OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN
**GROVER SELLERS**  **ATTORNEY GENERAL** 

Ronorrble Nlter T. YoKay, ahlbi Div. rrorhh. Tmp. k 2ttarm0lns8 TQ~we~Degpa~nt of A(krloulttLm 1 Dear 81rt

A 6mufa6toxW 8hippinR; fttttglOid0~ tit.3 T0XaSat& oO%pljt 11th both the *tot+ aad Fedor& prori~lono and though tM language >f the etatetor ia elimrb ldrnt~081, 8 diifOrOn00 in 0plnlOn baa
**wioon** bhwfsn the twojurfsdiotloo~ es 80 the applloation **0r** the Ibove quoted st(rtutsr to the labding of produat8 ooatatnlng oer- ;ala "indefinite" ooapouada of OOPPOF~You l bnib with your to- 'uort ae:taln lnforsstion end oozrospondonoe rhloh fully develops ,ha ooatrovor5y rad it is there diseloaad that thie varhtoe in Tinion baa rorulted fn aopu m8nUfaOtPTOrOI ubo dasirm to ooqfy !ith both 3tate and .Fetleral prov~rionr , belt&? pleoed in the e*kweadposition of having their produot bsrmd rroa Taxer unless

they oompl~ with the Tore8 interpretation and bslw proreouted Sor mlrbrandlng under tb0 ?‘rderal rtatute ii they do.

That dlffonnt and oontll.atlng lntrrprotationr ot praotlarlly ideatloal rtatutovy provlrloas rtie0ti.n~ ooaueroe bet-en the state8 18ads to dirrstsow radulta oannot be dlrputed. .Thlr in rttretrd by the nmnyrgrnaler at work vhlob seek to iron out the trede Barrier0 l

aong Otah8,ot the 3nlon. It must be oonoludcd that tbo Texas Leplalatum hrd in alnd tbe lrpportanoe of unirormlty when it borrwed heavily from the Riders1 Aot of 1910 in pssring the ‘hrsa Aot of 1943 -blah regulata8 these matter@. furtbrrmom, lt ia l rell reoo&zed rule of Strtutory oonrtruotlon tbt r0er-a one juri6dlotlon adopts a rtatute from enother it la al80 pmruzed to have adopted the exlrtlng judloial oonrtruotlon unlurr mob oonrtzuotion is **a~lalnst** rottson or the wright oi authority. An aotablishd l dalnirtratln, oow3truotlon 18 **or** 1089 witight but it ie at least par8uaslrr me6 the le~l8lrtum intended to adopt the omstruustion @low *ltb the otatute. Sutherlan4, Statutory Conatruotion, (3rd. Sa.1, Vol. e, 500. SE09, p. 581, !3ea. 6106, pe 818.

It rpparru tttet rlnw 1918 Pederel outhorltlea hew, In the lnitenm or the #o-called 'lndeilnite" oopper OOapOUndO, per- ?Plttad the use ot suoh lsbelr as the iOllOWlKi#$t CCiWS b G'JXPOt3lD COPIPER ASXiTALLfD % ?%>ZiT IfiG ZD IZ??P3 9 This praotloe orl&*ted xith mIzmeotlolde Ce~tilon Ea. 6” of tba Onitcrd State6 Oapartraat ot Agrioulturs, laousd Psbruory 11?, 1912 lnvblvln(I 0ordeaor E?lxtum, one of tbe*‘lnderlnlte* oocqPouna8, rnd it ~a8 than rbsted,

*smounaertrlnty ap perro tolxl8t

via t& aiads of saesnufaoturw8 and rblpperr oi lkwdeeux mixture prate and dry Badeour iairtu??mOOQOOr5iQR the method xblab abould be e~1o)m-l in l trt 9 thb &arI lagrnd1wlta, or both the rotlve and InrrC ingO lenta In thrre produotr as requlmd by tbe law. PbO departneat, therefore, oonelden it Aeslreble to ntate it8 position on tbir subjdot for the lntorma$lon oi tbo trade.

