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Handbook of Florida Agricultural Laws: Index1
Michael T. Olexa, Ian Alperstesin, and Joseph Fischer2Preface
This handbook is designed to provide an accurate, current, and authoritative summary of the principal Florida laws that directly or indirectly relate to agriculture. It provides a basic overview of the many rights and responsibilities that farmers and farm land owners have under Florida laws. Many readers may value this handbook because it informs them about these rights and responsibilities, and it provides them with good contacts for more detailed information. However, the reader should be aware that because the laws, administrative rulings, and court decisions on which this handbook is based are subject to constant revision, portions of this handbook could become outdated at any time. Many details of cited laws are also left out due to space limitations.This handbook is distributed with the understanding that the authors are not engaged in rendering legal or other professional advice. It is not all-inclusive in providing information to achieve compliance with laws and regulations governing the practice of agriculture. For these reasons, the use of these materials by any person constitutes an agreement to hold harmless the authors, UF/IFAS, the Agricultural Law Center, and the University of Florida for any liability claims, damages, or expenses that may be incurred by any person as a result of reference to or reliance on the information contained in this handbook.
A Brief Note on Florida Laws and Rule Making
The Florida laws described in this handbook were passed by the state legislature and have become valid state laws. The appropriate state agency then wrote specific rules based on each law. These rules are what the state agencies use to enforce the law. For most laws in this handbook, that agency is the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (DACS). Florida legislated laws, also called statutes, are organized into chapters. A chapter is divided even further into specific statutes. For example, Chapter 601 (Florida Citrus Code) contains dozens of sections covering topics ranging from marketing, inspection standards, and processing to prohibitions on the use of certain chemicals for citrus fruit. Other chapters may deal with a narrower subject and have far fewer sections. As noted above, the specific rules for each of these sections are written by a designated state agency, and generally go into greater detail. You can view the Florida Statutes online at http://www.flsentate.gov/statutues .Introduction
This handbook can be used to learn which Florida laws apply to a particular agricultural project or subject, and to find the name, address, and telephone number of a state office that can provide more specific information or services. Created for readers with no prior experience in the law, the handbook is designed as a necessary first step in recognizing which agricultural activities merit special attention because of their implications to agriculture. The handbook also provides an introduction to the crucial agencies and statutes which govern agricultural law.The online handbook is divided into a Table of Contents, Index, and six fact sheets. The Table of Contents gives general and specific areas of Florida laws related to agriculture and the number of the fact sheet where that topic can be found. The six fact sheets are as follows: FE114, General Agriculture-Related Laws; FE115, Animal Husbandry; FE116, Crops and Products; FE117, Related Non-Crop or Product Agricultural Topics; FE118, Environmental and Conservation Regulations; and FE119, Taxation and Property Rights Related to Agricultural Land. The user can find the specific laws by using either the Table of Contents (FE113 ) or the Index (FE122 ).
Below is an example of using the handbook if your area of interest is farming exotic animals such as ostriches.
To use the Table of Contents:
To use the Index:
- Find "Animal Husbandry" in the Table of Contents (FE113 ).
- Within the Animal Husbandry area locate "Livestock--Exotic Animals". Follow the link to FE115 : Animal Husbandry.
- In FE115, read the "General Descriptions" and "Related References, Details, and Exceptions" columns for both laws under "Livestock--Exotic Animals". Determine if the information answers the questions or if more information is needed.
- If the user wants more information regarding the general farming or inspection and slaughter of an exotic animal (e.g., ostriches), locate the appropriate state office telephone number and address. The primary contact agency information is listed at the end of the fact sheet, along with abbreviation information.
Look up "ostriches" in the Index (FE122 ). The index leads the reader to the location for information about the culture and inspection/slaughter of ostriches. Follow steps 3 and 4 above to find the contact information.
Division of the Tables
The table in each fact sheet has five columns of information. The first column, "Statute / Law (description)," either provides the law's name or a general description when no name is available. The second column, "Florida Statute Number", lists either a chapter number when an entire chapter relates to a particular topic, a range of sections, or a single specific section. At times, a single chapter number may have many more laws than a range. For example, sections 593.101 to 593.117 cover a narrower field, the control of cotton boll weevil, than the larger Chapter 601 on citrus fruit. The chapter and section number in all columns are presented without the typical abbreviations or symbols.Columns 3 and 4 provide brief descriptions and related references, details, and exceptions. This information is highly condensed. As such, not all information is provided. The authors have attempted to include the most relevant aspects of each listed law. Additional information can be obtained by contacting the offices noted in the final column, "Primary Contact Agencies." As noted above, the primary contact information is listed at the end of the fact sheet. The reader will find that the state and federal agencies are unquestionably the best targets for specific questions, as they are in close touch with both the formal and practical considerations of the areas that they regulate.
