7 U.S.C. § 4912 — Requirement of referendum

Page 1736 TITLE 7—AGRICULTURE § 4912 mony touching the matter under investigation. Any failure to obey such order of the court may be punished by the court as contempt thereof. All process in any such case may be served in the judicial district in which the person is an in- habitant or wherever the person may be found. The site of any hearing held under this sub- section shall be within the judicial district in which the person is an inhabitant or in which the person’s principal place of business is lo- cated. (b) No person shall be excused from attending and testifying or from producing books, papers, and documents before the Secretary, or in obedi- ence to the subpoena of the Secretary, or in any cause or proceeding, criminal or otherwise, based on, or growing out of, any alleged viola- tion of this chapter, or of any plan or regulation issued thereunder, on the grounds that the testi- mony or evidence, documentary or otherwise, required of the person may tend to incriminate the person or subject the person to a penalty or forfeiture. However, no person shall be pros- ecuted or subjected to any penalty or forfeiture on account of any transaction, matter, or thing concerning which the person is compelled, after having claimed the person’s privilege against self-incrimination, to testify or produce evi- dence, documentary or otherwise, except that any individual so testifying shall not be exempt from prosecution and punishment for perjury committed in so testifying. (Pub. L. 99–198, title XVI, § 1652, Dec. 23, 1985, 99 Stat. 1628; Pub. L. 103–189, § 8(h), Dec. 14, 1993, 107 Stat. 2262.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 1993—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103–189, in first sentence, substituted ‘‘a person’’ for ‘‘a handler or any other per- son’’, in fourth sentence, inserted ‘‘(or an importer who is subject to the plan)’’ after ‘‘a handler’’, and in last sentence, substituted ‘‘the person’’ for ‘‘the handler or other person’’. § 4912. Requirement of referendum (a) The Secretary shall conduct a referendum among producers, handlers, and importers not exempt under sections 4902(5) and 4907(b) of this title who, during a representative period deter- mined by the Secretary, have been engaged in the production, handling, or importing of water- melons, for the purpose of ascertaining whether the issuance of a plan is approved or favored by producers, handlers, and importers. The ballots and other information or reports that reveal or tend to reveal the vote of any producer, handler, or importer or the person’s volume of water- melons produced, handled, or imported shall be held strictly confidential and shall not be dis- closed. Any officer or employee of the Depart- ment of Agriculture violating the provisions hereof shall be subject to the penalties provided in section 4908(c) of this title. (b) A plan issued under this chapter shall not take effect unless the Secretary determines that the issuance of the plan is approved or favored by a majority of the producers and handlers (and importers who are subject to the plan) voting in the referendum. (Pub. L. 99–198, title XVI, § 1653, Dec. 23, 1985, 99 Stat. 1629; Pub. L. 103–189, §§ 2, 8(i), Dec. 14, 1993, 107 Stat. 2259, 2262.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 1993—Pub. L. 103–189 designated existing provisions as subsec. (a), added subsec. (b), and in subsec. (a) sub- stituted ‘‘, handlers, and importers’’ for ‘‘and han- dlers’’ in two places and ‘‘, handling, or importing’’ for ‘‘or handling’’ in first sentence, substituted ‘‘, handler, or importer’’ for ‘‘or handler’’ and ‘‘, handled, or im- ported’’ for ‘‘or handled’’ in sentence beginning with ‘‘The ballots’’, and struck out after first sentence ‘‘The referendum shall be conducted at the county extension offices. No plan issued under this chapter shall be effec- tive unless the Secretary determines that the issuance of the plan is approved or favored by not less than two- thirds of the producers and handlers voting in such ref- erendum, or by the producers and handlers of not less than two-thirds of the watermelons produced and han- dled during the representative period by producers and handlers voting in such referendum, and by not less than a majority of the producers and a majority of the handlers voting in the referendum.’’ § 4913. Suspension or termination of plans (a) Whenever the Secretary finds that a plan or any provision thereof obstructs or does not tend to effectuate the declared policy of this chapter, the Secretary shall terminate or sus- pend the operation of the plan or provision. (b) The Secretary may conduct a referendum at any time, and shall hold a referendum on re- quest of the Board or at least 10 percent of the combined total of the watermelon producers, handlers, and importers eligible to vote in a ref- erendum, to determine if watermelon producers, handlers, and importers favor the termination or suspension of the plan. The Secretary shall terminate or suspend the plan at the end of the marketing year whenever the Secretary deter- mines that the termination or suspension is fa- vored by a majority of those voting in the ref- erendum, and who produce, handle, or import more than 50 per cent of the combined total of the volume of the watermelons produced by the producers, handled by the handlers, or imported by the importers voting in the referendum. (Pub. L. 99–198, title XVI, § 1654, Dec. 23, 1985, 99 Stat. 1630; Pub. L. 103–189, § 8(j), Dec. 14, 1993, 107 Stat. 2263.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 1993—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 103–189, § 8(j)(3), struck out at end ‘‘Any such referendum shall be conducted at county extension offices.’’ Pub. L. 103–189, § 8(j)(2)(C), which directed the substi- tution of ‘‘, handled by the handlers, or imported by the importers’’ for ‘‘or handled by the handlers,’’ in second sentence, was executed by making the substi- tution in text which did not contain a comma after the word ‘‘handlers’’, to reflect the probable intent of Con- gress. Pub. L. 103–189, § 8(j)(1)–(2)(B), in first sentence, sub- stituted ‘‘at least 10 percent of the combined total’’ for ‘‘10 per centum or more’’ and ‘‘, handlers, and import- ers’’ for ‘‘and handlers’’ in two places, and in second sentence, substituted ‘‘, handle, or import’’ for ‘‘or handle’’ and ‘‘50 percent of the combined total’’ for ‘‘50 per centum’’.