§284. Louisiana Buy Local Purchase Incentive Program
A. Title; creation. There is hereby created the Louisiana Buy Local Purchase Incentive Program, hereinafter referred to as the "program", within the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry, to be administered and supervised by the Louisiana Agricultural Finance Authority, in order to grant incentive payments to Louisiana restaurant establishments for purchases of Louisiana agricultural products.
B. Declaration of purpose.The Legislature of Louisiana hereby finds and declares that the health, safety, and welfare of the people of this state are dependent upon the continued encouragement, development, growth, and expansion of Louisiana farmers and agricultural products. Louisiana residents rely on Louisiana farmers and agricultural processors as their primary source of safe, nutritional, and affordable food. Furthermore, agricultural industries are a major source of employment for Louisiana residents. Therefore, it is declared to be the purpose of this Act to encourage and promote the consumption of Louisiana agricultural products by providing incentive payments to certain Louisiana restaurants for the purchase of Louisiana agricultural products.
C. Definitions. For purposes of this Chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings hereinafter ascribed to them, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
(1) "LAFA" means the Louisiana Agricultural Finance Authority.
(2) "Louisiana agricultural products" means the following products produced in Louisiana: agronomic, aquacultural, floricultural, horticultural, silvicultural, and viticultural products, including but not limited to: plants, crops, livestock, dairy products, and fruits; crawfish, catfish, other fish, shrimp, oysters, crabs, underutilized species, and any other seafood and freshwater food; and all meat and meat products including beef, veal, pork, mutton, poultry, and products made therefrom.
(3) "Louisiana coastal waters" shall have the same meaning as provided for in R.S. 49:214.23(4) in the coastal zone law.
(4) "Louisiana coastal zone" shall have the same meaning as provided for in R.S. 49:214.23(5).
(5)(a) "Produced in Louisiana" means manufactured, planted, cultivated, grown, caught, or harvested in Louisiana, including in Louisiana coastal waters, the Louisiana coastal zone, and in the territorial waters of the state.
(b) "Produced in Louisiana" shall also mean, in regard to seafood, caught or harvested in waters seaward of the territorial waters of the state by the holder of a Louisiana commercial fisherman's license who transports and sells his catch to a licensed Louisiana wholesale/retail seafood dealer located within the state of Louisiana.
(6) "Restaurant establishment" means any establishment which has a special Class "R" restaurant permit issued pursuant to R.S. 26:73(B) in the Alcohol Beverage and Tobacco law, or any establishment which meets the definition of "restaurant establishment"as defined in R.S. 26:73(C)(1).
D. Fund. (1) There is hereby established a special fund in the state treasury to be known as the Louisiana Buy Local Purchase Incentive Program Fund, hereinafter referred to as the "fund".
(2) After compliance with the requirements of Article VII, Section 9(B) of the Constitution of Louisiana relative to the Bond Security and Redemption Fund, any public or private grants, gifts, and donations received by the state or the Department of Agriculture and Forestry for the purposes of this Section shall be credited to the fund. No state general fund monies shall be appropriated to the fund.
(3)(a) Subject to appropriation by the legislature, monies in the fund shall be used solely to provide grants to eligible restaurant establishments for purchases of Louisiana agricultural products all as defined in Subsection C of this Section and for all ordinary and necessary operating and administrative costs and expenses associated with implementation of this Section, provided that the ordinary and necessary operating and administrative costs and expenses shall not exceed five percent of monies appropriated from the fund. The Louisiana Agricultural Finance Authority shall have the authority to determine the grant recipients and the amount of the grant awards as well as other eligible expenses to be paid with monies appropriated each fiscal year.
(b) The monies in the fund shall be invested by the state treasurer in the same manner as monies in the state general fund. All interest earned from the investment of the monies in the fund shall be deposited in and remain in the fund. All unexpended and unencumbered money in the fund at the end of the year shall remain in the fund.
E. Program. (1) The amount of the incentive payment pursuant to this Section shall be four percent of the total costs of the Louisiana agricultural products purchased by the eligible restaurant establishment during a fiscal year.
(2) An application for an incentive payment pursuant to this Section shall be provided by LAFA and shall be submitted by an interested restaurant establishment to LAFA within the application period set forth by LAFA based upon the restaurant establishment's purchases of Louisiana agricultural products within that fiscal year.
(3) In accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act, LAFA in cooperation with the commissioner of the Department of Agriculture and Forestry shall promulgate rules and regulations as are necessary to implement the provisions of this Section including but not limited to rules and regulations regarding the period within which an application for the incentive shall be submitted in order to be eligible to receive an incentive payment, and the documentation required to be maintained and provided by a restaurant establishment applying for the incentive payment. The regulations may require producers of Louisiana agricultural products to obtain license numbers issued by LAFA evidencing the eligibility of the Louisiana agricultural products produced by them.
(4) A restaurant establishment applying for the incentive payment authorized pursuant to this Section shall be required to provide and maintain sufficient documentation evidencing the amount of purchases of Louisiana agricultural products and eligibility to claim the incentive payment as determined by LAFA in regulations issued pursuant to Paragraph (3) of this Subsection.
(5) If there is insufficient money in the fund to fully satisfy all timely filed applications for incentive payments, then incentive payments shall be distributed to the applicants on a pro-rated basis based upon the proportion of Louisiana agricultural products purchased by the applicant to the total amount of such purchases by all applicants.
(6) The aggregate amount of incentive payments for the purchase of Louisiana agricultural products issued to restaurant establishments pursuant to this Section shall not exceed seven million dollars, in the aggregate, per fiscal year.
F. Termination of program. The program created pursuant to this Section shall terminate on December 31, 2014. Therefore, no rebate payments authorized according to the provisions of this Section shall be granted after December 31, 2014.
Acts 2011, No. 330, §1, eff. June 29, 2011; Acts 2014, No. 646, §1, eff. June 12, 2014.