PRINTER'S NO. 1415
No. 1197 Session of 1977
INTRODUCED BY YAHNER, BRANDT, MORRIS, ZELLER, STUBAN, KLINGAMAN,
WILT, WENGER, STAIRS, SHUMAN, W. W. FOSTER, SWEET, DeWEESE,
MADIGAN, COLE, CALTAGIRONE AND BROWN, JUNE 1, 1977
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE AND RURAL AFFAIRS,
JUNE 1, 1977
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of May 29, 1956 (1955 P.L.1795, No.598),
2 entitled "An act regulating the sale and distribution of
3 mixed fertilizers and fertilizer materials; imposing powers
4 and duties on the Secretary of Agriculture and prescribing
5 penalties," further providing for the regulation of
6 fertilizers and including soil conditioners and plant growth
7 substances within the scope of regulation by the act.
8 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
9 hereby enacts as follows:
10 Section 1. The title, act of May 29, 1956 (1955 P.L.1795,
11 No.598), known as the "Pennsylvania Fertilizer Law of 1956," is
12 amended to read:
13 AN ACT
14 Regulating the sale and distribution of mixed fertilizers [and],
15 fertilizer materials, soil conditioners and plant growth
16 substances; providing for permanent registration of brands
17 and grades of fertilizers, soil conditioners and plant growth
18 substances; providing for licensing of persons who
19 manufacture or mix certain fertilizers, soil conditioners and
1 plant growth substances or whose name appears on the label;
2 requiring labels on fertilizers, soil conditioners and plant
3 growth substances; providing for inspection fees and for the
4 cancellation of licenses; imposing powers and duties on the
5 Secretary of Agriculture and prescribing penalties."
6 Section 2. Section 1 of the act is amended to read:
7 Section 1. Short Title.--This act shall be known and may be
8 cited as the "Pennsylvania Fertilizer [Law of 1956] Soil
9 Conditioner and Plant Growth Substance Law."
10 Section 3. Section 2 of the act, amended April 3, 1968
11 (P.L.79, No.34) and August 12, 1971 (P.L.331, No.85), is amended
12 to read:
13 Section 2. Definitions.--As used in this act:
14 (1) "Fertilizer material" means any substance containing
15 nitrogen, [phosphoric acid, potash] phosphorus, potassium or any
16 recognized plant nutrient, element or compound which is used or
17 sold for its plant nutrient content, or claimed plant nutrients,
18 or for compounding mixed fertilizers except unmanipulated animal
19 and vegetable manures.
20 (2) "Mixed fertilizers" includes any combination or mixture
21 of fertilizer materials designed for use or claimed to have
22 value in promoting plant growth.
23 (3) ["Commercial fertilizer"] "Fertilizer" includes mixed
24 fertilizer or fertilizer materials.
25 (4) "Specialty fertilizer" includes any fertilizer
26 distributed primarily for use on crops grown for noncommercial
27 purposes such as home gardens and lawns, and may include
28 fertilizers used for research or experimental purposes.
29 (5) "Bulk fertilizer" includes [commercial] fertilizer
30 delivered to the purchaser in the solid or liquid state, in a
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1 nonpackaged form to which a label cannot be attached.
2 (6) "Brand" includes any term, design or trade mark used in
3 connection with one or several grades of fertilizer, soil
4 conditioners or plant growth substances.
5 (7) "Grade" means the minimum percentage of total nitrogen,
6 available phosphoric acid, and soluble potash stated in the
7 order given in this definition, and, when applied to mixed
8 fertilizers, shall be in whole numbers only.
9 (8) "Official sample" means any sample of [commercial]
10 fertilizer, soil conditioner or plant growth substance taken by
11 the secretary to effect the provisions of this act.
12 (9) "Secretary" includes the Secretary of Agriculture or his
13 duly authorized deputy, agent or representative.
14 (10) "Ton" means a net weight of two thousand pounds
15 avoirdupois or 907 kilograms.
16 (11) "Percent" or "Percentage" means the percentage by
17 weight.
18 (12) "Distributor" includes any person who offers for sale,
19 sells, barters, or otherwise supplies [commercial] fertilizers,
20 soil conditioners or plant growth substances.
21 (12.1) The term "person" includes an individual [of either
22 a] or any partnership, corporation, association, [broker,
23 jobber, company,] or other legal entity, importer, [society, and
24 every] broker, jobber or any agent, officer, or [employer]
25 employe of any thereof. [The term imparts both the singular and
26 plural as the case may be].
