§ 729.408 - Examination of records and reports.

The Deputy Administrator, the Director of the Tobacco and Peanuts Division, the FSA State Executive Director, or their designees, and all auditors and agents of the Office of Inspector General, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) or the General Accounting Office are authorized to examine any records of any producer, or handler, or person buying or processing peanuts as deemed necessary to enforce the peanut poundage quota program and shall be allowed access to such records. Upon a request for such examination, any person who dries farmers stock peanuts by artificial means for a producer, any buyer, warehouseman, processor, or common carrier of peanuts, any broker or dealer in peanuts, any farmer engaged in the production of peanuts, any agent marketing peanuts for a producer or acquiring peanuts for a buyer or association, any person engaged in the business of cleaning, shelling, crushing, or salting peanuts or manufacturing peanut products, or any person owning or operating a peanut combine, shall make available for examination such books, papers, automated records, electronic records, accounts, correspondence, contracts, documents, and memoranda as are under the control of the person receiving the request which any person hereby authorized to examine records has reason to believe are relevant to any matter which relates to the provisions of this part. Any person who fails to provide such access shall be subject to a penalty payable to CCC in amount up to, as determined by the Deputy Administrator, the amount calculated by multiplying the amount of peanuts involved by the quota support rate for the applicable crop year.