Section 46-41-260 - Establishment of South Carolina Agricultural Commodities Advisory Commission; membership; vacancies; meetings(A) There is established within the Department of Agriculture the South Carolina Agricultural Commodities Advisory Commission to make recommendations to the department regarding the duties of the department in administering the Grain and Cotton Producers Guaranty Fund.(B) The advisory commission shall consist of ten members, one of whom shall be the Commissioner of Agriculture, ex officio, and nine of whom shall be appointed by the commissioner, upon the advice and consent of the Senate. The commissioner shall appoint a: (1) warehouseman or cotton ginner;(2) producer upon the recommendation of the South Carolina Corn and Soybean Association;(3) producer upon the recommendation of the South Carolina Farm Bureau Federation;(4) financier who is familiar with the financing of businesses that store or market the commodities that are regulated under this chapter upon the recommendation of a South Carolina financial institution with an agricultural background;(5) commodity trader who executes future trades related to a hedging program for purchases or sales of commodities regulated under this chapter;(6) owner or operator of an elevator that handles agricultural commodities;(7) owner or operator of an inland elevator or barge-loading river facility or a licensed South Carolina grain dealer upon the recommendation of the South Carolina Palmetto Agribusiness Council;(8) producer appointed upon the recommendation of the South Carolina Poultry Federation;(9) cotton merchant appointed from the State at large; and(10) cotton producer appointed upon the recommendation of the South Carolina Board of the Southern Cotton Growers, Inc.(C) The commissioner shall serve as chairman of the commission.(D) Except as provided herein, vacancies shall be filled in the same manner as original appointments for the unexpired portion of the term. When a vacancy occurs, the organization authorized to make recommendations to the commissioner for an appointment to the vacant position shall make its recommendation to the commissioner within sixty days after the vacancy occurs. The commissioner shall then appoint a new member to fill the vacancy no later than sixty days after receiving the recommendation. If the commissioner fails to appoint a new member within sixty days, the Governor may appoint the new member. Members appointed by the Governor shall enjoy all of the powers, duties, rights, and privileges as members appointed by the commissioner. An appointment made by the Governor pursuant to this section may not be made pursuant to the provisions contained in Section 1-3-210.(E) The commission shall meet four times per calendar year but may meet more frequently upon the call of the chairman. Five members shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of official business. All official actions of the commission shall require the affirmative vote of five members of the commission. Appointed members of the commission shall be entitled to receive a per diem not in excess of forty dollars and to be reimbursed for mileage expenses in accordance with the same travel regulations applying to state employees.Added by 2022 S.C. Acts, Act No. 181 (SB 1117),s 1, eff. 5/16/2022. 2022 Act No. 181, Section 4, provides as follows:
"SECTION 4. (A) The Insurance Reserve Fund of the State Fiscal Accountability Authority is authorized to lend an amount up to four million dollars on a one-time basis to the department for the use of the Grain and Cotton Producers Guaranty Fund herein established to pay claims approved by the department if the fund, through its assessments, is below four million dollars and has insufficient monies to pay the claims. The loan is to be repaid from monies from the guaranty fund within five years of the date of the loan in five annual installments with interest at the rate provided in Section 34-31-20(A). In the event the department fails to make any loan payment to the Insurance Reserve Fund within the prescribed time, the payment must be paid from the state general fund. The participants in the loan shall execute a document approved by the State Treasurer severally guaranteeing the loan. The Insurance Reserve Fund shall prepare a written loan agreement which must be executed by the department prior to entering into the loan authorized by this section.
"(B) Any federal funds or other funds not derived from assessments received by the department to reimburse claims or losses under this chapter must be paid into the fund and used for loan payments or loan principal reduction to the extent any monies are due under subsection (A) to the Insurance Reserve Fund or the state general fund. Each commodity producer severally guaranteeing this loan shall have his pro rata share of the debt obligation reduced accordingly based on the amount of the federal or other payment. If no monies are due to the Insurance Reserve Fund or to the state general fund under subsection (A), such funds shall be used for claim payments."