Bill Text

Protecting Kids from Dangerous Chemicals in School Act

An Act relating to the public school system providing for parental notification of dangerous chemical application within schools, school grounds, athletic fields, and playgrounds.

The people of the state of <insert your state’s name here>, represented in the Senate and House, do enact as follows:

Section 1. Definitions.

The following words and phrases when used in this Act shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

(A) “Applicator” shall mean a certified applicator, private applicator, commercial applicator, or public applicator.

(B) “Board” shall mean a Pesticide Advisory Board designated by the Department of Agriculture.

(C) “Certified applicator” shall mean an individual who is certified by <insert your state’s name here> as competent to use or supervise the use or application of any pesticide.

(D) “Commercial applicator” shall mean a certified applicator, whether or not he is a private applicator with respect to some uses, who uses or supervises the use of any pesticide on the property or premises of another or on easements granted under <insert citation for relevant state law>, or any applicator who uses or supervises the use of any restricted-use pesticide on property owned or rented by the applicator or their employer, when not for purposes of producing an agricultural product. The Secretary may by regulation deem certain types of applicators using any pesticide on their own property or that of their employer as commercial applicators.

(E) “Department” shall mean <insert your state’s name here> Department of Agriculture.

(F) “Indoor pesticide treatment” shall mean a pesticide treatment that includes an outside perimeter treatment of the building if the primary purpose of the treatment is to treat the inside of the building.

(G) “Insect” shall mean any of the numerous small invertebrate animals generally having a more or less obviously segmented body, for the most part belonging to the class Insecta, comprising six-legged, usually winged forms, as, for example, beetles, bugs, bees, and flies, and to other allied classes of arthropods whose members are wingless and usually have more than six legs, as, for example, spiders, mites, ticks, centipedes, and wood lice.

(H) “Integrated pest management plan” shall mean a decision-making process which includes inspection and pest identification; monitoring of pest and beneficial insect populations and recordkeeping of same; injury-level assessment to determine when treatment is needed; treatment selection and application with pest prevention methods, such as habitat modification and sanitation measures, and nontoxic controls being the primary selections; and, evaluation of results.

(I) “Nematode” shall mean an invertebrate animal of the phylum Nemathelminthes and class Nematoda; that is, unsegmented round worms with elongated, fusiform or sac-like bodies covered with cuticle, and inhabiting soil, water, plants, or plant parts. The term includes nemas and eelworms.

(J) “Outdoor pesticide treatment” shall mean an outdoor pesticide treatment that is applied anywhere on the school grounds, including, but not limited to, athletic fields or playgrounds.

(K) “Person” shall mean an individual, partnership, association, corporation, or any organized group of persons, whether incorporated or not.

(L) “Pest” shall mean an insect, rodent, nematode, fungus, weed, or other form of terrestrial or aquatic plant or animal life or virus, bacteria, or other micro-organism, except viruses, bacteria, or other micro-organisms on or in living humans or other living animals, declared to be a pest under section 25(c)(1) of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (61 Stat. 163, 7 U.S.C. * 136 et seq.).

(M) “Pest control information sheet” shall mean a document which contains the date of treatment, the name, address, and telephone number of the applicator, the pesticide utilized, and any other information that is required by the Secretary of Agriculture.

(N) “Pesticide” shall mean a substance or mixture of substances intended for preventing, destroying, repelling, or mitigating a pest and a substance or mixture of substances intended for use as a plant regulator, defoliant, or desiccant.

(O) “Pesticide application technician” shall mean an individual employed by a commercial applicator or governmental agency that is registered and licensed by <insert your state’s name here> to apply pesticides under the direct supervision of a certified applicator.

(P) “Private applicator” shall mean a certified applicator who uses or supervises the use of a pesticide, which is classified for restricted use for purposes of producing an agricultural commodity on property owned or rented by the applicator or the applicator’s employer or, if applied without compensation other than trading of personal services between producers of agricultural commodities, on the property of another person.

