1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to the environment; clarifying and increasing 
  1.3             regulation of pesticide use; increasing pesticide 
  1.4             registration application fees; classifying 
  1.5             restricted-use pesticide records as public data; 
  1.6             expanding the definition of pollutant; increasing the 
  1.7             scope of groundwater monitoring; creating a task 
  1.8             force; amending Minnesota Statutes 2000, sections 
  1.9             18B.02; 18B.04; 18B.064; 18B.26, subdivisions 1, 3, 5; 
  1.10            18B.37, subdivision 5, by adding a subdivision; 
  1.11            103H.005, subdivision 11; 103H.151, subdivision 4; 
  1.12            103H.175, by adding a subdivision; 103H.251; 103H.275. 
  1.13  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.14     Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 18B.02, is 
  1.15  amended to read: 
  1.16     18B.02 [PREEMPTION OF CERTAIN LOCAL LAW.] 
  1.17     Except as specifically provided in this chapter, the 
  1.18  provisions of this chapter preempt ordinances by local 
  1.19  governments, except cities of the first and second class, that 
  1.20  prohibit or regulate any matter relating to the registration, 
  1.21  labeling, distribution, sale, handling, use, application, or 
  1.22  disposal of pesticides.  It is not the intent of this section to 
  1.23  preempt local responsibilities for zoning, fire codes, or 
  1.24  hazardous waste disposal.  
  1.25     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 18B.04, is 
  1.26  amended to read: 
  1.27     18B.04 [PESTICIDE IMPACT ON ENVIRONMENT.] 
  1.28     The commissioner shall: 
  1.29     (1) determine the impact of pesticides on the environment, 
  2.1   including the determination and prevention of impacts on surface 
  2.2   water and groundwater in this state; 
  2.3      (2) develop best management practices designed to ensure 
  2.4   the health and safety of people and to protect the environment, 
  2.5   involving pesticide distribution, storage, handling, use, and 
  2.6   disposal; and 
  2.7      (3) cooperate with and assist other state agencies and 
  2.8   local governments to protect public health and the environment 
  2.9   from harmful exposure to pesticides. 
  2.10     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 18B.064, is 
  2.11  amended to read: 
  2.12     18B.064 [PESTICIDE USE INFORMATION.] 
  2.13     The commissioner shall monitor urban and rural pesticide 
  2.14  use on a biennial basis, including, but not limited to, 
  2.15  gathering information on the purpose of pesticide use, the total 
  2.16  and per-use quantity used, the location of each use recorded by 
  2.17  section, the month used, the product used, and the method of 
  2.18  application.  The information must be gathered using 
  2.19  statistically valid survey and sampling methods and is public 
  2.20  data.  Information shall be collected and automated consistent 
  2.21  with section 103B.151, subdivision 1, twice annually. 
  2.22     Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 18B.26, 
  2.23  subdivision 1, is amended to read: 
  2.24     Subdivision 1.  [REQUIREMENT.] (a) Except as provided in 
  2.25  paragraphs (b) to (d), a person may not use or distribute a 
  2.26  pesticide in this state unless it is registered with the 
  2.27  commissioner.  Pesticide registrations expire on December 31 of 
  2.28  each year and may be renewed on or before that date for the 
  2.29  following calendar year.  
  2.30     (b) Registration is not required if a pesticide is shipped 
  2.31  from one plant or warehouse to another plant or warehouse 
  2.32  operated by the same person and used solely at the plant or 
  2.33  warehouse as an ingredient in the formulation of a pesticide 
  2.34  that is registered under this chapter. 
