BP BHEAD INT H

AN ACT Relating to apiaries; and amending RCW 15.60.005, 15.60.007, 15.60.010, 15.60.025, 15.60.040, 15.60.043, and 15.60.050.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1. RCW 15.60.005 and 1993 c 89 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter:

(1) "Department" means the department of agriculture of the state of Washington.

(2) "Director" means the director of the state department of agriculture or the director's authorized representative.

(3) "Apiary" means a site where hives of bees or hives are kept or found.

(4) "Abandoned hive" means any hive, with or without bees, that evidences a lack of being properly managed in that it has not been supered in the spring, except nucs, or unsupered in the fall, or is otherwise unmanaged and left without authorization and unattended on the property of another person or on public land.

(5) "Apiarist" means any person who owns bees or is a keeper of bees in Washington.

(6) "Beekeeping equipment" means any implements or devices used in the manipulation of bees, their brood, or hives in an apiary.

(7) "Bees" means adult insects, eggs, larvae, pupae, or other immature stages of the species Apis mellifera.

(8) "Certificate" or "certificate of inspection" means an official document certifying compliance with the requirements of this chapter and accompanying the movement of inspected bees, bee hives, or beekeeping equipment.

(9) "Colony" refers to a natural group of bees having a queen or queens.

(10) "Compliance agreement" means a written agreement between the department and a person engaged in apiculture, or handling, selling, or moving of hives or beekeeping equipment in which the person agrees to comply with stipulated requirements.

(11) "Feral colony" means a colony of bees in a natural cavity or a manufactured structure not intended for the keeping of bees on movable frames and comb.

(12) "Swarm" means a natural group of bees having a queen or queens, which is the progeny of a parent colony, without a hive, and not a feral colony.

(13) "Disease" means American foulbrood, European foulbrood, chalkbrood, nosema, sacbrood, or any other viral, fungal, bacterial or insect-related disease affecting bees or their brood.

(14) "Regulated bee pests" means a disease of bees for which maximum allowable limits of infection, or mites, or other parasites are set in rule.

(15) "Hive" means a manufactured receptacle or container prepared for the use of bees, that includes movable frames, combs, and substances deposited into the hive by bees.

(16) "Person" means a natural person, individual, firm, partnership, company, society, association, corporation or every officer, agent, or employee of one of these entities.

(17) "Bee pests" means a disease, mite, or other parasite that causes injury to bees.

(18) "Nets" means a device that is made of fabricated material and that is designed and utilized to prevent the escape of bees from bee hives during transit.

(19) "Apparently free" means no specified bee pest was found during inspection of survey activities.

(20) "Substantially free" means levels of specified bee pests found during inspection or survey activities were within established tolerances.

(21) "Africanized honey bee" means any bee of the subspecies Apis mellifera scutellata.

(22) "Super" means the portion of a hive in which honey is stored by bees.

(23 "Broker" means a person, engaged in pollinating agricultural crops, using hives that are owned by another person.

(24) "Grower" means a person engaged in producing agricultural crops, and a user of honey bees for pollination of the crops.

Sec. 2. RCW 15.60.007 and 1993 c 89 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:

There is created within the department of agriculture an industry apiary ((~~inspection~~)) program. The director shall: Provide regulation and inspection services, assure availability of bee colonies for pollination, facilitate the interstate movement of honey bees, promote improved apicultural practices, combat bee pests that pose an economic threat to the industry, and, in cooperation with the cooperative extension program of Washington State University, provide education to promote the vitality of the apiary industry.

Sec. 3. RCW 15.60.010 and 1993 c 89 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:

An apiary advisory committee is established to advise the director on the administration of this chapter. The apiary advisory committee may consist of up to eleven members.

(1) The committee shall include six apiarists, appointed by the director, and representing the major geographical divisions of the beekeeping industry in the state as established in rule. In making an appointment, the director shall seek nominations from the beekeepers' organizations within the geographic area and from nonaffiliated apiarists. Apiarists may nominate themselves.

