity of any provision of act as affecting other provisions.-If any provision of this Act is declared unconstitutional or the applicability thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the validity of the remainder of the Act and the applicability of such provisions to other persons and circumstances shall not be affected thereby. (Mar. 3, 1927, sec. 4, 44 Stat. 1355; 7 U. S. C., sec. 497.)

PERISHABLE AGRICULTURAL COMMODITIES ACT

573. Definitions.-That when used in this Act

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

means commerce

(2) The term "Secretary" means the Secretary of Agriculture; (3) The term "interstate or foreign 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" means any of the following, whether or not frozen or packed in ice: Fresh fruits and fresh vegetables of every kind and character;

(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 carloads any perishable agricultural commodity in interstate or foreign commerce, except that (A) no producer shall be considered as a "dealer" in respect of 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" in respect of any such commodity in any calendar year until his purchases of such commodity in carloads in such year are in excess of twenty; and (C) no person buying any such commodity 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. 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 [7 U. S. C., sec. 499c], and in such case and while the license is in effect such person. shall be considered as a "dealer." As used in this paragraph, the term "in carloads" includes wholesale or jobbing quantities as defined for any such commodity by the Secretary;

(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 vendor or the purchaser, respectively;

(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. (June 10, 1930, sec. 1, 46 Stat. 531; Apr. 13, 1934, sec. 1, 48 Stat. 584; 7 U. S. C., sec. 499a.)

UNFAIR CONDUCT

574. What constitutes.-It shall be unlawful in or in connection with any transaction in interstate or foreign commerce

(1) For any commission merchant or broker to make any fraudulent charge in respect of any perishable agricultural commodity received in interstate or foreign commerce;

(2) For any dealer to reject or fail to deliver in accordance with the 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 or concerning the condition of the market for any perishable agricultural commodity which is received in interstate or foreign commerce by such commission merchant, or bought or sold, or contracted to be bought, 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 promptly in respect of any such transaction in any such commodity to the person with whom such transaction is had;

(5) For any commission merchant, dealer, or broker, for a fraudulent purpose, to represent by word, act, or deed that any perishable agricultural commodity received in interstate or foreign commerce was produced in a State or in a country other than the State or the country in which such commodity was actually produced;

(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 under authority of any Federal or State inspector 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. (June 10, 1930, sec. 2, 46 Stat. 532; Apr. 13, 1934, secs. 2, 3, 48 Stat. 585; 7 U. S. C., sec. 499b.)

LICENSES

575. (a) By whom required; penalty for failure to obtain.-After the expiration of six months after the approval of this Act no person shall at any time carry on the business of a commission merchant, dealer, or broker without a license valid and effective at such time. Any person who violates any provision of this subdivision shall be liable to a penalty of not more than $500 for each such offense and not more than $25 for each day it continues, which shall accrue to the United States and may be recovered in a civil suit brought by the United States.

(b) Application; to whom made; fee. Any person desiring any such license shall make application to the Secretary. The Secretary may by regulation prescribe the information to be contained in such application. Upon the filing of the application, and annually thereafter, the applicant shall pay a fee of $10. (June 10, 1930, sec. 3, 46 Stat. 533; 7 U. S. C., sec. 499c.)

576. (a) Issuance of license; authority exercised thereunder; termination.--Whenever an applicant has paid the prescribed fee the Secretary, except as provided in subdivision (b) of this section, shall issue to such applicant a license, which shall entitle the licensee to do business as a commission merchant and/or dealer and/or broker unless and until it is suspended or revoked by the Secretary in accordance with the provisions of this Act, but said license shall automatically terminate unless the annual fee is paid within thirty days after notice has been mailed that payment is due.

(b) Refusal of license; grounds; effect of giving bond.-The Secretary shall refuse to issue a license to an applicant if he finds (1) that the applicant has previously, at any time within two years, been responsible in whole or in part for any violation of the provisions of section 2 [7 U. S. C., sec. 499b] for which a license of the applicant, or the license of any partnership, association, or corporation in which the applicant held any office, or, in the case of a partnership, had any share or interest, was revoked, or (2) if he finds after notice and hearing that at any time within two years said applicant was responsible in whole or in part for any flagrant or repeated violations of the provisions of section 2 [7 U. S. C., sec. 499b], or (3) in case the applicant is a partnership, association, or corporation, that any individual holding any office or, in the case of a partnership, having any interest or share in the applicant, had previously, at any time within two years, been responsible in whole or in part for any violations of the provisions of section 2 [7 U. S. C., sec. 499b] for which the license of such individual, or of any partnership, association, or corporation in which such person held any office, or, in the case of a partnership, had any share or interest, was revoked, or if he finds after notice and hearing that at any time within two years. said applicant was responsible in whole or in part for any flagrant or repeated violations of the provisions of section 2 [7 U. S. C., sec. 499b], or (4) that the applicant, subject to his right of appeal under section 7 (b) [7 U. S. C., sec. 499g (b)], has failed, except in case of bankruptcy, to pay within the time limit provided therein any reparation order which has been issued, within two years, against him as an individual, or against a partnership of which he was a

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