Section 923.44 | Inspection fees - reports of tonnage.
(A)(1) Except as otherwise provided in divisions (A)(2), (3), and (4) of this section, the first distributor of a commercial feed shall pay the director of agriculture an annual inspection fee at the rate of twenty-five cents per ton on all commercial feeds distributed by the first distributor in this state. The department of agriculture shall not collect inspection fees on the first two hundred tons of commercial feed sold in a calendar year.
(2) The annual inspection fee required under division (A)(1) of this section shall not be paid by the first distributor of a commercial feed if the distribution is made to an exempt buyer who shall be responsible for the fee. The director shall establish an exempt list consisting of those buyers who are responsible for the fee.
(3) The annual inspection fee shall not be paid on a commercial feed if the fee has been paid by a previous distributor.
(4) The annual inspection fee shall not be paid on customer-formula feed if the fee has been paid on the commercial feeds that are used as components in that customer-formula feed.
(B) Each distributor or exempt buyer who is required to pay a fee under division (A)(1) or (2) of this section shall file an annual statement with the director that includes the number of net tons of commercial feed distributed by the distributor or exempt buyer in this state for the previous calendar year. The distributor or exempt buyer shall file the statement with the distributor's or exempt buyer's registration required under section 923.42 of the Revised Code.
The inspection fee at the rate stated in division (A)(1) of this section shall accompany the statement. For a tonnage report that is not filed or payment of inspection fees that is not made by the due date established in section 923.42 of the Revised Code, a penalty of ten per cent of the amount due or fifty dollars, whichever is greater, shall be assessed against the distributor or exempt buyer. The amount of fees due, plus penalty, shall constitute a debt and become the basis of a judgment against the distributor or exempt buyer.
(C) No information furnished under this section shall be disclosed by an employee of the department of agriculture in such a way as to divulge the operation of any person required to make such a report.
(D) All money collected under this section shall be credited to the commercial feed and seed fund created in section 923.46 of the Revised Code.
Last updated July 22, 2025 at 1:46 PM
Available Versions of this Section
- July 17, 2009 – House Bill 1 - 128th General Assembly [ View July 17, 2009 Version ]
- September 30, 2025 – Amended by House Bill 96 - 136th General Assembly [ View September 30, 2025 Version ]