Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 6, March 18, 2024
(a) The following fee schedule shall apply to handler applications for certification:
1. First Time Applicant
| Anticipated Gross Organic Income |
| (from organic productsor services) | Certification Fee |
| $ 0-$ 10,000 | $ 300 |
| $ 10,001-$ 15,000 | $ 325 |
| $ 15,001-$ 20,000 | $ 350 |
| $ 20,001-$ 50,000 | $ 400 |
| $ 50,001-$ 100,000 | $ 475 |
| $ 100,001-$ 275,000 | $ 575 |
| $ 275,001-$ 500,000 | $ 700 |
| $ 500,001-$ 1,000,000 | $ 900 |
| $ 1,000,001-$ 10,000,000 | 1/10 of 1 percent (.001) of gross |
| organic income |
| Over $ 10,000,000 | $ 10,000 |
2. Annual certification update
| Actual Gross Organic Income |
| (from organic productsor services) | Certification Fee |
| $ 0-$ 10,000 | $ 200 |
| $ 10,001-$ 15,000 | $ 225 |
| $ 15,001-$ 20,000 | $ 250 |
| $ 20,001-$ 50,000 | $ 200 |
| $ 50,001-$ 100,000 | $ 375 |
| $ 100,001-$ 275,000 | $ 475 |
| $ 275,001-$ 500,000 | $ 600 |
| $ 500,001-$ 1,000,000 | $ 800 |
| $ 1,000,001-$ 10,000,000 | 1/10 of 1 percent (.001) of gross |
| organic income minus $ 150.00 |
| Over $ 10,000,000 | $ 9,850 |
(b) In addition to the certification fees set forth in (a)1 and 2 above, each applicant shall be charged a fee equal to the actual inspection costs incurred, not to exceed a rate of $ 50.00 per hour. In addition, each applicant will be assessed re-inspection fees as set forth in (e)4 below.
(c) Applicants who choose to be certified as both an organic producer and a handler, and who have paid the application fee pursuant to 2:78-2.2(a)1 or 2, may apply to the NJDA at the time of the filing of the initial application or annual certification update, to be assessed an on-farm processing fee pursuant to 2:78-2.2(d)4 rather than the full handler fees set forth in (a)1 and 2 above, subject to the requirements below. On-farm processing fees are intended to allow small scale certified producers to increase profitability by offering value added organic products produced on-farm for sale to the public without having to complete a full organic system plan and pay the full handler certification fees. The applicability of this subsection will be determined as follows:
1. To qualify for on-farm processing fee rates, 75 percent of the product ingredients shall be produced by the operation doing the processing and anticipated gross income from processing shall be less than $ 50,000 for initial certification and actual gross income from processing must be less than $ 50,000 for annual updates.
2. Operations generating $ 50,000 (anticipated or actual gross income) or more from on-farm processed organic products, operations who do not produce 75 percent of the ingredients on farm, or very complex on-farm processing operations, may have to complete a full handler certification application in addition to producer certification.
3. The NJDA shall make a determination as to whether an on-farm operation is sufficiently complex so as to require a complete handler certification and shall advise the applicant as soon as it becomes evident that a full handling application would be necessary. This determination will be based on several different factors including the number of different organic products produced, the intricacy and number of processing lines that must be inspected, the number of off-site facilities or storage areas that must be inspected, and the complexity and scope of the record keeping systems.
4. On-farm processing fees will be billed to the producer after the inspection, and must be remitted before certification decisions or updated documents are released.
(d) There shall be no refund except to correct a clerical error.
(e) Additional fees may be assessed as follows:
1. Inspection cancellation fee: Handlers will be assessed fees if a scheduled inspection is cancelled by the applicant less than 48 hours in advance, including a $ 50.00 cancellation fee plus mileage charges, tolls, and inspector driving time (at $ 25.00 per hour) if applicable. Driving time will be charged in increments of one quarter of an hour and rounded off to the nearest one-quarter of an hour.
2. A $ 25.00 fee will be charged for returned checks.
3. Additional site fees: $ 40.00 per each additional organic production area will be assessed if site is within 10 miles of the main operation. If additional sites are greater than 10 miles, $ 25.00 per hour driving time will be added to the additional site fee. Driving time will be charged in increments of one quarter of an hour and rounded off to the nearest one-quarter of an hour.
4. Re-inspection fees: Fees for the first inspection (or first annual update inspection) are covered in the fee schedule above. The handler shall pay 100 percent of actual inspection costs incurred resulting from follow-up inspections not to exceed a rate of $ 50.00 per hour plus mileage and tolls.
5. Official mileage will be charged at the prevailing New Jersey State rate per mile starting and ending where the inspector officially reports for duty.
