(a) The funds to cover the Board's expenses shall be paid from assessments on producers and importers, other income of the Board, and other funds available to the Board including those collected pursuant to § 1223.57 and subject to the limitations contained in § 1223.57.

(b) Each producer shall pay an assessment per pound of pecans produced in the United States. The collection of assessments on pecans produced in the United States will be the responsibility of the first handler receiving the pecans from producers. In the case of the producer acting as its own first handler, the producer will be required to collect and remit its individual assessments.

(1) First handlers may remit assessments to a third-party collection agent under this subpart.

(2) First handlers may also remit assessments directly to the Board.

(c) Such assessments shall be levied at $0.02 per pound on all inshell pecans and $0.04 per pound on all shelled pecans. The assessment rate may be reviewed and modified with the approval of the Secretary. A change in the assessment rate is subject to rulemaking by the Secretary.

(d) All assessment payments and reports will be submitted to the office of the Board. All assessment payments for a fiscal period are to be received no later than the 10th of the month following the end of the previous month. A late payment charge shall be imposed on any producer and importer who fails to remit to the Board, the total amount for which any such producer and importer is liable on or before the due date established by the Board on forms approved by the Secretary. In addition to the late payment charge, an interest charge shall be imposed on the outstanding amount for which the producer and importer is liable. The rate of interest shall be prescribed in regulations issued by the Secretary.

(e) Each importer of pecans shall pay an assessment to the Board on pecans imported for marketing in the United States, through Customs.

(1) The assessment rate for imported pecans shall be the same or equivalent to the rate for pecans produced in the United States.

(2) The import assessment shall be uniformly applied to imported pecans that are identified by the number 0802.90.10.00 and 0802.90.15.00 in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) of the United States or any other numbers used to identify pecans in that schedule.

(3) In the event that any HTS number is subject to assessment is changed and such change is merely a replacement of a previous number and has no impact on the description of pecans, assessment will continue to be collected based on the new numbers.

(4) The assessment due on imported pecans shall be paid when they enter, or are withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption in the United States.

(5) If Customs does not collect an assessment from an importer, the importer is responsible for paying the assessment directly to the Board no later than the 10th of the month following the month the assessed pecans were imported into the United States.

(f) Persons failing to remit total assessments due in a timely manner may also be subject to actions under Federal debt collection procedures.

(g) The Board may authorize other organizations to collect assessments on its behalf with the approval of the Secretary.