200.1 Title.
This chapter shall be known and may be cited by the short title of "Iowa Fertilizer Law".
200.10 Inspection, sampling and analysis.
1. It shall be the duty of the secretary, who may act through an authorized agent, to sample, inspect, make analysis of, and test commercial fertilizers or soil conditioners distributed within this state at time and place and to such an extent as the secretary may deem necessary, to determine whether such commercial fertilizers and soil conditioners are in compliance with the provisions of this chapter. In the performance of the foregoing duty, the secretary shall counsel with the director of the Iowa agricultural experimental station in respect to the time, place and extent of sampling. The secretary individually or through an agent is authorized to enter upon any public or private premises or conveyances during regular business hours in order to have access to commercial fertilizers or soil conditioners subject to the provisions of this chapter and the rules and regulations pertaining thereto. It shall be the duty of the secretary to maintain a laboratory with the necessary equipment and to employ such employees as may be necessary to aid in the administration and enforcement of this chapter.
2. The methods of sampling and analysis shall be the official methods of the association of official agricultural chemists in all cases where methods have been adopted by the association.
The findings of the state chemist or the state chemist's deputy, as shown by the sworn statement of the results of analysis of official samples of any brand and grade of commercial fertilizer, fertilizer material or soil conditioner, shall constitute prima facie evidence of their correctness in the courts of this state, as to the particular lots sampled and analyzed.
3. The secretary, in determining for administrative purposes whether any commercial fertilizer is deficient in plant food, or soil conditioner deficient in guaranteed active ingredients, shall be guided by the official sample as defined in subsection 15 of section 200.3, and obtained and analyzed as provided for in subsection 2 of this section.
4. The results of official analysis of any commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner which has been found to be in violation of any provision of this chapter, shall be forwarded by the secretary to the registrant. Upon request, the secretary shall furnish to the registrant a portion of any sample.
200.11 Filler material.
It shall be unlawful for any person to manufacture, offer for sale or sell in this state, any commercial fertilizer, or soil conditioner containing any substance used as a filler that is injurious to crop growth or deleterious to the soil, or to use in such commercial fertilizer, or soil conditioner as a filler any substance that contains inert or useless plant food material for the purpose or with the effect of deceiving or defrauding the purchaser.
200.12 False or misleading statements.
A commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner is misbranded if it does not identify substances promoting plant growth as defined in subsection 9 of section 200.3, or if it carries any false or misleading statement upon or attached to the container or stated on the invoice or delivery ticket, or if the container or on the invoice or delivery ticket or in any advertising matter whatsoever connected with, accompanying or associated with the commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner. Further, the burden of proof of the desirable effect of the product on plant growth shall be the responsibility of the registrant.
200.13 Reports and publications.
The secretary shall publish at least annually, in such forms as the secretary may deem proper, information concerning the sales of commercial fertilizers, together with such data on their production and use as the secretary may consider advisable. The secretary shall report semiannually the results of the analysis based on official samples taken of commercial fertilizers sold within the state as compared with the analyses guaranteed under section 200.5 and section 200.6, together with name and address of the manufacturer or distributor of such commercial fertilizer at the time the official sample was taken. A copy of this semiannual report will be mailed by the secretary to each corresponding county extension director in the state.
200.14 Rules.
1. The secretary is authorized, after public hearing, following due notice, to adopt rules setting forth minimum general safety standards for the design, construction, location, installation and operation of equipment for storage, handling, transportation by tank truck or tank trailer, and utilization of anhydrous ammonia. The rules shall be such as are reasonably necessary for the protection and safety of the public and persons using anhydrous ammonia, and shall be in substantial conformity with the generally accepted standards of safety.
It is hereby declared that rules in substantial conformity with the published standards of the agricultural ammonia institute for the design, installation and construction of containers and pertinent equipment for the storage and handling of anhydrous ammonia, shall be deemed to be in substantial conformity with the generally accepted standards of safety.
2. Anhydrous ammonia equipment shall be installed and maintained in a safe operating condition and in conformity with rules adopted by the secretary.
