CHAPTER 437*
CATTLE AND SWINE DEALERS

      *See Sec. 22-277a re payment for livestock.

Table of Contents

Sec. 22-381. Definitions.
Sec. 22-382. Exceptions.
Sec. 22-383. License required. Responsibility of dealer or broker for acts of employees.
Sec. 22-384. Application for license. Fee.
Sec. 22-385. Issuance of license. Term. Renewal.
Sec. 22-386. Suspension or revocation. Hearing. Appeal.
Sec. 22-387. Keeping and inspection of records.
Sec. 22-388. Periodic testing of cattle for brucellosis or tuberculosis.
Sec. 22-389. Copy of license to be posted. Plate on motor vehicle. Identification cards.
Sec. 22-390. Enforcement. Regulations.
Sec. 22-391. Penalty.

      Sec. 22-381. Definitions. As used in this chapter, "commissioner" means the Commissioner of Agriculture; "dealer" or "broker" means any person, copartnership, association, limited liability company or corporation engaged in the business of buying, receiving, selling or exchanging or negotiating or soliciting the sale, resale, exchange, transportation, transfer or shipment of any cattle or swine; "agent" means any person buying or receiving or soliciting or negotiating the sale, resale or exchange of cattle or swine for or on behalf of any dealer or broker; and "cattle" means all dairy, feeding, beef or breeding animals of the bovine genus.

      (1959, P.A. 573, S. 1; 637, S. 2; 1961, P.A. 67; 1963, P.A. 57, S. 1; 1971, P.A. 872, S. 446, 448; P.A. 95-79, S. 88, 189; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, S. 146(e); P.A. 04-189, S. 1.)

      History: Later 1959 act replaced commissioner of agriculture with commissioner of agriculture, conservation and natural resources; 1961 act replaced commissioner of agriculture, conservation and natural resources with commissioner of agriculture and natural resources; 1963 act added references to swine in definitions of "dealer" or "broker" and "agent"; 1971 act replaced commissioner of agriculture and natural resources with commissioner of agriculture; P.A. 95-79 redefined "dealer" or "broker" to include a limited liability company, effective May 31, 1995; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6 replaced Commissioner of Agriculture with Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective July 1, 2004; P.A. 04-189 repealed Sec. 146 of June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, thereby reversing the merger of the Departments of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective June 1, 2004.

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      Sec. 22-382. Exceptions. The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to (1) any dairyman, grower of swine, association, copartnership or corporation which by dispersal sale is permanently discontinuing the business of dairying, breeding or feeding cattle, or growing swine; (2) any person, association, copartnership or corporation which sells cattle or swine which have been raised on the premises of such person, association, copartnership or corporation; (3) any person who does not buy, receive, sell or exchange or solicit or negotiate the sale, resale, exchange or shipment of cattle or swine in the aggregate of more than ten head in any one license year; (4) any dairyman who purchases or receives cattle for the sole purpose of producing milk and improving his own herd; (5) any butcher, packer or processor to whom cattle or swine are delivered which are used exclusively for immediate slaughter; (6) any farmer who buys or receives cattle or swine for grazing and feeding and sells or disposes of such cattle or swine after a feeding or grazing period of not less than sixty days; or (7) any railroad or trucking concern whose primary business is trucking animals either intrastate or interstate.

      (1959, P.A. 573, S. 2; 1963, P.A. 57, S. 2.)

      History: 1963 act added references to growers of swine and swine.

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      Sec. 22-383. License required. Responsibility of dealer or broker for acts of employees. No dealer or broker shall engage in or carry on the business of buying, receiving, selling, exchanging, transporting or negotiating or soliciting the sale, resale, exchange, transportation or transfer of any cattle or swine within the state unless licensed as hereinafter provided. Such dealer or broker shall be responsible for acts performed or contracts made in connection with buying, receiving, selling, exchanging, transporting or negotiating or soliciting the sale, resale, exchange, transportation or transfer of cattle or swine by any person or individual employed by such dealer or broker.

