Text: SF00073 Text: SF00075 Text: SF00000 - SF00099 Text: SF Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
PAG LIN 1 1 Section 1. NEW SECTION. 172C.1 DEFINITIONS. 1 2 1. "Livestock" means live cattle, swine, or sheep. 1 3 2. "Packer" means a person who is engaged in the business 1 4 of slaughtering livestock or receiving, purchasing, or 1 5 soliciting livestock for slaughtering, the meat products of 1 6 which are directly or indirectly to be offered for resale or 1 7 for public consumption. As used in this chapter, "packer" 1 8 includes an agent of the packer engaged in buying or 1 9 soliciting livestock for slaughter on behalf of a packer. 1 10 "Packer" does not include any of the following: 1 11 a. A cold storage plant regulated under chapter 171. 1 12 b. A frozen food locker plant regulated under chapter 172. 1 13 c. A livestock market as defined in section 455B.161. 1 14 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION. 172C.2 PRICE DISCRIMINATION – 1 15 PROHIBITION. 1 16 1. Except as provided in subsection 2, a packer purchasing 1 17 or soliciting livestock for slaughter in this state shall not 1 18 discriminate in prices paid or offered to be paid to sellers 1 19 of that livestock. 1 20 2. This section shall not apply to any of the following: 1 21 a. A person exempted from the license and financial 1 22 responsibility provisions of chapter 172A pursuant to section 1 23 172A.6. 1 24 b. The sale and purchase of livestock if all of the 1 25 following requirements are met: 1 26 (1) The price differential is based on one of the 1 27 following: 1 28 (a) The quality of the livestock, if the packer purchases 1 29 or solicits the livestock based upon a payment method 1 30 specifying prices paid for criteria relating to carcass merit. 1 31 (b) Actual and quantifiable costs related to transporting 1 32 and acquiring the livestock by the packer. 1 33 (c) An agreement for the delivery of livestock at a 1 34 specified date or time. 1 35 (2) After making a differential payment to a seller, the 2 1 packer publishes information relating to the differential 2 2 pricing, including the payment method for carcass merit, 2 3 transportation and acquisition pricing, and an offer to enter 2 4 into an agreement for the delivery of livestock at a specified 2 5 date or time according to the same terms and conditions 2 6 offered to other sellers. 2 7 3. A packer shall provide all sellers with the same terms 2 8 and conditions offered to a seller who receives a differential 2 9 price based on any of the criteria described in subsection 2, 2 10 paragraph "c", subparagraph (1). 2 11 4. The packer shall, at the beginning of each day in which 2 12 livestock are purchased, post in a conspicuous place at the 2 13 point of delivery, all prices for livestock to be paid that 2 14 day. 2 15 5. An agreement made by a packer in violation of this 2 16 section is voidable. 2 17 6. A packer acting in violation of this section is guilty 2 18 of a fraudulent practice as provided in chapter 714. 2 19 7. The attorney general shall enforce this section. The 2 20 department shall refer any violations of this chapter to the 2 21 attorney general. The attorney general or any person injured 2 22 by a violation of this section may bring an action in district 2 23 court to restrain a packer from violating this section. A 2 24 seller who receives a discriminatory price or who is offered 2 25 only a discriminatory price for livestock based upon a 2 26 violation of this section by a packer, has a civil cause of 2 27 action against the packer and, if successful, shall be awarded 2 28 treble damages. 2 29 Sec. 3. NEW SECTION. 172C.3 REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. 2 30 1. A packer shall make available for publication and to a 2 31 board of trade approved by the secretary of state, a daily 2 32 report setting forth information regarding prices paid for 2 33 livestock, under each contract in force, in which the packer 2 34 and an Iowa resident are parties for the purchase of the 2 35 livestock by the packer, and which sets a date for delivery 3 1 more than twenty days after the making of the contract. 3 2 2. The reports shall be completed on forms prepared by the 3 3 secretary of state for comparison with cash market prices for 3 4 livestock according to procedures required by the secretary of 3 5 state. However, a report shall not include information 3 6 regarding the identity of a seller. 3 7 3. The failure of a packer to report as required by this 3 8 section is punishable by a civil penalty not to exceed one 3 9 thousand dollars for each day that a timely or truthful report 3 10 is not published. The secretary of state shall refer to the 3 11 attorney general any packer or packer's agent who the 3 12 secretary of state believes is in violation of this section. 3 13 The attorney general may, upon referral from the secretary of 3 14 state, file an action in district court to enforce this 3 15 section. 3 16 EXPLANATION 3 17 This bill creates a new chapter 172C which regulates meat 3 18 packers. A "packer" is a person who is engaged in the 3 19 business of slaughtering livestock or receiving, purchasing, 3 20 or soliciting livestock for slaughter. The definition 3 21 includes a packer's agent, but does not include a cold storage 3 22 plant, a frozen food locker plant, or a livestock market. 3 23 This bill prohibits price discrimination in the purchase of 3 24 livestock by a packer. This prohibition does not apply in 3 25 several cases, including to a person exempted from the license 3 26 and financial responsibility provisions of chapter 172A 3 27 regulating livestock brokers and dealers. The prohibition 3 28 also does not apply if first, the price differential is based 3 29 on the quality of the livestock, transportation costs, or the 3 30 delivery of livestock at a specified date or time, and second, 3 31 information relating to the price differential is published. 3 32 The packer must offer to enter into an agreement with other 3 33 sellers for the delivery of livestock according to the same 3 34 terms and conditions as provided in the published notice. In 3 35 addition, the packer must, at the beginning of each day in 4 1 which livestock are purchased, post in a conspicuous place at 4 2 the point of delivery, all prices for livestock to be paid 4 3 that day. The bill provides that an agreement made in 4 4 violation of the bill's requirements is voidable. The packer 4 5 violating the provision is guilty of a fraudulent practice. 4 6 The bill provides that the attorney general is responsible for 4 7 enforcing the provision. The bill provides that the attorney 4 8 general or an injured seller may seek injunctive relief. The 4 9 injured seller may be awarded treble damages in a court 4 10 action. 4 11 The bill also provides that a packer must make available 4 12 for publication, and to a board of trade, a daily report 4 13 containing prices paid for livestock under each contract in 4 14 force in which the packer and an Iowa resident are parties, if 4 15 delivery under the contract is set more than 20 days after the 4 16 contract is executed. The failure to make a timely report is 4 17 punishable by a civil penalty not to exceed $1,000 for each 4 18 day that a timely or truthful report is not published. The 4 19 attorney general is also charged to enforce this part of the 4 20 bill's requirements. 4 21 LSB 1581XS 77 4 22 da/cf/24.2
Text: SF00073 Text: SF00075 Text: SF00000 - SF00099 Text: SF Index Bills and Amendments: General Index Bill History: General Index
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