USA Statutes : nevada
Title : Title 49 - AGRICULTURE
Chapter : CHAPTER 555 - CONTROL OF INSECTS, PESTS AND NOXIOUS WEEDS
As used in this chapter, unless the
context requires otherwise:
1. “Department” means the State Department of Agriculture.
2. “Director” means the Director of the Department.
3. “Noxious weed” means any species of plant which is, or is
likely to be, detrimental or destructive and difficult to control or
eradicate.
4. “Vertebrate pest” means any animal of the subphylum Vertebrata,
except predatory animals, which is normally considered to be a pest,
including a gopher, ground squirrel, rat, mouse, starling, blackbird and
any other animal which the Director may declare to be a pest.
(Added to NRS by 1961, 512; A 1975, 555; 1993, 1709; 1997, 479;
1999, 3640 )
Within the
limits of any appropriation made by law, the Director may:
1. Investigate the prevalence of; and
2. Take the necessary action to control,
Ê vertebrate and invertebrate pests of plants and animals, plant
diseases, physiological plant disorders and noxious weeds for the
protection of the crops, livestock, public health, wildlife, water
quality and beneficial uses of land in the State of Nevada.
[1:53:1941; 1931 NCL § 373.01] + [1:108:1943] + [1:179:1945] +
[1:217:1947; 1943 NCL § 373.04]—(NRS A 1959, 245; 1961, 521; 1967, 316;
1975, 555; 1993, 1709; 1997, 479; 1999, 3640 )
The Director may cooperate, financially or otherwise, with any
federal agency or Department, any other state agency or department, any
county, city, public district or political subdivision of this State, any
public or private corporation, and any natural person or group of natural
persons in suppressing vertebrate pests injurious to the state
agricultural interests and in suppressing vertebrate pest vectors of
diseases transmissible and injurious to humans.
(Added to NRS by 1975, 555; A 1993, 1710; 1999, 3640 )
1. The position of Weed Control Analyst is hereby created in the
Department.
2. The Director shall appoint the Weed Control Analyst. The person
so appointed:
(a) Is in the classified service of the State;
(b) Must be a scientist who possesses a master’s degree in one of
the biological sciences from an accredited college or university; and
(c) Must be selected on the basis of his training, experience,
capability and interest in biological methods of controlling noxious
weeds.
(Added to NRS by 1999, 2849 )
The Weed Control
Analyst shall:
1. Research biological methods of controlling noxious weeds in
this State;
2. Document the effectiveness of those methods in controlling
noxious weeds;
3. Develop strategies for managing noxious weeds in this State; and
4. Perform such other duties as requested by the Director.
(Added to NRS by 1999, 2849 )
1. There is hereby created in the State General Fund the Account
for the Control of Weeds to be administered by the Director. Money in the
Account must be used for the abatement of weeds. The Director may adopt
regulations for the administration of the Account.
2. The Account is a continuing account without reversion to the
State General Fund. The money in the Account must be invested as the
money in other state funds or accounts is invested. The interest and
income earned on the money in the Account, after deducting any
appropriate charges, must be credited to the Account. All claims against
the Account must be paid as other claims against the State are paid.
3. The Director may accept gifts, grants and donations from any
source for deposit in the Account.
(Added to NRS by 2005, 2452 )
1. The Department shall, if necessary or if a complaint is made to
the Department, cause an inspection to be conducted of any premises,
land, means of conveyance or article of any person in this State, and if
found infested with any pest or plant disease that is injurious to:
(a) The public health or quality of any water in this State; or
(b) Any wildlife, beneficial use of land or agriculture in this
State,
Ê the Department may provide a written notice of its findings to the
owner or occupant of the premises, land, means of conveyance or article
and require him to control, treat or eradicate the pest or plant disease
in the manner and within the period specified in the notice.
2. A notice issued pursuant to the provisions of subsection 1:
(a) May be served upon the owner or occupant by an officer or
employee of the Department; and
(b) Must be served in writing, by certified mail or personally,
with receipt given therefor.
[Part 1:56:1917; 1919 RL p. 2628; NCL § 449]—(NRS A 1961, 522;
1993, 1710; 1999, 3640 ; 2001, 699 ; 2003, 533 )
1. Any premises found to be infested with any pest or plant
disease is hereby adjudged and declared to be a public nuisance. If such
a nuisance exists at any place within the jurisdiction of the Department
and the owner or occupant of the premises, after notification, refuses or
neglects to abate the nuisance within the period specified, the
Department shall cause the nuisance to be abated at once by eradicating
or controlling pests or plant diseases in a manner to be determined by
the Department.
2. The expense thereof must be paid from any money made available
to the Department by direct legislative appropriation or otherwise.
[Part 1:56:1917; 1919 RL p. 2628; NCL § 449]—(NRS A 1961, 522;
1993, 1710; 1999, 3641 ; 2003, 534 )
1. All sums paid by the Department constitute a lien on the
property and premises from which the nuisance has been removed or abated
pursuant to NRS 555.100 and 555.110
, and may be recovered by an action
against that property and premises.
2. A notice of lien must be filed and recorded in the office of
the county recorder of the county in which the property and premises are
situated within 30 days after the right to liens has accrued.
3. An action to foreclose a lien may be commenced at any time
within 1 year after the filing and recording of the notice of lien, which
action must be brought in the proper court by the district attorney of
the county in the name and for the benefit of the Department.
4. If the property is sold, enough of the proceeds must be paid to
the Department to satisfy the lien and costs, and the overplus, if any,
must be paid to the owner of the property if he is known, and if not,
into the Court for his use when ascertained. All sales under the
provisions of this section and NRS 555.100 and 555.110
must be made in the same manner and upon the same notice as sales of real
property under execution from a Justice Court.
[Part 1:56:1917; 1919 RL p. 2628; NCL § 449]—(NRS A 1961, 523;
1993, 1710; 1999, 3641 )
1. If it appears that an area has or is likely to become infested
with a pest which cannot be practically eradicated or controlled except
by the means provided in this section, the Department shall hold a public
hearing to determine the necessity of declaring a time during which or an
area in which plants capable of acting as hosts for the pest may not be
planted, grown, cultivated, maintained or allowed to exist.
2. Notice of the hearing must be given to all growers of the host
plants within the area and must specify:
(a) The time and place of the hearing.
(b) The host plant.
(c) The pest.
(d) The purpose of the hearing.
3. If, after the hearing, the Department determines that the pest
cannot otherwise be practically eradicated or controlled, the Department
shall issue an order prescribing a time during which or an area in which
the host plants may not be planted, grown, cultivated, maintained or
allowed to exist, and requiring owners or occupiers of property upon
which the host plants exist to eradicate the plants.
4. If the owner or occupant neglects or refuses to eradicate the
plants, the Department may do so in the manner prescribed by NRS 555.110
.
5. Any person violating such an order is guilty of a misdemeanor.
(Added to NRS by 1967, 418; A 1993, 1711; 1999, 3641 )
INSPECTION AND DESTRUCTION OF NOXIOUS WEEDS
The State Quarantine
Officer may declare by regulation the weeds of the state that are noxious
weeds, but a weed must not be designated as noxious which is already
introduced and established in the State to such an extent as to make its
control or eradication impracticable in the judgment of the State
Quarantine Officer.
[Part 1:174:1929; NCL § 414]—(NRS A 1997, 479)
1. The State Quarantine Officer shall carry out and enforce the
provisions of NRS 555.130 to 555.220
, inclusive.
2. To secure information better to carry out the provisions of NRS
555.130 to 555.220 , inclusive, the State Quarantine Officer may
conduct reasonably limited trials of various methods of controlling or
eradicating noxious or potentially noxious weeds under practical Nevada
conditions.
3. The State Quarantine Officer may provide supervision and
technical advice in connection with any project approved by him for the
control or eradication of any noxious weed or weeds in this State.
4. All funds appropriated for, or received incident to, the
control or eradication of any noxious weeds must be available for
carrying out the provisions of NRS 555.130 to 555.220 ,
inclusive.
[2:174:1929; A 1941, 377; 1931 NCL § 415]—(NRS A 1961, 523; 1997,
479)
Every railroad, canal, ditch or water company, and every person
owning, controlling or occupying lands in this State, and every county,
incorporated city or district having the supervision and control over
streets, alleys, lanes, rights-of-way, or other lands, shall cut, destroy
or eradicate all weeds declared and designated as noxious as provided in
NRS 555.130 , before such weeds
propagate and spread, and whenever required by the State Quarantine
Officer.
[Part 1:174:1929; NCL § 414]—(NRS A 1961, 524; 1987, 1728; 1997,
480)
1. The State Quarantine Officer shall make or cause to be made a
careful examination and investigation of the spread, development and
growth of noxious weeds in this State. Upon the discovery of those weeds,
he shall ascertain the name of the owner or occupant of the land and the
description of the land where the weeds are found. The State Quarantine
Officer may serve notice in writing upon the owner or occupant of the
land to cut, eradicate or destroy the weeds within such time and in such
manner as designated and described in the notice. One such notice shall
be deemed sufficient for the entire season of weed growth during that
year.
2. Notices may be served upon the owner or occupant by an officer
or employee of the Department, and must be served in writing, personally
or by certified mail, with receipt given therefor.
