Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB212 Compare Versions

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1	1	By: Shapleigh S.B. No. 212
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to the sale or transportation of certain desert plants;
7	7	providing a penalty.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Subtitle F, Title 5, Agriculture Code, is
10	10	amended by adding Chapter 122 to read as follows:
11	11	CHAPTER 122. SALE OF DESERT PLANTS
12	12	Sec. 122.001. DEFINITION. In this chapter, "desert plant"
13	13	means the following genera of plants:
14	14	(1) Agave;
15	15	(2) Ariocarpus;
16	16	(3) Echinocactus;
17	17	(4) Echinocereus;
18	18	(5) Ferocactus;
19	19	(6) Fouquieria;
20	20	(7) Mammillaria; and
21	21	(8) Yucca.
22	22	Sec. 122.002. ADMINISTRATION. The department shall
23	23	administer this chapter and adopt rules necessary for its
24	24	enforcement.
25	25	Sec. 122.003. REQUIREMENTS FOR SALE OR TRANSPORTATION. A
26	26	person may not sell or offer for sale to a first purchaser a desert
27	27	plant or transport for transfer out of this state a desert plant
28	28	unless the person has documentation as required by department rule
29	29	that the desert plant was harvested for sale in compliance with an
30	30	agreement entered into in accordance with rules adopted under
31	31	Section 122.004.
32	32	Sec. 122.004. REGISTRATION AND COMPLIANCE AGREEMENT.
33	33	(a) A person who grows or harvests desert plants for sale must
34	34	register with the department and enter into a compliance agreement
35	35	with the department to ensure that a manifest or other form of
36	36	documentation accompanies the person's desert plants when any of
37	37	the person's desert plants are:
38	38	(1) sold or offered for sale to a first purchaser; or
39	39	(2) transported for transfer out of this state.
40	40	(b) The department by rule shall establish minimum
41	41	standards for compliance agreements and the manifests or other
42	42	forms of documentation to be provided in accordance with compliance
43	43	agreements. A manifest or other form of documentation must:
44	44	(1) show the source of the desert plants; and
45	45	(2) verify compliance with the compliance agreement
46	46	conditions.
47	47	(c) The department shall adopt rules, including procedures
48	48	for inspection or other mechanisms, to ensure that a manifest or
49	49	other form of documentation provided under a compliance agreement
50	50	does not misrepresent the source of a desert plant.
51	51	(d) A person must include with an application for
52	52	registration under this section:
53	53	(1) a written statement that the desert plants
54	54	provided by the person for sale will be harvested from that person's
55	55	property; or
56	56	(2) written documentation that the owner of the
57	57	property from which the desert plants are to be harvested grants the
58	58	person the authority to harvest the desert plants from that
59	59	property.
60	60	(e) The department may charge a registration and compliance
61	61	agreement fee to offset the costs of administering this chapter.
62	62	Sec. 122.005. DOCUMENTATION FOR SALE OR TRANSPORTATION OF
63	63	DESERT PLANTS. (a) In accordance with department rules and the
64	64	agreement entered into under Section 122.004, a person shall
65	65	provide to a first purchaser, or to a person who sells or offers for
66	66	sale to a first purchaser the person's desert plants or transports
67	67	for transfer out of this state the person's desert plants, a
68	68	manifest or other form of documentation of the source of the desert
69	69	plants.
70	70	(b) A manifest or other form of documentation of the source
71	71	of a desert plant must accompany the desert plant when:
72	72	(1) sold or offered for sale; or
73	73	(2) transported for transfer out of this state.
74	74	Sec. 122.006. STOP-SALE ORDER. In enforcing this chapter,
75	75	the department may issue and enforce a written or printed order to
76	76	stop the sale of a desert plant or a shipment of desert plants that
77	77	is not accompanied by a manifest or other form of documentation as
78	78	provided by Section 122.005. If an order is issued, a person may
79	79	not sell the desert plant or shipment until proper documentation is
80	80	provided.
81	81	Sec. 122.007. AUTHORITY TO SEIZE DESERT PLANTS. (a) In
82	82	enforcing this chapter, the department with or without process may
83	83	seize a desert plant or a shipment of desert plants that is:
84	84	(1) not accompanied by a manifest or other form of
85	85	documentation as provided by Section 122.005; and
86	86	(2) intended for transfer out of this state.
87	87	(b) The department shall:
88	88	(1) return desert plants seized under this section to
89	89	the owner of the land from which they were harvested; or
90	90	(2) if the department is not able to identify the owner
91	91	of the land from which the desert plants were harvested, deliver
92	92	them to the Parks and Wildlife Department.
93	93	Sec. 122.008. PENALTY. (a) A person commits an offense if
94	94	the person advertises, sells, or offers for sale to a first
95	95	purchaser a desert plant or a shipment of desert plants that is not
96	96	accompanied by a manifest or other form of documentation as
97	97	provided by Section 122.005.
98	98	(b) An offense under this section is punishable by:
99	99	(1) a fine not to exceed $1,000;
100	100	(2) imprisonment for a term not to exceed 180 days; or
101	101	(3) both fine and imprisonment under this subsection.
102	102	SECTION 2. Section 12.020, Agriculture Code, is amended by
103	103	amending Subsections (a) and (b) and adding Subsection (c-1) to
104	104	read as follows:
105	105	(a) If a person violates a provision of this code described
106	106	by Subsection (c) or (c-1) of this section or a rule or order
107	107	adopted by the department under a provision of this code described
108	108	by Subsection (c) or (c-1) of this section, the department may
109	109	assess an administrative penalty against the person as provided by
110	110	this section.
111	111	(b) The penalty for each violation may be in an amount not to
112	112	exceed the maximum provided by Subsection (c) or (c-1) of this
113	113	section. Each day a violation continues or occurs may be considered
114	114	a separate violation for purposes of penalty assessments.
115	115	(c-1) In addition to provisions described by Subsection
116	116	(c), Chapter 122 is subject to this section and the applicable
117	117	penalty amount is $500.
118	118	SECTION 3. (a) Not later than December 1, 2009, the
119	119	Department of Agriculture shall adopt rules to administer Chapter
120	120	122, Agriculture Code, as added by this Act.
121	121	(b) Chapter 122, Agriculture Code, as added by this Act,
122	122	applies only to a sale, an offer for sale, or the transportation of
123	123	a desert plant on or after January 1, 2010.
124	124	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.