(a) Parties wishing to petition for addition or movement
into an eradication zone shall notify the commissioner of their intent
in writing. The notice shall include:
(1) a geographic description of the proposed area to
be added or moved;
(2) information sufficient for the commissioner to
determine whether or not cotton production has begun or could begin
in the proposed area;
(3) information sufficient for the commissioner to
determine whether or not the proposed area is adjacent to an eradication
zone or is in an area with biological characteristics similar to the
eradication zone to which the area is requesting to be added or moved;
and
(4) any other pertinent information on the eradication
zone to which the area would be moved or added.
(b) The department shall develop and make available
a petition form for the party conducting the petition drive. The completed
form must include:
(1) certification by the person signing the petition
that the person is an eligible cotton grower or a representative with
the authority to sign for the grower in the area proposed to be added
or moved by having cotton production in the area proposed to be added
or moved or sharing in the proceeds of cotton production in the current
crop year;
(2) the complete name and address of the eligible cotton
grower; and
(3) the date signed.
(c) Only one signature or petition form per grower
may be gathered.
(d) Signatures that are dated before the date the petition
process starts are invalid.
(e) Grower eligibility to sign a petition shall be
determined as follows.
(1) If the petitioning process commences prior to or
after traditional cotton production in the area, the immediately preceding
cotton crop year information as maintained by the United States Department
of Agriculture Farm Service Agency (FSA) determines eligibility for
having a grower's name on the petition.
(2) If a petition drive crosses crop years, the commissioner
shall use the most current complete eligible list of growers in the
area proposed to be added or moved as maintained by the FSA, and shall
notify the petitioning party of the appropriate date when the eligibility
list changes. Thus, if a grower farmed in a year other than the year
determined to be the eligible year, that signature or petition form
will not be valid.
(f) Upon receipt of the notice of intent to petition,
the department shall notify the petitioning party of the eligible
voter/grower list that will be used to determine if the total number
of grower signatures or petition forms gathered meets or exceeds 30%
of growers in the petitioning area, as required by the Texas Agriculture
Code (Code), §74.108(b).
(g) Completed petitions may be filed with the department
either by sending them to the department by certified mail, returned
receipt requested, or by hand-delivery to the department's headquarters
in Austin. The filing date of the petition shall be the date the petition
is actually received by the department. Signatures may not be added
to or withdrawn from a petition, once filed with the department.
(h) The petitioning party must certify that the documents
submitted to the department for review have been alphabetized, if
on individual petition forms, and that they have been screened to
eliminate possible duplicates. In addition, the petitioning party
must attest in an affidavit that all signatures are valid according
to the agreed upon eligibility list. If, upon review, greater than
10% of signatures or petition forms are not in compliance with this
section, the petition will be deemed null and void and will be rejected.
(i) Once a petition is received by the department,
department staff shall review the petition for compliance with the
30% requirement. The commissioner, at the commissioner's discretion,
may appoint a committee to review the petition.
(j) Within 21 days of receipt of the petition, the
department shall notify the petitioning party of a decision, and,
if appropriate, file for publication in the Texas
Register a proposed rule adding or moving the area, and set
a hearing in the area to take public comment on the rule, if the commissioner
deems appropriate. Once the required period for public comment on
the proposed rule has passed, the commissioner may adopt a rule adding
or moving an area, and may hold a grower referendum, if appropriate.
(k) If a referendum of growers is held, the department
shall conduct the referendum to add or move an area or county in the
same manner as other referenda conducted under the Code, Chapter 74,
Subchapter D and this subchapter.
(l) If growers approve an area being added or moved
to an existing eradication zone, all cotton growers in the proposed
area will become part of the amended eradication zone and be subject
to assessment and other participation requirements for that eradication
zone.
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