A.B. 171
- *AB171*
ASSEMBLY BILL NO. 171–ASSEMBLYMEMBER S
YEAGER AND WATTS
PREFILED JANUARY 31, 2025
____________
Referred to Committee on Health and Human Services
SUMMARY—Authorizes the State Quarantine Officer to order the
temporary suspension of certain prohibitions relating
to the sale, offer or exposing for sale or transport for
sale of eggs produced by egg-laying hens in certain
enclosures under certain circumstances.
(BDR 51-985)
FISCAL NOTE: Effect on Local Government: No.
Effect on the State: Yes.
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EXPLANATION – Matter in bolded italics is new; matter between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted.
AN ACT relating to eggs; authorizing the State Quarantine Officer
to order the temporary suspension of certain requirements
relating to the sale, offer or exposing for sale or transport
for sale of egg products or shell eggs under certain
circumstances; authorizing the State Quarantine Officer to
adopt regulations relating to an order to temporarily
suspend such requirements; and providing other matters
properly relating thereto.
Legislative Counsel’s Digest:
Existing law prohibits an egg product or shell egg from being sold or offered, 1
exposed or transported for sale within this State if the egg product or shell egg was 2
produced by an egg-laying hen confined in certain enclosures that are not cage-free. 3
(NRS 583.211-583.251) Section 1 of this bill authorizes the State Quarantine 4
Officer to order the temporary suspension of such requirements during an ongoing 5
event that negatively impacts the national supply chain for egg products or shell 6
eggs which may not exceed 120 consecutive days per suspension. Section 1 7
additionally: (1) prohibits the State Quarantine Officer from ordering more than 8
two temporary suspensions in 1 calendar year; and (2) requires the State Quarantine 9
Officer to provide notice to the public when the order for the temporary suspension 10
will be released. 11
Section 8 of this bill authorizes the State Quarantine Officer to adopt 12
regulations governing the circumstances in which a temporary suspension will be 13
ordered and any requirements for such a temporary suspension. 14
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Sections 4-7 and 9 of this bill provide that the provisions of section 1 are an 15
exception to the existing prohibitions, enforcement and penalties relating to egg 16
products and shell eggs produced by egg-laying hens confined in certain enclosures 17
that are not cage-free. Section 3 of this bill provides that certain exemptions to 18
these prohibitions also apply to the provisions of section 1. 19
Section 2 of this bill applies certain definitions relating to cage-free eggs to the 20
provisions of section 1. 21
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN
SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Chapter 583 of NRS is hereby amended by adding 1
thereto a new section to read as follows: 2
1. The State Quarantine Officer may, by order, temporarily 3
suspend the provisions of this section and NRS 583.211 to 4
583.251, inclusive, for a period of time which may not exceed 120 5
consecutive days per suspension during any ongoing event that 6
negatively impacts the national supply chain for egg products or 7
shell eggs, including, without limitation: 8
(a) A foreign animal disease identified by the Animal and 9
Plant Health Inspection Service of the United States Department 10
of Agriculture; or 11
(b) A federally declared disease emergency or natural disaster. 12
2. If the State Quarantine Officer orders the temporary 13
suspension of the provisions of this section and NRS 583.211 to 14
583.251, inclusive, pursuant to subsection 1: 15
(a) Subject to the maximum duration specified in subsection 1, 16
the temporary suspension remains in effect until the State 17
Quarantine Officer orders the release of the temporary 18
suspension; and 19
(b) Not less than 14 days before the State Quarantine Officer 20
orders the release of the temporary suspension, the State 21
Quarantine Officer must provide notice to the public that the order 22
temporarily suspending the provisions of this section and NRS 23
583.211 to 583.251, inclusive, will be released. 24
3. The State Quarantine Officer may not order more than two 25
temporary suspensions in 1 calendar year. 26
Sec. 2. NRS 583.211 is hereby amended to read as follows: 27
583.211 As used in NRS 583.211 to 583.251, inclusive, and 28
section 1 of this act, unless the context otherwise requires, the 29
words and terms defined in NRS 583.212 to 583.224, inclusive, and 30
section 1 of this act have the meanings ascribed to them in those 31
sections. 32
