Published: 2015-07-08
Key Benefits:
(a) The Legislature finds and declares that the Department of Food and Agriculture is responsible for ensuring the integrity of the Fair and Exposition Fund, administering allocations from the fund to the network of California fairs, as defined in Sections 19418 to 19418.3, inclusive, and providing oversight of activities carried out by each California fair.
(b) Oversight shall include, but not be limited to, the following:
(1) Monitoring the solvency of the Fair and Exposition Fund.
(2) Distributing available state resources to the network of California fairs based on criteria for state allocations approved by the Secretary of Food and Agriculture. The criteria for the distribution of available state resources to the network of California fairs shall not include a consideration of the structure that governs the fair.
(3) Creating a framework for administration of the network of California fairs allowing for maximum autonomy and local decisionmaking authority, and conducting, or causing to be conducted, annual fiscal audits and periodic compliance audits.
(4) Conducting fiscal and performance audits of county fairs and citrus fruit fairs that are requested by the fair that is the subject of the audit, and that the Department of Food and Agriculture deems to be necessary.
(5) Guiding and providing incentives to fairs to seek matching funds and generate new revenue from a variety of sources.
(6) Supporting continuous improvement of fair programming to ensure that California fairs remain highly relevant community institutions.
(Amended by Stats. 1998, Ch. 181, Sec. 1. Effective January 1, 1999.)
From the total revenue received by the department, exclusive of money received pursuant to Sections 19640 and 19641, the Legislature shall annually appropriate to the department those sums as it deems necessary for the following purposes:
(a) For the oversight of the network of California fairs receiving money from the fund.
(b) For the auditing of all district agricultural association fairs, county fairs, and citrus fruit fairs.
(Amended by Stats. 2011, Ch. 2, Sec. 6. Effective March 24, 2011.)
(a) Any unallocated balance from Section 19620.1 is hereby appropriated without regard to fiscal years for allocation by the Secretary of Food and Agriculture for capital outlay to California fairs for fair projects involving public health and safety, for fair projects involving major and deferred maintenance, for fair projects necessary due to any emergency, for projects that are required by physical changes to the fair site, for projects that are required to protect the fair property or installation, such as fencing and flood protection, and for the acquisition or improvement of any property or facility that will serve to enhance the operation of the fair.
(b) A portion of the funds subject to allocation pursuant to subdivision (a) may be allocated to California fairs for general operational support. It is the intent of the Legislature that these moneys be used primarily for those fairs whose sources of revenue may be limited for purposes specified in this section.
(Added by Stats. 2011, Ch. 133, Sec. 5. Effective July 26, 2011.)
Notwithstanding any other law, neither the state nor the Department of Food and Agriculture is liable for any contract or tort of, or any action taken or any failure to act by, any fair in the network of California fairs that does not comply with the requirements of Section 19622.2.
No member of the fair board, or any employee or agent thereof, is personally liable for the contracts or actions of the fair board, and no member of the fair board or employee or agent thereof is responsible individually in any way to any other person for error in judgment, mistakes, or other acts, either of commission or omission, as principal, agent, or employee, except for his or her own individual acts of dishonesty or crime. No member of the fair board shall be held responsible individually for any act or omission of any other member of the fair board. The liability of the members of the fair board is several and not joint, and no member is liable for the default of any other member.
(Added by renumbering Section 19621.1 by Stats. 2011, Ch. 2, Sec. 9. Effective March 24, 2011.)
(a) The Secretary of Food and Agriculture shall prepare and submit to the Department of Finance an estimate of revenue to be deposited in the fund and allocations to be made from the fund for each fiscal year.
The Director of Finance may authorize short-term, cashflow loans from the unappropriated surplus of the General Fund to the Fair and Exposition Fund if all of the following conditions are met:
(1) The loan will be repaid during the same fiscal year in which it is made.
(2) No loan exceeds the amount remaining to be allocated in any fiscal year or 75 percent of the revenue estimated to be deposited in the Fair and Exposition Fund during the remainder of the fiscal year.
(b) The Secretary of Food and Agriculture shall notify the Controller when loans under this section are no longer required and any unnecessary loan funds shall be returned to the General Fund.
(Added by renumbering Section 19621.3 by Stats. 2011, Ch. 2, Sec. 11. Effective March 24, 2011.)
(a) In order to maintain their eligibility to receive funds or to utilize state assets, the fairs specified in Section 19418 shall do all of the following:
(1) File an annual statement of operations with the Department of Food and Agriculture.
(2) Conduct an annual fair that includes agriculture and other community-relevant exhibits and competitions.
