2023 Oklahoma Statutes › Title 2. Agriculture › §2-3-85. Enforcement - Rules and standards – Examination, notice and seizure – Exceptions - Environmental jurisdiction – Compliance with federal law.

A. 1. The State Board of Agriculture shall administer and enforce the provisions of the Oklahoma Combined Pesticide Law.
2. The State Board of Agriculture shall promulgate rules and standards for the application, use or sale of pesticides, rules for pesticide registration, standards for contracts and recordkeeping, work performance, prescribe standards for the licensing of application of pesticides, issuing pesticide dealer permits, certification, recertification procedures, and storing and disposal of pesticide and pesticide containers.
3. The Board shall, to the extent practical, create uniformity between the requirements of Oklahoma and those prescribed by the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act.
4. The Board is empowered to cooperate with and negotiate reciprocal agreements with the federal government or any state, or any department or agency of either for the purpose of fulfilling the intent of this section and securing uniformity of rules.
5. The Board may inspect any work, records, or contracts of each applicator, manufacturer, or dealer to determine whether or not the work is performed according to the provisions of this section or rules promulgated thereunder.
6. For the purpose of securing uniformity of rules, no city, town, county, or other political subdivision of this state shall adopt or continue in effect any ordinance, rule, regulation, or statute regarding pesticide sale or use that is more stringent than the rules of the Board, including, but not limited to, registration, notification, posting, advertising and marketing, distribution, applicator training and certification, storage, transportation, disposal, disclosure of confidential information, or product composition.
7. The Board may take samples of pesticide materials in order to determine their concentration or residue level. If the Board finds that such samples are not within established standards, the Board's finding shall be considered prima facie evidence that a violation has occurred.
a.
The concentration of an active ingredient for a pesticide concentrate, shall not exceed or be less than the concentration of active ingredient stated on the pesticide label by more or less than the tolerance for active ingredient concentration specified by this paragraph. Concentrations above or below the established tolerance shall be prima facie evidence that a pesticide is adulterated or misbranded:
(1)
pesticides with a stated concentration of active ingredient less than 0.51% shall not exceed 150% or fail to meet 80% of the stated active ingredient on the pesticide label when analyzed,
(2)
pesticides with a stated concentration of active ingredient not less than 0.51% and not more than 1.0% shall not exceed 140% or fail to meet 85% of the stated active ingredient on the pesticide label when analyzed,
(3)
pesticides with a stated concentration of active ingredient not less than 1.01% and not more than 5.00% shall not exceed 140% or fail to meet 90% of the stated active ingredient on the pesticide label when analyzed,
(4)
pesticides with a stated concentration of active ingredient not less than 5.01% and not more than 10.00% shall not exceed 130% or fail to meet 92% of the stated active ingredient on the pesticide label when analyzed,
(5)
pesticides with a stated concentration of active ingredient not less than 10.01% and not more than 50.00% shall not exceed 125% or fail to meet 94% of the stated active ingredient on the pesticide label when analyzed, and
(6)
pesticides with a stated concentration of active ingredient not less than 50.01% and more than 100.00% shall not exceed 115% or fail to meet 96% of the stated active ingredient on the pesticide label when analyzed.
b.
The concentration of an active ingredient for a pesticide concentrate in fertilizer and pesticide mixtures, pressed blocks and nonuniform baits shall not be less than the concentration of active ingredient stated on the pesticide label for the tolerance for active ingredient concentration specified by this paragraph. Concentrations below the established tolerance shall be prima facie evidence that a pesticide is adulterated or misbranded:
(1)
when the stated concentration of active ingredient on the pesticide label is less than 1.26% the minimum amount of active ingredient shall be at least 67.0% of the stated concentration on the pesticide label when analyzed,
(2)
when the stated concentration of active ingredient on the pesticide label is not less than 1.26% or more than 5.0% the minimum amount of active ingredient shall be at least 80.0% of the stated concentration on the pesticide label when analyzed, and
(3)
when the stated concentration of active ingredient on the pesticide label is more than 5.0% the minimum amount of active ingredient shall be at least 85.0% of the stated concentration on the pesticide label when analyzed.
c.
