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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Pest control businesses incur many costs to comply |
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with Texas Department of Agriculture regulations; and |
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WHEREAS, In a single year, a two-person pest control |
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operation will easily spend more than $3,000 on compliance costs; |
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for instance, a business with a Certified Applicator and an |
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apprentice working toward technician status would need to pay not |
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only for the appropriate licenses but also for classes, liability |
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insurance, inspections, recordkeeping, criminal background checks, |
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and other requirements; and |
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WHEREAS, Businesses that do not comply with TDA regulations |
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can expect to incur much lower expenses than those that do; |
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scofflaws may receive a mere warning, and if they do receive a |
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penalty for operating without a license or without insurance, the |
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amount will likely prove less than the cost of meeting |
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requirements; moreover, the final penalty may be lowered further or |
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not collected at all; and |
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WHEREAS, Failure to enforce regulations provides incentives |
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for businesses to ignore the law, raising public health and safety |
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concerns and creating a competitive advantage for such businesses; |
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in order to ensure compliance and level the playing field, |
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regulations and enforcement policies must be more effective and |
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better aligned; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 85th Texas |
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Legislature hereby request the speaker to direct the House |
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Agriculture and Livestock Committee to conduct an interim study |
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reviewing the rules, regulations, and enforcement authority of the |
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Texas Department of Agriculture's Structural Pest Control Service; |
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and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That the committee submit a full report, including |
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its findings and recommendations, to the House of Representatives |
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of the 86th Texas Legislature before it convenes in January 2019. |