Bill Text: MS HB634 | 2012 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: MS Bureau of Plant Industry; provide administrative hearing for certain violation of provisions relating to.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2012-05-01 - Approved by Governor [HB634 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2012-HB634-Introduced.html
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2012 Regular Session
To: Agriculture
By: Representative Sullivan
House Bill 634
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTIONS 69-25-47, 69-25-51 AND 69-25-109, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO INCLUDE CERTAIN VIOLATIONS OF THE LAW REGULATING PLANT DISEASES, PESTS, BEES AND BEE DISEASES UNDER THE ADMINISTRATIVE HEARING PROCEDURES FOR THE BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY; TO CREATE A NEW CODE SECTION TO BE CODIFIED AS SECTION 69-25-10, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROHIBIT THE CULTIVATION OF CERTAIN NONNATIVE PLANT SPECIES FOR THE PURPOSE OF FUEL PRODUCTION WITHOUT HAVING FIRST OBTAINED A SPECIAL PERMIT FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND COMMERCE FOR SUCH CULTIVATION; TO ESTABLISH A REMEDY AVAILABLE TO THE DEPARTMENT FOR THE REMOVAL AND DESTRUCTION OF NONNATIVE PLANT SPECIES DETERMINED TO BE A NUISANCE; TO BRING FORWARD SECTIONS 69-25-1, 69-25-3, 69-25-5, 69-25-7, 69-25-9, 69-25-11, 69-25-13, 69-25-15, 69-25-17, 69-25-19, 69-25-21, 69-25-23, 69-25-25, 69-25-27, 69-25-29, 69-25-31, 69-25-33, 69-25-35, 69-25-37, 69-25-39, 69-25-41, 69-25-43, 69-25-45, 69-25-101, 69-25-103, 69-25-105 AND 69-25-107, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, FOR THE PURPOSE OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENTS; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 69-25-47, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
69-25-47. (1) Any person who shall violate any provisions or requirements of this article, or of the rules and regulations made or of any notice given pursuant thereto or shall forge, counterfeit, deface, destroy or wrongfully use any certificate provided for herein or in the rules and regulations made pursuant thereto, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of not more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) or by imprisonment for not more than six (6) months or by both such fine and imprisonment at the discretion of the court having jurisdiction.
(2) In addition to the criminal penalty imposed under subsection (1) of this section, each violation of this article or the applicable rules and regulations established by the commissioner pertaining hereto shall subject the violator to administrative action as provided in Sections 69-25-51 through 69-25-63.
SECTION 2. Section 69-25-51, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
69-25-51. (1) When any administrative allegation or charge is made against a person for violating the rules and regulations of the Bureau of Plant Industry of the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce or the laws under Sections 69-19-1 through 69-19-15, Sections 69-21-101 through 69-21-128, Sections 69-23-1 through 69-23-135, Sections 69-25-1 through 69-25-47 or Sections 69-25-101 through 69-25-109, Mississippi Code of 1972, the Director of the Bureau of Plant Industry, or his designee, shall act as the reviewing officer. The complaint must be in writing, signed by the person making the charge, and filed in the office of the Bureau of Plant Industry. The department shall send a copy of the complaint and any supporting documents to the person accused along with a summons requiring the accused to respond to the allegations within thirty (30) days. The notification shall be accomplished by any of the methods provided for in Rule 4 of the Mississippi Rules of Civil Procedure or by certified mail. If the accused does not respond within the thirty-day period, he shall be considered to be in default. Upon receipt of the response and any supporting documents from the accused, the reviewing officer shall determine the merits of the complaint. The reviewing officer may meet informally with the accused and discuss the alleged violation with him.
(2) If the reviewing officer determines that the complaint lacks merit, he may dismiss the complaint.
(3) If the reviewing officer determines that there is substantial evidence that a violation has occurred or if the accused admits to the truth of the allegations upon which the complaint is based, the reviewing officer may impose an appropriate penalty on the accused, which may be any or all of the following:
(a) Issue a warning letter.
(b) Suspend, modify, deny, cancel or revoke any license or permit granted by the department to the accused.
(c) Issue a stop sale order with regard to any pesticide, plant or other material regulated by the department that is mislabeled or otherwise not in compliance with applicable law or regulations.
(d) Require the accused to relabel any pesticide, plant or other material regulated by the department that is mislabeled.
