Current through Rules and Regulations filed through September 23, 2024
(1) Each applicant for a Hemp Processor
Permit must make and deliver to the Commissioner a surety bond, the form and
substance of which must be approved by the Commissioner. Such surety bond shall
be conditioned to secure the faithful accounting for and payment to hemp
growers licensed under a State or Tribal hemp plan approved by the USDA, the
USDA Hemp Production Plan, or under
7 U.S.C.
5940 through the State or territory of the
Indian Tribe, as applicable, for hemp purchased by such Permittee, as well as
to secure the Permittee's compliance with the requirements of the Georgia Hemp
Farming Act and these Rules.
(a) For purposes
of this Rule, a Permittee's surety bond may be executed by any surety
corporation authorized to transact business in Georgia.
(b) Applicants must include a certificate of
good standing issued by the Commissioner of Insurance with all submitted surety
bonds.
(c) If the company issuing a
Permittee's surety bond becomes disqualified from conducting business in
Georgia, Permittee must obtain a replacement bond for at least an equivalent
amount within 30 days, subject to the Commissioner's approval. The effective
term of a replacement bond must begin on the day the previous bond became
ineffective.
(2) The
Commissioner shall determine the amount of a Permittee's surety bond in
accordance with the Georgia Hemp Farming Act.
(a) The Department may require a Permittee to
complete the Georgia Permitted Processor Report of Hemp Purchased to better
determine Permittee's requisite bond amount.
1. A Permittee with no history of hemp
purchases will provide the Department with a good faith estimate of the dollar
value of hemp it plans to purchase during the applied for Permit
year.
(b) If at any time
the Commissioner determines that a Permittee's previously approved surety bond
is insufficient to satisfy the purpose set forth in these Rules, the
Commissioner may require the Permittee to obtain an additional bond or bonds.
Permittee shall submit such additional bond or bonds to the Commissioner in an
amount and within the time fixed in a written demand therefor.
(3) Permittee's Processor Permit
shall be immediately revoked by operation of law and without notice or hearing,
and Permittee shall be ineligible to reapply for a Processor Permit for a
period of four years after such revocation, if:
(a) Permittee's surety bond is
cancelled;
(b) Permittee fails to
provide a replacement bond within 30 days after its surety is disqualified from
conducting business in Georgia; or
(c) Permittee fails to provide an additional
bond or bonds in the amount and timeframe specified by the Commissioner in
accordance with these Rules.
(4) Any person claiming to be damaged by a
Permittee's breach of its surety bond conditions may file a complaint with the
Commissioner.
(5) Upon receipt of a
valid complaint, the Commissioner will determine if the complaint constitutes a
prima facie breach of the Permittee's bond. If so, and the matter has not been
resolved between the complainant and the Permittee within 15 days of the
Department's receipt of the complaint, the Commissioner will publish a
solicitation for additional complaints regarding breach of Permittee's bond for
at least five consecutive issues of the Farmers and Consumers Market Bulletin
and any additional publication the Commissioner chooses.
(a) To be valid, a complaint must:
1. Provide a written statement of facts
constituting the alleged breach; and
2. Be received by the Department within the
permitted timeframe, as follows:
i. Within 180
days of Permittee's alleged breach of the conditions of its surety bond for
original complaints; and
ii. Within
60 days of the Commissioner's initial public notification of the breach of bond
for additional complaints.
(6) The Commissioner shall investigate the
charges made in valid complaints, and may order a hearing, the time and place
of which the Commissioner will give the complainant and Permittee reasonable
notice. Hearings will be conducted under the Department Administrative Rules of
Practice and Procedure, GA. Comp. R. & Regs. Rules 40-1-2, et
seq.
(a) At the conclusion of a
hearing, the Commissioner shall report their findings and conclusions to the
complainant and Permittee in each case. The complainant and Permittee will have
15 days to implement the Commissioner's conclusions.
(b) Should the complainant and Permittee not
affect a settlement within 15 days of the Commissioner's findings, the
Commissioner or complainant may bring an action to enforce the claim.
(c) If the complainant is not satisfied with
the ruling of the Commissioner, they may commence an action against the
principal and surety on the bond as in any civil action.
1. No civil action claiming a breach of a
Permittee security bond may be commenced less than 120 days nor more than 547
days from the initial date of the Commissioner's public notification of the
complaint on the bond.
(d) If a Permittee's security bond is
insufficient to pay all valid claims in full, then the Commissioner will direct
the pro rata distribution of bond proceeds between licensees with valid claims.
O.C.G.A.
§
2-23-12.
