I

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 653

To amend the Watermelon Research and Promotion Act to expand operation

of the Act to the entire United States, to authorize the revocation

of the refund provision of the Act, to modify the referendum procedures

of the Act, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JANUARY 27, 1993

Mr. ENGLISH of Oklahoma introduced the following bill; which was referred

to the Committee on Agriculture

A BILL

To amend the Watermelon Research and Promotion Act to

expand operation of the Act to the entire United States,

to authorize the revocation of the refund provision of

the Act, to modify the referendum procedures of the

Act, and for other purposes.

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND TABLE OF CONTENTS.

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the

5 ‘‘Watermelon Research and Promotion Improvement Act

6 of 1993’’.
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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for

2 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents.

Sec. 2. Change to majority vote in referendum procedures.

Sec. 3. Expansion of watermelon plans to entire United States.

Sec. 4. Clarification of differences between producers and handlers.

Sec. 5. Clarification of collection of assessments by the board.

Sec. 6. Changes to assessment rate not subject to formal rulemaking.

Sec. 7. Elimination of watermelon assessment refund.

Sec. 8. Equitable treatment of watermelon plans.

Sec. 9. Separate consideration of watermelon plan amendments.

3 SEC. 2. CHANGE TO MAJORITY VOTE IN REFERENDUM PRO4 CEDURES.

5 Section 1653 of the Watermelon Research and Pro6 motion Act (7 U.S.C. 4912) is amended—

7 (1) by inserting ‘‘(a)’’ after ‘‘SEC. 1653.’’;

8 (2) by striking the third sentence; and

9 (3) inserting at the end the following new sub10 section:

11 ‘‘(b) A plan issued under this subtitle shall not take

12 effect unless the Secretary determines that the issuance

13 of the plan is approved or favored by a majority of the

14 producers and handlers (and importers if subject to the

15 plan) voting in the referendum.’’.

16 SEC. 3. EXPANSION OF WATERMELON PLANS TO ENTIRE

17 UNITED STATES.

18 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 1643 of the Watermelon

19 Research and Promotion Act (7 U.S.C. 4902(3)) is

20 amended—
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1 (1) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘the forty2 eight contiguous States of’’; and

3 (2) by adding at the end the following new

4 paragraph:

5 ‘‘(10) The term ‘United States’ means each of

6 the several States and the District of Columbia.’’.

7 (b) ISSUANCE OF PLANS.—The last sentence of sec8 tion 1644 of such Act (7 U.S.C. 4903) is amended by

9 striking ‘‘the forty-eight contiguous States of’’.

10 SEC. 4. CLARIFICATION OF DIFFERENCES BETWEEN PRO11 DUCERS AND HANDLERS.

12 Section 1647(c) of the Watermelon Research and

13 Promotion Act (7 U.S.C. 4906(c)) is amended by adding

14 at the end the following:

15 ‘‘(3) If a producer purchases watermelons from other

16 producers, in a combined total volume that is equal to 25

17 percent or more of the producer’s own production, the pro18 ducer shall be eligible to serve on the Board only as a

19 representative of handlers and not as a representative of

20 producers.’’.

21 SEC. 5. CLARIFICATION OF COLLECTION OF ASSESSMENTS

22 BY THE BOARD.

23 Section 1647 of the Watermelon Research and Pro24 motion Act (7 U.S.C. 4906) is amended—
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1 (1) in subsection (f), by striking ‘‘collection of

2 the assessments by the Board’’ and inserting ‘‘pay3 ment of the assessments to the Board.’’; and

4 (2) in paragraphs (1) and (3) of subsection (g),

5 by striking ‘‘collected’’ and inserting ‘‘received’’.

