In a continued effort to help registrants, refillers, retailers, commercial applicators and custom blenders to comply with the requirements of this rule, the EPA has developed flow charts to help explain the refillable container and repackaging regulations.

• Flow Chart 1:  Is the container a service container or a portable refillable container?

• Flow Chart 2:  Can I fill this large portable container (greater than 119 gallons)?

• Flow Chart 3:  Can I fill this small portable refillable container (capacity of 119 gallons or less)?

Please note that flow charts #2 and #3 should be printed on legal-sized paper and that you need to manually select legal-sized paper.

Visit the Pesticide Container & Containment Web site at for more information on these regulations.

“The decision to withdraw this rule — including provisions to define the ‘parental exemption’ — was made in response to thousands of comments expressing concerns about the effect of the proposed rules on small family-owned farms. To be clear, this regulation will not be pursued for the duration of the Obama administration,” the DOL said in their statement.

“Rather than regulate we’re going to focus on educate,” U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack told The Des Moines Register. “We’re anxious to get this started.”

The DOL and the USDA plan to work with rural stakeholders to develop an educational program to reduce accidents to young workers and promote safer agricultural working practices.

Iowa officials shared their approval of the DOL’s actions after the DOL’s decision was announced.

Iowa Gov. Branstad stated, “I applaud this announcement by the U.S. Department of Labor to withdraw their proposed rules for young people participating in agriculture. I look forward to continuing to work with agricultural stakeholders, including the FFA and 4-H, to build upon successful grassroots initiatives that truly help to continually improve agricultural working practices for young people.”

Sec. Northey stated, ““I am pleased the U.S. Department of Labor responded to the public outcry and withdrew these proposed rules in their entirety.  We need to encourage young people to be involved with agriculture and learn from responsible adults about how to operate machinery and care for animals, these proposed rules would have done just the opposite.”

The bill was passed by both the Senate and the House of Representatives unanimously. Once signed into law, fertilizer plants will achieve increased production thru-put. Additionally, fertilizer producers will realize significant cost savings without jeopardizing public or worker safety.

AAI supported SF 2280 and worked with member representatives to secure its passage and is pleased with this outcome. AAI and our lobbying team is confident that Governor Branstad will sign the bill and have left messages with his office that the bill is great policy and regulatory reform and should be signed.

The bill, now titled Senate File 2280 (SF 2280), has been introduced and is eligible for senate floor debate.  With bill passage, fertilizer plants will achieve increased production thru-put.  Additionally, fertilizer producers will realize significant cost savings without jeopardizing public or worker safety.

AAI supported SSB 3158 and worked with member representatives to secure its passage out of committee.  AAI and our lobbying team will monitor the progression of SF 2280 and keep our members informed of its progress through the legislature.

On February 16, Florida Gov. Rick Scott signed legislation, passed unanimously by the Legislature and approved by the Florida Environmental Regulations Commission (ERC), that would ensure the EPA does not overstep its authority and implement federal numeric nutrient criteria in the state.  The legislation directs the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) to submit their own Numeric Nutrient Criteria rules to EPA for approval.

“Our rules provide a clear process for identifying waters impaired by nutrients, preventing harmful discharges and establishing necessary reductions. They provide a reasonable and predictable implementation strategy, and avoid unnecessary costs for Florida’s households and businesses,” said FDEP Secretary Herschel Vinyard in response to Gov. Scott signing the legislation.  “We are pleased that we will now be able to submit our widely supported rules for final EPA approval. It’s important to start addressing our nutrient challenges, and we look forward to getting these rules on the books and implemented as soon as possible,”  added Vinyard.

In addition to the state legislation, on February 15, U.S. Senator Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) sent a letter to Administrator Jackson in support of the FDEP rule and urged the Administrator “to promptly review and approve” the Florida rule.  On February 16, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) introduced a companion bill to the “State Waters Partnership Act of 2012” (H.R. 3856) filed by Rep. Steve Southerland (R-Fla.) that “would force the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to adopt Florida’s science-based numeric nutrient criteria on water quality regulation.”

As stated in the letter, EPA has acknowledged that states must take the lead in addressing nutrients.  AAI and the other signees agree with this and believe that states are best suited to deal with issues related to their unique landscapes and climates.

