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Am. S. B. No. 66 As Passed by the HouseAs Passed by the House
130th General Assembly | Regular Session | 2013-2014 |
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Cosponsors:
Senators Burke, Balderson, LaRose, Peterson, Gentile, Cafaro, Smith, Manning, Bacon, Beagle, Brown, Coley, Eklund, Faber, Gardner, Hughes, Kearney, Lehner, Obhof, Oelslager, Sawyer, Schaffer, Schiavoni, Seitz, Skindell, Tavares, Turner, Uecker, Widener
Representatives Hall, Cera, Burkley, Clyde, Retherford, Scherer, Adams, R., Amstutz, Anielski, Antonio, Ashford, Baker, Barborak, Barnes, Beck, Boose, Brown, Buchy, Celebrezze, Curtin, Damschroder, Derickson, Dovilla, Duffey, Fedor, Gerberry, Gonzales, Grossman, Hackett, Hagan, C., Hayes, Heard, Henne, Hill, Hottinger, Johnson, Landis, Letson, Mallory, McClain, Milkovich, Patterson, Pelanda, Pillich, Rogers, Rosenberger, Ruhl, Sears, Smith, Sprague, Stebelton, Strahorn, Williams, Winburn Speaker Batchelder
A BILL
To amend sections 926.01, 926.021, 926.06, 926.10,
926.17, and 926.18 of the Revised Code to revise
the Agricultural Commodity Handlers Law.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That sections 926.01, 926.021, 926.06, 926.10,
926.17, and 926.18 of the Revised Code be amended to read as
follows:
Sec. 926.01. As used in this chapter:
(A) "Agricultural commodity" means barley, corn, oats, rye,
grain sorghum, soybeans, wheat, sunflower, speltz, or any other
agricultural crop that the director of agriculture may designate
by rule. "Agricultural commodity" does not mean any grain that is
purchased for sale as seed.
(B) "Agricultural commodity handling" or "handling" means any
of the following:
(1) Engaging in or participating in the business of
purchasing from producers agricultural commodities for any use in
excess of thirty thousand bushels annually;
(2) Operating a warehouse as a bailee for the receiving,
storing, shipping, or conditioning of an agricultural commodity;
(3) Receiving into a warehouse an agricultural commodity
purchased under a delayed price agreement;
(4) Providing marketing functions, including storage, delayed
price marketing, deferred payment, feed agreements, or any other
marketing transaction whereby control is exerted over the monetary
proceeds of a producer's agricultural commodities by a person
other than the producer.
(C) "Agricultural commodity handler" or "handler" means any
person who is engaged in the business of agricultural commodity
handling.
(1) Any person who delivers an agricultural commodity to a
licensed handler for storage, conditioning, shipment, or sale;
(2) Any owner or legal holder of a ticket or receipt issued
for an agricultural commodity who is a creditor of the licensed
handler for the value of the agricultural commodity;
(3) Any licensed handler storing an agricultural commodity
that the licensed handler owns solely, jointly, or in common with
others in a warehouse owned or controlled by the licensed handler
or any other licensed handler.
(E) "Receipt" means a warehouse receipt issued by a licensed
handler.
(F) "Nonnegotiable receipt" means a receipt on which it is
stated that the agricultural commodity received will be delivered
to the depositor or to the order of any other person named in the
receipt.
(G) "Negotiable receipt" means a receipt on which it is
stated that the agricultural commodity received will be delivered
to the bearer or to the order of any person named in the receipt.
(H) "Ticket" means a scale weight ticket, a load slip, or any
evidence, other than a receipt, given to a depositor by a licensed
handler upon delivery of an agricultural commodity to the handler.
(I) "Warehouse" means any building, bin, protected enclosure,
or similar premises under the control of a licensed or unlicensed
handler used for receiving, storing, shipping, or handling an
agricultural commodity.
(J) "Storage" means the deposit of an agricultural commodity
into a warehouse either for the account of the licensed handler
operating the warehouse or for the account of a depositor.
(K) "Producer" means any person who grows an agricultural
commodity on land that the person owns or leases.
(L) "Agent" means any person, other than a producer, who
delivers an agricultural commodity to a licensed handler, either
for sale or for storage, for the account of the producer.
(M) "Agricultural commodity tester" or "tester" means a
person who operates a moisture meter and other quality testing
devices to determine the quality of an agricultural commodity.