      (1959 P.A. 573, S. 3; 1963, P.A. 57, S. 3.)

      History: 1963 act added references to swine.

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      Sec. 22-384. Application for license. Fee. Any person before engaging in the business of a dealer or broker shall file an application with the commissioner on a form prescribed by the commissioner and pay a license fee. The fee shall be one hundred fifty dollars, provided the fee may be increased by the commissioner by regulations adopted in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54. Such application shall state the nature of the business, the type of cattle or swine the applicant proposes to handle, the name of the person applying for a license and, if the applicant is a firm, association, partnership or corporation, the full name of each member of such firm, association or partnership or the names of the officers of the corporation, and the name of the agent or agents of the applicant, the municipality and post-office address at which business is to be conducted and such other facts as the commissioner may prescribe. The applicant shall further satisfy the commissioner as to his or its character, financial responsibility and good faith in seeking to engage in the business.

      (1959, P.A. 573, S. 4; 1963, P.A. 57, S. 4; P.A. 82-91, S. 13, 38; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 92-6, S. 50, 117.)

      History: 1963 act added reference to swine; P.A. 82-91 increased license fee from twenty-five dollars to seventy-five dollars and added provision that fee may be increased by commissioner by regulations; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 92-6 raised fee from seventy-five to one hundred fifty dollars.

      Cited. 4 CA 117, 120, 121.

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      Sec. 22-385. Issuance of license. Term. Renewal. Upon compliance by the applicant with section 22-384, the commissioner shall, subject to the provisions of this chapter, issue a license entitling the applicant or his agents to conduct the business of buying or receiving cattle or swine or receiving, selling, exchanging or soliciting or negotiating the sale, resale, exchange or shipment of cattle or swine at the place named in the application until June thirtieth next following. Such license shall be renewable annually, unless suspended or revoked, on payment of a fee of fifty dollars.

      (1959, P.A. 573, S. 5; 1963, P.A. 57, S. 5; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 92-6, S. 51, 117.)

      History: 1963 act added references to swine; May Sp. Sess. P.A. 92-6 raised fee from twenty-five to fifty dollars.

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      Sec. 22-386. Suspension or revocation. Hearing. Appeal. For failure or refusal of a licensee to obey the provisions of this chapter, the commissioner may suspend or revoke the license held by such licensee. Whenever the commissioner is satisfied of the existence of any one or more reasons for revoking a license as provided for in this chapter, before revoking such license the department shall give written notice of a hearing to be had thereon to the licensee affected. Such notice shall be sent by registered or certified mail to the licensee at least ten days prior to the date set for the hearing at the department. On the day of the hearing the commissioner may hear the evidence presented by the licensee and any other witnesses, and the commissioner shall within a reasonable time thereafter render a decision. Any licensee aggrieved by the decision of the commissioner may appeal therefrom in accordance with the provisions of section 4-183, except venue for such appeal shall be in the judicial district of New Britain. The following actions by the applicant or licensee shall constitute just cause for revoking or refusing a license: (1) The violation of state laws or official regulations governing intrastate or interstate movement of cattle or swine; (2) where there have been false or misleading statements with regard to the results of official diagnostic tests approved by the commissioner and the Agricultural Research Service of the United States Department of Agriculture for the diseases of bovine brucellosis or tuberculosis, vesicular exanthema of swine, foot and mouth disease, anaplasmosis and anthrax, or with regard to ownership; (3) the buying or receiving of cattle or swine, selling or exchanging, or soliciting resale, exchange, transport or transfer, of animals officially branded by the Department of Agriculture as being diseased, a quarantined animal, or animals from quarantined herds; provided this subsection shall not apply to cattle which have reacted to any official test used for the detection of tuberculosis or brucellosis, or to cattle in a herd under quarantine for the presence of the diseases tuberculosis or brucellosis when such cattle are disposed of in conformity with state laws and regulations governing disposal of such cattle; (4) failure of the licensee to practice approved measures of sanitation of barns, stables, premises or vehicles used for stabling, holding or transporting of cattle or swine; (5) consistent or continual failure to keep records required by the commissioner or by law, or refusal to produce books, accounts or records of transactions in the carrying on of the business for which the license is granted; (6) failure to comply with any provision of the general statutes or regulations thereunder relating to cattle or swine, and (7) where a license to deal in livestock, issued to the applicant or licensee by another state, has been suspended or revoked by such state within five years next preceding the date of issuance or renewal of a license under the provisions of section 22-385.