[3:174:1929; NCL § 416]—(NRS A 1961, 524; 1993, 1711; 1997, 480;
1999, 3642 )
1. If any owner or occupant of the lands described in the notice
served, as provided in NRS 555.160 ,
shall fail, neglect or refuse to cut, destroy or eradicate the weeds
designated, upon the land described, in accordance with the requirements
of the notice, the State Quarantine Officer may notify the board of
county commissioners of the county or counties in which the land is
located of such failure, neglect or refusal.
2. Upon notice as provided in subsection 1, the board of county
commissioners concerned shall proceed to have cut, destroyed or
eradicated the weeds in question in accordance with the requirements of
the notice served upon the owner or occupant of the land in question,
paying for such cutting, destruction or eradication out of county funds.
3. Upon the completion of such work of cutting, destruction or
eradication of such weeds, the board of county commissioners shall
prepare in triplicate itemized statements of all expenses incurred in the
cutting, destruction or eradication of the weeds involved, and shall
deliver the three copies of the statements to the county treasurer within
10 days of the date of the completion of the work involved.
[4:174:1929; NCL § 417]—(NRS A 1961, 524)
1. Upon receipt of the itemized statements of the cost of cutting,
destroying or eradication of such weeds, the county treasurer shall
forthwith mail one copy to the owner or occupant of the land on which the
weeds were cut, destroyed or eradicated, together with a statement that
objections may be made to the whole or any part of the statement so filed
to the board of county commissioners within 30 days. A hearing may be had
upon any objections made.
2. If any objections to any statement are filed with the board of
county commissioners, the board shall set a date for a hearing, giving
due notice thereof, and upon the hearing fix and determine the actual
cost of cutting, destroying or eradicating the weeds and report its
findings to the county treasurer.
3. If no objections to the items of the accounts so filed are made
within 30 days of the date of mailing the itemized statement, the county
treasurer shall enter the amount of such statement upon his tax roll in a
column prepared for that purpose; and within 10 days from the date of the
action of the board of county commissioners upon objections filed, the
county treasurer shall enter the amount found by the board of county
commissioners as the actual cost of cutting, destroying or eradicating
the weeds in the prepared column upon the tax roll.
4. If current tax notices have been mailed, the costs may be
carried over on the rolls to the year following. The costs incurred shall
be a lien upon the land from which the weeds were cut, destroyed or
eradicated, and shall be collected as provided by law for the collection
of other liens.
[5:174:1929; NCL § 418]—(NRS A 1961, 525)
Any expense
incurred by any county in the cutting, destroying or eradicating of
noxious weeds from any street, lane, alley or other property owned or
controlled by an incorporated city in that city, in accordance with the
provisions of NRS 555.170 , must be
repaid to the county from the general fund of the incorporated city, upon
presentation to the governing body of the incorporated city of an
itemized statement of the expense so incurred.
[6:174:1929; NCL § 419]—(NRS A 1987, 1728; 1997, 480)
1. Whenever a noxious weed is found growing upon the public domain
or any other lands in this State owned by the Federal Government, the
State Quarantine Officer may serve notice, as provided in NRS 555.160
, upon the person within the county or
this State who is in charge of the activities of the federal agency
having control or jurisdiction of the land.
2. If the agency described in the notice fails or refuses to
comply with the notice, the State Quarantine Officer may provide for the
cutting, destruction or eradication of the weeds in any manner permitted
by federal law. The State Quarantine Officer or the political subdivision
shall seek reimbursement from the Federal Government for any expense
incurred by the State or the political subdivision pursuant to this
section.
[7:174:1929; NCL § 420]—(NRS A 1961, 525; 1979, 292; 1997, 480)
Any person violating any of the provisions
of NRS 555.130 to 555.200 , inclusive, or failing, refusing or neglecting
to perform or observe any conditions or regulations prescribed by the
State Quarantine Officer, in accordance with the provisions of NRS
555.130 to 555.200 , inclusive, is guilty of a misdemeanor.
[Part 9:174:1929; NCL § 422]—(NRS A 1969, 518)
WEED CONTROL DISTRICTS
The Legislature declares
that it is primarily the responsibility of each owner or occupier of land
in this State to control weeds on his own land, but finds that in certain
areas this responsibility can best be discharged through control by
organized districts.
(Added to NRS by 1969, 516)
1. The board of county commissioners of any county may, in
accordance with chapter 308 of NRS, create
one or more weed control districts in that portion of the county which
lies outside any incorporated city. Creation of such a district may be
initiated by the board of county commissioners or by a petition which:
(a) Designates the area to be included in the weed control
district, either as the entire unincorporated area of the county or by
sections or parts of sections with appropriate township and range
references; and
(b) Is signed by an owner of land within the proposed weed control
district.
2. Lands proposed for inclusion in a weed control district need
not be contiguous.
3. Before creating a weed control district, the board of county
commissioners shall:
(a) Hold at least one public hearing pursuant to NRS 308.070 . At this hearing, the board of county
commissioners shall entertain applications for the exclusion of lands,
designated by sections or parts of sections as prescribed in subsection
1, from the proposed district, if any such application is made. The board
of county commissioners shall exclude any such lands as to which it is
shown to their satisfaction that any weeds which exist on that land do
not render substantially more difficult the control of weeds on other
lands in the proposed district.
(b) Provide for the hearing of protests against the establishment
of the district in the manner set forth in NRS 318.065 and 318.070 .
4. The board of trustees of a general improvement district may, in
accordance with NRS 318.077 , add to the
basic powers of the district the control and eradication of noxious weeds.
(Added to NRS by 1969, 516; A 1981, 1641; 1987, 1728; 1997, 481)
1. The board of county commissioners of any county in which a weed
control district has been created shall appoint a board of directors of
the district composed of three or five persons who:
(a) Are landowners in the district, whether or not they signed the
petition for its creation. For the purpose of this paragraph, if any
corporation or partnership owns land in the district, a partner or a
director, officer or beneficial owner of 10 percent or more of the stock
of the corporation shall be deemed a landowner.
(b) Fairly represent the agricultural economy of the district.
2. If the district includes lands situated in more than one
county, the board of county commissioners shall appoint at least one
member of the board of directors from each county in which one-third or
more of the lands are situated.
3. The initial appointments to the board of directors shall be for
terms of 1, 2 and 3 years respectively. Each subsequent appointment shall
be for a term of 3 years. Any vacancy shall be filled by appointment for
the unexpired term.
4. In addition to other causes provided by law, a vacancy is
created on the board if any director:
(a) Ceases to be a landowner in the district.
(b) Is absent, unless excused, from three meetings of the board.
5. If, as a result of a change in the boundaries of the district,
a county becomes entitled to a new member of the board of directors
pursuant to subsection 2, the board of county commissioners shall make
the new appointment upon the first expiration of the term of a current
member thereafter.
(Added to NRS by 1969, 517; A 1981, 1642; 2005, 935 )
The board of directors of
a weed control district may:
1. With the approval of the State Quarantine Officer, appoint a
weed control officer.
2. Receive and expend any moneys provided by assessment, voluntary
contribution or otherwise for the control of weeds in the district.
3. Exercise any other power necessary or proper to effectuate the
purposes for which the district exists.
4. Elect a chairman from among its members, and secretary who may
or may not be a member.
(Added to NRS by 1969, 517)
1. The board of directors of a weed control district or the board
of county commissioners of any county having lands situated in a weed
control district or proposed for inclusion in such a district may request
that the State Board of Agriculture review any action taken by the board
of county commissioners of a county, or the board of directors of the
district, in connection with the creation of the district or a change in
the boundaries of the district.
2. Upon receiving such a request the State Board of Agriculture
shall, after notice and opportunity for a hearing, affirm or reverse the
action. The decision of the State Board of Agriculture is a final
decision for purposes of judicial review.
3. This section does not limit the right of any landowner to seek
judicial review of actions taken by a board of directors or a board of
county commissioners in connection with the creation of a district or a
change in the boundaries of a district.
(Added to NRS by 1981, 1641)
1. The board of directors shall prepare regulations for the weed
control district, which shall include but are not limited to:
(a) The species of weeds to be controlled in the district.
(b) The means of direct control by spray, cultivation or otherwise.
(c) The means of indirect control, including the movement from, to
and within the district of agricultural machinery, agricultural products,
livestock and other vectors capable of spreading the weeds designated for
control.
2. One copy of the proposed regulations must be delivered to the
State Quarantine Officer, and at least two copies made available for
public inspection in the office of the district secretary or the county
clerk, as the board may by resolution prescribe.
3. The State Quarantine Officer shall then hold a public hearing
in the county in which is located the larger or largest proportion of the
area of the district, to consider the proposed regulations, of which he
shall give notice by publication, in a newspaper of general circulation
in each county having lands situated in the district, of at least one
notice published not less than 10 days before the hearing. At this
hearing, the State Quarantine Officer shall entertain written suggestions
for the modification of the regulations.
4. After the hearing, and any additional time which the State
Quarantine Officer may allow for the submission of additional facts or
proposals, he shall approve, modify or disapprove the proposed
regulations. If the board of directors of the district does not concur in
the action of the State Quarantine Officer, the State Board of
Agriculture shall establish the regulations.