27 (13) "Sell" or "Sale" includes exchange.
28 (14) "Custom blend" means a mixture of [commercial
29 fertilizer or] fertilizer materials, each batch of which mixture
30 is mixed according to the specific instructions of the final
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1 purchaser and includes such other terms as "customer formula"
2 and "buyers' mix".
3 (15) "Facility" means each separate mill or plant, fixed or
4 mobile or distributor of [commercial] fertilizer, [or] customer-
5 formula fertilizer, soil conditioner or plant growth substance.
6 (16) "Investigational allowance" means an allowance for
7 variations inherent in the taking, preparation and analysis of
8 an official sample of fertilizer, soil conditioner or plant
9 growth substance.
10 (17) "Soil conditioners" means those substances or mixture
11 of substances intended for sale, offered for sale or sold for
12 soil corrective purposes or claimed to be effective for
13 promoting or stimulating the growth of plants, increasing the
14 productivity of soil, improving the quality of crops, or
15 producing any chemical or physical change in the soil.
16 (18) "Plant growth substances" means those products which
17 are sold for the promotion or alteration of plant growth.
18 (19) "Enforcing official" means the Secretary of Agriculture
19 or his designee having responsibility for the administration and
20 enforcement of the provisions of this act.
21 Section 4. Section 3 of the act, amended August 12, 1971
22 (P.L.331, No.85), is amended to read:
23 Section 3. Registration.--(a) Each brand and grade of
24 [commercial] fertilizer, soil conditioner and plant growth
25 substance shall be registered by the manufacturer or importer
26 with the Department of Agriculture before being offered for
27 sale, sold or distributed in this [State] Commonwealth. The
28 application for registration shall be submitted to the secretary
29 on forms furnished by the secretary and shall be accompanied by
30 a fee of fifteen dollars ($15) per brand.
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1 Fees so collected shall be paid into the State Treasury and
2 shall be credited to the general government operations
3 appropriation of the Department of Agriculture for the payment
4 of the cost of inspection, sampling, and analysis, and other
5 expenses necessary for the administration of this act [and other
6 acts specified by the General Assembly].
7 The secretary may require a sample label to be submitted
8 before registering any fertilizer, soil conditioner or plant
9 growth substance. The secretary may ask for proof from the
10 registrant of any claims made by the registrant of the product
11 on the label, on the application for registration, or, in any
12 other manner other than guarantees of the analysis. Any research
13 in support of such claims shall be performed by an institution
14 approved by the secretary. Upon approval by the secretary, a
15 copy of the registration shall be furnished to the applicant.
16 All registrations shall expire on June 30 of each year, unless
17 the secretary is notified on a yearly basis by the registrant on
18 forms furnished by the secretary, listing the brands and grades
19 the registrant wants continued and intends to continue selling
20 in the next twelve month period. Those registered as of June 30,
21 1965, shall be considered to be permanently registered. The
22 application for specialty fertilizer shall include the following
23 information in the following order:
24 (1) The net weight.
25 (2) The brand and grade.
26 (3) The guaranteed analysis showing the minimum percentage
27 of plant food claimed in the following order and form:
28 [Total Nitrogen..................... percent
29 Available Phosphoric Acid........... percent
30 Soluble Potash...................... percent]
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1 (i) Total Nitrogen (N) ......%
2 (ii) Ammoniacal Nitrogen (if claimed or required) ......%
3 (iii) Nitrate Nitrogen (if claimed or required) ......%
4 (iv) Water Insoluble Nitrogen (if claimed or if the
5 statement "organic" or "slow acting nitrogen"
6 is used in the label) ......%
7 (v) Available Phosphoric Acid (P2 05) ......%
8 (vi) Soluble Potash (K2 0) ......%
9 (vii) Additional Plant Nutrients as prescribed by
10 regulation ......%
11 (viii) Potential Acidity or Basicity (if claimed
12 or required) ......% or ......lbs.
13 (ix) Calcium Carbonate equivalent per ton ......%
14 (4) The name and address of the person guaranteeing the
15 fertilizer.
16 (a.1) The application for soil conditioner or plant growth
17 substances shall include the following information in the
18 following order:
19 (1) The net weight or other measure prescribed by
20 regulation.
21 (2) The brand.
