Secretary of agriculture has custody of records; civil or criminal actions not effected

(a) The secretary of agriculture shall have the legal custody of all records, memoranda, writings, entries, prints, representations or combinations thereof of any act, transaction, occurrence or event of the department of agriculture and any agency or office abolished or transferred thereto under this act. (b) No suit, action or other proceeding, judicial or administrative, lawfully commenced, or which could have been commenced, by or against any state agency mentioned in this act, or by or against any officer of the state in such officer's official capacity or in relation to the discharge of such officer's official duties, shall abate by reason of the governmental reorganization effected under the provisions of this act. The court may allow any such suit, action or other proceeding to be maintained by or against the successor of any such state agency or any officer affected. (c) No criminal action commenced or which could have been commenced by the state shall abate by the taking effect of this act.