(1)
The commissioner is authorized to administer and enforce the provisions of this
article and any rules and regulations adopted pursuant thereto.
(2) The commissioner may adopt all reasonable rules for the administration
and enforcement of this article 9, including:
(a) Declaring to be a pest any form of plant or animal life or virus which is
injurious to plants, animals, or persons, or to land or any inanimate objects, or to the
environment;
(b) Determining that certain pesticides are highly toxic to people; except
that, in making this determination, the commissioner shall be guided by the criteria
set forth in 40 CFR 156.62, as amended;
(c) (I) Adopting a list of restricted-use pesticides or limited-use pesticides for
the state or designated areas within the state if the commissioner determines that
such pesticides require rules restricting their distribution or use. The commissioner
may include in the rule the time and conditions of the distribution or use of
restricted-use or limited-use pesticides and may require that any such pesticide be
purchased, possessed, or used only under permit of the commissioner and under
the commissioner's supervision. The commissioner may require all persons issued
such permits to maintain records regarding the use of such pesticides.
(II) Nothing in this paragraph (c) shall require the commissioner to adopt a
list of pesticides which are registered by the EPA pursuant to section 18 or 24 (c) of
the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, as amended, or are
restricted by the EPA pursuant to section 3 of said act.
(d) Determining standards for denaturing any pesticides, including, but not
limited to, any arsenicals, fluorides, or fluosilicates by color, taste, odor, or form;
(e) The collection and examination of samples of pesticides or devices;
(f) The safe handling, transportation, storage, display, distribution, and
disposal of pesticides and their containers; except that, with respect to the
adoption of rules or regulations concerning the transportation of pesticides or the
disposal of pesticides and their containers, such rules shall be promulgated in
concert with, and shall not be duplicative of, rules adopted by the department of
transportation and the department of public health and environment, respectively;
(g) Restricting or prohibiting the use of certain types or sizes of containers or
packages for specific pesticides; except that the commissioner shall be guided by
federal regulations concerning pesticide containers;
(h) Determining labeling requirements for all pesticides required to be
registered under the provisions of this article and any rules or regulations adopted
pursuant thereto;
(i) Classifying or subclassifying any pesticide registration, device
registration, or pesticide dealer license.
(2.5) (a) The commissioner shall expedite, to the extent practicable and
efficient, the processing of applications for the issuance of a special local needs
registration made pursuant to section 24 (c) of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide,
and Rodenticide Act, as amended.
(b) Notwithstanding section 35-9-113 (1)(b)(IV)(D), the commissioner shall not
deny registration of a pesticide product pursuant to this article for which a special
local needs registration has been issued pursuant to section 24 (c) of the Federal
Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, as amended, for the reason that a
contract between a grower or grower's group and a manufacturer or seller includes
contractual provisions limiting liability of the manufacturer or seller.
(3) (a) The commissioner shall promulgate rules, pursuant to article 4 of title
24, to determine the annual registration fee for each pesticide registered. For the
purpose of funding the department of agriculture's state waters protection efforts,
the fee must include an increment as approved by the agricultural commission in
consultation with the advisory committee created in section 35-10-125, which
increment, along with the remainder of the fee, shall be collected by the
commissioner and transmitted to the state treasurer, who shall credit the same to
the plant health, pest control, and environmental protection cash fund created in
section 35-1-106.3.
(b) The commissioner shall promulgate rules and regulations, pursuant to
article 4 of title 24, C.R.S., to determine the amount of any licensing, renewal, or
penalty fee authorized under this article.
(4) The commissioner is authorized to enter into cooperative agreements
with any agency or political subdivisions of this state or any other state, or with any
agency of the United States government, for the purpose of carrying out the
provisions of this article, receiving grants-in-aid, securing uniformity of rules, and
entering into reciprocal registration and licensing agreements.
(4.5) Repealed.
(5) The powers and duties vested in the commissioner by this article may be
delegated to qualified employees of the department.
(6) The commissioner is authorized to conduct hearings required under
sections 35-9-121 and 35-9-122 pursuant to article 4 of title 24, C.R.S., and to use
administrative law judges to conduct such hearings when their use would result in a
net saving of costs to the department.
(7) (a) On or before January 1, 2024, the commissioner shall adopt rules
requiring neonicotinoid pesticides to be designated as limited-use pesticides.
(b) On or before July 1, 2024, the commissioner shall adopt rules requiring
neonicotinoid pesticides to be sold only by dealers licensed pursuant to section 35-9-114.
(c) Subsections (7)(a) and (7)(b) of this section, and rules that the
commissioner adopts pursuant to those subsections, do not apply to pesticide
products containing neonicotinoid active ingredients:
(I) That are used in academic research; or
(II) For which the product label includes one or more of the following
intended uses:
(A) As a pet care product;
(B) As a veterinary product used by a veterinarian licensed pursuant to
article 315 of title 12 as part of the veterinarian's licensed practice;
(C) As an indoor pest control product;
(D) As a personal care product used for preventing, destroying, repelling, or
mitigating lice;
(E) As a product used in structural insulation;
(F) As a preserved wood product or product used in the manufacturing of
wood preservatives;
(G) As a bait product, including, but not limited to, bait station traps and
scatter bait; or
(H) As an insect strip.