(Q) “Public applicator” shall mean a certified applicator that applies pesticides as an employee of <insert your state’s name here> or its instrumentalities or a local agency.

(R) “School” shall mean a public or private elementary or secondary school wherein a resident of <insert your state’s name here> may fulfill the compulsory school attendance requirements. The term also includes a kindergarten program operated by a school.

(S) “Secretary” shall mean the Secretary of Agriculture of <insert your state’s name here>.

Section 2. Notification of Pesticide Treatments at Schools.

(A) For an indoor pesticide treatment at a school building, the certified applicator or pesticide application technician shall supply the pest control information sheet and a pest control sign, which shall be at least eight and one-half by eleven (8 ½ by 11) inches in size, to the chief administrator or building manager. The chief administrator or building manager shall be responsible for all of the following:

(1) Posting the sign in an area of common access that individuals are likely to view on a regular basis at least seventy-two (72) hours before and for at least two (2) days following each planned treatment;

(2) Providing the information sheet to every individual working in the school building at least seventy-two (72) hours before each planned treatment; and

(3) Providing notice in writing to the parents or guardians of the students enrolled in that school building at least seventy-two (72) hours before each planned treatment. The notice shall include the name, address, and telephone number of the applicator applying the treatment, day of treatment, and the pesticide utilized. The notice may be included in normal school communications to parents or guardians and need not be mailed separately to parents or guardians.

(B) For an outdoor treatment to be applied anywhere on school grounds, including, but not limited to, athletic fields or playgrounds, the certified applicator or technician shall supply the pest control information sheet and a pest control sign, which shall be at least eight and one-half by eleven (8½ by 11) inches in size, to the chief administrator or grounds manager. The pest control sign shall be posted at the field or playground to be treated at least seventy-two (72) hours before and for two (2) days after the planned treatment.

(C) School officials at a school with an athletic field or a playground to be treated with a pesticide shall include the following information in any registration materials that they distribute to parents or guardians of children attending the school:

(1) The school periodically applies pesticides indoors and on school grounds; and

(2) Information on the application of pesticides is available at the request of the parents or guardians.

(D) The Secretary shall establish by regulation procedures for emergency pesticide applications for which the required notification in subsections (A) and (B) of this section may be waived. The regulations shall include the following:

(1) Emergency pesticide applications shall be allowed only in the event of an immediate threat to the health and safety of students and employees;

(2) Before any emergency application, students and employees shall vacate the portion of the building or grounds to be treated and shall not be allowed to return to that portion of the building or grounds for at least twenty-four (24) hours following the application; and

(3) School officials shall notify by telephone any parents or guardians who have requested such notification. Schools shall advise parents of their right to request notification of emergency pesticide use on an annual basis and shall explain procedures for requesting such notification.

(E) Each school district and private elementary or secondary school shall maintain detailed records of all chemical pest control treatments for a period of at least three (3) years.

Section 3. Development of Integrated Pest Management Plan.

(A) The board of school directors of each public school district and the governing boards of private schools shall, on or before September 1, 2002, adopt an integrated pest management plan that incorporates the standards developed by the Secretaries of Agriculture and Education.

(B) The Secretaries of Agriculture and Education, with the assistance of the Board, shall develop and adopt standards for the integrated pest management plan no later than March 1, 2002. The Secretaries of Agriculture and Education shall also prepare model integrated pest management plans and sample materials for use by schools in developing and adopting their integrated pest management plans. The Department of Agriculture shall provide materials, training, and assistance to schools in developing integrated pest management plans. In developing standards for the integrated pest management plan, the Board shall consult with a person who is knowledgeable in the area of integrated pest management in schools. The standards shall include the following:

(1) A requirement that the least-toxic methods available to control pests, rodents, insects, and weeds be used;

(2) A hierarchy of treatments that schools shall use in controlling pests, rodents, insects, and weeds; and

(3) A uniform pest control sign to be utilized in school buildings that meets the requirements of this section.

