CHAPTER 587

An Act to provide, subject to a referendum, for the levy of a tax on
sweet potatoes; to provide for the expenditure of the proceeds of
such tax; to impose certain duties on the Board and Commissioner of
Agriculture and Immigration in connection therewith; and to pre-
scribe penalties.

[H 727]

Approved March 31, 1964

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

§ 1. Subject to § 9, the General Assembly finds and declares that
sweet potatoes are important to the prosperity of this State and are a
major source of income to a large segment of the State’s population. Addi-
tional research, education, publicity, advertising and other means of pro-
moting the sale and use of sweet potatoes are required to enhance the
economical production and orderly marketing of sweet potatoes and will
be beneficial to the State as a whole. This legislation is adopted in further-
ance of these purposes.

§ 2. Subject to § 9, the General Assembly hereby declares it to be
in the public interest that farmers producing sweet potatoes be permitted
to express in a separate advisory referendum whether taxes and assess-
ments should be levied upon sweet potatoes with revenues therefrom to
be used in encouraging an expanded program of research, education, pub-
licity, advertising and other means of promoting the use of sweet pota-
toes. The word “farmer” as used herein shall include all producers of
sweet potatoes in this State as defined in § 5. The word “county” shall
ghelude also cities and towns in which sweet potatoes are a source of

come.

§ 8. The State Board of Agriculture, hereinafter referred to as
“State Board’, upon a petition being filed with it by the Virginia Sweet
Potato Association, Inc., requesting an advisory referendum and upon
finding that sufficient interest exists among the producers of sweet pota-
toes in this State to justify a referendum, shall authorize the holding of a
referendum as hereinafter set forth. The Commissioner of Agriculture,
hereinafter referred to as “Commissioner”, or his designated agents, shall
thereupon be fully empowered and directed to hold and conduct a referen-
dum on the question of whether or not the farmers in this State who are
the producers of sweet potatoes are of the opinion that such additional
research, education, publicity, advertising and other means of promotion
are required. If approved in the referendum authorized by this act the tax
shall be one cent per bushel or similar container (or fifty pound crate or
carton). Upon filing the petition under the authority of this section, the
Virginia Sweet Potato Association, Inc., shall thereby agree to pay all
expenses or costs of the holding of such referendum, if the same is deter-
mined to be held, and the Association shall become indebted for and shall
pay all such expenses. The expenses mentioned herein shall not include
payment for services of any employee of the Department of Agriculture
or the Virginia Extension Service.

§ 4. The Commissioner with the assistance of the Virginia Agricul-
tural Extension Service and the Virginia Sweet Potato Association, Inc.,
hereinafter referred to as the “Association”, shall arrange for and man-
age any referendum conducted under this act. The Commissioner shall,
sixty days before the date upon which a referendum is to be held, fix,
determine and publicly announce by posting on the front door of the court
house in each county in which sweet potatoes are produced the date, hours,
and polling places or other ways for voting in such referendum, the
amount to be collected, the sources thereof, the means by which such
sums shall be collected and the general purposes for which the funds so
collected shall be applied.

§ 5. Each farmer who sold at least three hundred bushels of sweet
potatoes commercially during the year next preceding the date of the ref-
erendum held pursuant to this act shall be eligible to vote in such refer-
endum, provided that he shall so certify on forms which shall be prepared
by the State Board. Any person meeting such requirements shall be eligible
to vote in the referendum but no person shall be required to be a qualified
voter in other respects.

The State Board shall further adopt rules governing the ballots
to be used in the referendum, the conduct of the referendum, canvassing
the results thereof, and declaring the results of the referendum. Such
rules shall be adopted after consultation with the Association.

§ 7. The State Board after consultation with the Association shall
fix the date, areas, hours, voting places, rules and regulations with respect
to the holding of such referendum and may provide for voting by mail if
it deems it advisable, and the State Board shall mail copies of the same
to be published in each newspaper of general circulation in the counties
in which the referendum is to be held at least sixty days before the hold-
ing of any such referendum under this act. Such notice, so published shall
contain, in addition to the other information herein required the amount
of the taxes or assessments proposed to be levied and the purposes for
which the proceeds shall be expended.

§ 8. The Commissioner with the assistance of the Association and
the Virginia Agricultural Extension Service shall prepare and distribute in
advance of such referendum all necessary ballots, certificates and supplies
required for such referendum and shall under rules and regulations
adopted and promulgated by the State Board and with the assistance of
the Association and the Virginia Agricultural Extension Service arrange
for the use of the necessary polling places. He shall, within ten days after
such referendum canvass and publicly declare the results thereof and
certify the same to the Governor and the State Board.
§ 9. The Governor shall examine all matters relating to the holding
of the referendum and whether two-thirds or more of the farmers voting
in a referendum provided for under this act expressed themselves as
favoring additional research, education, publicity, advertising and other
means of promotion and the levying of the tax and assessment to support
the same. In addition, the Governor shall examine the general need for
such agricultural research and promotion of sweet potatoes and deter-
mine whether or not such additional research, education, publicity, adver-
tising and other means of promotion are needed. If he finds that the same
are needed, he shall so proclaim and shall establish within the Virginia
Department of Agriculture a Virginia Sweet Potato Commission as
defined in § 138.

