[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 162 (Friday, December 16, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S13701-S13702]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   MILK REGULATORY EQUITY ACT OF 2005

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed

[[Page S13702]]

to the consideration of S. 2120 introduced earlier today.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 2120) to ensure regulatory equity between and 
     among all dairy farmers and handlers for sales of packaged 
     fluid milk in federally regulated milk marketing areas and 
     into certain non-federally regulated milk marketing areas 
     from federally regulated areas, and for other purposes.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Mr. REID. I ask unanimous consent the bill be read the third time and 
passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and any 
statements be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The bill (S. 2120) was read the third time and passed, as follows:

                                S. 2120

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Milk Regulatory Equity Act 
     of 2005''.

     SEC. 2. MILK REGULATORY EQUITY.

       (a) Minimum Milk Prices for Handlers; Exemption.--Section 
     8c(5) of the Agricultural Adjustment Act (7 U.S.C. 608c(5)), 
     reenacted with amendments by the Agricultural Marketing 
     Agreement Act of 1937, is amended by adding at the end the 
     following new subparagraphs:
       ``(M) Minimum Milk Prices for Handlers.--
       ``(i) Application of minimum price requirements.--
     Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, a milk 
     handler described in clause (ii) shall be subject to all of 
     the minimum and uniform price requirements of a Federal milk 
     marketing order issued pursuant to this section applicable to 
     the county in which the plant of the handler is located, at 
     Federal order class prices, if the handler has packaged fluid 
     milk product route dispositions, or sales of packaged fluid 
     milk products to other plants, in a marketing area located in 
     a State that requires handlers to pay minimum prices for raw 
     milk purchases.
       ``(ii) Covered milk handlers.--Except as provided in clause 
     (iv), clause (i) applies to a handler of Class I milk 
     products (including a producer-handler or producer operating 
     as a handler) that--
       ``(I) operates a plant that is located within the 
     boundaries of a Federal order milk marketing area (as those 
     boundaries are in effect as of the date of the enactment of 
     this subparagraph);
       ``(II) has packaged fluid milk product route dispositions, 
     or sales of packaged fluid milk products to other plants, in 
     a milk marketing area located in a State that requires 
     handlers to pay minimum prices for raw milk purchases; and
       ``(III) is not otherwise obligated by a Federal milk 
     marketing order, or a regulated milk pricing plan operated by 
     a State, to pay minimum class prices for the raw milk that is 
     used for such dispositions or sales.
       ``(iii) Obligation to pay minimum class prices.--For 
     purposes of clause (ii)(III), the Secretary may not consider 
     a handler of Class I milk products to be obligated by a 
     Federal milk marketing order to pay minimum class prices for 
     raw milk unless the handler operates the plant as a fully 
     regulated fluid milk distributing plant under a Federal milk 
     marketing order.
       ``(iv) Certain handlers exempted.--Clause (i) does not 
     apply to--
       ``(I) a handler (otherwise described in clause (ii)) that 
     operates a nonpool plant (as defined in section 1000.8(e) of 
     title 7, Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on the 
     date of the enactment of this subparagraph);
       ``(II) a producer-handler (otherwise described in clause 
     (ii)) for any month during which the producer-handler has 
     route dispositions, and sales to other plants, of packaged 
     fluid milk products equaling less than 3,000,000 pounds of 
     milk; or
       ``(III) a handler (otherwise described in clause (ii)) for 
     any month during which--
       ``(aa) less than 25 percent of the total quantity of fluid 
     milk products physically received at the plant of the handler 
     (excluding concentrated milk received from another plant by 
     agreement for other than Class I use) is disposed of as route 
     disposition or is transferred in the form of packaged fluid 
     milk products to other plants; or
       ``(bb) less than 25 percent in aggregate of the route 
     disposition or transfers are in a marketing area or areas 
     located in one or more States that require handlers to pay 
     minimum prices for raw milk purchases.
       ``(N) Exemption for Certain Milk Handlers.--Notwithstanding 
     any other provision of this section, no handler with 
     distribution of Class I milk products in the marketing area 
     described in Order No. 131 shall be exempt during any month 
     from any minimum price requirement established by the 
     Secretary under this subsection if the total distribution of 
     Class I products during the preceding month of any such 
     handler's own farm production exceeds 3,000,000 pounds.
       ``(O) Rule of Construction Regarding Producer-Handlers.--
     Subparagraphs (M) and (N) shall not be construed as 
     affecting, expanding, or contracting the treatment of 
     producer-handlers under this subsection except as provided in 
     such subparagraphs.''.
       (b) Exclusion of Nevada From Federal Milk Marketing 
     Orders.--Section 8c(11) of the Agriculture Adjustment Act (7 
     U.S.C. 608c(11)), reenacted with amendments by the 
     Agriculture Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, is amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (C), by striking the last sentence; and
       (2) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
       ``(D) In the case of milk and its products, no county or 
     other political subdivision of the State of Nevada shall be 
     within the marketing area definition of any order issued 
     under this section.''.
       (c) Records and Facility Requirements.--Notwithstanding any 
     other provision of this section, or the amendments made by 
     this section, a milk handler (including a producer-handler or 
     a producer operating as a handler) that is subject to 
     regulation under this section or an amendment made by this 
     section shall comply with the requirements of section 1000.27 
     of title 7, Code of Federal Regulations, or a successor 
     regulation, relating to handler responsibility for records or 
     facilities.
       (d) Effective Date and Implementation.--The amendments made 
     by this section take effect on the first day of the first 
     month beginning more than 15 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act. To accomplish the expedited 
     implementation of these amendments, effective on the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Agriculture shall 
     include in the pool distributing plant provisions of each 
     Federal milk marketing order issued under subparagraph (B) of 
     section 8c(5) of the Agriculture Adjustment Act (7 U.S.C. 
     608c(5)), reenacted with amendments by the Agriculture 
     Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, a provision that a handler 
     described in subparagraph (M) of such section, as added by 
     subsection (a) of this section, will be fully regulated by 
     the order in which the handler's distributing plant is 
     located. These amendments shall not be subject to a 
     referendum under section 8c(19) of such Act (7 U.S.C. 
     608c(19)).

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