Collapse to view only § 7716. Recovery of compensation for unauthorized activities
- § 7711. Regulation of movement of plant pests
- § 7712. Regulation of movement of plants, plant products, biological control organisms, noxious weeds, articles, and means of conveyance
- § 7712a. Reduction in backlog of agricultural export petitions
- § 7713. Notification and holding requirements upon arrival
- § 7714. General remedial measures for new plant pests and noxious weeds
- § 7715. Declaration of extraordinary emergency and resulting authorities
- § 7716. Recovery of compensation for unauthorized activities
- § 7717. Control of grasshoppers and Mormon crickets
- § 7718. Certification for exports
- § 7719. Methyl bromide
- § 7720. National plan for control and management of Sudden Oak Death
- § 7721. Plant pest and disease management and disaster prevention
§ 7711. Regulation of movement of plant pests
(a) Prohibition of unauthorized movement of plant pests
(b) Requirements for processes
(c) Authorization of movement of plant pests by regulation
(1) Exception to permit requirement
(2) Petition to add or remove plant pests from regulation
(3) Response to petition by the Secretary
(d) Prohibition of unauthorized mailing of plant pests
(1) In general
(2) Application of postal laws and regulations
(e) RegulationsRegulations issued by the Secretary to implement subsections (a), (c), and (d) may include provisions requiring that any plant pest imported, entered, to be exported, moved in interstate commerce, mailed, or delivered from any post office—
(1) be accompanied by a permit issued by the Secretary prior to the importation, entry, exportation, movement in interstate commerce, mailing, or delivery of the plant pest;
(2) be accompanied by a certificate of inspection issued (in a manner and form required by the Secretary) by appropriate officials of the country or State from which the plant pest is to be moved;
(3) be raised under post-entry quarantine conditions by or under the supervision of the Secretary for the purposes of determining whether the plant pest—
(A) may be infested with other plant pests;
(B) may pose a significant risk of causing injury to, damage to, or disease in any plant or plant product; or
(C) may be a noxious weed; and
(4) be subject to remedial measures the Secretary determines to be necessary to prevent the spread of plant pests.
(Pub. L. 106–224, title IV, § 411, June 20, 2000, 114 Stat. 440.)
§ 7712. Regulation of movement of plants, plant products, biological control organisms, noxious weeds, articles, and means of conveyance
(a) In general
(b) Policy
(c) RegulationsThe Secretary may issue regulations to implement subsection (a), including regulations requiring that any plant, plant product, biological control organism, noxious weed, article, or means of conveyance imported, entered, to be exported, or moved in interstate commerce—
(1) be accompanied by a permit issued by the Secretary prior to the importation, entry, exportation, or movement in interstate commerce;
(2) be accompanied by a certificate of inspection issued (in a manner and form required by the Secretary) by appropriate officials of the country or State from which the plant, plant product, biological control organism, noxious weed, article, or means of conveyance is to be moved;
(3) be subject to remedial measures the Secretary determines to be necessary to prevent the spread of plant pests or noxious weeds; and
(4) with respect to plants or biological control organisms, be grown or handled under post-entry quarantine conditions by or under the supervision of the Secretary for the purposes of determining whether the plant or biological control organism may be infested with plant pests or may be a plant pest or noxious weed.
(d) NoticeNot later than 1 year after June 20, 2000, the Secretary shall publish for public comment a notice describing the procedures and standards that govern the consideration of import requests. The notice shall—
(1) specify how public input will be sought in advance of and during the process of promulgating regulations necessitating a risk assessment in order to ensure a fully transparent and publicly accessible process; and
(2) include consideration of the following:
(A) Public announcement of import requests that will necessitate a risk assessment.
(B) A process for assigning major/nonroutine or minor/routine status to such requests based on current state of supporting scientific information.
(C) A process for assigning priority to requests.
(D) Guidelines for seeking relevant scientific and economic information in advance of initiating informal rulemaking.
(E) Guidelines for ensuring availability and transparency of assumptions and uncertainties in the risk assessment process including applicable risk mitigation measures relied upon individually or as components of a system of mitigative measures proposed consistent with the purposes of this chapter.
(e) Study and report on systems approach
(1) Study
(2) Participation by scientists
(3) Report
(f) Noxious weeds
(1) Regulations
(2) Petition to add or remove plants from regulation
(3) Duties of the Secretary
(g) Biological control organisms
(1) Regulations
(2) Petition to add or remove biological control organisms from the regulations
(3) Duties of the Secretary
(Pub. L. 106–224, title IV, § 412, June 20, 2000, 114 Stat. 441.)
