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General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 5013
January Session, 2025
AN ACT ADDING CERTAIN PLANTS TO THE INVASIVE PLANTS LIST.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 22a-381d of the general statutes is repealed and the 1
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective from passage): 2
(a) Except as provided in subsection (d) of this section and 3
notwithstanding the provisions of any ordinance adopted by a 4
municipality, no person shall import, move, sell, purchase, transplant, 5
cultivate or distribute any of the following invasive plants: (1) Curly 6
leaved Pondweed (Potamogeton crispus); (2) fanwort (Cabomba 7
caroliniana); (3) eurasian water milfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum); (4) 8
variable water milfoil (Myriophyllum heterophyllum); (5) water 9
chestnut (Trapa natans); (6) egeria (Egeria densa); (7) hydrilla (Hydrilla 10
verticillata); (8) common barberry (Berberis vulgaris); (9) autumn olive 11
(Elaeagnus umbellata); (10) Bell's honeysuckle (Lonicera xbella); (11) 12
amur honeysuckle (Lonicera maackii); (12) Morrow's honeysuckle 13
(Lonicera morrowii); (13) common buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica); 14
(14) multiflora rose (Rosa multiflora); (15) Oriental bittersweet 15
(Celastrus orbiculatus); (16) garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata); (17) 16
narrowleaf bittercress (Cardamine impatiens); (18) spotted knapweed 17
(Centaurea biebersteinii); (19) black swallow-wort (Cynanchum 18
louiseae); (20) pale swallow-wort (Cynanchum rossicum); (21) leafy 19
spurge (Euphorbia esula); (22) Dame's rocket (Hesperis matronalis); (23) 20 Substitute Bill No. 5013
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perennial pepperweed (Lepidium latifolium); (24) Japanese knotweed 21
(Polygonum cuspidatum); (25) mile-a-minute vine (Polygonum 22
perfoliatum); (26) fig buttercup (Ranunculus ficaria); (27) coltsfoot 23
(Tussilago farfara); (28) Japanese stilt grass (Microstegium vimineum); 24
(29) common reed (Phragmites australis); (30) sycamore maple (Acer 25
pseudoplatanus); (31) princess tree (Paulownia tomentosa); (32) white 26
poplar (Populus alba); (33) false indigo (Amorpha fruticosa); (34) 27
Russian olive (Eleagnus angustifolia); (35) wineberry (Rubus 28
phoenicolasius); (36) kudzu (Pueraria montana); (37) Canada thistle 29
(Cirsium arvense); (38) jimsonweed (Datura stramonium); (39) crested 30
late-summer mint (Elsholtzia ciliata); (40) Cypress spurge (Euphorbia 31
cyparissias); (41) slender snake cotton (Froelichia gracilis); (42) ground 32
ivy (Glechoma hederacea); (43) giant hogweed (Heracleum 33
mantegazzianum); (44) Japanese hops (Humulus japonicus); (45) 34
ornamental jewelweed (Impatiens glanulifera); (46) common kochia 35
(Kochia scoparia); (47) ragged robin (Lychnis flos-cuculi); (48) Scotch 36
thistle (Onopordum acanthium); (49) bristle knotweed (Polygonum 37
caespitosum); (50) giant knotweed (Polygonum sachalinense); (51) 38
sheep sorrel (Rumex acetosella); (52) ragwort (Senecio jacobaea); (53) 39
cup plant (Silphium perfoliatum); (54) bittersweet nightshade (Solanum 40
dulcamara); (55) garden heliotrope (Valeriana officinalis); (56) hairy 41
jointgrass (Arthraxon hispidus); (57) drooping brome-grass (Bromus 42
tectorum); (58) Japanese sedge (Carex kobomugi); (59) reed managrass 43
(Glyceria maxima); (60) Canada bluegrass (Poa compressa); [and] (61) 44
tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima); and (62) star of Bethlehem 45
(Ornithogalum umbellatum). 46
(b) (1) Except as provided in subsection (d) of this section and 47
notwithstanding the provisions of any ordinance adopted by a 48
municipality, on or after October 1, 2005, no person shall import, move, 49
sell, purchase, transplant, cultivate or distribute any of the following 50
invasive plants: (A) Purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria); (B) forget-51
me-not (Myosotis scorpioides); (C) Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera 52
japonica); (D) goutweed (Aegopodium podagraia); (E) flowering rush 53
