HF 1906

as introduced - 89th Legislature (2015 - 2016) Posted on 04/08/2015 08:01am

A bill for an act
relating to environment; modifying uses of the pesticide regulatory account;
modifying labeling and advertising prohibitions pertaining to plants beneficial to
pollinators; amending Minnesota Statutes 2014, sections 18B.05, subdivision 1;
18H.14.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 18B.05, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Establishment.

A pesticide regulatory account is established in the
agricultural fund. Fees, assessments, and penalties collected under this chapter must
be deposited in the agricultural fund and credited to the pesticide regulatory account.
Money in the account, including interest, is appropriated to the commissioner for the
administration and enforcement of this chapter new text begin and section 18H.14, paragraph (e) new text end .

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 18H.14, is amended to read:

18H.14 LABELING AND ADVERTISING OF NURSERY STOCK.

(a) Plants, plant materials, or nursery stock must not be labeled or advertised with
false or misleading information including, but not limited to, scientific name, variety,
place of origin, hardiness zone as defined by the United States Department of Agriculture,
and growth habit.

(b) All nonhardy nursery stock as designated by the commissioner must be labeled new text begin
correctly for hardiness or be labeled new text end "nonhardy" in Minnesota.

(c) A person may not offer for distribution plants, plant materials, or nursery stock,
represented by some specific or special form of notation, including, but not limited to,
"free from" or "grown free of," unless the plants are produced under a specific program
approved by the commissioner to address the specific plant properties addressed in the
special notation claim.

(d) Nursery stock collected from the wild state must be inspected and certified
prior to sale and at the time of sale must be labeled "Collected from the Wild." The label
must remain on each plant or clump of plants while it is offered for sale and during the
distribution process. The collected stock may be grown in nursery rows at least two years,
after which the plants may be sold without the labeling required by this paragraph.

(e) A person new text begin selling at retail or providing to an end user new text end may not label or advertise
an annual plant, bedding plant, or other plant, plant material, or nursery stock as beneficial
to pollinators if the annual plant, bedding plant, plant material, or nursery stock has new text begin :
new text end

new text begin (1) new text end been treated with deleted text begin and has deleted text end a deleted text begin detectable level of deleted text end systemic insecticide that:

deleted text begin
(1) deleted text end new text begin (i) new text end has a pollinator protection box on the label; or

deleted text begin (2) deleted text end new text begin (ii) new text end has a pollinator, bee, or honey bee precautionary statement in the
environmental hazards section of the insecticide product label deleted text begin . deleted text end new text begin ; and
new text end

new text begin (2) a concentration in its flowers greater than the no observed adverse effect level
of a systemic insecticide.
new text end

The commissioner shall enforce this paragraph as provided in chapter 18J.

new text begin (f) For the purposes of paragraph (e):
new text end

new text begin (1) "systemic insecticide" means an insecticide that is both absorbed by the plant
and translocated through the plant's vascular system; and
new text end

new text begin (2) "no observed adverse effect level" means the level established by United States
Environmental Protection Agency for acute oral toxicity for adult honeybees.
new text end