Article 14. Administrative Fees of California Food And Agricultural Code >> Division 21. >> Part 3. >> Chapter 2. >> Article 14.

Every handler subject to the provisions of any stabilization and marketing plan, including a producer-handler, shall deduct as an assessment from payments made to producers for market milk, including the handler's own production, the sum of one and six-tenths cents ($0.016) per hundredweight of market milk. The amount of the assessments so deducted shall be paid to the director on or before the 45th day following the last day of the month during which such market milk was received. Every handler subject to the provisions of any stabilization and marketing plan that purchases or handles market milk from producers, including the handler's own production, if any, shall pay a fee of eight-tenths of one cent ($0.008) per hundredweight of market milk. The amount of such fee shall be paid to the director on or before the 45th day following the last day of the month in which such market milk was received.

The director may fix the rates of assessments or fees required by Section 62211 at lesser amounts, and may adjust the rates of assessments or fees from time to time, whenever he or she finds that the cost of administering the provisions of this chapter, including any allocation of funds made pursuant to Section 38986, can be defrayed from revenues derived from the lower rates. However, the rate of assessments deducted from payments to producers for market milk, including the handler's own production, and the rate of fees paid by handlers shall, at all times, be in the ratio of 2 to 1, except that this ratio need not be achieved during a six-month period following the transfer of any fund surplus pursuant to Section 62574.

Any assessment or fee or either of them payable pursuant to any provision of this article is a debt of the person by whom such assessment or fee or either of them is payable and shall be due and payable to the director upon the date set forth in Section 62211. If such person does not pay such assessment or fee or either of them upon the required date, the director may file a complaint against such person in a state court of competent jurisdiction for the collection of such assessment or fee or either of them. If any such person does not pay to the director the assessments or fees or either of them provided for in this article, on or before the date specified in Section 62211, the director may add to such unpaid assessments or fees or either of them an amount not exceeding 10 percent of such unpaid assessment or fees or either of them to defray the cost of enforcing the collection of such unpaid assessments or fees or either of them.