4 TAC §19.181
The Texas Department of Agriculture (the department) proposes
an amendment to §19.181, concerning a quarantine for the Formosan subterranean
termite,
Coptotermes formosanus
Shiraki. The
amendment is made to add Anderson and Johnson counties to the list of subterranean
termite-infested counties in Texas. The amendment is proposed to slow the
spread of this pest in the State. The Texas A & M University has informed
the department that the subterranean termite infestations were recently detected
in Anderson and Johnson counties since publication of the list of the 23 termite-infested
counties in the November 18, 2005, issue of the
Texas Register
. The department believes that restriction on the movement
of quarantined articles from these two counties would delay the spread of
this termite into free areas of Texas. The amendment to §19.181 adds
Anderson and Johnson counties to the list of the Formosan subterranean termite-infested
counties in Texas.
Dr. Shashank Nilakhe, State Entomologist, has determined that for the first
five-year period the amendment is in effect, there will be no fiscal implication
for state or local government as a result of enforcing or administering the
amended section, as proposed.
Dr. Nilakhe has also determined that for each of the first five years the
proposed amendment is in effect, the public benefit anticipated as a result
of enforcing the amended section will be reduction in the spread of this termite
due to manmade activities. There will be a treatment cost to small and/or
micro-businesses that move quarantined articles from the amended quarantined
counties to free area. In order to comply with the amended section, businesses
located in the amended counties may be required to treat quarantined articles
by fumigation or another means prescribed by the department. The cost of treatment
will depend on the volume of quarantined articles moved from infested counties
to non-infested counties and the method of treatment prescribed. Consequently,
the specific cost to the impacted businesses cannot be determined at this
time.
Comments on the proposal may be submitted to Dr. Shashank Nilakhe, State
Entomologist, 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 amendment is proposed under the Texas Agriculture Code (the
Code) §71.002, which provides the department with the authority to quarantine
an area if it determines that a dangerous insect pest or plant disease not
widely distributed in this state exists within an area of the state; the Code, §71.003,
which provides the department with the authority to declare an area pest-free
and quarantine surrounding areas if it determines that an insect pest or plant
disease of general distribution in this state does not exist in an area; and
the Code, §71.007, which authorizes the department to adopt rules as
necessary to protect agricultural and horticultural interests, including rules
to provide for a specific treatment of quarantined articles.
The Code affected by the proposal is the Texas Agriculture Code, Chapter
71.
§19.181.Quarantined Areas.
The quarantined areas are:
(1) - (9)
(No change).
(10)
Texas counties:
Anderson,
Angelina, Aransas,
Bexar, Brazoria, Cameron, Collin, Colorado, Dallas, Denton, Galveston, Gregg,
Henderson, Hidalgo, Harris, Jefferson,
Johnson,
Liberty, Nueces,
Orange, Polk, Rockwall, Smith, Tarrant, and Travis.
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 28, 2006.
TRD-200603980
Dolores Alvarado Hibbs
Deputy General Counsel
Texas Department of Agriculture
Earliest possible date of adoption: September 10, 2006
For further information, please call: (512) 463-4075