Marketing of eggs: violations: administrative and civil penalties.

Existing law establishes a regulatory scheme for the marketing of shell eggs, and requires egg producers and egg handlers to register with the Secretary of Food and Agriculture. A violation of those provisions or regulations adopted pursuant to those provisions is unlawful, and for certain violations, punishable as a misdemeanor. Existing law also authorizes the secretary, in lieu of seeking prosecution for the violation, to bring a civil action for up to $1,000 for the violation. This bill would authorize the Department of Food and Agriculture to refuse to issue, or to suspend or revoke, an egg handler or egg producer certificate of registration under certain circumstances and would require the department to adopt regulations to establish procedures for an appeals process to contest the refusal to issue a certificate of registration or the department's suspension or revocation of a certificate of registration. The bill would increase the civil penalty amount to $10,000 and would also authorize a county agricultural commissioner to bring a civil action. The bill would also authorize the secretary or a county agricultural commissioner, in lieu of prosecution, to levy an administrative penalty of up to $10,000 for a violation of those provisions. The bill would require the secretary, on or before January 1, 2017, to adopt regulations classifying violations of these egg provisions as either "minor," "moderate," or "serious," with different penalty ranges applicable to each classification, as specified, and would apply these amounts to both civil penalties and administrative penalties. The bill would set forth notice and other procedural requirements for bringing and resolving an administrative action pursuant to those provisions, and would require the funds recovered by the county agricultural commissioner to be deposited in the county's general fund, and funds collected by the secretary to be deposited into the Department of Food and Agriculture Fund for use by the department in administering these provisions, when appropriated to the department for that purpose.