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Committee explores online pesticide‑use reporting; agency aims for December 2026 rollout
Summary
Rep. Bixby proposed studying an online system to replace paper annual pesticide use reports and possibly to notify registered apiaries. DEAP staff said an online reporting tool is in development and aimed for the Dec. 1, 2026 renewal cycle; members flagged privacy and paper‑option concerns.
Representative Peter Bixby proposed creating an online reporting option for pesticide applicator annual use reports and asked the committee to form an interim study to consider whether electronic filing should be mandatory, optional or phased and whether the system could include an automatic notification function for apiaries.
David Russo, Division of Pesticide Control, said the department already accepts electronic reports but must transfer them into its database manually. He said DEAP is working with a vendor to create online submission capability and hoped the system could be in place by the Dec. 1, 2026 renewal period. Russo noted privacy concerns for agricultural users and said the department could work to safeguard agricultural use data; committee members suggested statutory privacy protections and that paper filing remain an option for those who cannot or will not file electronically.
The committee asked for an implementation plan addressing privacy, inclusion of small applicators and whether the system could support notifications to beekeepers. Representatives signaled willingness to move the matter to interim study or to ITL if the department can proceed administratively.
Next steps: representatives indicated they would pursue an ITL or an amendment during next hearings and encouraged DEAP to work on privacy protections and outreach to applicators.
