Texas 2013 - 83rd Regular

Texas House Bill HB1825 Compare Versions

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1	1	83R24702 JXC-D
2	2	By: M. Gonzalez of El Paso H.B. No. 1825
3	3	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 1825:
4	4	By: Kacal C.S.H.B. No. 1825
5	5
6	6
7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to the sale or transportation of certain desert plants;
10	10	creating an offense and providing penalties; providing authority to
11	11	impose a fee.
12	12	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
13	13	SECTION 1. Title 5, Agriculture Code, is amended by adding
14	14	Subtitle F to read as follows:
15	15	SUBTITLE F. PRODUCTION, PROCESSING, AND SALE OF NURSERY PRODUCTS
16	16	CHAPTER 121. SALE OF DESERT PLANTS
17	17	Sec. 121.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
18	18	(1) "Commercial purchaser" means a person who
19	19	purchases a plant for the purpose of wholesale or retail sale.
20	20	(2) "Desert plant" means the following genera of
21	21	plants:
22	22	(A) Agave;
23	23	(B) Ariocarpus;
24	24	(C) Echinocactus;
25	25	(D) Echinocereus;
26	26	(E) Ferocactus;
27	27	(F) Fouquieria;
28	28	(G) Mammillaria; and
29	29	(H) Yucca.
30	30	Sec. 121.002. ADMINISTRATION. The department shall
31	31	administer this chapter and adopt rules necessary for its
32	32	enforcement.
33	33	Sec. 121.003. REQUIREMENTS FOR SALE OR TRANSPORTATION. A
34	34	person may not sell or offer for sale to a commercial purchaser a
35	35	desert plant or transport for transfer out of this state a desert
36	36	plant unless the person:
37	37	(1) complies with Sections 121.004 and 121.005 and
38	38	department rules on providing documentation of the source of the
39	39	desert plant; or
40	40	(2) owns the property from which the desert plant was
41	41	harvested and provides with the plant a shipping order or other
42	42	document showing the source of the plant or of a group of plants
43	43	that includes the plant.
44	44	Sec. 121.004. REGISTRATION AND COMPLIANCE AGREEMENT. (a)
45	45	A person who grows desert plants on or harvests desert plants from
46	46	property owned by another person for sale must register with the
47	47	department and enter into a compliance agreement with the
48	48	department that requires the person to provide a manifest or other
49	49	form of documentation during a sale or transfer in compliance with
50	50	Section 121.005.
51	51	(b) The department by rule shall establish minimum
52	52	standards for compliance agreements and the manifests or other
53	53	forms of documentation to be provided in accordance with compliance
54	54	agreements. A manifest or other form of documentation must:
55	55	(1) show the source of the desert plants; and
56	56	(2) verify compliance with the compliance agreement
57	57	conditions.
58	58	(c) The department shall adopt rules, including procedures
59	59	for inspection or other mechanisms, to ensure that a manifest or
60	60	other form of documentation provided under a compliance agreement
61	61	does not misrepresent the source of a desert plant.
62	62	(d) A person must include with an application for
63	63	registration under this section written documentation that the
64	64	owner of the property from which the desert plants are to be
65	65	harvested grants the person the authority to harvest the plants
66	66	from that property.
67	67	(e) The department may charge a registration and compliance
68	68	agreement fee to offset the costs of administering this chapter.
69	69	Sec. 121.005. DOCUMENTATION PROVIDED UNDER COMPLIANCE
70	70	AGREEMENT. (a) A person who sells or offers for sale a desert plant
71	71	and has entered into a compliance agreement under this chapter
72	72	shall, in accordance with department rules, provide a manifest or
73	73	other form of documentation of the source of the desert plant to:
74	74	(1) a commercial purchaser;
75	75	(2) a person who sells or offers for sale the desert
76	76	plant to a commercial purchaser; or
77	77	(3) a person who transports the desert plant for
78	78	transfer out of this state.
79	79	(b) The manifest or other form of documentation must
80	80	accompany the desert plant when the plant is:
81	81	(1) sold or offered for sale; or
82	82	(2) transported for transfer out of this state.
83	83	Sec. 121.006. STOP-SALE ORDER. In enforcing this chapter,
84	84	the department may issue and enforce a written or printed order to
85	85	stop the sale of a desert plant or a shipment of desert plants that
86	86	is not accompanied by a manifest or other form of documentation if
87	87	required under Sections 121.004 and 121.005. If an order is issued,
88	88	a person may not sell the desert plant or shipment until proper
89	89	documentation is provided.
90	90	Sec. 121.007. AUTHORITY TO SEIZE DESERT PLANTS. (a) In
91	91	enforcing this chapter, the department with or without process may
92	92	seize a desert plant or a shipment of desert plants that is:
93	93	(1) not accompanied by a manifest or other form of
94	94	documentation if required by Sections 121.004 and 121.005; and
95	95	(2) intended for transfer out of this state.
96	96	(b) The department shall:
97	97	(1) return desert plants seized under this section to
98	98	the owner of the land from which they were harvested; or
99	99	(2) if the department is not able to identify the owner
100	100	of the land from which the desert plants were harvested, deliver
101	101	them to the Parks and Wildlife Department.
102	102	Sec. 121.008. PENALTY. (a) A person commits an offense if
103	103	the person advertises, sells, or offers for sale to a commercial
104	104	purchaser a desert plant or a shipment of desert plants that is not
105	105	accompanied by a manifest or other form of documentation if
106	106	required by Sections 121.004 and 121.005.
107	107	(b) An offense under this section is punishable by:
108	108	(1) a fine not to exceed $1,000;
109	109	(2) imprisonment for a term not to exceed 180 days; or
110	110	(3) both fine and imprisonment under this subsection.
111	111	SECTION 2. Section 12.020, Agriculture Code, is amended by
112	112	amending Subsections (a) and (b) and adding Subsections (c-1) and
113	113	(c-2) to read as follows:
114	114	(a) If a person violates a provision of law described by
115	115	Subsection (c) or (c-1) or a rule or order adopted by the department
116	116	under a provision of law described by Subsection (c) or (c-1), the
117	117	department may assess an administrative penalty against the person
118	118	as provided by this section.
119	119	(b) The penalty for each violation may be in an amount not to
120	120	exceed the maximum provided by Subsection (c) or (c-1) [of this
121	121	section]. Each day a violation continues or occurs may be
122	122	considered a separate violation for purposes of penalty
123	123	assessments.
124	124	(c-1) In addition to provisions described by Subsection
125	125	(c), Chapter 121 is subject to this section and the applicable
126	126	penalty amount is $500.
127	127	(c-2) Subsection (c-1) does not authorize the department to
128	128	assess an administrative penalty against a person described by
129	129	Section 121.003(2).
130	130	SECTION 3. (a) Not later than December 1, 2013, the
131	131	Department of Agriculture shall adopt rules to administer Chapter
132	132	121, Agriculture Code, as added by this Act.
133	133	(b) Chapter 121, Agriculture Code, as added by this Act,
134	134	applies only to a desert plant that is sold, offered for sale, or
135	135	transported on or after January 1, 2014.
136	136	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.