3. The secretary is hereby charged with the enforcement of this chapter, and after due publicity and due public hearing, is empowered to promulgate and adopt such reasonable rules as may be necessary in order to carry into effect the purpose and intent of this chapter or to secure the efficient administration thereof.
4. Nothing in this chapter shall prohibit the use of storage tanks smaller than transporting tanks nor the transfer of all kinds of fertilizer including anhydrous ammonia directly from transporting tanks to implements of husbandry, if proper safety precautions are observed.
200.15 Refusal to register, or cancellation of registration and licenses.
The secretary is authorized and empowered to cancel the registration of any product of commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner or license or to refuse to register any product of commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner or refuse to license any applicant as herein provided, upon satisfactory evidence that the registrant or licensee has used fraudulent or deceptive practices or who willfully violates any provisions of this chapter or any rules and regulations promulgated thereunder: Except no registration or license shall be revoked or refused until the registrant or licensee shall have been given the opportunity to appear for a hearing by the secretary.
200.16 "Stop sale" orders.
The secretary may issue and enforce a written or printed "stop sale, use or removal" order to the owner or custodian of any lot of commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner, and to hold at a designated place when the secretary finds said commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner is being offered or exposed for sale in violation of any of the provisions of this chapter or any of the rules and regulations promulgated hereunder until the law has been complied with and said commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner is released in writing by the secretary or said violation has been otherwise legally disposed of by written authority, and all costs and expenses incurred in connection with the withdrawal have been paid.
200.17 Seizure, condemnation and sale.
Any lot of commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner not in compliance with the provisions of this chapter shall be subject to seizure on complaint of the secretary to a court of competent jurisdiction in the county or adjoining county in which said commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner is located. In the event the court finds the said commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner to be in violation of this chapter and orders the condemnation of said commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner, it shall be disposed of in any manner consistent with the quality of the commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner and the laws of the state: Except in no instance shall the disposition of said commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner be ordered by the court without first giving the claimant an opportunity to apply to the court for release of said commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner or for permission to reprocess or relabel said commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner to bring it into compliance with this chapter.
200.18 Violations.
1. If it shall appear from the examination of any commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner or any anhydrous ammonia installation, equipment, or operation that any of the provisions of this chapter or the rules and regulations issued thereunder have been violated, the secretary shall cause notice of the violations to be given to the registrant, distributor, or possessor from whom said sample was taken; any person so notified shall be given opportunity to be heard under such rules and regulations as may be prescribed by the secretary. If it appears after such hearing, either in the presence or absence of the person so notified, that any of the provisions of this chapter or rules and regulations issued thereunder have been violated, the secretary may certify the facts to the proper prosecuting attorney.
2. A person violating this chapter or rules adopted by the secretary pursuant to this chapter shall be guilty of a simple misdemeanor. However, a person who tampers with, possesses, or transports anhydrous ammonia or anhydrous ammonia equipment commits a serious misdemeanor under section 124.401F.
3. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as requiring the secretary or the secretary's representative to report for prosecution or for the institution of seizure proceedings minor violations of the chapter when the secretary believes that the public interest will be best served by a suitable notice of warning in writing.
4. It shall be the duty of each county attorney to whom any violation is reported, to cause appropriate proceedings to be instituted and prosecuted in a court of competent jurisdiction without delay.
5. The secretary is hereby authorized to apply for and the court to grant a temporary or permanent injunction restraining any person from violating or continuing to violate any of the provisions of this chapter or any rule or regulation promulgated under the chapter notwithstanding the existence of other remedies at law, said injunction to be issued without bond.
200.19 Exchanges between manufacturers.
Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to restrict or avoid sales or exchanges of commercial fertilizers or soil conditioners to each other by importers, manufacturers, or manipulators who mix fertilizer materials for sale or as preventing the free and unrestricted shipments of commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner to manufacturers or manipulators who have registered their brands as required by the provisions of this chapter.
200.2 Enforcing official.
This chapter shall be administered by the secretary of agriculture, hereinafter referred to as the secretary.