(N) "Federally licensed grain inspector" means a person who
is licensed by the United States department of agriculture under
the "United States Grain Standards Act," 39 Stat. 482 (1916), 7
U.S.C. 71, as amended, to test and grade grain, as "grain" is
defined in that act.
(O) "Bailee" means a person to whom an agricultural commodity
is delivered in trust for storage in a warehouse with title
remaining in the name of the depositor.
(P) "Bailor" means a person who delivers an agricultural
commodity to a bailee in trust for storage in a warehouse with
title remaining in the name of the depositor.
(Q) "Bailment agreement" means a bailor-bailee agreement
between a depositor and a licensed handler as stated in the terms
of a receipt that is issued for an agricultural commodity in
storage and subject to the requirements of this chapter governing
the use of a receipt.
(R) "Delayed price agreement" means a written executory
contract executed by and between a licensed handler and a
depositor that covers the sale and transfer of title of an
agricultural commodity and states in its written terms the service
charges and the method for pricing the commodity at a later date.
(S) "Delayed price marketing" means the sale and transfer of
title of an agricultural commodity with the price to be
established at a later date according to the terms of a delayed
price agreement.
(T) "Deferred payment" means the deferral of payment to a
depositor by a licensed handler for an agricultural commodity to
which the licensed handler has taken title, for the purpose of
deferring income of the depositor from one tax year to another.
(U) "Feed agreement" means a written contract executed by and
between a licensed handler and a producer or depositor who
delivers an agricultural commodity to the licensed handler for
storage whereby each of the following applies:
(1) The producer or depositor transfers title to the
agricultural commodity to the licensed handler in exchange for a
nominal sum;
(2) The producer, upon delivery of the agricultural commodity
to the licensed handler, becomes a creditor of the licensed
handler due to the lien that arises under section 926.021 of the
Revised Code;
(3) All or part of the agricultural commodity is returned to
the producer at a later date and used for feed purposes.
(V) Notwithstanding section 1.02 of the Revised Code, "and"
shall not be read "or" and "or" shall not be read "and."
Sec. 926.021. (A) As used in this section:
(1) "Claimant" means a person to whom an agricultural
commodity handler owes a financial obligation for agricultural
commodities or the actual monetary proceeds from agricultural
commodities that have been delivered to the handler.
(2) "Failure" means any of the following involving an
agricultural commodity handler:
(a) An inability to satisfy claimants financially;
(b) A public declaration of insolvency;
(c) A revocation, suspension, or conditional suspension of
license with outstanding indebtedness to claimants;
(d) Nonpayment in the ordinary course of business where a
good faith dispute does not exist;
(e) No application for license renewal;
(f) Denial of license renewal;
(g) Voluntarily surrendering a license.
(3) "Agricultural commodity assets" involving an agricultural
commodity handler means any of the following:
(a) All agricultural commodities owned or stored, including
agricultural commodities in transit shipped by the handler but not
yet paid for;
(b) Redeposited agricultural commodities;
(c) Proceeds from the sale of agricultural commodities due or
to become due to the depositor;
(d) The equity less any secured financing directly associated
therewith in assets in hedging or speculative margin accounts held
by commodity or security exchanges or dealers representing the
exchanges, and any moneys due or to become due less any secured
financing directly associated therewith from any transactions on
the exchanges;
(e) Any other unencumbered funds, property, or equity in
funds or property, wherever located, that can be directly traced
to the sale of agricultural commodities by the handler, provided
both that the funds, property, or equity in funds or property
shall not be considered to be encumbered unless the encumbrance
results from good and valuable considerations advanced by any
secured party on a good faith basis and that the encumbrance is
not the result of the taking of funds, property, or equity in
funds or property as additional collateral for an antecedent debt;
(f) Any other unencumbered funds, property, or equity in
assets.
(B) A lien shall exist on all agricultural commodity assets
of an agricultural commodity handler in favor of any of the
following:
(1) Claimants, including lenders, who possess receipts
covering grain owned or stored by the handler;
(2) Claimants who possess written evidence of ownership other
than a receipt disclosing a storage obligation of the handler,
including tickets;
(3) Claimants who surrendered receipts as part of an
agricultural commodity sales transaction but were not paid fully
for the agricultural commodity and the handler failed within
twenty-one days after the surrender;
(4) Claimants who possess any other written evidence of the
sale of agricultural commodities to the handler for which they
were not paid fully, including the sale of agricultural
commodities for a nominal sum under a feed agreement.
