Bill Text: IA HF398 | 2015-2016 | 86th General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: A bill for an act relating to incidents involving pesticide drift, including by providing for reporting and testing, and making appropriations.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2015-02-25 - Subcommittee, Deyoe, Bearinger, and Worthan. H.J. 416. [HF398 Detail]
Download: Iowa-2015-HF398-Introduced.html
House File 398 - Introduced HOUSE FILE BY WESSEL=KROESCHELL A BILL FOR 1 An Act relating to incidents involving pesticide drift, 2 including by providing for reporting and testing, and making 3 appropriations. 4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: TLSB 2136YH (3) 86 da/nh PAG LIN 1 1 Section 1. Section 206.2, Code 2015, is amended by adding 1 2 the following new subsection: 1 3 NEW SUBSECTION. 11A. "Drift" means the movement of a 1 4 pesticide during or immediately after application through air 1 5 to a site other than the intended site of application. 1 6 Sec. 2. Section 206.14, subsection 2, unnumbered paragraph 1 7 1, Code 2015, is amended to read as follows: 1 8 Any person claiming damages from a pesticide application, 1 9 including an incident involving drift, shallhave filedfile 1 10 with the secretary on a form prescribed by the secretary a 1 11 written statement claiming that the person has been damaged by 1 12 the application. The secretary shall allow such forms to be 1 13 completed and filed via the department's internet site. 1 14 Sec. 3. Section 206.19, subsection 5, Code 2015, is amended 1 15 by adding the following new paragraph: 1 16 NEW PARAGRAPH. c. For damages caused by drift as provided 1 17 in section 206.14, the amount of civil damages collected by the 1 18 department is appropriated to the department to perform tests 1 19 analyzing the possible presence of pesticides as reported by a 1 20 person alleging damages as provided in section 206.14. 1 21 Sec. 4. PESTICIDE DRIFT ==== APPROPRIATION. There is 1 22 appropriated from the general fund of the state to the 1 23 department of agriculture and land stewardship for the fiscal 1 24 year beginning July 1, 2015, and ending June 30, 2016, the 1 25 following amount, or so much thereof as is necessary, to be 1 26 used for the purposes designated: 1 27 1. For purposes of assisting persons alleging damages 1 28 caused by pesticide drift as provided in chapter 206: 1 29 .................................................. $ 325,000 1 30 2. a. Of the amount appropriated in subsection 1, up to 1 31 $125,000 shall be used by the department to improve or expand 1 32 its internet site in order to allow a person to electronically 1 33 file a statement alleging damages as provided in section 1 34 206.14, as amended in this Act. 1 35 b. Of the amount appropriated in subsection 1, up to 2 1 $200,000 shall be used by the department to decrease the time 2 2 that persons filing statements alleging damages under section 2 3 206.14, as amended in this Act, must wait to obtain the results 2 4 from tests analyzing the possible presence of the pesticides. 2 5 (1) A person alleging damages must receive the results of 2 6 the test within twenty=one days from the first date that the 2 7 department could begin testing. 2 8 (2) The department shall determine whether a test is best 2 9 conducted at the department's Iowa laboratory facility or 2 10 another laboratory, including a private laboratory. 2 11 3. Notwithstanding section 8.33, moneys appropriated in 2 12 this section that remain unencumbered or unobligated at the 2 13 close of the fiscal year shall not revert but shall remain 2 14 available for expenditure for the purposes designated until the 2 15 close of the succeeding fiscal year. 2 16 EXPLANATION 2 17 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 2 18 the explanation's substance by the members of the general assembly. 2 19 GENERAL. This bill amends the "Pesticide Act of Iowa" 2 20 (Code chapter 206) by providing for incidents involving 2 21 "drift", which is defined to mean the movement of a pesticide 2 22 either during or after its application (usually to land or 2 23 crops) through the air to another site. The provisions are 2 24 administered and enforced by the department of agriculture and 2 25 land stewardship (DALS). 2 26 REPORTING. The bill amends a provision which allows a person 2 27 to file a claim for damages from a pesticide application with 2 28 DALS by allowing a person to complete and file the report form 2 29 via the internet. 2 30 APPROPRIATIONS ==== GENERAL FUND. The bill appropriates 2 31 moneys to DALS from the general fund of the state for purposes 2 32 of assisting persons alleging damages caused by drift, 2 33 including by improving or expanding DALS' internet site and 2 34 by reducing the wait period for a person alleging damages to 2 35 receive the results of a test conducted by DALS. The bill also 3 1 allows DALS to have such tests conducted by another laboratory, 3 2 including a private laboratory. The appropriations revert at 3 3 the close of FY 2016=2017. 3 4 APPROPRIATIONS ==== CIVIL PENALTIES. The bill also provides 3 5 that civil damages collected by DALS from violations involving 3 6 drift by commercial applicators are appropriated to DALS for 3 7 purposes of conducting the tests. 3 8 BACKGROUND. A pesticide is any substance used to prevent, 3 9 destroy, repel, or mitigate damages caused by insects, rodents, 3 10 nematodes, fungi, weeds, or other forms of plant or animal life 3 11 or viruses; and includes any substance used as a plant growth 3 12 regulator, defoliant, or desiccant (Code section 206.2). A 3 13 person claiming damages from a pesticide application must file 3 14 a report with DALS, which then may conduct an investigation of 3 15 the matter (Code section 206.14). DALS may establish, assess, 3 16 and collect civil penalties for violations by commercial 3 17 applicators for an amount not to exceed $500 for each offense 3 18 (Code section 206.19). LSB 2136YH (3) 86 da/nh