200.20 Phosphoric acid, nitrogen and potash requirements.
No phosphatic fertilizer containing less than eighteen percent available phosphoric acid (P2O5), nor any nitrogen fertilizer containing less than fifteen percent total nitrogen (N), nor any potash fertilizer containing less than fifteen percent soluble potash (K2O), nor any mixed fertilizer in which the sum of the guaranteed analysis of total nitrogen (N), available phosphoric acid (P2O5), and soluble potash (K2O), totals less than twenty percent shall be offered for sale, sold, or distributed in this state. This section shall neither apply to specialty fertilizers as defined in section 200.3, subsection 23, nor to any fertilizer designed to be applied and ordinarily applied directly to growing plant foliage to stimulate further growth.
200.21 Compliance--a defense to certain nuisance actions.
In a nuisance action or proceeding against an anhydrous ammonia plant brought by or on behalf of the person whose established date of ownership is subsequent to the established date of operation of an anhydrous ammonia plant, proof of compliance with applicable provisions of this chapter and applicable rules adopted pursuant to section 200.14 shall be a defense to a nuisance action or proceeding.
200.22 Local legislation--prohibition.
1. As used in this section:
a. "Local governmental entity" means any political subdivision, or any state authority which is not the general assembly or under the direction of a principal central department as enumerated in section 7E.5, including a city as defined in section 362.2, a county as provided in chapter 331, or any special purpose district.
b. "Local legislation" means any ordinance, motion, resolution, amendment, regulation, or rule adopted by a local governmental entity.
2. The provisions of this chapter and rules adopted by the department pursuant to this chapter shall preempt local legislation adopted by a local governmental entity relating to the use, sale, distribution, storage, transportation, disposal, formulation, labeling, registration, or manufacture of a fertilizer or soil conditioner. A local governmental entity shall not adopt or continue in effect local legislation relating to the use, sale, distribution, storage, transportation, disposal, formulation, labeling, registration, or manufacture of a fertilizer or soil conditioner, regardless of whether a statute or rule adopted by the department applies to preempt the local legislation. Local legislation in violation of this section is void and unenforceable.
3. This section does not apply to local legislation of general applicability to commercial activity.
200.3 Definitions of words and terms.
When used in this chapter:
1. The term "anhydrous ammonia" means the compound formed by the combination of two gaseous elements, nitrogen and hydrogen, in the proportion of one part nitrogen to three parts hydrogen by volume.
2. "Anhydrous ammonia plant" means a facility used for the manufacture or distribution of the compound formed by the combination of two gaseous elements, nitrogen and hydrogen, in the proportion of one part nitrogen to three parts hydrogen by volume.
3. The term "brand" means a term, design, or trademark used in connection with one or several grades of commercial fertilizer.
4. The term "bulk fertilizer" shall mean commercial fertilizer delivered to the purchaser in the solid, liquid, or gaseous state, in a nonpackaged form to which a label cannot be attached.
5. The term "commercial fertilizer" includes fertilizer and fertilizer materials and fertilizer-pesticide mixtures.
6. The term "distributor" means any person who imports, consigns, manufactures, produces, compounds, mixes, or blends commercial fertilizer, or who offers for sale, sells, barters, or otherwise distributes commercial fertilizer in this state.
7. "Established date of operation" means the date on which an anhydrous ammonia plant commenced operating. If the physical facilities of the plant are subsequently expanded, the established date of operation for each expansion is deemed to be a separate and independent "established date of operation" established as of the date of commencement of the expanded operations. The commencement of expanded operations does not divest the plant of a previously established date of operation.
8. "Established date of ownership" means the date of the recording of an appropriate instrument of title establishing the ownership of real estate.
9. The term "fertilizer" means any substance containing one or more recognized plant nutrient which is used for its plant nutrient content and which is designed for use and claimed to have value in promoting plant growth except unmanipulated animal and vegetable manures or calcium and magnesium carbonate materials used primarily for correcting soil acidity.
10. The term "fertilizer material" means any substance used as a fertilizer or for compounding a fertilizer containing one or more of the recognized plant nutrients which are used for promoting plant growth or altering plant composition.
