II

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 2734

To amend the United States Warehouse Act to authorize the issuance of

electronic warehouse receipts, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

JUNE 15, 2000

Mr. FITZGERALD introduced the following bill; which was read twice and

referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

A BILL

To amend the United States Warehouse Act to authorize

the issuance of electronic warehouse receipts, 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.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Warehouse Improve5 ment Act of 2000’’.

6 SEC. 2. STORAGE OF AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS IN WARE7 HOUSES.

8 The United States Warehouse Act (7 U.S.C. 241 et

9 seq.) is amended to read as follows:
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1 ‘‘SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

2 ‘‘This Act may be cited as the ‘United States Ware3 house Act’.

4 ‘‘SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

5 ‘‘In this Act:

6 ‘‘(1) AGRICULTURAL PRODUCT.—The term ‘ag7 ricultural product’ means an agricultural commodity,

8 as determined by the Secretary, including a proc9 essed product of an agricultural commodity.

10 ‘‘(2) APPROVAL.—The term ‘approval’ means

11 the consent provided by the Secretary for a person

12 to engage in an activity authorized by this Act.

13 ‘‘(3) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’

14 means the Department of Agriculture.

15 ‘‘(4) ELECTRONIC DOCUMENT.—The term ‘elec16 tronic document’ means a document authorized

17 under this Act generated, sent, received, or stored by

18 electronic, optical, or similar means, including elec19 tronic data interchange, electronic mail, telegram,

20 telex, or telecopy.

21 ‘‘(5) ELECTRONIC RECEIPT.—The term ‘elec22 tronic receipt’ means a receipt that is authorized by

23 the Secretary to be issued or transmitted under this

24 Act in the form of an electronic document.

25 ‘‘(6) HOLDER.—
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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘holder’

2 means a person, as defined by the Secretary,

3 that has possession in fact or by operation of

4 law of a receipt or any electronic document.

5 ‘‘(B) INCLUSION.—The term ‘holder’ in6 cludes a person that has possession of a receipt

7 or electronic document as a creditor of another

8 person.

9 ‘‘(7) PERSON.—The term ‘person’ means—

10 ‘‘(A) a person (as defined in section 1 of

11 title 1, United States Code);

12 ‘‘(B) a State; and

13 ‘‘(C) a political subdivision of a State.

14 ‘‘(8) RECEIPT.—The term ‘receipt’ means a

15 warehouse receipt issued in accordance with this

16 Act, including an electronic receipt.

17 ‘‘(9) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ means

18 the Secretary of Agriculture.

19 ‘‘(10) WAREHOUSE.—The term ‘warehouse’

20 means a structure or other approved storage facility,

21 as determined by the Secretary, in which any agri22 cultural product may be stored or handled for the

23 purposes of interstate or foreign commerce.

24 ‘‘(11) WAREHOUSE OPERATOR.—The term

25 ‘warehouse operator’ means a person that is lawfully
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1 engaged in the business of storing or handling agri2 cultural products.

3 ‘‘SEC. 3. POWERS OF SECRETARY.

4 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall have exclu5 sive power, jurisdiction, and authority, to the extent that

6 this Act applies, with respect to—

7 ‘‘(1) each warehouse operator licensed under

8 this Act;

9 ‘‘(2) each person that has obtained an approval

10 to engage in an activity under this Act; and

11 ‘‘(3) each person claiming an interest in an ag12 ricultural product by means of an electronic docu13 ment or electronic receipt subject to this Act.

14 ‘‘(b) COVERED AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS.—The

15 Secretary shall specify, after an opportunity for notice and

16 comment, those agricultural products for which a ware17 house license may be issued under this Act.

18 ‘‘(c) INVESTIGATIONS.—The Secretary may inves19 tigate the storing, warehousing, classifying according to

20 grade and otherwise, weighing, and certifying of agricul21 tural products.

22 ‘‘(d) INSPECTIONS.—The Secretary may inspect or

23 cause to be inspected any person or warehouse licensed

24 under this Act and any warehouse for which a license is

25 applied for under this Act.
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1 ‘‘(e) SUITABILITY FOR STORAGE.—The Secretary

2 may determine whether a licensed warehouse, or a ware3 house for which a license is applied for under this Act,

4 is suitable for the proper storage of the agricultural prod5 uct or products stored or proposed for storage in the ware6 house.

