(1) The petition requirements are:

(a) name of applicant;

(b) address of applicant;

(c) phone number of applicant;

(d) a proposed statement of purpose;

(e) a list of 25 or more producer signatures (including legibly printed names, addresses, and phone numbers) of this commodity who are petitioning the Montana Department of Agriculture to create a commodity advisory committee;

(i) The petition must include only names of individuals who are personally engaged in growing or producing the relevant agricultural commodity.

(ii) Each petitioner must have grown or produced the relevant commodity within the last two growing seasons.

(f) the Department of Agriculture shall verify eligibility of petitioner using the definition in (1)(e)(i)-(ii); and

(g) the petition shall include the name, address, and phone numbers of designated liaison for the petitioners.  

(2)  The petition requirements are:

(a)  name of applicant requesting elimination;

(b)  complete address of applicant;

(c)  if applicant is an organization, a list of officers with complete addresses and phone numbers;

(d)  statement that the program has been in existence for a minimum of two years;

(e)  a list of 15% or more of producer or grower names and signatures (include legibly printed name, addresses, and phone numbers) of this commodity who are petitioning the Montana department of agriculture to eliminate the program;

(i)  the petition must include only names of persons who qualify as a "grower or producer" as defined in 80-11-503 , MCA; "A person or land owner who is personally engaged in growing or producing commodities, or both the landowner and the tenant jointly. The term includes a person, partnership, association, corporation, cooperative, trust, sharecropper, and all other business units, devices and arrangements."

(f)  the department shall verify eligibility of petitioners as commodity producers using the definition in (2) (e) (i) and the list of eligible voters at the time the program was adopted; and

(g)  a petition shall be filed with the department either in person or by certified mail.

This rule has been transferred.

This rule has been transferred.

This rule has been transferred.

(2) A majority of the committee members must be potato "producers" per 80-11-510 (3) , MCA. "Producer" is defined in 80-11-503 (5) , MCA.

(3) On initial appointment by the director of the Montana Department of Agriculture, two members shall be appointed for a one-year term, two members for a two-year term, and three members for a three-year term at the director's discretion. After the initial term, all members will serve three-year terms with a maximum of three consecutive terms allowed.

(1) Section 80-11-516, MCA charges the Montana Department of Agriculture with collecting the commodity assessment.

(2) The assessment must be $.025 per hundredweight on all potatoes grown and marketed commercially in Montana by those growers producing and marketing more than 50,000 pounds annually.

(3) The assessment will be collected by the Montana Department of Agriculture at the time certified seed potato producers are invoiced for inspection fees for certification and by the purchaser at the first point of sale for all other potato producers.

(2) The advisory committee will review all research and marketing project applications at the first regular meeting each year and make a recommendation to the department as to which projects to fund and the amount of funding.

(3) Applicants shall be notified within 30 days after the committee's meeting concerning the disposition of their application(s) .

(4) The department shall periodically evaluate all outstanding project agreements for adequate and satisfactory financial control, accounting, and performance by project participants.

(5) The department may modify or terminate the funding of any project if a determination is made that the grantee has not complied or cannot comply with a provision of the project agreement. The department shall notify the grantee in writing within 30 days of such determination, of the reasons for the determination, and the effective date of the modification or termination.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

This rule has been repealed.

(1) The committee consists of at least five and no more than eight voting members involved in the production of hemp within the prior three years, one non-voting processing industry representative, and one non-voting representative from the Montana State University System.

(2) A majority of the committee members must be hemp "producers" per 80-11-510(3), MCA. Producer is defined in 80-11-503(5), MCA.

(3) Appointment terms shall be made at the director's discretion and reviewed annually. 

(1) "Department" means the Montana Department of Agriculture.

(2) "Hemp" means all parts and varieties of the plant Cannabis sativa L. containing no greater than 0.3% tetrahydrocannabinol.

(3) "Net receipts" are defined as net weight multiplied by the price paid to the producer.

(1) Section 80-11-516, MCA charges the Montana Department of Agriculture with collecting the commodity assessment. 

(2) The assessment shall be 1% of the net receipts of all hemp crops produced in Montana.

(3) The assessment per 80-11-515, MCA, will occur at the time of first sale by a seller and must be collected by the first purchaser of the commodity from the seller. It shall occur at the time of each settlement for the commodity purchased or by invoice form provided by the Montana Department of Agriculture.

(4) If the first purchaser is not a licensed Montana commodity dealer, producers must make a good faith effort to ensure that the assessment is collected and paid to the department.

(1) Applications for project funding shall be filed with the department on or before December 1 of each year. Filing requirements will be made available publicly online no later than 30 days prior to application deadline. 

(2) The advisory committee will review all research and marketing project applications at the first regular meeting each year and make a recommendation to the department as to which projects to fund and the amount of funding.

(3) Applicants shall be notified within 30 days after the committee's meeting concerning the disposition of their application(s).

(4) The department shall periodically evaluate all outstanding project agreements for adequate and satisfactory financial control, accounting, and performance by project participants.

(5) The department may modify or terminate the funding of any project if a determination is made that the grantee has not complied or cannot comply with a provision of the project agreement. The department shall notify the grantee in writing within 30 days of such determination, of the reasons for the determination, and the effective date of the modification or termination.