00SENATE BILL NO.  3                                                                                                      
01 "An Act relating to an antitrust exemption for persons engaged in the fishing                                           
02 industry."                                                                                                              
03 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                                
04    * Section 1.  AS 45.50.572(c) is repealed and reenacted to read:                                                     
05  (c)  AS 45.50.562 - 45.50.596 do not forbid persons engaged in the fishing                                            
06 industry as fishermen who catch, collect, or cultivate aquatic products from acting                                     
07 together in associations for the purpose of collectively catching, producing, preparing                                 
08 for market, processing, handling, and marketing their product.  Associations may have                                   
09 marketing agencies in common and may make contracts and agreements necessary to                                         
10 achieve the purposes of this subsection.  In this subsection, "association" means an                                    
11 association, corporate or otherwise, with or without capital stock, that                                                
12   (1)  is operated for the mutual benefit of its members;                                                              
13   (2)  does not deal in the aquatic products of nonmembers to an amount                                                
14 greater in value than the association handles for its members; and                                                      

01   (3)  either                                                                                                          
02   (A)  does not allow a member of the association more than one                                                       
03 vote because of the amount of stock or membership capital the member may                                                
04 own in the association; or                                                                                              
05   (B)  does not pay dividends on stock or membership capital in                                                       
06 excess of eight percent a year.                                                                                         
07    * Sec. 2.  AS 45.50.572 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:                                               
08  (j)  AS 45.50.562 - 45.50.596 do not forbid persons engaged in the fishing                                            
09 industry as fishermen, including fishermen acting through associations allowed under                                    
10 (c) of this section, from collectively agreeing with fish processors, including fish                                    
11 processors acting through associations of processors, on the (1) price paid to the                                      
12 fishermen for aquatic products; and (2) minimum price that fish processors will accept                                  
13 for the sale of processed aquatic products.  Nothing in this subsection allows fish                                     
14 processors to agree among themselves on the price paid to fishermen or the minimum                                      
15 price that fish processors will accept for the sale of processed aquatic products if                                    
16 fishermen did not participate in the making of the agreement and are not a party to the                                 
17 agreement.