22 (3) An accurate statement of composition and purpose.
23 (4) The name and address of the licensee.
24 (a.2) The application for fertilizer shall include the
25 following:
26 (1) The net weight.
27 (2) The brand and grade.
28 (3) The guaranteed analysis showing the minimum percentage
29 of plant food in the following order:
30 Total Nitrogen ......%
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1 Available Phosphoric Acid ......%
2 Soluble Potash ......%
3 (4) The name and address of the person guaranteeing the
4 fertilizer.
5 (a.3) Unacidulated mineral phosphatic materials and basic
6 slag shall be guaranteed as to both total and available
7 phosphoric acid, and the degree of fineness. In the case of
8 bone, tankage, and other natural organic phosphate materials,
9 only the total phosphoric acid, need be guaranteed. Additional
10 plant food elements, determinable by chemical methods, may be
11 guaranteed only by permission of the secretary, by and with the
12 advice of the Director of the Agricultural Experiment Station.
13 When any such additional plant foods are claimed, they shall be
14 included in the guarantee, and shall be subject to inspection
15 and analysis in accordance with the methods and regulations that
16 may be prescribed by the secretary. The secretary may permit the
17 potential basicity or acidity (expressed in terms of calcium
18 carbonate equivalent in multiples of one hundred pounds per ton)
19 to be registered and guaranteed.
20 (b) A distributor shall not be required to register any
21 brand of commercial fertilizer distributed, fertilizer, soil
22 conditioner or plant growth substance which is already
23 registered under this act by another person.
24 (c) The plant nutrient content of each and every brand of
25 [commercial] fertilizer, soil conditioner or plant growth
26 substances must remain uniform for the period of registration,
27 and, in no case, even at a subsequent registration, shall the
28 percentage of any guaranteed plant food element be changed in
29 such a manner that the crop-producing quality of the
30 [commercial] fertilizer, soil conditioner or plant growth
19770H1197B1415 - 7 -
1 substance is lowered.
2 [(d) Any facility that manufactures, mixes or mixes to the
3 customer's order any commercial fertilizer material offered for
4 sale, sold or distributed, in Pennsylvania must first obtain a
5 fertilizer manufacturing license from the Secretary of
6 Agriculture.]
7 (d) Every person or business entity who owns or operates a
8 manufacturing facility producing fertilizers, soil conditioners,
9 or plant grown substances offered for sale, sold or distributed
10 in Pennsylvania, or under whose name appears on the label of
11 these products are offered for sale, sold or distributed in
12 Pennsylvania shall obtain a license.
13 (e) Said licensee shall at all times produce [an intimate
14 and] a uniform mixture of [commercial] fertilizer materials.
15 When two or more fertilizer materials are delivered in the same
16 load, they shall be [intimately and] uniformly mixed unless they
17 are in separate compartments.
18 (f) Any person who mixes to the customer's order must
19 furnish to the purchaser and consumer an invoice or delivery
20 ticket showing:
21 (1) The name and address of the person guaranteeing the
22 fertilizer;
23 (2) The weight and guaranteed analysis of each of the
24 fertilizer materials used in the [intimate] mixture or delivered
25 in each of the separate compartments in the load; and
26 (3) The guaranteed analysis of the mixture as required in
27 section 3 (a) (3) above.
28 (g) [Any licensee required to be licensed in subsection (d)
29 hereof, who sells only registered grades, shall pay a ten dollar
30 ($10) license fee as well as a registration fee for grades not
19770H1197B1415 - 8 -
1 previously registered, and all other licensees shall pay a
2 twenty dollar ($20) license fee.] The annual license fee as
3 required by section 3(d) shall be twenty-five dollars ($25).
4 Fees so collected shall be paid into the State Treasury and
5 shall be credited to the general government operations
6 appropriation of the Department of Agriculture for the payment
7 of the cost of inspection, sampling, and analysis, and other
8 expenses necessary for the administration of this act [and other
9 acts specified by the General Assembly]. Said license fee shall
10 be paid annually on July 1.
11 (h) A distributor shall not be required to register a
12 [commercial] fertilizer formulated according to specifications
13 which are furnished by a consumer prior to mixing, but shall be
14 required to label such fertilizer as provided in section 3 (f).
