I 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1650

To ensure regulatory equity between and among all dairy farmers and handlers, including producers also acting as handlers, for sales of packaged 

fluid milk into certain non-federally regulated milk marketing areas from 

federally regulated areas and to apply minimum milk price requirements 

to certain handlers of Class I milk products in the Arizona-Las Vegas 

marketing area under certain circumstances. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 7, 2003

Mr. NUNES introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Agriculture 

A BILL

To ensure regulatory equity between and among all dairy 

farmers and handlers, including producers also acting 

as handlers, for sales of packaged fluid milk into certain 

non-federally regulated milk marketing areas from federally regulated areas and to apply minimum milk price 

requirements to certain handlers of Class I milk products 

in the Arizona-Las Vegas marketing area under certain 

circumstances.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Milk Regulatory Eq3 uity Act of 2003’’. 

4 SEC. 2. MINIMUM MILK PRICES FOR HANDLERS UNDER 

5 FEDERAL MILK MARKETING ORDERS. 

6 (a) APPLICATION OF MINIMUM PRICE REQUIRE7 MENTS.—A milk handler described in subsection (b) shall 

8 be subject to all of the minimum and uniform price re9 quirements of the Federal milk marketing order issued 

10 under section 8c(5) of the Agricultural Adjustment Act 

11 (7 U.S.C. 608c(5)), reenacted with amendments by the 

12 Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, applicable 

13 to the county in which the plant of the handler is located, 

14 at Federal order class prices, if the handler has packaged 

15 fluid milk product route dispositions, or sales of packaged 

16 fluid milk products to other plants, in a marketing area 

17 located in a State that requires handlers to pay minimum 

18 prices for raw milk purchases. 

19 (b) COVERED MILK HANDLERS.—Except as provided 

20 in subsection (c), subsection (a) applies to a handler of 

21 Class I milk products (including a producer-handler or 

22 producer operating as a handler)—

23 (1) whose plant is located within the boundaries 

24 of a Federal order milk marketing area (as those 

25 boundaries are in effect as of the date of the enact26 ment of this Act); 
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1 (2) that has packaged fluid milk product route 

2 dispositions, or sales of packaged fluid milk products 

3 to other plants, in a milk marketing area located in 

4 a State that requires handlers to pay minimum 

5 prices for raw milk purchases; and 

6 (3) that is not otherwise obligated by a Federal 

7 milk marketing order, or a regulated milk pricing 

8 plan operated by a State, to pay minimum class 

9 prices for the raw milk represented by those milk 

10 dispositions or sales. 

11 (c) CERTAIN HANDLERS EXEMPTED.—Subsection 

12 (a) does not apply—

13 (1) to a handler (otherwise described in sub14 section (b)) that operates an exempt plant, as de15 fined in section 1000.8(e) of title 7, Code of Federal 

16 Regulations (as in effect on the date of the enact17 ment of this Act); or 

18 (2) a producer-handler (otherwise described in 

19 subsection (b)) for any month during which the pro20 ducer-handler has route dispositions, and sales to 

21 other plants, of packaged fluid milk products equal22 ing less than 6,000,000 pounds of milk. 

23 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE AND IMPLEMENTATION.—Sub24 section (a) shall take effect on the first day of the first 

25 month beginning more than 15 days after the date of the 
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1 enactment of this Act. To accomplish this expedited imple2 mentation schedule, effective on the date of the enactment 

3 of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture shall include in 

4 the pool distributing plant provision of each Federal milk 

5 marketing order issued under section 8c(5)(B) of the Agri6 cultural Adjustment Act (7 U.S.C. 608c(5)(B)), reenacted 

7 with amendments by the Agricultural Marketing Agree8 ment of 1937, language to ensure that a handler described 

9 in subsection (b) will be fully regulated by the order in 

10 which the handler’s distributing plant is located. Inclusion 

11 of this language into Federal milk marketing orders shall 

12 not be subjected to a referendum under section 8c(19) of 

13 the Agricultural Adjustment Act (7 U.S.C. 608c(19)), re14 enacted with amendments by the Agricultural Marketing 

15 Agreement Act of 1937. 

16 SEC. 3. EXEMPTION OF MILK HANDLERS FROM MINIMUM 

17 PRICE REQUIREMENTS. 

18 Section 8c(5) of the Agricultural Adjustment Act (7 

19 U.S.C. 608c(5)), reenacted with amendments by the Agri20 cultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, is amended 

21 by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(M) EXEMPTION OF MILK HANDLERS

23 FROM MINIMUM PRICE REQUIREMENTS.—Not24 withstanding any other provision of this sub25 section, no handler with distribution of Class I 
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1 milk products in the Arizona-Las Vegas mar2 keting area (Order No. 131) shall be exempt 

3 during any month from any minimum milk 

4 price requirement established by the Secretary 

5 under this subsection if the total distribution of 

6 Class I products within the Arizona-Las Vegas 

7 marketing area of any such handler’s own farm 

8 production exceeds 6,000,000 pounds.’’.

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