Bill Text: CA AB1810 | 2015-2016 | Regular Session | Amended
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: California Seed Law: exclusions: noncommercial seed sharing.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2016-09-09 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 259, Statutes of 2016. [AB1810 Detail]
Download: California-2015-AB1810-Amended.html
Bill Title: California Seed Law: exclusions: noncommercial seed sharing.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2016-09-09 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 259, Statutes of 2016. [AB1810 Detail]
Download: California-2015-AB1810-Amended.html
BILL NUMBER: AB 1810 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 15, 2016
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 29, 2016
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 17, 2016
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Levine
( Coauthor: Assembly Member
Mathis )
FEBRUARY 8, 2016
An act to amend Sections 52288, 52311, 52451, and 52486
of, 52288 and 52451 of, and to add
Section Sections 52258.2 to,
and 52351.5 to, the Food and Agricultural Code, relating
to seed.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1810, as amended, Levine. California Seed Law: exclusions:
noncommercial seed sharing.
The California Seed Law (the seed law) regulates seed sold in
California, and generally requires agricultural and vegetable seed
that is sold in the state to be labeled in accordance with specified
provisions. Specified penalties are prescribed for violating the
provisions of the seed law.
This bill would exclude from the labeling requirements of the
seed law seed distributed through noncommercial seed sharing
activities, and would revise applicable penalty provisions to
exclude the collection, storage, or distribution of agricultural,
flower, or vegetable seed for noncommercial purposes. The bill would
also define the term "sell" for purposes of the seed law, and
or rece ived by seed libraries,
as defined by the bill. The bill would authorize the Secretary of
Food and Agriculture to require any person or organization that
operates a seed library to provide notification of its operation on a
form created by the secretary, and would state that the
Legislature declares declares, among other
things, that the seed law is not intended to
regulate support noncommercial seed
sharing, activities, as specified.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 52258.2 is added to the Food
and Agricultural Code, to read:
52258.2. "Sell" includes to offer, expose, or possess for sale,
and to commercially exchange, barter, or trade.
SECTION 1. Section 52258.2 is added to the
Food and Agricultural Code , to read:
52258.2. "Seed library" means a registered noncommercial entity
that lends, receives, or gives away seed at a place or event without
creating a contractual obligation or an expectation to receive
anything of value in return.
SEC. 2. Section 52288 of the Food and Agricultural Code is amended
to read:
52288. The Legislature hereby declares that it is
all of the following:
(a) It is the intent of this
chapter to enable the seed industry, with the aid of the state, to
ensure that seed purchased by the consumer-buyer is properly
identified and of the quality and amount represented on the tag or
label. The Legislature further declares that the
(b) The success of agriculture
and the seed industry in this state depends upon the continued
commitment to industry-funded research in order to improve the
quality and variety of seed available to the consumer-buyer.
The Legislature further declares that this
(c) Noncommercial seed sharing
contributes significant value to the health of our communities and to
the resilience of our food system. This chapter is
not intended to regulate support
noncommercial seed sharing, including through seed
libraries, seed exchanges, or other informal and formal noncommercial
seed sharing activities. libraries, and is not
intended to supersede any provision of the California Rice
Certification Act of 2000 (Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 55000)
of Division 20).
SEC. 3. Section 52311 of the Food and
Agricultural Code is amended to read:
52311. A person is not subject to the penalties that are
prescribed by this chapter in any of the following cases:
(a) For selling in this state any agricultural or vegetable seed
that is incorrectly labeled or represented as to kind, variety, or
type, which cannot be identified by examination of it, unless the
person has failed to obtain an invoice or grower's declaration that
gives the commonly accepted name of the kind, kind and variety, or
kind and type, and to take other precautions as may be necessary to
insure the identity to be that which is stated.
(b) As to any matter that is required by Article 8 (commencing
with Section 52451), for selling the seed in original unopened sealed
packages that are fully labeled by another dealer, unless the person
has failed to have the seed retested and relabeled as to the
percentage of germination within the period that is prescribed by
Section 52481, or unless the person has failed to correct the label
after notice that the label has been found to be incorrect.
(c) For shipping, delivering, transporting, or selling within this
state any agricultural or vegetable seed that has a false labeling
as to percentage of germination or hard seeds, unless the person has
first been given an opportunity by the secretary to be heard. This
exemption does not, however, relieve any person from the obligation,
upon order of an enforcement official, to stop further sale of any
seed that is found to be incorrectly labeled as to germination, nor
does it exempt such seed from seizure pursuant to this chapter.
(d) For collecting, storing, or distributing in this state any
labeled or unlabeled agricultural, flower, or vegetable seed for
noncommercial purposes.
SEC. 3. Section 52351.5 is added to the
Food and Agricultural Code , to read:
52351.5. (a) Notwithstanding Section 52351, the secretary may
require any person or organization that operates a seed library to
provide notification of its operation on a form created by the
secretary. The notification form shall only include the entity's name
and address and the contact information of the responsible party. No
fee shall be assessed for submitting the notification form.
(b) A person shall not be subject to any penalties under this
chapter for failing to provide notification to the secretary without
first receiving a written request to do so.
SEC. 4. Section 52451 of the Food and Agricultural Code is amended
to read:
52451. This article does not apply to any of the following:
(a) Seed or grain that is not intended for sowing purposes.
(b) Seed that is in storage in, or consigned to, a seed cleaning
or conditioning establishment for cleaning or conditioning.
(c) Seed or grain that is transported without transfer of title
for sowing on land that is owned by the person by whom the seed or
grain was produced.
(d) Seed that is weighed and packaged in the presence of the
purchaser from a bulk container, if the container is properly and
conspicuously labeled as provided by this chapter.
(e) Seed or grain that is transported from one warehouse to
another without transfer of title or in storage in a warehouse, if
each container is plainly marked or identified with a lot number or
other lot identification and the label information that is required
by this article is available at the request of an enforcing officer.
(f) Seed distributed in the state through formal or
informal noncommercial seed sharing activities, including, but not
limited to, seed libraries and seed exchanges. or
received by seed libraries.
SEC. 5. Section 52486 of the Food and
Agricultural Code is amended to read:
52486. Sections 52481, 52482, and 52484 of this article do not
apply to any of the following:
(a) Any common carrier in respect to any seed that is transported
or delivered for transportation in the ordinary course of its
business as a carrier if the carrier is not engaged in conditioning
or merchandising seed that is subject to the provisions of this
chapter.
(b) Noncommercial seed sharing.
