Florida/Georgia Personal Injury & Workers Compensation

...round that he “d[id] not meet the eligibility criteria for a commercial nursery operation” because he had not renewed his certificate of registration to sell or distribute, or to offer for sale or distribution nursery stock under Florida law, § 581.131, Fla....

...ees were “ornamental nursery crops,” as defined under 7 C.F.R. § 1480.18(d) (2002), the district court erred by affirming the NAD’s determination that they were required to register as commercial producers under Florida law, as set out by section 581.131, Fla....

...mercial sale” at the time of the disaster in order to qualify for federal disaster assistance. They also argue that the Agency acted arbitrarily and capriciously by (1) only applying 23 that portion of section 581.131 which was adverse to the Mahons and by ignoring the statute’s added written notice requirement which required the state to provide the Mahons with sixty days notice prior to their certification expiration date, (2) denying the Ma...

...ommercial sale.” In order to provide the term “commercial sale” with meaning, the Agency looked to Florida law, which provides that before any person can sell or distribute nursery stock in the state, they must be registered with the state. § 581.131, Fla....

...As an alternative argument, though obliquely stated, John and Shelby Mahon assert that even if it is reasonable that the Agency relied upon Florida law, it was nevertheless arbitrary and capricious for the Agency to apply the statute when the state failed to send them a renewal notice as required by section 581.131, Fla. Stat. See § 581.131(8), Fla....

... This Court finds that while it is reasonable for the Agency to rely upon state law to provide meaning to an undefined statutory term, see Chevron, 467 U.S. at 843, 104 S. Ct. at 2782, the USDA acted arbitrarily in selectively applying only part of the Florida statute. Under section 581.131, Fla....

...s, and that is whether the Florida statute should apply to the instant case at all. Although not addressed by the parties in their briefs, this Court notes that a USDA official in another benefits case similar to this one rendered an opinion that section 581.131, Fla....

...r. Thus, under this standard, the fact that the Mahons were not registered as commercial producers would only be relevant if their crops were ripe and ready for sale at the time they were destroyed.8 The district court failed to consider whether section 581.131 should be interpreted this way, or whether the statute applies regardless of whether the Mahons’ crops were ready for sale. Furthermore, this court finds it troubling that the USDA would interpret and apply section 581.131 so differently with respect to two similarly situated claimants. John and Shelby Mahon further claim that the Agency acted arbitrarily by denying them benefits while the evidence demonstrated that over one million dollars w...

...[56] The agency denied disaster relief benefits, in part, because the agency concluded that John and Shelby Mahon's nursery crops were not for "commercial sale." Specifically, since John and Shelby Mahon were not registered with the State of Florida. as required by Fla. Stat. § 581.131, [57] *1290 and were prohibited from selling their plants without a registration under Florida law, [58] the agency concluded that their crops were not for "commercial sale." The Court cannot say that the agency's interpretation of the regulation is unreasonable or contrary to law....

...Contractors Sere., 492 F.2d 498, 501 (5th Cir.1974) (holding that Secretary of Labor's interpretation of a regulation promulgated under Occupational Safety and Health Act was entitled to "great weight"). [54] 7 C.F.R. § 1480.1. [55] Id. [56] 7 C.F.R. § 1480.18 (emphasis added). [57] Fla. Stat. § 581.131(1) provides that "[b]efore any nurseryman shall sell or distribute, or offer for sale or for distribution, any nursery stock in this state, she or he shall apply to the director of that division, on forms supplied by the division, a certificate of registration.' [58] Fla....