(e) Seize any pesticide, plant or other material regulated by the department and sell, destroy or otherwise dispose of the material and apply the proceeds of the sale to the state's expenses and any fees or penalties levied under this article.
(f) Refuse to register, cancel or suspend the registration of a pesticide, plant or other material that is not in compliance with any applicable law or regulation.
(g) Levy a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) for each violation.
In determining the amount of the penalty, the reviewing officer shall consider the appropriateness of the penalty for the particular violation, the effect of the penalty on the person's ability to continue in business and the gravity of the violation.
(4) If the accused requests a hearing with the department, in writing, within thirty (30) days from receipt of the decision of the reviewing officer, the commissioner shall appoint three (3) members of the advisory board to the Bureau of Plant Industry to act as a hearing committee and a hearing shall be scheduled. If the accused fails to request a hearing within the thirty-day period, the decision of the reviewing officer is final.
SECTION 3. Section 69-25-109, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
69-25-109. (1) Any person, firm or corporation violating any of the provisions of this article or of the rules or regulations of the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce, adopted in accordance with the provisions thereof shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be punished by a fine of not more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) or by imprisonment for not more than six (6) months in the county jail.
(2) In addition to the criminal penalty imposed under subsection (1) of this section, each violation of this article or the applicable rules and regulations established by the commissioner pertaining hereto shall subject the violator to administrative action as provided in Sections 69-25-51 through 69-25-63.
SECTION 4. The following shall be codified as Section 69-25-10, Mississippi Code of 1972:
69-25-10. (1) The purpose and intent of this law is to control and restrict the planting and cultivation of nonnative species of plants in this state which may become invasive or constitute a nuisance. This law shall apply retroactively to existing plantings of nonnative species.
(2) No individual or entity, commercial or noncommercial, may cultivate a nonnative plant species, including a genetically engineered plant, for purposes of fuel production or purposes other than agriculture, in plantings greater in size than one (1) acre, except under a special permit issued by the Department of Agriculture and Commerce. Requests for a permit authorized under this section may be denied if the department, in conjunction with specialists at Mississippi State University, determines that the plant is invasive or has potential to constitute a nuisance.
(3) Each application for a special permit must be accompanied by a surety bond, the name of the plant to be cultivated, a legal description of the lands to be under cultivation and the estimated cost of removing and destroying such plants. Permits issued under this section shall be effective for one (1) year, and upon the expiration thereof, shall be required to be renewed by the holder of the permit for continued cultivation of the nonnative plant species. If an individual or entity cultivates more than one (1) nonnative plant species, then a permit must be acquired for each nonnative plant species in the manner required by this subsection.
(4) The surety bond shall be written by a company qualified to do business in this state and in an amount to be determined by the department. The bond shall be conditioned to secure the payment of all costs incurred in removing and destroying the plants cultivated under this permit.
(5) The department shall establish by regulation the circumstances under which it may order the permitholder to remove and destroy the nonnative plant species cultivated under the permit and the procedures to be followed in such cases. The department shall have the right to use the emergency procedures described in Section 69-25-61, in addition to all other rights and remedies available to it, at law or in equity. When the department enters an order requiring the removal and destruction of the subject plants, the permitholder and/or the surety on its bond shall move with dispatch to comply with the order of removal and destruction.
(6) The department shall have the right to enter the permitholder’s lands or premises at any time and investigate the operations covered by this permit, to include the power to inspect and copy business and cultivation records, inspect plants, take samples of plants, soil or other substances and take photographs.
(7) The department shall have the right to adopt any and all rules and regulations as may be necessary or desirable to carry out the purpose and intent of this law.
SECTION 5. Section 69-25-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-1. For the purpose of this article, the following terms shall be construed, respectively, to mean:
Division of Plant Industry -- means the Bureau of Plant Industry within the Regulatory Office of the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce.
Insect pests -- means insects or other invertebrates injurious to plants and plant products.
Noxious weed -- means a plant species or classified group of plants declared by the Bureau of Plant Industry to be a public nuisance or to be especially injurious to the environment, to agricultural and horticultural production or to wildlife and which should be controlled and the dissemination of which prevented.
Plant diseases -- means fungi, bacteria, nematodes and viruses injurious to plants and plant products and the pathological condition in plants and plant products caused by fungi, bacteria, nematodes and viruses. This definition shall also include plants which are parasitic or partially parasitic on other plants such as "witch weed", Striga asiatica, a serious parasitic plant of corn and other members of the grass family.