(Added to NRS by 1969, 517; A 1981, 1643)
If any landowner fails to
carry out a plan of weed control for his land in compliance with the
regulations of the district, the weed control officer may enter upon the
land affected, perform any work necessary to carry out the plan, and
charge such work against the landowner. Any such charge, until paid, is a
lien against the land affected coequal with a lien for unpaid general
taxes, and may be enforced in the same manner.
[2.5:174:1929; added 1949, 560; 1943 NCL § 415.01]—(NRS A 1969, 518)
1. Upon the preparation and approval of a budget in the manner
required by the Local Government Budget and Finance Act, the board of
county commissioners of each county having lands situated in the district
shall, by resolution, levy an assessment upon all real property in the
county which is in the weed control district.
2. Every assessment so levied is a lien against the property
assessed.
3. Amounts collected in counties other than the county having the
larger or largest proportion of the area of the district must be paid
over to the board of county commissioners of that county for the use of
the district.
4. The county commissioners of that county may obtain medium-term
obligations pursuant to NRS 350.087 to
350.095 , inclusive, of an amount of
money not to exceed the total amount of the assessment, to pay the
expenses of controlling the weeds in the weed control district. The loans
may be made only after the assessments are levied.
(Added to NRS by 1959, 391; A 1969, 518; 1981, 1643; 1995, 1829;
1999, 278 ; 2001, 1827 , 2336 ; 2003, 162 )
1. The boundaries of a weed control district may be changed in the
manner prescribed in this section or in subsection 3 of NRS 308.080
, but the change of boundaries of the
district does not:
(a) Impair or affect its organization or its rights in or to
property, or any of its rights or privileges whatsoever.
(b) Affect or impair or discharge any contract, obligation, lien or
charge for or upon which it or the owners of property in the district
might be liable or chargeable had the change of boundaries not been made.
2. The owners of lands may file with the board of directors a
petition in writing praying that those lands be included in or excluded
from the district. The petition must describe the tracts or body of land
owned by the petitioners, and the petition shall be deemed to give the
consent of the petitioners to the inclusion in or the exclusion from the
district of the lands described in the petition. The petition must be
acknowledged in the same manner that conveyances of land are required to
be acknowledged.
3. The board of directors of the district may, on its own motion
or upon petition of any person other than the owner, initiate proceedings
for the inclusion of land in the district. A petition filed with the
board of directors for this purpose must be in writing and must describe
the tracts or body of land proposed to be included, allege that the lands
described contain certain weeds that are harmful to owners of land in the
district and request that the lands be included in the district.
4. Areas proposed for inclusion in a weed control district need
not be located in the same county as other portions of the district and
need not be contiguous to other portions of the district.
5. The secretary of the board shall give notice of filing of the
petition, or initiation of proceedings by the board, to the owner or
owners of the lands described in the petition or motion of the board and
shall cause notice to be published in a newspaper of general circulation
in the county in which the lands described are situated. The notices must
require all persons interested to appear at the office of the board at
the time specified in the notice and show cause in writing why the
request should not be granted.
6. The board shall at the time specified in the notice, or at the
time or times to which the hearing may be adjourned, proceed to hear the
request and all written objections presented to show cause why the
request should not be granted. The failure of any person interested to
show cause in writing must be considered an approval by that person of
the inclusion in or the exclusion from the district of the lands as
requested.
7. Upon conclusion of the hearing the board by resolution shall
approve the request, subject to ratification by the board of county
commissioners of the county in which the lands are situated if the
request is for the inclusion of lands, or deny the request. In the case
of proceedings initiated pursuant to subsection 3, the board may approve
the inclusion in the district of the described lands only if it
determines that the lands contain weeds that are harmful to owners of
land in the district. The board may defer adoption of the resolution to a
special meeting or its first regular meeting after conclusion of the
hearing, whichever is sooner.
8. A copy of the resolution, adopted pursuant to subsection 7,
must be filed with the board of county commissioners of each county in
which all or a part of the district is located.
9. No action of the board of directors approving the inclusion of
lands within the district becomes effective unless it is ratified by the
board of county commissioners of the county in which the lands are
situated. The board of county commissioners may ratify the action at any
time after the filing of the resolution, but if the board has neither
ratified the action nor denied ratification within 90 days after the date
the resolution was filed pursuant to subsection 8, the action of the
board of directors shall be deemed ratified.
(Added to NRS by 1973, 1076; A 1981, 1643; 1997, 482)
Any person violating any of the provisions
of NRS 555.202 to 555.210 , inclusive, or failing, refusing or neglecting
to perform or observe any conditions or regulations prescribed by the
State Quarantine Officer, in accordance with the provisions of NRS
555.202 to 555.210 , inclusive, is guilty of a misdemeanor.
[Part 9:174:1929; NCL § 422]—(NRS A 1969, 518)
REGULATION OF NURSERIES AND NURSERY STOCK
As used in NRS 555.235 to 555.249 ,
inclusive, unless the context otherwise requires, the words and terms
defined in NRS 555.23515 to 555.2358
, inclusive, have the meanings ascribed
to them in those sections.
(Added to NRS by 1959, 563; A 1961, 526; 1973, 284; 1975, 556;
1985, 525; 1993, 1711; 1999, 708 , 3642 , 3740 ; 2003, 534 )
“Broker” means any person who
acts as an agent for another person in negotiating the purchase or sale
of nursery stock but who does not handle either the nursery stock which
is involved in the purchase or sale, or the proceeds of the sale, if
applicable.
(Added to NRS by 2003, 532 )
“Dangerously injurious plant pest” means a plant pest that constitutes a
significant threat to the public or to the agricultural, forestry or
horticultural industry of this State.
(Added to NRS by 2003, 532 )
“Dealer of
nursery stock” means a person who produces, holds, distributes, collects
or sells nursery stock, including, without limitation, a retail business,
wholesale grower, landscape contractor, landscape maintenance business,
broker and peddler.
(Added to NRS by 2003, 532 )
“Hold” means to have and maintain
possession of nursery stock at a temporary or permanent location.
(Added to NRS by 2003, 532 )
“Infested” means contaminated
with a pest or so exposed to a pest that contamination can reasonably be
expected to exist.
(Added to NRS by 2003, 532 )
“Inspecting officer”
means a person authorized by the Department to inspect nursery stock.
(Added to NRS by 2003, 532 )
“Inspection
certificate” means a document which is issued by an inspecting officer or
an appropriate state officer who is authorized to inspect nursery stock
and which affirms, declares or verifies that the nursery stock, or the
nursery or premises from which the nursery stock originated, has been
inspected and found to be free from plant pests and symptoms of diseases.
(Added to NRS by 2003, 532 )
“License” means a license issued
pursuant to NRS 555.235 to 555.249
, inclusive, to a licensee to conduct
business as a dealer of nursery stock.
(Added to NRS by 2003, 533 )
“Licensee” means a person
licensed under the provisions of NRS 555.235 to 555.249 ,
inclusive.
(Added to NRS by 2003, 533 )
“Nursery” means any location:
1. Where nursery stock is grown, propagated, held, stored or sold;
or
2. From which nursery stock is distributed directly to a customer.
(Added to NRS by 2003, 533 )
“Nursery stock” means a
plant for planting, propagation or ornamentation, and includes, without
limitation, parts of plants, trees, shrubs, vines, vegetables, bulbs,
stolons, tubers, corms, pips, rhizomes, scions, buds and grafts.
(Added to NRS by 2003, 533 )
“Peddler” means any person who
sells, solicits or offers for sale nursery stock to a customer but who
does not have a nursery located in this State. The term does not include
nurserymen licensed by another state who wholesale nursery stock to
retail nurserymen located in this State or nurserymen who sell nursery
stock directly to the public by catalog.
(Added to NRS by 2003, 533 )
“Pest” means any form of animal or
vegetable life detrimental to the crops, horticulture, livestock, public
health, wildlife, quality of water and beneficial uses of land in this
State, including, without limitation, any insect, snail, nematode,
fungus, virus, bacterium, microorganism, mycoplasmal organism, weed,
parasitic plant or any other plant that is normally considered to be a
pest of cultivated plants, uncultivated plants, agricultural commodities,
horticultural products or nursery stock, or that the Director declares to
be a pest.
(Added to NRS by 2003, 533 )
“Phytosanitary
certificate” means a certificate from an authorized state plant
regulatory officer that certifies, affirms, declares or verifies that an
article, nursery stock, plant product, shipment or other officially
regulated item meets federal or state quarantine requirements, as
appropriate, including, without limitation, that the item is free of
dangerously injurious pests or quarantine pests, or that the item has
been treated in the manner set forth in the rules and regulations
prescribed by the applicable quarantine. The term includes a federal
phytosanitary certificate, a state phytosanitary certificate and a
certificate of quarantine compliance.
(Added to NRS by 2003, 533 )
“Quarantine pest” means
a pest listed by the State Quarantine Officer in a quarantine issued
pursuant to chapter 554 of NRS.
(Added to NRS by 2003, 533 )
“Sell” means exchange, offer for
sale, expose for sale, have in possession for sale, arrange the sale of,
solicit for sale, display or advertise for sale, consign, accept on
consignment, or broker the purchase or sale.
(Added to NRS by 2003, 533 )
1. Except as otherwise provided in this section, a person who
engages in the commercial production, holding, distribution, collection
or selling of nursery stock must obtain a license from the Director,
except:
(a) Retail florists or other persons who sell potted, ornamental
plants intended for indoor decorative purposes.