7 ‘‘(f) CLASSIFICATION.—The Secretary may classify a

8 licensed warehouse, or a warehouse for which a license is

9 applied for under this Act, in accordance with the owner10 ship, location, surroundings, capacity, conditions, and

11 other qualities of the warehouse and as to the kinds of

12 licenses issued or that may be issued for the warehouse

13 under this Act.

14 ‘‘(g) WAREHOUSE OPERATOR’S DUTIES.—Subject to

15 the other provisions of this Act, the Secretary may pre16 scribe the duties of a warehouse operator operating a

17 warehouse licensed under this Act with respect to the

18 warehouse operator’s care of and responsibility for agricul19 tural products stored or handled by the warehouse oper20 ator.

21 ‘‘(h) SYSTEMS FOR CONVEYANCE OF TITLE IN AGRI22 CULTURAL PRODUCTS.—The Secretary may approve 1 or

23 more systems under which title in agricultural products

24 may be conveyed and under which documents relating to

25 the shipment, payment, and financing of the sale of agri-
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1 cultural products may be transferred, including convey2 ance of receipts and any other written or electronic docu3 ments in accordance with a process established by the Sec4 retary.

5 ‘‘(i) EXAMINATION AND AUDITS.—The Secretary

6 may conduct an examination, audit, or similar activity

7 with respect to—

8 ‘‘(1) any person that is engaged in the business

9 of storing an agricultural product that is subject to

10 this Act;

11 ‘‘(2) any State agency that regulates the stor12 age of an agricultural product by such a person; or

13 ‘‘(3) any commodity exchange with regulatory

14 authority over the storage of agricultural products

15 that are subject to this Act.

16 ‘‘(j) LICENSES FOR OPERATION OF WAREHOUSES.—

17 The Secretary may issue to any warehouse operator a li18 cense for the operation of a warehouse in accordance with

19 this Act if—

20 ‘‘(1) the Secretary determines that the ware21 house is suitable for the proper storage of the agri22 cultural product or products stored or proposed for

23 storage in the warehouse; and
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1 ‘‘(2) the warehouse operator agrees, as a condi2 tion of the license, to comply with this Act (includ3 ing regulations promulgated under this Act).

4 ‘‘(k) LICENSING OF OTHER PERSONS.—

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—On presentation of satisfac6 tory proof of competency to carry out the activities

7 described in this paragraph, the Secretary may issue

8 to any person a Federal license—

9 ‘‘(A) to inspect any agricultural product

10 stored or handled in a warehouse subject to this

11 Act;

12 ‘‘(B) to sample such an agricultural prod13 uct;

14 ‘‘(C) to classify such an agricultural prod15 uct according to condition, grade, or other class

16 and certify the condition, grade, or other class

17 of the agricultural product; or

18 ‘‘(D) to weigh such an agricultural product

19 and certify the weight of the agricultural prod20 uct.

21 ‘‘(2) CONDITION.—As a condition of a license

22 issued under paragraph (1), the licensee shall agree

23 to comply with this Act (including regulations pro24 mulgated under this Act).
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1 ‘‘(l) EXAMINATION OF BOOKS, RECORDS, PAPERS,

2 AND ACCOUNTS.—The Secretary may examine, using des3 ignated officers, employees, or agents of the Department,

4 all books, records, papers, and accounts relating to activi5 ties subject to this Act of—

6 ‘‘(1) a warehouse operator operating a ware7 house licensed under this Act;

8 ‘‘(2) a person operating a system for the elec9 tronic recording and transfer of receipts and other

10 documents authorized by the Secretary; or

11 ‘‘(3) any other person issuing receipts or elec12 tronic documents authorized by the Secretary under

13 this Act.

14 ‘‘(m) COOPERATION WITH STATES.—The Secretary

15 may—

16 ‘‘(1) cooperate with officers and employees of a

17 State who administer or enforce State laws relating

18 to warehouses, warehouse operators, weighers, grad19 ers, inspectors, samplers, or classifiers; and

20 ‘‘(2) enter into cooperative agreements with

21 States to perform activities authorized under this

22 Act.
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1 ‘‘SEC. 4. IMPOSITION AND COLLECTION OF FEES.

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall charge, as3 sess, and cause to be collected fees to cover the costs of

4 administering this Act.

