1.1                          A bill for an act
  1.2             relating to agriculture; providing a mechanism for 
  1.3             farmers to reserve seed from an agricultural crop for 
  1.4             purposes of planting in subsequent crop years; 
  1.5             authorizing a fee; imposing a penalty; amending 
  1.6             Minnesota Statutes 2002, sections 21.81, by adding 
  1.7             subdivisions; 21.87; proposing coding for new law in 
  1.8             Minnesota Statutes, chapter 21. 
  1.9   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.10     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 21.81, is 
  1.11  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  1.12     Subd. 22a.  [RESERVE OR RESERVATION.] "Reserve" or 
  1.13  "reservation" means the process a farmer may use to establish 
  1.14  legal standing to collect, store, plant, and harvest 
  1.15  farmer-reserved seed. 
  1.16     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 21.81, is amended 
  1.17  by adding a subdivision to read: 
  1.18     Subd. 22b.  [FARMER-RESERVED SEED.] "Farmer-reserved seed" 
  1.19  means agricultural seed collected at harvest by a farmer who has 
  1.20  grown a genetically engineered agricultural crop for purposes of 
  1.21  replanting on land operated by the farmer in a subsequent crop 
  1.22  year. 
  1.23     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 21.81, is amended 
  1.24  by adding a subdivision to read: 
  1.25     Subd. 24a.  [STATE SEED RESERVATION OFFICE.] "State seed 
  1.26  reservation office" means the designated public or private 
  1.27  organization or entity established as the sole recognized 
  2.1   repository of information on farmer-reserved seed. 
  2.2      Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2002, section 21.87, is amended 
  2.3   to read: 
  2.4      21.87 [EXEMPTION.] 
  2.5      Sections 21.82 and 21.83 do not apply:  
  2.6      (a) to seed or grain not intended for sowing purposes; 
  2.7      (b) to seed in storage in or being transported or consigned 
  2.8   to a conditioning establishment for conditioning, provided that 
  2.9   the invoice or label accompanying any shipment of the seeds 
  2.10  bears the statement "seeds for conditioning," and provided that 
  2.11  any labeling or other representation which may be made with 
  2.12  respect to the unconditioned seed is subject to the provisions 
  2.13  of sections 21.82 and 21.83; ~~or~~ 
  2.14     (c) to any carrier with respect to seed transported or 
  2.15  delivered for transportation in the ordinary course of its 
  2.16  business as a carrier, provided that the carrier is not engaged 
  2.17  in producing, conditioning, or marketing seeds subject to 
  2.18  sections 21.82 and 21.83; or 
  2.19     (d) to farmer-reserved seed held and stored by a farmer 
  2.20  under section 21.875.  
  2.21     Sec. 5.  [21.875] [FARMER-RESERVED SEED.] 
  2.22     (a) This section establishes a procedure to allow a farmer 
  2.23  to retain seed from a genetically modified agricultural crop for 
  2.24  planting by the farmer in the farmer's own farming operation in 
  2.25  a subsequent crop year.  In order to protect the legitimate 
  2.26  economic interests of the developer and holder of patents or 
  2.27  other legal claims of interest in genetically modified 
  2.28  agricultural crops, the reservation, storage, planting, and 
  2.29  harvesting of farmer-reserved seed is subject to this section. 
  2.30     (b) By October 1, 2003, the commissioner shall designate a 
  2.31  public or private organization or entity as the state seed 
  2.32  reservation office.  The commissioner shall monitor activities 
  2.33  of the state seed reservation office and may, with or without 
  2.34  cause and at the sole discretion of the commissioner, on October 
  2.35  1 of each year, renew the current designation or designate a 
  2.36  different organization or entity. 
  3.1      (c) After consultation with the commissioner, the state 
  3.2   seed reservation office shall establish reasonable fees for the 
  3.3   services provided by the office.  The fees must be payable by 
  3.4   the farmer submitting an application for farmer-reserved seed 
  3.5   and must be adequate to cover the costs of reservation plus a 
  3.6   reasonable administrative fee.  Charges may be adjusted from 
  3.7   time to time with the written approval of the commissioner. 
  3.8      (d) A farmer may reserve seed from one crop year to a 
  3.9   subsequent crop year by submitting a completed reservation 
  3.10  application to the state reservation office along with the 
  3.11  required fee.  An application may be submitted at any time 
  3.12  between the date on which the seed is purchased from the dealer 
  3.13  or retailer and five business days after the crop is harvested. 
  3.14     (e) The application forms for farmer-reserved seed must be 
  3.15  prepared and made available at no cost by the state seed 
  3.16  reservation office.  The state seed reservation office may also 
  3.17  provide a printable version of the application form on an 
  3.18  Internet Web site.  Each retailer of agricultural seed must 
  3.19  provide application forms to a farmer upon request.  The form 
  3.20  must consist of a single page or sheet of paper with spaces for 
  3.21  the following information: 
  3.22     (1) the name and address of the farmer; 
  3.23     (2) the crop year in which the farmer-reserved seed will be 
  3.24  harvested; 
  3.25     (3) the date the application is submitted or mailed to the 
  3.26  state seed reservation office; 
  3.27     (4) the type of seed to be reserved; 
  3.28     (5) the variety and trade or brand name of the seed, as 
  3.29  appropriate; 
  3.30     (6) the name of the company producing, distributing, or 
  3.31  selling the seed, as appropriate; 
  3.32     (7) the name and address of the dealer or retailer from 
  3.33  whom the seed is purchased; 
  3.34     (8) the date on which the seed is planted or is to be 
  3.35  planted; 
  3.36     (9) the specific location of the farm field where the 
  4.1   farmer-reserved seed was or will be harvested; 
  4.2      (10) the quantity of seed the farmer intends to reserve and 
  4.3   the number of acres that will be planted in the subsequent 
  4.4   growing season with the farmer-reserved seed; and 
  4.5      (11) facilities available to the farmer where the 
  4.6   farmer-reserved seed will be stored. 
  4.7      (f) Within 15 business days after receipt of an application 
  4.8   for farmer-reserved seed, the state seed reservation office 
  4.9   shall provide written notice of the reservation to the seed 
  4.10  company, seed retailer, and farmer. 
  4.11     (g) A farmer may use farmer-reserved seed only for purposes 
  4.12  of planting subsequent crops in the farmer's own farming 
  4.13  operation.  Sale of any amount of the reserved seed to another 
  4.14  party for planting is a gross misdemeanor.  Reserved seed may be 
  4.15  sold in the commodity grain market not less than ten years after 
  4.16  submission of the original application for reservation.