(b) A person not engaged in the nursery or landscaping business who
raises nursery stock as a hobby in this State from which he makes
occasional sales, if the person does not advertise or solicit for the
sale of that nursery stock.
(c) Persons engaged in agriculture and field-growing vegetable
plants intended for sale for use in agricultural production.
(d) At the discretion of the Director, persons selling vegetable
bulbs or flower bulbs, including, without limitation, onion sets, tulip
bulbs and similar bulbs.
(e) A business licensed by another state that sells nursery stock
only to:
(1) A licensed dealer of nursery stock in this State; or
(2) The public exclusively by catalog.
(f) A garden club or charitable nonprofit association conducting
sales of nursery stock, provided that the garden club or nonprofit
association has applied for and received a permit from the Director to
conduct such sales. The Department shall not charge a fee for such a
permit.
(g) A state or local governmental entity, including a conservation
district. The Department may inspect any plant materials held,
distributed, collected or sold by such an entity.
2. The Director may waive the requirements relating to licensing
set forth in NRS 555.235 to 555.249
, inclusive, for a person otherwise
required to obtain a license pursuant to this section if the person only
has occasional sales of nursery stock to the ultimate customer. To obtain
a waiver pursuant to this subsection, the person must:
(a) Submit to the Department a completed application for a license
to engage in the business of a dealer of nursery stock that includes
sufficient information to demonstrate that the person qualifies for a
waiver pursuant to this subsection; and
(b) Submit to the Director a notarized affidavit on a form provided
by the Department attesting that all information furnished in the
completed application is true.
Ê A completed application submitted to the Department pursuant to this
section need not be accompanied by the fee required by NRS 555.238 . A waiver issued pursuant to this subsection
may be revoked at any time and must be renewed annually.
3. Persons, state agencies or political subdivisions exempt from
the licensing requirements:
(a) Shall conduct their businesses in accordance with pest
regulations and grades and standards for nursery stock as established by
the Director.
(b) Shall register annually, on or before July 1, with the
Department, the location, size and type of nursery stock being sold or
produced.
4. As used in this section, “occasional sales” means sales of
nursery stock in a gross annual amount that is less than $1,000.
(Added to NRS by 1959, 564; A 1961, 527; 1973, 283; 1993, 1712;
1999, 709 , 3643 , 3742 ; 2003, 534 )
1. Any person applying for a license must do so on the application
form and in the manner prescribed by the Director.
2. Except as otherwise provided in NRS 555.236 , an application for a license must be
accompanied by the fee established pursuant to NRS 555.238 and by evidence of the good faith and
character of the applicant.
3. A license is not transferable. If a licensee changes its
business name or the ownership of the licensee changes, the licensee must
obtain a new license. A licensee shall not engage in the business of a
dealer of nursery stock until a new license is issued.
4. A licensee shall prominently display his license at his
business location.
(Added to NRS by 1959, 564; A 1961, 527; 1993, 1713; 1999, 3643
; 2003, 536 )
The State Board
of Agriculture may establish by regulation a schedule of annual fees for
licenses.
(Added to NRS by 1959, 564; A 1961, 527; 1983, 1101; 1999, 710
, 3598 ; 2003, 536 )
1. Except as otherwise provided in this section and NRS 555.237
, a license expires on June 30 of each
year. A licensee must apply for the renewal of his nursery license
annually on or before July 1. It is unlawful to conduct business without
a current license.
2. The fee for the renewal of a license is ascertained in
accordance with the schedule of fees established pursuant to NRS 555.238
.
3. Any license may be renewed after July 1 upon payment of a
penalty fee established by regulation of the State Board of Agriculture.
Such a penalty fee must not exceed $200.
(Added to NRS by 1959, 565; A 1983, 1101; 2003, 536 )
The Director may refuse to issue or
renew, or may suspend or revoke, a license for violation of any provision
of NRS 555.235 to 555.249 , inclusive, or any rule or regulation adopted
under NRS 555.243 , but no license may
be refused, suspended or revoked pursuant to this section until the
applicant or licensee has been given the opportunity to appear at a
hearing. Offenders must be given 15 days’ notice in writing. The notice
must indicate the offense and the place of hearing.
(Added to NRS by 1959, 565; A 1961, 527; 1993, 1713; 1999, 3644
; 2003, 537 )
The Director
may order any nursery stock to be held for terminal inspection.
(Added to NRS by 1959, 565; A 1961, 528; 1993, 1713; 1999, 3644
)
The Director may adopt such
regulations as he may deem necessary to:
1. Carry out the intent of NRS 555.235 to 555.249 ,
inclusive.
2. Establish sanitary standards relating to pest conditions of
nurseries.
3. Establish mandatory and permissive grades for nursery stock.
When mandatory grades are established for nursery stock, all nursery
stock sold or offered for sale must be graded and labeled in accordance
with those standards.
4. Establish standards relating to conditions that interfere with
the proper development of nursery stock after planting.
(Added to NRS by 1959, 565; A 1961, 528; 1981, 89; 1993, 1713;
1999, 3644 )
1. The Director or any inspecting officer may enter any business
during regular business hours to ascertain compliance with NRS 555.235
to 555.249 , inclusive, and any regulations adopted
pursuant thereto.
2. Invoices and applicable inspection certificates, quarantine
certificates and phytosanitary certificates must be made available to the
Director or inspecting officer upon request.
(Added to NRS by 1959, 565; A 1961, 528; 1993, 1713; 1999, 3644
; 2003, 537 )
1. Any person may request the Director to certify to pest
conditions, quality, viability or grade of nursery stock intended for
shipment to comply with the requirements for plant pests established by
any state, territory or foreign country or by contract.
2. The Director may establish a schedule of reasonable fees for
those requests for certification.
(Added to NRS by 1959, 565; A 1961, 528; 1973, 285; 1993, 1714;
1999, 3644 )
1. Except as otherwise provided in this section, nursery stock
that is shipped from other states to points within this State and all
nursery stock shipped intrastate must be accompanied by an inspection
certificate which:
(a) Is dated within a reasonable time before shipment;
(b) Is issued by an authorized state plant regulatory officer; and
(c) Affirms, declares or verifies that the nursery stock, nursery
or premises from which the nursery stock originated has been inspected
and found free of dangerously injurious plant pests, pests and disease
symptoms.
2. Except as otherwise provided in this section, nursery stock
that is shipped from other states to points within this State, and
nursery stock that is shipped intrastate, for which a quarantine has been
issued pursuant to chapter 554 of NRS or to
which a federal quarantine applies, must be accompanied by a
phytosanitary certificate.
3. Except as otherwise provided in this section, a corporation,
company or natural person engaged in the transportation of freight or
express shall not make delivery of any nursery stock in this State
without the inspection certificate or phytosanitary certificate, as
appropriate, required by subsections 1 and 2.
4. A shipment of nursery stock which is in the possession of an
in-state dealer of nursery stock licensed with the Department and which
is being delivered to an in-state customer need not be accompanied by the
inspection certificate or phytosanitary certificate, as appropriate,
required by subsections 1 and 2, except that the dealer of nursery stock
must provide such documents to the Department upon request.
(Added to NRS by 1959, 566; A 1961, 528; 1999, 710 ; 2003, 537 )
1. All nursery stock shipped from other states to points within
this State and all nursery stock shipped intrastate must bear a label on
or attached to:
(a) The outside of the container in which the nursery stock was
packed for shipment that indicates the name and address of the consignee
and consignor and contains a statement describing plainly and legibly the
correct botanical or commonly accepted name, or both, for each kind of
nursery stock in the container.
(b) Each individual piece of one kind and variety of nursery stock
or subcontainer or lot containing one kind and variety of nursery stock
in each container, that contains a legible statement of the correct
botanical or commonly accepted name, or both, of the nursery stock.
2. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 4 of NRS 555.246
, bulk shipments of nursery stock not
packed in containers must:
(a) Be accompanied by the appropriate certificate required pursuant
to NRS 555.246 .
(b) Be accompanied by a manifest which must:
(1) State the name and address of the consignor and
consignee; and
(2) List and describe plainly and legibly the correct
botanical or commonly accepted name, or both, for each kind of nursery
stock in the bulk shipment.
(c) Be labeled in accordance with the requirements of subsection 1.
(Added to NRS by 1959, 566; A 1999, 711 ; 2003, 538 )
Any nursery stock brought into this State
which the Director or inspecting officer finds or has reasonable cause to
believe to be infested or infected with any pest must be destroyed
immediately, at the expense of the owner or bailee, under the supervision
of the Director or the inspecting officer, unless:
1. The nature of the pest is such that no detriment can be caused
to the public, the nursery, agricultural, forestry or horticultural
industry in this State or the general environmental quality of this State
by shipping the nursery stock out of this State. In that case, the
Director or inspecting officer:
(a) May affix a warning tag or notice to the nursery stock.
(b) Shall notify the owner or bailee to ship the nursery stock out
of this State within 48 hours.
(c) Shall keep the nursery stock under his control at the expense
of the owner or bailee.
(d) Shall destroy the nursery stock at the expiration of 48 hours
if the owner or bailee has not shipped the nursery stock out of this
State.