5 ‘‘(b) RATES.—The fees under this section shall be set

6 at a rate determined by the Secretary.

7 ‘‘(c) TREATMENT OF FEES.—All fees collected under

8 this section shall be credited to the account that incurs

9 the costs of administering this Act and shall be available

10 to the Secretary without further appropriation and with11 out fiscal year limitation.

12 ‘‘(d) INTEREST.—Funds collected under this section

13 may be deposited in an interest bearing account with a

14 financial institution, and any interest earned on the ac15 count shall be credited under subsection (c).

16 ‘‘(e) EFFICIENCIES AND COST EFFECTIVENESS.—

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall seek to

18 minimize the fees established under this section by

19 improving efficiencies and reducing costs, including

20 the efficient use of personnel to the extent prac21 ticable and consistent with the effective implementa22 tion of this Act.

23 ‘‘(2) REPORT.—The Secretary shall publish an

24 annual report on the actions taken by the Secretary

25 to comply with paragraph (1).
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1 ‘‘SEC. 5. QUALITY AND VALUE STANDARDS.

2 ‘‘If standards for the evaluation or determination of

3 the quality or value of an agricultural product are not es4 tablished under another Federal law, the Secretary may

5 establish standards for the evaluation or determination of

6 the quality or value of the agricultural product under this

7 Act.

8 ‘‘SEC. 6. BONDING AND OTHER FINANCIAL ASSURANCE RE9 QUIREMENTS.

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—As a condition of receiving a li11 cense or approval under this Act (including regulations

12 promulgated under this Act), the person applying for the

13 license or approval shall execute and file with the Sec14 retary a bond, or provide such other financial assurance

15 as the Secretary determines appropriate, to secure the per16 son’s performance of the activities so licensed or approved.

17 ‘‘(b) SERVICE OF PROCESS.—To qualify as a suitable

18 bond or other financial assurance under subsection (a),

19 the surety, sureties, or financial institution shall be subject

20 to service of process in suits on the bond or other financial

21 assurance in the State, district, or territory in which the

22 warehouse is located.

23 ‘‘(c) ADDITIONAL ASSURANCES.—If the Secretary de24 termines that a previously approved bond or other finan25 cial assurance is insufficient, the Secretary may suspend

26 or revoke the license or approval covered by the bond or
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1 other financial assurance if the person that filed the bond

2 or other financial assurance does not provide such addi3 tional bond or other financial assurance as the Secretary

4 determines appropriate.

5 ‘‘(d) THIRD PARTY ACTIONS.—Any person injured by

6 the breach of any obligation arising under this Act for

7 which a bond or other financial assurance has been ob8 tained as required by this section may sue with respect

9 to the bond or other financial assurance in a district court

10 of the United States to recover the damages that the per11 son sustained as a result of the breach.

12 ‘‘SEC. 7. MAINTENANCE OF RECORDS.

13 ‘‘To facilitate the administration of this Act, the fol14 lowing persons shall maintain such records and make such

15 reports, as the Secretary may by regulation require:

16 ‘‘(1) A warehouse operator that is licensed

17 under this Act.

18 ‘‘(2) A person operating a system for the elec19 tronic recording and transfer of receipts and other

20 documents that are authorized under this Act.

21 ‘‘(3) Any other person issuing receipts or elec22 tronic documents that are authorized under this Act.

23 ‘‘SEC. 8. PRECLUSION OF LIABILITY.

24 ‘‘Nothing in this Act creates any liability with respect

25 to the Secretary or any officer, employee, or agent of the
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1 Department in any case in which a warehouse operator

2 or other person authorized by the Secretary to carry out

3 this Act fails to perform a contractual obligation that is

4 not subject to this Act (including regulations promulgated

5 under this Act).

6 ‘‘SEC. 9. FAIR TREATMENT IN STORAGE OF AGRICULTURAL

7 PRODUCTS.

8 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the capacity of a

9 warehouse, a warehouse operator shall deal, in a fair and

10 reasonable manner, with persons storing, or seeking to

11 store, an agricultural product in the warehouse if the agri12 cultural product—

13 ‘‘(1) is of the kind, type, and quality custom14 arily stored or handled in the area in which the

15 warehouse is located;

16 ‘‘(2) is tendered to the warehouse operator in a

17 suitable condition for warehousing; and

18 ‘‘(3) is tendered in a manner that is consistent

19 with the ordinary and usual course of business.