(C) The lien that shall secure all claims described in
division (D) of this section, shall arise, attach to the
agricultural commodity assets of an agricultural commodity
handler, and become effective at the time of the delivery of the
agricultural commodity for sale or for storage under a bailment
agreement, commencement of the storage obligation, or when funds
are advanced by the lender, and shall terminate when the liability
of the agricultural commodity handler to the claimant is
discharged, provided that the priority of each lien among the
respective claimants shall not relate to the date the claim arises
but shall be governed by the priorities established in division
(D) of this section. In the event of a failure, the lien claims of
all claimants shall be considered to be assigned by operation of
this section to the department of agriculture, and in the event of
a failure and subsequent liquidation, the lien shall transfer over
to assets or proceeds of assets either received or liquidated by
the department. The lien established under this section shall have
priority over all competing lien claims asserted against the
agricultural commodity assets.
(D) Except as provided in division (E) of this section, in
the event of a failure, the director of agriculture shall possess
exclusive authority to enforce the lien claims and allocate the
proceeds as follows:
(1) First priority against all agricultural commodity assets
shall be the following:
(a) Claimants, including lenders, who possess receipts
covering grain owned or stored by the agricultural commodity
handler;
(b) Claimants who possess written evidence of ownership other
than receipts disclosing a storage obligation of the handler,
including tickets;
(c) Claimants who surrendered receipts as part of an
agricultural commodity transaction, but were not paid fully for
the agricultural commodity and the handler failed within
twenty-one days after the surrender.
(2) Second priority against all agricultural commodity assets
shall be to claimants who possess written evidence of the sale of
an agricultural commodity, including, but not limited to, tickets,
delayed price agreements, or similar agricultural commodity
delivery contracts who completed delivery and pricing within
thirty days immediately prior to the failure of the handler.
(3) To the extent not necessary to satisfy first and second
priority claimants, all other claimants who possess written
evidence of the sale of agricultural commodities to the handler
shall participate in the pro rata distribution of the remainder of
the agricultural commodity assets in an amount not to exceed the
value of each claim.
(E) In the event that any adversary proceeding is commenced
to recover agricultural commodity assets upon which the lien
imposed in this section is imposed and the department declines to
enter the proceeding, the director, upon application to the
director by any claimant, shall assign to the claimant the
applicable lien to permit the claimant to pursue the claimant's
lien in the adversary proceeding to the extent the action will not
delay the resolution of the proceeding, the prompt liquidation of
the assets, or the ultimate distribution of the assets to all
claimants.
Sec. 926.06. (A) The director of agriculture may issue a
handler's license, or renewal thereof, upon the payment of the
prescribed application fee, if the director is satisfied that the
applicant meets the standards of financial responsibility required
under this section and has complied with this chapter and the
rules adopted under it.
(B)(1) On the effective date of this amendment, each Each
applicant for a handler's license, or renewal thereof, shall have
and maintain current assets equal to or greater than current
liabilities and a total net worth equal to at least ten fifteen
cents per bushel for the total number of bushels of agricultural
commodities that the applicant handled during the immediately
preceding twelve-month period to cover any indebtedness arising
from the applicant's operations as a licensed handler. One year
after the effective date of this amendment, the total net worth
requirement shall increase to eleven cents per bushel. For the
next four years, the requirement shall continue to increase by one
cent per bushel each year on the anniversary of the effective date
of this amendment, so that five years after the effective date of
this amendment, an applicant's total net worth shall be equal to
at least fifteen cents per bushel for the total number of bushels
of agricultural commodities that the applicant handled during the
immediately preceding twelve-month period.
(2) On the effective date of this amendment, if If an
applicant is applying for a handler's license for the first time
and did not handle any agricultural commodities during the
immediately preceding twelve-month period, the applicant shall
have an allowable total net worth of at least twenty-five fifty
thousand dollars to cover any indebtedness arising from the
applicant's operations as a licensed handler. One year after the
effective date of this amendment, this allowable total net worth
requirement shall increase to thirty thousand dollars. For the
next four years, the requirement shall continue to increase by
five thousand dollars each year on the anniversary of the
effective date of this amendment, so that five years after the
effective date of this amendment, an applicant's total net worth
shall be at least fifty thousand dollars.
(3) On the effective date of this amendment, no No person
shall be licensed as a handler unless the person has an allowable
total net worth of at least twenty-five fifty thousand dollars.