Plants and plant products -- Trees, shrubs, seedlings, vines, forage and cereal plants, and all other plants; cuttings, grafts, scions, buds and all other parts of plants and fruits, vegetables, roots, bulbs, seeds, wood, timber and all other plant products.
Places -- Vessels, cars and other vehicles, buildings, docks, nurseries, orchards and other premises, where plants and plant products are grown, kept or handled.
Persons -- Individuals, associations, partnerships and corporations.
SECTION 6. Section 69-25-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-3. The State Plant Board is abolished and its duties are transferred to the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce, and it shall henceforth be known as the Bureau of Plant Industry.
There is created an Advisory Board to the Bureau of Plant Industry, composed of the following: the State Chemist; the head of the Entomology and Plant Pathology Department, Mississippi State University of Agriculture and Applied Science; the head of the Plant and Soil Science Department, Mississippi State University of Agriculture and Applied Science; Alcorn State University Director of Agriculture and Applied Sciences; and, for a period of two (2) years, the following: one (1) soil conservation district commissioner appointed by the commissioner; two (2) residents of Mississippi who engage in the production of any crop, appointed by the commissioner; one (1) resident of the State of Mississippi who is a commercial applicator holding a license issued under the rules and regulations of the Bureau of Plant Industry, appointed by the commissioner; one (1) resident of the State of Mississippi who is a restricted use pesticide registrant or an employee of such person, appointed by the commissioner; one (1) resident of the State of Mississippi who is either a wholesale or retail horticulturist, appointed by the commissioner, and one (1) resident of the State of Mississippi who is a licensed landscape contractor, appointed by the commissioner, who shall serve with no compensation and whose duties are to advise the commissioner on all matters regarding the Bureau of Plant Industry. The commissioner shall meet annually with the advisory board and the Director of the Bureau of Plant Industry. It is the intent and purpose of this section to maintain the domicile of this division of the Department of Agriculture and Commerce at Mississippi State University of Agriculture and Applied Science, Mississippi State, Mississippi.
SECTION 7. Section 69-25-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-5. The Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce shall appoint a full-time executive secretary and director, hereinafter called the "Director of the Bureau of Plant Industry," whose office shall be at Mississippi State University of Agriculture and Applied Science. The director shall serve at the will and pleasure of the commissioner and shall receive a salary in an amount to be determined by the commissioner. It shall be the duty of the director to enforce the rules and regulations adopted by the commissioner and to perform such other functions that may be assigned to him by the commissioner.
The Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce and the Director of the Bureau of Plant Industry shall appoint a full-time State Entomologist, who shall be a qualified entomologist and whose office shall be at Mississippi State University of Agriculture and Applied Science.
SECTION 8. Section 69-25-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-7. (1) The Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce may conduct inspections and promulgate and enforce quarantine regulations as may be necessary in carrying out the provisions of this article.
(2) (a) The Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce shall, from time to time, make rules and regulations for carrying out the provisions and requirements of this article, including rules and regulations under which his inspectors and other employees shall:
(i) Inspect places, plants and plant products, and things, and substances used or connected therewith;
(ii) Investigate, control, eradicate and prevent the dissemination of insect pests, diseases and noxious weeds; and
(iii) Supervise or cause the treatment, cutting and destruction of plants and plant products and other things infested or infected therewith.
(b) No rule or regulation shall be effective unless first submitted to and approved by the advisory board established under the provisions of Section 69-25-3.
(c) The inspectors and employees employed by the commissioner may carry out and execute the regulations and orders of the commissioner and under direction of the commissioner carry out the provisions of this article.
(3) To carry out the provisions of this article, the commissioner or his representative may enter into compacts and memorandums of agreement and/or understanding with governmental agencies or private organizations. The Bureau of Plant Industry may establish statewide or regional cooperative weed management areas for any or all of the weeds listed as noxious under officially promulgated regulations. Under such authority, the Bureau of Plant Industry may serve as lead agency in establishing control and/or eradication programs for regulated pests and noxious weeds and actively seek grants and external resources to provide matching resources for other avenues of funding.
SECTION 9. Section 69-25-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-9. The Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce shall keep himself informed as to known varieties of insect pests, diseases and noxious weeds, their origin, locality, nature and appearance thereof, the manner in which they are disseminated, and approved methods of treatment and eradication.
The Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce, in his rules and regulations made pursuant to this article, shall list the insect pests, diseases and noxious weeds, of which he shall find that the introduction into, or the dissemination within, this state should be prevented in order to safeguard the environment, agricultural and horticultural production and the plants and plant products of this state, together with the plants and plant products and other things likely to become infested or infected with such insect pests, diseases and noxious weeds. Every such insect pest, disease and noxious weed listed, and every plant and plant product and other thing infected therewith, is hereby declared to be a public nuisance. Every person who has knowledge of the presence of any insect pest, disease or noxious weed listed, as required by this section, in the rules and regulations made pursuant to this article, in or upon any place, shall immediately report same to the commissioner or an inspector therefor giving such detailed information relative thereto as he may have. Every person who deals in or engages in the sale of plants and plant products or other things infested or infected, or likely to be or become so shall furnish to the commissioner or his inspectors, when requested, a statement of the names and addresses of the persons from whom and the localities where he purchased or obtained such plants and plant products, and other things infested or infected, or likely to be or become so.
SECTION 10. Section 69-25-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-11. The inspections and the quarantine enforcement referred to in this article shall be conducted under the direction of the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce by the Director of the Bureau of Plant Industry and the State Entomologist at Mississippi State University of Agriculture and Applied Science and such assistants as may become necessary. It shall be the duty of the Director of the Bureau of Plant Industry and the State Entomologist to make recommendations to the commissioner regarding quarantines and regulations.
SECTION 11. Section 69-25-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-13. For the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this article, the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce may employ, prescribe the duties of, and fix the compensation of, such inspectors and other employees as he may require and incur such expenses as may be necessary, within the limits of appropriations made by law. He shall cooperate with other departments, boards and officers of this state and of the United States as far as practicable.
SECTION 12. Section 69-25-15, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-15. Whenever an inspection made pursuant to this article discloses that any places, or plants, or plant products or things or substances used or connected therewith, are infested or infected with any insect, pest, disease or noxious weed listed as a public nuisance, or are dead or of stock so seriously weakened by drying, excessive heat or cold, or any other condition that makes it unable to grow satisfactorily when given reasonable care, as required above herein, in the rules and regulations made pursuant hereto, written notice thereof shall be given the owner or other person in possession or control of the place where found and such owner or other person shall proceed to control, eradicate or prevent the dissemination of such insect, pest, disease or noxious weed, and to remove, cut or destroy infested and infected plants and plant products, or dead or dying plants, or things or substances used or connected therewith, within the time and in the manner prescribed by said notice or the said rules and regulations. Whenever such owner or other person cannot be found, or shall fail, neglect or refuse to obey the requirements of said notice and the rules and regulations so made, such requirements shall be carried out by inspectors or other employees of the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce as the law allows.
SECTION 13. Section 69-25-17, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-17. It shall be unlawful for any person to bring or cause to be brought into this state any plant or plant product or other thing listed as required above herein, in the rules and regulations made pursuant hereto, unless thereby plainly and legibly marked thereon or affixed thereto, or on or to the car or other vehicle carrying, or the bundle, package or other container of the same, in a conspicuous place, a statement or a tag or other device showing the names and addresses of the consignors or shippers and the consignee or person to whom shipped, the general nature and quantity of the contents, and the name of the locality where grown or shipped, together with a certificate of inspection of the proper official of the state, territory, district or county from which it was brought or shipped, showing that such plant or plant product or other thing or substance was found or believed to be free from insect pests, diseases and noxious weeds, and any other information required by the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce such as certificates of fumigation.
SECTION 14. Section 69-25-19, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-19. It shall be unlawful for any person to sell, give away, carry, ship, or deliver for carriage or shipment within this state, any plants or plant products or other thing or substitute listed, as required in such rules and regulations made by the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce unless such plant or plant products or other thing or substance have been officially inspected and a certificate issued by an inspector of the commissioner stating that the plants or plant products or other thing or substance have been inspected and found to be apparently free from insect pests, diseases and noxious weeds, and any other facts provided for in the rules and regulations made pursuant to this statute. For the issuance of such certificate, the commissioner may require the payment of a reasonable fee to cover the expense of such an inspection and certification provided, however, that if such plants or plant products or other thing or substance were brought into the state in compliance with the requirements of law such certificate required may be accepted in lieu of the inspection and certificate required by this section in such cases as shall be provided for in the rules and regulations made hereunder. If it shall be found at any time that a certificate of inspection issued or accepted pursuant to the provisions of this section is being used in connection with plants and plant products or other things or substances which are infested or infected with insect pests, diseases or noxious weeds listed in the rules and regulations, its further use may be prohibited, subject to such inspection and other dispositions of the plants and plant product involved as may be provided for by the commissioner. All monies collected by the commissioner where not otherwise provided shall be deposited in the State Treasury to the credit of the General Fund revenue receipts.