  2.35     (c) An unregistered pesticide that was previously 
  2.36  registered with the commissioner may be used for a period of two 
  3.1   years one year following the cancellation of the registration of 
  3.2   the pesticide, unless the commissioner determines that the 
  3.3   continued use of the pesticide would cause unreasonable adverse 
  3.4   effects on the environment has the potential for adverse 
  3.5   environmental or health effects, or with the written permission 
  3.6   of the commissioner.  To use the unregistered pesticide at any 
  3.7   time after the two-year one-year period, the pesticide end user 
  3.8   must demonstrate to the satisfaction of the commissioner, if 
  3.9   requested, that the pesticide has been continuously registered 
  3.10  under a different brand name or by a different manufacturer and 
  3.11  has similar composition, or, the pesticide end user obtains the 
  3.12  written permission of the commissioner.  
  3.13     (d) The commissioner may allow specific pesticide products 
  3.14  that are not registered with the commissioner to be distributed 
  3.15  in this state for use in another state.  
  3.16     (e) Each pesticide with a unique United States 
  3.17  Environmental Protection Agency pesticide registration number or 
  3.18  a unique brand name must be registered with the commissioner. 
  3.19     Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 18B.26, 
  3.20  subdivision 3, is amended to read: 
  3.21     Subd. 3.  [APPLICATION FEE.] (a) A registrant shall pay an 
  3.22  annual application fee for each pesticide to be registered, and 
  3.23  this fee is set at one-tenth of one percent for calendar year 
  3.24  1990, at one-fifth of one percent for calendar year 1991, and at 
  3.25  two-fifths of one percent for calendar year 1992 and thereafter 
  3.26  of annual gross sales within the state and annual gross sales of 
  3.27  pesticides used in the state, with a minimum nonrefundable fee 
  3.28  of $250 $300.  The registrant shall determine when and which 
  3.29  pesticides are sold or used in this state.  The registrant shall 
  3.30  secure sufficient sales information of pesticides distributed 
  3.31  into this state from distributors and dealers, regardless of 
  3.32  distributor location, to make a determination.  Sales of 
  3.33  pesticides in this state and sales of pesticides for use in this 
  3.34  state by out-of-state distributors are not exempt and must be 
  3.35  included in the registrant's annual report, as required under 
  3.36  paragraph (c), and fees shall be paid by the registrant based 
  4.1   upon those reported sales.  Sales of pesticides in the state for 
  4.2   use outside of the state are exempt from the application fee in 
  4.3   this paragraph if the registrant properly documents the sale 
  4.4   location and distributors.  A registrant paying more than the 
  4.5   minimum fee shall pay the balance due by March 1 based on the 
  4.6   gross sales of the pesticide by the registrant for the preceding 
  4.7   calendar year.  The fee for disinfectants and sanitizers shall 
  4.8   be the minimum.  The minimum fee is due by December 31 preceding 
  4.9   the year for which the application for registration is made.  Of 
  4.10  the amount collected after calendar year 1990, at least $600,000 
  4.11  per fiscal year must be credited to the waste pesticide account 
  4.12  under section 18B.065, subdivision 5. 
  4.13     (b) An additional fee of $100 must be paid by the applicant 
  4.14  for each pesticide to be registered if the application is a 
  4.15  renewal application that is submitted after December 31. 
  4.16     (c) A registrant must annually report to the commissioner 
  4.17  the amount and type of each registered pesticide sold, offered 
  4.18  for sale, or otherwise distributed in the state.  The report 
  4.19  shall be filed by March 1 for the previous year's registration.  
  4.20  The commissioner shall specify the form of the report and 
  4.21  require additional information deemed necessary to determine the 
  4.22  amount and type of pesticides annually distributed in the 
  4.23  state.  The information required shall include the brand name, 
  4.24  amount, and formulation of each pesticide sold, offered for 
  4.25  sale, or otherwise distributed in the state, but the information 
  4.26  collected, if made public, shall be reported in a manner which 
  4.27  does not identify a specific brand name in the report. 
  4.28     Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 18B.26, 
  4.29  subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
  4.30     Subd. 5.  [REVIEW AND REGISTRATION.] (a) The commissioner 
  4.31  may not deny the registration of a pesticide because the 
  4.32  commissioner determines the pesticide is not essential. 