One year after the effective date of this amendment, this
allowable total net worth requirement shall increase to thirty
thousand dollars. For the next four years, the requirement shall
continue to increase by five thousand dollars each year on the
anniversary of the effective date of this amendment, so that five
years after the effective date of this amendment, the person's
total net worth shall be at least fifty thousand dollars.
(4) On the effective date of this amendment, any Any
deficiency in required total net worth may be compensated for by
an indemnity agreement executed by a person pledging personal
assets for the benefit of commodity creditors should the licensed
handler default in the licensed handler's obligations to the
creditors; a bond issued by a corporate surety company that is
authorized to do business under the laws of this state; or, at the
director's discretion, an irrevocable letter of credit issued by a
bank or other lending institution that is authorized by this state
or the United States to issue such letters of credit and is
subject to service of process in this state for any suit on the
bond or letter of credit. An indemnity agreement executed by a
person pledging personal assets shall be accompanied by financial
statements that reflect the person's financial position as an
individual and comply with the requirements of division (C) of
this section. A bond shall be made to the treasurer of state to be
deposited in the agricultural commodity depositors fund created
under section 926.16 of the Revised Code for the benefit of any
person who may be injured by the handler's failure to meet
obligations arising under this chapter. A letter of credit shall
be issued for the benefit of the department of agriculture and the
agricultural commodity depositors fund.
(5) The director shall adopt rules in accordance with Chapter
119. of the Revised Code specifying the assets for which credit
may be given in determining an applicant's total net worth.
(6) On the effective date of this amendment, regardless
Regardless of the total number of bushels of agricultural
commodities that an applicant handled during the immediately
preceding twelve-month period, the applicant's total net worth
need not exceed a maximum of three four hundred fifty thousand
dollars. One year after the effective date of this amendment, this
maximum total net worth need not exceed three hundred thirty
thousand dollars. For the next four years, this maximum total net
worth shall continue to increase by thirty thousand dollars each
year on the anniversary of the effective date of this amendment,
so that five years after the effective date of this amendment, an
applicant's total net worth need not exceed four hundred fifty
thousand dollars.
(C) In order for the director to determine if an applicant
meets the standards of financial responsibility required under
division (B) of this section, the applicant for a handler's
license, or renewal of a handler's license, shall submit financial
statements that have been prepared in accordance with generally
accepted accounting principles and that have been audited or
reviewed by an independent certified public accountant. The
financial statements shall consist of the applicant's balance
sheet, income statement, statement of retained earnings or
statement of stockholder's equity, and statement of cash flows,
together with any explanatory footnotes or supplementary
information accompanying these all financial statements and
footnotes required by generally accepted accounting principles as
promulgated by the financial accounting standards board together
with the independent accountant's report on the statements.
The financial statements accompanying an applicant's original
application shall be for a year ending within six months before
the date of application. Thereafter, the applicant applying for
renewal shall submit such statements not later than ninety days
after the end of the year covered by the statements.
The director may require an applicant for a handler's
license, or renewal of a handler's license, to submit financial
statements audited by an independent certified public accountant
if the director determines that the financial statements initially
submitted under this division are incomplete or otherwise
unsatisfactory.
(D) The director may prepare and publish statistical
abstracts of information obtained under this section without
disclosing details that would identify a particular applicant with
particular statistics. Such information otherwise is confidential
for purposes of section 102.03 of the Revised Code, and records of
the department of agriculture containing such information are not
otherwise public records under section 149.43 of the Revised Code.
Sec. 926.10. The director of agriculture, by order, may
refuse to grant or may suspend or conditionally suspend a
handler's license, without prior hearing, when the director
determines that there is reasonable cause to believe that the
applicant or licensee:
(A) Has failed to maintain the insurance coverage required
under section 926.07 of the Revised Code;
(B) Has failed to maintain accurate and complete records and
accounts as required under section 926.11 of the Revised Code;
(C) Has failed to charge, collect, or remit the fee required
under division (B) of section 926.16 of the Revised Code;
(D) Has refused to allow the director or the director's
authorized representative to examine, at a reasonable time, the
applicant's or licensee's accounting records, accounts,
agricultural commodity inventories, or warehouse;
(E) Does not possess sufficient agricultural commodities to
cover the outstanding receipts or tickets issued or assumed by the
applicant or licensee under bailment agreements;
(F) Has issued a receipt in violation of this chapter or any
rules adopted under it;
(G) Does not have the net assets specified in division (B) of
section 926.06 of the Revised Code or has failed to obtain a bond
or other protection for any deficiency in required net assets as
provided in that division;
(H) Does not have the obligations for agricultural
commodities purchased under delayed price agreements secured or
represented as required under division (B) or (C) of section
926.29 of the Revised Code;
(I) Does not submit financial statements that comply with the
requirements of division (C) of section 926.06 of the Revised Code
within the applicable time period specified in that division;
(J) Does not notify the director of a statutory agent's
change of address or of the death, removal, resignation, or
revocation of the appointment of a statutory agent or does not
appoint another agent in accordance with section 926.051 of the
Revised Code.
