Title 15 — Title 15 AGRICULTURE AND MARKETING
49 chapters · 1,005 sections in this title.
RCW 15.54.265 Intent—1998 c 36.
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(1) The legislature intends to strengthen the state's fertilizer adulteration laws to protect human health and the environment by:(a) Ensuring that all fertilizers meet standards for allowable metals;(b) Allowing fertilizer purchasers and users to know about the contents of ferti…
RCW 15.54.270 Definitions.
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The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter unless the context clearly requires otherwise.(1) "Brand" means a term, design, or trademark used in connection with the distribution and sale of one or more grades of commercial fertilizers.(2) "Bulk fertilizer" means…
RCW 15.54.275 Bulk fertilizer distribution license—Fee.
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(1) No person may distribute a bulk fertilizer in this state until a license to distribute has been obtained by that person. An annual license is required for each out-of-state or in-state location that distributes bulk fertilizer in Washington state. An application for each loca…
RCW 15.54.325 Commercial fertilizer registration—Required for distribution—Application—Fees.
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(1) No person may distribute in this state a commercial fertilizer until it has been registered with the department by the producer, importer, or packager of that product.(2) An application for registration must be made on a form furnished by the department and must include the f…
RCW 15.54.330 Commercial fertilizer registration—Application review—Labels and guarantees.
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(1) The department shall examine the commercial fertilizer product registration application form and labels for conformance with the requirements of this chapter. If the application and appropriate labels are in proper form and contain the required information, the particular com…
RCW 15.54.340 Labeling requirements.
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(1) Any packaged commercial fertilizer distributed in this state that is not a customer-formula fertilizer must have placed on or affixed to the package a label stating in clearly legible and conspicuous form the following information:(a) The net weight;(b) The product name, bran…
RCW 15.54.350 Inspection fees.
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(1) There shall be paid to the department for all commercial fertilizers distributed in this state to nonregistrants or nonlicensees an inspection fee of twenty cents per ton of lime and thirty-five cents per ton of all other commercial fertilizer distributed during the year begi…
RCW 15.54.362 Reports—Inspection fees—Late fees—Confidentiality—Penalty—Exception.
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(1) Every registrant or licensee who distributes commercial fertilizer in this state must file a semiannual report on forms provided by the department stating the number of net tons of each commercial fertilizer distributed in this state.(a) For the period January 1st through Jun…
RCW 15.54.370 Official samples—Inspection, analysis, testing—Right of entry.
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(1) It shall be the duty of the department to inspect, sample, make analysis of, and test commercial fertilizers distributed within this state at such time and place and to such an extent as it may deem necessary to determine whether such fertilizers are in compliance with the pr…
RCW 15.54.380 Penalties for deficiencies upon analysis of commercial fertilizers—Appeal—Disposition of penalties.
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(1) If the analysis shall show that any commercial fertilizer falls short of the guaranteed analysis in any one plant nutrient or in total nutrients, penalty shall be assessed in favor of the department in accordance with the following provisions:(a) A penalty of three times the …
RCW 15.54.390 Determination and publication of commercial values—Use in assessment of penalty payments.
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For the purpose of determining the commercial value to be applied under the provisions of RCW 15.54.380, the department shall determine and publish the values per unit of nitrogen, available phosphoric acid, and soluble potash in commercial fertilizers in this state. The values s…
RCW 15.54.400 Restrictions on sale—Minimum percentages.
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No superphosphate containing less than eighteen percent of available phosphoric acid may be sold or offered for sale in this state. Specialty fertilizers, except manipulated animal and vegetable manures, guaranteeing less than five percent total plant food shall contain on the la…
RCW 15.54.412 Misbranding.
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No person may distribute misbranded commercial fertilizer. A commercial fertilizer shall be deemed to be misbranded:(1) If its labeling bears any statement, design, or graphic representation relative thereto or to its ingredients which is false or misleading in any particular;(2)…
RCW 15.54.414 Adulteration.
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No person may distribute an adulterated commercial fertilizer. A commercial fertilizer is adulterated:(1) If it contains any deleterious or harmful substance in sufficient amount to render it injurious to beneficial plant life when applied in accordance with directions for use on…
RCW 15.54.420 Unlawful acts.
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It shall be unlawful for any person to:(1) Distribute an adulterated or misbranded commercial fertilizer;(2) Fail, refuse, or neglect to place upon or attach to each package of distributed commercial fertilizer a label containing all of the information required by this chapter;(3…
RCW 15.54.430 Publication of distribution information, analyses results.
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The department shall publish at least annually and in such form as it may deem proper (1) information concerning the distribution of commercial fertilizers and (2) results of analyses based on official samples as compared with the analyses guaranteed.[ 1967 ex.s. c 22 s 31.]
