
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
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[Laws in effect as of January 2, 2001]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 2, 2001 and January 28, 2002]
[CITE: 7USC7481]

 
                          TITLE 7--AGRICULTURE
 
                   CHAPTER 101--AGRICULTURAL PROMOTION
 
                          SUBCHAPTER V--POPCORN
 
Sec. 7481. Findings and declaration of policy


(a) Findings

    Congress finds that--
        (1) popcorn is an important food that is a valuable part of the 
    human diet;
        (2) the production and processing of popcorn plays a significant 
    role in the economy of the United States in that popcorn is 
    processed by several popcorn processors, distributed through 
    wholesale and retail outlets, and consumed by millions of people 
    throughout the United States and foreign countries;
        (3) popcorn must be of high quality, readily available, handled 
    properly, and marketed efficiently to ensure that the benefits of 
    popcorn are available to the people of the United States;
        (4) the maintenance and expansion of existing markets and uses 
    and the development of new markets and uses for popcorn are vital to 
    the welfare of processors and persons concerned with marketing, 
    using, and producing popcorn for the market, as well as to the 
    agricultural economy of the United States;
        (5) the cooperative development, financing, and implementation 
    of a coordinated program of popcorn promotion, research, consumer 
    information, and industry information is necessary to maintain and 
    expand markets for popcorn; and
        (6) popcorn moves in interstate and foreign commerce, and 
    popcorn that does not move in those channels of commerce directly 
    burdens or affects interstate commerce in popcorn.

(b) Policy

    It is the policy of Congress that it is in the public interest to 
authorize the establishment, through the exercise of the powers provided 
in this subchapter, of an orderly procedure for developing, financing 
(through adequate assessments on unpopped popcorn processed 
domestically), and carrying out an effective, continuous, and 
coordinated program of promotion, research, consumer information, and 
industry information designed to--
        (1) strengthen the position of the popcorn industry in the 
    marketplace; and
        (2) maintain and expand domestic and foreign markets and uses 
    for popcorn.

(c) Purposes

    The purposes of this subchapter are to--
        (1) maintain and expand the markets for all popcorn products in 
    a manner that--
            (A) is not designed to maintain or expand any individual 
        share of a producer or processor of the market;
            (B) does not compete with or replace individual advertising 
        or promotion efforts designed to promote individual brand name 
        or trade name popcorn products; and
            (C) authorizes and funds programs that result in government 
        speech promoting government objectives; and

        (2) establish a nationally coordinated program for popcorn 
    promotion, research, consumer information, and industry information.

(d) Statutory construction

    This subchapter treats processors equitably. Nothing in this 
subchapter--
        (1) provides for the imposition of a trade barrier to the entry 
    into the United States of imported popcorn for the domestic market; 
    or
        (2) provides for the control of production or otherwise limits 
    the right of any individual processor to produce popcorn.

(Pub. L. 104-127, title V, Sec. 572, Apr. 4, 1996, 110 Stat. 1074.)

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in section 7483 of this title.