The applicant or licensee to whom a denial, suspension, or
conditional suspension order is issued shall be afforded a hearing
in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, after which
the director shall issue or deny the license applied for in the
pending application or reinstate or revoke the suspended or
conditionally suspended license. The director may suspend,
conditionally suspend, or revoke a license after a hearing held in
accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code for any other
violations of this chapter or any rules adopted under it.
The director shall cause a notice to be posted on the
property of a person whose license has been suspended,
conditionally suspended, or revoked stating the limitations or
restrictions imposed on the person in the handling of agricultural
commodities as a result of the suspension, conditional suspension,
or revocation. The notice shall not be removed from the property
without written authorization from the director.
If a handler's license is revoked, the handler immediately
shall notify, in a manner determined by the director, all parties
that are storing agricultural commodities in the handler's
warehouse and all holders of receipts issued by the handler, if
known. The handler shall liquidate the commodities in the manner
determined by the director.
Sec. 926.17. (A) The director of agriculture shall annually
review the debits of and credits to the agricultural commodity
depositors fund created in section 926.16 of the Revised Code and
shall make any adjustments in the fee required under that section
that are necessary to maintain the fund within the limits
established under this section. Not later than the first day of
March of each year, the director shall determine the proposed
amount of the fee based on the expected volume of agricultural
commodities on which the fee is to be collected and that are
likely to be handled under this chapter. The director shall make
any changes in the previous year's fee in accordance with Chapter
119. of the Revised Code. The fee shall become effective on the
following first day of June. It shall in no case exceed one-half
of one cent per bushel on all agricultural commodities on which
the fee is to be paid.
(B)(1) If, at the end of any fiscal year, the fund balance
exceeds ten fifteen million dollars, less any encumbered balances
or pending or unsettled claims, the fee required under division
(B) of section 926.16 of the Revised Code shall be waived until
the director, with the consent of the commodity advisory
commission created in section 926.32 of the Revised Code,
reinstates the fee to maintain the liquidity of the fund as
provided in division (B)(2) of this section.
(2) If, at any time, the director determines that the fund
balance, less any encumbered balances or pending or unsettled
claims, is less than eight ten million dollars, the director, with
the consent of the commodity advisory commission, may reinstate
the fee required under division (B) of section 926.16 of the
Revised Code. If the director reinstates the fee, the director
shall notify all licensed handlers by certified mail, return
receipt requested, to begin collecting the fee not later than
ninety days after being notified.
Sec. 926.18. (A) When a depositor has made a demand for
settlement of an obligation concerning an agricultural commodity
on which a fee was required to be remitted under section 926.16 of
the Revised Code and the licensed handler is experiencing failure,
as "failure" is defined in section 926.021 of the Revised Code,
and has failed to honor the demand, the depositor, after providing
the director of agriculture or the director's authorized
representative with evidence of the depositor's demand and the
dishonoring of that demand, may file a claim with the director not
later than six months after dishonor of the demand for
indemnification of the depositor's damages, from the agricultural
commodity depositors fund, to be measured as follows:
(1) The commodity advisory commission created in section
926.32 of the Revised Code shall establish the dollar value of the
loss incurred by a depositor holding a receipt or a ticket for
agricultural commodities on which a fee was required and that the
depositor delivered to the handler under a delayed price
agreement, bailment agreement, or feed agreement, or that the
depositor delivered to the handler before delivery was due under a
contract or other agreement between the depositor and handler. The
value shall be based on the fair market price being paid to
producers by handlers for the commodities on the date on which the
director received notice that the receipt or ticket was dishonored
by the handler. All depositors filing claims under this division
shall be bound by the value determined by the commission.
(2) The dollar value of the loss incurred by a depositor who
has sold or delivered for sale, exchange, or solicitation or
negotiation for sale agricultural commodities on which a fee was
required and who is a creditor of the handler for all or a part of
the value of the commodities shall be based on the amount stated
on the obligation on the date of the sale.
