Title 12 — Banks and BankingRelease 119-73
§1141j Miscellaneous provisions
Title 12 › Chapter CHAPTER 7A— - AGRICULTURAL MARKETING › § 1141j
Summary
Defines what a cooperative association must be and how it must run. A cooperative is when farmers work together to process, handle, market, or buy farm goods or services for each other's benefit. To qualify, it must let each member have only one vote, limit dividends on stock or membership to no more than 8% per year, and not do more business with nonmembers than with members by value. Sales to or for the United States or its agencies do not count when comparing member and nonmember business. The law also says “agricultural commodity” includes crude gum (oleoresin) from living trees and products the original gum producer makes, such as gum spirits of turpentine and gum rosin. The governor and any officer or employee of the Farm Credit Administration must not speculate in farm commodities, related contracts, or in stock or membership of firms that handle those commodities; violators face up to $10,000 fine, up to 10 years in prison, or both. Cooperatives, related groups, and their people must not reveal confidential information given by the Administration; violators face up to $5,000 fine, up to 5 years in prison, or both. If part of the chapter is held invalid, the rest stays in force. The chapter is called the Agricultural Marketing Act.
Full Legal Text
Title 12, §1141j
Banks and Banking — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)As used in this chapter, the term “cooperative association” means any association in which farmers act together in processing, preparing for market, handling, and/or marketing the farm products of persons so engaged, and also means any association in which farmers act together in purchasing, testing, grading, processing, distributing, and/or furnishing farm supplies and/or farm business services: Provided, however, That such associations are operated for the mutual benefit of the members thereof as such producers or purchasers and conform to one or both of the following requirements: First. That no member of the association is allowed more than one vote because of the amount of stock or membership capital he may own therein; and Second. That the association does not pay dividends on stock or membership capital in excess of 8 per centum per annum. And in any case to the following: Third. That the association shall not deal in farm products, farm supplies, and farm business services with or for nonmembers in an amount greater in value than the total amount of such business transacted by it with or for members. All business transacted by any cooperative association for or on behalf of the United States or any agency or instrumentality thereof shall be disregarded in determining the volume of member and nonmember business transacted by such association.
(b)It shall be unlawful for the governor, or any officer or employee of the Farm Credit Administration to speculate directly or indirectly, in any agricultural commodity or product thereof, or in contracts relating thereto, or in the stock or membership interests of any association or corporation engaged in handling, processing, or disposing of any such commodity or product. Any person violating this subdivision shall upon conviction thereof be fined not more than $10,000, or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both.
(c)It shall be unlawful (1) for any cooperative association, stabilization corporation, clearing-house association, or commodity committee, or (2) for any director, officer, employee, or member or person acting on behalf of any such association, corporation, or committee, to which or to whom information has been imparted in confidence by the administration, to disclose such information in violation of any regulation of the administration. Any such association, corporation, or committee, or director, officer, employee, or member thereof, violating this subdivision, shall be fined not more than $5,000, or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.
(d)If any provision of this chapter is declared unconstitutional, or the applicability thereof to any person, circumstance, commodity, or class of transactions with respect to any commodity is held invalid, the validity of the remainder of the chapter and the applicability of such provision to other persons, circumstances, commodities, and classes of transactions shall not be affected thereby.
(e)This chapter may be cited as the “Agricultural Marketing Act.”
(f)As used in this chapter, the term “agricultural commodity” includes, in addition to other agricultural commodities, crude gum (oleoresin) from a living tree, and the following products as processed by the original producer of the crude gum (oleoresin) from which derived: Gum spirits of turpentine and gum rosin, as defined in section 92 of title 7.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
Codification Pub. L. 110–234 and Pub. L. 110–246 made identical
Amendments
to this section. The
Amendments
by Pub. L. 110–234 were repealed by section 4(a) of Pub. L. 110–246. Section was formerly classified to section 535 of Title 7, Agriculture.
Amendments
2008—Subsecs. (d) to (g). Pub. L. 110–246, § 1610, redesignated subsecs. (e) to (g) as (d) to (f), respectively, and struck out former subsec. (d) which read as follows: “The inclusion in any governmental report, bulletin, or other such publication hereafter issued or published of any prediction with respect to cotton prices is prohibited. Any officer or employee of the United States who authorizes or is responsible for the inclusion in any such report, bulletin, or other publication of any such prediction, or who knowingly causes the issuance or publication of any such report, bulletin, or other publication containing any such prediction, shall, upon conviction thereof, be fined not less than $500 or more than $5,000, or imprisoned for not more than five years, or both: Provided, That this subdivision shall not apply to the Governor of the Farm Credit Administration when engaged in the performance of his duties herein provided.” 1935—Subsec. (a). Act
June 3, 1935, amended definition of cooperative association and inserted second sentence in par. “Third”. 1933—Subsec. (a). Act
June 16, 1933, among other changes, inserted proviso and all subsequent thereto. 1931—Subsec. (g). Act Mar. 4, 1931, added subsec. (g).
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Change of Name
“The Governor” and “Farm Credit Administration” substituted in text for “any member” and “board”, respectively, and “Governor of the Farm Credit Administration” substituted for “members of the board”, pursuant to Ex. Ord. No. 6084, set out preceding section 2241 of this title.
Effective Date
of 2008 AmendmentAmendment of this section and repeal of Pub. L. 110–234 by Pub. L. 110–246 effective May 22, 2008, the date of enactment of Pub. L. 110–234, see section 4 of Pub. L. 110–246, set out as an
Effective Date
note under section 8701 of Title 7, Agriculture.
Transfer of Functions
Establishment of Farm Credit Administration as an independent agency, composition of Farm Credit Administration, appointment of Governor of Farm Credit Administration, and duties thereof, including duty to perform functions, etc., of Farm Credit Administration, see section 2241 et seq of this title.
Executive Documents
Exceptions From
Transfer of Functions
Functions of Farm Credit Administration or any agency, officer, or entity of, under, or subject to supervision of said Administration excepted from functions of officers, agencies, and employees transferred to Secretary of Agriculture by Reorg. Plan No. 2 of 1953, § 1, eff. June 4, 1953, 18 F.R. 3219, 67 Stat. 633, set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and Employees.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
12 U.S.C. § 1141j
Title 12 — Banks and Banking
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73