This publication can be improved with your ideas and suggestions. Comments regarding any areas which may have been omitted, but deserve inclusion, are particularly valuable. Reader feedback is a necessary ingredient to complete any successful future editions. Please send your comments or suggestions to:
Michael T. Olexa
Director, Agricultural Law Center
Food and Resource Economics Department
Post Office Box 110240
University of Florida
Gainesville, FL 32611-0240
Fax (352) 392-9898Tables
INDEX.
Subject
UF/IFAS Fact Sheet Number
A
Activities, Farm and Forestry (including exclusions) Advertising, Poultry Agriculture Lands and Environmental and Conservation Regulations Agricultural Lands Classification Agriculture Laws, General Agriculture License Plates Agriculture Worker Safety Act Animal Disease Inspection Animal Transportation Animals and Animal Products, Inspections and Labeling Animals and Livestock Aggravated Abuse of Cattle Aggravated Abuse of Horses Disease, Inspection, Control, and Eradication General Humane Treatment Permitted Means of Killing Registered Breed Horses, Treatment and Sales Anti-Disparagement, Perishable Foods Anti-Siphon Law, Irrigation Systems Anti-Siphon Requirements for Irrigation Awards for Race Horses
B
Beef, Branding, Marking, and Stamping Bees, Florida Honey Certification and Honeybee Law Bees, Restrictions in Boll Weevil Quarantine Areas Bert J. Harris, Private Property Protection Act Bison, Commercial Farming Boll Weevil Eradication Law, Florida Brucella Vaccinations, Calves C
Calves, Prohibited Killings Camps, Migrant Labor Cattle Aggravated Abuse Marking, Branding, and Stamping Cattle-Dipping Vats, Release of Liability at State Level Child Labor Law Citrus Code, Florida Commercial Farming of Exotic Animals (bison, emu, ostrich, and rhea) Commercial Feed Law Condemnation of Eggs
Conservation Laws, Water and Soils
Controlled Substances, Race Horses
Cotton / Fiber Production Criminalization, Abusing or Killing Registered Breed Horses
Crops and Products Cruelty to Animals D
Dairy Industry Disease, Animal Disparagement, Perishable Food Products Division of Forestry Dredge and Fill Permits (exclusions for agricultural lands) E
Easements, Conservation Emus, Commercial Farming Endangered and Threatened Species Act of 1977 Environmental Dispute Resolution Act Environmental Standards (exclusions for agricultural lands) Equine Activities Exotic Animals, Farming F
Farm Labor Laws Child Labor Law Government Committee on Migrant Labor Labor Registration Law Migrant Labor Housing Farmland, Environmental Laws Feed Garbage for Swine Fertilizers Flora, Preservation of Native Flora Florida Acts Agriculture Worker Safety Act Aquaculture Policy Act Endangered and Threatened Species Act Land Use and Environmental Dispute Resolution Act Right to Farm Act Tropical Fruit Policy Act Florida Tropical or Subtropical Fruit and Vegetable Sales Law Florida Commercial Feed Law Florida Community Forest Law Florida Pesticide Law Food Products, Anti-Disparagement Law Forestry / Silviculture Community Forest Law Forest Protection Laws General Forestry Laws Fruits, Tropical and Subtropical G
Garbage, Feeding Swine General Law, Permitting Water Consumptive Uses H
Honeybee Certification and Honeybee Law Horses, Sports Animals Aggravated Abuses or Killings Awards Distributions Controlled Substances Equine Activities Food, Horse Meat Liability Limitations Sales, Shows, and Exhibitions Humane Treatment, Animals and Livestock I
Inspecting and Marking Livestock Inspection of Dairy Products Inspection of Eggs and Poultry Products Inspection and Labeling of Livestock Inspection of Livestock for Disease Inspection of Nontraditional Livestock J
K
Killing Calves (less than four weeks old) Killing or Abuse of Registered Breed Horses L
Labeling Acts Laws Activities on Farmland
Boll Weevil Eradication Law Commercial Farming of Exotic Animals (bison, emu, ostrich, and rhea) Commercial Feed Law Cruelty Dairy Disease, Inspection, Control, and Eradication Disparagement of Food Products Feeding Swine with Garbage Fertilizers Horses Inspection of Eggs and Poultry Labor Livestock and Cattle Nursery Plants Pesticides Sports Animals Transportation of Livestock Tropical or Subtropical Fruit and Vegetable Sales Law Waste Management Water License Plates, Agricultural M
Meat, Horse Meat, Poultry Migrant Labor N
Native Flora Non-Point Source Pollution Nursery and Plant Industry O
Ostriches, Commercial Farming P