### 409

xon. tialter T. Y*Kay, page 3

*It is a well-a~tabllrbed fsot that the fungioldsl propo;%lar of BordeauxPrlrturo are dspmdrnt upcrn the **oopper present**  **in** thir mixture. The other aubekmoee, 8uah e8 lime en d **water,** are necemary but not rotire ingredientr, end these rltb magnesia and varlour other **iaorenio oompounbr** rhfoh **my bo**  **prwent,** are **inerO,** &toe they do aob oi thenrelrer poosorr fungloidal **propertire.** If leea8 olear, bherrfore, thet rlthln the Pllraalng of the iamotloida rot of 1910 tM sotal, oopper, **la** the aotln **laqedirat** end the other l **ubrtrnow** present axe to be regm3le4 a0 inert.* following tbi8 ruling, a label 8bowlng the paroentage ot oopper expresmd 88 raetalllo, together with a rtatekent OS other lngredlents le inert, hau been gemrally socoptable to u. s. euthorltuer, there of other 

### l tatel, and apparently to Texas until I Cieptenber 1944. Kcwa+or, our State Cheairt has re-ereained the I oorraotnerr or this method OSlabelllng thdae **ooagoundr end** hea ooaoluded thet a label lo the following form stould be re++&e&m~~
--‘f I CGF-PaB’U0”9PCLrn

BASE UOPPojl

SVFLEATB2

COPi’BR

A.3WPALZ

12

It 18 our oheallst’a oontentlon that the above label lr required by the etstutes, beaeuse, (1) *Inseotlalde l’woialon No. 6* erroaeourly dsolarsr that aetaUla oopper ls tbe aotire ingredient in thla type of tunglolde; (2) that the so-called ~indeflnite~ aopper **00rsp0uaa0** are not so ln4erlnite le Sormrly 8uppoaed and that the nase of the oopper bowing ooq~owl, together with the paroentai@ theroot aontelnub in the mkture .may ba #peali with enough oertalaty to be of oharerr eo;fliaserrabsrr ; (3) that slnos toot8 freotloal UM to pur110 oopper la adzl,ttedly not present as mob In these produota an4 the iungloldal propertier exist in a compound OSoopper rather thaa in mrtalllo ooppar, the preset ktlorrlly rppro+ed lebel 18 Hatuallp mlsleadlng sad erroneous, both l8 to the l otlve in4 inert lngredlentr end the percentage@ thereof.

**L**Ron. 3alter t. UoKay, **~680** 

### 4

8nb orrtrln manut3oturer8 

### asten8 the label mu in aae boaauao of, (1) aalforaity ana lonu well reoo&rad u8agal (a) the rler **that the**  pararntsga of aetelllo **oopplr** rhleb :keae tuoaiolde8 will I1616 dOfiait6 faefm rhloh say k 

### l peOlf 18 the only l table end o l b out thrn and that thlr rurofrhes the sort rellablo lniorutlan to tk puroharor (J) that to 

### l

$ kmpC

to epeeiQ l derloite peroeatrge oi an *1n

### QOr~nitV

OoElpOMd

tr otid l otuoll~ ai8l.re& and 

### l ubjaot tha E%aAUfaoturor to zi8bflitlra for nimbrwuUn(l.

m tbti tha abow rtetnun8 or vlawpoint8 relaar WoatiOA8 Or Oheat r8Ot ralher thaII qUeatiOA8 Or iau t3Ad PO era neitherqaallfled nor ,la it our fuaotlon to paer upfm NO& qo*etlonB. **nowrer** th8 8bveoate8 of both typeo or **lebelr** lba t0 ba la 

# l

beknttii a@eamit u,poathc80 pointer the purpow ot the law 18 to (1) That revant fraud on the puroha8er and tk8t the sarigl of reliaue P abel **iaioraution** whlah mry **be** requlrod thareun&er will beet 8erw this purpoa4; (0) that in say 4?ont the praentigo asWat of smallla aopper the produot nil1 yield 8boalb bmset lath am tba **moat** mllablo lndiole of the Quality of the **produotr** (3) W&at it la deairrble to epealfp the owpound In tiloh oopger $8 **present,** nbero **poaaibh,** though an *lnder1a1te* oo~pund iB iA*Ohed baasuse SuQh iAfOPW3tiOA plould be uaaful to tha purahawr cad 