6 SEC. 6. CHANGES TO ASSESSMENT RATE NOT SUBJECT TO

7 FORMAL RULEMAKING.

8 Section 1647(f) of the Watermelon Research and

9 Promotion Act (7 U.S.C. 4906(f)), as amended by section

10 5(1), is further amended by adding at the end the follow11 ing new sentences: ‘‘In fixing or changing the rate of as12 sessment pursuant to the plan, the Secretary shall comply

13 with the notice and comment procedures established under

14 section 553 of title 5, United States Code. Sections 556

15 and 557 of such title shall not apply with respect to fixing

16 or changing the rate of assessment.’’.

17 SEC. 7. ELIMINATION OF WATERMELON ASSESSMENT RE18 FUND.

19 Section 1647(h) of the Watermelon Research and

20 Promotion Act (7 U.S.C. 4906(h)) is amended—

21 (1) by inserting ‘‘(1) Except as provided in

22 paragraph (2)’’ after ‘‘(h)’’; and

23 (3) by adding at the end the following new

24 paragraph:
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1 ‘‘(2) If approved in the referendum required by sec2 tion 1655(b) relating to the elimination of the assessment

3 refund under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall amend

4 the plan which is in effect on the day before the date of

5 the enactment of the Watermelon Research and Promotion

6 Improvement Act of 1993 to eliminate such refund provi7 sion.’’.

8 SEC. 8. EQUITABLE TREATMENT OF WATERMELON PLANS.

9 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 1643 of the Watermelon

10 Research and Promotion Act (7 U.S.C. 4902), as amended

11 by section 3(a), is further amended—

12 (1) in paragraph (3), by striking the semicolon

13 at the end and inserting the following: ‘‘or imported

14 into the United States.’’;

15 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (6) and (7) as

16 paragraphs (8) and (9), respectively; and

17 (3) by inserting after paragraph (5) the follow18 ing new paragraphs:

19 ‘‘(6) The term ‘importer’ means any person

20 who imports watermelons into the United States.

21 ‘‘(7) The term ‘plan’ means an order issued by

22 the Secretary under this subtitle.’’.

23 (b) ISSUANCE OF PLANS.—Section 1644 of such Act

24 (7 U.S.C. 4903), as amended by section 3(b), is further

25 amended—
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1 (1) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘and han2 dlers’’ and inserting ‘‘, handlers, and importers’’;

3 (2) by striking the second sentence; and

4 (3) in the last sentence, by inserting ‘‘or im5 ported into the United States’’ before the period.

6 (c) NOTICE AND HEARINGS.—Section 1645(a) of

7 such Act (7 U.S.C. 4904(a)) is amended—

8 (1) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘and han9 dlers’’ and inserting ‘‘, handlers, and importers’’;

10 and

11 (2) in the last sentence, by striking ‘‘or han12 dlers’’ and inserting ‘‘, handlers, or importers’’.

13 (d) MEMBERSHIP OF BOARD.—Section 1647(c) of

14 such Act (7 U.S.C. 4906(c)), as amended by section 4,

15 is further amended—

16 (1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘(c)’’;

17 (2) in the second sentence, by striking ‘‘pro18 ducer and handler members’’ and inserting ‘‘other

19 members’’; and

20 (3) by adding at the end the following new

21 paragraph:

22 ‘‘(2) If importers are subject to the plan, the Board

23 shall also include a single representative of importers who

24 shall be appointed by the Secretary from nominations sub25 mitted by importers in such manner as may be prescribed
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1 by the Secretary. If importers are subject to the plan and

2 fail to select a nominee for appointment to the Board, the

3 Secretary may appoint any importer as the representative

4 of importers.’’.

5 (e) ASSESSMENTS.—Section 1647(g) of such Act (7

6 U.S.C. 4906(g)), as amended by section 5(2), is further

7 amended—

8 (1) in paragraph (4)—

9 (A) by striking ‘‘(4) assessments’’ and in10 serting ‘‘(4) Assessments’’; and

11 (B) by inserting ‘‘in the case of producers

12 and handlers’’ after ‘‘such assessments’’; and

13 (2) by adding at the end the following new

14 paragraph:

15 ‘‘(5) If importers are subject to the plan, an as16 sessment shall also be made on watermelons im17 ported into the United States by such importers.

