National Dairy Equity Act of 2007 - Amends the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to give producers in a state participating in the national dairy market loss payment program 60 days to decide whether to continue participating in such program or to participate in the program established under this Act.
Establishes the following five regional dairy marketing areas: (1) Northeast region - Northeast Dairy Marketing Area (Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont); (2) Southern region - Southern Dairy Marketing Area (Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia); (3) Midwest region - Midwest Dairy Marketing Area (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin); (4) Intermountain region - Intermountain Dairy Marketing Area (Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming) and (5) Pacific region - Pacific Dairy Marketing Area (Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington).
Administers each region by a Regional Dairy Board. Sets forth Board powers, including authority to establish: (1) over-order price (a price higher than the marketing order or non-marketing area price) for Class I milk; (2) equalization pools to equalize over-order prices to producers throughout a regulated area; and (3) processor administrative fees. Requires producer referendum to approve of a proposed over-order price establishment, amendment, or termination.
States that each covered processor that purchases Class I milk during a month that will be sold in the regulated area of a Region shall pay to the Secretary an amount equal to the product of the over-order premium and the quantity of purchased Class I milk.
Establishes in the Treasury the National Dairy Producers Fund. Directs the Secretary to make monthly payments from the Fund to the Boards which shall make payments to eligible producers of all milk classes.
Amends the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 to extend the national dairy market loss payment program.
[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2766 Introduced in House (IH)]
110th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2766
To establish regional dairy marketing areas to stabilize the price of
milk and support the income of dairy producers.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 18, 2007
Mr. Reynolds (for himself, Mr. McHugh, and Mrs. Gillibrand) introduced
the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish regional dairy marketing areas to stabilize the price of
milk and support the income of dairy producers.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``National Dairy Equity Act of 2007''.
SEC. 2. REGIONAL DAIRY MARKETING AREAS.
Subtitle E of title I of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act
of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 7981 et seq.) is amended--
(1) by inserting before section 1501 (7 U.S.C. 7981) the
following:
``CHAPTER 1--GENERAL PROVISIONS'';
and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``CHAPTER 2--REGIONAL DAIRY MARKETING AREAS
``SEC. 1511. DEFINITIONS.
``In this chapter:
``(1) Board.--The term `Board' means the Regional Dairy
Board established for a Region under section 1514.
``(2) Classes of milk.--The terms `Class I milk', `Class II
milk', `Class III milk', and `Class IV milk' mean milk
(including components of milk) classified as Class I, II, III,
or IV milk, respectively, under a Federal milk marketing order.
``(3) Covered processor.--The term `covered processor'
means a person or entity operating--
``(A) a milk plant located in the regulated area of
a Region; or
``(B) a milk plant that, while not located in the
regulated area of a Region, distributes Class I milk
products in a regulated area.
``(4) Eligible producer.--(A) The term `eligible producer'
means an individual or entity that the Secretary determines
directly or indirectly--
``(i) shares in the risk of producing milk; and
``(ii) makes contributions (including land, labor,
management, equipment, or capital) to the dairy farming
operation of the individual or entity that are at least
commensurate with the share of the individual or entity
of the proceeds of the operation.
``(B) The term does not include an individual or entity
that elects under section 1512(c) to continue to receive
national dairy market loss payments pursuant to a contract
entered into under section 1502.
``(5) Fund.--The term `Fund' means the National Dairy
Producers Fund established under section 1518.
``(6) Federal milk marketing order.--The term `Federal milk
marketing order' means a Federal milk marketing order issued
under section 8c of the Agricultural Adjustment Act (7 U.S.C.
608c), reenacted with amendments by the Agricultural Marketing
Agreement Act of 1937.
``(7) Over-order premium.--The term `over-order premium'
means the difference between--
``(A) the over-order price established by the Board
for the regulated area of a Region; and
``(B) the Class I milk price per hundredweight in
Boston under the applicable Federal milk marketing
order.