15 Section 5. Section 4 of the act, amended June 24, 1965
16 (P.L.144, No.98), is amended to read:
17 Section 4. Labeling.--(a) Any [commercial] fertilizer, soil
18 conditioner or plant growth substance offered for sale or sold
19 or distributed in this [State] Commonwealth in bags, [barrels,]
20 or other containers, shall have placed on or affixed to the
21 container in written or printed form the net weight and the
22 information required [by clauses (1), (2) and (3) of] in
23 subsection (a) of section 3 for specialty fertilizer,
24 fertilizer, soil conditioners or plant growth substances, either
25 (1) on tags affixed to the end of the package between the ears
26 or the sewed end, or (2) directly on the package in which case,
27 for bags containing fifty pounds or more, the grade shall appear
28 also on the end or on the face of the package in type that is
29 plainly legible.
30 (b) If distributed in bulk, a written or printed statement
19770H1197B1415 - 9 -
1 of the weight and the information required by [clauses (1), (2)
2 and (3) of subsection (a) of section 3] section4(a), shall
3 accompany delivery and be supplied to the purchaser.
4 (c) Fertilizer materials mixed to customer's order shall be
5 labeled in accordance with subsection (f) of section 3.
6 (d) Fertilizer in bulk storage shall be identified with a
7 label attached to the storage bin or container giving the name
8 and grade of the product.
9 Section 6. Section 5 of the act, amended August 12, 1971
10 (P.L.331, No.85), is amended to read:
11 Section 5. Inspection Fees; Reports.--[(a) There shall be
12 paid to the secretary for all commercial fertilizers offered for
13 sale, sold or distributed in this State an inspection fee at the
14 rate of ten cents ($.10) per ton, or at a rate to be determined
15 by the Secretary of Agriculture, which is adequate for the
16 payment of the costs of inspection, sampling and analysis, and
17 other expenses necessary for the administration of this act. The
18 maximum rate, as determined by the secretary, shall not exceed
19 ten cents ($.10) per ton. Inspection fees shall not be paid for
20 sales to manufacturers or exchanges between them. Fees so
21 collected shall be paid into the State Treasury and shall be
22 credited to the general government operations appropriation of
23 the Department of Agriculture for the payment of the cost of
24 inspection, sampling, and analysis, and other expenses necessary
25 for the administration of this act and other acts specified by
26 the General Assembly.
27 On individual packages of commercial fertilizer containing
28 twenty-five pounds or less, there shall be paid a semi-annual
29 inspection fee of ten dollars ($10) for each brand and grade
30 sold or distributed. Where a person sells commercial fertilizer
19770H1197B1415 - 10 -
1 in packages of twenty-five pounds, or less and in packages over
2 twenty-five pounds, this semi-annual inspection fee of ten
3 dollars ($10) shall apply to that portion sold in packages of
4 twenty-five pounds or less, and that portion sold in packages
5 over twenty-five pounds shall be subject to the same inspection
6 fee of ten cents ($.10) per ton as provided in this act.
7 (b) Payment of the inspection fee shall be evidenced by a
8 statement of commercial together with documents showing that
9 fees corresponding to the tonnage were received by the
10 secretary.
11 (c) Every distributor, person, manufacturer or importer of
12 commercial fertilizer in this State selling to a nonregistrant
13 shall file, in a manner prescribed by the Secretary of
14 Agriculture, not later than the last day of January and July of
15 each year, a semi-annual statement, setting forth the number of
16 net tons of commercial fertilizer distributed in this State
17 during the preceding six-months period and, upon filing such
18 statement, shall pay the inspection fee at the rate stated in
19 subsection (a) of this section.
20 If the tonnage report is not filed by January 31 or July 31,
21 a penalty amounting to ten percent minimum of ten dollars ($10)
22 shall be added to the amount of the inspection fee when payment
23 is made. This penalty fee shall not prevent the secretary from
24 taking other actions as provided in this act.] (a) The
25 registrant whose name appears on the label of all fertilizers,
26 soil conditioners and plant growth substances offered for sale,
27 sold or distributed in this Commonwealth shall pay semi-annually
28 and not later than the last day of January or July of each year
29 an inspection fee at the rate of a maximum of ten cents ($.10)
30 per ton on packages of more than twenty-five pounds.
