Bill > A5531

Introduced Session

This bill would require the Commissioner of Environmental Protection, in consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, to establish: (1) standards for designating native, non-invasive plants as friendly to animal pollinators, which are required to include, but need not be limited to, standards prohibiting or restricting the application or treatment of plants to be sold with pesticides or other chemicals deemed harmful or potentially harmful to animal pollinators; and (2) a "pollinator-friendly" label that a distributor or retail seller of plants may use to indicate that the plant to be sold is friendly to animal pollinators. The bill requires a person must be in compliance with the requirements of this bill in order to distribute or sell at retail a plant labeled as pollinator friendly or otherwise advertised or labeled as not harmful to animal pollinators. As defined in this bill, an "animal pollinator" means any bee, butterfly, moth, wasp, fly, beetle, ant, hummingbird, bat, or other animal that is known to pollinate plants. Animal pollinators, such as bees, hummingbirds, and butterflies, are extremely important to the State. Approximately one-third of all crops grown depend on pollinators for reproduction. Recently, however, the survival of many pollinators has been threatened by, among other things, the use of harmful pesticides. This bill would encourage the sale and purchase of plants which are not harmful to pollinating animals, and would help to educate the public on the importance of protecting pollinating animals.

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Eric Houghtaling (D)*,  Lisa Swain (D)*,  Chris Tully (D)*,  Clinton Calabrese (D),  JoAnn Downey (D),  R. Bruce Land (D),  Yvonne Lopez (D),  Matthew Milam (D),  Parker Space (R), 

Reported out of Assembly Comm. with Amendments, 2nd Reading (on 06/10/2019)

Official Document