AN ACT BANNING PESTICIDE USE ON SCHOOL GROUNDS.

1. expands a ban on applying lawn care pesticides to school playing fields and playgrounds to schools with students through grade eight;

2. extends, for one year, an exemption for pesticides applied on these grounds according to certain integrated pest management plans (IPMs);

3. expands a school superintendent's ability to authorize emergency applications of lawn care pesticides in health emergencies to any public school, apparently with students through grade eight, instead of just a public elementary school; and

4. makes the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) responsible for administering and enforcing school pesticide applications.

Under current law, the commissioner may designate DEP officers or employees to enforce pesticide laws by, among other things, observing pesticide applications, inspecting equipment, obtaining pesticide samples, and verifying applicator certifications. The bill (1) permits the commissioner to authorize any such enforcement actions only within available appropriations, and (2) authorizes her to designate officers and employees to enforce school pesticide applications.

By law, the commissioner (1) must annually review a sampling of state department, agency, or institution pest control management plans required by regulation and (2) may review any application of pesticides at the departments, agencies, or institutions to determine whether they used IPM at their facilities if the commissioner has provided a model IPM plan pertaining to those facilities. The bill applies these provisions to schools and requires that the commissioner's annual review of department, agency, institution, and school pest control management plans be conducted within available appropriations.

*House Amendment “A” adds the provisions placing the application of pesticides at school under DEP control and supervision.

*Senate Amendment “A” requires the commissioner to enforce pesticide laws and conduct annual reviews of pest control management plans within available appropriations.

Current law bars anyone from applying a lawn care pesticide on the grounds of public and private preschools and elementary schools, except that pesticides can be applied until July 1, 2008 on their playing fields and playgrounds according to an integrated pest management plan (IPM). The bill expands the ban to public and private schools with students through grade eight and extends the IPM exemption for one year, to July 1, 2009. The IPM plan may be developed by a local or regional school board for public schools it controls and must be consistent with DEP's model pest control management plan.

Regardless of the ban, current law allows emergency applications of lawn care pesticides on public and private preschool and elementary school grounds to eliminate a threat to human health, as determined by the local health director, public health or environmental protection commissioner, or school superintendent in the case of a public elementary school. The bill extends a school superintendent's authority to determine a health threat to any public school, apparently with students through grade eight.

The bill gives DEP the authority, under the Connecticut Pesticide Control Act (CGS § 22a-46 et seq. ), to administer and enforce the laws concerning school pesticide applications, within available appropriations. These laws include registration, notice, and record-keeping provisions, in addition to the provisions concerning the applications themselves. The bill makes it unlawful to violate the school pesticide statutes and applies Pesticide Control Act penalties to violators, as follows.

1. Any registrant, commercial applicator, uncertified person who performs or advertises or solicits to perform commercial application, wholesaler, dealer, retailer, or other distributor who knowingly violates the law may be fined up to $ 5,000, imprisoned for up to one year, or both.

2. A private applicator or other person, not included in the above categories, who knowingly violates the law may be fined up to $ 1,000, jailed for up to 30 days, or both.

In addition, under the bill, the action, omission, or failure to act of any officer, agent, or other person acting for or working for any person is deemed to be the action, omission, or failure to act of the employer as well as the employee.

The bill also authorizes the attorney general, on the complaint of the DEP commissioner, to seek a civil penalty in Hartford Superior Court against violators of up to $ 2,500 per day for each day a violation continues.

By law, state agencies, departments, and institutions must use IPM at facilities they control if the DEP commissioner has provided a model IPM plan pertaining to those facilities. The law allows each agency, department, or institution that enters into a contract for pest control and pesticide application to revise and maintain its bidding procedures to require contractors to supply IPM services.

The bill allows schools to revise and maintain their bidding procedures to require contractors to supply IPM services. It authorizes DEP to (1) within available appropriations, annually review a sampling of department, agency, institution and school pest control management plans and (2) review any school pesticide application to determine if it used IPM as the law requires.

IPM means the use of all available pest control techniques, including judicious use of pesticides, when warranted, to maintain a pest population at or below an acceptable level, while decreasing thee unnecessary use of pesticides (CGS § 22a-47 (dd)).

Yea

Nay

(03/19/2007)

Yea

Nay

(04/18/2007)