April 22, 2003, Introduced by Senators BERNERO, SWITALSKI and LELAND and referred to the Committee on Appropriations.
A bill to amend 1937 PA 284, entitled
"An act to prevent the spread of infectious and contagious
diseases of livestock; to require persons, associations,
partnerships and corporations engaged in the buying, receiving,
selling, transporting, exchanging, negotiating, or soliciting
sale, resale, exchange or transportation of livestock to be
licensed and bonded by the department of agriculture; to keep a
producers' proceeds account; to provide for the refusal,
suspension or revocation of such licenses; to provide for
weighmasters; to provide for the inspection and disinfection of
yards, premises and vehicles; and to provide penalties for the
violation of this act,"
by amending section 3 (MCL 287.123).
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
1 Sec. 3. (1) Each
A person desiring to act as a dealer,
2 broker, or agent engaged
in such business for the purposes
3 aforesaid shall file an application with the department for a
4 license to transact
such engage in that business. The
5 application shall state the nature of the business, the
6 postoffice post-office address of the applicant,
and the
1 postoffice post-office address at or from which the
business is
2 to be conducted. If the
applicant shall desires to operate a
3 livestock yard where livestock is kept and sold at public or
4 private sale, the application shall so state. The application
5 may state such additional
information as requested by the
6 director. of
agriculture shall require. The application for
7 license to engage in
the business of dealer, broker or agent as
8 herein defined shall
be accompanied by a license fee of $5.00
9 payable to the
director of agriculture and deposited to the
10 general fund. When
any livestock is purchased or sold by weight,
11 such licensees
12 (2) The departments shall charge and collect the following
13 fees for initial and renewal license applications, which shall be
14 deposited into the general fund:
15 (a) Class I (livestock auction).................... $800.00.
16 (b) Class II (collection point/buying station)..... $500.00.
17 (c) Class III (horse auction)...................... $300.00.
18 (d) Class IV (dealer/broker/agent).................. $50.00.
19 (3) A licensee who buys or sells livestock by weight shall
20 employ a registered
weighmaster who shall be required to do all
21 the weighing. The duties, qualifications, and requirements for
22 registration of weighmasters shall be established by the director
23 of agriculture under the provisions of section 9. of
this
24 act.
25 (4) The
application for such that license and bond shall be
26 made submitted to the director of agriculture on
or before
27 October first 1
of each year. Each license issued under this
1 section shall be for a period of 1 year commencing October 1 and
2 ending the following September 30.
3 (5) Each dealer, broker, or agent operating or conducting a
4 livestock auction shall file with his or her application for a
5 license and for a
surety bond effective during the period for
6 which such the
license shall be is issued. a The surety
7 bond shall be issued
by a surety company registered in the this
8 state of Michigan
to indemnify persons from whom
livestock is
9 purchased or for whom
livestock is sold ; or with such
10 sureties other security and in such amounts, form,
and
11 sufficiency as shall
be approved by the director. of
12 agriculture. The amount of the bond shall be an amount equal to
13 the amount of gross dollar volume of livestock business conducted
14 during the average week of the previous licensing year by the
15 applicant, but in no case less than $1,500.00. If the average
16 gross weekly livestock business conducted by the applicant during
17 the previous licensing year was greater than $25,000.00, the bond
18 shall be increased above $25,000.00, at the rate of $1,000.00 for
19 each $5,000.00 or part thereof above $25,000.00 on the average
20 gross dollar-volume of weekly livestock business conducted during
21 the previous year. A licensee who owns or operates more than 1
22 livestock yard or livestock auction may file 1 bond in an amount
23 determined by the foregoing
formula described in this
24 subsection. Any dealer, broker, or agent operating or conducting
25 a livestock yard or livestock auction who has filed a surety bond
26 for such the
livestock yard or livestock auction which and
27 indemnifies persons from whom livestock is purchased or for whom
1 livestock is sold in accordance with the terms of any federal act
2 shall be is exempt from the bonding requirements of
this
3 section subsection provided the bond is equivalent in
amount to
4 that which would be required by this act. The bond shall be for
5 a livestock dealer or broker and his or her agents in which the
6 department of
agriculture shall be is the obligee but which
7 shall be for the benefit and purpose of protecting all persons
8 selling or consigning
livestock to such the licensed dealer,
9 broker, or agent against the licensed dealer's, broker's, or
10 agent's failure to pay amounts due on livestock purchased by or
11 consigned to them.
12 (6) Each
licensee shall keep such records and shall
13 furnish, upon
request, such information concerning his or her
14 purchases and sales as may be required by the director for the
15 purpose of establishing
the amount of bond required hereunder
16 under subsection (5). The director, in fixing the amount of the
17 bond, shall take into consideration the dollar volume of
18 livestock business and other information furnished by the
19 livestock dealer, broker, or his or her agent. If a dealer,
20 broker, or agent did not operate a livestock auction the previous
21 licensing year, the bond shall be for an amount as shall be
22 established by the
director after his consideration of all
23 information available to
him on the probable weekly gross
24 dollar volume of business
which will to be conducted by the
25 dealer, broker, or agent during the licensing year.
26 (7) If during any licensing year the bond filed by any
27 licensee becomes less than required by this act because of an
1 increase in gross dollar volume of livestock sales, the director
2 may require issue
an order requiring the licensee to file an
3 additional bond to cover the increase in gross dollar volume of
4 livestock sales. Failure to comply with the orders of the
5 director shall be
reason is grounds for suspension or
6 revocation of license. Such
A bond shall be conditioned upon
7 the faithful performance
of his the licensee's duties as a
8 dealer and on the provisions of law relating to the purchase of
9 livestock by such the
livestock dealer , and for the payment
10 by said the
livestock dealer of all livestock purchased by or
11 consigned to such the
livestock dealer as a dealer in
12 livestock. The fees
collected by the director of agriculture
13 shall be turned over
to the state treasury and shall be credited
14 to the general fund.
The said
15 (8) A license shall
entitle issued under this section
16 allows the holder thereof
to conduct the business of dealer or
17 broker as defined in
this act at or from the place named in the
18 application. :
Provided, however, That every business,
19 association, partnership
or corporation A legal entity
engaged
20 in the business of
transporting livestock , or negotiating or
21 soliciting the
transportation or transfer of livestock , and who
22 shall that is not be engaged in the buying,
selling,
23 reselling, exchanging,
or negotiating, or soliciting the sale,
24 resale, or
exchange of such livestock , shall be required to
25 must obtain the a
license provided for in under this section
26 but shall is
not be required to comply with bonding
27 provisions of this act
section.
1 (9) Every A
dealer, broker, or agent shall keep adequate
2 records of the producers'
proceeds account as defined in
3 compliance with section
3a of this act and of all sales and
4 purchases for a period of
2 years in such the manner as shall
5 be required by the director. of agriculture,
and which The
6 records shall be open to reasonable inspection by the department.
7 of agriculture. Any
8 (10) A dealer,
broker, or agent upon change of address
9 shall notify the director
of such a change of address within 5
10 days after that change. Any change in ownership of any livestock
11 auction or market shall be reported to the director within 5 days
12 by the licensee. Each dealer or broker shall file with the
13 director on January 1 of each year a sworn statement of average
14 weekly sales and a statement showing the number and kinds of
15 livestock purchased and sold during the previous year.