The concentration of an active ingredient for a pesticide concentrate in rotenone, pyrethrin and other natural product formulations shall not be less than the concentration of active ingredient stated on the pesticide label for the tolerance for active ingredient concentration specified by this paragraph. Concentrations below the established tolerance shall be prima facie evidence that a pesticide is adulterated or misbranded:
(1)
when the stated concentration of active ingredient on the pesticide label is less than 0.51% the minimum amount of active ingredient shall be at least 70.0% of the state concentration on the pesticide label when analyzed,
(2)
when the stated concentration of active ingredient on the pesticide label is not less than 0.51% or more than 1.25% the minimum amount of active ingredient shall be at least 80.0% of the stated concentration on the pesticide label when analyzed, and
(3)
when the stated concentration of active ingredient on the pesticide label is more than 1.25% the minimum amount of active ingredient shall be at least 85.0% of the stated concentration on the pesticide label when analyzed.
d.
The concentration of an active ingredient for a pesticide tank mix, as stated by the applicator and allowed by the pesticide label, shall not exceed or be less than the concentration of active ingredient stated by more or less than the tolerance for active ingredient concentration specified by this paragraph. Concentrations above or below the established tolerance shall be prima facie evidence of a use unsuitable, unsafe or inconsistent with its label or labeling. No pesticide shall be formulated into a tank mix at a concentration in excess of or below that permitted by the pesticide label without written approval from an authorized agent of the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry:
(1)
when the stated concentration or that allowed by the pesticide label is less than 0.51% the minimum amount of active ingredient in the tank mix shall be at least 60.0% and not more than 150.0% of the stated concentration or that allowed by the pesticide label when analyzed,
(2)
when the stated concentration or that allowed by the pesticide label is not less than 0.51% and not more than 1.0% the minimum amount of active ingredient in the tank mix shall be at least 70.0% and not more than 140.0% of the stated concentration or that allowed by the pesticide label when analyzed,
(3)
when the stated concentration or that allowed by the pesticide label is not less than 1.01% and not more than 5.0% the minimum amount of active ingredient in the tank mix shall be at least 80.0% and not more than 140.0% of the stated concentration or that allowed by the pesticide label when analyzed,
(4)
when the stated concentration or that allowed by the pesticide label is not less than 5.01% and not more than 10.0% the minimum amount of active ingredient in the tank mix shall be at least 84.0% and not more than 130.0% of the stated concentration or that allowed by the pesticide label when analyzed,
(5)
when the stated concentration or that allowed by the pesticide label is not less than 10.01% and not more than 50.0% the minimum amount of active ingredient in the tank mix shall be at least 88.0% and not more than 125.0% of the stated concentration or that allowed by the pesticide label when analyzed, and
(6)
when the stated concentration or that allowed by the pesticide label is not less than 50.01% and not more than 100.0% the minimum amount of active ingredient in the tank mix shall be at least 92.0% and not more than 115.0% of the stated concentration or that allowed by the pesticide label when analyzed.
e.
The State Board of Agriculture may promulgate, by rule, maximum and minimum concentrations or thresholds for the other concentrate of pesticides in products, or soil residues.
B. Authorized agents of the Board shall have the authority to issue notices of violation, citations, compliance orders, stop sales, or stop work orders to those persons committing violations of the laws or rules relating to pesticides or pesticide application in this state.
C. 1. Examinations of pesticides or devices shall be made under the direction of the Board for the purpose of determining if there has been compliance with the requirements of this section.
2. If it appears from examination that a pesticide or device fails to comply with the provisions of this section, and the Board contemplates instituting administrative proceedings against any person, the Board shall cause notice and an opportunity for a hearing given to the person pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act.