20 ‘‘(b) ALLOCATION.—Nothing in this section prohibits

21 a warehouse operator from entering into an agreement

22 with a depositor of an agricultural product to allocate

23 available storage space.
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1 ‘‘SEC. 10. COMMINGLING OF AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS.

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A warehouse operator may com3 mingle agricultural products in a manner approved by the

4 Secretary.

5 ‘‘(b) LIABILITY.—A warehouse operator shall be sev6 erally liable to each depositor or holder for the care and

7 redelivery of the share of the depositor and holder of the

8 commingled agricultural product to the same extent and

9 under the same circumstances as if the agricultural prod10 ucts had been stored separately.

11 ‘‘SEC. 11. TRANSFER OF STORED AGRICULTURAL PROD12 UCTS.

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In accordance with regulations

14 promulgated under this Act, a warehouse operator may

15 transfer a stored agricultural product from 1 warehouse

16 to another warehouse for continued storage.

17 ‘‘(b) CONTINUED DUTY.—The warehouse operator

18 from which agricultural products have been transferred

19 under subsection (a) shall deliver to the rightful owner of

20 such products, on request at the original warehouse, such

21 products in the quantity and of the kind, quality, and

22 grade called for by the receipt or other evidence of storage

23 of the owner.
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1 ‘‘SEC. 12. ISSUANCE OF RECEIPTS AND OTHER DOCU2 MENTS.

3 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsections (b) and

4 (c) and except as otherwise provided in this Act, at the

5 request of the depositor of an agricultural product stored

6 or handled in a warehouse licensed under this Act, the

7 warehouse operator shall issue a receipt to the depositor

8 as prescribed by the Secretary.

9 ‘‘(b) ACTUAL STORAGE REQUIRED.—A receipt may

10 not be issued under this section for an agricultural prod11 uct unless the agricultural product is actually stored in

12 the warehouse at the time of the issuance of the receipt.

13 ‘‘(c) CONTENTS.—Each receipt issued for an agricul14 tural product stored or handled in a warehouse licensed

15 under this Act shall contain such information, for each

16 agricultural product covered by the receipt, as the Sec17 retary may require by regulation.

18 ‘‘(d) PROHIBITION ON ADDITIONAL RECEIPTS OR

19 OTHER DOCUMENTS.—

20 ‘‘(1) RECEIPTS.—While a receipt issued under

21 this Act is outstanding and uncanceled by the ware22 house operator, no other or further receipt may be

23 issued for the same agricultural product (or any por24 tion of the same agricultural product) represented

25 by the outstanding receipt, except as authorized by

26 the Secretary.
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1 ‘‘(2) OTHER DOCUMENTS.—If a written or elec2 tronic document is recorded or transferred under

3 this section, no other similar document in any form

4 shall be issued by any person with respect to the

5 same agricultural product represented by the docu6 ment, except as authorized by the Secretary.

7 ‘‘(e) ELECTRONIC RECEIPTS AND ELECTRONIC DOC8 UMENTS.—Except as provided in subsection (f) and not9 withstanding any other provision of Federal or State law:

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall pro11 mulgate regulations to authorize the issuance of

12 electronic receipts, and the recording and transfer of

13 electronic receipts and other documents, in accord14 ance with this subsection.

15 ‘‘(2) SYSTEMS FOR ELECTRONIC RECORDING

16 AND TRANSFER.—Electronic receipts and electronic

17 documents issued with respect to an agricultural

18 product may be recorded in, and transferred under,

19 a system or systems maintained in 1 or more loca20 tions.

21 ‘‘(3) TREATMENT OF HOLDER.—The person

22 designated as a holder of an electronic receipt or

23 other electronic document shall be considered, for

24 the purposes of Federal and State law, to be in pos25 session of the receipt or document.
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1 ‘‘(4) SECURITY INTERESTS.—

2 ‘‘(A) PERFECTION OF INTEREST.—Any se3 curity interest lawfully asserted by a person

4 under any Federal or State law with respect to

5 an agricultural product that is the subject of an

6 electronic receipt, or an electronic document

7 filed under any system for electronic receipts or

8 other electronic documents issued or filed in ac9 cordance with this Act, may be perfected only

10 by recording the security interest in the system

11 in the manner specified by the regulations pro12 mulgated under paragraph (1).