18 The rate of assessment for importers (if subject to

19 the plan) shall be equal to the combined rate for

20 producers and handlers.’’.

21 (f) REFUNDS.—Section 1647(h) of such Act (7

22 U.S.C. 4906(h)), as amended by section 7, is further

23 amended—
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1 (1) by inserting after ‘‘or handler’’ the first two

2 places it appears the following: ‘‘(or importer if sub3 ject to the plan)’’; and

4 (2) by striking ‘‘or handler’’ the last place it

5 appears and inserting ‘‘, handler, or importer’’.

6 (g) ASSESSMENT PROCEDURES.—Section 1649 of

7 such Act (7 U.S.C. 4908) is amended—

8 (1) in subsection (a)—

9 (A) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘(a)’’; and

10 (B) by adding at the end the following new

11 paragraph:

12 ‘‘(2) If importers are subject to the plan, each im13 porter required to pay assessments under the plan shall

14 be responsible for payment to the Board, as it may direct,

15 of the assessment. The assessment on imported water16 melons shall be equal to the combined rate for domestic

17 producers and handlers and shall be paid by the importer

18 to the Board at the time of the entry of the watermelons

19 into the United States. Each such importer shall maintain

20 a separate record including the total quantity of water21 melons imported into the United States that are included

22 under the terms of the plan, as well as those that are ex23 empt under such plan, and shall indicate such other infor24 mation as may be prescribed by the Board. No more than
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1 one assessment shall be made on any imported water2 melons.’’;

3 (2) in subsection (b), by inserting ‘‘and import4 ers’’ after ‘‘Handlers’’; and

5 (3) in subsection (c)(1), by inserting ‘‘or im6 porters’’ after ‘‘handlers’’.

7 (h) INVESTIGATIONS.—Section 1652(a) of such Act

8 (7 U.S.C. 4911(a)) is amended—

9 (1) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘a handler

10 or any other person’’ by inserting ‘‘a person’’;

11 (2) in the fourth sentence, by inserting ‘‘(or an

12 importer if subject to the plan)’’ after ‘‘a handler’’;

13 and

14 (3) in the last sentence, by striking ‘‘the han15 dler or other person’’ and inserting ‘‘the person’’.

16 (i) REFERENDUM.—Section 1653 of such Act (7

17 U.S.C. 4912), as amended by section 2, is further amend18 ed—

19 (1) in the first sentence—

20 (A) by striking ‘‘and handlers’’ both places

21 it appears and inserting ‘‘, handlers, and im22 porters’’; and

23 (B) by striking ‘‘or handling’’ and insert24 ing ‘‘, handling, or importing’’; and

25 (2) in the fourth sentence—
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1 (A) by striking ‘‘or handler’’ and inserting

2 ‘‘, handler, or importer’’; and

3 (B) by striking ‘‘or handled’’ and inserting

4 ‘‘, handled, or imported’’.

5 (j) TERMINATION OF PLANS.—Section 1654(b) of

6 such Act (7 U.S.C. 4913(b)) is amended—

7 (1) in the first sentence—

8 (A) by striking ‘‘10 per centum or more’’

9 and inserting ‘‘at least 10 percent of the com10 bined total’’; and

11 (B) by striking ‘‘and handlers’’ both places

12 it appears and inserting ‘‘, handlers, and im13 porters’’; and

14 (2) in the second sentence—

15 (A) by striking ‘‘or handle’’ and inserting

16 ‘‘, handle, or import’’;

17 (B) by striking ‘‘50 per centum’’ and in18 serting ‘‘50 percent of the combined total’’.

19 (C) by striking ‘‘or handled by the han20 dlers,’’ and inserting ‘‘, handled by the han21 dlers, and imported by the importers’’.