• Work Protection Standard
• D.O.T. Shipping Information
• Restricted-Use Products

These posters are available for AAI Members to order as a set of three for only $15.00 plus shipping and handling or on an individual basis for $6.00 plus shipping and handling per poster.  We have a limited supply of these, so please order as soon as possible.

To order, simply contact us at 515-262-8323 or 800-383-1682 or download and complete the order form and mail it to AAI with your payment.

Contact Reilly Vaughan, Membership Director with any questions.

“LightSquared’s proposal to provide ground-based mobile service offered the potential to unleash new spectrum for mobile broadband and enhance competition. The Commission clearly stated from the outset that harmful interference to GPS would not be permitted. This is why the Conditional Waiver Order issued by the Commission’s International Bureau prohibited LightSquared from beginning commercial operations unless harmful interference issues were resolved,” FCC Spokesperson Tammy Sun shared in a statement on Tuesday.  “This proceeding has revealed challenges to maximizing the opportunities of mobile broadband for our economy. In particular, it has revealed challenges to removing regulatory barriers on spectrum that restrict use of that spectrum for mobile broadband. This includes receivers that pick up signals from spectrum uses in neighboring bands.”

The Defense Department, legislators, agriculture industry and GPS receiver manufacturers have been critical of LightSquared operating signal being too close to the spectrum that GPS receivers use. LightSquared claims that GPS receivers are poorly designed while the GPS receiver manufacturer believe that their instruments are too sensitive to filter out LightSquared’s cell signals.

Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa)

Since last April, Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa has asked the U.S. Federal Communications Commission for documents related to the agency’s decision to fast-track the LightSquared broadband wireless project, despite concerns of widespread interference with global-positioning system devices. Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley released the following statement on the decision, ““The FCC’s action seems to acknowledge the point I’ve been making since April.  Prematurely granting a conditional waiver in a rushed process is not the way to get the right result.  Now that the interference issue is settled, we need to find out more than ever why the FCC did what it did.  The agency put this project on a fast track for approval with what appears to have been completely inadequate technical research.  After all of this time and expense, still, no one outside of the agency knows why.  That’s not the way the people’s government should work.  The public’s business ought to be public.  Now that the FCC has backtracked on LightSquared, I’d like to see my Senate colleagues join my document request, especially the chairman of the only Senate committee that the FCC is willing to answer.  If we don’t find out how and why the FCC failed to avoid this controversy, then it will keep operating as a closed shop instead of the open, publicly accountable agency it should be.”

After the FCC’s decision, rumors of impending bankruptcy started to circulate.  LightSquared is the biggest investment of the Harbinger Capital Partners fund. “It is clearly not on the table,” said fund manager Phillip Falcone in an email to Reuters on Wednesday in response to the rumors.  On Thursday, The Wall Street Journal reported that LightSquared is pursing the possibility of swapping spectrum with the Defense Department as a way to move forward.

The coalition comments focused on what AAI and other agriculture organizations see as over-reaching regulatory efforts by DOL. Most prominent is the proposal’s potential impact on family farms. The coalition comments urged the department “to maintain the integrity of the family farm exemption approved by Congress.”
The department has the authority to prohibit youth employment in jobs that are “particularly hazardous” but the department’s proposal would prohibit youth from working in any job with “power-driven equipment.” Read literally, the department’s proposal would prohibit a youth under 16 from working in any job that had even simple power tools like a battery-operated screw driver. The coalition argued that DOL should withdraw the rule and make sure that it is following the intent of Congress in only addressing occupations that are particularly hazardous.

Download and read the coalition’s DOL Child Labor Comments

In addition, the new rule clears up much of the confusion regarding the duty of the commercial applicator working with the aerial applicator.  The rule states that an Iowa-based commercial applicator may apply for certification to be an aerial applicator consultant.  The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship has created two checklists to clarify the aerial applicator consultant’s duties and procedures.  Click here to view the aerial applicator consultant checklist. Click here to view the checklist for the application job.

IDALS is already offering consultant certification exams across the state, test schedules can be found at:  http://www.iowaagriculture.gov/Pesticide/pesticidetesting.asp .  Please contact the Pesticide Bureau at 515-281-8590 with any questions or for more information.

The amendments outline the requirements for the supervision of aerial pesticide applicators, the qualifications and duties of the aerial applicator consultant, and the procedures for aerial application.  The amendments also outline the license, certification, and continuing instruction requirements for aerial applicators operating in Iowa.  Click here for a complete copy of the new rule.