Permitting Dredge and Fill Water Pesticides and Pesticide Laws Perishable Food Product, Anti-Disparagement Plates, Agricultural Licenses Poultry Disease Control Eggs Meat Preservation of Native Flora Private Property Protection Act, Bert J. Harris, Jr. Produce Labeling Act of 1979 Production, Citrus Prohibitions, Animal Cruelty Property Owner's Liability for Cattle-Dipping Vats Property Rights Protection, Forests Q
R
Requirements for Irrigation Systems Residential Migrant Housing Resolutions, Florida Land Use and Environmental Dispute Resolution Act Rheas, Commercial Farming S
Safety, Workers Seed Law Silviculture Solid Waste Management Standards and Shipping, Poultry Storage Tank Systems Substances, Controlled, Race Horses Surface Waters Swine, Feed Systems, Irrigation T
Taxation and Property Rights Law Transportation, Livestock Tropical and Subtropical Fruit and Vegetables Inspection Laws Tropical and Subtropical Fruit and Vegetable Sales Law Tropical Fruit Policy Act U
V
Vaccinations Brucella Vaccinations, Calves General, Livestock Vats, Cattle-Dipping (liability limitations) Vegetables W
Water, Uses and Storage Non-Point Sources Permitting Consumptive Uses Storage of Surface Water Wells Worker Safety X
Y
Z
Footnotes
1. This is EDIS document FE122, a publication of the Department of Food and Resource Economics, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, IFAS, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL. FE122 is part of Circular 1224, Handbook of Florida Agricultural Laws. First published November 1999, and revised April 2004 and December 2007. Please visit the EDIS website at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu.2. Michael T. Olexa, Professor, Department of Food and Resource Economics, and Director, UF/IFAS Agricultural Law Center, Member, The Florida Bar, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, UF/IFAS, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL; Ian Alperstein, third-year law student, Levin College of Law, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL; and Joseph Fischer, graduate, Levin College of Law, University of Florida, and members, The Florida Bar.
This publication is designed to provide accurate, current and authoritative information on the subject. However, since the laws, administrative rulings, and court decisions on which it is based are subject to constant revision, portions of this publication could become outdated at any time. This publication is distributed with the understanding that the authors are not engaged in rendering legal or other professional advice, and the information contained herein should not be regarded, or relied upon, as a substitute for professional advice. For these reasons, the utilization of these materials by any person constitutes an agreement to hold harmless the authors, UF/IFAS, and the University of Florida for any liability, claims, damages, or expenses that may be incurred by any person as a result of reference to or reliance on the information contained in this document.
Acknowledgment: The authors are indebted to the personnel of both state and federal agencies who gave of their time and advice in the preparation of this handbook. The authors are also indebted to Mr. Richard Budell of the Office of Agricultural Water Policy of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services for providing support.
The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) is an Equal Opportunity Institution authorized to provide research, educational information and other services only to individuals and institutions that function with non-discrimination with respect to race, creed, color, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, political opinions or affiliations. For more information on obtaining other extension publications, contact your county Cooperative Extension service.
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida, IFAS, Florida A. & M. University Cooperative Extension Program, and Boards of County Commissioners Cooperating. Larry Arrington, Dean.
Copyright Information
This document is copyrighted by the University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) for the people of the State of Florida. UF/IFAS retains all rights under all conventions, but permits free reproduction by all agents and offices of the Cooperative Extension Service and the people of the State of Florida. Permission is granted to others to use these materials in part or in full for educational purposes, provided that full credit is given to the UF/IFAS, citing the publication, its source, and date of publication.