Session of 2000
SENATE BILL No. 494 By Committee on Agriculture 1-27

10 AN ACT concerning livestock; enacting the competitive livestock mar-
11 kets act; prohibiting certain acts and prescribing certain penalties.
12
13 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Kansas:
14 Section 1. The provisions of this act shall be known and may be cited
15 as the competitive livestock markets act.
16 Sec. 2. As used in sections 1 through 6, and amendments thereto:
17 (a) "Packer" means any person engaged in the business of buying
18 more than 5,000 animal units of livestock per year in commerce for pur-
19 pose of slaughter.
20 (b) "Animal units" means the same as prescribed by K.S.A. 65-171d,
21 and amendments thereto.
22 Sec. 3. It shall be unlawful for any packer with respect to livestock,
23 meats, meat products, livestock products in unmanufactured form or for
24 any live poultry dealer with respect to live poultry, to:
25 (a) Engage in or use any unfair, unjustly discriminatory or deceptive
26 practice or device;
27 (b) make or give any undue or unreasonable preference or advantage
28 to any particular person or locality in any respect whatsoever, or subject
29 any particular person or locality to any unreasonable prejudice or disad-
30 vantage in any respect whatsoever;
31 (c) sell or otherwise transfer to or for any other packer or any live
32 poultry dealer, or buy or otherwise receive from or for any other packer
33 or any live poultry dealer, any article for the purpose or with the effect
34 of apportioning the supply between any such persons if such apportion-
35 ment has the tendency or effect of restraining commerce or of creating
36 a monopoly;
37 (d) sell or otherwise transfer to or for any other person, or buy or
38 otherwise receive from or for any other person, any article for the purpose
39 or with the effect of manipulating or controlling prices, or of creating a
40 monopoly in the acquisition of buying, selling or dealing in any article, or
41 of restraining commerce;
42 (e) engage in any course of business or do any act for the purpose or
43 with the effect of manipulating or controlling prices, or of creating a

2
1 monopoly in the acquisition of buying, selling, dealing in any article or of
2 restraining commerce;
3 (f) conspire, combine, agree or arrange with any other person to ap-
4 portion territory for carrying on business, to apportion purchases or sales
5 of any article or to manipulate or control prices; or
6 (g) conspire, combine, agree or arrange with any other person to do,
7 or aid or abet the doing of any act made unlawful by subsections (a), (b),
8 (c), (d) or (e).
9 Sec. 4. If any person subject to this act violates any of the provisions
10 of this act, relating to the purchase, sale or handling of livestock, the
11 purchase or sale of poultry or relating to any poultry growing arrange-
12 ment, in consequence shall be liable to the person or persons injured by
13 such violation for full amount of damages sustained such person of such
14 violation.
15 Sec. 5. Every packer, any live poultry dealer, stockyard owner, mar-
16 ket agency and dealer shall keep such accounts, records and memoranda
17 to fully and correctly disclose all transactions involved in such person's
18 business, including the true ownership of such business by stockholding
19 or otherwise. Whenever the attorney general finds that the accounts, re-
20 cords and memoranda of such person do not fully and correctly disclose
21 all transactions involved in such person's business, the attorney general
22 may prescribe the manner and form in which such accounts, records and
23 memoranda shall be kept. Any such person who fails to keep such ac-
24 counts, records and memoranda in the manner and form prescribed or
25 approved by the attorney general is guilty of a nonperson misdemeanor
26 and shall be subject to a fine of not more than $5,000 or imprisoned not
27 more than three years, or both.
28 Sec. 6. The attorney general shall be responsible for enforcement of
29 this act and shall promulgate such rules and regulations and make orders
30 as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this act. The attorney
31 general, to carry out the provisions of this act, may cooperate with any
32 state department, agency or any local municipality and any department
33 or agency of the federal government and state, territory, district or pos-
34 session or department or agency or political subdivision thereof or any
35 person.
36 Sec. 7. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its
37 publication in the statute book.