19770H1197B1415 - 11 -
1 On packages of twenty-five pounds or less there shall be paid
2 annually and not later than the last day of January of each year
3 to the secretary for each brand and grade of fertilizer, soil
4 conditioners and plant growth substances an inspection fee of
5 twenty-five dollars ($25) per brand, grade. If the registrant
6 whose name appears on the label sells or offers for sale or
7 distributes fertilizers, soil conditioners and plant growth
8 substances in this Commonwealth in both packages of less and
9 more than twenty-five pounds the twenty-five dollars ($25)
10 should be paid for its brand and grades sold in packages of
11 twenty-five pounds or less, and the ten cents ($.10) per ton fee
12 shall be paid for its packages of more than twenty-five pounds.
13 Fees so collected shall be paid into the State Treasury and
14 shall be credited to the General Government Operations
15 Appropriation to the Department of Agriculture for the payment
16 of the cost of inspections, sampling and analyses and other
17 expenses necessary for the administration of this act.
18 (b) The person whose name appears on the label shall submit,
19 along with an inspection fee, a report in a manner prescribed by
20 the secretary listing the net tons of each brand and grade by
21 counties of all fertilizers, soil conditioners and plant growth
22 substances sold or distributed in this Commonwealth for the
23 period of the inspection fee.
24 The secretary or his authorized representative may examine
25 the records of the submitting person to verify the information
26 contained in the reports submitted under this section.
27 There is a penalty of ten dollars ($10) or ten percent of the
28 inspection fee, whichever is greater, for any fee or report not
29 submitted at the required time.
30 Section 7. Section 6 of the act, amended April 11, 1961
19770H1197B1415 - 12 -
1 (P.L.74, No.31) and August 12, 1971 (P.L.331, No.85), is amended
2 to read:
3 Section 6. Inspection, Sampling, Analysis.--(a) It shall be
4 the duty of the secretary to sample, inspect, make analysis of,
5 and test [commercial] fertilizers, soil conditioners or plant
6 growth substances distributed within this [State at]
7 Commonwealth at reasonable times and places and to such an
8 extent as he may deem necessary to determine whether such
9 [commercial] fertilizers, soil conditioners or plant growth
10 substances are in compliance with the provisions of this act.
11 The secretary may enter upon any public or private premises
12 during regular business hours in order to have access to
13 [commercial] fertilizers, soil conditioners or plant growth
14 substances subject to the provisions of this act and the rules
15 and regulations pertaining thereto.
16 (b) The methods of sampling, inspection and analysis shall
17 be those adopted in accordance with rules and regulations
18 promulgated by the Secretary of Agriculture. Such rules and
19 regulations shall establish minimum standards for such sampling,
20 inspection and analysis as well as the procedure and methods to
21 be used in making them.
22 (c) The secretary, in determining for administrative
23 purposes whether any [commercial] fertilizer is deficient in
24 plant food, shall be guided solely by the official sample as
25 defined in clause (8) of section 2, and obtained and analyzed as
26 provided for in subsection (b) of section 6.
27 (d) Upon request, the secretary shall furnish to the
28 registrant a portion of any sample found subject to penalty or
29 other legal action.
30 Section 8. Section 7 of the act, amended September 22, 1972
19770H1197B1415 - 13 -
1 (P.L.882, No.203) and August 12, 1971 (P.L.331, No.85), is
2 amended to read:
3 Section 7. Plant Nutrient Deficiency.--(a) If the analysis
4 shows that any [commercial] fertilizer falls short of the
5 guaranteed analysis in any one ingredient, a penalty of three
6 times the value of the deficiency shall be assessed by the
7 secretary against the manufacturer in accordance with tolerances
8 that the Department of Agriculture shall promulgate within one
9 year from this enactment. It is the legislative intent that the
10 Department of Agriculture, so far as practicable, adopt the
11 tolerances established in the current Model Regulations printed
12 in the annual publications of the Association of American Plant
13 Food Control Officials. Tolerances presently established in this
14 act shall apply until the new tolerances have been duly
15 promulgated by regulation.
16 Deficiencies in any other [constituent] ingredient, except
17 those covered under this section, which the registrant is
18 required to or may guarantee shall be evaluated by the secretary
19 and a penalty of three times the value of the deficiency shall
20 be assessed by the secretary.
