Current through August, 2024
Section 1
DESCRIPTION OF ORGANIZATION
The Vermont Department of Agriculture has the
responsibility, as directed by the Legislature and the Governor, of
administering and enforcing a long list of Vermont statutes in many
fields. Practically all residents of the state are affected in one
way or another by these laws, regulations and services. Among these
are the control and eradication of livestock diseases which have
human health and economic significance; the operation of a state meat
inspection service; licensing and bonding of a select list of farm
commondity buyers; supervising the sanitary production and handling
of milk and dairy products; enforcing the accurate grading and
labeling of many Vermont farm products; testing all devices which are
used to measure commodities sold to the public; enforcing packing and
labeling regulations; controlling and/or eradicatying plant diseases
and pests; supervising the production and sale of Vermont certified
seed crops and plants; registration of economic poisons; apiary
inspection; and, the promotion of agricultural interests of the
state. The Department reports to the County State's Attorneys all
persistent violations.
The Commissioner of Agriculture also serves as a
member of specified admini-strative boards and councils, for which
administrative functions are performed by Department of Agriculture
staff. These boards and councils are as follows: State Dairy Council,
Vermont Milk Control Board, Vermont Dairy Industry Council Meat
Inspection Board of Appeals and the Agricultural Development
Commission. The Commissioner is also a member of the State Natural
Resources Conservation Council, but department staff performs no
administrative functions for this council.
The public may obtain information and make informal
requests at the office of the Commissioner of Agriculture.
Section 2 DEFINITIONS
Wherever the words Department, Board, Council appear,
reference is made to the Vermont Department of Agriculture, Vermont
Milk Control Board, State Meat Inspection Appeals Board, State
Natural Resources Conservation Council, State Dairy Council, Vermont
Dairy Industry Council. The definitions set forth in 3V.S.A., Sec.
801, are hereby adopted and made applicable to these rules.
Section 3 FORMAL AND
INFORMAL PROCEEDINGS
The following types of proceedings will be treated as
formal proceedings:
(a)
Proceedings wherein the determination by the Department, Board,
Council, is required to be made after an opportunity for
hearing;
(b) Rule-making
proceedings initiated by the Department, Board, Council under Rule 8
(c) hereof.
All other petitions, applications, submissions,
requests, charges, etc. will be treated as informal
proceedings.
Section
4 APPEARANCES IN FORMAL PROCEEDINGS
(a) A party to a formal proceeding
before the Department, Board, Council, may appear for himself or he
may be represented by an attorney admitted top practice in the State
of Vermont.
(b) Upon the
filing of a petition, charge or other pleading initiating a formal
proceeding before the Department, Board, Council, the name of the
attorney or person who has signed such pleading will be entered on a
docket of the Department, Board, Council. Except for appearances
entered during a hearing, all other appearances in formal proceedings
by attorneys or persons appearing for themselves shall be by notice
in writing filed with the Department, Board, Council, and served
pursuant to Rule
5
herein.
(c) All notice
given to or by an attorney of record for a party in a formal
proceeding shall be considered in all respects as notice to or from
the party represented by such attorney.
(d) When an attorney has entered
his appearance for a party in a formal proceeding, he shall remain
counsel for such party until he has been granted leave to withdraw by
order of the Department, Board, Council.
(e) An attorney not residing or not
admitted to practice in the State of Vermont may appear for a party
if he is associated with a resident and admitted attorney who has
entered his appearance for the same party.
Section 5 FILING AND SERVICE OF
DOCUMENTS IN FORMAL PROCEEDINGS
(a)
The petition, charge, or other pleading initiating a formal
proceeding before the Department, Board, Council shall be signed by
the petitioner or complainant or an officer thereof, and shall be
filed with the Department, Board, Council. Such pleadings shall be
drawn so as to fully and completely advise the Department, Board,
Council, and respondents, if any, as to the order or rule sought and
the statutory authority and reasons therefor.
(b) All formal pleadings addressed
to the Department, Board, Council, and the documents and papers filed
in formal proceedings shall be on paper measuring eight and one-half
by eleven inches. Filing with the Department, Board, Council, shall
be deemed to occur when a document or paper is received by the
Department, Board, Council, except that filing shall be deemed to
occur upon receipt by the Department, Board, Council, when a document
is submitted to the Department, Board, Council, during a
hearing.
(c) Service of
the initial pleading upon each other party entitled to be served a
copy will be completed by the Department, Board, Council, except in
cases where a different manner of service is required by
statute.
(d) The answer
of a respondent to an initial pleading, if an answer is permitted or
required by law, shall be filed with the Department, Board, Council,
at least seven days prior to the date set for the hearing of the
case.