(2) The committee shall include the director and a representative from the Washington State University apiary program or cooperative extension.

(3) The committee may include up to three representatives of receivers of pollination services.

(4) The terms of the apiarist members of the committee shall be staggered and the members shall serve a term of three years and until their successors have been appointed and qualified.

In the event a committee member resigns, is disqualified, or vacates a position on the committee for any reason, the vacancy shall be filled by the director under the provisions of this section.

(5) The committee shall meet at least once yearly. It may also meet at the call of the director or the request of any three members of the committee. Members of the committee shall serve without compensation but shall be reimbursed for travel expenses incurred in attending meetings of the ((~~board~~)) committee and any other official duty authorized by the ((~~board~~)) committee and approved by the director, pursuant to RCW 43.03.050 and 43.03.060, if apiarists are charged a registration fee, under RCW 15.60.050, to cover the expenses of the committee.

Sec. 4. RCW 15.60.025 and 1993 c 89 s 6 are each amended to read as follows:

In addition to the powers conferred on the director under other provisions of this chapter, the director shall have the power to adopt rules with the advice of the apiary advisory committee and pursuant to the administrative procedure act, chapter 34.05 RCW:

(1) Specifying marking and identification requirements for all hives of bees in the state of Washington including resident colonies, migratory colonies registered in Washington, and colonies brought into the state for pollination services;

(2) Establishing requirements for netting and other handling of bees in transit;

(3) Prescribing bee breeding procedures and standards to prevent Africanization and permitting importation pursuant to the conditions set forth in RCW 15.60.140;

(4) Establishing standards for certification of bees, bee hives, and beekeeping equipment including but not limited to:

(a) Standards of colony strength for hives of bees for pollination services;

(b) Standards for queen bee production and marketing;

(5) A beekeeper certification program that may provide for decreased levels of inspection for those beekeepers whose apiaries consistently have levels of disease within established tolerances;

(6) Establishing fees for inspection or certification services;

(7) Establishing an apiary assessment on hives used by growers of agricultural crops, to carry out the purposes of this chapter;

(8) Conducting such activities as may be otherwise necessary for carrying out the purposes of this chapter.

Sec. 5. RCW 15.60.040 and 1993 c 89 s 8 are each amended to read as follows:

There is established an industry apiary ((~~inspection~~)) program account within the agricultural local fund. All money collected under this chapter including fees for requested services, required inspections, or treatments, ((~~and~~)) registration fees, and apiary assessments shall be placed in the industry apiary ((~~inspection~~)) program account. Money in the account may only be used to carry out the purposes of this chapter. No appropriation is required for disbursement from the apiary inspection account.

Sec. 6. RCW 15.60.043 and 1993 c 89 s 10 are each amended to read as follows:

The inspection fees, registration fees, apiary assessments, and other charges provided in this chapter shall become due and payable upon billing by the department. A late charge of one and one-half percent per month shall be assessed on the unpaid balance against persons more than thirty days in arrears. In addition to any other penalties, the director may refuse to perform an inspection or certification service for a person in arrears unless the person makes payment in full prior to such inspection or certification service.

Sec. 7. RCW 15.60.050 and 1993 c 89 s 11 are each amended to read as follows:

Each person owning one or more hives with bees, brokers of hives, and beekeepers resident in other states who operate hives in Washington, shall register ((~~that ownership~~)) with the director on or before April 1st each year.

(1) Registration application shall include the name, address, and phone number of the owner or broker, the number of colonies of bees owned, brokered, or operated in Washington, and such registration fee as may be prescribed in rule under subsection (2) of this section. The director shall issue to each resident apiarist registered with the department an apiarist identification number. The apiarist identification number shall be displayed on hives of an apiary in a manner prescribed by the director in rule.

(2) A registration fee may be set in rule by the director, with the advice of the apiary advisory committee. The fee shall be used for covering the expenses of the apiary advisory committee and may be used for supporting the industry apiary program of the department or funding research projects of benefit to the apiary industry that the director may select upon the advice of the apiary advisory committee.