§ 7712a. Reduction in backlog of agricultural export petitions
(a) Reduction efforts
To the maximum extent practicable, the Secretary of Agriculture shall endeavor to reduce the backlog in the number of applications for permits for the export of United States agricultural commodities. In achieving such reduction, the Secretary shall not dilute or diminish existing personnel resources that are currently managing sanitary and phytosanitary issues for—
(1) United States agricultural commodities for which exportation is sought; and
(2) interdiction and control of pests and diseases, including for the evaluation of pest and disease concerns of foreign agricultural commodities for which importation is sought.
(b) Report
The Secretary of Agriculture shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate an annual report specifying, for the year covered by the report—
(1) the total number of applications processed to completion;
(2) the number of backlog applications processed to completion;
(3) the percentage of backlog applications processed to completion; and
(4) the number of backlog applications remaining.
(Pub. L. 108–465, title II, § 202, Dec. 21, 2004, 118 Stat. 3884.)
§ 7713. Notification and holding requirements upon arrival
(a) Duty of Secretary of the Treasury
(1) Notification
(2) Holding
The Secretary of the Treasury shall hold a plant, plant product, biological control organism, plant pest, or noxious weed for which notification is made under paragraph (1) at the port of entry until the plant, plant product, biological control organism, plant pest, or noxious weed—
(A) is inspected and authorized for entry into or transit movement through the United States; or
(B) is otherwise released by the Secretary of Agriculture.
(3) Exceptions
(b) Duty of responsible parties
(1) Notification
(2) Submission
(3) Elements of notification
The notification shall consist of the following:
(A) The name and address of the consignee.
(B) The nature and quantity of the plant, plant product, biological control organism, plant pest, noxious weed, article, or means of conveyance proposed to be moved.
(C) The country and locality where the plant, plant product, biological control organism, plant pest, noxious weed, article, or means of conveyance was grown, produced, or located.
(c) Prohibition on movement of items without authorization
No person shall move from a port of entry or interstate any imported plant, plant product, biological control organism, plant pest, noxious weed, article, or means of conveyance unless the imported plant, plant product, biological control organism, plant pest, noxious weed, article, or means of conveyance—
(1) is inspected and authorized for entry into or transit movement through the United States; or
(2) is otherwise released by the Secretary.
(Pub. L. 106–224, title IV, § 413, June 20, 2000, 114 Stat. 443.)
§ 7714. General remedial measures for new plant pests and noxious weeds
(a) Authority to hold, treat, or destroy itemsIf the Secretary considers it necessary in order to prevent the dissemination of a plant pest or noxious weed that is new to or not known to be widely prevalent or distributed within and throughout the United States, the Secretary may hold, seize, quarantine, treat, apply other remedial measures to, destroy, or otherwise dispose of any plant, plant pest, noxious weed, biological control organism, plant product, article, or means of conveyance that—
(1) is moving into or through the United States or interstate, or has moved into or through the United States or interstate, and—
(A) the Secretary has reason to believe is a plant pest or noxious weed or is infested with a plant pest or noxious weed at the time of the movement; or
(B) is or has been otherwise in violation of this chapter;
(2) has not been maintained in compliance with a post-entry quarantine requirement; or
(3) is the progeny of any plant, biological control organism, plant product, plant pest, or noxious weed that is moving into or through the United States or interstate, or has moved into the United States or interstate, in violation of this chapter.
(b) Authority to order an owner to treat or destroy
(1) In general
(2) Failure to comply
(c) Classification system
(1) Development required
(2) Management plans
(d) Application of least drastic action
(Pub. L. 106–224, title IV, § 414, June 20, 2000, 114 Stat. 444; Pub. L. 107–171, title X, § 10418(b)(1), May 13, 2002, 116 Stat. 508.)
§ 7715. Declaration of extraordinary emergency and resulting authorities
(a) Authority to declare
If the Secretary determines that an extraordinary emergency exists because of the presence of a plant pest or noxious weed that is new to or not known to be widely prevalent in or distributed within and throughout the United States and that the presence of the plant pest or noxious weed threatens plants or plant products of the United States, the Secretary may—
(1) hold, seize, quarantine, treat, apply other remedial measures to, destroy, or otherwise dispose of, any plant, biological control organism, plant product, article, or means of conveyance that the Secretary has reason to believe is infested with the plant pest or noxious weed;
(2) quarantine, treat, or apply other remedial measures to any premises, including any plants, biological control organisms, plant products, articles, or means of conveyance on the premises, that the Secretary has reason to believe is infested with the plant pest or noxious weed;
(3) quarantine any State or portion of a State in which the Secretary finds the plant pest or noxious weed or any plant, biological control organism, plant product, article, or means of conveyance that the Secretary has reason to believe is infested with the plant pest or noxious weed; and
(4) prohibit or restrict the movement within a State of any plant, biological control organism, plant product, article, or means of conveyance when the Secretary determines that the prohibition or restriction is necessary to prevent the dissemination of the plant pest or noxious weed or to eradicate the plant pest or noxious weed.