``(8) Over-order price.--The term `over-order price' means
the minimum price for Class I milk in the regulated area of a
Region, as established by the Board by regulation under section
1515.
``(9) Partially regulated plant.--(A) The term `partially
regulated plant' means--
``(i) a milk plant that, while not located in the
regulated area of a Region, distributes Class I milk
products in a regulated area; or
``(ii) a milk plant that, while located in the
regulated area of a Region, distributes Class I milk
products in the regulated area of a different Region.
``(B) The term does not include a milk plant described in
subparagraph (A) that distributes less than a minimum quantity
of Class I milk in the regulated area in which such
distribution occurs, or derives less than a minimum quantity of
receipts from such distribution. The Board for the regulated
area in which such distribution occurs shall establish the
minimum quantity of milk or receipts for purposes of this
exclusion.
``(10) Participating state.--The term `participating State'
means a State that is designated as a participating State in a
Region under section 1512.
``(11) Pool plant.--The term `pool plant' means a milk
plant located in the regulated area of a Region.
``(12) Region.--The term `Region' means a Regional Dairy
Marketing Area established under section 1513.
``(13) Regulated area.--The term `regulated area' means
that portion of a Region consisting of participating States.
``(14) Secretary.--The term `Secretary' means the Secretary
of Agriculture.
``SEC. 1512. PARTICIPATING STATES.
``(a) Designation of Participating States.--For the purpose of this
chapter, the following States are participating States:
``(1) Each State in the Northeast, Southern, and Midwest
Regions specified in section 1513.
``(2) Each State in a different Region specified in section
1513, if that State elects to become a participating State by
providing to the Secretary written notice through the Governor
of the State in accordance with State law.
``(b) Termination of Participation.--
``(1) Method of termination.--To terminate the designation
of a State as a participating State in a Region, the Governor
of the State (with the concurrence of the legislature of the
State) shall submit written notice to the Secretary and the
applicable Board of the termination.
``(2) Effective date of termination.--
``(A) Initial termination authority.--If a State
submits the written notice required by paragraph (1)
before the end of the 30-day period beginning on the
date of enactment of this chapter, the termination of
the designation of the State as a participating State
shall take effect 30 days after the date on which the
notice was submitted.
``(B) Subsequent termination authority.--If a State
submits the written notice required by paragraph (1)
after the end of the period specified in subparagraph
(A), the termination of the designation of the State as
a participating State shall take effect 1 year after
the date on which notice was submitted.
``(3) Resumption of participation.--A State that terminates
its designation as a participating State may restore, in the
manner provided by State law, the designation of the State as a
participating State. The Governor of the State shall provide
written notice to the Secretary and the applicable Board of the
decision to restore such designation, which shall take effect
on the first day of the first month beginning after the
Secretary receives the written notice.
``(c) Relation to National Dairy Market Loss Payments.--
``(1) Election of benefits.--In the case of each eligible
producer operating in a participating State that is also a
party to a contract entered into under section 1502 to receive
national dairy market loss payments, the Secretary shall give
the producer a 60-day period within which to elect to terminate
the contract and to instead receive payments under this
chapter. The 60-day period for eligible producers in a State
shall commence on the date on which the State is first
designated as a participating State under subsection (a).
``(2) Effective date of termination.--If an eligible
producer elects to terminate a contract under section 1502, as
authorized by paragraph (1), the termination shall take effect
on the date on which payments are first made to eligible
producers under section 1521 in the participating State in
which the producer operates.
``(3) Protection during initial state termination period.--
If a State exercises the initial termination authority provided
under subsection (b), any election made by an eligible producer
in that State under paragraph (1) to terminate a contract under
section 1502 shall not take effect.
``(4) Effect of election to continue contract.--An eligible
producer that does not elect to terminate a contract under
section 1502, as authorized by paragraph (1), shall cease to be
an eligible producer for the purpose of this chapter at the end
of the period specified in such paragraph. The contract of such
a producer shall terminate on September 30, 2008,
notwithstanding any amendment to section 1502 to extend the
duration of such contracts. After that date, the producer shall
be ineligible for national dairy market loss payments under
section 1502 and ineligible for payments under this chapter.
