Committee backs $50 pesticide-registration surcharge, tasks agency with study

The House Agriculture, Food Resiliency, & Forestry Committee reviewed provisions of H.44 that add a $50 per-product pesticide registration surcharge to a pesticide-registration special fund and direct the Agency of Agriculture to report back on funding mechanisms by Dec. 15, 2025.

The change would augment the existing annual pesticide registration fee (currently $200, with $185 directed to the pesticide-registration special fund) and make the additional $50 available to reimburse municipal solid-waste entities that collect unwanted or obsolete pesticides. "They're just not getting paid their full reimbursement cost," Mike O'Grady, legislative counsel, said of the solid-waste entities. O'Grady explained the reimbursement would cover labor, equipment, supplies, maintenance and, for hazardous products, environmental service and insurance fees.

Why it matters: statute (9 29 a 6, as cited in the committee discussion) requires collection of unwanted and obsolete pesticides but, according to presenters, existing registration revenue has not covered collection costs. The $50 surcharge would remain in place until an extended-producer-responsibility (EPR) program for pesticides is implemented; the agency must recommend a funding mechanism by the Dec. 15, 2025 report, though the agency is not required to recommend an EPR program specifically.

Committee context and next steps: committee members heard that industry, the Agency of Agriculture, and the solid-waste management entities agreed to the language. Members asked whether the Agency would need additional administrative funds; the reply was that the program would operate as an Agency of Agriculture program and that no separate interagency transfer through ANR was intended. The committee reported that sections 2–4 (which include the pesticide fee and a related state-fair stormwater provision) passed a straw poll earlier in the meeting with a reported 9-0-2 tally.

Outstanding points: the committee did not take final action on the overall amendment during this session; members noted the surcharge will remain until a future funding mechanism is adopted, and that the agency's Dec. 15, 2025 report must include a recommended mechanism that would cover "all costs associated with collecting unwanted pesticides," as O'Grady summarized. The committee flagged administration and full-cost reimbursement as items to monitor as the bill moves forward.