13 ‘‘(B) EFFECT OF RECORDATION.—The rec14 ordation by a person of the person’s security in15 terest in any agricultural product included in

16 any system for electronic receipts or other elec17 tronic documents issued or filed in accordance

18 with this Act shall, for the purposes of Federal

19 and State law, establish the security interest of

20 the person.

21 ‘‘(C) PRIORITY.—If more than 1 security

22 interest exists in an agricultural product cov23 ered by an electronic receipt, the priority of the

24 security interests shall be determined by the ap25 plicable Federal or State law.
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1 ‘‘(D) ENCUMBRANCES.—

2 ‘‘(i) OPERATORS LICENSED UNDER

3 STATE LAW.—If a warehouse operator li4 censed under State law elects to issue an

5 electronic receipt authorized under this

6 subsection, a security interest, lien, or

7 other encumbrance may be recorded on the

8 electronic receipt under this subsection

9 only if the security interest, lien, or other

10 encumbrance is—

11 ‘‘(I) authorized by State law to

12 be included on a written warehouse

13 receipt; and

14 ‘‘(II) recorded in a manner pre15 scribed by the Secretary.

16 ‘‘(ii) OTHER APPLICATIONS.—If a

17 warehouse operator licensed under this

18 Act, or a warehouse operator not licensed

19 under State law, elects to issue an elec20 tronic receipt authorized under this sub21 section, a security interest, lien, or other

22 encumbrance shall be recorded on the elec23 tronic receipt in a manner prescribed by

24 the Secretary.
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1 ‘‘(5) EFFECT OF PURCHASE OF RECEIPT OR

2 DOCUMENT.—A person purchasing an electronic re3 ceipt or electronic document shall take possession of

4 the agricultural product free and clear of all liens,

5 except those liens recorded in the system or systems

6 established under the regulations promulgated under

7 paragraph (1).

8 ‘‘(6) ACCEPTANCE.—

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An electronic receipt

10 issued, and an electronic document transferred,

11 in accordance with the regulations promulgated

12 under paragraph (1) shall be accepted in any

13 business, market, or financial transaction,

14 whether governed by Federal or State law.

15 ‘‘(B) NO ELECTRONIC RECEIPT RE16 QUIRED.—A person shall not be required to

17 issue a receipt or document with respect to an

18 agricultural product in electronic format.

19 ‘‘(7) LEGAL EFFECT.—Information created to

20 comply with this Act (including regulations promul21 gated under this Act) shall not be denied legal ef22 fect, validity, or enforceability on the ground that

23 the information is generated, sent, received, or

24 stored by electronic or similar means.
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1 ‘‘(8) OPTION FOR STATE LICENSED WARE2 HOUSE OPERATORS.—Notwithstanding any other

3 provision of this Act, a State-licensed warehouse op4 erator not licensed under this Act may, at the option

5 of the warehouse operator, issue electronic receipts

6 and electronic documents in accordance with this

7 subsection.

8 ‘‘(9) APPLICATION.—This subsection shall not

9 apply to a warehouse operator that is licensed under

10 State law to store agricultural commodities in a

11 warehouse in the State if the warehouse operator

12 elects—

13 ‘‘(A) not to issue electronic receipts au14 thorized under this subsection; or

15 ‘‘(B) to issue electronic receipts authorized

16 under State law.

17 ‘‘(f) ELECTRONIC RECEIPTS AND ELECTRONIC DOC18 UMENTS FOR COTTON.—

19 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY.—

20 ‘‘(A) CENTRAL FILING.—Notwithstanding

21 any other provision of Federal or State law, the

22 Secretary, or the designated representative of

23 the Secretary, may provide that, in lieu of

24 issuing a receipt for cotton stored in a ware25 house licensed under this Act or in any other
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1 warehouse, the information required to be in2 cluded in a receipt (i) under this Act in the case

3 of a warehouse licensed under this Act or (ii)

4 under any applicable State law in the case of

5 a warehouse not licensed under this Act, shall

6 be recorded instead in 1 or more central filing

7 systems maintained in 1 or more locations in

8 accordance with regulations promulgated by the

9 Secretary.

10 ‘‘(B) DELIVERY OF COTTON.—Any record

11 under subparagraph (A) shall include a state12 ment that the cotton shall be delivered to a

13 specified person or to the order of the person.