2. The Director determines that the pest can be exterminated by a
treatment prescribed by the Director with the result that no detriment
will be caused to the public, the nursery, agricultural, forestry or
horticultural industry in this State or the general environmental quality
of this State. In that case, nursery stock will be released if the
nursery stock is:
(a) Treated in the manner prescribed by the Director;
(b) Treated within the time specified by the Director or inspecting
officer;
(c) Treated under the supervision of the inspecting officer; and
(d) Found to be free from pests.
(Added to NRS by 1959, 566; A 1961, 529; 1993, 1714; 1999, 712
, 3644 , 3742 )
1. The Director shall adopt regulations specifying a schedule of
administrative fines which may be imposed, upon notice and a hearing, for
each violation of the provisions of NRS 555.235 to 555.249 ,
inclusive, or the regulations adopted pursuant thereto. The maximum fine
that the Director may impose for each violation may not exceed:
(a) For the first violation, $250;
(b) For the second violation, $500; and
(c) For each subsequent violation, $1,000.
Ê All fines collected by the Director pursuant to this section must be
deposited with the State Treasurer for credit to the State General Fund.
2. The Director may:
(a) In addition to imposing an administrative fine pursuant to this
section, issue an order requiring a violator to take appropriate action
to correct the violation. The violator shall pay the cost of any
appropriate action so ordered.
(b) Request the district attorney of the appropriate county to
investigate or file a criminal complaint against any person who the
Director suspects may have committed flagrant or repeated violations of
any provision of NRS 555.235 to 555.249
, inclusive.
(Added to NRS by 1997, 82; A 1999, 3645 ; 2003, 538 )
Any person violating the provisions of NRS
555.235 to 555.249 , inclusive, or the regulations adopted
pursuant thereto is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished by
imprisonment in the county jail for not more than 6 months, or by a fine
of not more than $1,000, or by both fine and imprisonment. The
prosecuting attorney and the Department may recover the costs of the
proceeding, including investigative costs and attorney’s fees, against a
person convicted of a misdemeanor pursuant to this section.
(Added to NRS by 1959, 567; A 1997, 83; 1999, 3645 ; 2003, 539 )
CUSTOM APPLICATION OF PESTICIDES
As used in NRS 555.2605 to 555.460 ,
inclusive, unless the context otherwise requires, the words and terms
defined in NRS 555.261 to 555.2695
, inclusive, have the meanings ascribed
to them in those sections.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1252; A 1975, 595; 1997, 2092; 1999, 520
, 542 ; 2003, 539 )
“Agent” means any person who
solicits business in behalf of a custom pest control licensee.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1252; A 1975, 358)
“Aircraft” means any contrivance
now known or hereafter invented, used or designed for navigation of, or
flight in, the air.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1252)
“Certificate” means a
certificate of competency issued by the Director to a commercial
applicator or private applicator authorizing that person to make
application of or to supervise the application of a restricted-use
pesticide.
(Added to NRS by 1975, 593; A 1993, 1714; 1999, 3645 )
“Certified
applicator” means any person who is certified by the Director as
qualified to use or to supervise the use of any restricted-use pesticide.
(Added to NRS by 1975, 593; A 1977, 311; 1993, 1714; 1999, 3646
)
“Commercial
applicator” means a certified applicator who applies or supervises the
application of any restricted-use pesticide and does not qualify as a
private applicator under NRS 555.2681 .
(Added to NRS by 1975, 593)
“Defoliant” means any substance
or mixture of substances intended to cause the leaves or foliage to drop
from a plant with or without causing abscission.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1252)
“Desiccant” means any substance
or mixture of substances intended to accelerate the drying of plant
tissues artificially.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1252)
“Environment” includes the
water, air, land and all plants and man and other animals living therein
and the interrelationships which exist among these.
(Added to NRS by 1975, 593)
“Fungi” means all
non-chlorophyll-bearing thallophytes (that is, all
non-chlorophyll-bearing plants of a lower order than mosses and
liverworts) as, for example, rusts, smuts, mildews, molds, yeasts and
bacteria, except those on or in living man or other animals.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1252)
“Ground equipment” means
any machine or device (other than aircraft) for use on land or water,
designed for, or adaptable to, use in applying pesticides as sprays,
dusts, aerosols or fogs, or in other forms.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1252)
“Insect” means any of the numerous
small invertebrate animals generally having the body more or less
obviously segmented, for the most part belonging to the class insecta,
comprising six-legged, usually winged forms, as for example beetles,
bugs, wasps and flies, and to other allied classes of arthropods whose
members are wingless and usually have more than six legs, as for example
spiders, mites, ticks, centipedes and wood lice.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1252)
“Nematode” means invertebrate
animals of the phylum nemathelminthes and class nematoda, that is,
unsegmented round worms with elongated, fusiform, or sac-like bodies
covered with cuticle, and inhabiting soil, water, plants or plant parts,
also called nemas or eelworms.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1252)
“Person” includes a government, a
governmental agency and a political subdivision of a government.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1253; A 1985, 526)
“Pest” includes, but is not limited
to, any insect, fungus, rodent, nematode, snail, slug and weed and any
form of plant or animal life or virus, except any virus on or in a living
human or other animal, which is normally considered to be a pest or which
the Director declares to be a pest.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1253; A 1993, 1714; 1999, 3646 )
“Pest control” means the
business of engaging in, advertising or soliciting for:
1. The use for hire of pesticides or mechanical devices for the
extermination, control or prevention of infestations of pests.
2. The inspection for hire of households or other structures and
the submission of reports of inspection, estimates or bids, written or
oral, for the inspection, extermination, control or prevention of
wood-destroying pests.
(Added to NRS by 1973, 1506; A 1981, 610)
“Pesticide” means:
1. Any substance or mixture of substances, including any living
organisms or any product derived therefrom or any fungicide, herbicide,
insecticide, nematocide or rodenticide, intended to prevent, destroy,
control, repel, attract or mitigate any insect, rodent, nematode, snail,
slug, fungus and weed and any other form of plant or animal life or
virus, except virus on or in a living human or other animal, which is
normally considered to be a pest or which the Director declares to be a
pest.
2. Any substance or mixture of substances intended to be used as a
plant regulator, defoliant or desiccant, and any other substances
intended for that use as are named by the Director by regulation.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1253; A 1981, 610; 1993, 1715; 1999, 3646
)
“Plant regulator” means
any substance or mixture of substances intended through physiological
action to accelerate or retard the rate of growth or maturation, or
otherwise to alter the behavior of plants, but does not include
substances insofar as they are intended to be used as plant nutrients,
trace elements, nutritional chemicals, plant inoculants or soil
amendments.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1253)
“Private applicator”
means a certified applicator who uses or supervises the use of any
restricted-use pesticide for purposes of producing any agricultural
commodity on property owned or rented by him or his employer or on the
property of his neighbors if applied without compensation other than
trading of personal services between producers of agricultural
commodities.
(Added to NRS by 1975, 593)
“Restricted-use
pesticide” means any pesticide, including any highly toxic pesticide,
which:
1. The Director has found and determined, after a hearing, to be:
(a) Injurious to persons, pollinating insects, bees, animals, crops
or land, other than pests or vegetation it is intended to prevent,
destroy, control or mitigate; or
(b) Detrimental to:
(1) Vegetation, except weeds;
(2) Wildlife; or
(3) Public health and safety; or
2. Has been classified for restricted use by or under the
supervision of a certified applicator in accordance with the Federal
Environmental Pesticide Control Act, 7 U.S.C. §§ 136 et seq.
(Added to NRS by 1975, 593; A 1993, 1715; 1999, 3646 )
“Snails or slugs” include
all harmful mollusks.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1253)
“Supervision” of the
application of a restricted-use pesticide by a certified applicator must
be defined by regulation of the Director.
(Added to NRS by 1975, 593; A 1993, 1715; 1999, 3646 )
“Weed” means any plant or part
thereof which grows where not wanted.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1253)
“Wildlife” means all living
things that are neither human, domesticated, nor, as defined in NRS
555.2665 , pests, including but not
limited to mammals, birds and aquatic life.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1253)
It is
the policy of this State and the purpose of NRS 555.2605 to 555.460 ,
inclusive, to regulate, in the public interest, the application of
pesticides which, although valuable for the control of pests, may
seriously injure man, animals and crops over wide areas if not properly
applied.
[1:215:1955]—(NRS A 1959, 243; 1967, 368; 1971, 1254; 1973, 285;
1975, 595; 2003, 539 )
All state
agencies, municipal corporations and public utilities or any other
governmental agency shall be subject to the provisions of NRS 555.2605
to 555.460 , inclusive, and rules adopted thereunder
concerning the application of restricted-use pesticides by any person.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1253; A 1975, 595)
1. The provisions of NRS 555.2605 to 555.460 ,
inclusive, relating to licenses and requirements for their issuance,
except a certificate or permit to use a restricted-use pesticide, do not
apply to any farmer-owner of ground equipment applying pesticides for
himself or his neighbors, if:
(a) He operates farm property and operates and maintains equipment
for applying pesticides primarily for his own use.
(b) He is not regularly engaged in the business of applying
pesticides for hire as a principal or regular occupation, and he does not
publicly hold himself out as a pesticide applicator.
