Pub. L. 83-690, tit. VII, sec. 708

Sec. 708. The Secretary of Agriculture is authorized to enter into agreements with, or to approve agreements entered into between, marketing cooperatives, trade associations, or others engaged or whose members are engaged in the handling of wool, mohair, sheep, or goats or the products thereof for the purpose of developing and conducting on a National, State, or regional basis advertising and sales promotion programs for wool, mohair, sheep, or goats or the products thereof. Provision may be made in such agreement to obtain the funds necessary to defray the expenses incurred thereunder through pro rata deductions from the payments made under section 704 of this title to producers within the production area he determines will be benefited by the agreement and for the assignment and transfer of the amounts so deducted to the person or agency designated in the agreement to receive such amounts for expenditure in accordance with the terms and conditions of the agreement. No agreement containing such a provision for defraying expenses through deductions shall become effective until the Secretary determines that at least two-thirds of the producers who, during a representative period determined by the Secretary, have been engaged, within the production area he determines will be benefited by the agreement, in the production for market of the commodity specified therein approve or favor such agreement or that producers who, during such representative period have produced at least two-thirds of the volume of such commodity produced within the area which will be benefited by such agreement, approve or favor such agreement. Approval or disapproval by cooperative associations shall be considered as approval or disapproval by the producers who are members of, stockholders in, or under contract with such cooperative association of producers. The Secretary may conduct a referendum among producers to ascertain their approval or favor. The requirements of approval or favor shall be held to be complied with if two-thirds of the total number of producers, or two-thirds of the total volume of production, as the case may be, represented in such referendum, indicate their approval or favor.