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§255. Eligibility of producers; conduct of referendum


Published: 2015

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The Vermont Statutes Online



Title

06

:
Agriculture






Chapter

024

:
AGRICULTURAL MARKETING RULES






Subchapter

004
:
ADMINISTRATION










 

§

255. Eligibility of producers; conduct of referendum

(a) Only persons

who verify pursuant to this section that they are producers shall be eligible

to vote in a referendum. The secretary shall prepare a list of all persons

believed to be producers. At least 28 days prior to the referendum, he or she

shall mail to each person on the list a notice of the referendum, and a

statement on which each person may verify that he or she is a producer within

the meaning of this chapter. The secretary shall also cause to be published the

notice and verification statement in two newspapers of general circulation

throughout the state on the same day for two successive weeks, the last date of

publication to be at least 28 days prior to the date of the referendum. The

notice shall also state that no producer shall be eligible to vote unless he

returns the verification statement to the secretary postmarked at least 10 days

prior to the date of the referendum. A referendum shall not be considered

invalid because a producer is unknown to the secretary, or does not receive

notification.

(b) Upon receipt

of signed verifications, the secretary shall forthwith mail ballots to all

producers who have verified their eligibility to vote. Those producers shall

mark their ballots and return them to the secretary either by hand no later

than 10 days after the referendum date or by mail postmarked no later than 10

days after the referendum date.

(c) The

secretary shall count the ballots and release the results to the public.

(d) The results

of any referendum shall bind all producers regardless of whether they voted, or

were eligible to vote, in the referendum. The results shall also bind persons

who become producers thereafter.

(e) Prior to the

issuance, amendment, or termination of any marketing rule, the secretary may

require the applicant to deposit with the agency an amount determined by the

secretary to defray the expense of conducting the referendum. The funds shall

be managed as provided by section 256 of this title. If the proposed market

rule action is approved in a referendum, the secretary shall return any

unexpended monies collected to the applicant. (Added 1985, No. 41, § 3, eff.

May 11, 1985; amended 1993, No. 73, § 1, eff. June 10, 1993; 2003, No. 42, § 2,

eff. May 27, 2003.)