(e) A petition for
leave to intervene as a party must set forth the grounds of the
proposed intervention, the position and interest of the petitioner in
the proceeding, and whether petitioner's position is in support of or
opposition to the order sought.
(f) Every document or paper filed
by any party subsequent to the initial pleading in a formal
proceeding shall be served upon the attorneys of record or all other
parties, and upon all persons who have appeared for themselves.
Service upon an attorney or upon a party shall be made by delivering
a copy to him or by mailing it to him at his last known address.
Delivery of a copy means handing it to the attorney or to the party,
or leaving it at his office with the person in charge thereof, or, if
the office is closed or the person to be served has no office,
leaving it at his dwelling house or usual place ofabode with some
person of suitable age and discretion then residing therein. Service
by mail shall mean first-class mail, in a sealed and properly stamped
envelope. Sevice by mail is deemed complete upon posting the mail in
a proper United States post-office receptacle. The document or paper
shall contain an attorney's certificate, or an affidavit of a party,
stating upon whom, and the means by which, the document has been
served.
(g) In its
discretion the Department, Board, Council, may treat any written
communication to it concerning a matter within its jurisdiction as a
pleading initiating a formal proceeding.
(h) Briefs and proposed findings of
fact and conclusions of law, if any, shall be filed within 30 days
after hearing, and in the event that hearing has been waived under
Rule 6(a), within 30 days after the date originally set for the
hearing.
Section
6 HEARINGS
(a) An oral
hearing shall be held in every formal proceeding except:
(1) in a formal rule-making
proceeding, if no request to be heard is submitted within 5 days of
the date set for such hearing, in accordance with the provisions of
3 V.S.A. §
803(a); and,
(2) in any other formal
proceeding if all the parties to the proceeding file written waivers
of opportunity to be heard.
(b) Upon the filing of a pleading
initiating a formal proceeding or upon the initiating of such a
proceeding by the Department, Board, Council on its own motion, the
Department, Board, Council, shall by order or otherwise assign a time
and place for the hearing thereof and the Department, Board, Council,
shall cause written notice of the hearing in the form as provided by
3 V.S.A. §
809(b) and Sec.
(a) ( 1) to be served upon each party and, if required by statute,
shall arrange for publication thereof.
(c) Every party and counsel
representing the Department, Board, Council, if any, shall have the
right to participate fully in any hearing before the Department,
Board, Council, and, in the case of rule-making proceedings, all
interested persons shall also be permitted to participate in
accordance with the terms of the notice of the proceeding.
(d) The admissibility of evidence
in all formal proceedings before the Department, Board, Council, will
be determined under the criteria specified in
3 V.S.A. §
810(1) - (4),
which are attached hereto as Appendix A.
(e) The testimony of a hearing
witness on direct examination may be offered in written form, either
by having it read into the record or by offering it for incorporation
in the record without reading, provided that a copy of such testimony
shall be supplied to the Department, Board, Council, each attorney of
record and each party appearing for himself at a reasonable time in
advance of the hearing at which testimony will be offered. Such
testimony shall be subject to the same rules of admissibility and
cross-examination as extemporaneous testimony.
(f) Hearings or any part thereof
shall be transcribed at the request of any party made at least five
days prior to the hearing and upon payment by there questing party of
the reasonable costs thereof.
Section 7 PETITIONS FOR RULE-MAKING
(a) Petitions for the adoption,
amendment, or repeal of any rule will be entertained by the
Department, Board, Council. Such petitions shall be filed with the
Department, Board, Council, pursuant to Rule
5
hereof. Such petitions will be considered and disposed of pursuant to
the procedure specified in
3 V.S.A. §
803 and
806,
and Rule 8 (c) hereof.
Section 8 SPECIAL PROCEDURES FOR
CERTAIN INFORMAL PROCEEDINGS
(a)
Applications for licenses (certificates, etc.) or renewals thereof
shall be sumitted on official application forms and will be
considered and disposed of upon the basis of the application,
exhibits, filed therewith such other credible information as may be
available to the Department, Board, Council. Applicants and other
persons may at any time furnish to the Department Board, Council,
such other information and exhibits as they deem relevant to the
Department, Board, Council, consideration of an
application.
(b) Any
formal proceeding for revocation, suspension, annulment or withdrawal
of a license (certificates, etc.) shall be preceded by notice to the
licensee of facts or conduct which warrant the intended action, and
the licensee shall be given an opportiunity informally to show
compliance with all all lawful requirements for the retention of the
license prior to initiation of such formal proceeding under Rule 6
(b) hereof.
(c) Petitions
for rule-making filed under Rule 7 (a) hereof will be considered
informally and the Department, Board, Council shall within 30 days
after the filing of such a petition either deny the petition in
writing (stating its reasons for the denial) or shall initiate formal
rule-making proceedings in accordance with
3 V.S.A., Sec.
803, and Rule 6 (b)
hereof.
