Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
FDACS Department Seal
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FDACS Department Logo
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| Department overview | |
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| Formed | 1870 |
| Preceding agencies |
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| Jurisdiction | Government of Florida |
| Headquarters |
The Capitol Tallahassee, Florida |
| Department executive | |
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| Website | doacs.state.fl.us |
The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) is an executive department of the government of Florida.
The Commissioner of Agriculture (directly elected by voters statewide for a four-year term, and a member of the Florida Cabinet) is the head of the department. The current commissioner is Adam Putnam.
The Florida Constitution of 1868 provided for the creation of the Office of Commissioner of Immigration, whose duties consisted of attracting settlers to engage in agriculture. The Florida Constitution was amended in 1871 to consolidate the offices of Surveyor General and Commissioner of Immigration as the new Commissioner of Lands and Immigration. In 1885, the Constitution was revised and the Commissioner of Lands and Immigration post was renamed Commissioner of Agriculture. The duties of the Commissioner of Agriculture were revised to include supervision of the state prisons. (A Division of Corrections was created in 1957 and state prisons were removed from the list of Commissioner of Agriculture responsibilities).
The Agricultural Services Reorganization Act (ASRA) was passed in 1959 and became effective January 15, 1961. This state law abolished some independent boards and bureaus, which were assigned to the Department of Agriculture's divisions. These included: Administration, Animal Industry, Dairy Industry, Fruit and Vegetable Inspection, Marketing, Plant Industry, Inspection and Standards. The State Chemist, a position that existed since 1891, was moved to the new Division of Chemistry.
The Legislature created the Office of Consumer Services in 1967. The Executive Reorganization Act of 1969 renamed the Office of Consumer Services the Division of Consumer Services and the Board of Forestry the Division of Forestry. The Department of Agriculture was renamed the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS).
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Wikipedia