Sec. 15.
(a) A
person or a federal agency must not release a beneficial organism or a pest or
pathogen in Indiana without a permit issued by the division director under this
section.
(b) Before a permit is
issued under this section, a person or a federal agency must demonstrate, to a
reasonable certainty, that the release of a beneficial organism or a pest or
pathogen would do none of the following:
(1)
Harm a nontarget plant or animal.
(2) Interfere with normal management and
production practices in agriculture, horticulture, viticulture, silviculture,
nursery production, or greenhouse production.
(3) Disturb the ecological stability of an
Indiana native organism or its environments.
(c) An application for release must be
prepared on a commission form and must include each of the following:
(1) The current scientific name of the
beneficial organism or pest or pathogen, as well as prior synonyms and
taxonomic placements.
(2) The life
stages to be considered for release, including any genetic
recombinations.
(3) A listing of
all known foods or hosts of the beneficial organism or pest or pathogen. The
listing must identify the target organism, if applicable. The listing must be
documented by published scientific literature with peer review.
(4) The known distribution of the beneficial
organism or pest or pathogen, including habitat preferences and tolerances.
This information must be documented by:
(A)
scientific literature;
(B)
regulatory survey; or
(C) expert
testimony.
(5) The
method of release of the beneficial organism or pest or pathogen.
(6) The life cycle of the beneficial organism
or pest or pathogen.
(7) The place
of origin of the beneficial organism or pest or pathogen.
(8) The ecological classification of the
beneficial organism or pest or pathogen. Examples of an ecological
classification include:
(A)
predator;
(B) pollinator;
(C) parasite;
(D) pathogen;
(E) hyperparasite; and
(F) herbivore.
(9) Documentation of any known pest or
predator of the beneficial organism or pest or pathogen.
(10) The number of beneficial organisms or
pests or pathogens to be released.
(11) The location of the proposed
release.
(12) Clearly readable
copies of scientific literature regarding the beneficial organism or pest or
pathogen. Any literature supporting and not supporting the applicant's
application must be made available to the division.
(13) Upon request by the division director,
additional information reasonably necessary to demonstrate compliance with this
article and IC 14-24. As a prerequisite to the consideration of a permit, the
division director may require information consistent with an environmental
assessment under 329 IAC 5-1 or an environmental impact statement under 329 IAC
5-2.
(14) The division director
shall respond to the applicant within thirty (30) days with one (1) of the
following notifications:
(A) Deny the
permit.
(B) Approve the
permit.
(C) Approve the permit with
conditions.
(D) Request the
applicant to provide additional information within a stated period with an
explanation that, if information is not provided as requested, the permit would
be denied.
(15) If the
division director fails to make a timely response under subdivision (14), the
applicant may treat the application as denied and seek administrative
review.
(d) The division
director may establish a listing of organisms that are exempted or that may be
released under a general license. The division director shall submit the
listing to the commission for its approval.
(e) A person must not sell, barter, offer for
sale or distribution, or release a beneficial organism or pest or pathogen
without first obtaining a permit from the division.
(f) A person must not mislabel a beneficial
organism or pest or pathogen.
(g) A
person must not misrepresent data or submit incomplete data that could mislead
an investigator or the division director in considering the merits of a permit
application.
