HF 447

as introduced - 81st Legislature (1999 - 2000) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to agriculture; prohibiting discrimination in 
  1.3             prices in certain livestock transactions; imposing 
  1.4             civil penalties; proposing coding for new law in 
  1.5             Minnesota Statutes, chapter 31B. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  [31B.045] [PRICE DISCRIMINATION.] 
  1.8      Subdivision 1.  [PROHIBITION.] A packer purchasing or 
  1.9   soliciting livestock for slaughter in this state may not 
  1.10  discriminate in prices paid or offered to be paid to sellers of 
  1.11  that livestock.  This section does not apply to the sale and 
  1.12  purchase of livestock if the following requirements are met: 
  1.13     (1) the price differential is based on the quality of the 
  1.14  livestock, if the packer purchases or solicits the livestock 
  1.15  based upon a payment method specifying prices paid for criteria 
  1.16  relating to carcass merit, actual and quantifiable costs related 
  1.17  to transporting and acquiring the livestock by the packer, or an 
  1.18  agreement for the delivery of livestock at a specified date or 
  1.19  time; and 
  1.20     (2) after making a differential payment to a seller, the 
  1.21  packer publishes information relating to the differential 
  1.22  pricing, including the payment method for carcass merit, 
  1.23  transportation and acquisition pricing, and an offer to enter 
  1.24  into an agreement for the delivery of livestock at a specified 
  1.25  date or time according to the same terms and conditions offered 
  2.1   to other sellers.  
  2.2      Subd. 2.  [EQUAL TERMS.] A packer shall provide all sellers 
  2.3   with the same terms and conditions offered to a seller who 
  2.4   receives a differential price based on any of the criteria 
  2.5   described in subdivision 1. 
  2.6      Subd. 3.  [DAILY PRICE NOTICE.] At the beginning of each 
  2.7   day in which livestock are purchased, a packer shall post in a 
  2.8   conspicuous place at the point of delivery all prices to be paid 
  2.9   that day for livestock. 
  2.10     Subd. 4.  [VOIDABLE AGREEMENT; FRAUD.] Any agreement made 
  2.11  by a packer in violation of this section is voidable.  Violation 
  2.12  of this section is fraud. 
  2.13     Subd. 5.  [VIOLATIONS.] The attorney general shall enforce 
  2.14  this section.  The department of agriculture shall refer 
  2.15  violations of this section to the attorney general.  The 
  2.16  attorney general or any person injured by a violation of this 
  2.17  section may bring an action in district court to restrain a 
  2.18  packer from violating this section.  A seller who receives a 
  2.19  discriminatory price or who is offered only a discriminatory 
  2.20  price for livestock based upon a violation of this section by a 
  2.21  packer has a civil cause of action against the packer and, if 
  2.22  successful, must be awarded treble damages. 
  2.23     Subd. 6.  [REPORTS.] Any packer shall make available for 
  2.24  publication and to the department of agriculture a daily report 
  2.25  setting forth information regarding prices paid for livestock 
  2.26  under each contract in force in which the packer and a Minnesota 
  2.27  resident are parties for the purchase of the livestock by the 
  2.28  packer and which sets a date for delivery more than 20 days 
  2.29  after the making of the contract. 
  2.30     The reports must be completed on forms prepared by the 
  2.31  department for comparison with cash market prices for livestock 
  2.32  according to procedures required by the department in rules 
  2.33  adopted under chapter 14.  The report may not include 
  2.34  information regarding the identity of a seller.  
  2.35     A failure of a packer to report as required by this section 
  2.36  is punishable by a civil penalty not to exceed $1,000 for each 
  3.1   day that a timely or truthful report is not published.  The 
  3.2   department shall refer to the attorney general any packer or 
  3.3   packer's agent who the department believes is in violation of 
  3.4   the provisions of this section.  The attorney general may, upon 
  3.5   referral from the department, file an action in district court 
  3.6   to enforce this section.