The Legislature has determined that the boll weevil is a public nuisance, a pest and a menace to the cotton industry. The purpose of this chapter is:
(a) To provide procedures through which cotton growers in the State of Mississippi may manage boll weevil suppression, pre-eradication or eradication programs and boll weevil containment/maintenance programs;(b) To provide for certification of the Mississippi Boll Weevil Management Corporation to cooperate with state and federal agencies in the administration of cost-sharing programs for suppression, pre-eradication, eradication or post-eradication of boll weevils in Mississippi; and(c) To empower the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce to promulgate and enforce regulations in support of those programs. This chapter should be construed liberally to achieve these purposes.Laws, 1993, ch. 345, § 2; Laws, 2010, ch. 524, § 2, eff. 7/1/2010.