7 U.S.C. § 7216

Current through P.L. 118-106 (published on www.congress.gov on 10/04/2024)

Section 7216 - Violations of contract

(a) Termination of contract for violation

Except as provided in subsection (b), if an owner or producer subject to a contract violates a requirement of the contract specified in section 7211(a) of this title, the Secretary shall terminate the contract with respect to the owner or producer on each farm in which the owner or producer has an interest. On the termination, the owner or producer shall forfeit all rights to receive future contract payments on each farm in which the owner or producer has an interest and shall refund to the Secretary all contract payments received by the owner or producer during the period of the violation, together with interest on the contract payments as determined by the Secretary.

(b) Refund or adjustment

If the Secretary determines that a violation does not warrant termination of the contract under subsection (a), the Secretary may require the owner or producer subject to the contract-

(1) to refund to the Secretary that part of the contract payments received by the owner or producer during the period of the violation, together with interest on the contract payments as determined by the Secretary; or

(2) to accept a reduction in the amount of future contract payments that is proportionate to the severity of the violation, as determined by the Secretary.

(c) Foreclosure

(1) Effect of foreclosure

An owner or producer subject to a contract may not be required to make repayments to the Secretary of amounts received under the contract if the contract acreage has been foreclosed on and the Secretary determines that forgiving the repayments is appropriate to provide fair and equitable treatment.

(2) Resumption of operation

This subsection shall not void the responsibilities of the owner or producer under the contract if the owner or producer continues or resumes operation, or control, of the contract acreage. On the resumption of operation or control over the contract acreage by the owner or producer, the provisions of the contract in effect on the date of the foreclosure shall apply.

(d) Review

A determination of the Secretary under this section shall be considered to be an adverse decision for purposes of the availability of administrative review of the determination.

7 U.S.C. § 7216

Pub. L. 104-127, title I, §116, Apr. 4, 1996, 110 Stat. 903.

Secretary: The term "Secretary" means the Secretary of Agriculture.
contract acreage: The term "contract acreage" means 1 or more crop acreage bases established for contract commodities under title V of the Agricultural Act of 1949 ( 7 U.S.C. 1461 et seq.) that would have been in effect for the 1996 crop (but for suspension under section 7301(b)(1) of this title).
producer: The term "producer" means an owner, operator, landlord, tenant, or sharecropper who shares in the risk of producing a crop and who is entitled to share in the crop available for marketing from the farm, or would have shared had the crop been produced. In determining whether a grower of hybrid seed is a producer, the Secretary shall not take into consideration the existence of a hybrid seed contract.
contract: The terms "contract" and "production flexibility contract" mean a production flexibility contract entered into under section 7211 of this title.