      (1959, P.A. 573, S. 6; 637, S. 2; 1961, P.A. 67; 1963, P.A. 57, S. 6; February, 1965, P.A. 25, S. 1; 1971, P.A. 872, S. 446, 448; P.A. 76-436, S. 459, 681; P.A. 77-603, S. 101, 125; P.A. 78-280, S. 5, 127; P.A. 81-231, S. 4, 6; P.A. 88-230, S. 1, 12; P.A. 90-98, S. 1, 2; P.A. 93-142, S. 4, 7, 8; P.A. 95-220, S. 4-6; P.A. 99-215, S. 24, 29; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, S. 146(f); P.A. 04-189, S. 1.)

      History: Later 1959 act replaced commissioner and department of agriculture with commissioner and department of agriculture, conservation and natural resources; 1961 act replaced commissioner and department of agriculture, conservation and natural resources with commissioner and department of agriculture and natural resources; 1963 act added references to swine in Subdivs. (1), (3) and (4); 1965 act allowed revocation or suspension of license for burying, selling, etc. quarantined animals in Subdiv. (3) and added Subdiv. (6) allowing revocation or suspension of license for failure to comply with statutes or regulations re cattle or swine; 1971 act replaced commissioner and department of agriculture and natural resources with commissioner and department of agriculture; P.A. 76-436 required appeals to superior court rather than court of common pleas, effective July 1, 1978; P.A. 77-603 replaced previous appeal provision with statement requiring that appeals be made in accordance with Sec. 4-183 but retained venue in Hartford county; P.A. 78-280 replaced "Hartford county" with "judicial district of Hartford-New Britain"; P.A. 81-231 added Subdiv. (7) making suspension or revocation of a license to deal in livestock issued by another state grounds to revoke a license under Sec. 22-385; P.A. 88-230 replaced "judicial district of Hartford-New Britain" with "judicial district of Hartford", effective September 1, 1991; P.A. 90-98 changed the effective date of P.A. 88-230 from September 1, 1991, to September 1, 1993; P.A. 93-142 changed the effective date of P.A. 88-230 from September 1, 1993, to September 1, 1996, effective June 14, 1993; P.A. 95-220 changed the effective date of P.A. 88-230 from September 1, 1996, to September 1, 1998, effective July 1, 1995; P.A. 99-215 replaced "judicial district of Hartford" with "judicial district of New Britain", effective June 29, 1999; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6 replaced Department of Agriculture with Department of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective July 1, 2004; P.A. 04-189 repealed Sec. 146 of June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, thereby reversing the merger of the Departments of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective June 1, 2004.

      Cited. 4 CA 117, 118.

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      Sec. 22-387. Keeping and inspection of records. Every dealer or broker shall keep accounts, records and memoranda which shall fully and clearly disclose all transactions of his business, including the true ownership of the business. Such records shall be made available at any time for inspection by the commissioner or his authorized agent to determine the origin and destination of any livestock handled by the licensee but information relating to the general business of any such person disclosed by the investigation and not related to the immediate purpose thereof shall be treated as of a confidential nature by the commissioner or his agent.

      (1959, P.A. 573, S. 7.)

