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Georgia Commissioner of Agriculture
| Georgia Commissioner of Agriculture | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Office Type: | Partisan |
| Office website: | Official Link |
| Term limits: | None |
| Structure | |
| Length of term: | 4 years |
| Authority: | Georgia Code, 33-2-1 |
| Selection Method: | Elected |
| Current Officeholder | |
 | |
| Name: | Gary Black |
| Officeholder Party: | Republican |
| Assumed office: | January 10, 2011 |
| Compensation: | $121,556 |
| Elections | |
| Next election: | November 4, 2014 |
| Last election: | November 2, 2010 |
| Other Georgia Executive Offices | |
| Governor•Lieutenant Governor•Secretary of State•Attorney General•Treasurer•Auditor•Superintendent of Schools•Agriculture Commissioner•Insurance Commissioner•Natural Resources Commissioner•Labor Commissioner•Public Service Commission | |
Contents |
Current officeholder
The current commissioner is Gary Black, a Republican, who was first elected on November 2, 2010 and took office on January 10, 2011. Black will come up for re-election, if he chooses to run, in 2014.
Before becoming commissioner, Black co-managed the Georgia Food Industry Partneship for 13 years. He has also served as president of the Georgia Agribusiness Council and as a field representative in the Georgia Farm Bureau. Black holds a bachelor's degree in agricultural education from the University of Georgia.[1]
Authority
The office of agriculture commissioner, though mentioned in the Georgia Constitution, is formally established in state law.[2]
Georgia Code, 33-2-1
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The department shall be under the control and management of the Commissioner of Agriculture... |
Qualifications
Per Article V, Section 3, Paragraph II of the Georgia Constitution, the commissioner of agriculture must, at the time of his election:
- Have been a citizen of the U.S. for 10 years
- A legal resident of Georgia for four years
- 25 years old
Georgia Constitution, Article V, Section 3, Paragraph II
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(a) No person shall be eligible to the office of the Secretary of State, Attorney General, State School Superintendent, Commissioner of Insurance, Commissioner of Agriculture, or Commissioner of Labor unless such person shall have been a citizen of the United States for ten years and a legal resident of the state for four years immediately preceding election or appointment and shall have attained the age of 25 years by the date of assuming office. All of said officers shall take such oath and give bond and security, as prescribed by law, for the faithful discharge of their duties. |
Elections
The commissioner is elected "at the same time and hold[s] [his] office for the same term as the Governor."
Georgia Constitution, Article V, Section 3, Paragraph I
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The Secretary of State, Attorney General, State School Superintendent, Commissioner of Insurance, Commissioner of Agriculture, and Commissioner of Labor shall be elected in the manner prescribed for the election of members of the General Assembly and the electors shall be the same. Such executive officers shall be elected at the same time and hold their offices for the same term as the Governor. |
Term limits
There are no term limits for the office of agriculture commissioner.
Vacancies
If a vacancy occurs, the governor fills it, subject to confirmation by a majority vote of the Georgia Senate. Vacancy procedures are laid out in Article V, Section 2, Paragraph VIII of the Georgia Constitution.
Duties
The commissioner manages the Georgia Department of Agriculture, which regulates and promotes the produce of Georgia's agricultural industry.
According to the department's website, "the Georgia Department of Agriculture regulates, monitors, or assists with the following areas: grocery stores, convenience stores, food warehouses, bottling plants, food processing plants, pet dealers and breeders, animal health, gasoline quality and pump calibration, antifreeze, weights and measures, marketing of Georgia agricultural products domestically and internationally, pesticides, structural pest control, meat processing plants, seed quality, Vidalia onions, state farmers markets, plant diseases, nurseries and garden centers, fertilizer and lime, potting soil; feed, boll weevil eradication, apiaries, Humane Care for Equines Act, bottled water, and other responsibilities."[3]
Divisions
- Administration
- Animal Industry
- Consumer Protection
- Fuel & Measures
- Plant Industry
- Marketing
Compensation
In 2010, the commissioner received a salary of $121,556.
Contact info
Address:
19 Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr., S.W.
Atlanta, GA 30334
Phone: (404) 656-3645
E-mail: gary.black@agr.georgia.gov
See also
External links
References
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