Title 7 — AgricultureRelease 119-73not60

§7805 Referenda

Title 7 › Chapter 105— HASS AVOCADO PROMOTION, RESEARCH, AND INFORMATION › § 7805

Last updated Apr 3, 2026|Official source

Summary

Before a proposed marketing order for Hass avocados can start, the Secretary must hold a vote among the producers and importers who would pay the fees. That vote must happen in the 60 days before the order’s proposed start date. The order only takes effect if more than half of the votes cast approve it. Each eligible producer or importer gets one vote. To be eligible, a person or company must have sold Hass avocados for at least one year before the vote. The Secretary decides how the referendum is run. Voters must register after getting notice. The Secretary must send that notice at least 30 days before the vote and explain the rules. Ballots and anything that could identify how someone voted are kept confidential. Three years after approval, the Secretary can hold a vote at any time to ask whether the order should continue, be suspended, or end. The Secretary must hold a vote if the Board or a group representing 30% or more of affected producers and importers asks for one. If a later vote favors suspension or ending by a simple majority, the Secretary must stop collecting fees within 180 days and wind down activities as soon as possible.

Full Legal Text

Title 7, §7805

Agriculture — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)(1)During the 60-day period immediately preceding the proposed effective date of an order issued under section 7803(b)(3) of this title, the Secretary shall conduct a referendum among producers and importers required to pay assessments under the order, as provided in section 7804(h)(1) of this title.

(2)The order shall become effective only if the Secretary determines that the order has been approved by a simple majority of all votes cast in the referendum.

(b)(1)Each producer and importer eligible to vote in a referendum conducted under this section shall be entitled to cast one vote if they satisfy the eligibility requirements as defined in paragraph (2).

(2)For purposes of paragraph (1), producers and importers, as these terms are defined in section 7802 of this title, shall be considered to be eligible to vote if they have been producers or importers with sales of Hass avocados during a period of at least 1 year prior to the referendum.

(c)(1)Referenda conducted pursuant to this chapter shall be conducted in a manner determined by the Secretary.

(2)A producer or importer of Hass avocados who chooses to vote in any referendum conducted under this chapter shall register with the Secretary prior to the voting period, after receiving notice from the Secretary concerning the referendum under paragraph (4).

(3)A producer or importer of Hass avocados who chooses to vote in any referendum conducted under this chapter shall vote in accordance with procedures established by the Secretary. The ballots and other information or reports that reveal or tend to reveal the identity or vote of voters shall be strictly confidential.

(4)The Secretary shall notify all producers and importers at least 30 days prior to the referendum conducted under this chapter. The notice shall explain the procedure established under this subsection.

(d)If an order is approved in a referendum conducted under subsection (a), effective beginning on the date that is 3 years after the date of the approval, the Secretary—

(1)at the discretion of the Secretary, may conduct at any time a referendum of producers and importers required to pay assessments under the order, as provided in section 7804(h)(1) of this title, subject to the voting requirements of subsections (b) and (c), to ascertain whether eligible producers and importers favor suspension, termination, or continuance of the order; or

(2)shall conduct a referendum of eligible producers and importers if requested by the Board or by a representative group comprising 30 percent or more of all producers and importers required to pay assessments under the order, as provided in section 7804(h)(1) of this title, subject to the voting requirements of subsections (b) and (c), to ascertain whether producers and importers favor suspension, termination, or continuance of the order.

(e)If, as a result of a referendum conducted under subsection (d), the Secretary determines that suspension or termination of the order is favored by a simple majority of all votes cast in the referendum, the Secretary shall—

(1)not later than 180 days after the referendum, suspend or terminate, as appropriate, collection of assessments under the order; and

(2)suspend or terminate, as appropriate, activities under the order as soon as practicable and in an orderly manner.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

7 U.S.C. § 7805

Title 7 — Agriculture

Last Updated

Apr 3, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60