Source: http://www.wvlegislature.gov/WVCODE/Code.cfm?chap=19&amp;art=10A
Timestamp: 2019-04-19 23:39:37+00:00

Document:
§19-1-3. Employees; itemized statement of expenditures; monthly statement and payment of moneys received by commissioner.
§19-1-3a. Marketing and Development Division; duties.
§19-1-4a. Commissioner authorized to accept gifts, etc., and enter into cooperative agreements.
§19-1-4b. Authority of commissioner to increase certain fees by rules or regulations.
§19-1-4d. Farmland preservation fees fund.
§19-1-6. Duty of assessor to gather statistics.
§19-1-7. Shared animal ownership agreement to consume raw milk.
§19-1-8. Penalty for failure of assessor to perform duties.
§19-1-10. Requirement for social security number on applications.
§19-1-11. Rural Rehabilitation Loan Program.
§19-1-12. Veterans and Warriors to Agriculture Program and fund.
There shall be a Department of Agriculture under the control and supervision of a commissioner of agriculture.
The commissioner of agriculture shall be elected by the qualified voters of the state at the same time and in the same manner as other state officers are elected, and shall hold office for a term of four years and until his successor is elected and qualified.
The commissioner shall be a practical farmer, learned in the science of agriculture, and shall have made agriculture his chief business for a period of ten years immediately preceding his election.
The commissioner shall organize his department and may employ such assistants, agents, clerks, stenographers, chemists, analysts, botanists, microscopists, institute instructors, pomologists, entomologists, veterinarians and such other employees as may be necessary in the performance of the duties of his office and fix their compensation and may require them to give bond for the faithful performance of their duties.
It shall be the duty of the commissioner to certify to the Auditor of this state, from time to time, an itemized account of all expenditures made by him for clerk hire and other purposes, whereupon the Auditor shall draw his warrant on the treasurer of the state for the payment thereof out of the funds appropriated by the Legislature for that purpose, but in no case to exceed such appropriation.
The commissioner shall, within ten days after the expiration of each month, submit to the Auditor and treasurer an itemized statement of all moneys received by him during that month, and at the same time pay such money into the treasury of the state.
The duties of the Marketing and Development Division are to establish marketing, promotional and development programs to advance West Virginia agriculture in the domestic and international markets; to provide grading, inspection and market news services to the various elements of the West Virginia agricultural industry; and to regulate and license individuals involved in the marketing of agricultural products.
(k) Propose rules, including regulatory standards, for legislative approval in accordance with the provisions of article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code for the purpose of carrying out the requirements of this chapter.
The commissioner of agriculture is hereby empowered and he shall have authority to accept and receive donations, gifts, contributions, grants, and appropriations of money, services, materials, real estate or other things of value from the United States Department of Agriculture, or any of its divisions or bureaus, and he shall have authority to use, utilize, develop, or expend such money, services, material, or other contributions in conformity with the conditions and provisions set forth in such grants, appropriations, or donations.
By and with the approval of the Governor, the commissioner may accept and receive donations, gifts, contributions, and grants of money, services, materials, real estate, and other things of value from individuals, partnerships, associations, or corporations, and he shall have authority to utilize such contributions to encourage, promote and develop the agricultural interests or industries of the state.
The commissioner is hereby empowered, and he shall have authority, to enter into agreements with any department of state government for the purpose of carrying out any regulatory laws where or when any related functions or duties exist. He shall also have authority to enter into agreements with any city council or county court of the State of West Virginia, for carrying out the provisions of the agricultural laws over which he has enforcement authority.
The commissioner is hereby authorized to promulgate and adopt rules in accordance with the provisions of chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, fixing dues for permits, licenses, certificates, registrations and laboratory tests when, in the opinion of the commissioner, it becomes necessary to increase these fees in order to cover the costs of providing the services involved or issuing the permits, licenses, certificates or registrations applicable.
There is hereby created a special revenue account within the state Treasury to be known as "Agricultural Fees Fund". Expenditures from the fund shall be used exclusively by the commissioner of agriculture for the purpose of enforcement and administration of this chapter. Moneys paid into the account shall be from all moneys collected under this chapter, except those designated in article one-a; article two-g; article twenty-one; article twenty-one-a; article twenty-one-b; article twenty-three; article twenty-five; article twenty-six; article twenty-seven; and section twenty-three, article sixteen-a.
There is hereby created a special revenue account within the state Treasury to be known as "Farmland Preservation Fees Fund". Expenditures from the fund shall be used exclusively by the commissioner of agriculture for the purpose of funding farmland preservation boards in any county which has adopted and implemented a farmland protection program pursuant to the farmland preservation act as enacted beginning with section seventy-two, article twenty-four, chapter eight of this code.
The commissioner of agriculture is hereby authorized to conduct cooperative work with the United States Department of Agriculture in gathering and disseminating information concerning agriculture, and it shall be the duty of the commissioner of agriculture and the Tax Commissioner to prepare and supply to the several assessors of the state printed forms, books, blanks, papers and reports, which are hereby required to be printed by the state printer out of the printing fund of the state, to be used in the gathering of such agricultural and other statistics as the commissioner of agriculture may require.