  4.33     (b) The commissioner shall review each application and for 
  4.34  adverse effects to the environment, including human health.  The 
  4.35  commissioner shall obtain analysis from the departments of human 
  4.36  services and natural resources and the pollution control agency 
  5.1   and shall use expertise from any other relevant government 
  5.2   agency.  The commissioner may approve, deny, or cancel the 
  5.3   registration of any pesticide at any time.  The commissioner may 
  5.4   impose state use and distribution restrictions on a pesticide as 
  5.5   part of the registration to prevent unreasonable adverse effects 
  5.6   on the environment. 
  5.7      (c) The commissioner must notify the applicant of the 
  5.8   approval, denial, cancellation, state use or distribution 
  5.9   restrictions. 
  5.10     (d) The applicant may request a hearing on any adverse 
  5.11  action of the commissioner within 30 days after being notified. 
  5.12     (e) The commissioner may exempt pesticides that have been 
  5.13  deregulated or classified as minimum risk by the United States 
  5.14  Environmental Protection Agency from the requirement of 
  5.15  registration. 
  5.16     Sec. 7.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 18B.37, 
  5.17  subdivision 5, is amended to read: 
  5.18     Subd. 5.  [INSPECTION OF RECORDS.] The commissioner may 
  5.19  enter a commercial, noncommercial, or structural pest control 
  5.20  applicator's business and inspect the records required in this 
  5.21  section at any reasonable time and may make copies of the 
  5.22  records.  Unless required for enforcement of this chapter, The 
  5.23  information in the records in this section is private or 
  5.24  nonpublic public.  
  5.25     Sec. 8.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 18B.37, is 
  5.26  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  5.27     Subd. 6.  [VIOLATION.] If an applicator violates this 
  5.28  section, the commissioner shall immediately revoke the 
  5.29  applicator's license. 
  5.30     Sec. 9.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 103H.005, 
  5.31  subdivision 11, is amended to read: 
  5.32     Subd. 11.  [POLLUTANT.] "Pollutant" means a chemical or 
  5.33  substance for which a health risk limit has been 
  5.34  adopted man-made or man-induced alteration of the chemical, 
  5.35  physical, biological, or radiological integrity of the water.  
  5.36     Sec. 10.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 103H.151, 
  6.1   subdivision 4, is amended to read: 
  6.2      Subd. 4.  [EVALUATION.] The commissioners of agriculture 
  6.3   and the pollution control agency shall, through field audits and 
  6.4   other appropriate means, biannually monitor the use and 
  6.5   effectiveness of best management practices developed and 
  6.6   promoted under this section.  The information collected must be 
  6.7   submitted to the environmental quality board, which must include 
  6.8   the information in the report required in section 103A.43, 
  6.9   paragraph (d). 
  6.10     Sec. 11.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 103H.175, is 
  6.11  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  6.12     Subd. 1a.  [SCOPE OF MONITORING.] The commissioner of 
  6.13  agriculture shall monitor all areas of the state where 
  6.14  agricultural chemicals are applied.  At a minimum, the 
  6.15  commissioner shall have one monitor per county in each of the 
  6.16  top 80 agriculture-producing counties in the state.  The 
  6.17  commissioner may use data from another agency if that data is 
  6.18  specifically gathered to monitor agricultural chemicals in 
  6.19  groundwater. 
  6.20     Sec. 12.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 103H.251, is 
  6.21  amended to read: 
  6.22     103H.251 [EVALUATION OF DETECTION OF POLLUTANTS.] 
  6.23     Subdivision 1.  [METHODS.] (a) The commissioner of 
  6.24  agriculture health, in consultation with a toxicologist, for 
  6.25  pollution resulting from agricultural chemicals and practices 
  6.26  and the pollution control agency for other pollutants shall 
  6.27  evaluate the detection of pollutants in groundwater of the 
  6.28  state.  Evaluation of the detection may include collection 
  6.29  technique, sampling handling technique, laboratory practices, 
  6.30  other quality control practices, climatological conditions, and 
  6.31  potential pollutant sources.  