21 (b) All penalties assessed under this section shall be paid
22 to the purchaser of the lot of [commercial] fertilizer
23 represented by the sample analyzed within three months after the
24 date of notice from the secretary to the registrant and receipts
25 evidencing payment shall be promptly forwarded to the secretary
26 by the registrant. If said purchaser cannot be found, the amount
27 of the penalty shall be paid to the State Treasurer who shall
28 deposit the same into the General Fund to be credited to the
29 general government operations appropriation of the Department of
30 Agriculture for the payment of the cost of inspection, sampling,
19770H1197B1415 - 14 -
1 and analysis, and other expenses necessary for the
2 administration of this act [and other acts specified by the
3 General Assembly].
4 Section 9. Sections 8, 9 and 10 of the act are amended to
5 read:
6 Section 8. Commercial Value.--For the purpose of determining
7 the commercial values to be applied under the provisions of
8 section 7, the secretary shall determine and publish, annually,
9 the values per pound of nitrogen, phosphoric acid, and potash in
10 [commercial] fertilizer in this [State] Commonwealth. The values
11 so determined and published shall be used in determining and
12 assessing penalties.
13 Section 9. Minimum Plant Nutrient Content.--No
14 superphosphate containing less than eighteen percent available
15 phosphoric acid nor any mixed fertilizer in which the sum of the
16 guarantees for the nitrogen, available phosphoric acid, and
17 soluble potash totals less than twenty percent shall be
18 distributed in this [State] Commonwealth, except for complete
19 fertilizers containing twenty-five percent or more of their
20 nitrogen in water-insoluble form [of plant or animal origin], in
21 which case the total nitrogen, available phosphoric acid, and
22 soluble potash shall not total less than eighteen percent. The
23 provisions of this section shall not apply to specialty
24 fertilizers nor to any fertilizer materials in which the sources
25 of nitrogen available phosphoric acid and soluble potash are
26 derived solely from organic materials.
27 Section 10. False or Misleading Statements.--A [commercial]
28 fertilizer, soil conditioner or plant growth substance is
29 misbranded, if it carries any false or misleading statement upon
30 or attached to the container, or if false or misleading
19770H1197B1415 - 15 -
1 statements concerning its [agricultural value] effects or
2 results are made on the container, or in any advertising matter
3 accompanying or associated with the [commercial] fertilizer,
4 soil conditioner or plant growth substance. It shall be unlawful
5 to distribute a misbranded [commercial] fertilizer, soil
6 conditioner or plant growth substance.
7 Section 10. Section 11 of the act is repealed.
8 Section 11. Sections 12, 13 and 14 of the act are amended to
9 read:
10 Section 12. Publications.--The secretary shall publish at
11 least annually in such forms as he may deem proper, information
12 concerning the sales of [commercial] fertilizer, soil
13 conditioners or plant growth substances, together with such data
14 on their production and use as he may consider advisable, and a
15 report of the results of the analysis based on official samples
16 of [commercial] fertilizers, soil conditioners or plant growth
17 substances sold within the [State] Commonwealth as compared with
18 the analyses guaranteed under sections 3 and 4. The information
19 concerning production and use of [commercial] fertilizers, soil
20 conditioners or plant growth substances shall be shown
21 separately for the periods July 1 to December 31 and January 1
22 to June 30 of each year, and that no disclosure shall be made of
23 the operations of any person.
24 Section 13. Rules and Regulations.--The secretary is
25 authorized to prescribe and, after public hearing following due
26 public notice, to enforce such rules and regulations relating to
27 the distribution of [commercial] fertilizers, soil conditioners
28 or plant growth substances as he may find necessary to carry
29 into effect the provisions of this act.
30 Section 14. Short Weight.--If any lot of [commercial]
19770H1197B1415 - 16 -
1 fertilizer, soil conditioners or plant growth substances in the
2 possession of the purchaser is found by the secretary to be
3 short in weight, the registrant of said [commercial] fertilizer,
4 soil conditioners or plant growth substances shall, within
5 thirty days after official notice from the secretary, pay to the
6 purchaser a penalty equal to twice the value of the actual
7 shortage.
8 Section 12. Section 15 of the act, amended June 24, 1965
9 (P.L.144, No.98), is amended to read:
10 Section 15. Cancellation of Licenses and/or Registrations.--
11 [The secretary is authorized and empowered to cancel the license
12 of any distributor or the registration of any brand of
13 commercial fertilizer or to refuse to register any brand of
14 commercial fertilizer as herein provided, upon satisfactory
15 evidence that the registrant has used fraudulent or deceptive
16 practices in the evasions or attempted evasions of the
17 provisions of this act or any rules and regulations promulgated
18 thereunder. No license or registration shall be revoked or
19 refused until the licensee or the registrant has been given the
20 opportunity to appear for a hearing by the secretary.] After a
21 hearing, the secretary may revoke, suspend or deny the issuance
22 of a license or registration under this act if he finds that the
23 applicant or holder has violated any provision of this act or of
24 the regulations adopted hereto.