11. The term "grade" means the percentages of total nitrogen, available phosphorus or P2O5 or both, and soluble potassium or K2O or both stated in whole numbers in same terms, order and percentages as in the "guaranteed analysis."
12. Guaranteed analysis:
a. The term "guaranteed analysis" shall mean the minimum percentage of plant nutrients claimed and reported as Total Nitrogen (N), Available Phosphorus (P) or P2O5 or both, Soluble Potassium (K) or K2O or both and in the following form:
Total Nitrogen (N) . . . . . . . . . ____ percent
Available Phosphorus (P) or
P2O5 or both . . . . . . . . . ____ percent
Soluble Potassium (K) or
K2O or both . . . . . . . . . ____ percent
Registration and guarantee of water soluble phosphorus (P) or (P2O5) shall be permitted.
b. The term "guaranteed analysis", in the form specified in paragraph "a", includes:
(1) For unacidulated mineral phosphatic materials and basic slag, both total and available phosphorus or P2O5 or both and the degree of fineness. For bone tankage and other organic phosphatic materials, total phosphorus or P2O5 or both.
(2) When any additional plant nutrient elements contained in a substance as identified in subsection 1 of this section, are claimed in writing, they shall be identified in the guarantee, expressed as the element, and shall be subject to inspection and analysis in accordance with the methods and regulations that may be prescribed by the Association of Official Agricultural Chemists.
13. "Nuisance" means public or private nuisance as defined by statute or by the common law.
14. "Nuisance action or proceeding" means an action, claim or proceeding brought at law, in equity, or as an administrative proceeding, which is based on nuisance.
15. The term "official sample" means any sample of commercial fertilizer taken by the secretary or the secretary's agent.
16. "Owner" means the person holding record title to real estate, and includes both legal and equitable interest under recorded real estate contracts.
17. The term "percent or percentage" means the percentage by weight.
18. The term "person" includes individual, partnership, association, firm and corporation.
19. The term "pesticide" as used in this chapter means insecticides, miticides, nemacides, fungicides, herbicides and any other substance used in pest control.
20. "Rule" means a rule as defined in section 17A.2 which materially affects the operation of an anhydrous ammonia plant. The term includes a rule which was in effect prior to July 1, 1984.
21. The term "sell" or "sale" includes exchange.
22. A "soil conditioner" is any substance which when added to the soil or applied to plants will produce a favorable growth, yield or quality of crop or soil flora or fauna or other soil characteristics, other than a fertilizer, recognized pesticide, unmanipulated animal and vegetable manures or calcium and magnesium carbonate materials used primarily for correcting soil acidity.
23. A "specialty fertilizer" is a commercial fertilizer distributed primarily for nonfarm use, such as home gardens, lawns, shrubbery, flowers, golf courses, municipal parks, cemeteries, greenhouses and nurseries and may include commercial fertilizers used for research or experimental purposes.
24. The term "ton" means a net weight of two thousand pounds avoirdupois.
25. The term "unmanipulated manures" means any substances composed primarily of excreta, plant remains, or mixtures of such substances which have not been processed in any manner.
26. Words importing the singular number may extend and be applied to several persons or things, and words importing the plural number may include the singular.
200.4 Licenses.
1. Any person who manufactures, mixes, blends, mixes to customers order, offers for sale, sells, or distributes any fertilizer or soil conditioner in Iowa must first obtain a license from the secretary of agriculture and shall pay a ten-dollar license fee for each place of manufacture or distribution from which fertilizer or soil conditioner products are sold or distributed in Iowa. Such license fee shall be paid annually on July 1 of each year.
2. Said licensee shall at all times produce an intimate and uniform mixture of fertilizers or soil conditioners. When two or more fertilizer materials are delivered in the same load, they shall be thoroughly and uniformly mixed unless they are in separate compartments.
200.5 Registration.
1. Each brand and grade of commercial fertilizer and each soil conditioner shall be registered before being offered for sale, sold or otherwise distributed in this state; except that a commercial fertilizer formulated according to special specifications furnished by a consumer to fill the consumer's order shall not be required to be registered, but shall be labeled as provided in subsection 3 of section 200.6. The application for registration shall be submitted to the secretary on forms furnished by the secretary and shall be accompanied by a label setting forth the guaranteed analysis which shall be the same as that appearing on the registered product.
