Part 1.
TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Chapter 20.
COTTON PEST CONTROL
The Texas Department of Agriculture (the department) proposes amendments
to §§20.1, 20.20 and 20.22, concerning cotton pest control and cotton
stalk destruction (CSD) requirements. The amendments are proposed to update
and clarify definitions used in Chapter 20, reclassify Pest Management Zone
5 as Zone 3 Area (3), and strengthen enforcement of the CSD deadline.
Amendments to §20.1 are proposed to clarify the definition of non-hostable
as it relates to cotton in the field for enforcement purposes, and to strengthen
the definition of volunteer cotton by removing references to when incidental
seeds might have germinated.
Amendments to §20.20 are proposed in response to producer requests
from Zone 5. The proposed amendments will strengthen the CDS program in Zone
5 by reclassifying Zone 5 as Area (3) of Zone 3. This change will benefit
producers in the affected counties by maintaining their locally appropriate
planting and stalk destruction dates while improving their organizational
situation. Because adjacent counties in Zone 3 share similar production practices
as in Zone 5, combining these zones will allow for coordinated decision-making
about CDS requirements. Old Zone 5 is deleted from the rule.
Amendments to §20.22 are proposed to implement the unanimous request
of the Zone 9 Cotton Producer Advisory Committee (CPAC) to delay their CSD
deadline until March 1 and the unanimous request of the Zone 10 CPAC to modify
their stalk destruction requirements to reflect modern production practices
in that area. Other amendments proposed for §20.22 are to refine procedures
for processing electronically transmitted requests for individual extensions
and to clarify the standards for granting individual extensions for fields
that have been declared a public nuisance by the department. By amending these
sections, the department ensures efficient functioning of the CSD program.
Dr. Robert Crocker, Coordinator for Pest Management and Citrus Programs,
has determined that for the first five-year period the proposed amendments
are in effect, there will be no anticipated fiscal impact for state or local
governments as a result of administering or enforcing the rules, as amended.
Dr. Crocker also has determined that for each year of the first five years
the proposed amendments are in effect, the public benefit anticipated as a
result of administering and enforcing the amended sections is greater efficiency
in the suppression of overwintering populations of boll weevils. The amendments
also benefit the public by reducing the risk of artificial re-infestation
of restricted areas by boll weevils, thereby protecting the investment that
cotton producers and the State of Texas have made to eradicate the pest. There
is no cost anticipated to micro-businesses, small businesses or individuals
required to comply with the amendments.
Comments on the proposal may be submitted in writing to Dr. Robert Crocker,
Coordinator for Pest Management and Citrus Programs, Texas Department of Agriculture,
P.O. Box 12847, Austin, Texas 78711. Comments must be received no later than
30 days from the date of the publication of the proposal in the
Texas Register
.
Subchapter A. GENERAL PROVISIONS
4 TAC §20.1
The amendments to §20.1 are proposed in accordance with
the Texas Agriculture Code (the Code), §74.006, which provides the department
with the authority to adopt rules as necessary for the effective enforcement
and administration of Chapter 74, Subchapter A; and §74.004, which provides
the department with the authority to establish regulated areas, dates and
appropriate methods of destruction of stalks, other cotton parts and products
of host plants for cotton pests.
The code that is affected by the proposal is Texas Agriculture Code, Chapter
74, Subchapter A.
§20.1.Definitions.
The following words and terms, when used in this chapter, shall have
the following meanings unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
(1) - (18)
(No change.)
(19)
Non-hostable--Refers to cotton
in the field
that
is free of
living, normally colored (not wilted or darkened)
fruiting
structures
including
[
(20) - (30)
(No change.)
(31)
Volunteer cotton--For purposes of this chapter, cotton
developing from incidental seeds [
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 January 9, 2006.
TRD-200600121
Dolores Alvarado Hibbs
Deputy General Counsel
Texas Department of Agriculture
Earliest possible date of adoption: February 19, 2006
For further information, please call: (512) 463-4075
such as
] buds, squares, flowers
, uncracked bolls
or
unopened
bolls.
after the growing season between harvest
and planting the next year's crop
].
Subchapter C. STALK DESTRUCTION PROGRAM