Sunset Commodity Handler And Farm Products Acts

The act implements recommendations of the department of regulatory agencies' sunset review and report on the licensing functions of the commissioner of agriculture (commissioner) regarding the "Commodity Handler Act" and the "Farm Products Act", with modifications, by:

• Continuing the commissioner's licensing functions for 5 years, until 2025;
• Combining the "Commodity Handler Act" and the "Farm Products Act";
• Exempting from licensure small-volume commodity handlers who buy less than $250,000 worth of commodities and farm products per year and do not buy commodities for commercial feeding of livestock;
• Requiring the commissioner to adopt rules by December 31, 2020, regarding financial assurance requirements, including a schedule for filing a bond with the commissioner, record keeping requirements, initial and renewal license requirements, credit sale contract requirements, standard warehouse operation requirements, and animal feeding operations capacity and requiring the department of agriculture to convene a stakeholders' group to work on drafting the rules;
• With regard to an action to demand payment on a surety bond or letter of credit based on the misconduct of a commodity handler or dealer, extending the date for filing the action, and thus the period of liability for which the surety or issuer of the letter of credit is required to pay a claim, from up to 180 days after the later of the date of the transaction or the date of the loss to up to 548 days (approximately 18 months) after the later of the date of the transaction or the date of the loss;
• Requiring the department of agriculture, on or before November 1, 2021, to submit a report to the committees of the general assembly with jurisdiction over agricultural issues summarizing the department's progress toward implementing the act;
• Increasing the bond amount that farm products dealers must file from between $2,000 and $200,000 to between $200,000 and $1 million; and
• For the definition of "small-volume dealer", repealing the limitation on the amount of farm products or commodities, based on price, that a dealer can purchase in a single transaction to qualify as a small-volume dealer.
  (Note: This summary applies to this bill as enacted.)