The Vermont Statutes Online

Title 6 : Agriculture

Chapter 087 : Control of Pesticides

• § 1105b. Use and sale of neonicotinoid treated article seeds [Contingently effective January 1, 2029]

  (a) No person shall sell, offer for sale or use, distribute, or use any neonicotinoid treated article seed for soybeans or for any crop in the cereal grains crop group (crop groups 15, 15-22, 16, and 16-22).

  (b) The Secretary of Agriculture, Food and Markets, after consultation with the Secretary of Natural Resources, may issue a written exemption order to suspend the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, only if the following conditions are met:

  (1) the person seeking the exemption order shall complete an integrated pest management training, provided by the Secretary or an approved third party;

  (2) the person seeking the exemption order shall complete a pest risk assessment and submit a pest risk assessment report to the Secretary;

  (3) any seeds authorized for use under the exemption order shall be planted only on the property or properties identified in the pest risk assessment report; and

  (4) the persons seeking the exemption order shall maintain current records of the pest risk assessment report and records of when treated seeds are planted, both of which shall be subject to review upon request by the Secretary.

  (c) A written exemption order issued under subsection (b) of this section shall:

  (1) not be valid for more than one year; and

  (2) specify the types of neonicotinoid treated article seeds to which the exemption order applies, the date on which the exemption order takes effect, and the exemption order’s duration.

  (d) A written exemption order issued under subsection (b) of this section may:

  (1) establish restrictions related to the use of neonicotinoid treated article seeds to which the exemption order applies to minimize harm to pollinator populations, bird populations, ecosystem health, and public health; and

  (2) establish other restrictions related to the use of neonicotinoid treated article seeds to which the exemption order applies that the Secretary of Agriculture, Food and Markets considers necessary.

  (e) Upon issuing a written exemption order under subsection (b) of this section, the Secretary of Agriculture, Food and Markets shall submit a copy of the exemption order to the Senate Committees on Natural Resources and Energy and on Agriculture; the House Committees on Environment and Energy and on Agriculture, Food Resiliency, and Forestry; and the Agricultural Innovation Board. The General Assembly shall post the written exemption order to the website of the General Assembly.

  (f) The Secretary of Agriculture, Food and Markets, after consultation with the Secretary of Natural Resources, may rescind a written exemption order issued under subsection (b) of this section at any time. Such rescission shall come into effect not sooner than 30 days after its issuance and shall not apply to neonicotinoid treated article seeds planted or sown before such recission comes into effect. (Added 2023, No. 182 (Adj. Sess.), § 3, contingently eff. January 1, 2029.)