Commencing on July 1, of each year, the assessors shall proceed to gather such statistics as the commissioner of agriculture and the Tax Commissioner may require, and the printed books, forms, blanks, papers and reports when so completed shall be returned to the commissioner of agriculture, on or before March 1 next ensuing.
(5) Agrees not to distribute raw milk. The sale or resale of raw milk obtained from a herd share is strictly prohibited.
(b) The signed and executed shared animal ownership agreement shall be filed by the herd seller with the Commissioner of Agriculture and shall contain the names, addresses and phone numbers of the herd seller and the responsible party so that either party may be contacted in the event of an illness.
(2) Milk-producing animals producing bloody, stringy or abnormal milk, but with only slight inflammation of the udder, shall be excluded from the milking herd until reexamination shows that the milk has become normal. Milk-producing animals showing chronic mastitis, whether producing abnormal milk or not, shall be permanently excluded from the milking herd.
(d) Parties to a shared animal ownership agreement and physicians who become aware of an illness directly related to consuming raw milk shall report the illness to the local health department and the Commissioner of Agriculture. Upon receipt of such a report, the Commissioner of Agriculture or his or her designee shall contact and warn other parties consuming raw milk from the same herd seller.
(e) The Commissioner of Agriculture may impose an administrative penalty not to exceed $100 for a person who violates the provisions of this section. Any penalty imposed under this subsection may be contested by the person against whom it is imposed pursuant to article five, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code.
(f) The Commissioner of Agriculture, in consultation with the Department of Health and Human Resources, may propose rules for promulgation in accordance with the provisions of article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code in compliance with raw milk dairy industry standards.
Any assessor failing to perform any of the duties required of him in this article shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, fined not more than $100.
There shall be a state agriculture advisory board to consist of the Governor, the commissioner of agriculture and the director of the cooperative extension service of West Virginia University, ex officio. It shall be the duty of the members of such board to meet together at the seat of government at least four times each year at regular intervals to consider the conditions and needs of the agricultural interests of the state, and how and in what manner the functions, powers and duties assigned by law to each Department of Agriculture may be most efficiently and economically administered for the benefit of the state so that there may be neither overlapping, duplication nor interference of, by or with the work of the one department with that of the other, and that the department best calculated to exercise and discharge certain powers, duties or functions be thereunto appointed and authorized, and that the other department shall desist from further activities in that behalf.
The decision of any two members of such board shall be final, and the department against which such decision shall be shall cease all activities not in conformity with such decision, and the other department shall proceed to carry on the work in conformity therewith.
The commissioner shall require every applicant for a license, permit, certificate of registration, or registration under this chapter to place his or her social security number on the application.
(a) The Rural Rehabilitation Loan Program is an important tool for the Commissioner of Agriculture to promote investment in the agricultural industry in the state. Rules are needed for the loan program to remain viable.
(8) Transfer the servicing of the program loans to a financial institution via competitive bid or to the State Treasurer's office.
(c) The commissioner shall file an annual report to the Joint Committee on Government and Finance regarding the loan program, including information about the loans awarded, loans repaid, loans outstanding, interest rates, delinquency and collections, and other pertinent data.
West Virginians have a longstanding tradition of service in the armed forces of the United States. Many veterans suffer from physical and emotional afflictions and are often unable to find gainful employment upon returning from combat. Exploring opportunities to engage West Virginia's veterans in agriculture is beneficial to the health and welfare of veterans, as well as to the future of West Virginia's agricultural economy.
The Department of Agriculture shall develop a Veterans and Warriors to Agriculture Program to integrate veterans into the field of agriculture, and support veterans currently working in agriculture. These programs may include, but are not limited to, using post-mine land for agricultural development, promoting high tunnel crops and production, expanding the apiary industry, developing cottage industries, exploring niche crops, raising more livestock, increasing the aquaculture industry and helping veterans promote their agricultural products through farmers markets and cooperatives. The department, Department of Veterans' Assistance and the state's Adjutant General shall work together to recruit and train eligible veterans, and develop and support the program.
(c) Veterans and Warriors to Agriculture Fund. -- There is hereby created in the State Treasury a special revenue account, designated the Veterans and Warriors to Agriculture Fund. The fund shall consist of income from leasing the department's property for the program, surplus funds which may be transferred from the fund created by section six-a, article twelve-a of this chapter, gifts, grants and donations, and legislative appropriations which may be made to support the program. Expenditures from the fund shall be used exclusively, in accordance with appropriations by the Legislature, to pay costs, fees and expenses necessary to administer the Veterans and Warriors to Agriculture Program: Provided, That for fiscal year ending June 30, 2015, expenditures are authorized from collections rather than pursuant to an appropriation by the Legislature.
(d) Notwithstanding any provision in this code to the contrary, should the Department of Agriculture deem it necessary to provide land for activities within this program, it is exempt from the purchasing requirements as they relate to the competitive leasing of state property.
(e) The commissioner may propose emergency or legislative rules for approval in accordance with the provisions of article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code to effectuate the provisions of this section.

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