(Butomus umbellatus); (F) pond water-starwort (Callitriche stagnalis); 54 Substitute Bill No. 5013
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(G) European waterclover (Marsilea quadrifolia); (H) parrotfeather 55
(Myriophyllum aquaticum); (I) brittle water-nymph (Najas minor); (J) 56
American water lotus (Nelumbo lutea); (K) yellow floating heart 57
(Nymphoides peltata); (L) onerow yellowcress (Rorippa microphylla); 58
(M) watercress (Rorippa nasturtium-aquaticum), except for watercress 59
sold for human consumption without its reproductive structure; (N) 60
giant salvinia (Salvinia molesta); (O) yellow iris (Iris pseudacorus); (P) 61
border privet (Ligustrum obtusifolium); (Q) tatarian honeysuckle 62
(Lonicera tatarica); (R) dwarf honeysuckle (Lonicera xylosteum); and (S) 63
garden loosetrife (Lysimachia vulgaris). 64
(2) Except as provided in subsection (d) of this section and 65
notwithstanding the provisions of any ordinance adopted by a 66
municipality, on or after October 1, 2024, no person shall import, move, 67
sell, purchase, transplant, cultivate or distribute any of the following 68
invasive plants: (A) Porcelainberry (Ampelopsis brevipedunculata), (B) 69
mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris), (C) quackgrass (Elymus repens), (D) 70
Japanese angelica tree (Aralia elata), (E) Japanese wisteria (Wisteria 71
floribunda), and (F) Chinese wisteria (Wisteria sinensis). 72
(3) Except as provided in subsection (d) of this section and 73
notwithstanding the provisions of any ordinance adopted by a 74
municipality, on or after October 1, 2027, no person shall import, move, 75
sell, purchase, transplant, cultivate or distribute callery pear (Pyrus 76
calleryana). 77
(4) Except as provided in subsection (d) of this section and 78
notwithstanding the provisions of any ordinance adopted by a 79
municipality, on or after October 1, 2028, no person shall import, move, 80
sell, purchase, transplant, cultivate or distribute any of the following 81
invasive plants: (A) Glossy buckthorn (frangula alnus), (B) European 82
buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica), (C) reed canary grass (Phalaris 83
arundinacea), (D) winged euonymus (Euonymus alatus), (E) European 84
privet (Ligustrum vulgare), (F) black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia), (G) 85
miscanthus (Miscanthus sinensis), and (H) Japanese barberry (Berberis 86
thunbergii). 87 Substitute Bill No. 5013
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(5) Except as provided in subsection (d) of this section and 88
notwithstanding the provisions of any ordinance adopted by a 89
municipality, on or after October 1, 2030, no person shall import, move, 90
sell, purchase, transplant, cultivate or distribute Norway maple (Acer 91
platanoides). 92
(c) Except as provided in subsection (d) of this section, and 93
notwithstanding the provisions of any ordinance adopted by a 94
municipality, no person shall move, import, sell, purchase, transplant, 95
cultivate or distribute any reproductive portion of any invasive plant 96
listed in subsection (a) or (b) of this section. For the purposes of this 97
section, "reproductive portion" includes, but is not limited to, seeds, 98
flowers, roots and tubers. 99
(d) The provisions of subsections (a) to (c), inclusive, of this section 100
shall not apply to the moving for eradication, research or educational 101
purposes of any invasive plant listed in subsection (a) or (b) of this 102
section or of any reproductive portion of such an invasive plant or to the 103
cultivating for research purposes of any such plant or reproductive 104
portion. 105
(e) [From July 1, 2009, until October 1, 2014, no] No municipality shall 106
adopt any ordinance regarding the retail sale or purchase of any 107
invasive plant. 108
(f) Any person who violates the provisions of this section shall be 109
fined not more than one hundred dollars per plant. 110
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 from passage 22a-381d
Statement of Legislative Commissioners:
In Subsec. (b)(4)(A), "almus" was changed to "alnus", for accuracy.
ENV Joint Favorable Subst. -LCO