Florida Senate - 2010 SB 2182
By Senator Alexander
17-01925B-10 20102182__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to agriculture; amending s. 193.461,
3 F.S.; clarifying that land that is classified as
4 agricultural retains that classification when offered
5 for sale; providing for retroactivity; amending s.
6 573.112, F.S.; providing that the Citrus Research and
7 Development Foundation shall provide advice to the
8 Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services with
9 respect to citrus research marketing orders; amending
10 s. 573.118, F.S.; providing for the deposit of certain
11 agricultural assessments; revising the assessment rate
12 on citrus fruit; amending s. 581.031, F.S.; expanding
13 the type of research projects which may be conducted
14 by the department; providing an effective date.
15
16 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
17
18 Section 1. Paragraph (b) of subsection (3) of section
19 193.461, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
20 193.461 Agricultural lands; classification and assessment;
21 mandated eradication or quarantine program.—
22 (3)
23 (b) Subject to the restrictions specified set out in this
24 section, only lands that which are used primarily for bona fide
25 agricultural purposes shall be classified agricultural. The term
26 “bona fide agricultural purposes” means good faith commercial
27 agricultural use of the land.
28 1. In determining whether the use of the land for
29 agricultural purposes is bona fide, the following factors may be
30 taken into consideration:
31 a.1. The length of time the land has been so used.
32 b.2. Whether the use has been continuous.
33 c.3. The purchase price paid.
34 d.4. Size, as it relates to specific agricultural use, but
35 in no event shall a minimum acreage may not be required for
36 agricultural assessment.
37 e.5. Whether an indicated effort has been made to care
38 sufficiently and adequately for the land in accordance with
39 accepted commercial agricultural practices, including, without
40 limitation, fertilizing, liming, tilling, mowing, reforesting,
41 and other accepted agricultural practices.
42 f.6. Whether the such land is under lease and, if so, the
43 effective length, terms, and conditions of the lease.
44 g.7. Such other factors as may from time to time become
45 applicable.
46 2. Offering property for sale does not constitute a primary
47 use of land and may not be the basis for denying its
48 agricultural classification if the land continues to be used
49 primarily for bona fide agricultural purposes while it is being
50 offered for sale.
51 Section 2. The amendment to paragraph (b) of subsection (3)
52 of section 193.461, Florida Statutes, by this act is intended to
53 be remedial and clarifying in nature and applies retroactively
54 to all parcels for which a final court order has not yet been
55 entered as of the effective date of this act.
56 Section 3. Subsection (7) is added to section 573.112,
57 Florida Statutes, to read:
58 573.112 Advisory council.—
59 (7) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, the
60 Citrus Research and Development Foundation, Inc., a direct
61 support organization of the University of Florida established
62 pursuant to s. 1004.28, shall serve as the advisory council for
63 a citrus research marketing order, provide the department with
64 advice on administering the order, and, in accordance with the
65 order, conduct citrus research and perform other duties assigned
66 by the department. Notwithstanding s. 1004.28(3), the
67 foundation’s board of directors shall be composed of 13 members,
68 including 10 citrus growers, 2 representatives of the
69 university’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, and 1
70 member appointed by the Commissioner of Agriculture.
71 Section 4. Subsections (1) and (6) of section 573.118,
72 Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
73 573.118 Assessment; funds; audit; loans.—
74 (1) To provide funds to defray the necessary expenses
75 incurred by the department in the formulation, issuance,
76 administration, and enforcement of any marketing order, every
77 person engaged in the production, distributing, or handling of
78 agricultural commodities within this state, and directly
79 affected by any marketing order, shall pay to the department, at
80 such times and in such installments as the department may
81 prescribe, such person’s pro rata share of necessary expenses.
82 Each person’s share of expenses shall be that proportion which
83 the total volume of agricultural commodities produced,
84 distributed, or handled by the person during the current
85 marketing season, or part thereof covered by such marketing
86 order, is of the total volume of the commodities produced,
87 distributed, or handled by all such persons during the same
88 current marketing season or part thereof. The department, after
89 receiving the recommendations of the advisory council, shall fix
90 the rate of assessment on the volume of agricultural commodities
91 sold or some other equitable basis. For convenience of
92 collection, upon request of the department, handlers of the
93 commodities shall pay any producer assessments. Handlers paying
94 assessments for and on behalf of any producers may shall, at
95 their discretion, collect the producer assessments from any
96 moneys owed by the handlers to the producers. The collected
97 assessments shall be deposited into the appropriate General
98 Inspection trust fund and shall be used for the sole purpose of
99 implementing the marketing order for which the assessment was
100 collected. The department is not subject to the procedures found
101 in s. 287.057 in the expenditure of these funds. However, the
102 director of the Division of Marketing and Development shall file
103 with the internal auditor of the department a certification of
104 conditions and circumstances justifying each contract or
105 agreement entered into without competitive bidding.
106 (6) An Any assessment levied upon citrus fruit under this
107 section may not exceed the rate established in the marketing
108 order and shall be at a rate not to exceed 1 cent per standard
109 packed box of citrus fruit grown and placed into the primary
110 channel of trade in this state. All revenues from such
111 assessment collected by the department shall be deposited into
112 the Citrus Inspection Trust Fund.
113 Section 5. Subsection (32) of section 581.031, Florida
114 Statutes, is amended to read:
115 581.031 Department; powers and duties.—The department has
116 the following powers and duties:
117 (32) To The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
118 shall conduct or cause to be conducted those research projects
119 on citrus diseases, including, but not limited to, citrus canker
120 and citrus greening, which are recommended by the Florida Citrus
121 Production Research Advisory Council, within the limits of
122 appropriations made specifically for such purpose.
123 Section 6. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.