Section 4. Pesticide Application.

(A) No person other than a certified applicator or pesticide application technician shall apply pesticides within any building or on the grounds of any school. A pesticide may be applied in a school building only during periods in which students are not expected to use the building for normal academic instruction or organized extracurricular activities for at least twenty-four (24) hours following the application.

(B) A pesticide may be applied on school grounds only during periods in which students are not expected to use the treated portion of the grounds for normal academic instruction or organized extracurricular activities for at least twenty-four (24) hours following the application. The Secretary shall establish by regulation standards for pesticide application on school grounds, including, but not limited to, the buffer areas around the treated portion of the grounds in which students will not be permitted for twenty-four (24) hours after application.

(C) If a portion of a school building having a separate ventilation system, which is separated from the remainder of the building by smoke or fire doors, is treated with a pesticide, the 24-hour waiting period established under subsection (A) of this section shall apply only for the treated portion of the building. Students shall not be present for normal academic instruction or organized extracurricular activities for at least twelve (12) hours in the untreated portion of the building.

(D) Access to the treated portion of the building, plus a buffer zone as prescribed by the Secretary, shall be restricted for twenty-four (24) hours. In all such applications, the school shall make every effort to prevent the pesticide from migrating into the untreated portion of the building, including sealing doors and windows from the treated portion of the building. Under no circumstances shall pesticides be applied in a school building or on school grounds when students are present in the school building or on school grounds for normal academic instruction or organized extracurricular activities, except as provided in Section 2 (D).

(E) The Secretary shall promulgate regulations that establish procedures for pesticide applications in school buildings and on school grounds of schools in which students are in residence.

Section 5. Exemptions.

(A) Disinfectant and antimicrobial products shall be exempted from the notification and record-keeping requirements of Section 2 (A) and Section 2 (E), and the restrictions on application in Section 4.

(B) Application of self-contained bait packages placed in areas not accessible to students shall be exempted from the notification and restriction on application requirements of Section 2 (A) and Section 4.

Section 6. Costs.

(A) The state shall reimburse a school district for increased costs associated with the implementation of this Act if the school district can demonstrate that the Act has increased total pest control costs for the district, after adjusting for savings from reduced pesticide use. Costs for building and grounds maintenance shall not be eligible for reimbursement. Costs for first class mailings of notices to parents shall not be eligible for reimbursement unless a district can demonstrate a compelling need to use other than normal school communications to notify parents in a timely fashion. The Secretary shall establish standards by regulation which shall specify reasonable costs eligible for reimbursement, a schedule for submission of reimbursement requests by school districts, and procedures for review and verification of reimbursement requests.

Section 7. Perimeter Treatment.

(A) The Secretary shall promulgate regulations which define a perimeter treatment and adopt the definitions provided by Federal law for the purpose of indoor pesticide treatment. The odoriferous pesticides profenofos, sulprofos, def, and merphos, and other pesticides with similar odoriferous characteristics shall not be applied within one-fourth mile of a school or a day care center adjoining the field to be sprayed, except by soil injection.

(B) Highly toxic pesticides and paraquat shall not be applied within one-fourth mile of schools or day care centers. However, highly toxic pesticides and paraquat may be applied within one-fourth mile of schools and day care centers unless authorized activities at the school or day care center are scheduled to occur before the reentry time period assigned to the pesticide by provisions of the product label elapses. A responsible individual at a school or a day care center shall be notified of the application of pesticides, other than highly toxic pesticides or paraquat, by aircraft during daylight hours.

(C) For the purposes of this section, distances shall be measured from the property boundary of a school, residence, day care center, or health care institution closest to the field to be sprayed to the area of the field that is to be sprayed. Nothing in this section permits the application of pesticide in such a way as to cause drift within the grounds of a school or day care center, but compliance with subsections (A) and (B) of this section and the requirements of the pesticide label establishes a presumption of compliance with this section.

Section 8. Effective Date.

This Act shall take effect in 60 days.