Committee considers fee increases and fund transfers in plant protection bill (LB947)

Rick Leonard, research analyst for the Agriculture Committee, opened the hearing on LB947, which would raise statutory ceiling fees under the Plant Protection and Plant Pest Act, authorize the director to annually revise fees within caps and revise pesticide product registration fees. Leonard and Director Sherry Vinton said the changes are intended to cover program costs without additional general funds.

Director Vinton testified the bill would raise certain fees, allow statutory ceiling increases to reflect program costs and permit disposal of unsold copies of the Weeds of the Great Plains book, transferring about $30,000 from that account to the Noxious Weed Cash Fund. She said the current statutory fee ceiling was set in 2013 and that, without changes, the program would require about $139,000 in additional general funds in coming years.

The director described a proposed pesticide product registration fee increase from $160 to $200 (with a new cap of $250) and said $20 of a $40 increase would go to the Noxious Weed Cash Fund and $20 to the Pesticide Administrative Cash Fund. On the Potato Development Fund, the committee heard an estimate that remaining funds might be $80,000 to $100,000 depending on obligations before the fund’s scheduled termination; an amendment (AM1790) would place transfer instructions within the Plant Protection Act to avoid conflict with another bill.

Committee members asked technical and policy questions about publication frequency for the weeds book (Director Vinton said the last print was 2019 and prior was 2003, and NDA stores about 7,000 copies) and about how fee changes compare with surrounding states. No committee vote was recorded during this hearing.

Next steps will depend on committee action and any floor consideration.