(B) The agricultural commodity depositors fund shall be
liable to a depositor for any moneys that are owed to the
depositor for commodities deposited with a licensed handler
pursuant to a transaction for which the handler must remit a fee
under division (B) of section 926.16 of the Revised Code and that
are not recovered through other legal and equitable remedies as
follows:
(1)(a) The liability of the fund shall equal one hundred per
cent of the depositor's loss as determined under division (A)(1)
of this section if any of the following applies:
(i) The commodities were stored with the handler under a
bailment agreement.
(ii) Payment for the commodities was tendered by the handler
and subsequently dishonored, such as payment by a check for which
there were insufficient funds or by a check that was written on an
account that was frozen by the financial institution.
(iii) The commodities were priced at the time of delivery to
the handler, the delivery occurred not more than thirty days prior
to the director's suspension of the handler's license under
division (E), (G), or (H) of section 926.10 of the Revised Code,
and the handler failed to pay for the commodities on or before the
date on which the suspension occurred.
(iv) The commodities were priced at the time of delivery to
the handler, the delivery occurred not more than ninety days prior
to the director's suspension of the handler's license under
division (E), (G), or (H) of section 926.10 of the Revised Code,
the commodities were subject to a written agreement for deferred
payment by the handler not later than ninety days following the
date of delivery, and the handler failed to pay for the
commodities on or before the payment date established in the
written agreement.
(b) If the deposit of commodities that were the subject of
the depositor's loss involves circumstances other than those
described in division (B)(1)(a) of this section, the liability of
the fund shall equal one hundred per cent of the first ten
thousand dollars of the loss and eighty per cent of the remaining
dollar value of that loss as determined under divisions (A)(1) and
(2) of this section.
(2) The aggregate amount recovered by a depositor under all
remedies shall not exceed one hundred per cent of the value of the
depositor's loss. If the moneys recovered by a depositor under all
remedies exceed one hundred per cent of the value of the
depositor's loss, the depositor shall reimburse the fund in the
amount that exceeds the value of that loss.
(C) The director, with the approval recommendation of the
commodity advisory commission, shall determine the validity of all
claims presented against the fund. A claim filed under this
section for losses on agricultural commodities other than
commodities stored under a bailment agreement shall not be valid
unless the depositor has made a demand for settlement of the
obligation within twelve months after the commodities are priced.
Any depositor whose claim has been refused by the director and the
commission may appeal the refusal either to the court of common
pleas of Franklin county or the court of common pleas of the
county in which the depositor resides.
The director shall provide for payment from the fund to any
depositor whose claim has been found to be valid.
(D) If at any time the fund does not contain sufficient
assets to pay valid claims, the director shall hold those claims
for payment until the fund again contains sufficient assets.
Claims against the fund shall be paid in the order in which they
are presented and found to be valid.
(E) If a depositor files an action for legal or equitable
remedies in a state or federal court having jurisdiction in those
matters that includes a claim against agricultural commodities
upon which the depositor may file a claim against the fund at a
later date, the depositor also shall file with the director a copy
of the action filed with the court.
In the event of payment of a loss under this section, the
director shall be subrogated to the extent of the amount of any
payments to all rights, powers, privileges, and remedies of the
depositor against any person regarding the loss.
The depositor shall render all necessary assistance to aid
the director in securing the rights granted in this section. No
action or claim initiated by the depositor and pending at the time
of payment from the fund may be compromised or settled without the
consent of the director.
(F) If, prior to June 20, 1994, a lawsuit, adversary
proceeding, or other legal proceeding is brought against a
depositor to recover money or payments from funds to which a
depositor has a right of indemnification under this section, and
the depositor retains legal counsel resulting in a cost or expense
to the depositor, upon the rendering of a judgment or other
resolution of the lawsuit, adversary proceeding, or other legal
proceeding, the director, in the director's discretion and with
the approval of the commodity advisory commission, may authorize
indemnification from the fund for attorney's fees paid by the
depositor. Any claim made by a depositor for the payment of
attorney's fees under this division shall be made in the same
manner as a claim under division (A) of this section.
Attorney's fees payable under this division shall be limited
to the actual hourly fee charged or one hundred dollars per hour,
whichever is less, and to a total maximum amount of three hundred
dollars.
Section 2. That existing sections 926.01, 926.021, 926.06,
926.10, 926.17, and 926.18 of the Revised Code are hereby
repealed.
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