§1359bb Flexible Marketing Allotments for Sugar

Summary

The Secretary must make yearly estimates by August 1 before each crop year from 2008 through 2031 of how much sugar people in the United States will eat, how much should be kept in reserve, how much will be on hand at the start of the year, how much will be made from domestic processing of cane and beet sugar (including in-process beet sugar), and how much sugar, syrups, and molasses will be imported for eating or for extracting sugar — whether those imports are inside or outside tariff-rate quotas. These estimates do not cover sugar brought in to make polyhydric alcohol or sugar that is refined and then sent out of the country. The Secretary must update the estimates when needed and at least by the start of each of the crop year’s 2nd, 3rd, and 4th quarters. By the start of each crop year, the Secretary must set marketing allotments for processors who sell sugar made from cane, beets, or in-process beet sugar. Allotments must keep sugar prices above loan-forfeiture levels so no sugar is forfeited to the Commodity Credit Corporation, and they must be at least 85 percent of the estimated domestic consumption for the year. The Secretary may treat some sucrose-majority sugar products as part of those allotments. Allotments cover sugar sold for people to eat, whether the sugar came from domestic or imported beets or in-process beet sugar. They do not apply to sugar sold to be exported, sold to let another processor meet its allotment (these sales must be done before May 1 and reported to the Secretary), or sold for non-food uses except certain bioenergy sales handled under section 8110. A processor may not sell more sugar for domestic food use than its allotment, except to help another processor or to export the sugar. A processor who knowingly breaks this rule must pay the Commodity Credit Corporation a civil penalty equal to three times the U.S. market value of the extra sugar at the time of the violation.