HOUSE BILL REPORT

SHB 1285

BYHouse Committee on Agriculture & Rural Development (originally sponsored by Representatives Taylor, Day, Padden, S. Wilson, Prince, Bumgarner, Dellwo, Smith, May, Moyer and Silver)

Providing an exemption to the bonding requirements for grain dealers.

House Committe on Agriculture & Rural Development

Majority Report:  The substitute bill be substituted therefor and the substitute bill do pass.  (12)

      Signed by Representatives Rayburn, Chair; Baugher, Bristow, Brooks, Chandler, Doty, Holm, R. King, McLean, Moyer, Nealey and Rasmussen.

House Staff:Kenneth Hirst (786-7105)

AS PASSED HOUSE FEBRUARY 9, 1988

BACKGROUND:

The state's laws regulating grain warehousing require grain dealers to be licensed and bonded.  A grain dealer is a person who solicits, contracts for , or obtains from a producer grain or a similar agricultural product for the purposes of resale.  The annual licensing fee for a grain dealer is $300, unless the dealer is also licensed as a grain warehouseman in which case the fee is $150.  The minimum bond required for a grain dealer is $50,000.  In lieu of a bond, a grain dealer may give the Department of Agriculture a certificate of deposit or other security acceptable to the Department and payable to the Director as trustee.

SUMMARY:

Grain dealers who pay for grain only in cash may be exempted by rule from the requirement of the grain warehousing laws that grain dealers provide a bond or provide other security to the Department of Agriculture.  The licensing fee for a grain dealer exempted from the bonding requirement is $75.

EFFECT OF SENATE AMENDMENT(S):  The amendments restrict the exemption from bonding provided by the bill to grain dealers who are cash buyers.  The exemption applies only to a grain dealer who does not more that $100,000 in business annually.  The Senate amendments declare that a cashiers check, certified check or bankdraft may be considered to be cash.

Revenue:    The bill has a revenue impact.

Fiscal Note:      Available.

House Committee ‑ Testified For:    Representative Taylor; (commented on bill) Al Stein, Department of Agriculture.

House Committee - Testified Against:      None Presented.

House Committee - Testimony For:    The bill would exempt only five small dealers in the state.

House Committee - Testimony Against:      Exempting dealers from licensure would mean the Department could not keep track of them.

VOTE ON FINAL PASSAGE:

      Yeas 96; Nays 1; Excused 1

Voting Nay: Representative Vekich

Excused:    Representative Taylor