  6.32     (b) If conditions indicate a likelihood of the detection of 
  6.33  the pollutant or pollutant breakdown product to be a common 
  6.34  detection, the commissioner of agriculture or the pollution 
  6.35  control agency must begin development of best management 
  6.36  practices and within three months of a common detection finding 
  7.1   and must implement or disseminate the information to farmers 
  7.2   within nine months of the finding.  The commissioner must 
  7.3   continue to monitor for the pollutant or pollutant breakdown 
  7.4   products. 
  7.5      Subd. 2.  [ANALYSIS OF POLLUTION TREND.] The commissioner 
  7.6   of agriculture for pollution resulting from agricultural 
  7.7   chemicals and practices and the pollution control agency for 
  7.8   other pollutants shall develop and implement groundwater 
  7.9   monitoring and hydrogeologic evaluation following any pollution 
  7.10  detection to evaluate pollution frequency and concentration 
  7.11  trend.  Assessment of the site-specific and pollutant-specific 
  7.12  conditions and the likelihood of common detection must include 
  7.13  applicable monitoring, pollutant use information, physical and 
  7.14  chemical properties of the pollutant, hydrogeologic information, 
  7.15  and review of information and data from other local, state, or 
  7.16  federal monitoring databases. 
  7.17     Sec. 13.  Minnesota Statutes 2000, section 103H.275, is 
  7.18  amended to read: 
  7.19     103H.275 [MANAGEMENT OF POLLUTANTS WHERE GROUNDWATER IS 
  7.20  POLLUTED.] 
  7.21     Subdivision 1.  [AREAS WHERE GROUNDWATER POLLUTION IS 
  7.22  DETECTED.] (a) If groundwater pollution is detected by any means 
  7.23  at all, a state agency or political subdivision that regulates 
  7.24  an activity causing or potentially causing a contribution to the 
  7.25  pollution identified shall develop and promote implementation of 
  7.26  , within one year of detection, best management practices to 
  7.27  prevent or minimize the source of pollution to the extent 
  7.28  practicable.  
  7.29     (b) The pollution control agency, or for agricultural 
  7.30  chemicals and practices, the commissioner of agriculture may 
  7.31  shall adopt water source protection requirements under 
  7.32  subdivision 2 that are consistent with the goal of section 
  7.33  103H.001 and are commensurate with the groundwater pollution 
  7.34  if the implementation of best management practices has proven to 
  7.35  be ineffective, after two years from development of best 
  7.36  management practices, the rate of detection and concentration of 
  8.1   the groundwater pollution is not decreasing at a statistically 
  8.2   significant rate as defined by generally accepted scientific 
  8.3   principles. 
  8.4      (c) The water resources protection requirements must be: 
  8.5      (1) designed to prevent and minimize the pollution to the 
  8.6   extent practicable; 
  8.7      (2) designed to prevent the pollution from exceeding the 
  8.8   health risk limits; and 
  8.9      (3) submitted to the house of representatives and senate 
  8.10  committees with jurisdiction over the environment, natural 
  8.11  resources, and agriculture. 
  8.12     Subd. 2.  [ADOPTION OF WATER RESOURCE PROTECTION 
  8.13  REQUIREMENTS.] (a) The pollution control agency, or for 
  8.14  agricultural chemicals and practices, the commissioner of 
  8.15  agriculture shall adopt by rule water resource protection 
  8.16  requirements that are consistent with the goal of section 
  8.17  103H.001 to prevent and minimize the pollution to the extent 
  8.18  practicable.  The proposed rule must be submitted to the house 
  8.19  of representatives and senate committees with jurisdiction over 
  8.20  the environment, natural resources, and agriculture before 
  8.21  adoption.  The water resource protection requirements must be 
  8.22  based on the use and effectiveness of best management practices, 
  8.23  the product use and practices contributing to the pollution 
  8.24  detected, economic factors, availability, technical feasibility, 
  8.25  implementability, and effectiveness.  The water resource 
  8.26  protection requirements may be adopted for one or more 
  8.27  pollutants or a similar class of pollutants.  A water resource 
  8.28  protection requirement may not be adopted before January 1, 1991.