(b) The Department of Food and Agriculture may withhold or restrict allocations to fairs that do not comply with this section or the fiscal standards or administrative standards established by the department. The department shall establish an appeal process for fairs regarding funds that are withheld or restricted.
(Added by renumbering Section 19622.1 by Stats. 2011, Ch. 2, Sec. 12. Effective March 24, 2011.)
(a) The authority of the Department of Food and Agriculture shall include, but is not limited to, requiring the California Exposition and State Fair to meet all applicable standards prescribed by the department.
(b) The department may delegate approval authority for such matters as the department may determine to the Board of Directors of the California Exposition and State Fair if the fair complies with this section.
(c) Notwithstanding any other law, the department may assume all rights, duties, and powers of the Board of Directors of the California Exposition and State Fair if the department determines there is insufficient fiscal or administrative control. The board of directors shall again exercise these rights, duties, and powers when the department determines that the fair has been restored to solvency and is in compliance with this section.
(d) The department may petition a court of competent jurisdiction for an order appointing the department, or a person designated by the department, as a receiver if it determines that the California Exposition and State Fair is insolvent, or is in imminent danger of insolvency. The court shall appoint a receiver upon showing that the fair is insolvent, or is in imminent danger of insolvency.
(e) For the purposes of this section, “insolvency” means that the California Exposition and State Fair is unable to discharge its debts as they become due in the usual course of business.
(f) The General Fund and the Fairs and Exposition Fund shall be held harmless from any debts, liabilities, settlements, judgments, or liens incurred by the California Exposition and State Fair, including any deficiency in operating funds.
(Added by renumbering Section 19622.2 by Stats. 2011, Ch. 2, Sec. 13. Effective March 24, 2011.)
(a) The authority of the Department of Food and Agriculture shall include, but is not limited to, requiring district agricultural associations to meet all applicable standards prescribed by the Department of Food and Agriculture.
(b) The department may delegate approval authority for such matters as the department may determine to the board of directors if the board complies with this section.
(c) Notwithstanding any other law, and in order to protect the integrity of the Fair and Exposition Fund, the department may assume any or all rights, duties, and powers of the board of directors of a district agricultural association if the department reasonably determines that there is insufficient fiscal or administrative control. The board of directors shall again exercise these rights, duties, and powers when the department determines that the fair is in compliance with this section.
(d) The department may petition a court of competent jurisdiction for an order appointing the department, or a person designated by the department, as a receiver if it determines that the fair is insolvent, or is in imminent danger of insolvency. The court shall appoint a receiver upon a showing that the fair is insolvent, or is in imminent danger of insolvency.
(e) For the purposes of this section, “insolvency” means that the district agricultural association is unable to discharge its debts as they become due in the usual course of business.
(Amended by Stats. 2012, Ch. 728, Sec. 16. Effective January 1, 2013.)
The authority of the Department of Food and Agriculture shall include, but is not limited to, requiring county fairs and citrus fruit fairs to do all of the following:
(a) Meet all applicable standards prescribed by the Department of Food and Agriculture.
(b) Submit to the department for review and approval every five years a written agreement specifying the operational, financial, and administrative responsibilities between the entity producing the fair and the host county, or the host agency.
(Added by renumbering Section 19622.4 by Stats. 2011, Ch. 2, Sec. 15. Effective March 24, 2011.)
Funds appropriated from the Fair and Exposition Fund may be expended for the payment of premiums, for capital outlay purposes, including the purchase of land and equipment for construction and improvements, and for the general support and maintenance of the network of California fairs and for the department’s oversight of the network of California fairs.
(Amended by Stats. 1996, Ch. 1110, Sec. 14. Effective January 1, 1997.)
Notwithstanding Section 19623, any unanticipated revenues, other than any allocation from the state, which are in excess of the approved budget for any fiscal or calendar year of any California fair shall be retained by that fair.
These funds may be expended, without regard to any fiscal year, by any fair to which Section 19623 applies, upon approval by the board of directors of that fair, which shall be recorded in the official minutes of the fair approving a plan of expenditure.
(Amended by Stats. 2011, Ch. 2, Sec. 16. Effective March 24, 2011.)
If any California fair does not hold a fair in any year because of war conditions, or because the grounds or buildings of the fair have been taken over and occupied by the United States or its armed forces, or that fair is not held due to an act of God, or any unavoidable catastrophe, natural or human made, the fair shall nevertheless submit an annual statement of operations and shall not resume operations without a budget that has been approved by the Department of Food and Agriculture.
(Amended by Stats. 1996, Ch. 1110, Sec. 21. Effective January 1, 1997.)
The Department of Food and Agriculture may make and may administer loans from the Fair and Exposition Fund to any fair in the network of California fairs according to agreements that are specific to the circumstances that gave rise to a receiving fair’s need for a loan, subject to the fair’s demonstrated ability to repay the loan.
