SC-245-A Handler Member Nomination Form

OMB No. 0581-0215

NOMINATION DEADLINE

_______________

Administrative Committee for Pistachios Federal Marketing Order 983

Handler Member Nomination Form

Election Year: 20__

Seeking nominations for the July 1, 20__ – June 30, 20__ two-year term for (choose appropriate handler position for this election year)

Handler Position 1 (one vote per handler entity – each vote weighted equally) (or)

Handler Position 2 (one vote per handler entity – each vote weighted based on tons of assessed pistachios received and processed by the handler during the two productions years preceding the current production year)

Instructions

You may nominate yourself or another eligible handler to run as a handler member or alternate handler member.

1. Print the name and contact information of the person you are nominating.

2. Print your name and contact information.

3. Sign this form to certify that you, or your employer, currently handle pistachios and are eligible to nominate.

4. Return this form by mail, fax, or email by __________, 20__:

Administrative Committee for Pistachios

4938 E. Yale Ave., Suite 102

Fresno, CA 93727

Phone: (559) 255-6480; Fax: (559) 255-6485; Email: [email protected]

Nomination

I nominate the following person for the Position ‘ ‘ Handler member/alternate member:

Name of Nominee (Please print clearly):		Name of Handler Operation the Nominee Represents:
Handler’s Mailing Address, City, State and Zip:			Years in the Pistachio business ______ years	Organic handler? Y  N 
Handler’s Telephone Number:	Handler’s Fax Number:	Handler’s Email Address:

Certification

I certify that I, or my employer, currently handle pistachios and that I am authorized to submit this nomination.

Your Name (Please print clearly):		Name of Handler Operation:
Your Telephone Number:	Your Email Address:
Your Mailing Address, City, State and Zip:			Years in the Pistachio business ______ years		Organic handler? Y  N 
Signature: 				Date:

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 0581-0215. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 20 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information.

Administrative Committee for Pistachios

Federal Marketing Order 983

Background Information

Marketing Order 983

Marketing Order 983 (order), regulating the handling of pistachios grown in California, Arizona and New Mexico became effective on November 3, 2009. The Administrative Committee for Pistachios (Committee) consists of nine producer members, two handler members, one public member and their alternates. Of the two handler members, one member shall be elected by handlers based on one vote for each handler (Position 1), while the other handler member is based on one vote for each ton of assessed pistachios handled during the two preceding production years (Position 2). If you are interested in nominating yourself or another individual to serve on the Committee as a handler member or alternate member, please read the following information and submit the completed nomination form.

20XX Election: (Pick appropriate statement for this election.) seeking nominations for the July 1, 20__ – June 30, 20__ two year term Handler Position 1 – one vote per handler entity (or) seeking nominations for the July 1, 20__ – June 30, 20__ two year term Handler Position 2 – one vote per ton of pistachios handled.

Nominees will be notified and asked to return a Qualification and Acceptance Form to verify eligibility and willingness to serve as a handler member or alternate handler member. Names of eligible nominees will be placed on ballots and sent to handlers to vote for candidates of their choice.

Nomination Eligibility

Complete a nomination form to nominate yourself or another eligible handler to run for office as a handler member or alternate handler member on the Committee. Only handlers, including duly authorized officers or employees of handlers, may participate in the nomination of handler member nominees and their alternates. To qualify as a handler, your handling operation must receive, hull and dry pistachios and/or further prepare pistachios by sorting, sizing, shelling, roasting, cleaning, salting, and/or packaging for marketing in or transporting to any and all markets in the current of interstate or foreign commerce. If you are both a producer and a handler of pistachios, you may participate in both producer and handler nominations.

Affiliation

The order prescribes that not more than two members and not more than two alternate members shall be persons employed by, or affiliated with producers or handlers that are affiliated with the same handler and/or producer. Only one handler member and one alternate handler member representing handlers shall be employed by, or affiliated with the same handler. No handler, and all of its affiliated handlers, can be represented by more than one handler member. A cooperative that has as its members one or more other cooperatives that are handlers, shall not be considered as a handler for the purpose of nominating. Affiliation is defined as: normally appears as "affiliate of", or "affiliated with", and means a person such as a producer or handler who is: a producer or handler that directly, or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, owns or controls, or is controlled by, or is under common control with the producer or handler specified; or a producer or handler that directly, or indirectly through one or more intermediaries, is connected in a proprietary capacity, or shares the ownership or control of the specified producer or handler with one or more other producers or handlers. As used in this part, the term “control” (including the terms “controlling”, “controlled by”, and “under the common control with”) means the possession, direct or indirect, of the power to direct or cause the direction of the management and policies of a handler or a producer, whether through voting securities, membership in a cooperative, by contract or otherwise.

The following statements are made in accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974 (U.S.C. 552a) and the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, as amended. The authority for requesting the information to be supplied on this form is the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, Secs. 1-19, 48 Stat. 31, as amended, (7 U.S.C. 601-674). Furnishing the requested information is necessary for the administration of the marketing order program. Submission of the Tax Identification Number (TIN) is mandatory and will be used to validate ballots and determine affiliation or entity identity. Please note that ballots will not become invalid if a TIN is not disclosed. The making of any false statements or representations in any matter within the jurisdiction of any agency of the United States, knowing it to be false, is a violation of title 18, section 1001 of the United States Code, which provides for fine or imprisonment, or both.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual’s income is derived from any public assistance program (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD).

To file a complaint of discrimination, write to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410, or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) or (202) 720-6382 (TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

SC-245A (Exp. XXXX. Destroy previous editions.)