§ 10. The Governor shall examine all matters relating to the holding
of the referendum and whether one-third or more of the farmers voting
in a referendum provided for under this act expressed themselves as oppos-
ing additional research, education, publicity, advertising and other means.
of promoting the use of sweet potatoes and the levying of taxes and assess-
ment to support the same. In addition the Governor shall examine the
general need for such research and promotion and determine whether or
not additional research, education, publicity, advertising and other means
of promotion are needed. If he finds that the same are not needed, he shall
so proclaim. ,

§ 11. If the Governor issues a proclamation under § 10 of this act,
the State Board may call, in the manner prescribed in this act, another
referendum in the next succeeding year for the purposes specified in § 2
hereof or in any year in which a petition is filed with the State Board
under § 3. If the Governor issues a proclamation under § 9 then no other
referendum shall be held on the product which was the subject of the
proclamation until after the expiration of five years from the effective
date of the imposition of the tax or assessment, but at the expiration of
the said five year period another referendum shall be had in the manner
herein provided in order to determine whether such taxes or assessments
shall continue to be levied for an additional five year period.

§ 12. The Question to be printed on the ballots used in a referendum
held under this act, unless otherwise specified herein, shall be as follows:

Do you favor additional research, education, publicity, advertising
and other promotion of sweet potatoes and the levy of tax or assessment
of (here insert the amount of the tax to be levied) in accordance with the
provisions of this act to support the same?

Yes (J
No 1

§ 13. The Virginia Sweet Potato Commission is hereby established
within the Virginia Department of Agriculture. The Commission shall be
composed of seven members appointed by the Governor from nominations
by the Association; the terms of the members shall run concurrently with
the term of the Governor making the appointment but vacancies occur-
ring before the expiration of such terms shall be filled by the Governor
for the unexpired term. The Commission shall elect a Chairman, Vice
Chairman and such other officers as may be required. The Commission
shall have charge of the management and expenditure of the Virginia
Sweet Potato Fund established in the State treasury. The Commission may
establish an Executive Committee and charge it with such powers, duties
and functions as the Commission deems proper. The members of the Com-
mission shall receive a per diem of ten dollars, for each day spent in
attendance at meetings of the Commission and shall be reimbursed for
actual expenses incurred in such attendance.
The Commission shall have power to expend funds to provide for
p of research, education, publicity, advertising and other promo-
tion of sweet potatoes, to manage the funds so as to accumulate a reserve
for contingencies, to establish an office and employ such technical, pro-
fessional and other assistants as may be required, to contract for research,
publicity, advertising and other promotional services; and to take all such
measures as will assist in strengthening and promoting the best interests
of farmers producing sweet potatoes.

The Chairman of the Commission shall make a report at each annual
meeting of the Commission and furnish the members of the Commission
with a statement of the total receipts and disbursements for the year. He
shall file a copy of such report with the Commissioner and shall make
copies of such report available for publication.

§ 14. For the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this act,
the packer, shipper, processor or handler, hereinafter referred to as “the
handler’, of sweet potatoes who purchases from the farmer shall deduct
from payments made to the farmer for sweet potatoes the amount of the
tax levied thereon and shall remit such tax or assessment to the Commis-
sion in the manner and at the time hereinafter provided. The term
“handler” also includes grower-shipper who packs, processes, or performs
the function of handler for a portion or all of his product. The report to
the Commission shall be on forms prescribed and furnished by the Commis-
sion and shall be a statement of the gross volume of sweet potatoes which
has been packed, shipped, processed or handled by the handler and shall be
filed with the Commissioner by the 10th day of each month, covering
sweet potatoes processed, shipped or handled during the preceding month.
The tax or assessment levied on sweet potatoes shall be due and payable by
the handler on the same day as the report is due. Such tax or assessment
shall be paid to the Virginia Sweet Potato Commission and shall be prompt-
ly paid into the State treasury to the credit of the Virginia Sweet Potato
Fund.

§ 15. The handler shall keep a complete record of the sweet potatoes
which have been packed, shipped, processed or handled by him and shall
preserve such records for a period of not less than two years from the time
such sweet potatoes were packed, shipped, processed or handled. Such
records shall be open to the inspection of the Commission and its duly au-
thorized agents and shall be established and maintained as required by the
Commission.

§ 16. The tax or assessment imposed under the provisions of this
act and unpaid on the date on which such tax was due and payable shall
bear interest at the rate of one per centum per month from and after
such due date until paid. If any person defaults in any payment of the tax
or interest thereon, the amount shall be collected by a civil action in the
name of the Commonwealth at the relation of the Commission and the per-
son adjudged in default shall pay the costs of such action. The Attorney
General at the request of the Commission shall institute such action in the
proper court for the collection of the amount of any tax past due under this
act including interest thereon.

§ 17. All moneys levied and collected under the provisions of this
act shall be credited on the Comptroller’s books to a fund to be known as
the “Virginia Sweet Potato Fund.” All moneys credited to the Virginia
Sweet Potato Fund and are hereby appropriated for the purposes set forth
in this act. In carrying out the purposes of this act, the Commission shall
have the authority to cooperate with other State, regional, and national
agricultural organizations in research, education, publicity, advertising
and other promotional activities. The unexpended balance of the Virginia
Sweet Potato Fund at the end of each biennium shall not be transferred
to the general fund of the State treasury.

§ 18. All moneys collected under this act shall be expended by the
Virginia Sweet Potato Commission by warrants of the Comptroller on the
State treasury issued on vouchers signed by the duly authorized officer of
the Commission.

§ 19. It shall be a misdemeanor for any handler knowingly to report
falsely to the Commission the quantity of sweet potatoes handled by him
during any period or to falsify the records of the sweet potatoes processed
or handled by him, or to fail to keep a complete record of the sweet po-
tatoes processed or handled by him, or to preserve such record for a period
of not less than two years from the time such sweet potatoes are processed
or handled.

2. If any section, subsection, sentence, part or application of this act be
held unconstitutional by a court of last resort, such holding shall not
affect any other section, subsection, sentence, part or application which
can be given effect without the part so held invalid.