§7715 Declaration of extraordinary emergency and resulting authorities

Summary

The Secretary can act when a plant pest or noxious weed that is new to, or not widely spread in, the United States threatens U.S. plants or plant products. The Secretary can hold, seize, quarantine, treat, destroy, or otherwise deal with infected plants, biological control organisms, plant products, related articles, or vehicles. The Secretary can quarantine buildings, areas, or whole States or parts of States, and can limit movement inside a State to stop spread. The Secretary must first review the situation and talk with the Governor or other State official and decide the State’s efforts are not enough. Before acting, the Secretary must tell the Governor, make a public announcement, and file a notice in the Federal Register saying what was found, what will be done, why, and, when possible, how long it may last. If filing first is impossible, the filing must be made within 10 business days after starting action. Destroying, exporting, or returning things must be a last resort if no less harsh option will work. The Secretary may pay people for economic losses, and the Secretary’s decision on the amount is final and not open to court review or review by other federal officials except the Secretary or the Secretary’s designee.