GENERAL COUNSEL 

 Erica L. Powers, General Counsel 



1983 was a banner year for legislation for the Department of Food and 

 Agriculture. Six laws, of significance to many farmers, were enacted by the 

 General Court and signed by the Governor. These included the Department reorga- 

 nization, enacting legislation for a milk producers' security fund and for an 

 apple marketing order, farmland evaluation guidelines for tax assessment under 

 Chapter 61A, exemptions of plastic greenhouses from the requirements of the 

 state building code, and regulations of the sale of maple syrup and maple pro- 

 ducts. In addition, the Department was given responsibility to license persons 

 engaged in the hearing dog business. 



Chapter 691 of the Acts of 1983, the Department reorganization, vests the 

 powers and duties of the Milk Control Commission in the Commissioner of Food and 

 Agriculture, and establishes a Bureau of Milk Marketing within the Division of 

 Regulatory Services to continue the draft work of the former Milk Control 

 Commission. In addition, the reorganization established a Division of Equine 

 Programs, which includes a Bureau of Standardbred Breeding and a Bureau of 

 Thoroughbred Breeding, functions presently carried out by the Division of Fairs. 



The Milk Producers' Security Fund, established by Chapter 706 of the Acts 

 of 1983, went into effect March 22, 1984. Its purpose is reimbursing each 

 Massachusetts dairy farmer who sold milk to a dealer who has defaulted in timely 

 payment for the milk. It is funded by a contribution of five cents per hundred 

 weight of milk sold by each dairy farmer who is not a member of a cooperative 

 association which guarantees payment where there is a default in the payment for 

 milk. The Commissioner has appointed a task force of contributing fanners to 

 monitor the Milk Producers' Security Fund. 



With strong support from Massachusetts apple growers, enabling legislation 

 was enacted which gives the Commissioner authority to make and issue marketing 

 orders which provide for uniform grading, standards and inspections of apples, 

 research programs, and advertising and sales promotions designed to benefit 

 apple production, storage, processing, or marketing and sales. Chapter 650 of 

 the Acts of 1983 also provides that an apple marketing order will be effective 

 only after it is approved by either 65% of the producers voting who represent 

 51% of the preceeding season's production, or by 51% of the producers voting who 

 represent 65% of the preceeding season's production. The Commissioner has 

 appointed an apple industry task force to draft a proposed marketing order and 

 has scheduled a referendum for August, 1984. 



Chapter 709 of the Acts of 1983 clarifies the farmland valuation provisions 

 of Chapter 61A of the general laws. The Farmland Assessment Act, enacted in 

 1973, consistent with a 1'582 Supreme Judicial Court decision, Mann v. Board of 

 Assessors of Wareham, Mass., 1982. It changes section 10 of Chapter 61A in two 

 ways. First, it requires the assessors to use the values established by the 

 Farmland Valuation Advisory Commission (FVAC) rather than to count them only as 

 guidelines. Second, it changes the last three words of that section to make 

 clear that the local boards of assessors shall use their personal knowledge, 

 judgment and experience to supplement the ranges of values established by the 

 FVAC only as that knowledge, judgment and experience relate to values of such 

 land in agricultural use. 



34 