2. All registration will be permanent, provided, however, that the secretary may request a listing of products to be currently manufactured. The application shall include the following information in the following order:
a. Net weight, if sold in packaged form.
b. Name and address of the registrant.
c. Name of product.
d. Brand.
e. Grade.
f. Guaranteed analysis.
3. In addition to the information required in subsection 2 of this section, applications for registration of soil conditioners must include the name or chemical designation and percentage of content of each of the active ingredients.
4. The secretary is authorized, after public hearing, following due notice, to adopt rules regulating the labeling and registration of specialty fertilizers and other fertilizer products, when necessary in the secretary's opinion. The secretary may require any reasonable information in addition to subsection 12 of section 200.3, which is necessary and useful to the purchasers of specialty fertilizers of this state and to promote uniformity among states.
5. The secretary is authorized after public hearing, following due notice, to establish minimum acceptable levels of trace and secondary elements recognized as effective to aid crops produced in Iowa and to require such warning statements as may be deemed necessary to prevent injury to crops.
6. The secretary, whenever the secretary deems it necessary in the administration of this chapter, may require the submission of additional data about any fertilizer or product to support the claims made for it. If it appears to the secretary that the composition of the article is such as to warrant the claims made for it, and if the article, its labeling and other material required to be submitted, comply with the requirements of this chapter, the secretary shall register the product.
7. If it does not appear to the secretary that the article is such as to warrant the proposed claims for it, or if the article and its labeling and other material required to be submitted does not comply with the provision of this chapter, the secretary shall notify the registrant of the manner in which the article, labeling, or other material required to be submitted fails to comply with this chapter so as to afford the registrant an opportunity to make the necessary corrections before resubmitting the label.
8. It shall be the responsibility of the registrant to submit satisfactory evidence of favorable effects and safety of the product.
9. A distributor shall not be required to register any brand and grade of commercial fertilizer which is already registered under this chapter by another person.
10. The advisory committee created in section 206.23 shall advise and assist the secretary on the registration of a product of commercial fertilizer or soil conditioner under the provisions of this chapter.
200.6 Labeling.
1. Any commercial fertilizer offered for sale or sold or distributed in this state in bags, or other containers, shall have placed on or affixed to the container in legibly written or printed form, the information required by subsection 2 of section 200.5; either on tags affixed to the end of the package or directly on the package.
2. If distributed in bulk, the shipment must be accompanied by a written or printed statement giving the purchaser's name and address in addition to the labeling requirement set forth in subsection 2 of section 200.5.
3. A commercial fertilizer formulated according to specifications which are furnished by a consumer prior to mixing shall be labeled to show the net weight, guaranteed analysis, and the name and address of the distributor and may show the net weight and guaranteed analysis of each of the fertilizer materials or soil conditioners used. It is the responsibility of the distributor to mix these materials uniformly and intimately so that when sampled in the prescribed manner the resulting analysis would meet the guarantee.
4. All bulk bins or intermediate storage of bulk commercial fertilizer where being offered for sale or distributed direct to the consumer shall be labeled showing brand, name and grade of product.
5. All fertilizers distributed or stored in bulk, unless in the manufacturers authorized containers shall be labeled as the responsibility of the possessor.
6. Soil conditioners shall be labeled in accordance with subsection 1 of this section and in addition shall show the name or chemical designation and content or the active ingredients.
200.7 Fertilizer-pesticide mixture.
Only those persons licensed under section 200.4 shall be permitted to add pesticides to commercial fertilizers. These persons shall at all times produce a uniform mixture of fertilizer and pesticide and shall register and label their product in compliance with both the Iowa Pesticide Act* and this chapter.
Section
*Chapter 206
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< 200.8 Inspection fees.
1. There shall be paid by the licensee to the secretary for all commercial fertilizers and soil conditioners sold, or distributed in this state, an inspection fee to be fixed annually by the secretary of agriculture at not more than twenty cents per ton. Sales for manufacturing purposes only are hereby exempted from fees but must still be reported showing manufacturer who purchased same. Payment of said inspection fee by any licensee shall exempt all other persons, firms or corporations from the payment thereof.
