Title 3, AGRICULTURE

Infected shipments, apiaries where the existing disease cannot be successfully treated and apiaries which are affected by disease amenable to treatment but which have not been treated within a period of 14 days after the owner thereof has received notice of the necessary treatmen…

(a) Infected colonies, hives or appliances.--No person shall knowingly keep in his possession without proper treatment any colony of bees affected with any bee disease or expose any diseased colony or infected hive or appliance so that flying bees may have access to them. (b) Inf…

The department, the chief apiary inspector and any apiary inspector shall have free access, ingress and egress to and from any apiary, premises, building or other place, public or private, in which bees, queen bees, wax, honey, hives or appliances may be kept or stored. No person…

No person shall transport bees, hives or appliances into this Commonwealth unless they are accompanied with a certificate of inspection signed by the chief apiary inspector or corresponding inspection official of the state or county from which the bees are being transported. The …

No person shall import any living insects belonging to the genus Apis from any foreign country except Canada for any purpose without written permission from the department.

(a) First violation.--A first violation of this chapter or any order or regulation promulgated under this chapter constitutes a summary offense punishable by a fine of not less than $100. (b) Second violation.--A second violation of this chapter or any order or regulation promulg…

(a) Assessment.--The department may assess a civil penalty of not more than $1,000 upon a person for each violation. (b) Contest.--If a civil penalty is assessed against a person under subsection (a), the department shall notify the person by certified mail of the nature of the v…

The Attorney General at the request of the department may initiate in the Commonwealth Court or the court of common pleas of the county in which the defendant resides or has a place of business an action in equity for an injunction to restrain any violation of this chapter or any…

The penalties and remedies prescribed by this chapter are concurrent. The existence or exercise of any remedy shall not prevent the exercise of any other remedy under this chapter.

Moneys received from registration fees, fines and civil penalties shall be paid into the State Treasury and shall be credited to the general government operations appropriation of the Department of Agriculture for administering the provisions of this chapter.

This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the Domestic Animal Law.

The General Assembly finds that animal health is of major economic interest in this Commonwealth. It is the declared policy of the Commonwealth to assure the health and welfare of animals kept in captivity, to prevent and control diseases and dangerous substances that may threate…

The following words and phrases when used in this chapter shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the context clearly indicates otherwise: "Agent." A person, firm, association, partnership or corporation buying or receiving or soliciting or negotiating the sa…

The department may establish, maintain or fund, to the extent that funding is available, such domestic animal disease diagnostic services and research activities as are required to prevent, suppress, control and eradicate transmissible diseases of domestic animals, to protect the…

The department shall have authority to regulate the keeping and handling of domestic animals to exclude or contain dangerous transmissible diseases and hazardous substances and to protect the environment, including the authority to require the establishment of an agricultural bio…

The department shall have authority to impose requirements and methods for the identification of domestic animals owned, kept, possessed or transported within this Commonwealth. The department shall authorize and record the adoption and exclusive use of unique identification mark…

(a) General authority.--A domestic animal owner may adopt a brand, tattoo or other form of identification with which to identify domestic animals owned by such person through the procedure set forth in this subchapter. A form of identification recorded in compliance with this sub…

(a) Issuance.--If a form of identification is recorded, the department shall furnish its owner with two certified copies of the record of the form of identification. Upon receipt of written evidence of the sale, assignment or transfer of a form of identification, the department s…

In all suits at law or in equity or in any criminal proceedings in which the title to domestic animals is an issue, the certified copies recorded pursuant to section 2313 (relating to certified copies) shall be prima facie evidence of the ownership of the domestic animal by the p…

Disputes in custody or ownership of domestic animals that bear brands, tattoos or other forms of identification shall be investigated on request by the sheriff of the county where the domestic animals are located. The sheriff may call upon the services of a licensed veterinarian …

Any form of identification recorded pursuant to this subchapter shall be the property of the person causing such record to be made and shall be subject to sale, assignment, transfer, devise and descent as personal property. Instruments of writing evidencing the sale, assignment o…

(a) Unauthorized brands.--It shall be unlawful for a person to use any brand for the branding of domestic animals unless the brand has been recorded pursuant to this subchapter or unless the use of a brand or the branding procedure is authorized under any other provision of this …

An owner of a form of identification of record shall pay the department a fee of $5 on January 1 of every fifth year from the year in which the form of identification was recorded with the department as that owner's property. This fee may be changed by the department through regu…

(a) Specific dangerous transmissible diseases.--The following transmissible diseases are dangerous transmissible diseases within the meaning of this chapter: (1) Actinomycosis, an infectious disease of cattle and man caused by Actinomyces bovis. (2) African horse sickness, an inf…

