BILL ANALYSIS


                                                         S.B. 700
                                                         By: Sims
                                                Natural Resources
                                                         03-01-95
                                     Committee Report (Unamended)
BACKGROUND

The Department of Agriculture registers more than 11,000 pesticide
products each year.  Eighty percent of these products are
registered with no label changes from the previous year.  This
results in thousands of applications being mailed and processed
each year.  Most of the labels are received and reviewed during a
very narrow time frame which causes work backlogs.

PURPOSE

As proposed, S.B. 700 requires the Department of Agriculture to
create a system for pesticide registration and renewal of the
registration, and amends the registration application fee.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that rulemaking authority is granted
to the Department of Agriculture under SECTION 1 (Section
76.043(a), Agriculture Code) of this bill.

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Amends Sections 76.043(a) and (c), Agriculture Code, as
follows:

     (a) Provides that registration of a pesticide expires two
     years after the date of its approval or renewal except that
     the Department of Agriculture (department) shall, by rule,
     adopt a system under which the registrations expire on various
     dates during the year, rather than December 31.
     
     (c) Makes a conforming change.
     
     SECTION 2.     Amends Section 76.044(a), Agriculture Code, to require
a nonrefundable fee of $200, rather than $100, for the registration
of each pesticide to be submitted with a registration or renewal
application.

SECTION 3. Provides that a registration in effect on the effective
date of this Act remains in effect until the earlier of the date on
which the registration expires or is revoked by the department.

SECTION 4. Emergency clause.
           Effective date: upon passage.