14 ‘‘(C) ELECTRONIC TRANSMISSION FACILI15 TIES BETWEEN WAREHOUSES AND SYSTEM.—

16 ‘‘(i) NONAPPLICABILITY TO WARE17 HOUSES WITHOUT FACILITIES.—This sub18 section and section 4 shall not apply to a

19 warehouse that does not have facilities to

20 electronically transmit and receive informa21 tion to and from a central filing system

22 under this subsection.

23 ‘‘(ii) NO REQUIREMENT TO OBTAIN

24 FACILITIES.—Nothing in this subsection
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1 requires a warehouse operator to obtain fa2 cilities described in clause (i).

3 ‘‘(2) RECORDATION AND ENFORCEMENT OF

4 LIENS IN CENTRAL FILING SYSTEM.—Notwith5 standing any other provision of Federal or State

6 law:

7 ‘‘(A) RECORDATION.—The record of the

8 possessory interests of persons in cotton in9 cluded in a central filing system under this

10 subsection—

11 ‘‘(i) shall be considered to be a receipt

12 for the purposes of this Act and State law;

13 and

14 ‘‘(ii) shall establish the possessory in15 terest of persons in the cotton.

16 ‘‘(B) ENFORCEMENT.—

17 ‘‘(i) POSSESSION OF WAREHOUSE RE18 CEIPT.—Any person designated as a holder

19 of an electronic warehouse receipt author20 ized under this subsection or section 4

21 shall, for the purpose of perfecting the se22 curity interest of the person under Federal

23 or State law with respect to the cotton cov24 ered by the warehouse receipt, be consid-
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1 ered to be in possession of the warehouse

2 receipt.

3 ‘‘(ii) PRIORITY OF SECURITY INTER4 ESTS.—If more than 1 security interest ex5 ists in the cotton represented by the elec6 tronic warehouse receipt, the priority of

7 the security interests shall be determined

8 by applicable Federal or State law.

9 ‘‘(iii) APPLICABILITY.—This sub10 section is applicable to electronic cotton

11 warehouse receipts and any other security

12 interests covering cotton stored in a cotton

13 warehouse, regardless of whether the ware14 house is licensed under this Act.

15 ‘‘(3) CONDITIONS FOR DELIVERY ON DEMAND

16 FOR COTTON STORED.—A warehouse operator oper17 ating a warehouse covered by this subsection, in the

18 absence of a lawful excuse, shall, without unneces19 sary delay, deliver the cotton stored in the ware20 house on demand made by the person named in the

21 record in the central filing system as the holder of

22 the receipt representing the cotton, if the demand is

23 accompanied by—
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1 ‘‘(A) an offer to satisfy the valid lien of a

2 warehouse operator, as determined by the Sec3 retary; and

4 ‘‘(B) an offer to provide an acknowledg5 ment in a central filing system under this sub6 section, if requested by the warehouse operator,

7 that the cotton has been delivered.

8 ‘‘SEC. 13. CONDITIONS FOR DELIVERY OF AGRICULTURAL

9 PRODUCTS.

10 ‘‘(a) PROMPT DELIVERY.—In the absence of a lawful

11 excuse, a warehouse operator shall, without unnecessary

12 delay, deliver the agricultural product stored or handled

13 in the warehouse on a demand made by—

14 ‘‘(1) the holder of the receipt for the agricul15 tural product; or

16 ‘‘(2) the person that deposited the product, if

17 no receipt has been issued.

18 ‘‘(b) PAYMENT TO ACCOMPANY DEMAND IF RE19 QUESTED.—

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Demand for delivery shall

21 be accompanied by payment of the accrued charges

22 associated with the storage of the agricultural prod23 uct if requested by the warehouse operator.