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      Sec. 22-388. Periodic testing of cattle for brucellosis or tuberculosis. All cattle owned by a dealer or held by a dealer, pending sale, exchange, resale or shipment on premises owned, rented, leased or borrowed by such dealer may be subjected periodically to a tuberculin and blood test by an authorized, full-time, salaried veterinarian of the state or federal Department of Agriculture at no expense to the dealer. Any reactors to the brucellosis or tuberculin test shall be branded on the left jaw and a metal tag identifying the animal as a reactor affixed to the left ear. Such reactors shall be disposed of by slaughter immediately. Indemnity shall be paid on all such reactors in the manner provided in section 22-288, provided such reactor shall have passed at least one negative test since entering the state and shall have been acquired by the dealer in compliance with existing state regulations on interstate and intrastate movements of cattle. If a quarantine, due to the presence of an infectious, communicable livestock disease, is imposed on cattle owned by a dealer or held by a dealer pending sale, exchange, resale or shipment on premises owned, rented, leased or borrowed by such dealer, such dealer shall not be prohibited from engaging in his business as a dealer, provided such dealer shall comply with all quarantine restrictions and sanitation regulations of the state Department of Agriculture in respect to quarantined animals, including individual identification of each such animal by numbered ear tag and so described on the quarantine form, and shall establish a separate set of premises at least one hundred yards distant from all quarantined premises and pastures used by such quarantined animals, and provided in no instance shall the same attendant attend quarantined animals and animals in the healthy establishment unless disease conditions as determined by the state Department of Agriculture permit such practices under such sanitary requirements as are prescribed by the commissioner or his assistant.

      (1959, P.A. 573, S. 8; 637, S. 2; 1961, P.A. 67; 1971, P.A. 872, S. 446, 448; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 91-10, S. 9, 20; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, S. 146(f); P.A. 04-189, S. 1.)

      History: Later 1959 act replaced department of agriculture with department of agriculture, conservation and natural resources; 1961 act replaced department of agriculture, conservation and natural resources with department of agriculture and natural resources; 1971 act replaced department of agriculture and natural resources with department of agriculture; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 91-10 made this section discretionary rather than mandatory; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6 replaced Department of Agriculture with Department of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective July 1, 2004; P.A. 04-189 repealed Sec. 146 of June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, thereby reversing the merger of the Departments of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective June 1, 2004.

      See Sec. 22-287 re tuberculin tests.

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      Sec. 22-389. Copy of license to be posted. Plate on motor vehicle. Identification cards. Every person licensed under the provisions of this chapter and conducting business under such license shall keep a copy thereof, to be furnished by the commissioner, posted in a conspicuous place in or at his place of business and exposed to inspection by any person entitled to make such inspection. Any such licensee using a motor vehicle in the course of business conducted under such license shall display in a conspicuous manner a license plate issued by the commissioner on each vehicle so used. The licensee and each of his agents shall, at all times when buying or receiving, selling, exchanging or soliciting or negotiating the sale, resale or shipment of cattle or swine, carry an identification card, issued by the commissioner, stating that such licensee or the principal of such agent is so licensed. The licensee or agent shall exhibit such card to persons with whom he is negotiating or from whom he is soliciting business and to the commissioner or his assistant.

      (1959, P.A. 573, S. 9; 1963, P.A. 57, S. 7; 1967, P.A. 584, S. 1.)

      History: 1963 act added reference to swine; 1967 act added provision re special license plates issued to licensees using motor vehicles in course of business.

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      Sec. 22-390. Enforcement. Regulations. The commissioner shall enforce the provisions of this chapter and shall make such regulations as are necessary for the licensing of cattle or swine dealers or brokers.

      (1959, P.A. 573, S. 10; 1963, P.A. 57, S. 8.)

      History: 1963 act added reference to regulations re swine dealers or brokers.

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      Sec. 22-391. Penalty. Any person who violates or refuses to comply with any provision of this chapter shall be fined not less than two hundred dollars nor more than five hundred dollars for a first offense and not less than five hundred dollars nor more than one thousand dollars for a second and each subsequent offense.

      (1959, P.A. 573, S. 11.)

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