Florida Statutes 576.041 – Inspection fees; records
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(1) Every licensee shall pay to the department an inspection fee in the amount of $1 per ton for fertilizer sold in the state, except raw ground phosphate rock, soft phosphate, colloidal phosphate, phosphatic clays and all other untreated phosphatic materials, gypsum, hydrated lime, limestone, and dolomite when sold or used for agricultural purposes, on which the inspection fee shall be 30 cents per ton. All fees paid to the department under this section shall be deposited into the State Treasury to be placed in the General Inspection Trust Fund to be used for the sole purpose of funding the fertilizer inspection program.
(2) Each licensee shall report to the department quarterly the tonnage of fertilizer sold in the state and pay the inspection fee. The continuance of a license is conditioned upon the applicant’s:
(a) Maintaining records and a bookkeeping system that will accurately indicate the tonnage of fertilizer sold by the licensee; and
Terms Used In Florida Statutes 576.041
- Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
- Department: means the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services or its authorized representatives. See Florida Statutes 576.011
- Fertilizer: means any substance which:(a) Contains one or more recognized plant nutrients and promotes plant growth, or(b) Controls soil acidity or alkalinity, or(c) Provides other soil enrichment, or(d) Provides other corrective measures to the soil. See Florida Statutes 576.011
- Licensee: means a person who guarantees a fertilizer and receives a license to distribute fertilizer under the provisions of this chapter. See Florida Statutes 576.011
- Ton: means a net weight of 2,000 pounds avoirdupois. See Florida Statutes 576.011
(b) Consent to examination of the business records and books by the department to verify the correctness of tonnage reports and the payment of inspection fees. Tonnage reports and payment of inspection fees shall be made quarterly through the department’s website or on forms provided by the department and submitted within 30 days after the close of the reporting period.
(3) In addition to any other penalty provided by this chapter, a licensee who fails to timely pay the inspection fee shall be assessed a penalty of 1.5 percent for each month or part of a month that the fee or portion of the fee is not paid.
(4) If the report is not filed and the inspection fee is not paid on the date due, or if the report of tonnage is false, the amount of the inspection fee due is subject to a penalty of 10 percent or $25, whichever is greater.
(5) Failure to make an accurate statement of tonnage or to pay the inspection fee or comply as provided herein shall constitute sufficient cause for revocation of the license and also for cancellation of all registrations on file for the licensee.
(6) In order to obtain information that will facilitate the collection of inspection fees and serve other useful purposes relating to fertilizer, the department may, by rule, require licensees, manufacturers, registrants, and dealers to report movements of fertilizer.