22 (k) CONFORMING AND TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.—

23 Such Act is further amended—
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1 (1) in section 1642(a)(5) (7 U.S.C.

2 4901(a)(5)), by striking ‘‘and handling’’ and insert3 ing ‘‘handling, and importing’’;

4 (2) in the first sentence of section 1642(b) (7

5 U.S.C. 4901(b))—

6 (A) by inserting ‘‘, or imported into the

7 United States,’’ after ‘‘harvested in the United

8 States’’; and

9 (B) by striking ‘‘produced in the United

10 States’’;

11 (3) in section 1643 (7 U.S.C. 4902), as amend12 ed by subsection (a) and section 3—

13 (A) by striking ‘‘subtitle—’’ and inserting

14 ‘‘subtitle:’’;

15 (B) in paragraphs (1), (2), (3), (4), and

16 (5), by striking ‘‘the term’’ and inserting ‘‘The

17 term’’;

18 (C) in paragraphs (1), (2), (4), and (5), by

19 striking the semicolon at the end and inserting

20 a period;

21 (D) in paragraph (8), as redesignated by

22 subsection (a)(2)—

23 (i) by striking ‘‘the term’’ and insert24 ing ‘‘The term’’; and
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1 (ii) by striking ‘‘; and’’ and inserting

2 a period; and

3 (E) in paragraph (9), as redesignated by

4 subsection (a)(2)—

5 (i) by striking ‘‘the term’’ and insert6 ing ‘‘The term’’; and

7 (ii) by striking ‘‘1644’’ and inserting

8 ‘‘1647’’; and

9 (4) in section 1647(g) (7 U.S.C. 4906(g)), as

10 amended by subsection (e) and section 5(2)—

11 (A) by striking ‘‘that—’’ and inserting

12 ‘‘the following:’’;

13 (B) in paragraph (1)—

14 (i) by striking ‘‘(1) funds’’ and insert15 ing ‘‘(1) Funds’’; and

16 (ii) by striking the semicolon at the

17 end and inserting a period;

18 (C) in paragraph (2)—

19 (i) by striking ‘‘(2) no’’ and inserting

20 ‘‘(2) No’’; and

21 (ii) by striking the semicolon at the

22 end and inserting a period;

23 (D) in paragraph (3)—

24 (i) by striking ‘‘(3) no’’ and inserting

25 ‘‘(3) No’’; and
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1 (ii) by striking ‘‘; and’’ and inserting

2 a period.

3 SEC. 9. SEPARATE CONSIDERATION OF WATERMELON

4 PLAN AMENDMENTS.

5 Section 1655 of the Watermelon Research and Pro6 motion Act (7 U.S.C. 4914) is amended—

7 (1) by inserting ‘‘(a)’’ before ‘‘The provisions’’;

8 and

9 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub10 sections:

11 ‘‘(b) The amendments described in subsection (c)

12 that are required to be made by the Secretary to a plan

13 as a result of the amendments made by the Watermelon

14 Research and Promotion Improvement Act of 1993 shall

15 be subject to separate line item voting and approval in

16 a referendum conducted pursuant to section 1653 before

17 the Secretary alters the plan as in effect on the day before

18 the date of the enactment of such Act.

19 ‘‘(c) The amendments referred to in subsection (b)

20 are those amendments required under—

21 ‘‘(1) section 7 of the Watermelon Research and

22 Promotion Improvement Act of 1993 relating to the

23 elimination of the assessment refund; and

24 ‘‘(2) section 8 of such Act relating to subjecting

25 importers to the terms and conditions of the plan.
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1 ‘‘(d) When conducting the referendum relating to

2 subjecting importers to the terms and conditions of a plan,

3 the Secretary shall include as eligible voters in the referen4 dum producers, handlers, and importers who would be

5 subject to the plan if the amendments are approved.’’.

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