7 U.S.C. § 7715

Current through P.L. 118-59 (published on www.congress.gov on 05/07/2024)
Section 7715 - Declaration of extraordinary emergency and resulting authorities
(a) Authority to declare

If the Secretary determines that an extraordinary emergency exists because of the presence of a plant pest or noxious weed that is new to or not known to be widely prevalent in or distributed within and throughout the United States and that the presence of the plant pest or noxious weed threatens plants or plant products of the United States, the Secretary may-

(1) hold, seize, quarantine, treat, apply other remedial measures to, destroy, or otherwise dispose of, any plant, biological control organism, plant product, article, or means of conveyance that the Secretary has reason to believe is infested with the plant pest or noxious weed;
(2) quarantine, treat, or apply other remedial measures to any premises, including any plants, biological control organisms, plant products, articles, or means of conveyance on the premises, that the Secretary has reason to believe is infested with the plant pest or noxious weed;
(3) quarantine any State or portion of a State in which the Secretary finds the plant pest or noxious weed or any plant, biological control organism, plant product, article, or means of conveyance that the Secretary has reason to believe is infested with the plant pest or noxious weed; and
(4) prohibit or restrict the movement within a State of any plant, biological control organism, plant product, article, or means of conveyance when the Secretary determines that the prohibition or restriction is necessary to prevent the dissemination of the plant pest or noxious weed or to eradicate the plant pest or noxious weed.
(b) Required finding of emergency

The Secretary may take action under this section only upon finding, after review and consultation with the Governor or other appropriate official of the State affected, that the measures being taken by the State are inadequate to eradicate the plant pest or noxious weed.

(c) Notification procedures
(1) In general

Except as provided in paragraph (2), before any action is taken in any State under this section, the Secretary shall notify the Governor or other appropriate official of the State affected, issue a public announcement, and file for publication in the Federal Register a statement of-

(A) the Secretary's findings;
(B) the action the Secretary intends to take;
(C) the reasons for the intended action; and
(D) where practicable, an estimate of the anticipated duration of the extraordinary emergency.
(2) Time sensitive actions

If it is not possible to file for publication in the Federal Register prior to taking action, the filing shall be made within a reasonable time, not to exceed 10 business days, after commencement of the action.

(d) Application of least drastic action

No plant, biological control organism, plant product, plant pest, noxious weed, article, or means of conveyance shall be destroyed, exported, or returned to the shipping point of origin, or ordered to be destroyed, exported, or returned to the shipping point of origin under this section unless, in the opinion of the Secretary, there is no less drastic action that is feasible and that would be adequate to prevent the dissemination of any plant pest or noxious weed new to or not known to be widely prevalent or distributed within and throughout the United States.

(e) Payment of compensation

The Secretary may pay compensation to any person for economic losses incurred by the person as a result of action taken by the Secretary under this section. The determination by the Secretary of the amount of any compensation to be paid under this subsection shall be final and shall not be subject to judicial review or a review by any officer or employee of the Federal Government other than the Secretary or the designee of the Secretary.

7 U.S.C. § 7715

Pub. L. 106-224, title IV, §415, June 20, 2000, 114 Stat. 445; Pub. L. 107-171, title VII, §7504(a), May 13, 2002, 116 Stat. 465; Pub. L. 110-234, title X, §10203(a), May 22, 2008, 122 Stat. 1342; Pub. L. 110-246, §4(a), title X, §10203(a), June 18, 2008, 122 Stat. 1664, 2104.

EDITORIAL NOTES

CODIFICATION Pub. L. 110-234 and Pub. L. 110-246 made identical amendments to this section. The amendments by Pub. L. 110-234 were repealed by section 4(a) of Pub. L. 110-246.

AMENDMENTS2008-Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 110-246, §10203(a), struck out "of longer than 60 days" after "or a review". 2002-Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 107-171 inserted before period at end "or a review of longer than 60 days by any officer or employee of the Federal Government other than the Secretary or the designee of the Secretary".

STATUTORY NOTES AND RELATED SUBSIDIARIES

EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2008 AMENDMENT Amendment of this section and repeal of Pub. L. 110-234 by Pub. L. 110-246 effective May 22, 2008, the date of enactment of Pub. L. 110-234 see section 4 of Pub. L. 110-246 set out as an Effective Date note under section 8701 of this title.

TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS For transfer of functions of the Secretary of Agriculture relating to agricultural import and entry inspection activities under this chapter to the Secretary of Homeland Security, and for treatment of related references, see sections 231, 551(d), 552(d),and 557 of Title 6, Domestic Security, and the Department of Homeland Security Reorganization Plan of November 25, 2002, as modified, set out as a note under section 542 of Title 6.

Secretary
The term "Secretary" means the Secretary of Agriculture.
State
The term "State" means any of the several States of the United States, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia, Guam, the Virgin Islands of the United States, or any other territory or possession of the United States.
United States
The term "United States" means all of the States.
article
The term "article" means any material or tangible object that could harbor plant pests or noxious weeds.
biological control organism
The term "biological control organism" means any enemy, antagonist, or competitor used to control a plant pest or noxious weed.
means of conveyance
The term "means of conveyance" means any personal property used for or intended for use for the movement of any other personal property.
noxious weed
The term "noxious weed" means any plant or plant product that can directly or indirectly injure or cause damage to crops (including nursery stock or plant products), livestock, poultry, or other interests of agriculture, irrigation, navigation, the natural resources of the United States, the public health, or the environment.
person
The term "person" means any individual, partnership, corporation, association, joint venture, or other legal entity.
plant pest
The term "plant pest" means any living stage of any of the following that can directly or indirectly injure, cause damage to, or cause disease in any plant or plant product:(A) A protozoan.(B) A nonhuman animal.(C) A parasitic plant.(D) A bacterium.(E) A fungus.(F) A virus or viroid.(G) An infectious agent or other pathogen.(H) Any article similar to or allied with any of the articles specified in the preceding subparagraphs.
plant product
The term "plant product" means-(A) any flower, fruit, vegetable, root, bulb, seed, or other plant part that is not included in the definition of plant; or(B) any manufactured or processed plant or plant part.
plant
The term "plant" means any plant (including any plant part) for or capable of propagation, including a tree, a tissue culture, a plantlet culture, pollen, a shrub, a vine, a cutting, a graft, a scion, a bud, a bulb, a root, and a seed.
entry
The terms "enter" and "entry" mean to move into, or the act of movement into, the commerce of the United States.
import
The terms "import" and "importation" mean to move into, or the act of movement into, the territorial limits of the United States.