``(5) Effect of subsequent state termination or restoration
of participation.--An eligible producer operating in a State
that terminates its designation as a participating State under
subsection (b)(2)(B) shall be eligible to enter into a contract
under section 1502 to receive national dairy market loss
payments, but only if--
``(A) the producer is not ineligible to receive
such payments under paragraph (4); and
``(B) the producer agrees to terminate the contract
under section 1502 if the State in which the producer
operates restores its designation as a participating
State under subsection (b)(3).
``SEC. 1513. DAIRY MARKETING AREAS.
``There are established 5 Regional Dairy Marketing Areas to be
composed of the following States, so long as the States are designated
as participating States:
``(1) Northeast region.--A Northeast Dairy Marketing Area
composed of the States of Connecticut, Delaware, Maine,
Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York,
Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
``(2) Southern region.--A Southern Dairy Marketing Area
composed of the States of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia,
Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina,
Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, Tennessee, Virginia, and West
Virginia.
``(3) Midwest region.--A Midwest Dairy Marketing Area
composed of the States of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas,
Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South
Dakota, and Wisconsin.
``(4) Intermountain region.--An Intermountain Dairy
Marketing Area composed of the States of Arizona, Colorado,
Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming.
``(5) Pacific region.--A Pacific Dairy Marketing Area
composed of the States of Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon,
and Washington.
``SEC. 1514. REGIONAL DAIRY BOARDS.
``(a) In General.--Each Region shall be administered by a Regional
Dairy Board.
``(b) Composition.--
``(1) Number and appointment.--The Board for a Region shall
be composed of 3 members from each participating State in the
Region, appointed by the Secretary from nominations submitted
as provided in paragraph (2).
``(2) Nomination process.--The members of the Board from a
participating State shall be selected from at least 9
individuals nominated by the Governor of the State, except
that, if the commissioner of the department of agriculture of
the State is an elected position, the nominations for the State
shall be made by the commissioner. The nominations shall be
made in consultation with eligible producers and the dairy
industry in the participating State.
``(3) Representation.--Of the members of the Board
nominated and appointed to represent a participating State--
``(A) at least 1 member shall be an eligible
producer in the State at the time of nomination and
appointment; and
``(B) at least 1 member shall be a consumer
representative.
``(c) Terms.--
``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2),
each member of the Board shall serve for a term of 3 years.
``(2) Initial appointments.--Of the members first appointed
to the Board from a participating State, the Secretary shall
appoint--
``(A) 1 member to serve a term of 1 year;
``(B) 1 member to a term of 2 years; and
``(C) 1 member to a term of 3 years.
``(d) Voting.--The members of the Board representing a
participating State shall be entitled to cast only 1 vote on behalf of
the participating State in any vote taken by members of the Board.
``(e) Powers.--In carrying out this chapter in a Region, the Board
for the Region is authorized--
``(1) to investigate, or provide for investigations or
research projects designed to review, the laws of participating
States in the Region--
``(A) to measure the impact of the laws on--
``(i) the production and marketing of milk;
and
``(ii) the shipment of milk and milk
products in the Region; and
``(B) to review the administration and costs of the
laws;
``(2) to study and recommend to participating States of the
Region joint or cooperative programs for the administration of
dairy marketing laws and to prepare estimates of cost savings
and benefits of such programs;
``(3) to encourage harmonious relationships between the
various elements of the dairy industry in the Region for the
solution of material problems, including conducting symposia or
conferences designed to improve dairy-industry relations; or
resolve problems of the dairy industry;
``(4) to submit to participating States in the Region
periodic reports on activities and programs of the Board;
``(5) to review the processing and marketing system for
milk and milk products in the regulated area of the Region and
to recommend changes in the system used for the production and
distribution of milk to assist, improve, or promote more
efficient production and distribution of milk;
``(6) to investigate costs and charges in the regulated
area of the Region for producing, hauling, handling,
processing, distributing, selling, and conducting all other
services performed with respect to milk;
``(7) to examine--
``(A) economic forces affecting eligible producers
in the Region;
``(B) probable trends in production and consumption
of milk and milk products in the Region;
``(C) the level of dairy farm prices in relation to
costs in the Region;
``(D) the financial condition of eligible producers
in the Region; and
``(E) the need for an emergency order to relieve
critical conditions on dairy farms in the regulated
area;
``(8) to take such actions as may be necessary to manage
any overproduction of milk in the regulated area of the Region,
including the authority to develop and implement an incentive-
based supply management program in addition to other actions to
manage such overproduction; and
``(9) to issue such orders, promulgate such regulations,
and take such other actions as are necessary to carry out this
chapter in the regulated area of the Region.