(Added by Stats. 1996, Ch. 1110, Sec. 22. Effective January 1, 1997.)
Notwithstanding any other law, any fair qualified to receive an allocation that has complied with the requirements set forth in subdivision (b) of Section 19622, with the approval of the Department of Food and Agriculture, may expend available funds for the construction or operation of recreational and cultural facilities of general public interest.
(Added by renumbering Section 19630.5 by Stats. 2011, Ch. 2, Sec. 18. Effective March 24, 2011.)
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 1-A District Agricultural Association may, with the approval of the Department of Food and Agriculture, expend any money available for expenditure by it, for construction, repairs, and equipment.
(Amended by Stats. 1984, Ch. 193, Sec. 6.)
All license fees for conducting horseracing meetings, other than those attributable to breakage, not payable into the Fair and Exposition Fund shall be paid as follows:
(a) During each fiscal year there shall be paid into the Wildlife Restoration Fund, which fund is hereby continued in existence, to carry out the provisions of the Wildlife Conservation Act of 1947, the sum of seven hundred fifty thousand dollars ($750,000).
(b) During each fiscal year there is appropriated to the Department of Education the sum of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000), or so much thereof as may be requested by the Superintendent of Public Instruction, to maintain and strengthen statewide secondary vocational student organizations authorized and sponsored by the Department of Education in agriculture, business, home economics, and industrial education. The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall develop a budget procedure for the disbursement of funds appropriated under this section to ensure equal treatment of participating students and to further ensure that such funds do not supplant existing money currently provided from other public sources. The appropriated money shall be used for the following purposes:
(1) Improving the ability of the Department of Education to equip vocational education students with competencies necessary to enter the labor market and to assume successful roles in society by conducting leadership development programs for student officers; preparing instructional materials for teacher advisors; maintaining student membership and financial records; giving in-service training to the vocational teachers who advise the student organizations; maintaining affiliation with national vocational student organizations; and supplying support services necessary to carry out these activities.
(2) Training and preparing new and future vocational education teachers to organize, manage, and conduct vocational education student organization activities as an instructional strategy in the vocational curriculum by providing an opportunity for their involvement in actual participatory experiences in vocational student organization activities and by conducting college and university workshops to accomplish this purpose.
(3) Training and preparing vocational students to take an active part in developing and participating in vocational fairs and other activities related to fairs for the purpose specified in Section 51004 of the Education Code by cooperating with the Department of Food and Agriculture to conduct annually a statewide workshop for this purpose.
The Department of Education shall include within the report required pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 8007.5 of the Education Code, a report on the activities funded pursuant to this subdivision.
(c) Except as otherwise provided by this article, the remainder shall be paid into the General Fund in the State Treasury.
(Amended by Stats. 1979, Ch. 282. Effective July 24, 1979.)
All money appropriated pursuant to this article to the California Exposition and State Fair, the Los Angeles County Fair, the Sixth District Agricultural Association, known and designated as the California Science Center, the citrus fruit fairs defined in Section 4603 of the Food and Agricultural Code, and the 1-A District Agricultural Association, is exempt from Section 16304 of the Government Code, and shall remain available for expenditure from year to year until expended.
(Amended by Stats. 2000, Ch. 1082, Sec. 109. Effective January 1, 2001.)
Appropriations and allocations from the Fair and Exposition Fund made pursuant to this article, other than those made under subdivision (b) of Section 19620 are exempt from the provisions of Section 16304 of the Government Code. The date of such executive order is deemed to be the date when the appropriation becomes available for expenditure.
All appropriations and allocations made by this article which are not exempted by this section from the provisions of Section 16304 of the Government Code are subject to those provisions.
(Amended by Stats. 2000, Ch. 1082, Sec. 110. Effective January 1, 2001.)
The books and records of any county or citrus fruit fair or exposition receiving an appropriation or an allocation from the Fair and Exposition Fund, insofar as they relate to revenues and expenditures for fair or exposition purposes, may be audited by the Department of Finance.
When any county or citrus fruit fair or exposition receiving an appropriation or allocation from the Fair and Exposition Fund contracts with an association to conduct such fair or exposition, the contract shall include a provision that the books and records of such association shall be subject to audit by the Department of Finance at the discretion of the department.
(Added by renumbering Section 19639 by Stats. 2011, Ch. 2, Sec. 24. Effective March 24, 2011.)
All money representing penalties or fines imposed by the stewards of a horse race meeting shall be collected by the licensee of the meeting and paid to the board within 10 days after its close, and the board shall deposit all such money in the State Treasury to the credit of the General Fund.
(Added by Stats. 1959, Ch. 1828.)