If a neoplastic disease, metabolic disease or heritable disease is determined by the department to pose a threat to domestic animal health or to the economic well-being of the domestic animal industries, then the department may establish regulations addressing any discovery, prev…

(a) Interstate and intrastate movement of domestic animals.--The department may establish identification and minimum health standards for the importation or the intrastate movement of domestic animals in this Commonwealth and may establish procedures for certification of the heal…

(a) General authority.--The department shall have the authority and the duty to protect the food supply of domestic animals in order to prevent the transmission of diseases and substances hazardous to human health or domestic animal health. (b) Carcasses used for animal feed.--No…

(a) Authority.--The department shall have the authority to regulate the manufacture, sale or administration of any biological product intended for diagnostic, preventive or therapeutic purposes with domestic animals. The department may establish regulations to control the product…

The department shall have the authority to establish standards of sanitation for the operation and maintenance of any facility, conveyance, equipment, building or other means of housing, containing or transporting domestic animals. Sanitation standards shall be established to min…

(a) General authority.--The department shall have the authority to regularly monitor the domestic animal population of this Commonwealth to determine the prevalence, incidence and location of transmissible diseases or contamination by hazardous substances. (b) Duty to report.--It…

In the performance of the duties required by this chapter, the department may at any time enter any premises or stop and detain any vehicle or conveyance. If entry shall be refused or delayed by any person, the department's employee or agent may, upon oath or affirmation, declare…

(a) Power to establish and enforce.--Whenever a dangerous transmissible disease or contamination by hazardous substances exists anywhere within or outside of this Commonwealth, or whenever it is deemed advisable to test or treat any domestic animal upon the reasonable suspicion t…

The department shall have the authority to condemn and seize or cause to be destroyed any quarantined domestic animal, domestic animal product, conveyance or other quarantined article that has been determined by the department as having been exposed to a dangerous transmissible d…

(a) In general.--Whenever a condemned domestic animal, domestic animal product or other condemned property is slaughtered or destroyed by order of the department to eradicate or prevent the spread of dangerous transmissible disease or contamination by a hazardous substance, the d…

(a) Generally.--If a domestic animal, domestic animal product or other property has not been condemned under authority of this chapter, the department shall have the discretion to pay to the owner of any domestic animal or other property a sum which shall not exceed 33% of the ap…

(a) Generally.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, indemnification under section 2331 (relating to indemnification) and depopulation incentive under section 2332 (relating to depopulation incentive) shall be paid only for domestic animals. (b) Avian influenza.--Notwithst…

On or before 12 months from the effective date of this chapter, the department shall submit to the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee of the Senate and the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives a report on the feasibility of establishing an …

On or before 12 months from the effective date of this chapter, the department shall submit to the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee of the Senate and the Agriculture and Rural Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives a report regarding the feasibility of paying a …

The department may require a dealer, agent or person that offers a domestic animal, commercial feed or pet food for sale to the public to provide a posted notice on the premises with information on a dangerous transmissible disease. (May 8, 2024, P.L.359, No.15, eff. imd.) 2024 A…

The department shall have authority to regulate the activities, facilities and equipment of domestic animal or dead domestic animal dealers, agents and haulers for the purpose of assuring the sanitary handling of dead domestic animals and the sanitary handling, marketing and exch…

(a) Requirement.--No person shall engage in or carry on the business of a dealer or hauler of domestic animals or of dead domestic animals or act as an agent for a dealer or hauler, unless such person is duly licensed by the department. With respect to dealers of dogs, the requir…

(a) General rule.--Except as provided in subsection (b), a domestic animal or dead domestic animal dealer or hauler who applies for or holds a dealer's or hauler's license may designate any person to act as an agent on behalf of that dealer or hauler. The designation shall be mad…

An applicant for a license under this subchapter shall sign the license application, and such signature shall serve to affirm that the information contained in the application is true and correct. An application and the information contained therein for licensure under this chapt…

The fee for a domestic animal or dead domestic animal dealer's or hauler's license is $50. If a person is a dealer of dogs and is licensed under the act of December 7, 1982 (P.L.784, No.225), known as the Dog Law, there shall be no fee for licensure under this section. The fee fo…

A license issued under this subchapter shall expire at the end of the calendar year for which it was issued, except that licensure shall be continued, pending renewal or denial by the department if the renewal application is received by the department no later than December 1 of …

Any person licensed under this subchapter and conducting business under such a license shall post a copy of the license furnished by the department in or at the place of business of the licensee. The license shall be posted and exposed for viewing by those persons conducting the …