4 TAC §§21.30-21.39
The Texas Department of Agriculture (the department) proposes
new §§21.30-21.39, concerning the Citrus Budwood Certification Program.
These new sections are being proposed in order to protect the citrus industry
by preventing the spread of dangerous plant diseases.
The department is proposing new §21.30 to define terms used in the
subchapter. Designation, establishment, and maintenance of the foundation
grove are outlined in new §§21.31-21.33. Requirements for citrus
budwood certification, labeling of nursery trees and record keeping are specified
in new §§21.34-21.36. Inspections, fees, violations and penalties
are outlined in new §§21.37-21.39.
Terry Mitchell, Coordinator for Pest Management, has determined that for
the first five-year period the new sections are in effect, there will be no
fiscal implications for state government or local government as a result of
enforcing or administering the new sections. Although the department anticipates
that there will be a gradual increase in workload for inspectors as one or
more foundation groves become operational and as nurseries begin purchasing
certified budwood, and a that there will be a modest cost for printing forms
required for record keeping, these costs will be offset by inspection and
certification fees collected by the department.
Mr. Mitchell has also determined that for each year of the first five years
the new sections are in effect the public benefit anticipated as a result
of enforcing the new sections will be the increased protection of the citrus
industry from the threat of graft-transmissible diseases by establishing a
certification program for disease-free budwood. The effect on small or large
businesses will be that certified disease-free budwood would be available
for propagation of citrus nursery stock; however, there will be an increase
in record keeping responsibilities. Costs associated with increased record
keeping will depend on the type of business and the amount of certified budwood
or nursery stock they handle. Businesses may also benefit from this action
through the increased value of stock produced with certified budwood. Anticipated
economic costs to persons who are required to comply with the new sections
as proposed will be the cost of the foundation grove application ($250.00)
and certification fees (6 cents per bud); the cost of establishing and maintaining
the foundation grove; and, as noted previously, the cost of complying with
record keeping and labeling requirements. It is not possible to determine
costs of compliance, other than the cost of fees, at this time, as these costs
will vary depending on the size, scope, and type of business.
Comments on the proposal may be submitted to Terry Mitchell, Coordinator
for Pest Management, Texas Department of Agriculture, P. O. Box 12847, Austin,
Texas 78711. Comments must be received no later than 30 days from the date
of publication of the proposal in the
Texas Register
.
The new sections are proposed under the authority of the Texas
Agriculture Code (the Code), §19.006, which provides the Texas Department
of Agriculture the authority, with the advice of the advisory council established
under the Code, §19.005, to adopt standards and rules necessary to administer
the citrus budwood certification program; and the Code, §19.010 which
provides the department with the authority to set and collect fees for foundation
grove designation and citrus budwood certification.
The code that will be affected by the proposal is the Texas Agriculture
Code, Chapter 19.
§21.30. Definitions.
In addition to the definitions set out in the Texas Agriculture Code,
Chapter 19 (the Act), and in, Chapter 21, Subchapter A of this title (relating
to Citrus Quarantines) the following words and terms, when used in this subchapter,
shall have the following meanings unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
(1)
Certified citrus nursery tree - A citrus tree propagated
with certified citrus budwood or re-budded from the same scion source.
(2)
Certified laboratory - A public or private laboratory
authorized to perform tests for citrus pathogens.
(3)
Citrus - All species of the genus
Citrus
,
Poncirus
, and
Fortunella
including any hybrids thereof.
(4)
Increase Block - An area in which budwood from the
foundation grove are budded or grafted onto rootstock to increase budwood
production.
§21.31. Designation of Foundation Grove.
(a)
Foundation grove status will be considered upon written
request to the department, which must include:
(1)
a physical description of the proposed site, to include
location, size, and a map of the land to be used;
(2)
a description of the environmental controls and security
measures as outlined in subsection (b) of this section;
(3)
designation of a laboratory and a description of
the facilities available to perform tests to diagnose diseases listed in this
section; and
(4)
the name and address of the person responsible for
the overall operation of the foundation grove.
(b)
A foundation grove, including the increase block, shall
meet the following standards:
(1)
the soil must support good growth of commonly used citrus
rootstocks;
(2)
adequate environmental controls shall be in place
to prevent loss of the grove due to adverse environmental conditions; and
(3)
adequate security shall be maintained to protect
the budwood from contamination or theft.
