Section 2-7-154. Powers of Commissioner

   The Commissioner is authorized to:

   (1) Cooperate with and, as he may deem necessary, enter into written agreements with any other agency of this state, any agency of the federal government, any agency of another state, any person who may be engaged in the growing, processing, marketing, or handling of cotton, or any other person for the purpose of cost sharing or assignment of duties and responsibilities in destroying and eradicating the boll weevil in Georgia;

   (2) Inspect or cause to be inspected by duly authorized employees or agents any land, plants, plant products, or other articles, things, or substances that may, in his opinion, be capable of disseminating or carrying the boll weevil. For this purpose, the Commissioner or his employees and agents shall have the power to enter into or upon any place and to open any bundle, package, or other container containing or thought to contain any regulated article or other item capable of disseminating or carrying the boll weevil;

   (3) Require every person growing cotton in this state to furnish, on forms supplied by the Commissioner, such information as he may require relating to the size and location of all commercial and noncommercial cotton fields or patches being grown in this state;

   (4) Quarantine this state or any portion thereof or any other state or portion thereof when, after hearing, he determines that such action is necessary to prevent or reduce the spread of the boll weevil;

   (5) Adopt, after hearing, such rules as he deems necessary to prevent or reduce the spread of the boll weevil, including but not limited to rules:

      (A) Governing the movement of regulated articles into, out of, or within this state;

      (B) Establishing eradication zones within the state where eradication efforts will be undertaken;

      (C) Restricting or prohibiting the planting of cotton in eradication zones when he determines that it would jeopardize the success of the eradication effort or present a hazard to the public health or safety;

      (D) Requiring that all growers of commercial cotton in the designated eradication zones participate in the eradication program, including cost sharing through assessment;

      (E) Establishing penalty fees for those growers in eradication zones who fail to comply with the rules adopted by the Commissioner; or

      (F) Imposing restrictions on pasturing of livestock, entry by humans, and location of honeybee colonies in any eradication zone which has been or is to be treated with pesticides for eradication of the boll weevil or in any other area affected by such treatments;

   (6) Enter upon any premise, property, or field within an eradication zone and treat with pesticides or destroy any volunteer or noncommercial cotton when he determines that such action is necessary to the success of the eradication efforts;

   (7) Require the destruction of commercial cotton in an eradication zone when it is not being grown in compliance with the rules adopted under this article; and

   (8) Exempt from the assessment penalty requirements set forth in this article those cotton growers for whom paying the assessment penalties would impose an undue financial hardship. The Commissioner is authorized to establish, upon the recommendation of the cotton growers' organization certified pursuant to Code Section 2-7-155, a payment plan in such hardship cases. This exemption shall be implemented as follows:

      (A) The Commissioner shall adopt rules and regulations defining the criteria to be used in determining financial hardship; provided, however, that no exemption shall be granted to any cotton grower who, after the amount of assessments and penalties otherwise due has been subtracted from his taxable net income, as defined in Code Section 48-7-27, has a net income exceeding $15,000.00 for the year in which he seeks an exemption;

      (B) Any cotton grower who claims an exemption shall apply on a form prescribed by the Commissioner. A separate application shall be filed for each calendar year in which a cotton grower claims an exemption. Each application shall contain an explanation of the conditions to be met for approval. An oath shall be included on the form and the form, upon completion, shall be returned to the Commissioner;

      (C) The Commissioner shall forward all completed exemption application forms to the cotton growers' organization certified pursuant to Code Section 2-7-155. The certified growers' organization shall determine from the information contained in the application forms whether or not the applicants qualify for a hardship exemption and may recommend a payment plan to the Commissioner; and

      (D) The certified cotton growers' organization shall notify the Commissioner of its determination, which shall be binding upon the applicants. Upon receipt of the determination of the certified cotton growers' organization, the Commissioner shall promptly notify each affected cotton grower of that determination. If an exemption has been denied, assessments and penalties for the year in which the application was made will become due at the time they would otherwise have become due had no application for exemption been filed or within 30 days after the date of the Commissioner's notice of an adverse determination, whichever is later.

Code 1981, § 2-7-154, enacted by Ga. L. 1985, p. 1079, § 1; Ga. L. 1991, p. 452, § 1.