(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), any redistributable money in a parimutuel pool subject to payment to a claimant pursuant to Section 19598, but not successfully claimed within that period, shall be paid to the board, as follows:
(1) An estimated payment equal to 20 percent of the preceding year’s unclaimed redistributable money paid pursuant to this subdivision shall be paid to the board on July 1, October 1, January 1, and April 1, or the next business day thereafter.
(2) On May 30, or the next business day thereafter, of the year following the close of any horseracing meeting, the association shall pay to the board all of the redistributable funds that are owed it pursuant to this subdivision, less any estimated payments made pursuant to paragraph (1).
The money received by the board under this subdivision resulting from thoroughbred, harness, or quarter horse meetings, but excluding the meetings of the California Exposition and State Fair or of a county, district agricultural association, or citrus fruit fair, shall be used by the board to support research on matters pertaining to horseracing and racetrack security, but this money is subject to annual budgetary review by the Legislature. All of the redistributable money received by the board from other meetings shall be paid immediately into the State Treasury to the credit of the General Fund.
(b) One-half of the redistributable money resulting from the thoroughbred, harness, or quarter horse meetings, but excluding the meetings of the California Exposition and State Fair or county, district agricultural association, or citrus fruit fair meetings, shall be distributed to a welfare fund established for the benefit of horsemen and backstretch personnel, as follows:
(1) An estimated payment equal to 20 percent of the preceding year’s unclaimed redistributable money distributed pursuant to this subdivision shall be distributed to the welfare fund on July 1, October 1, January 1, and April 1, or the next business day thereafter.
(2) On May 30, or the next business day thereafter, of the year following the close of any horseracing meeting, the association shall pay to the welfare fund all of the redistributable funds that are owed it pursuant to this subdivision, less any estimated payments made pursuant to paragraph (1).
The welfare fund shall make an accounting to the board within one calendar year of the receipt of the payment.
(c) Except as provided in subdivision (a) or (b), any remaining redistributable money in a parimutuel pool subject to payment to a claimant pursuant to Section 19598, but not successfully claimed within the period specified in that section, shall be distributed one-half to the board, for the purposes specified and in the manner specified in subdivision (a), and one-half to the welfare fund established by the horsemen’s organization described in subdivision (b) in the manner specified in subdivision (b).
(Amended by Stats. 1995, Ch. 248, Sec. 1. Effective January 1, 1996.)
(a) The nonprofit foundation authorized to receive funds pursuant to Section 19641 shall use those funds to administer a health and welfare trust fund without prejudice and for the benefit of every eligible person. The officers and directors of the health and welfare trust fund shall have a fiduciary responsibility to manage the fund for the benefit of the beneficiaries.
(b) Every employer of backstretch workers shall, upon request, submit in writing or electronically to the administrator of the welfare program for backstretch workers any employment records necessary for prompt payment of benefits and proper administration of the program. Upon request, employers shall also provide to the administrator access to any employment records necessary for prompt payment of benefits and proper administration of the program.
(c) At least one member of the health and welfare fund board shall be a member without financial interest in the horse racing industry appointed from a list of nominees submitted jointly by the California State Council of the Service Employees International Union, the Jockey’s Guild, and the California Teamsters Public Affairs Council.
(d) Nothing in this section is intended to affect the status of the welfare fund as a charity under Section 501(c)(3) of the federal Internal Revenue Code or its compliance with the Charitable Purposes Act (Article 7 (commencing with Section 12580) of Chapter 6 of Part 2 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code).
(Amended by Stats. 2005, Ch. 22, Sec. 5. Effective January 1, 2006.)
Cash vouchers that are not redeemed within 365 days of the close of the racing meeting at which the voucher was purchased shall be distributed to a nonprofit organization designated by the board for purposes of maintaining a data base of horseracing information to further the purposes of Section 19444.
(Added by Stats. 1994, Ch. 311, Sec. 12. Effective July 21, 1994.)
In addition to the distributions specified in Sections 19605.7, 19605.71, and 19605.72, from the amounts that would normally be available for commissions and purses from wagering on all breeds, an amount not to exceed 0.05 percent of the total amount handled by each satellite wagering facility shall be distributed to the nonprofit organization designated by the board for purposes of maintaining a database of horse racing information to further the purposes of Section 19444. The amount distributable to the nonprofit organization initially shall be 0.05 percent of the total amount handled by each satellite wagering facility and may be adjusted by the board, in its discretion. The nonprofit organization shall annually submit its budget for the ensuing calendar year to the board at its November meeting and shall file quarterly financial statements with the board.
(Added by Stats. 2010, Ch. 283, Sec. 8. Effective January 1, 2011.)