On individual packages of specialty fertilizer containing twenty-five pounds or less, there shall be paid by the manufacturer in lieu of the semiannual inspection fee as set forth in this chapter, an annual registration and inspection fee of one hundred dollars for each brand and grade sold or distributed in the state. In the event that any manufacturer sells specialty fertilizer in packages of twenty-five pounds or less and also in packages of more than twenty-five pounds, this annual registration and inspection fee shall apply only to that portion sold in packages of twenty-five pounds or less, and that portion sold in packages of more than twenty-five pounds shall be subject to the same inspection fee as fixed by the secretary of agriculture as provided in this chapter.
Any person other than a manufacturer who annually offers for sale, sells, or distributes specialty fertilizer in the amount of four thousand pounds or more or applies specialty fertilizer for compensation shall pay an annual inspection fee of thirty dollars in lieu of the semiannual inspection fee as set forth in this chapter.
2. Every licensee and any person required to pay an annual registration and inspection fee under this chapter in this state shall:
a. File not later than the last day of January and July of each year, on forms furnished by the secretary, a semiannual statement setting forth the number of net tons of commercial fertilizer or soil conditioners distributed in this state by grade for each county during the preceding six months' period; and upon filing such statement shall pay the inspection fee at the rate stated in subsection 1 of this section. However, in lieu of the semiannual statement by grade for each county, as hereinabove provided for, the registrant, on individual packages of specialty fertilizer containing twenty- five pounds or less, shall file not later than the last day of July of each year, on forms furnished by the secretary, an annual statement setting forth the number of net tons of specialty fertilizer distributed in this state by grade during the preceding twelve-month period.
b. If the tonnage report is not filed or the payment of inspection fees, or both, is not made within ten days after the last day of January and July of each year as required in paragraph "a" of this subsection, a penalty amounting to ten percent of the amount due, if any, shall be assessed against the licensee. In any case, the penalty shall be no less than fifty dollars. The amount of fees due, if any, and penalty shall constitute a debt and become the basis of a judgment against the licensee.
3. If there is an unencumbered balance of funds from the amount of the fees deposited in the general fund pursuant to sections 200.9 and 201A.11 on June 30 of any fiscal year equal to or exceeding three hundred fifty thousand dollars, the secretary of agriculture shall reduce the per ton fee provided for in subsection 1 and the annual license fee established pursuant to section 201A.3 for the next fiscal year in such amount as will result in an ending estimated balance of such funds for June 30 of the next fiscal year of three hundred fifty thousand dollars.
4. In addition to the fees imposed under subsection 1, a groundwater protection fee shall be imposed upon nitrogen-based fertilizer. The fee shall be based upon the percentage of actual nitrogen contained in the product. An eighty-two percent nitrogen solution shall be taxed at a rate of seventy-five cents per ton. Other nitrogen-based product formulations shall be taxed on the percentage of actual nitrogen contained in the formulations with the eighty- two percent nitrogen solution serving as the base. The fee shall be paid by each licensee registering to sell fertilizer to the secretary of agriculture. The fees collected shall be deposited in the agriculture management account of the groundwater protection fund. The secretary of agriculture shall adopt rules for the payment, filing, and collection of groundwater protection fees from licensees in conjunction with the collection of registration and inspection fees. The secretary shall, by rule allow an exemption to the payment of this fee for fertilizers which contain trace amounts of nitrogen.
200.9 Fertilizer fees.
Fees collected for licenses and inspection fees under sections 200.4 and 200.8, with the exception of those fees collected for deposit in the agriculture management account of the groundwater protection fund, shall be deposited in the general fund of the state and shall be subject to the requirements of section 8.60. Moneys deposited under this section to the general fund shall be used only by the department for the purpose of inspection, sampling, analysis, preparation, and publishing of reports and other expenses necessary for administration of this chapter. The secretary may assign moneys to the Iowa agricultural experiment station for research, work projects, and investigations as needed for the specific purpose of improving the regulatory functions for enforcement of this chapter.
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