Article 6. Assessments And Records of California Food And Agricultural Code >> Division 22. >> Part 2. >> Chapter 14. >> Article 6.

(a) The commission shall, not later than April 20 of each year, establish the assessment for the following marketing season, which shall not exceed fifteen cents ($0.15) per 18-pound container or its equivalent in volume in fresh shipping cherries, or three-tenths of one cent ($0.003) per pound for processing cherries.
  (b) A fee greater than that specified in subdivision (a) may be charged only if approved by producers pursuant to Section 76112.

This chapter does not apply to cherries produced for the producer's home use, to cherries used only for ornamental purposes, or to cherries grown on land totaling one acre or less by a person who is not a producer for purposes of this chapter. However, a person subject to this section shall file an affidavit with the commission establishing that his or her cherries are exempt from this chapter.

(a) Every processor, shipper, and grower-handler shall keep a complete and accurate record of all cherries processed, shipped, or grower handled by him or her, with the name of the producer whose cherries were processed, shipped, or handled. The records shall be in simple form and contain any information that the commission prescribes.
  (b) The records shall be kept by the processor, shipper, or grower-handler for a period of two years and offered and submitted for inspection at any reasonable time upon written demand of the commission or its duly authorized agent.

All proprietary information obtained by the commission or the director from producers, processors, shippers, or grower-handlers is confidential and shall not be disclosed except when required in a judicial proceeding. Information on volume shipments, crop value, and any other related information which is required for reports to governmental agencies, financial reports to the commission, or aggregate sales and inventory information, and any other such information which the processors, shippers, or grower-handlers request from the commisson to receive in total, excluding the individual processor, shipper, or grower-handler information, may be disclosed to the commission.

Assessments shall be upon the producer. The first shipper, grower-handler, or processor of cherries being assessed shall deduct the assessment from amounts paid by him or her to the producer, and shall be a trustee of the funds until they are paid to the commission at the time and in the manner prescribed by the commission.

Every processor, shipper, and grower-handler is personally liable for the payment of the collected assessments, and failure of the processor, shipper or grower-handler to collect the assessment from any producer shall not exempt any processor, shipper, or grower-handler from liability for these funds.

Any assessment which is levied as provided for in this chapter, is a personal debt of every producer so assessed. Failure of a processor, shipper, or grower-handler to collect the assessment does not relieve the producer of the obligation to pay the assessment.

Any producer, processor, shipper, or grower-handler who fails to file a return or pay any assessment within the time required by the commission shall pay to the commission a penalty of 10 percent of the amount of such assessment determined to be due and, in addition, one and one-half percent interest per month on the unpaid balance.