(c) He operates his equipment for applying pesticides only in the
vicinity of his own property and for the accommodation of his neighbors
for agricultural purposes only.
2. The provisions of NRS 555.2605 to 555.460 ,
inclusive, except those provisions relating to a certificate or permit to
use a restricted-use pesticide, do not apply to any person using
hand-powered equipment, devices or contrivances to apply pesticides to
lawns or to ornamental shrubs and trees as an incidental part of his
business of taking care of lawns and yards for remuneration, if that
person does not publicly hold himself out as being in the business of
applying pesticides and the cost of applying the pesticides does not
exceed 20 percent of the total remuneration received.
(Added to NRS by 1971, 1253; A 1981, 611; 1983, 230; 2003, 539
)
A person
shall not engage in pest control or serve as an agent, operator or pilot
for that purpose within this State at any time without a license issued
by the Director.
[Part 3:215:1955]—(NRS A 1959, 243; 1961, 530; 1965, 65; 1967, 368;
1971, 1254; 1973, 1505; 1981, 611; 1985, 346; 1993, 1715; 1999, 3646
)
A person shall not for
hire engage in, offer to engage in, advertise or solicit to perform any
of the following pest control activities concerning wood-destroying pests
or organisms without a license issued by the Director:
1. Making an inspection to identify or to attempt to identify
infestations or infections of households or other structures by those
pests or organisms.
2. Making inspection reports concerning the infestations or
infections.
3. Making estimates or bids, whether written or oral, concerning
the infestations or infections.
4. Submitting bids to perform any work involving the application
of pesticides for the elimination, extermination, control or prevention
of infestations or infections of those pests.
(Added to NRS by 1973, 1506; A 1985, 346; 1993, 1715; 1999, 3647
)
[Effective until the date of
the repeal of the federal law requiring each state to establish
procedures for withholding, suspending and restricting the professional,
occupational and recreational licenses for child support arrearages and
for noncompliance with certain processes relating to paternity or child
support proceedings.]
1. An application for a license must be submitted to the Director
and must set forth such information regarding the applicant’s
qualifications and proposed operations and other relevant matters as
required pursuant to regulations adopted by the Director. If the
applicant is a natural person, the application must include the social
security number of the applicant.
2. If an applicant fails to complete the licensing requirements
within 30 days after the date on which he submits his application, he
forfeits all fees he has tendered. Thereafter he may reinitiate the
application process upon payment of the appropriate fees.
[Part 3:215:1955]—(NRS A 1961, 530; 1973, 285; 1993, 1716; 1997,
2092; 1999, 3647 )
[Effective on the date of the
repeal of the federal law requiring each state to establish procedures
for withholding, suspending and restricting the professional,
occupational and recreational licenses for child support arrearages and
for noncompliance with certain processes relating to paternity or child
support proceedings.]
1. Application for a license must be made to the Director and must
set forth such information regarding the applicant’s qualifications and
proposed operations and other relevant matters as required pursuant to
regulations adopted by the Director.
2. If an applicant fails to complete the licensing requirements
within 30 days after the date on which he submits his application, he
forfeits all fees he has tendered. Thereafter he may reinitiate the
application process upon payment of the appropriate fees.
[Part 3:215:1955]—(NRS A 1961, 530; 1973, 285; 1993, 1716; 1997,
2092; 1999, 3647 , effective on the date of the repeal of
the federal law requiring each state to establish procedures for
withholding, suspending and restricting the professional, occupational
and recreational licenses for child support arrearages and for
noncompliance with certain processes relating to paternity or child
support proceedings)
1. The Director may require the applicant to show, upon
examination, that he possesses adequate knowledge concerning the proper
use and application of pesticides and the dangers involved and
precautions to be taken in connection with their application.
2. If the applicant is not a natural person, the applicant shall
designate an officer, member or technician of the organization to take
the examination. The person so designated is subject to the approval of
the director. If the extent of the applicant’s operations require it, the
Director may require more than one officer, member or technician to take
the examination.
3. The applicant or the person designated by the applicant in
accordance with the provisions of subsection 2 must have attained the age
of majority and have:
(a) Not less than 2 years’ practical experience in pest control; or
(b) Possess university credits of not less than 16 credit hours in
biological sciences of which not less than 8 credit hours must be in
subjects directly related to the categories of pest control in which the
applicant wishes to be licensed and have 6 or more months of practical
experience in pesticide application or related pest control.
4. The requirements of subsection 3 do not apply to persons
holding a license issued by the Director before July 1, 1973, or to the
renewal of the license of any such person.
[Part 3:215:1955]—(NRS A 1959, 243; 1961, 530; 1967, 368; 1971,
1254; 1973, 1505; 1993, 1716; 1999, 3647 )
1. The Director shall collect from each person applying for the
examination or reexamination a testing fee established by regulation of
the State Board of Agriculture.
2. Upon the successful completion of the testing, the Director
shall, before the license is issued, collect from each person applying
for a license for pest control an annual fee established by regulation of
the State Board of Agriculture. Any company or person employing
operators, pilots or agents shall pay to the Director a fee established
by regulation of the Board for each operator, pilot or agent licensed.
[Part 3:215:1955]—(NRS A 1961, 530; 1965, 65; 1973, 286; 1981, 611;
1983, 1101; 1993, 1716; 1999, 3599 , 3648 )
[Effective until the date of the repeal of the federal law requiring each
state to establish procedures for withholding, suspending and restricting
the professional, occupational and recreational licenses for child
support arrearages and for noncompliance with certain processes relating
to paternity or child support proceedings.]
1. If the Director finds the applicant qualified, and upon the
applicant’s appointing the Director agent for service of process and
finding that the applicant has satisfied the requirements of NRS 555.325
and 555.330 , the Director shall issue a license to perform
pest control within this State.
2. The license period is the calendar year. All licenses expire on
December 31 of each year. The license may be renewed annually upon
application to the Director and payment of the license fee on or before
December 31 of each year. If the holder of the license is a natural
person, he must submit with his application for renewal the statement
required pursuant to NRS 555.325 .
3. The license may restrict the licensee to the use of a certain
type or types of equipment or materials if the Director finds that the
applicant is qualified to use only a certain type or types.
4. If a license is not issued as applied for, the Director shall
inform the applicant in writing of the reasons therefor.
[Part 3:215:1955]—(NRS A 1957, 753; 1959, 243; 1961, 531; 1967,
368; 1971, 1254; 1973, 286; 1981, 611; 1993, 1717; 1997, 2093; 1999, 3648
; 2003, 540 )
[Effective on the date of the repeal of the federal law requiring each
state to establish procedures for withholding, suspending and restricting
the professional, occupational and recreational licenses for child
support arrearages and for noncompliance with certain processes relating
to paternity or child support proceedings.]
1. If the Director finds the applicant qualified, and upon the
applicant’s appointing the Director agent for service of process and
finding that the applicant has satisfied the requirements of NRS 555.330
, the Director shall issue a license to
perform pest control within this State.
2. The license period is the calendar year. All licenses expire on
December 31 of each year. The license may be renewed annually upon
application to the Director and payment of the license fee on or before
December 31 of each year.
3. The license may restrict the licensee to the use of a certain
type or types of equipment or materials if the Director finds that the
applicant is qualified to use only a certain type or types.
4. If a license is not issued as applied for, the Director shall
inform the applicant in writing of the reasons therefor.
[Part 3:215:1955]—(NRS A 1957, 753; 1959, 243; 1961, 531; 1967,
368; 1971, 1254; 1973, 286; 1981, 611; 1993, 1717; 1997, 2093; 1999, 3648
; 2003, 540 , effective on the date of the repeal of
the federal law requiring each state to establish procedures for
withholding, suspending and restricting the professional, occupational
and recreational licenses for child support arrearages and for
noncompliance with certain processes relating to paternity or child
support proceedings)
[Expires by limitation on the date of the repeal of the federal
law requiring each state to establish procedures for withholding,
suspending and restricting the professional, occupational and
recreational licenses for child support arrearages and for noncompliance
with certain processes relating to paternity or child support
proceedings.]
1. A natural person who applies for the issuance or renewal of a
license to perform pest control shall submit to the Director the
statement prescribed by the Division of Welfare and Supportive Services
of the Department of Health and Human Services pursuant to NRS 425.520
. The statement must be completed and
signed by the applicant.
2. The Director shall include the statement required pursuant to
subsection 1 in:
(a) The application or any other forms that must be submitted for
the issuance or renewal of the license; or
(b) A separate form prescribed by the Director.
3. A license to perform pest control may not be issued or renewed
by the Director if the applicant is a natural person who:
(a) Fails to submit the statement required pursuant to subsection
1; or
(b) Indicates on the statement submitted pursuant to subsection 1
that he is subject to a court order for the support of a child and is not
in compliance with the order or a plan approved by the district attorney
or other public agency enforcing the order for the repayment of the
amount owed pursuant to the order.
4. If an applicant indicates on the statement submitted pursuant
to subsection 1 that he is subject to a court order for the support of a
child and is not in compliance with the order or a plan approved by the
district attorney or other public agency enforcing the order for the
repayment of the amount owed pursuant to the order, the Director shall
advise the applicant to contact the district attorney or other public
agency enforcing the order to determine the actions that the applicant
may take to satisfy the arrearage.