``(f) Use of Other Agencies.--The Board for a Region shall, to the
maximum extent practicable, enter into agreements with Federal or State
agencies for the exchange of information or services for the purpose of
reducing regulatory burden and cost of administering this chapter. The
Board may reimburse other agencies for the reasonable cost of providing
the services.
``(g) Technical Assistance.--At the request of the Board, the
administrator of a Federal milk marketing order shall provide technical
assistance to the Board. The Board shall reimburse the administrator
for the reasonable cost of providing the technical assistance.
``SEC. 1515. ESTABLISHMENT OF OVER-ORDER PRICE FOR SALE OF CLASS I
MILK.
``(a) Authority To Establish Over-Order Price.--Subject to
subsection (b), the Board for a Region may establish, by regulation, an
over-order price for the sale of Class I milk in the regulated area of
a Region that--
``(1) is higher than the price for Class I milk established
under Federal milk marketing orders operating in the regulated
area; and
``(2) is higher than the price for fluid milk otherwise
applicable in any portion of the regulated area not covered by
a Federal milk marketing order.
``(b) Maximum Authorized Over-Order Price.--During the beginning on
the date of the enactment of this chapter and ending on December 31,
2008, an over-order price established under subsection (a) may not
exceed $17.50 per hundredweight. For each subsequent calendar year, the
maximum over-order price applicable during the preceding year shall be
adjusted by the Secretary to reflect changes for the 12-month period
ending the preceding November 30 in the Consumer Price Index for All
Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the
Department of Labor.
``(c) Application of Over-Order Price and Premium.--
``(1) Uniform prices.--In the regulations establishing an
over-order price, the Board shall provide for--
``(A) the payment of uniform prices to all eligible
producers and associations of eligible producers
delivering milk to all covered processors for all milk
so delivered, irrespective of the uses made of the milk
by an individual covered processor; or
``(B) the payment of uniform prices to all eligible
producers and associations of eligible producers
delivering milk to the same covered processor for all
milk delivered by the eligible producers and
associations to that covered processor.
``(2) Payment by covered processors.--As provided in
section 1516, the over-order premium applicable to the
regulated area of a Region, determined on the basis of the
over-order price established under subsection (a) for the
regulated area, shall be paid by pool plants, partially
regulated plants, and all other covered processors receiving
milk from eligible producers located in a regulated area.
``(3) Legal obligation to pay price.--The legal obligation
to pay the over-order price shall be determined solely by the
terms and purpose of the regulation establishing the price,
without regard to the location of the transfer of title,
possession, or any other factors not related to the purposes of
the regulation and this chapter.
``(4) Producer-handlers.--A producer-handler (as defined in
the applicable Federal milk marketing order) that sells not
more 150,000 pounds of milk per month shall not be subject to
an over-order price under this subsection or the payment of the
resulting over-order premium.
``(d) Equalization Pools.--
``(1) Over-order prices.--In the case of regulations
establishing an over-order price, the Board may establish 1 or
more equalization pools within the regulated area for the sole
purpose of equalizing returns to eligible producers throughout
the regulated area.
