§ 78. — Use of official grade designations required; false or misleading grade designations for grain shipped out of the United States.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 7USC78]
TITLE 7--AGRICULTURE
CHAPTER 3--GRAIN STANDARDS
Sec. 78. Use of official grade designations required; false or
misleading grade designations for grain shipped out of the
United States
(a) Whenever standards relating to kind, class, quality, or
condition of grain are effective under section 76 of this title for any
grain no person shall in any sale, offer for sale, or consignment for
sale, which involves the shipment of such grain in interstate or foreign
commerce, describe such grain as being of any grade in any advertising,
price quotation, other negotiation of sale, contract of sale, invoice,
bill of lading, other document, or description on bags or other
containers of the grain, other than by an official grade designation,
with or without additional information as to specified factors:
Provided, That the description of such grain by any proprietary brand
name or trademark that does not resemble an official grade designation,
or with respect to interstate commerce, by the use of one or more grade
factor designations set forth in the official United States standards
for grain, or by other criteria shall not be deemed to be a description
of grain as being of any grade.
(b) No person shall, in any sale, offer for sale, or consignment for
sale, of any grain which involves the shipment of such grain from the
United States to any place outside thereof, knowingly describe such
grain by any official grade designation, or other description, which is
false or misleading.
(Aug. 11, 1916, ch. 313, pt. B, Sec. 6, 39 Stat. 484; Pub. L. 85-509,
July 11, 1958, 72 Stat. 352; Pub. L. 90-487, Sec. 1, Aug. 15, 1968, 82
Stat. 763; Pub. L. 94-582, Sec. 7, Oct. 21, 1976, 90 Stat. 2870; Pub. L.
95-113, title XVI, Sec. 1606(c), Sept. 29, 1977, 91 Stat. 1030.)
Amendments
1977--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 95-113 substituted ``criteria'' for
``factor information''.
1976--Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 94-582 substituted ``standards relating
to kind, class, quality, or condition of grain'' for ``standards''.
1968--Pub. L. 90-487 substituted provisions requiring the use of
official grade designations and prohibiting the use of false or
misleading description of grain shipped out of the United States, for
provisions allowing the appeal to the Secretary from official grading,
authorizing the payment of additional fees for employees required in
making appeal inspections, and making the findings prima facie evidence
of the grain's true grade.
1958--Pub. L. 85-509 authorized payment of employees assigned to
perform appeal inspection for all overtime, night, or holiday work, and
permitted acceptance of reimbursement for any sums paid for such work.
Effective Date of 1977 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 95-113 effective Oct. 1, 1977, see section 1901
of Pub. L. 95-113, set out as a note under section 1307 of this title.
Effective Date of 1976 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 94-582 effective 30 days after Oct. 21, 1976,
see section 27 of Pub. L. 94-582, as amended, set out as a note under
section 74 of this title.
Effective Date of 1968 Amendment
Section 2 of Pub. L. 90-487 provided that: ``This Act [amending this
section and sections 71, 74, 75, 76, 77, 79, 84, 85, 86, and 87 of this
title and enacting sections 87a to 87h of this title] shall become
effective one hundred and eighty days after enactment hereof [Aug. 15,
1968], except that the repeal of the mandatory inspection provisions
with respect to grain shipped or delivered for shipment in interstate
commerce shall become effective thirty days after enactment hereof, and
the provisions of sections 6(a) and 13(a)(5) of the United States Grain
Standards Act, as amended by this Act [subsec. (a) of this section and
section 87b(a)(5) of this title] shall then become effective with
respect to such grain.''
Section Referred to in Other Sections
This section is referred to in section 87b of this title.