25 Section 13. Section 16 of the act is amended to read:
26 Section 16. "Stop Sale" Orders.--The secretary may issue and
27 enforce a written or printed "stop sale, use, or removal" order
28 to the owner or custodian of any lot of [commercial] fertilizer,
29 soil conditioner or plant growth substance and to hold at a
30 designated place when the secretary finds the [commercial]
19770H1197B1415 - 17 -
1 fertilizer, soil conditioner or plant growth substance is being
2 offered or exposed for sale in violation of any of the
3 provisions of this act. The order shall be effective until the
4 law has been complied with and the [commercial] fertilizer, soil
5 conditioner or plant growth substance is released in writing by
6 the secretary or the violation has been otherwise legally
7 disposed of by written authority. The secretary shall release
8 the [commercial] fertilizer, soil conditioner or plant growth
9 substance so withdrawn when the requirements of the provisions
10 of this act have been complied with and all costs and expenses
11 incurred by others in connection with the withdrawal have been
12 paid by the person responsible for the violation.
13 Section 14. Section 17 of the act, amended April 3, 1968
14 (P.L.79, No.34), is amended to read:
15 Section 17. Seizure, Condemnation and Sale.--Any lot of
16 [commercial fertilizer not in compliance with the provisions of
17 this act]fertilizer, soil conditioner or plant growth substance
18 adulterated with a material harmful to plant, fish, animal or
19 human life shall be subject to seizure [on complaint of] and
20 condemnation by the secretary [to a court of competent
21 jurisdiction in the area in which the commercial fertilizer is
22 located. In the event the court finds the commercial fertilizer
23 to be in violation of this act and orders the condemnation of
24 the commercial fertilizer, it shall be disposed of in any manner
25 consistent with the quality of the commercial fertilizer and the
26 laws of the State, but in no instance shall the disposition of
27 the commercial fertilizer be ordered by the court without first
28 giving the claimant an opportunity to apply to the court for
29 release of the commercial fertilizer or for permission to
30 process or relabeled the commercial fertilizer to bring it into
19770H1197B1415 - 18 -
1 compliance with this act. If compliance is not obtained within
2 thirty days, the secretary may begin, or upon request of the
3 distributor shall begin, procedures for condemnation]. The
4 disposal of such adulterated fertilizer, soil conditioner or
5 plant growth substance shall be in a manner consistent with the
6 law and other applicable laws of the Commonwealth.
7 Section 15. Sections 18 and 19 of the act are amended to
8 read:
9 Section 18. Penalties.--Any person who violates any of the
10 provisions of this act or any rule, regulation or order made
11 pursuant to this act shall, for the first or second offense,
12 upon conviction thereof in a summary proceeding, be sentenced to
13 pay a fine of not less than [fifty dollars ($50)] one hundred
14 dollars ($100) nor more than [one hundred dollars $100] three
15 hundred dollars ($300) and costs of prosecution and, in default
16 of payment thereof, shall be sentenced to undergo imprisonment
17 for not more than thirty days, and for a third or subsequent
18 offense, if three offenses including the last offense are
19 committed within one year from the time of the first offense,
20 shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall, upon conviction
21 thereof, be sentenced to pay a fine of not less than [five
22 hundred dollars ($500)] one thousand dollars ($1000) nor more
23 than [one thousand dollars ($1000)] two thousand five hundred
24 dollars ($2,500) or to undergo imprisonment not exceeding one
25 year, or both.
26 Section 19. Exchange Between Manufacturers.--Nothing in this
27 act shall be construed to restrict or avoid sales or exchanges
28 of [commercial] fertilizers, soil conditioners or plant growth
29 substances to each other by importers or manufacturers[, or
30 manipulators] who mix fertilizer materials, soil conditioners or
19770H1197B1415 - 19 -
1 plant growth substances for sale or as preventing the free and
2 unrestricted shipments of [commercial] fertilizers, soil
3 conditioners or plant growth substances to manufacturers or
4 manipulators who have registered their brands as required by the
5 provisions of this act.
6 Section 16. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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