The Secretary of Agriculture is authorized and directed to collect and publish statistics of the quantity of leaf tobacco in all forms in the United States and Puerto Rico, owned by or in the possession of dealers, manufacturers, quasi-manufacturers, growers’ cooperative associations, warehousemen, brokers, holders, or owners, other than the original growers of tobacco. The statistics shall show the quantity of tobacco in such detail as to types, groups of grades, and such other subdivisions as to quality, color, and/or grade for particular types, as the Secretary of Agriculture shall deem to be practical and necessary for the purposes of this chapter, shall be summarized as of January 1, April 1, July 1, and October 1 of each year, and an annual report on tobacco statistics shall be issued: Provided

The Secretary of Agriculture shall establish standards for the classification of leaf tobacco, and he is authorized to demonstrate such standards, to prepare and distribute samples thereof, and to make reasonable charges therefor. He shall specify the types, groups of grades, qualities, colors, and/or grades, which shall be included in the returns required by this chapter. The Secretary of Agriculture shall prepare appropriate blanks upon which the returns shall be made, shall, upon request, furnish copies to persons who are required by this chapter to make returns, and such returns shall show the types, groups of grades, qualities, colors, and/or grades and such other information as the Secretary may require.

It shall be the duty of every dealer, manufacturer, quasi-manufacturer, growers’ cooperative association, warehouseman, broker, holder, or owner, other than the original grower, except such persons as are excluded by the proviso to section 501 of this title, to furnish within fifteen days after January 1, April 1, July 1, and October 1 of each year, completely and correctly, to the best of his knowledge, a report of the quantity of leaf tobacco on hand, segregated in accordance with the blanks furnished by the Secretary of Agriculture. Any person, firm, association, or corporation required by this chapter to furnish a report, and any officer, agent, or employee thereof who shall refuse or willfully neglect to furnish any of the information required by this chapter, or shall willfully give answers that are false or misleading, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be fined not less than $300 or more than $1,000, or imprisoned not more than one year, or both.

The word “person” as used in this chapter shall be held to embrace also any partnership, corporation, association, or other legal entity.

The Secretary of Agriculture shall have access to the tobacco records of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue and of the several collectors of internal revenue for the purpose of obtaining lists of the persons subject to this chapter and for the purpose of aiding the collection of the information herein required, and the Commissioner of Internal Revenue and the several collectors of internal revenue shall cooperate with the Secretary of Agriculture in effectuating the provisions of this chapter.

The returns provided for in this chapter shall be made under oath before a collector or deputy collector of internal revenue, a postmaster, assistant postmaster, or anyone authorized to administer oaths by State or Federal law.

The information furnished under the provisions of this chapter shall be used only for the statistical purposes for which it is supplied. No publication shall be made by the Secretary of Agriculture whereby the data furnished by any particular establishment can be identified, nor shall the Secretary of Agriculture permit anyone other than the sworn employees of the Department of Agriculture to examine the individual reports.

If any provision of this chapter is declared unconstitutional or the applicability thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the validity of the remainder of said sections and the applicability of such provisions to other persons and circumstances shall not be affected thereby.