``(2) Pooling and equalization of over-order prices.--For
purposes of the pooling and equalization of an over-order
price--
``(A) the value of milk used in other use
classifications shall be calculated at the appropriate
class price established pursuant to the applicable
Federal milk marketing order; and
``(B) the value of milk not covered by a Federal
milk marketing order shall be calculated in relation to
the nearest prevailing class price in accordance with
and subject to such adjustments as the Board may
prescribe by regulation.
``(e) Factors.--In determining the amount of an over-order price to
be established under this section, the Board shall consider--
``(1) the balance between production and consumption of
milk and milk products in the regulated area;
``(2) the costs of milk production in the regulated area,
including--
``(A) the price of feed, including the cost of hay,
silage, pasture, and other forage;
``(B) the cost of labor, including the reasonable
value of the eligible producer's own labor and
management;
``(C) machinery expenses;
``(D) interest expenses; and
``(E) other cash expenses, including the cost of
hauling, veterinary services and medicine, bedding and
litter, marketing, custom services and supplies, fuel,
lubrication, electricity, machinery and building
repairs, labor, association fees, and assessments;
``(3) the prevailing price for milk outside the regulated
area;
``(4) the purchasing power of the public; and
``(5) the price necessary to yield a reasonable return to
the eligible producer.
``(f) Producer Settlement Funds.--The regulations shall require
that the account of any person regulated under the over-order price
shall be adjusted for any payments made to or received by the person
with respect to a producer settlement fund of any Federal milk
marketing order within the regulated area.
``SEC. 1516. PAYMENTS FROM COVERED PROCESSORS.
``(a) Payments Required.--Subject to subsection (b), each covered
processor that purchases Class I milk during a month that will be sold
in the regulated area of a Region shall pay to the Secretary an amount
equal to the product obtained by multiplying--
``(1) the over-order premium in effect for the regulated
area for the month; by
``(2) the quantity of Class I milk so purchased from
eligible producers during the month.
``(b) Reduction for Any Applicable Equalization Payments.--The
product obtained under subsection (a) for a covered processor for a
month shall be reduced by any applicable equalization payments made for
the same month by the covered processor pursuant to regulations issued
under section 1517(a).
``(c) Deposit of Payments in Fund.--The Secretary shall deposit
amounts received under this section in the Fund.
``SEC. 1517. OPTIONAL PROVISIONS FOR PRICING ORDERS.
``(a) Equalization Payments.--
``(1) In general.--In issuing regulations establishing an
over-order price, the Board for a Region may include a
provision to require persons that bring Class I milk into the
regulated area of the Region to make equalization payments with
respect to all such milk to the extent necessary to equalize
the cost of milk purchased by covered processors subject to the
over-order price.
``(2) Discrimination.--The regulations shall not
discriminate against milk producers outside the regulated area.
``(3) Amount.--The regulations for equalization payments
may require payment of the difference between--
``(A) the applicable over-order price; and
``(B) the Class I price required to be paid for the
milk in the State of production by a Federal milk
marketing order.
``(b) Partially Regulated Plants.--The regulations issued by the
Board for a Region may provide special provisions governing the pricing
and pooling of milk handled by partially regulated plants.
``(c) Other Provisions.--The regulations issued by the Board for a
Region may contain such other provisions and requirements as the Board
determines are necessary or appropriate--
``(1) to effectuate the purposes of this chapter; and
``(2) to provide for the payment of fair and equitable
minimum prices for milk sold by eligible producers.
``SEC. 1518. NATIONAL DAIRY PRODUCERS FUND.
``(a) Establishment.--There is established in the Treasury of the
United States a revolving fund to be known as the `National Dairy
Producers Fund'. The fund shall consist of the following:
``(1) Payments by covered processors required to be
deposited in the Fund under section 1516(c).
``(2) The interest on, and the proceeds from the sale or
redemption of, any obligations held in the Fund under
subsection (d).
