| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to honeybees; amending s. 586.10, F.S.; |
| 3 | revising the powers and duties of the Department of |
| 4 | Agriculture and Consumer Services for purposes of the |
| 5 | Florida Honey Certification and Honeybee Law; specifying |
| 6 | that the department has exclusive authority over |
| 7 | regulations, inquiries, and complaints relating to |
| 8 | beekeeping, apiaries, and apiary locations; providing an |
| 9 | effective date. |
| 10 |
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| 11 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 12 |
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| 13 | Section 1. Section 586.10, Florida Statutes, is amended to |
| 14 | read: |
| 15 | 586.10 Powers and duties of department.- |
| 16 | (1) The department has shall have the powers and duties |
| 17 | to: |
| 18 | (a)(1) Administer and enforce the provisions of this |
| 19 | chapter. |
| 20 | (b)(2) Adopt Promulgate rules necessary to the enforcement |
| 21 | of this chapter. |
| 22 | (c)(3) Adopt Promulgate rules relating to standard grades |
| 23 | for honey and other honeybee products. |
| 24 | (d)(4) Enter upon any public or private premise or carrier |
| 25 | during regular business hours for the purpose of inspection, |
| 26 | quarantine, destruction, or treatment of honeybees, used |
| 27 | beekeeping equipment, unwanted races of honeybees, or regulated |
| 28 | articles. |
| 29 | (e)(5) Declare a honeybee pest or unwanted race of |
| 30 | honeybees to be a nuisance to the beekeeping industry as well as |
| 31 | any honeybee or other article infested or infected therewith or |
| 32 | that has been exposed to infestation or infection in a manner |
| 33 | believed likely to communicate the infection or infestation. |
| 34 | (f)(6) Declare a quarantine against any area, place, or |
| 35 | political unit within this state or other states, territories, |
| 36 | or foreign countries, or portion thereof, in reference to |
| 37 | honeybee pests or unwanted races of honeybees and prohibit the |
| 38 | movement within this state from other states, territories, or |
| 39 | foreign countries of all honeybees, honeybee products, used |
| 40 | beekeeping equipment, or other articles from such quarantined |
| 41 | places or areas which are likely to carry honeybee pests or |
| 42 | unwanted races of honeybees if the quarantine is determined, |
| 43 | after due investigation, to be necessary in order to protect |
| 44 | this state's beekeeping industry, honeybees, and the public. In |
| 45 | such cases, the quarantine may be made absolute or rules may be |
| 46 | adopted prescribing the method and manner under which the |
| 47 | prohibited articles may be moved into or within, sold in, or |
| 48 | otherwise disposed of in this state. |
| 49 | (g)(7) Enter into cooperative arrangements with any |
| 50 | person, municipality, county, or other department of this state |
| 51 | or any agency, officer, or authority of other states or the |
| 52 | United States Government, including the United States Department |
| 53 | of Agriculture, for inspection of honeybees, honeybee pests, or |
| 54 | unwanted races of honeybees and products thereof and the control |
| 55 | or eradication of honeybee pests and unwanted races of |
| 56 | honeybees, and contribute a share of the expenses incurred under |
| 57 | such arrangements. |
| 58 | (h)(8) Carry on investigations of methods of control, |
| 59 | eradication, and prevention of dissemination of honeybee pests |
| 60 | or unwanted races of honeybees. |
| 61 | (i)(9) Inspect or cause to be inspected all apiaries in |
| 62 | the state at such intervals as it may deem best and to keep a |
| 63 | complete, accurate, and current list of all inspected apiaries |
| 64 | to include the: |
| 65 | 1.(a) Name of the apiary. |
| 66 | 2.(b) Name of the owner of the apiary. |
| 67 | 3.(c) Mailing address of the apiary owner. |
| 68 | 4.(d) Location of the apiary. |
| 69 | 5.(e) Number of hives in the apiary. |
| 70 | 6.(f) Pest problems associated with the apiary. |
| 71 | 7.(g) Brands used by beekeepers where applicable. |
| 72 | (j)(10) Collect or accept from other agencies or |
| 73 | individuals specimens of arthropods, nematodes, fungi, bacteria, |
| 74 | or other organisms for identification. |
| 75 | (k)(11) Confiscate, destroy, or make use of abandoned |
| 76 | beehives or beekeeping equipment. |
| 77 | (l)(12) Require the identification of ownership of |
| 78 | apiaries. |
| 79 | (m)(13) Enter into a compliance agreement with any person |
| 80 | engaged in purchasing, assembling, exchanging, processing, |
| 81 | utilizing, treating, or moving beekeeping equipment or |
| 82 | honeybees. |
| 83 | (n)(14) Make and issue to beekeepers certificates of |
| 84 | registration and inspection, following proper inspection and |
| 85 | certification of their honeybee colonies. |
| 86 | (2)(15) If the department determines that a beekeeper or |
| 87 | honeybee product processor is selling or offering for sale or is |
| 88 | distributing or offering to distribute honeybees, honeybee |
| 89 | products, or beekeeping equipment in violation of this chapter |
| 90 | or rules adopted under this chapter, or has aided or abetted in |
| 91 | the violation, the department may revoke or suspend her or his |
| 92 | certificate of inspection or the use of any certificate or |
| 93 | permit issued by the department. |
| 94 | (3)(16) The department may refuse the certification of any |
| 95 | honeybees, honeybee products, or beekeeping equipment when it is |
| 96 | determined that an unwanted race of honeybees exists, or |
| 97 | honeybee pests exist on honeybees, honeybee products, or |
| 98 | beekeeping equipment, or that the condition of the apiary |
| 99 | inhibits a thorough and efficient inspection by the department. |
| 100 | (4)(17) The department is authorized to conduct, |
| 101 | supervise, or cause the fumigation, destruction, or treatment of |
| 102 | honeybees, including unwanted races of honeybees, honeybee |
| 103 | products, and used beekeeping equipment or other articles |
| 104 | infested or infected by honeybee pests or unwanted races of |
| 105 | honeybees or so exposed to infection or infestation that it is |
| 106 | reasonably believed that infection or infestation could exist. |
| 107 | (5)(18) The department may require the removal from this |
| 108 | state of any honeybees or beekeeping equipment which has been |
| 109 | brought into the state in violation of this chapter or the rules |
| 110 | adopted under this chapter. |
| 111 | (6) The department has the exclusive authority to regulate |
| 112 | beekeeping, apiaries, and apiary locations and to dispense with |
| 113 | any inquiry or complaint relating to beekeeping, apiaries, or |
| 114 | apiary locations. |
| 115 | Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2010. |