D. 1. Any pesticide or device distributed, sold, or offered for sale within this state or delivered for transportation or transported in intrastate or interstate commerce may be seized by the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry in any county of the state where it may be found and if:
a.
in the case of a pesticide, it is adulterated or misbranded, it has not been registered, it fails to bear on its label the required information, or it is a white powder pesticide and it is not colored as required, or
b.
in the case of a device, it is misbranded.
2. If the pesticide or device is condemned it shall, after entry of decree or judgment of a district court, be disposed of by destruction or sale as the court may direct. If the article is sold, the proceeds, less court costs, shall be paid to the State Department of Agriculture Revolving Fund.
3. The court shall not order the sale or disposal of a condemned pesticide or device in a manner which would be a violation of this section or rules promulgated thereto.
4. The person or entity directed to dispose or sell the condemned pesticide or device shall do so in a manner that complies with the order of the district court and this section and rules promulgated thereto.
5. The court may direct that the pesticide or article be delivered to the owner for relabeling or reprocessing.
6. If there is a person who is successful in intervening as claimant of the pesticide or device, when a decree of judgment of condemnation is entered against the pesticide or device, court costs, fees, storage, and other proper expenses shall be awarded against such claimant.
E. The Board may, by publication in a manner as it may prescribe, give notice of all judgments entered in action, instituted under its authority .
F. All authority vested in the Board shall with like force and effect be executed by its officers, employees, and authorized agents.
G. EXCEPTION – The fines provided for violations may not apply to:
1. Any carrier while lawfully engaged in transporting a pesticide within this state, if the carrier permits the Board upon request to copy all records showing the transaction in and movement of the pesticide and devices involved;
2. Public officials of this state and of the Federal Government engaged in the performance of official duties;
3. The manufacturer or shipper of a pesticide or device for experimental use only, by or under the supervision of an agency of this state or of the Federal Government authorized by law to conduct research in the field of pesticides or devices, or by others if the pesticide or the device is not sold or if the container is plainly and conspicuously marked "for experimental use only - not to be sold", together with the manufacturer's name and address, if a written permit has been obtained from the Board. Pesticides or devices may be sold for experimental purposes subject to restrictions set forth in the permit; and
4. Pesticides and devices intended solely for export to a foreign country, and prepared or packed according to the specifications or directions of the purchaser. If not exported, all of the provisions of this section shall apply.
H. 1. The Department of Environmental Quality shall have environmental jurisdiction over:
a.
commercial manufacturers of fertilizers, grain and feed products, and chemicals, and over manufacturing of food and kindred products, tobacco, paper, lumber, wood, textile mill and other agricultural products,
b.
slaughterhouses, but not including feedlots at these facilities, and
c.
aquaculture and fish hatcheries, including, but not limited to, discharges of pollutants and storm water to waters of the state, surface impoundments and land application of wastes and sludge, and other pollution originating at these facilities; and
2. Facilities which store grain, feed, seed, fertilizer, and agricultural chemicals that are required by federal National Pollutant Discharge Elimination Systems (NPDES) regulations to obtain a permit for storm water discharges shall only be subject to the jurisdiction of the Department of Environmental Quality with respect to such storm water discharges.
I. This section shall not prevent any political subdivision from complying with any applicable federal law or regulation. A political subdivision which takes any action prohibited by this title in order to comply with federal requirements shall notify the Board of its compliance plan prior to taking any action. The Board may assist the political subdivision in complying with federal requirements necessary to carry out the policy of this section. The Board may permit a political subdivision to impose standards more stringent than required by the Board if necessary for the political subdivision to comply with federal requirements.
Added by Laws 1961, p. 3, § 5, operative July 1, 1961. Amended by Laws 1977, c. 98, § 8; Laws 1984, c. 156, § 4, eff. Nov. 1, 1984; Laws 1992, c. 229, § 2, emerg. eff. May 19, 1992; Laws 2000, c. 367, § 14, emerg. eff. June 6, 2000; Laws 2005, c. 64, § 1, eff. Nov. 1, 2005; Laws 2006, c. 201, § 2, eff. Nov. 1, 2006; Laws 2014, c. 280, § 3, eff. Nov. 1, 2014.