``(3) To the extent that amounts referred to in the
preceding paragraphs are insufficient to carry out this
chapter, funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation, which shall
be transferred by the Secretary to the Fund to make up the
short-fall.
``(b) Expenditures From Fund.--On request by the Secretary, the
Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer from the Fund to the Secretary
such amounts as the Secretary determines are necessary to carry out
this chapter.
``(c) Investment of Amounts.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary of the Treasury shall
invest such portion of the Fund as is not, in the judgment of
the Secretary, required to meet current operating requirements.
``(2) Investments.--Investments may be made only in
interest-bearing obligations of the United States.
``(3) Acquisition of obligations.--For the purpose of
investments under paragraph (1), obligations may be acquired--
``(A) on original issue at the issue price; or
``(B) by purchase of outstanding obligations at the
market price.
``(4) Sale of obligations.--Any obligation acquired by the
Fund may be sold by the Secretary of the Treasury at the market
price.
``SEC. 1519. COMPENSATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE AND INCREASED FOOD
ASSISTANCE COSTS.
``(a) Administrative Costs.--
``(1) Board assessment for administrative costs.--The Board
for a Region may impose and collect an assessment on covered
processors operating in the regulated area of the Region to
cover administrative costs incurred by the Board to carry out
its duties under this chapter. The assessment amount may not
exceed $0.03 per hundredweight.
``(2) Use of fund.--The Secretary shall use amounts in the
Fund to cover--
``(A) administrative costs incurred by the
Secretary to carry out this chapter; and
``(B) any administrative costs incurred by the
Boards not covered by the assessments imposed under
paragraph (1).
``(b) Increased Federal Food Assistance Costs.--The Secretary shall
use amounts in the Fund to cover the increased cost of any milk and
milk products that results from carrying out this chapter--
``(1) child nutrition programs (as defined in section 25(b)
of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C.
1769f(b)); and
``(2) nutrition services provided through projects carried
out under part C of title IV of the Older Americans Act of 1965
(42 U.S.C. 3030e et seq.).
``(c) Increased State Food Assistance Costs.--The Secretary shall
use amounts in the Fund to make payments to each participating State
for the increased costs incurred by the participating State of any milk
or milk products provided under the special supplemental nutrition
program for women, infants, and children established by section 17 of
the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 (42 U.S.C. 1786) that results from
carrying out this chapter.
``(d) Compensation of Commodity Credit Corporation for Increased
Milk Purchases.--At the end of each month for which an over-order price
is in effect for a Region, the Board of the Region shall compensate the
Commodity Credit Corporation for the cost of any purchases of milk and
milk products by the Corporation in the regulated area of the Region
for that month resulting from a rate of increase in milk production for
the month in the regulated area in excess of the national average rate
of the increase in milk production over the 3-year period ending at the
end of the preceding month, as determined by the Secretary.
``SEC. 1520. USE OF FUND TO ASSIST ELIGIBLE PRODUCERS.
``(a) Provision of Funds to Boards.--The Secretary shall use
amounts in the Fund to make monthly payments to the Boards.
``(b) Amount.--The amount of a payment made to a Board for a Region
for the most recent month for which data are available shall be the
greater of--
``(1) the amount of payments made by covered processors to
the Fund under section 1516 for purchases of Class I milk that
will be sold in the regulated area of the Region during the
month; or
``(2) the amount obtained by multiplying--
``(A) a payment quantity equal to the total
quantity of all milk produced in the regulated area of
the Region during the month;
``(B) a payment rate equal to the over-order
premium in effect for the regulated area for the month;
and
``(C) 50 percent.
``(c) Payments to Producers.--The Board for a Region shall use
amounts received under this section to make payments to eligible
producers for all classes of milk that is produced in the regulated
area of the Region.
``SEC. 1521. PRODUCER REFERENDUM.