  8.29     (b) Before the water resource protection requirements are 
  8.30  adopted, the pollution control agency or the commissioner of 
  8.31  agriculture for agricultural chemicals and practices must notify 
  8.32  affected persons and, businesses, communities, and environmental 
  8.33  organizations for comments and input in developing the water 
  8.34  resource protection requirements.  
  8.35     (c) Unless the water resource protection requirements are 
  8.36  to cover the entire state, the water resource protection 
  9.1   requirements are only effective in areas designated by the 
  9.2   commissioner of the pollution control agency by order or for 
  9.3   agricultural chemicals and practices in areas designated by the 
  9.4   commissioner of agriculture by order.  The procedures for 
  9.5   issuing the order and the effective date of the order must be 
  9.6   included in the water resource protection requirements rule.  
  9.7      (d) The water resource protection requirements rule must 
  9.8   contain procedures for notice to be given to persons affected by 
  9.9   the rule and order of the commissioner.  The procedures may 
  9.10  include notice by publication, personal service, and other 
  9.11  appropriate methods to inform affected persons of the rule and 
  9.12  commissioner's order.  
  9.13     (e) A person who is subject to a water resource protection 
  9.14  requirement may apply to the pollution control agency, or for 
  9.15  agricultural chemicals and practices the commissioner of 
  9.16  agriculture, and suggest an alternative protection requirement.  
  9.17  Within 60 days after receipt, the agency or commissioner of 
  9.18  agriculture must approve or deny the request.  If the pollution 
  9.19  control agency or commissioner of agriculture approves the 
  9.20  request, an order must be issued approving the alternative 
  9.21  protection requirement.  
  9.22     (f) (e) A person who violates a water resource protection 
  9.23  requirement relating to pollutants, other than agricultural 
  9.24  chemicals, is subject to the penalties for violating a rule 
  9.25  adopted under chapter 116.  A person who violates a water 
  9.26  resource protection requirement relating to agricultural 
  9.27  chemicals and practices is subject to the penalties for 
  9.28  violating a rule adopted under chapter 18D. 
  9.29     Sec. 14.  [TASK FORCE ON INTEGRATED CROP MANAGEMENT.] 
  9.30     A task force is established to investigate and design an 
  9.31  integrated crop management system designed to reduce the amount 
  9.32  and toxicity of pesticides used, with state-level comprehensive 
  9.33  planning and local contacts for training and dissemination of 
  9.34  information.  The task force shall consist of eight members.  
  9.35  The speaker of the house of representatives and the subcommittee 
  9.36  on committees of the senate committee on rules and 
 10.1   administration shall appoint one member from each of the 
 10.2   following categories: 
 10.3      (1) two experts in sustainable agriculture, one of whom 
 10.4   must be from the Minnesota institute for sustainable 
 10.5   agriculture; 
 10.6      (2) two members from the University of Minnesota integrated 
 10.7   pest management program; 
 10.8      (3) two University of Minnesota extension agents; and 
 10.9      (4) two commodity group representatives. 
 10.10     The resulting system must include a toxicity model 
 10.11  prioritizing the pesticides to be targeted for reductions, with 
 10.12  an emphasis on pesticides used on corn, soybeans, wheat, and 
 10.13  potatoes. 
 10.14     The task force shall submit a written report to the 
 10.15  department of agriculture and to the house of representatives 
 10.16  and senate committees with jurisdiction over agriculture and the 
 10.17  environment by January 15, 2004.  The task force expires upon 
 10.18  submission of its report.