(d) Petitions for
declaratory rulings as to the applicability of any statutory
provision or of any rule or order of the Department, Board, Council,
will be entertained by the Department, Board, Council. Such petitions
shall be filed with the Department, Board, Council. Petitions so
filed will be con- sidered and disposed of promptly.
Section 9 FORMS
The Department, Board, Council, has certain approved
forms and instructions which are available upon request and must be
used where applicable. These include the following:
ADMINISTRATION DIVISION
(1) Licenses
a) Milk handler license
(retail)
(2)
Bonds
a) Milk handler license bond
form (personal)
b) Milk
handler license bond form (surety)
(3) Fund Forms
a) Stipend fund form
DAIRY DIVISION
(1) Licenses
a) Ice cream frozen dairy products
and frozen dairy products mix (manufacture and sale)
b) Imitation dairy products handler
license
c) Milk handler
license (dealer)
d) Milk
handler license (sub-dealer)
e) Oleomargarine (dealer)
f) Oleomargarine
(wholesale)
g) Public
warehouse license
(2) Permits
a) Bulk tank milk handling
(producer)
b) Bulk tank
milk handling (dealer-hauler)
c) Installation/re-modeling
pipeline milking system
(3) Certificates
a) Certificate of competency
LIVESTOCK DIVISION
(1) Licenses
a) Livestock dealers
license
b) Meat license
(retail)
c) Meat handling
or slaughterhouse operation
d) Poultry license
e) Urine, pregnant mare
license
(2)
Permits
a) Garbage feeding for
swine
(3)
Bonds
a) Livestock market agencies
and dealers
b) Resident
bond
(4)
Certificates
a) Pollorum and breed
improvement grades
AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT DIVISION
(1) Licenses
a) Egg buyers license
(2) Certificates
a) Apple inspection
certificate
b) Apple
picking certificate
c)
Controlled atmosphere storage
d) Official inspection
certificate
e) Potato
inspection certificate
f)
Poultry products grading certificate
g) Shell egg regulatory
inspection
h) Storage,
apples exposed to cold storage
i) Stop sale order (eggs)
j) Sanitary inspection
PLANT INDUSTRY DIVISION
(1) Licenses
a) Pesticide applicators license
(218)
b) Pesticide
dealers license (Class "A" & "B" 1903)
c) Class "C" pesticides
(retail)
(2)
Permits
a) Purchase or use
restricted pesticides
b)
Nursery inspection
(3) Certificates
a) Certified crop seed field
inspection
b) Nursery
inspection
c) Nursery
stock dealers
d)
Pesticide stop sale order
e) Phytosanitary
certificate
f)
Phytosanitary certificate (export)
g) Registration for pesticides
(6213)
h) Seed potato
inspection
i) Stop sale
order (general)
WEIGHTS AND MEASURES AND RETAIL INSPECTION
DIVISION
(1) Licenses
a) Dealer/repairman
license
b) Public
weighmaster's license
Section
10 ENLARGEMENT OF RULES
The Vermont Department of Agriculture may take a
proceeding partially or entirely out of these rules when the law so
permits and, in its opinion, the interest of the public so
requires.
Appendix A
RULES OF EVIDENCE, OFFICIAL NOTICE
(1) Irrelevant, immaterial, or
unduly repetitious evidence shall be excluded. The rules of evidence
as applied in civil cases in the county courts of this State shall be
followed. When necessary to ascertain facts not reasonably
susceptible of proof under those rules, evidence not admissible
thereunder may be admitted (except where precluded by statute) if it
is of a type commonly relied upon by reasonably prudent men in the
conduct of their affairs. Agencies shall give effect to the rules of
privilege recognized by law. Objections to evidentiary offers may be
made and shall be noted in the record. Subject to these requirements,
when a hearing will be expedited and the interests of the parties
will not be prejudiced substantially, any part of the evidence may be
received in written form;
(2) Documentary evidence may be
received in the form of copies or excerts, if the original is not
readily available. Upon request, parties shall e given an opportunity
to compare the copy with the original;
(3) A party may conduct
cross-examination required for a full and true disclosure of the
facts;
(4) Notice may be
taken of judicially cognizable facts. In addition, notice may be
taken of generally recognized technical or scientific facts within
the agency's specialized knowledge. Parties shall be notified either
before or during the hearing, or by reference in preliminary reports
or other-wise, of the material noticed, including any staff memoranda
or data, and they shall be accorded an opportunity to contest the
material so noticed. The agency's experience, technical competence
and specialized knowledge may be utilized in the evaluation of the
evidence.