§21.32. Establishment of the Foundation Grove.
(a)
The trees in the foundation grove shall be established
using:
(1)
Texas budwood or budwood source trees that have been tested
by a certified laboratory and found to be free of tristeza virus, exocortis
viroid, cachexia viroid, psorosis virus, ringspot virus, stubborn spiroplasma,
greening mycoplasma, citrus tatterleaf virus, citrus variagated chlorosis
(CVC); or
(2)
budwood imported from the California Citrus Clonal
Protection Program and accompanied by documentation certifying that the budwood
is free of the diseases listed in paragraph (1) of this subsection. The imported
budwood may be re-tested upon receipt in Texas by a certified laboratory to
verify freedom from tristeza virus.
(b)
Budwood used to establish the foundation grove shall originate
from trees that exhibit desirable horticultural characteristics for the specified
varieties:
(1)
in accordance with
The Citrus
Industry
Volume I, edited by Reuther, Webber and Batchelor, published
by the University of California Division of Agricultural Sciences in 1967;
(2)
developed since publication of
The Citrus Industry
in accordance with other recognized scientific
reviewed publications containing variety release articles; or
(3)
as determined by review of specific variety information
by the Director of the Texas A&M University-Kingsville Citrus Center.
(c)
Each tree planted in the foundation grove, including the
increase block, shall be assigned a unique source tree identification number
consisting of grove abbreviation, variety abbreviation, block number, row
number, and tree number. A sign, stake, tag or other durable marker shall
be used to associate each tree with its unique number.
(d)
Foundation grove trees shall be examined during first
fruiting and thereafter at annual intervals by a panel of experts designated
by the department to verify horticultural characteristics. Trees not exhibiting
desirable horticultural characteristics for the specified variety shall be
immediately removed from use as a budwood source.
§21.33. Maintaining Foundation Grove Status.
(a)
The foundation grove manager shall ensure that trees within
the foundation grove and the increase block are tested by a certified laboratory
to verify that the trees continue to be free of diseases listed in this subchapter.
A list of approved testing procedures and testing schedules will be provided
to the foundation manager by the department.
(b)
The following measures shall be taken to prevent disease
contamination from internal or external sources:
(1)
if one or more trees within the foundation grove become
infected with a disease listed in this subchapter, the affected tree(s) must
be removed immediately according to procedures and authority set out in the
Texas Agriculture Code, §71.0091, as amended;
(2)
tools and equipment used to cut or prune citrus trees
shall be used only in the foundation grove, including the increase block,
unless:
(A)
it is impractical to restrict equipment use only to the
foundation grove; and
(B)
such equipment has been sterilized with a solution of
5.25% sodium hypochlorite (bleach) and water (1 part bleach to 4 parts water)
for at least 3 seconds, followed by rinsing with clean water;
(3)
Irrigation of the foundation grove shall be
performed in such a manner as to minimize the risk of transmission of diseases
through the irrigation system; and
(4)
All or part of the foundation grove may be screened
to prevent entry of insect vectors when possible.
§21.34. Citrus Budwood Certification.
(a)
Only citrus budwood originating from the increase block
or the foundation grove or both shall be certified.
(b)
The foundation grove manager shall label each bundle of
certified budwood at the time of sale listing the variety of the budwood,
number of buds, and source tree identification number.
(c)
Commercial nurseries shall not claim as certified any
budwood propagated from citrus trees outside the increase block or the foundation
grove or both.
§21.35. Labeling of Certified Citrus Nursery Trees.
(a)
A tag at the beginning and end of each row showing the
variety and source tree identification number shall identify certified citrus
nursery trees.
(b)
If a row contains trees propagated from more than one
source tree, the different selections shall be separated by a minimum of 24
inches in the row, with a tag at the beginning and end of each series of trees
showing the variety and source tree identification number.
(c)
If certified citrus nursery trees are grown in containers,
each container or group of container-grown trees shall be labeled with the
variety and source tree identification number and separated from other trees
in the nursery to avoid mixing nursery trees originating from different source
trees.
§21.36. Record-keeping.
(a)
Records must be maintained for a minimum of four years
by the foundation grove and by commercial nurseries selling certified citrus
nursery trees.