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Sec. 3. NRS 583.235 is hereby amended to read as follows: 1
583.235 The provisions of NRS 583.211 to 583.251, inclusive, 2
and section 1 of this act, do not apply to the production, sale or 3
transport for sale in this State of shell eggs by a farm owner or 4
operator with an annual shell egg production from 3,000 or fewer 5
egg-laying hens if all shell eggs sold or transported for sale in this 6
State by the owner or operator are derived from the 3,000 or fewer 7
egg-laying hens. 8
Sec. 4. NRS 583.237 is hereby amended to read as follows: 9
583.237 1. Except as otherwise provided in subsections 2 and 10
3 [,] and by an order issued by the State Quarantine Officer 11
pursuant to section 1 of this act, on or after July 1, 2022, a farm 12
owner or operator in this State shall not knowingly confine an egg-13
laying hen in an enclosure which has less than 1 square foot of 14
usable floor space per egg-laying hen. 15
2. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 3 [,] and by an 16
order issued by the State Quarantine Officer pursuant to section 1 17
of this act, on or after January 1, 2024, a farm owner or operator in 18
this State shall not knowingly confine an egg-laying hen in an 19
enclosure which: 20
(a) Is not a cage-free housing system; or 21
(b) Is a cage-free housing system that has less than: 22
(1) One square foot of usable floor space per egg-laying hen 23
if the cage-free housing system provides egg-laying hens with 24
unrestricted access to elevated flat platforms, including, without 25
limitation, unrestricted access in a multi-tiered aviary or partially 26
slatted system; or 27
(2) One and one-half square feet of usable floor space per 28
egg-laying hen if the cage-free housing system does not provide 29
unrestricted access to elevated flat platforms, including, without 30
limitation, unrestricted access in a single-level, all-litter floor 31
system. 32
3. The prohibitions in subsections 1 and 2 do not apply to the 33
confinement of an egg-laying hen during: 34
(a) Medical research for which the egg-laying hen is used; 35
(b) The examination, testing or treatment of or a surgical 36
procedure performed on the egg-laying hen that is conducted by a 37
person licensed to practice as a veterinarian pursuant to chapter 638 38
of NRS or a person who is under the direct supervision of a person 39
licensed to practice as a veterinarian pursuant to chapter 638 of 40
NRS; 41
(c) The transportation of the egg-laying hen; 42
(d) A State or county fair exhibition, 4-H program or other 43
similar exhibition involving the egg-laying hen; 44
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(e) The slaughter of the egg-laying hen so long as the slaughter 1
complies with the rules and regulations governing the slaughtering 2
of such animals; or 3
(f) Temporary periods for animal husbandry purposes. Such 4
temporary periods must last not more than 6 hours in any 24-hour 5
period and not more than 24 hours in total of such temporary 6
periods are allowed in any 30-day period. 7
Sec. 5. NRS 583.239 is hereby amended to read as follows: 8
583.239 1. A farm owner or operator shall not sell, offer or 9
expose for sale or transport for sale egg products or shell eggs 10
within this State unless the farm owner or operator has been issued a 11
certificate by the Department pursuant to NRS 576.128 and , except 12
as otherwise provided by an order issued by the State Quarantine 13
Officer pursuant to section 1 of this act, an endorsement of the 14
certificate by the Department indicating that the egg products or 15
shell eggs were produced by an egg-laying hen which was confined 16
in a manner that complies with NRS 583.237. 17
2. To apply for an endorsement required by subsection 1, a 18
farm owner or operator must submit to the Department with an 19
application for a certificate or renewal of a certificate issued 20
pursuant to NRS 576.128: 21
(a) An attestation that the farm owner or operator confined the 22
egg-laying hens in a manner that complies with NRS 583.237; and 23
(b) Evidence that the enclosures for egg-laying hens have been 24
inspected by a person described in subsection 4. 25
3. The Department shall issue the endorsement required by 26
subsection 1 to an applicant if: 27
(a) The farm owner or operator submits the information required 28
pursuant to subsection 2; and 29
(b) The Department determines that such information is 30
sufficient to indicate compliance with NRS 583.237. 31
4. The Department may use a government inspector, including, 32
without limitation, an inspector who is employed, contracted with or 33
authorized by the Department, or a private inspection or process 34
verification provider to ensure compliance with NRS 583.211 to 35