(b) Required finding of emergency
(c) Notification procedures
(1) In general
Except as provided in paragraph (2), before any action is taken in any State under this section, the Secretary shall notify the Governor or other appropriate official of the State affected, issue a public announcement, and file for publication in the Federal Register a statement of—
(A) the Secretary’s findings;
(B) the action the Secretary intends to take;
(C) the reasons for the intended action; and
(D) where practicable, an estimate of the anticipated duration of the extraordinary emergency.
(2) Time sensitive actions
(d) Application of least drastic action
(e) Payment of compensation
(Pub. L. 106–224, title IV, § 415, June 20, 2000, 114 Stat. 445; Pub. L. 107–171, title VII, § 7504(a), May 13, 2002, 116 Stat. 465; Pub. L. 110–234, title X, § 10203(a), May 22, 2008, 122 Stat. 1342; Pub. L. 110–246, § 4(a), title X, § 10203(a), June 18, 2008, 122 Stat. 1664, 2104.)
§ 7716. Recovery of compensation for unauthorized activities
(a) Recovery action
(b) Time for action; location
(Pub. L. 106–224, title IV, § 416, June 20, 2000, 114 Stat. 447.)
§ 7717. Control of grasshoppers and Mormon crickets
(a) In general
(b) Transfer authority
(1) In general
(2) Transfer requests
(3) Limitation
(4) Replenishment of transferred funds
(c) Treatment for grasshoppers and Mormon crickets
(1) In general
(2) Other programs
(d) Federal cost share of treatment
(1) Control on Federal lands
(2) Control on State lands
(3) Control on private lands
(e) Training
(Pub. L. 106–224, title IV, § 417, June 20, 2000, 114 Stat. 447.)
§ 7718. Certification for exports
The Secretary may certify as to the freedom of plants, plant products, or biological control organisms from plant pests or noxious weeds, or the exposure of plants, plant products, or biological control organisms to plant pests or noxious weeds, according to the phytosanitary or other requirements of the countries to which the plants, plant products, or biological control organisms may be exported.
(Pub. L. 106–224, title IV, § 418, June 20, 2000, 114 Stat. 448.)
§ 7719. Methyl bromide
(a) In general
(b) Methyl bromide alternative
(c) Registry
(d) Administration
(1) Timeline for determination
(2) Construction
(Pub. L. 106–224, title IV, § 419, as added Pub. L. 107–171, title VII, § 7504(c), May 13, 2002, 116 Stat. 466.)
§ 7720. National plan for control and management of Sudden Oak Death
(a) Development of national plan
(b) Plan elements
In developing the plan, the Secretary shall specifically address the following:
(1) Information derived by the Department of Agriculture from ongoing efforts to identify hosts of Phytophthora ramorum and survey the extent to which Sudden Oak Death exists in the United States.
(2) Past and current efforts to understand the risk posed by Phytophthora ramorum and the results of control and management efforts regarding Sudden Oak Death, including efforts related to research, control, quarantine, and hazardous fuel reduction.
(3) Such future efforts as the Secretary considers necessary to control and manage Sudden Oak Death, including cost estimates for the implementation of such efforts.
(c) Consultation
(d) Implementation of plan
(e) Authorization of appropriations
(Pub. L. 108–488, § 1, Dec. 23, 2004, 118 Stat. 3964.)
§ 7721. Plant pest and disease management and disaster prevention
(a) DefinitionsIn this section:
(1) Early plant pest detection and surveillanceThe term “early plant pest detection and surveillance” means the full range of activities undertaken to find newly introduced plant pests, whether the plant pests are new to the United States or new to certain areas of the United States, before—
(A) the plant pests become established; or
(B) the plant pest infestations become too large and costly to eradicate or control.
(2) Specialty crop
(3) State department of agriculture
(b) Early plant pest detection and surveillance improvement program
(1) Cooperative agreements
(2) ConsultationIn carrying out this subsection, the Secretary shall consult with—
(A) the National Plant Board; and
(B) other interested parties.
