Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
Act 530 of the Regular Session
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State of Arkansas 1
95th General Assembly A Bill 2
Regular Session, 2025 HOUSE BILL 1744 3
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By: Representative Wooldridge 5
By: Senator D. Wallace 6
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For An Act To Be Entitled 8
AN ACT TO AMEND THE LAW CONCERNING AGRICULTURE; TO 9
AMEND THE LAW RELATED TO FERTILIZER; AND FOR OTHER 10
PURPOSES. 11
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Subtitle 14
TO AMEND THE LAW RELATED TO FERTILIZER. 15
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS: 17
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SECTION 1. Arkansas Code § 2-19-202(a)(1), concerning the registration 19
of fertilizer and fertilizer materials, is amended to read as follows: 20
(a)(1)(A) All manufacturers, jobbers, and manipulators of commercial 21
fertilizers and of fertilizer materials to be used in the manufacture of 22
fertilizer, who may desire to sell or offer for sale in Arkansas fertilizer 23
and fertilizer materials, shall first file for registration with the State 24
Plant Board Department of Agriculture , upon forms furnished by the Department 25
of Agriculture department. 26
(B) The forms shall include the name of the brand of each 27
fertilizer, fertilizer materials, or chemicals which they may desire to sell 28
in the state, either by themselves or their agents, together with the names 29
and addresses of the manufacturers or manipulators, and such other 30
information as may be required by the board State Plant Board in its rules. 31
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SECTION 2. Arkansas Code § 2 -19-202(d)(1)(B)(i), concerning the 33
registration of special agricultural crop -use fertilizer, is amended to read 34
as follows: 35
(B)(i) The special agricultural crop -use fertilizers with 36 HB1744
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less than the twenty -unit minimum shall be permitted for sale only after the 1
fertilizer grade is registered with the board department. 2
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SECTION 3. Arkansas Code § 2 -19-203(a), concerning the sale of 4
unregistered fertilizers, is amended to read as follows: 5
(a) It shall be unlawful for any manufacturer, individual, 6
corporation, or company, either by themselves or agents, to sell or offer for 7
sale in this state any fertilizer brand or fertilizer materials that have not 8
been registered with and the registration approved by the State Plant Board 9
Department of Agriculture or its authorized representative, as required by 10
this subchapter. 11
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SECTION 4. Arkansas Code § 2 -19-206(c)(1), concerning the 13
determination of the market value of the materials used in the manufacture of 14
fertilizer and fertilizer material, is amended to read as follows: 15
(c)(1) The department board shall ascertain the market value of the 16
materials from the manufacturers of fertilizer and fertilizer materials 17
specified in this subchapter to be used in the manufacture of fertilizer and 18
fertilizer materials and from other reliable sources. This determination 19
shall be done to fix units of value on them to be used in determining the 20
amount of damages due when the official analysis shows a deficiency from the 21
guaranteed analysis as specified in this subchapter. 22
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SECTION 5. Arkansas Code § 2 -19-207 is amended to read as follows: 24
2-19-207. Sampling fertilizers. 25
The inspectors for the Department of Agriculture shall obtain samples 26
of fertilizer or fertilizer materials in the following manner: 27
(1) They shall draw samples with a core instrument that shall 28
not be less than twelve inches (12 ″) in length in a manner that will procure a 29
representative sample from such shipments of fertilizer or fertilizer 30
materials as they may be directed by the State Plant Board department or that 31
they may find uninspected; 32
(2) Where there are ten (10) packages or less, they shall take 33
samples from every package; where there are ten (10) or more packages, they 34
shall take samples from ten (10) packages, plus a sample for each additional 35
ton. In no case do more than twenty (20) packages need to be sampled; 36 HB1744
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(3) After thoroughly mixing the samples so drawn, they shall 1
fill a container to be approved by the board department with a portion of the 2
mixed sample for chemical analysis or inspection; and 3
(4) Accompanying these samples, a report shall be made giving 4
the name of the commodity inspected, number of packages represented by 5