SECTION 15. Section 69-25-21, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-21. Any person in this state who receives from without the state any plant or plant product, or other thing or substance as to which the requirements of section next before the last above have not been complied with, or who receives any plant or plant product, or other thing or substance, sold, given away, carried, shipped, or delivered for carriage or shipment within this state as to which the requirements of next foregoing section have not been complied with, shall immediately inform the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce or an inspector thereof and isolate and hold the plant or plant product or other thing or substance unopened or unused subject to such inspection and other disposition as may be provided for by the commissioner.
SECTION 16. Section 69-25-23, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-23. Whenever the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce finds that there exists outside of this state any destructive or nuisance insect pest, disease or noxious weed, the commissioner may give public notice thereof, specifying the locations, the plants and the plant products infested, infected or declared noxious and which are likely to become infested or infected therewith. In order to safeguard the environment, agricultural and horticultural production, plants and plant products, the movement of such plants or plant products or other things or substances into this state from the infected or infested locality shall thereafter be prohibited until the commissioner determines that the danger of the introduction into this state of such insect pests, diseases or noxious weeds from such locality has ceased to exist.
SECTION 17. Section 69-25-25, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-25. Whenever the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce shall find that there exists in this state, or any part thereof, any insect pest, disease or noxious weed, and that its dissemination should be controlled or prevented, the commissioner shall give public notice thereof, specifying the plants or plant products or other thing or substance infested, infected or declared noxious or likely to become infested or infected therewith, and the movement, planting or other use of any such plant or plant product, or other thing or substance specified in such notice as likely to carry and disseminate such insect pest, disease or noxious weed, except under such conditions as shall be prescribed by the commissioner as to inspection, treatment and disposition, shall be prohibited within such area as may be designated in the public notice until the commissioner shall find that the danger of the dissemination of such insect pest, disease or noxious weed has ceased to exist, of which the commissioner shall give public notice.
SECTION 18. Section 69-25-27, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-27. By virtue of the powers conferred herein and for the purpose of protecting the environment, agricultural and horticultural production, the plant life and plant products of this state, the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce may prevent and prohibit the introduction into the state for the purpose of transportation through the state of any such plants and plant products or other things or substance hereinbefore mentioned to the same extent and for the same purpose and with the same authority that is provided above with reference to the introduction of the same into the state.
SECTION 19. Section 69-25-29, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-29. The Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce for the same purposes and in the same manner and with the same authority, as provided in Section 69-25-27, may prohibit and prevent the introduction into or the transportation through the state of any such plants and plant products or other thing or substance except when contained in such container, car, boat, or vehicle and shall prevent the escape or waste of any part of the same while being introduced into or transported through the state, and may likewise prohibit and prevent the opening of such container, car, boat, or vehicle containing such plant or plant product or other thing or substance within the state.
SECTION 20. Section 69-25-31, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-31. The Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce shall have power to make reciprocal agreements with the responsible officials of other states under which nursery stock or plants from any other state may be sold or delivered in Mississippi under the same conditions required for the sale or delivery of Mississippi nursery stock or plants in the state concerned.
SECTION 21. Section 69-25-33, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-33. The boards of supervisors in the various counties of the state and the governing bodies in the various municipalities of the state are hereby authorized and empowered, in their discretion, to appropriate money out of the general funds of the counties and municipalities to be used for the purpose of cooperating with the Commissioner of the Department of Agriculture and Commerce in eradicating serious insect pests, rodents, plant parasites, plant diseases and noxious weeds and in protecting the counties and municipalities from serious insect pests, rodents, plant parasites, plant diseases and noxious weeds.
SECTION 22. Section 69-25-35, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-35. For the purpose of carrying out the provisions and requirements of this article, and of the rules and regulations made, and notices given, pursuant thereto, the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce and his inspectors and employees shall have power to enter in or upon any place, and to open any bundle, package or other container containing or thought to contain plants or plant products.