### l epsaiellg to Jwaaroherw, end (4) that the l

o-oatled wlndeSlniti* o@pounda of ooppsr ore to 842~ cutoat ladtrftalte in **8truotnrr and**  that rap atlgnbtioa oi the peroentaer of 8ueb ooapaand oontalnsd in e mlxxture 18 likely to 43oatal.naoae error4

In the light of th* er@meata pro 000 060 on thla mtta yoo bar* propounde8the follonin~ cu4atlona to u4:

-1. Do08 the rtatesasat of the psroaato@ oi aoppar es net&l!lo, or a #lallrr atatewnt 

### wet the **rsguimmarrtr of**  thm 

### lb38 lam **?or** t ho maws md eromtega l

~otmta of l

esh and every lagodlent bari ~aeotloldd enb rttn8ioia81 progsrtle83 ad

.*I!. Does thr rtatazmt of the naw of tlm 401xpfka haTln& ruogloldal properties 8na the peroesrt88a of oopper it furnlaher, met the nqulr~~ent8 of tha Texas law ror the new8 laa p*romtags amount8 of *aoh ad erory iAgF*dteAt hVhl& tUA(l1Otidel end ln8~Otldlbl **prqertier?** ::uoh l lebel rould be, for 

### l ra.xpler-3on. xslt0r P. XoEsy, pee* b .c

*Coppcrreqmsaa36 66 3mtelllo 27s Wote the 6lfferoaao in the gsroante@ of inert ingedlantr 68 fflrea in Fo. 2 3nC 36. 3.

-?eBltrrsts that the cueatlonr put to u8 brpon0 prl~rll~ on P 6otarmlaotlqa of ohodoal faot apon rhloh we do not unilurtskm trl pass. Eonever, on tbe bssla of tho lniorsatlon upon rtloh tho pertlss are in sgrewwnt it sums 0144r to us **that** $11 thrso of tbo labels sugpstad in your cuorPio~8 rould br fnscoumte to aom deproo beoeuso of ttm phyeiosl uaoortalnty of the oo~oun&~ dsrlt rich. Although th0 @wrala# ststuto makar m 

### l xaeptioa In favor 02 thouo

‘lndsflnite” *:aoapounds, aa do kaom that a statute oannot aWe oortsln that rrbfoh 1s by nature uncrrtrin. “Trs law rsculrr8 nothlq lPgasrlblr.C Eromi, :.?nr. 248. Taklag this into eoooant,ro do not rt:ompt to anmwr your -2ueuertloluoetegorlos1ly but wo sru of the oplalon thet any one of tha thno lsbolr wbsitted aould met thr roqulnnrsnts ot the Tour lsmI 

## 412

F!on

. 31t4r 1. %o!oKay, pogo 6

if suob **SD** interpretationbo adoptedby the Texas **Department** of dgrloulturstor thrmason thatsaoh type of label **80~~~8** to bore subSt4ntisl migport **by** soar rospeotrble obodl~issleuthority . Roth Ststa and 

### Ped8rsl l pnoler **804% to**  **k in**  **sgrroa4ot** that fho lsbsl sot forth in aurotlouHo. 2 wouldbe mom ds& slrablethsn ttmt now la **us4 but**  **of oourao,**  the ,arlght to bo giranoon814or8tiolsoi unitomit, an 

### l

triodlymsttsr8of polloy fordstamhstlon by tour depsrtmat.

Iaolwing, we rould 1lk.r 

### to add thl8 rdditlonel cosm%nt : that 30 do notwlah to bo understo odla holding tbst s doo~sionor adPlinlstretlss ruling lnvolvfngthe finding of a solsntlflohot forsoloms anotheror later latsrpretstionbaaedon latrr solsntlflodisoooeryor sdronoemnt. ?urthemxore,7.0

should liketo point out thatno amauf8oturer would **bo** justified innon-oompllsnos **with** a stetutsrtgu1atl.q the labelingof his produotmraly bsoruaooosq?llsass rrl$ht dlsolose**8** trsda searet. SeaT?ultsd Stats8v. Thirty Dosen F8oka~48 oi ??oeohFood, ZQe I4d. 271.

To ars r~etnrnl~hsrowlththo 

### l xhlbltsr8taohwd to your request sad xb hopa our ri~rs ~111 be of soso benefit to you.



# u Xage&e Alrir Assistant