(Added to NRS by 1997, 2091; A 1999, 3648 )
1. The Director shall require from each applicant for a pest
control license proof of public liability and property damage insurance
in an amount of:
(a) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (b), not less than
$10,000.
(b) If the license would authorize the application of pesticides by
aircraft:
(1) Not less than $100,000 for bodily injury to or death of
one person in any one accident;
(2) Subject to the limit for one person, not less than
$300,000 for bodily injury to or death of two or more persons in any one
accident; and
(3) Not less than $100,000 for each occurrence of damage to
property in any one accident.
Ê The Director may accept a liability insurance policy or surety bond in
the proper amount.
2. The Director may require drift insurance for the use of
pesticides or other materials declared hazardous or dangerous to man,
livestock, wildlife, crops or plantlife.
3. Any person injured by the breach of any such obligation is
entitled to sue in his own name in any court of competent jurisdiction to
recover the damages he sustained by that breach, if each claim is made
within 6 months after the alleged injury.
4. The Director on his own motion may, or upon receipt of a
verified complaint of an interested person shall, investigate, as he
deems necessary, any loss or damage resulting from the application of any
pesticide by a licensed pest control operator. A verified complaint of
loss or damage must be filed within 60 days after the time that the
occurrence of the loss or damage becomes known except that, if a growing
crop is alleged to have been damaged, the verified complaint must be
filed before 50 percent of the crop has been harvested. A report of
investigations resulting from a verified complaint must be furnished to
the person who filed the complaint.
[Part 3:215:1955]—(NRS A 1957, 753; 1961, 531; 1965, 65; 1967, 369;
1969, 353; 1971, 1255; 1981, 612; 1983, 231; 1987, 170; 1993, 1717; 1999,
3649 ; 2001, 469 )
1. The Director may suspend, pending inquiry, for not longer than
10 days, and, after opportunity for a hearing, may revoke, suspend or
modify any license issued under NRS 555.2605 to 555.460 ,
inclusive, if he finds that:
(a) The licensee is no longer qualified;
(b) The licensee has engaged in fraudulent business practices in
pest control;
(c) The licensee has made false or fraudulent claims through any
media by misrepresenting the effect of materials or methods to be used;
(d) The licensee has applied known ineffective or improper
materials;
(e) The licensee operated faulty or unsafe equipment;
(f) The licensee has made any application in a faulty, careless or
negligent manner;
(g) The licensee has violated any of the provisions of NRS 555.2605
to 555.460 , inclusive, or regulations adopted pursuant
thereto;
(h) The licensee engaged in the business of pest control without
having a licensed applicator or operator in direct on-the-job supervision;
(i) The licensee aided or abetted a licensed or an unlicensed
person to evade the provisions of NRS 555.2605 to 555.460 ,
inclusive, combined or conspired with such a licensee or an unlicensed
person to evade the provisions, or allowed one’s license to be used by an
unlicensed person;
(j) The licensee was intentionally guilty of fraud or deception in
the procurement of his license; or
(k) The licensee was intentionally guilty of fraud or deception in
the issuance of an inspection report on wood-destroying pests or other
report required by regulation.
2. A license is suspended automatically, without action of the
Director, if the proof of public liability and property damage or drift
insurance filed pursuant to NRS 555.330 , is cancelled, and the license remains
suspended until the insurance is reestablished.
[Part 3:215:1955]—(NRS A 1959, 244; 1961, 531; 1965, 66; 1967, 369;
1969, 353; 1971, 1255; 1975, 358; 1981, 612; 1993, 1717; 1999, 3649
; 2003, 540 )
[Expires by limitation on the date of the repeal of the federal
law requiring each state to establish procedures for withholding,
suspending and restricting the professional, occupational and
recreational licenses for child support arrearages and for noncompliance
with certain processes relating to paternity or child support
proceedings.]
1. If the Director receives a copy of a court order issued
pursuant to NRS 425.540 that provides
for the suspension of all professional, occupational and recreational
licenses, certificates and permits issued to a person who is the holder
of a license to perform pest control, the Director shall deem the license
issued to that person to be suspended at the end of the 30th day after
the date on which the court order was issued unless the Director receives
a letter issued to the holder of the license by the district attorney or
other public agency pursuant to NRS 425.550 stating that the holder of the license has
complied with the subpoena or warrant or has satisfied the arrearage
pursuant to NRS 425.560 .
2. The Director shall reinstate a license to perform pest control
that has been suspended by a district court pursuant to NRS 425.540
if the Director receives a letter
issued by the district attorney or other public agency pursuant to NRS
425.550 to the person whose license was
suspended stating that the person whose license was suspended has
complied with the subpoena or warrant or has satisfied the arrearage
pursuant to NRS 425.560 .
(Added to NRS by 1997, 2092; A 1999, 3650 )
1. A person licensed to engage in pest control shall ensure that
each of his business locations in this State has a primary principal who
is licensed in the appropriate category or categories of pest control.
2. If a licensee ceases to have a primary principal at each of his
business locations in this State for 30 consecutive calendar days, his
license for pest control is automatically suspended, without action of
the Director, and remains suspended until such time as the licensee
obtains a primary principal for each business location.
3. As used in this section, “primary principal” means an owner,
officer, partner, member or technician of a pest control business who has
qualified by examination in one or more of the categories of pest control
and who has been designated by the pest control business as the person
responsible for the daily supervision of the category or categories of
pest control performed by a business location of the pest control
business within this State.
(Added to NRS by 2003, 532 )
1. A person shall not use any restricted-use pesticide within this
State at any time without a certificate issued by the Director except a
person using any restricted-use pesticide under the supervision of a
certified applicator.
2. If the Director has adopted regulations requiring:
(a) A permit pursuant to NRS 586.403 ; or
(b) A special use permit pursuant to NRS 586.405 ,
Ê for a restricted-use pesticide, a person shall not use that pesticide
without obtaining the required permit.
(Added to NRS by 1975, 593; A 1993, 1718; 1999, 3650 )
Application for a certificate must be made to the Director
and contain such information regarding the applicant’s qualifications and
proposed operations and other relevant matters as required pursuant to
the regulations adopted by the Director.
(Added to NRS by 1975, 594; A 1993, 1718; 1999, 3651 )
1. The Director may require the applicant to show, upon
examination, that he possesses adequate knowledge concerning the proper
use and application of restricted-use pesticides and the dangers involved
and precautions to be taken in connection with the application of those
pesticides, including, but not limited to, the following areas:
(a) Label and labeling comprehension.
(b) Environmental consequences of pesticide use and misuse.
(c) Pests.
(d) Pesticides.
(e) Equipment.
(f) Application techniques.
(g) Laws and regulations.
(h) Safety.
2. In addition, the Director may require the applicant to meet
special qualifications of competency to meet the special needs of a given
locality regarding the use or application of a specific restricted-use
pesticide.
3. The Director shall collect from each person applying for an
examination or reexamination, in connection with the issuance of a
certificate, a testing fee established by regulation of the State Board
of Agriculture for any one examination period.
(Added to NRS by 1975, 594; A 1993, 1718; 1999, 3599 , 3651 )
1. If the Director finds that the applicant is qualified, he shall
issue a certificate to make application of or to supervise the
application of restricted-use pesticides within this State.
2. A certificate is valid for 4 calendar years and expires on
December 31. The certificate may be renewed upon completion of the
requirements established by the regulations of the Director.
3. The Director shall adopt regulations concerning the
requirements for renewal of a certificate.
4. The certificate may limit the applicant to the use of a certain
type or types of equipment or material if the Director finds that the
applicant is qualified to use only that type or types.
5. If a certificate is not issued as applied for, the Director
shall inform the applicant in writing of the reasons therefor.
(Added to NRS by 1975, 594; A 1983, 231; 1993, 1719; 1999, 3651
)
The Director may deny or
suspend, pending inquiry, for not longer than 10 days, and, after
opportunity for a hearing, may deny, revoke, suspend or modify any
certificate issued under the provisions of NRS 555.351 to 555.357 ,
inclusive, if he finds that the applicant or the certified applicator:
1. Is no longer qualified;
2. Has applied known ineffective or improper materials;
3. Has applied materials inconsistent with labeling or other
restrictions imposed by the Director;
4. Has operated faulty or unsafe equipment;
5. Has made any application in a faulty, careless or negligent
manner;
6. Aided or abetted an uncertified person to evade the provisions
of NRS 555.351 to 555.357 , inclusive, combined or conspired with an
uncertified person to evade those provisions, or allowed one’s
certificate to be used by an uncertified person;
7. Was guilty of fraud or deception in the procurement of his
certificate;
8. Has deliberately falsified any record or report;
9. Has violated any of the provisions of NRS 555.351 to 555.357 ,
inclusive, 555.390 or any regulation
adopted pursuant thereto; or
10. Has failed or neglected to give adequate instruction or
direction to an uncertified person working under his supervision.
(Added to NRS by 1975, 595; A 1993, 1719; 1999, 3651 )
1. Any person aggrieved by any action of the Director may obtain a
review thereof by filing in the district court of the county in which the
person resides, within 30 days after notice of the action, a written
petition praying that the action of the Director be set aside.
2. A copy of the petition must forthwith be delivered to the
Director, and within 20 days thereafter, the Director shall certify and
file in the court a transcript of any record pertaining thereto,
including a transcript of evidence received.
