Current through Reg. 50, No. 187; September 24, 2024
(1) Based upon prior approval by the
Department, trucking concerns and truck lines may participate in the Commercial
Carrier Pre-clearance Program for the purpose of transporting goods without
being regularly required to stop at the Department's agricultural inspection
stations for physical inspection.
(2) Qualifying trucking concerns and truck
lines may apply to the Department requesting approval to participate in the
Commercial Carrier Pre-clearance Program by acquiring from and submitting a
completed Commercial Carrier Pre-clearance Program application form number
DACS-01281 (effective 7/04) to the Office of Agricultural Law Enforcement, Post
Office Box 850, Old Town, Florida 32680.
(3) Approval to participate in the Commercial
Carrier Pre-clearance Program will be granted only to those trucking concerns
and truck lines that meet the following criteria:
(a) Applicant must be verified by the Florida
Department of Revenue as being exempt from or enrolled and actively
participating in the Florida Department of Revenue's Electronic Bill of Lading
Program;
(b) Applicant must be a
recognized trucking concern or truck line engaged primarily in the
transportation of commodities other than commodities over which the Department
exercises regulatory authority. Applications received from trucking concerns
and truck lines that routinely or regularly transport agricultural products,
horticultural products, aquaculture, products derived from aquaculture,
livestock, products derived from livestock, or other commodities over which the
Department exercises regulatory authority will be denied;
(c) Applicant must agree to allow any
department representative to inspect the cargo, regular manifest and/or other
billing of all vehicles participating in the Commercial Carrier Pre-clearance
Program at all Florida terminals or drop sites any time during hours of
operation, should the Department wish to check such cargo and/or
billing;
(d) Applicant must agree
that each and every truck shipment which contains or includes agricultural
products, horticultural products, aquaculture, products derived from
aquaculture, livestock, products derived from livestock, or other commodities
over which the Department exercises regulatory authority will voluntarily stop
at all agricultural inspection stations and declare such commodities even
though pre-clearance approval is received.
(4) The privilege of participating in the
Commercial Carrier Pre-clearance Program shall be revoked or canceled for any
of the following causes:
(a) Notification by
the Department of Revenue that the trucking concern or truck line has lost its
exemption, been removed from or is no longer participating in the Department of
Revenue's Electronic Bill of Lading Program or is not in compliance with
applicable Florida Statutes or Administrative Rules;
(b) Notification to or discovery by the
Department that the trucking concern or truck line has begun to routinely or
regularly transport agricultural products, horticultural products, aquaculture,
products derived from aquaculture, livestock, products derived from livestock,
or other commodities over which the Department exercises regulatory
authority.
(c) Discovery by the
Department that a vehicle owned, leased, rented, loaned to or by the trucking
concern or operated by an employee or agent of the trucking concern was used in
the commission of a criminal act or was discovered to have been transporting
contraband or undocumented or otherwise unauthorized foreign
nationals.
(5)
Participants of the Commercial Carrier Pre-clearance Program shall be subject
to a modification in the number of compliance spot checks for any of the
following causes:
(a) Failure to make
available for inspection by any department representative the cargo, regular
manifest and/or other billing pertaining to any vehicle participating in the
Commercial Carrier Pre-clearance Program at any Florida terminal or drop site
during hours of operation;
(b)
Failure of any vehicle participating in the Commercial Carrier Pre-clearance
Program which is transporting agricultural products, horticultural products,
aquaculture, products derived from aquaculture, livestock, products derived
from livestock, or other commodities over which the Department exercises
regulatory authority to voluntarily stop at any agricultural inspection station
and declare such commodities even though pre-clearance approval is
received;
(c) Failure of any
vehicle participating in the Commercial Carrier Pre-clearance Program, which is
routed into an agricultural inspection station for a compliance spot check, to
enter said inspection station and/or submit for inspection;
(6) Participants of the Commercial Carrier
Pre-clearance Program who are determined to have engaged in those acts
prescribed in subsection (5), above, shall be subject to the following
conditions:
(a) First time offenders shall be
subject to an increase in compliance spot checks of the participating carrier
vehicles up to fifty percent (50%);
(b) Second offense shall be subject to
suspension of their participation in the program for a period not to exceed one
hundred eighty (180) days;
(c)
Subsequent offenses shall result in expulsion from the program without leave to
reapply for a period of twelve months.
(7) Five percent (5%) of vehicles
participating in the Commercial Carrier Pre-clearance Program which pass a
specified agricultural inspection station shall be routed into the inspection
station for inspection of the cargo, regular manifest and/or other billing, as
a means to ensure compliance. The compliance spot check count shall be
conducted separately at each specified agricultural inspection station.
(a) The percentage of vehicles subject to
compliance spot checks may be reduced to zero percent (0%) to address safety
concerns resulting from ramp renovation, construction projects, natural and
manmade disasters, and heavy traffic;
(b) The percentage of vehicles subject to
compliance spot checks may be increased to one hundred percent (100%) during
emergencies as defined by the Governor or Commissioner of
Agriculture.
(c) The percentage of
vehicles subject to compliance spot checks may be increased up to fifty percent
(50%) as a condition of readmission into the program following suspension or
revocation.
Rulemaking Authority 570.07(23), 570.15(5) FS. Law
Implemented 570.15(1), (2), (5) FS.
New 1-26-05.