24 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL RULE FOR COTTON.—In the case

25 of cotton stored in a warehouse, the warehouse oper-
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1 ator shall provide a written request for payment of

2 the accrued charges associated with the storage of

3 the cotton to the holder of the receipt at the time

4 at which demand for the delivery of the cotton is

5 made.

6 ‘‘(c) SURRENDER OF RECEIPT.—When the holder of

7 a receipt requests delivery of an agricultural product cov8 ered by the receipt, the holder shall surrender the receipt

9 to the warehouse operator, in the manner prescribed by

10 the Secretary, to obtain the agricultural product.

11 ‘‘(d) CANCELLATION OF RECEIPT.—A warehouse op12 erator shall cancel each receipt returned to the warehouse

13 operator upon the delivery of the agricultural product for

14 which the receipt was issued.

15 ‘‘SEC. 14. SUSPENSION OR REVOCATION OF LICENSES.

16 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—After providing notice and an

17 opportunity for a hearing in accordance with this section,

18 the Secretary may suspend or revoke any license issued,

19 or approval for an activity provided, under this Act—

20 ‘‘(1) for a material violation of, or failure to

21 comply, with any provision of this Act (including

22 regulations promulgated under this Act); or

23 ‘‘(2) on the ground that unreasonable or exorbi24 tant charges have been imposed for services ren25 dered.
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1 ‘‘(b) TEMPORARY SUSPENSION.—The Secretary may

2 temporarily suspend a license or approval for an activity

3 under this Act prior to an opportunity for a hearing for

4 any violation of, or failure to comply with, any provision

5 of this Act (including regulations promulgated under this

6 Act).

7 ‘‘(c) AUTHORITY TO CONDUCT HEARINGS.—The

8 agency within the Department that is responsible for ad9 ministering regulations promulgated under this Act shall

10 have exclusive authority to conduct any hearing required

11 under this section.

12 ‘‘(d) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—

13 ‘‘(1) JURISDICTION.—A final administrative de14 termination issued subsequent to a hearing may be

15 reviewable only in a district court of the United

16 States.

17 ‘‘(2) PROCEDURE.—The review shall be con18 ducted in accordance with the standards set forth in

19 section 706(2) of title 5, United States Code.

20 ‘‘SEC. 15. PUBLIC INFORMATION.

21 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may release to the

22 public the results of any investigation made or hearing

23 conducted under this Act, including the names, addresses,

24 and locations of all persons—
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1 ‘‘(1) that have been licensed under this Act or

2 that have been approved to engage in an activity

3 under this Act; and

4 ‘‘(2) with respect to which a license or approval

5 has been suspended or revoked under section 14, in6 cluding the reasons for the suspension or revocation.

7 ‘‘(b) CONFIDENTIALITY.—Except as otherwise pro8 vided by law, an officer, employee, or agent of the Depart9 ment shall not divulge confidential business information

10 obtained during a warehouse examination or other func11 tion performed as part of the duties of the officer, em12 ployee, or agent under this Act.

13 ‘‘SEC. 16. PENALTIES FOR NONCOMPLIANCE.

14 ‘‘(a) CIVIL PENALTIES.—If a person fails to comply

15 with any requirement of this Act (including regulations

16 promulgated under this Act), the Secretary may assess,

17 on the record after an opportunity for a hearing, a civil

18 penalty—

19 ‘‘(1) of not more than $25,000 per violation, if

20 an agricultural product is not involved in the viola21 tion; or

22 ‘‘(2) of not more than 100 percent of the value

23 of the agricultural product, if an agricultural prod24 uct is involved in the violation.
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•S 2734 IS

1 ‘‘(b) FEDERAL JURISDICTION.—A district court of

2 the United States shall have exclusive jurisdiction over any

3 action brought under this Act without regard to the

4 amount in controversy or the citizenship of the parties.

5 ‘‘(c) ARBITRATION.—Nothing in this Act prevents

6 the enforceability of an agreement to arbitrate that would

7 otherwise be enforceable under chapter 1 of title 9, United

8 States Code.

9 ‘‘SEC. 17. REGULATIONS.

10 ‘‘The Secretary shall promulgate such regulations as

11 the Secretary considers necessary to carry out this Act.

12 ‘‘SEC. 18. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATION.

13 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated such sums

14 as are necessary to carry out this Act.’’.

Æ