Article 3. The California Avocado Commission of California Food And Agricultural Code >> Division 22. >> Part 2. >> Chapter 5. >> Article 3.

(a) There is in the state government the California Avocado Commission.
  (b) The commission shall be composed of the following members:
  (1) (A) If the commission consists of three districts, nine producers who are not handlers, three elected from each district.
  (B) If the commission consists of four districts, eight producers who are not handlers, two elected from each district.
  (C) If the commission consists of five districts, 10 producers who are not handlers, two elected from each district.
  (2) Four avocado handlers elected on a statewide basis.
  (3) One public member who shall be appointed to the commission by the secretary from nominees recommended by the commission.
  (4) The secretary who shall be a nonvoting ex officio member of the commission.

Notwithstanding Section 67051, any handler that handles 30 percent or more of the volume of avocados in the preceding marketing season, as annually determined by the secretary, may appoint one handler member to the commission. All other handlers shall nominate and elect the remaining handler members pursuant to this chapter. Any handler appointed to the commission pursuant to this section shall maintain his or her eligibility under this section during the entire term of office. Any vacancy caused by the ineligibility of the handler shall be filled in accordance with Section 67053.

The secretary may require the commission to correct or cease any activity or function which is determined by the secretary not to be in the public interest or is in violation of this chapter. If the commission refuses or fails to cease the activities or functions or to make corrections as required by the secretary, the secretary may, upon written notice, suspend all or a portion of the activities of the commission until the time that the cessation or correction of activities or functions as required by the secretary have been accomplished. Any written notice, to cease any activity which is the subject of a contract of the commission entered into by the commission prior to the notice, shall not be effective until after the period of notice for termination provided in the contract or 120 days, whichever is shorter. Upon service of the written notice, the secretary shall notify the commission in writing, of the specific acts which he or she determines are not in the public interest or are in violation of this chapter.

Either the commission or the secretary may bring an action for judicial relief in a court of competent jurisdiction, which may issue a temporary restraining order, permanent injunction, or other applicable relief.

(a) Each district shall have one alternate producer member, to be elected in the same manner as producer members.
  (b) The alternate producer member shall, in the absence of a producer member from the same district, sit in place of the producer member on the commission and shall have, and be able to exercise, all the rights, privileges, and powers of the producer member when sitting on the commission.

(a) There shall be two alternate handler members to be elected in the same manner as the handler members.
  (b) Each alternate handler member shall be assigned to serve as the alternate to two handler members in accordance with commission election procedures.
  (c) An alternate handler member shall, in the absence of an assigned handler member, sit in place of the absent handler member on the commission and shall have, and be able to exercise, all the rights, privileges, and powers of the handler member when sitting on the commission.

(a) There shall be one alternate public member who shall be appointed by the secretary from nominees recommended by the commission.
  (b) The alternate public member shall, in the absence of the public member, sit in place of the absent public member on the commission and shall have, and be able to exercise, all the rights, privileges, and powers of the public member when sitting on the commission.

(a) Any vacancy of a member position on the commission occurring for any reason including the failure of any member to continue in his or her position due to a change in status making him or her ineligible to serve, or through death, removal, or resignation, shall be filled, for the unexpired portion of the term, by the alternate member for that position.
  (b) Any vacancy of an alternate member position on the commission occurring for any reason, including the alternate's move to the member position or the failure of any alternate member to continue in his or her position due to a change in status making him or her ineligible to serve, or through death, removal, or resignation, shall be filled for the unexpired portion of the term by a majority vote of the commission.
  (c) Any person filling a vacant member or alternate member position shall fulfill all the qualifications set forth in this article as required for the member or alternate member.

(a) Producer members and alternate producer members on the commission shall have a financial interest in producing, or causing to be produced, avocados for market. In order to be elected a member or alternate member, a producer shall, at the time of the election, have a financial interest in the production of avocados within the district in which the producer stands for election.
  (b) A producer may stand for election in any district in which the producer has a financial interest in the production of avocados.
  (c) A producer who chooses to stand for election in a particular district shall not stand for election in any other district for a period of four years from the date of his or her most recent election to the commission. However, this subdivision does not apply in an election to fill vacancies created by the reapportionment of districts pursuant to Section 67042.
  (d) Handler members and the alternate handler members shall have a financial interest in handling avocados for markets.
  (e) The public member shall not have any financial interest in the avocado industry. Except for the nomination of another public member, the public member and his or her alternate member on the commission shall have all the powers, rights, and privileges of any other member on the commission.

(a) Except as specified in subdivision (b), the term of office of all members and alternate members, except the ex officio member, shall be for two years from the date of their election or appointment and until their successors are qualified.
  (b) Of the first members of the commission from each district, one shall serve for one year, and the remaining member or members shall serve for two years, with the determination of the term of each member to be made by lot. Subsequent to the election of the first members from each district, the terms of the members shall continue to be staggered, as provided in this subdivision.
  (c) Terms of office of each member and alternate member shall be limited to four consecutive terms.

The commission shall have the power to sue and be sued and to contract and be contracted with. Copies of its proceedings, records, and acts, when certified by an officer, are admissible in evidence in all courts of the state, and are prima facie evidence of the truth of all statements therein.

The commission may appoint its own officers, including a chairman, one or more vice chairmen, and such other officers as it deems necessary. The officers shall have the powers and duties as may be delegated to them by the commission.

The commission shall have the power to appoint committees composed of both members and nonmembers of the commission to advise the commission in carrying out this chapter.

Unless otherwise specified, a quorum of the commission shall be any 11 voting members if the commission consists of three or five districts and any 10 voting members if the commission consists of four districts. The vote of a majority of members present at a meeting at which there is a quorum shall constitute the act of the commission.

The secretary or his or her representatives shall be notified and may attend each meeting of the commission.

A member, alternate member, or member of a committee who is a nonmember of the commission shall not receive a salary, but may receive a sum of not to exceed one hundred dollars ($100) per day, as established by the commission, for each day spent in actual attendance at or in traveling to and from meetings of the commission or committees of the commission, or on authorized assignment for the commission, together with the necessary traveling expenses and meal allowances, as approved by the commission.

All moneys received by any person from the assessments levied under the authority of this chapter or otherwise received by the commission, shall be deposited in such financial institutions as the commission may designate and shall be disbursed by order of the commission through a member, officer, or employee designated for that purpose. Any such person shall be bonded by a fidelity bond, executed by a surety company authorized to transact business as such in the State of California, in favor of the commission, conditioned upon the strict accounting of all funds of the commission in the penal sum of not less than five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000).

The state is not liable for the acts of the commission or its contracts, except for state-directed supervision of the avocado inspection program, as specified in Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 44971) of Division 17, which is performed under an agreement that specifies that each of the parties shall be responsible and liable for that party's decisions made pursuant to the agreement, and that each of the parties shall not be held liable by the other party for the decisions made pursuant to the agreement. Payment of all claims arising by reason of the administration of this chapter or acts of the commission shall be limited to the funds collected by the commission. No member of the commission or alternate member, or any employee or agent thereof, shall be personally liable on the contracts of the commission nor shall a member, alternate member, or employee of the commission be responsible individually in any way to any producer or handler or any other person for error in judgment, mistakes, or other acts, either of commission or omission, as principal, agent, or employee, except for his or her own individual acts of dishonesty or crime. No member or alternate member shall be held responsible individually for any act or omission of any member of the commission. The liability of the members shall be several and not joint, and no member shall be liable for the default of any other members.