SECTION 23. Section 69-25-37, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-37. Any person affected by any rule or regulations made, or notice given, pursuant to this article, may have a review thereof by the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce for the purpose of having such rule, regulation or notice modified, suspended or withdrawn. Such review shall be allowed and considered and the cost thereof fixed, assessed, collected and paid in such manner and in accordance with such rules and regulations as may be prescribed by the commissioner.
SECTION 24. Section 69-25-39, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-39. In construing and enforcing the provisions of this article, omission or failure of any official, agent or other person acting for or employed by any association, partnership, or corporation within the scope of his employment of office shall, in every case, also be deemed the act, omission or failure of such association, partnership or corporation as well as that of the person.
SECTION 25. Section 69-25-41, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-41. The Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce or any of his inspectors or employees shall be a proper party in any court of equity to effectively carry out any of the provisions of this article when an injunction would be a proper remedy.
SECTION 26. Section 69-25-43, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-43. The provisions of this article shall not be so construed or enforced as to conflict in any way with any act of Congress regulating the movement of plants or plant products in interstate or foreign commerce.
SECTION 27. Section 69-25-45, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-45. The Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce shall have power and authority to enforce his rules, ordinances and regulations in any court of competent jurisdiction by civil, as well as criminal proceedings, and if the remedy to be pursued be by writ of injunction, no court of this state shall have right previous to a trial upon the merits to set aside such writ on bond. It shall be the duty of the Attorney General, district attorneys and county attorneys to represent said commissioner whenever called upon to do so. Said commissioner in the discharge of his duties and the enforcement of the powers herein delegated, may send for books and papers, administer oaths, hear witness, etc., and to that end it is made the duty of the various sheriffs throughout the state to serve all summons and other papers upon the request of said commissioner.
SECTION 28. Section 69-25-101, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-101. All honey bees shipped or moved into the State of Mississippi shall be accompanied by a certificate of inspection signed by the State Entomologist, State Apiary Inspector or corresponding official of the state or country from which such bees are shipped or moved. Such certificate shall certify to the apparent freedom of the bees and their combs and hives, from contagious and infectious diseases and parasites and must be based upon an actual inspection of the bees themselves within a period of sixty (60) days preceding the date of shipment; provided, that when honey bees are to be shipped into this state from other states or countries wherein no official apiary inspector or State Entomologist is available, the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce may issue permit for such shipment upon presentation of suitable evidence showing such bees to be free from disease. The provisions of this section shall not apply to shipments of live bees in wire cages, when without combs of honey.
SECTION 29. Section 69-25-103, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-103. The Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce shall have full and plenary power to deal with Africanized honey bees (Apris mellifera scutellata) and with American and European foul brood, and all other contagious or infectious diseases and parasites of honey bees which, in its opinion, may be prevented, controlled or eradicated; and shall have full power and is hereby authorized to make, promulgate and enforce such rules, ordinances and regulations and to perform such acts, through its agents or otherwise, as in its judgment may be necessary to control, eradicate or prevent the introduction, spread or dissemination of Africanized honey bees and all contagious diseases of honey bees and parasites as far as may be possible and all such rules, ordinances and regulations of said department shall have the force and effect of law.
SECTION 30. Section 69-25-105, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-105. The Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce, its agents and employees, shall have authority to enter any depot, express office, storeroom, warehouse or premises for the purpose of inspecting any honey bees or beekeeping fixtures or appliances therein or thought to be therein, for the purpose of ascertaining whether said bees or fixtures are infected with any contagious or infectious disease or parasite or which they may have reason to believe are Africanized bees or have been or are being transported in violation of any of the provisions of this article.
The said department through its agents or employees may require the removal from this state of any honey bees or beekeeping fixtures which have been brought into the state in violation of the provisions of this article, or if finding any honey bees or fixtures infected with any contagious or infectious disease or parasite or if finding that such bees are Africanized or if such bees or fixtures have been exposed to danger of infection by such diseases, may require the destruction, treatment or disinfection of such infected or exposed bees, hives, fixtures or appliances.
SECTION 31. Section 69-25-107, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
69-25-107. The shipment or movement into this state of any used or secondhand beehives, honey combs, frames or other beekeeping fixtures is hereby prohibited except under such rules and regulations as may be prescribed by the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce.
SECTION 32. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2012.