sample, the name of the manufacturer, the guaranteed analysis, the place 6
where inspected, the date of inspection, and the name of the inspector. 7
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SECTION 6. Arkansas Code § 2 -19-208(a)(1), concerning the delivery of 9
samples of fertilizer for analysis, is amended to read as follows: 10
(a)(1) Samples of fertilizer or fertilizer materials obtained by the 11
inspectors shall be delivered to the Department of Agriculture which shall 12
deliver the samples to the chief department chemist who shall make or cause 13
to be made a complete analysis thereof. 14
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SECTION 7. Arkansas Code § 2-19-209(a)(2), concerning the amount 16
required to be paid per ton or fractional ton accompanying a tonnage report, 17
is amended to read as follows: 18
(2)(A)(i) The report shall be accompanied with the sum Upon 19
receipt of the report, the department shall invoice the responsible party for 20
payment of the sum of two dollars and forty cents ($2.40) per ton or 21
fractional ton. 22
(ii) A fee The sum of two dollars and forty cents 23
($2.40) will accompany shall be paid for each monthly report of tonnage which 24
amounts to less than one (1) ton. 25
(B) The department shall issue receipt for the amount 26
received and shall deposit the sums received as follows: 27
(i) Sixty-two cents (62¢) of the two -dollar-and-28
forty-cent fee sum per ton or fractional ton inspected shall be deposited 29
with the Treasurer of State as special revenues and shall be credited to the 30
Plant Board Fund to be used for the maintenance, operation, support, and 31
improvement of the State Plant Board programs; and 32
(ii)(a)(1) One dollar and seventy -eight cents 33
($1.78) of the two-dollar-and-forty-cent fee sum per ton or fractional ton 34
inspected shall be: 35
(A) Remitted to the Board of 36 HB1744
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Trustees of the University of Arkansas; and 1
(B) Credited to a fund to be known 2
as the “University of Arkansas, Division of Agriculture, Soil Testing and 3
Research Fund” to be maintained in accounts in one (1) or more financial 4
institutions in the State of Arkansas. 5
(2) Funds shall be expended: 6
(A) Exclusively for soil testing 7
service and soil fertility research by the Board of Trustees of the 8
University of Arkansas under appropriations made by the General Assembly; and 9
(B) In support of one (1) or more 10
soil testing laboratories at the Division of Agriculture of the University of 11
Arkansas's research and extension centers and research stations as determined 12
and designated by the Vice President for Agriculture of the University of 13
Arkansas, and soil fertility activities within the State of Arkansas. 14
(b)(1) The Board of Trustees of the University 15
of Arkansas shall provide for the investment of any funds in the University 16
of Arkansas, Division of Agriculture, Soil Testing and Research Fund that are 17
not needed for current operations of the soil testing laboratories and soil 18
fertility service and research activities and shall credit the interest 19
earned on that investment to the credit of the University of Arkansas, 20
Division of Agriculture, Soil Testing and Research Fund. 21
(2) The investment shall be of the type 22
and nature authorized for the investment of average daily State Treasury 23
balances by the State Board of Finance. 24
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SECTION 8. Arkansas Code § 2 -19-209(b)(3), concerning the penalty for 26
a late report or failure to report the entire amount of fertilizer sold, is 27
amended to read as follows: 28
(3) For a late report or for failure to report the entire amount 29
sold, the sum owed for tonnage fee on the late reported or unreported amount 30
shall be enhanced by ten percent (10%) if less than fifteen (15) days late, 31
twenty percent (20%) if less than thirty -one (31) days late, and doubled if 32
more than thirty (30) days late. Penalties shall be deposited into the Plant 33
Board Fund; otherwise, registrations may be cancelled by the State Plant 34
Board. 35
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SECTION 9. Arkansas Code § 2 -19-211 is amended to read as follows: 1
2-19-211. Use of penalties from sums owed for fertilizer tonnage fees. 2
All penalties received by the Department of Agriculture for failure to 3
pay or report sums owed for fertilizer tonnage fees shall be remitted to the 4
Board of Trustees of the University of Arkansas, to be credited to the 5
University of Arkansas, Division of Agriculture, Soil Testing and Research 6
Fund in the same manner as prescribed by § 2 -19-209 and to be used for the 7
same purposes as described in § 2 -19-209. 8
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APPROVED: 4/10/25 11
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