RCW 15.54.433 Fertilizer database—Public availability—Biennial report to legislature.
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(1) The department shall maintain a fertilizer database that includes the information required for registration under RCW 15.54.325 and 15.54.330.(2) Except for confidential information under RCW 15.54.362 regarding fertilizer tonnages distributed in the state, information in the…
RCW 15.54.436 Cancellation of license to distribute or of registration—Refusal to register if fraudulent or deceptive practices used—Opportunity for hearing.
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The department may cancel the license to distribute commercial fertilizer or registration of any commercial fertilizer product or refuse to license a distributor or register any commercial fertilizer product as provided in this chapter due to:(1) An incomplete or insufficient lic…
RCW 15.54.440 "Stop sale," "stop use," or "withdrawal from distribution" order, when issued—Release—Associated costs.
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(1) Commercial fertilizers that are not registered in Washington state or that fail to meet the Washington standards for total metals pose an emergency situation because they may contain certain metals at levels which are harmful to Washington soils and plants and may contain sub…
RCW 15.54.450 Noncompliance—Seizure—Disposition—Associated costs.
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(1) Any lot of commercial fertilizer not in compliance with the provisions of this chapter shall be subject to seizure on complaint of the department to a court of competent jurisdiction in the area in which the commercial fertilizer is located.(2) Any commercial fertilizer that …
RCW 15.54.460 Damages from administrative action, stop sales or seizures.
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No state court shall allow the recovery of damages from administrative action taken or for stop sales or seizures under RCW 15.54.440 and 15.54.450 if the court finds that there was probable cause for such action.[ 1967 ex.s. c 22 s 34.]
RCW 15.54.470 Violations—Department discretion—Duty of prosecuting attorney—Injunctions.
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(1) Except for violations of RCW 15.54.500, any person who violates any provision of this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and the fines collected shall be disposed of as provided under RCW 15.54.480.(2) Nothing in this chapter shall be considered as requiring the depart…
RCW 15.54.474 Penalty—Failure to comply with chapter or rule.
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Every person who fails to comply with this chapter, or any rule adopted under it, may be subjected to a civil penalty, as determined by the director, in an amount of not more than seven thousand five hundred dollars for every such violation. Each and every such violation shall be…
RCW 15.54.480 Disposition of moneys.
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(1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, all moneys collected under the provisions of this chapter shall be paid to the director and deposited in an account within the agricultural local fund. Such deposits shall be used only in the administration and enforcement…
RCW 15.54.490 Cooperation with other entities.
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The director may cooperate with and enter into agreements with other governmental agencies, whether of this state, other states, or agencies of the federal government, and with private associations, in order to carry out the purposes and provisions of this chapter.[ 1967 ex.s. c …
RCW 15.54.500 Turf fertilizer—Prohibitions on application, sales, and retail display.
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(1) A person may not:(a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, apply turf fertilizer that is labeled as containing phosphorus to turf;(b) Apply turf fertilizer labeled as containing phosphorus to turf when the ground is frozen;(c) Intentionally apply turf fertilizer label…
RCW 15.54.800 Enforcement of chapter—Adoption of rules.
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(1) The director shall administer and enforce the provisions of this chapter and any rules adopted under this chapter. All authority and requirements provided for in chapter 34.05 RCW apply to this chapter in the adoption of rules.(2) The director may adopt appropriate rules for …
RCW 15.54.820 Department of ecology—Waste-derived or micronutrient fertilizer—Standards—Written decision—Appeal of decision.
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(1) After receipt from the department of the completed application required by RCW 15.54.325, the department of ecology shall evaluate whether the use of the proposed waste-derived fertilizer or the micronutrient fertilizer as defined in RCW 15.54.270 is consistent with the follo…
RCW 15.54.910 Prior liability preserved.
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The enactment of this chapter shall not have the effect of terminating, or in any way modifying any liability, civil or criminal, which shall already be in existence on the effective date of this chapter.[ 1967 ex.s. c 22 s 38.]
RCW 15.54.940 Continuation of rules adopted pursuant to repealed sections.
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The repeal of sections 15.54.010 through 15.54.250 and 15.54.900, chapter 11, Laws of 1961 and chapter 15.54 RCW and the enactment of this act shall not be deemed to have repealed any rules adopted under the provisions of sections 15.54.010 through 15.54.250 and 15.54.900, chapte…
RCW 15.54.950 Short title.
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RCW 15.54.270 through 15.54.490 and 15.54.910 through 15.54.940 shall be known as the "Washington Commercial Fertilizer Act."[ 1967 ex.s. c 22 s 42.]