``(a) Referendum Required.--For the purpose of ascertaining whether
the issuance, amendment, or termination of regulations establishing an
over-order price is approved by eligible producers in the regulated
area of a Region, the Board for the Region shall conduct a referendum
among such eligible producers.
``(b) Timing.--The referendum shall be held in a timely manner, as
determined by regulation of the Board.
``(c) Ballot Content.--
``(1) In general.--The terms and conditions of the proposed
order or amendment shall be described by the Board in the
ballot used in the referendum.
``(2) Actions.--The nature, content, or extent of the
description shall not be used a basis for attacking the
legality of the order or any action relating to the order.
``(d) Approval.--An order or amendment shall be considered approved
by eligible producers if the Board determines that the order or
amendment is approved by a majority of the voting eligible producers
who, during a representative period determined by the Board, have been
engaged in the production of milk the price of which would be regulated
under the proposed order or amendment.
``(e) Cooperatives.--
``(1) In general.--Subject to paragraphs (2) through (6),
for the purpose of a referendum, the Board shall consider the
approval or disapproval by any cooperative association of
eligible producers qualified under the Act entitled `An Act to
authorize association of producers of agricultural products'
(commonly known as the `Capper-Volstead Act') (7 U.S.C. 291 et
seq.) and engaged in marketing milk, or in rendering services
for or advancing the interests of eligible producers, as the
approval or disapproval of the eligible producers who are
members or stockholders in, or under contract with, the
cooperative association of eligible producers.
``(2) Common marketing agency.--No cooperative that has
been formed to act as a common marketing agency for both the
cooperative and individual eligible producers shall be
qualified to block vote for the cooperative or individual
eligible producers.
``(3) Notification by cooperative.--
``(A) In general.--Any cooperative that is
qualified to block vote shall, before submitting the
approval or disapproval of the cooperative in any
referendum, give prior written notice to each of the
members of the cooperative as to whether and how the
cooperative intends to cast the vote of the
cooperative.
``(B) Administration.--The notice shall be given in
a timely manner as established, and in the form
prescribed, by the Board.
``(4) Producer ballots.--
``(A) In general.--Any eligible producer may obtain
a ballot from the Board in order to register approval
or disapproval of the proposed order.
``(B) Ballots.--If a cooperative provides notice to
an eligible producer of the intent of the cooperative
to approve or not approve a proposed order and the
eligible producer casts a ballot that is contrary to
the intent of the cooperative--
``(i) the eligible producer shall notify
the Board as to the name of the cooperative of
which the eligible producer is a member; and
``(ii) the Board shall--
``(I) remove the name of the
eligible producer from the list
certified by the cooperative of
corporate vote of the cooperative; and
``(II) provide the eligible
producer with an independent ballot
that may be cast in the referendum.
``(5) Notification by board.--In order to ensure that all
eligible producers are informed regarding the proposed order,
the Board shall notify all eligible producers that--
``(A) an order is being considered; and
``(B) each eligible producer may register the
approval or disapproval of the eligible producer with
the Board directly or through the cooperative of the
eligible producer.
``SEC. 1522. ENFORCEMENT WITH RESPECT TO COVERED PROCESSORS.
``In the case of covered processors, the Board may enforce this
chapter (including regulations establishing an over-order price and
other regulations issued under this chapter) by--
``(1) commencing an action for legal or equitable relief
brought in the name of the Board in Federal or State court of
competent jurisdiction;
``(2) referral to the State agency for enforcement by
judicial or administrative remedy with the agreement of the
appropriate State agency of a participating State; or
``(3) bringing an action for an injunction to enforce this
chapter, without being compelled to allege or prove that an
adequate remedy of law does not exist.''.
SEC. 3. NATIONAL DAIRY MARKET LOSS PAYMENTS.
Section 1502 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002
(7 U.S.C. 7982) is amended by striking ``2007'' each place it appears
in subsections (c)(3)(B), (f), and (g)(1) and inserting ``2012''.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Agriculture.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry.
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