583.251, inclusive, and section 1 of this act, during the production 36
and the handling of egg products and shell eggs. If the Department 37
uses such an inspector or provider, the Department must approve the 38
inspector or provider as competent to ensure compliance with NRS 39
583.211 to 583.251, inclusive [.] , and section 1 of this act. 40
5. Each endorsement issued pursuant to subsection 3 is valid 41
for the period for which the certificate issued pursuant to NRS 42
576.128 is valid. 43
6. If a holder of a certificate issued pursuant to NRS 576.128 44
holds an endorsement issued pursuant to this section, the 45
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Department shall include in any notice of renewal of the certificate 1
provided to the holder of the certificate a notice to renew the 2
endorsement issued pursuant to this section. 3
7. The Department may require an inspection of the enclosure 4
for egg-laying hens to determine whether to renew an endorsement 5
issued pursuant to this section. If the Department determines that an 6
inspection of the enclosure is required for the renewal of the 7
endorsement, the endorsement remains in effect until the 8
endorsement expires or until the Department makes a determination 9
whether to renew the endorsement, whichever occurs later. 10
8. The Department may not charge a fee for the issuance or 11
renewal of an endorsement pursuant to this section. 12
Sec. 6. NRS 583.245 is hereby amended to read as follows: 13
583.245 1. [A] Except as otherwise provided by an order 14
issued by the State Quarantine Officer pursuant to section 1 of 15
this act, a business owner or operator shall not knowingly sell, offer 16
or expose for sale or transport for sale egg products or shell eggs 17
within this State if the business owner or operator knows or should 18
have known that the egg products or shell eggs were produced by an 19
egg-laying hen which was confined in a manner that conflicts with 20
the standards set forth in NRS 583.237. 21
2. [A] Except as otherwise provided by an order issued by the 22
State Quarantine Officer pursuant to section 1 of this act, a 23
business owner or operator shall obtain a copy of the certificate 24
issued pursuant to NRS 576.128 that contains the endorsement 25
issued pursuant to NRS 583.239 from the farm owner or operator to 26
whom the certificate is issued before doing any business governed 27
by NRS 583.211 to 583.251, inclusive, and section 1 of this act, 28
with the farm owner or operator. 29
3. The business owner or operator shall: 30
(a) Retain a copy of the certificate obtained pursuant to 31
subsection 2; and 32
(b) Provide a copy of the certificate to the Department upon 33
request. 34
4. It is a defense to any action to enforce NRS 583.211 to 35
583.251, inclusive, and section 1 of this act, that a business owner 36
or operator relied in good faith upon a certificate obtained pursuant 37
to subsection 2. 38
Sec. 7. NRS 583.247 is hereby amended to read as follows: 39
583.247 Except as otherwise provided by an order issued by 40
the State Quarantine Officer pursuant to section 1 of this act: 41
1. The Department shall enforce the provisions of NRS 42
583.211 to 583.251, inclusive [.] , and section 1 of this act. 43
2. The Department or an authorized inspector or agent of the 44
Department is entitled to free access during regular business hours 45
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to an applicable farm or business and to the records of such a farm 1
owner or operator or business owner or operator for the purpose of 2
inspecting such farm, business or record to determine whether any 3
of the provisions of NRS 583.211 to 583.251, inclusive, and section 4
1 of this act are being or have been violated. 5
Sec. 8. NRS 583.249 is hereby amended to read as follows: 6
583.249 The State Quarantine Officer may adopt such 7
regulations as he or she deems necessary for carrying out the 8
provisions of NRS 583.211 to 583.251, inclusive [.] , and section 1 9
of this act, including, without limitation, the circumstances in 10
which the State Quarantine Officer may order the temporary 11
suspension of the provisions of NRS 583.211 to 583.251, inclusive, 12
and section 1 of this act and requirements for the temporary 13
suspension. 14
Sec. 9. NRS 583.251 is hereby amended to read as follows: 15
583.251 [Any] Except as otherwise provided by an order 16
issued by the State Quarantine Officer pursuant to section 1 of 17
this act, any person who violates any of the provisions of NRS 18
583.211 to 583.251, inclusive, and section 1 of this act is subject to 19
a civil penalty pursuant to NRS 583.700. 20
Sec. 10. This act becomes effective upon passage and 21
approval. 22
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