Connecticut General Statutes 22-111t – Guarantees. Inspection and analysis. Deficiencies. Penalties
(a) For unacidulated mineral phosphatic material and basic slag, bone, tankage and other organic phosphatic materials, the total phosphate and degree of fineness may be guaranteed. Guarantees for plant nutrients other than nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium shall comply with the provisions of public act 09-229* and with regulations adopted by the commissioner pursuant to § 22-111j. Guarantees for other nutrients shall be expressed in the form of the primary element of such other nutrient. The commissioner may require the source of other nutrients, including, but not limited to, oxides, salts and chelates, to be stated on the product label and application for registration. Other beneficial substances or compounds, determinable by laboratory methods, may be guaranteed by permission of the commissioner and with the advice of the director. Any guaranteed plant nutrients or other substances or compounds shall be subject to inspection and analysis in accordance with regulations adopted by the commissioner pursuant to § 22-111j. Specialty fertilizers may be guaranteed in fractional units of not greater than one per cent of total nitrogen, available phosphate, soluble potash, fertilizer materials, bone meal and manures and similar materials may be guaranteed in fractional units.
Terms Used In Connecticut General Statutes 22-111t
- Application: means the process of placement or usage of fertilizer onto a targeted growing area. See Connecticut General Statutes 22-111b
- Commissioner: means the Commissioner of Agriculture. See Connecticut General Statutes 22-111b
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Deficiency: means the amount of nutrient found by analysis that is less than the guaranteed analysis. See Connecticut General Statutes 22-111b
- Director: means the director of the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station. See Connecticut General Statutes 22-111b
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Fertilizer: means any substance containing one or more recognized plant nutrients, which is used for its plant nutrient content and which is designed for use or claimed to have value in promoting plant growth. See Connecticut General Statutes 22-111b
- Fertilizer material: means a fertilizer which: (A) Contains important quantities of not more than one of the primary plant nutrients nitrogen, phosphate or potash, or (B) has not less than eighty-five per cent of its plant nutrient content present in the form of a single chemical compound, or (C) is derived from a plant or animal residue, by-product or natural material deposit which has been processed in a manner that results in its content of plant nutrients not having been materially changed, except by purification and concentration. See Connecticut General Statutes 22-111b
- Label: means the display of all written, printed or graphic matter on a fertilizer container or a written statement accompanying a fertilizer. See Connecticut General Statutes 22-111b
- Mixed fertilizer: means a fertilizer containing any combination or mixture of fertilizer materials. See Connecticut General Statutes 22-111b
- Official sample: means any sample of fertilizer taken by the commissioner or the commissioner's duly authorized agent and designated as such by the commissioner. See Connecticut General Statutes 22-111b
- Person: means an individual, partnership, association, firm, corporation, limited liability company or other entity. See Connecticut General Statutes 22-111b
- Registrant: means a person who registers fertilizer pursuant to public act 09-229*. See Connecticut General Statutes 22-111b
(b) If analysis shows a fertilizer is deficient in one or more of its guaranteed primary plant nutrients beyond the investigational allowances and compensations as established by public act 09-229* or by any regulation adopted by the commissioner pursuant to § 22-111j, a penalty payment of three times the value of such deficiency shall be assessed by the commissioner against the violator.
(c) All penalties assessed by the commissioner pursuant to this section shall be paid by the registrant to the consumer of the lot of fertilizer represented by the sample analyzed not later than three months after the date of notice from the commissioner to the registrant. If the commissioner is unable to locate or identify such consumer, such penalty payments shall be paid to the commissioner, who shall deposit the same into the General Fund. If the commissioner finds upon satisfactory evidence that a person has altered the content of fertilizer supplied to him or her by a registrant, or to have mixed or commingled fertilizer from two or more suppliers such that the result of either alteration changes the analysis of the fertilizer as originally guaranteed, the commissioner shall require such person to obtain a registration and such person shall be held liable for all applicable penalty payments and be subject to any other applicable provisions of public act 09-229* or any regulation adopted by the commissioner pursuant to § 22-111j, including, but not limited to, seizure, condemnation and a stop sale order by the commissioner.
(d) A deficiency in an official sample of mixed fertilizer resulting from nonuniformity shall not be distinguishable from a deficiency due to actual plant nutrient shortage and shall be subject to action by the commissioner pursuant to sections 22-111a to 22-111j, inclusive, and 22-111l to 22-111x, inclusive.
(e) Nothing contained in this section shall prevent any person from commencing an action in Superior Court for damages or penalty payments relating to fertilizer or fertilizer material.