(3) Chapter 10 of title 5
(4) Application
(A) In general
(B) NotificationThe Secretary shall notify applicants of—
(i) the requirements to be imposed on a State department of agriculture for auditing of, and reporting on, the use of any funds provided by the Secretary under the cooperative agreement;
(ii) the criteria to be used to ensure that early pest detection and surveillance activities supported under the cooperative agreement are based on sound scientific data or thorough risk assessments; and
(iii) the means of identifying pathways of pest introductions.
(5) Use of funds
(A) Plant pest detection and surveillance activities
(B) Subagreements
(C) Non-Federal share
(D) Ability to provide funds
(6) Special funding considerationsThe Secretary shall provide funds to a State department of agriculture if the Secretary determines that—
(A) the State department of agriculture is in a State that has a high risk of being affected by 1 or more plant pests or diseases, taking into consideration—
(i) the number of international ports of entry in the State;
(ii) the volume of international passenger and cargo entry into the State;
(iii) the geographic location of the State and if the location or types of agricultural commodities produced in the State are conducive to agricultural pest and disease establishment due to the climate, crop diversity, or natural resources (including unique plant species) of the State; and
(iv) whether the Secretary has determined that an agricultural pest or disease in the State is a Federal concern; and
(B) the early plant pest detection and surveillance activities supported with the funds will likely—
(i) prevent the introduction and establishment of plant pests; and
(ii) provide a comprehensive approach to compliment Federal detection efforts.
(7) Reporting requirement
(c) Threat identification and mitigation program
(1) Establishment
(2) RequirementsIn conducting the program established under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall—
(A) develop risk assessments of the potential threat to the agricultural industry of the United States from foreign sources;
(B) collaborate with the National Plant Board; and
(C) implement action plans for high consequence plant pest and diseases to assist in preventing the introduction and widespread dissemination of new plant pest and disease threats in the United States.
(3) Reports
(d) Specialty crop certification and risk management systemsThe Secretary shall provide funds and technical assistance to specialty crop growers, organizations representing specialty crop growers, and State and local agencies working with specialty crop growers and organizations for the development and implementation of—
(1) audit-based certification systems, such as best management practices—
(A) to address plant pests; and
(B) to mitigate the risk of plant pests in the movement of plants and plant products; and
(2) nursery plant pest risk management systems, in collaboration with the nursery industry, research institutions, and other appropriate entities—
(A) to enable growers to identify and prioritize nursery plant pests and diseases of regulatory significance;
(B) to prevent the introduction, establishment, and spread of those plant pests and diseases; and
(C) to reduce the risk of and mitigate those plant pests and diseases.
(e) National Clean Plant Network
(1) In general
(2) RequirementsUnder the Program, the Secretary shall establish a network of clean plant centers for diagnostic and pathogen elimination services—
(A) to produce clean propagative plant material; and
(B) to maintain blocks of pathogen-tested plant material in sites located throughout the United States.
(3) Availability of clean plant source materialClean plant source material may be made available to—
(A) a State for a certified plant program of the State; and
(B) private nurseries and producers.
(4) Consultation and collaborationIn carrying out the Program, the Secretary shall—
(A) consult with—
(i) State departments of agriculture; and
(ii) land-grant colleges and universities and NLGCA Institutions (as those terms are defined in section 3103 of this title); and
(B) to the extent practicable and with input from the appropriate State officials and industry representatives, use existing Federal or State facilities to serve as clean plant centers.
(5) Funding for fiscal year 2013
(f) FundingOf the funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation, the Secretary shall make available to carry out this section—
(1) $12,000,000 for fiscal year 2009;
(2) $45,000,000 for fiscal year 2010;
(3) $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2011;
(4) $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2012;
(5) $62,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2014 through 2017; and
(6) $75,000,000 for fiscal year 2018 and each fiscal year thereafter.
(g) Use of funds for clean plant network
(h) Limitation on indirect costs for the consolidation of plant pest and disease management and disaster prevention programsIndirect costs charged against a cooperative agreement under this section shall not exceed the lesser of—
(1) 15 percent of the total Federal funds provided under the cooperative agreement, as determined by the Secretary; and
(2) the indirect cost rate applicable to the recipient as otherwise established by law.
(Pub. L. 106–224, title IV, § 420, as added Pub. L. 110–234, title X, § 10201(a), May 22, 2008, 122 Stat. 1339, and Pub. L. 110–246, § 4(a), title X, § 10201(a), June 18, 2008, 122 Stat. 1664, 2101; Pub. L. 113–79, title X, § 10007(a), (b), (d), Feb. 7, 2014, 128 Stat. 947, 948; Pub. L. 117–286, § 4(a)(40), Dec. 27, 2022, 136 Stat. 4309.)