3. Upon compliance with the provisions of subsections 1 and 2, the
court has jurisdiction to affirm, set aside or modify the action of the
Director, except that the findings of the Director concerning the facts,
if supported by substantial evidence, are conclusive.
[Part 3:215:1955]—(NRS A 1961, 531; 1993, 1720; 1999, 3652 )
The Director may
provide for the inspection of any ground equipment or of any device or
apparatus used for application of pesticides by aircraft, and may require
proper repairs or other changes before its further use.
[4:215:1955]—(NRS A 1959, 244; 1961, 532; 1967, 370; 1971, 1256;
1973, 286; 1993, 1720; 1999, 3652 )
1. The Director may, by regulation, prescribe materials or methods
to be used and prohibit the use of materials or methods in custom
application of pesticides, to the extent necessary to protect health or
to prevent injury because of the drifting, washing or application of
those materials to desired plants or animals, including pollinating
insects and aquatic life.
2. In adopting the regulations, the Director shall give
consideration to relevant research findings and recommendations of other
agencies of this State or of the Federal Government.
[5:215:1955]—(NRS A 1959, 244; 1961, 532; 1967, 370; 1971, 1256;
1975, 359; 1993, 1720; 1999, 3652 )
1. The Director may, by regulation, require any licensee to
maintain such records and furnish reports giving such information with
respect to particular applications of pesticides and such other relevant
information as he may deem necessary.
2. The Director may, by regulation, require any certified
applicator to maintain such records and furnish reports giving such
information with respect to application of restricted-use pesticides and
such other relevant information as he may deem necessary.
[6:215:1955]—(NRS A 1959, 244; 1961, 532; 1967, 370; 1975, 359,
595; 1993, 1720; 1999, 3653 )
1. The Director may adopt regulations to carry out the provisions
of NRS 555.2605 to 555.460 , inclusive, but the regulations must not be
inconsistent with regulations issued by this State or by the Federal
Government relating to safety in air navigation or operation of aircraft.
2. Before issuing regulations directly relating to any matter
within the jurisdiction of any other officer of this State, the Director
shall consult with that officer with reference thereto.
[7:215:1955]—(NRS A 1961, 532; 1971, 1256; 1975, 596; 1993, 1720;
1999, 3653 )
The Director may, in
cooperation with the Nevada System of Higher Education, publish
information regarding injury which may result from improper application
or handling of pesticides and methods and precautions designed to prevent
such an injury.
[8:215:1955]—(NRS A 1959, 244; 1961, 532; 1967, 370; 1969, 1446;
1971, 1257; 1993, 416, 1721; 1995, 579; 1999, 3653 )
To carry out the provisions of NRS
555.2605 to 555.460 , inclusive, the Director and his appointed
inspectors may enter upon any public or private premises at reasonable
times to inspect, audit, sample or monitor any aircraft, ground
equipment, records, storage, pesticides, pesticide sprays, disposal
operations or other operations which are subject to NRS 555.2605 to 555.460 ,
inclusive, or regulations adopted pursuant thereto.
[11:215:1955]—(NRS A 1961, 533; 1971, 1257; 1975, 359, 596; 1977,
312; 1993, 1721; 1999, 3653 )
Any person violating the provisions of NRS 555.2605
to 555.420 , inclusive, or the regulations adopted
pursuant thereto, is guilty of a misdemeanor and, in addition to any
criminal penalty, shall pay to the Department an administrative fine of
not more than $5,000 per violation. If an administrative fine is imposed
pursuant to this section, the costs of the proceeding, including
investigative costs and attorney’s fees, may be recovered by the
Department.
[9:215:1955]—(NRS A 1961, 533; 1971, 1257; 1975, 596; 1993, 899;
1995, 548; 1999, 3653 ; 2003, 541 )
1. The Director shall adopt regulations specifying a schedule of
fines which may be imposed, upon notice and a hearing, for each violation
of the provisions of NRS 555.2605 to
555.460 , inclusive. The maximum fine
that may be imposed by the Director for each violation must not exceed
$5,000 per day. All fines collected by the Director pursuant to this
subsection must be remitted to the county treasurer of the county in
which the violation occurred for credit to the county school district
fund.
2. The Director may:
(a) In addition to imposing a fine pursuant to subsection 1, issue
an order requiring a violator to take appropriate action to correct the
violation; or
(b) Request the district attorney of the appropriate county to
investigate or file a criminal complaint against any person that the
State Board of Agriculture suspects may have violated any provision of
NRS 555.2605 to 555.460 , inclusive.
(Added to NRS by 1993, 1193; A 1995, 556; 1999, 3653 ; 2003, 541 )
RODENT CONTROL DISTRICTS
The Legislature declares
that it is primarily the responsibility of each owner or occupier of land
in this State to control rodents on his own land, but finds that in
certain areas this responsibility can best be discharged through
cooperation in organized districts.
(Added to NRS by 1969, 480)
1. The board of county commissioners of any county shall create
one or more rodent control districts in that portion of the county which
lies outside any incorporated city if there is filed a petition which:
(a) Designates the area to be included in the rodent control
district, either as the entire unincorporated area of the county or by
sections or parts of sections with appropriate township and range
references; and
(b) Is signed by the owners of more than 50 percent in assessed
valuation, as shown by the current assessment roll of the county, of the
lands to be included in the rodent control district.
2. Before creating a rodent control district, the board of county
commissioners shall hold at least one public hearing, of which they shall
give notice by publication, in a newspaper of general circulation in the
county, of at least one notice published not less than 10 days before the
date of the hearing. At this hearing, the board of county commissioners
shall entertain applications for the exclusion of lands, designated by
sections or parts of sections as prescribed in subsection 1, from the
proposed district, if any such application is made. The board of county
commissioners shall exclude any such lands as to which it is shown to
their satisfaction that any rodents which exist on that land do not
render substantially more difficult the control of rodents on other lands
in the proposed district.
(Added to NRS by 1969, 480; A 1987, 1729)
1. The board of county commissioners of any county in which a
rodent control district has been created shall appoint a board of
directors of the district composed of three persons who:
(a) Are landowners in the district, whether or not they signed the
petition for its creation. For the purpose of this paragraph, if any
corporation or partnership owns land in the district, a partner or a
director, officer or beneficial owner of 10 percent or more of the stock
of the corporation shall be deemed a landowner.
(b) Fairly represent the agricultural economy of the district.
2. The initial appointments to the board of directors shall be for
terms of 1, 2 and 3 years respectively. Each subsequent appointment shall
be for a term of 3 years. Any vacancy shall be filled by appointment for
the unexpired term.
(Added to NRS by 1969, 480)
The board of directors of
a rodent control district may:
1. With the approval of the Director, appoint a rodent control
officer.
2. Receive and expend any money provided by assessment, voluntary
contribution or otherwise for the control of rodents in the district.
3. Exercise any other power necessary or proper to carry out the
purposes for which the district exists.
4. Elect a chairman from among its members, and secretary who may
be a member of the board.
(Added to NRS by 1969, 481; A 1975, 556; 1993, 1721; 1999, 3654
)
The State Board of Agriculture shall,
after a hearing held in the county, promulgate regulations for each
rodent control district, which shall include but are not limited to:
1. The species of rodents to be controlled in the district.
2. The means of control, including a designation of the types of
rodenticides permitted and the movement from, to and within the district
of agricultural products and other vectors capable of spreading the
rodents designated for control.
(Added to NRS by 1969, 481)
1. Within 60 days after regulations have been promulgated for any
rodent control district, each landowner in the district shall file with
the board of directors:
(a) A sketch of his land; and
(b) A plan for the control of rodents on his land.
2. If any landowner fails to submit the plan as required by
subsection 1, the rodent control officer shall prepare such a plan.
3. The board of directors shall consider each plan submitted by a
landowner or prepared by the rodent control officer and shall,
consistently with the regulations for the district:
(a) Approve the plan; or
(b) Require specified changes in the plan.
4. If any landowner fails to carry out the plan of rodent control
for his land as approved or modified by the board of directors, the
rodent control officer may, after giving 10 days’ notice in writing to
the owner by registered or certified mail directed to his last known
address, enter upon the land, perform any work necessary to carry out the
plan, and charge such work against the landowner. Any such charge, until
paid, is a lien against the land affected coequal with a lien for unpaid
general taxes, and may be enforced in the same manner.
(Added to NRS by 1969, 481)
1. Upon the preparation and approval of a budget in the manner
required by the Local Government Budget and Finance Act, the board of
county commissioners shall, by resolution, levy an assessment upon all
real property in the rodent control district.
2. Every assessment so levied shall be a lien against the property
assessed.
3. The county commissioners may obtain short-term loans of an
amount of money not to exceed the total amount of such assessment, for
the purpose of paying the expenses of controlling the rodents in a rodent
control district. Such loans may be made only after such assessments are
levied.
(Added to NRS by 1969, 481; A 2001, 1828 )
Any person violating any of the provisions
of NRS 555.500 to 555.560 , inclusive, or failing, refusing or neglecting
to perform or observe any conditions or regulation prescribed by the
State Board of Agriculture, in accordance with the provisions of NRS
555.500 to 555.540 , inclusive, is guilty of a misdemeanor.
(Added to NRS by 1969, 481)
