§1407. Disposition of funds; Feed and Fertilizer Fund

A.(1) All fees, assessments, penalties, and all other funds received by the commission under the provisions of Parts II and III of this Chapter, except for the deficiency assessments paid to the purchaser-user as provided for in R.S. 3:1415 and the consumer as provided for in R.S. 3:1430.13 and subject to the exceptions contained in Article VII, Section 9 of the Constitution of Louisiana, shall be deposited immediately upon receipt into the state treasury and shall be credited to the Bond Security and Redemption Fund.

(2) Out of the funds remaining in the Bond Security and Redemption Fund after a sufficient amount is allocated from that fund to pay all obligations secured by the full faith and credit of the state which become due and payable within any fiscal year, the treasurer, prior to placing the remaining funds in the state general fund, shall pay an amount equal to the total amount of funds paid into the state treasury by the commission under the provisions of Parts II and III of this Chapter into a special fund which is hereby created in the state treasury and designated as the "Feed and Fertilizer Fund".

(3) All unexpended and unencumbered monies in the fund at the end of each fiscal year shall remain in the fund. The monies in the fund shall be invested by the treasurer in the same manner as monies in the state general fund. All interest earned on monies from the fund invested by the state treasurer shall be deposited in the fund.

B. Subject to appropriation, the monies in the Feed and Fertilizer Fund shall be used for the following purposes:

(1) To provide for the expenses of the programs established by Parts II and III of this Chapter and the expenses of the office of agricultural and environmental sciences, as determined by the commissioner.

(2) To renovate, maintain, and equip a building on the Baton Rouge campus of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College to provide administrative offices and analytical laboratories to be used in connection with the programs established by Parts II and III of this Chapter.

(3) To build, equip, and maintain a building to house the offices of the Department of Agriculture and Forestry.

(4) To fund any and all costs related to the fulfillment of the powers, responsibilities, and purposes of Parts I, II, and III of this Chapter.

C. The Department of Agriculture and Forestry or the Louisiana Agricultural Finance Authority on behalf of the Department of Agriculture and Forestry may fund the anticipated funds appropriated from the Feed and Fertilizer Fund into revenue bonds for the purpose of renovating a building on the Baton Rouge campus of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College to provide administrative offices and analytical laboratories to be used in connection with the programs established by Parts II and III of this Chapter and for the purpose of acquiring, constructing, renovating, and equipping buildings and related facilities for use by the Department of Agriculture and Forestry in connection with promoting and assisting agriculture and forestry in this state. The Department of Agriculture and Forestry may pledge those funds to secure the repayment of revenue bonds or to secure a lease or purchase agreement entered into in connection with the issuance of revenue bonds for those purposes.

Acts 2010, No. 579, §1; Acts 2011, No. 31, §1; Acts 2013, No. 26, §1, eff. May 23, 2013.