(b)
The following records of the foundation grove, and the
increase block operations must be maintained on forms promulgated by the department
at the foundation grove:
(1)
a map of trees showing block and row numbers and locations
of each variety;
(2)
results of tests verifying that all trees are free
of diseases listed in this subchapter; and
(3)
records of budwood sources used to establish trees
along with certificates and/or test results obtained to verify that the budwood
was free of diseases listed in this subchapter.
(c)
The following records of certified budwood sales must
be maintained on forms promulgated by the department at the foundation grove:
(1)
origin of budwood sold, by source tree identification
number;
(2)
number of buds sold daily, summarized by month; and
(3)
records of each sale, including:
(A)
name and address of buyer;
(B)
number of buds sold;
(C)
variety and source tree identification number(s); and
(D)
date of sale.
(d)
The following records of certified budwood purchases and
certified citrus nursery tree sales must be maintained on forms promulgated
by the department at commercial nurseries that purchase certified budwood:
(1)
specific records of each purchase including:
(A)
date of purchase;
(B)
variety(ies) purchased; and
(C)
number of buds purchased from each source tree;
(2)
number of certified citrus nursery trees successfully
budded from each budwood variety purchased;
(3)
location of certified citrus nursery trees, until
the trees are sold; and
(4)
records of sales of certified citrus nursery trees.
(e)
Sellers of certified citrus nursery trees must maintain
records to adequately verify the origin or source of such trees.
§21.37. Inspection.
The department shall, as deemed appropriate, inspect the foundation
grove, increase block, foundation grove records, commercial nurseries, and
records at commercial nurseries that produce certified citrus nursery trees.
§21.38. Fees.
(a)
Foundation grove application fee. The applicant shall
pay a non-refundable application fee of $250 to the department.
(b)
Certification Fee.
(1)
A foundation grove manager that sells certified citrus
budwood shall pay to the department a fee of $ .06 for each bud sold.
(2)
Certification fees shall be paid to the department
by the 15th day of the month following the end of each calendar quarter for
budwood sold during the previous calendar quarter.
§21.39. Violations and Penalties.
(a)
Violations. In addition to any other violations that may
arise under the act or this subchapter, the following are violations.
(1)
It is a violation for any person to falsify an application
for foundation grove designation.
(2)
It is a violation for any person to falsify records
required by this subchapter.
(3)
It is a violation to sell or offer to sell or to
distribute citrus budwood falsely claiming that it is certified or that it
comes from a foundation grove, or the increase block, or to sell or offer
citrus trees for sale falsely claiming that they originated from certified
budwood or that they came from a designated foundation grove, or the increase
block
(4)
It is a violation to fail to maintain or provide
records for inspection.
(5)
It is a violation to fail to comply with any order
issued or rule adopted by the department under this subchapter.
(b)
Penalties.
(1)
A stop-sale order may be issued if a person offers citrus
budwood for sale falsely claiming that it is certified, or offers citrus trees
for sale falsely claiming that they originate from certified budwood.
(2)
Any violation under this subchapter is subject to
an administrative penalty as provided in the Texas Agriculture Code, 12.020.
Penalty calculations shall be made using a penalty matrix developed by the
department and published in the
Texas Register
.
(3)
Foundation grove status, citrus budwood certification,
or citrus nursery tree certification may be revoked by the department if it
is determined that a violation of these rules has occurred or if procedures
prescribed by the department are not implemented.
(4)
If the department proposes to revoke foundation grove
status, citrus budwood certification, or citrus nursery tree certification
under this subchapter, the owner is entitled to a hearing under the Texas
Agriculture Code, §12.0202, and the proceedings shall be conducted as
provided for contested cases by the Texas Administrative Procedures Act, the
Government Code, Chapter 2001, and Chapter 1 of this title (relating to General
Procedures).
This agency hereby certifies that the proposal has been
reviewed by legal counsel and found to be within the agency's legal authority
to adopt.
Filed with the Office of the Secretary of State, on
July 19, 1999.
TRD-9904305
Dolores Alvarado Hibbs
Deputy General Counsel
Texas Department of Agriculture
Earliest possible date of adoption: August 29, 1999
For further information, please call: (512) 463-4075