The Food and Agricultural Code (FAC) authorizes the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s Commercial Feed Regulatory Program (CFRP) to collect late fees for the delinquent submission of tonnage reports, tonnage tax payments, and license renewals, as well as administrative penalties for major violations of the commercial feed laws and regulations. The purpose of these fees and penalties is to encourage compliance with the commercial feed laws and regulations and cover the administrative and investigative costs incurred by CFRP in resolving noncompliance. Below is an overview of CFRP late fees and administrative penalties, including changes effective October 1, 2024, as outlined in the September 2024 Notice to Industry.
Delinquent Tonnage Reporting and Tax Payment Fees
Pursuant to FAC Section 15062, delinquent tonnage tax payments have been subject to a late fee of 15 percent of the amount past due, plus an additional 1 percent per month if more than 12 months delinquent. FAC Section 15062 also authorizes an additional late fee to cover the administrative costs associated with pursuing delinquent tonnage reports. Therefore, CFRP is mandated by law to assess a late fee for any delinquency in making a tonnage report, even if 0 tons are sold or distributed during the quarter. New regulations defining these late reporting fees became effective October 1, 2024, and were described in the November 2024 Notice to Industry.
Delinquent License Renewal Fees
Pursuant to FAC Section 15055, any commercial feed license not renewed within one calendar month following its expiration has been subject to a $100 late fee. Amendments to 3 CCR Section 2751(e) that became effective October 1, 2024, clarify that all license fees, tonnage tax, and applicable late fees for each year a firm conducted commercial feed business with an expired license must be paid before CFRP will approve a firm’s license renewal.
Administrative Penalties and Investigative Costs
Pursuant to FAC Section 15071.1, any violation of the commercial feed laws or regulations not found to be minor or unintentional shall be subject to an administrative penalty. Administrative penalties are non-criminal fines imposed by regulatory agencies to enforce compliance with laws and regulations, rather than resorting to criminal prosecution. New regulations implementing administrative penalty provisions became effective October 1, 2024.
Newly adopted 3 CCR Section 2765 describes when administrative penalties will be assessed. Only violations that are classified as “major” according to the defined criteria shall be subject to an administrative penalty. “Major” violations include those deemed to require immediate action to protect public or animal health and safety; unauthorized movement of quarantined commercial feed; denial of access for the purpose of inspection, sampling, or enforcement; and violations that demonstrate severity, intent, and recurrence as defined in 3 CCR Section 2765(b)(3). Violations that do not meet the criteria for “major” shall be considered “minor” and receive notice of warning in lieu of an administrative penalty, in accordance with FAC Section 15070.1(b). However, recurrent minor violations could escalate to a major violation if egregious non-compliance is demonstrated through non-cooperation, intent, and repeat occurrence.
To determine the amount of an administrative penalty, FAC Section 15071.1(a) requires CFRP to consider the nature of the violation, the seriousness of the effect of the violation, and the impact of the penalty on the violator, including the deterrent effect on future violations. Newly adopted 3 CCR Section 2766(a) explains how these factors will be used to determine administrative penalty amounts, which range from $1,250 to $2,500 for a first major violation and $5,000 for subsequent major violations of the same statutory or regulatory section. In addition, CFRP is entitled to reimbursement for investigative costs, as authorized by FAC Section 15071.3. Newly adopted 3 CCR Section 2766(c) specifies that the amount to be reimbursed shall be added to the administrative penalty amount.
How to Avoid Fees and Penalties
To avoid incurring late fees, please ensure your firm is submitting all tonnage reports, tax payments, and license renewals by the mandatory deadlines. To ensure your firm receives notifications from CFRP, please visit the ExtraView database and verify that your firm’s contact information is up to date. As a reminder, the licensee is responsible for notifying CFRP within 30 days if any of the information provided on the license application changes (3 CCR Section 2751(f)). Any notice issued to the most current address provided to CFRP will be considered effective, even if delivery is refused or not accepted at the address provided (3 CCR Section 2751(g)).
To avoid incurring administrative penalties, please ensure your firm is cooperating with CFRP to resolve compliance issues in a timely manner. Corrective actions and/or violations noted on a sample report, inspection report, or notice of warning will be provided with a timeline for follow-up from CFRP.