Section 5-204 - Duties of Secretary.
§ 5-204. Duties of Secretary.
The Secretary, by suitable administrative procedures including public hearings, if appropriate, shall:
(1) Adopt rules and regulations governing the storage, sale, distribution, exchange, use, and disposal of any pesticide and its container;
(2) Prescribe, when necessary, the time and conditions under which a pesticide may be sold, distributed, exchanged, or used in different areas of the State;
(3) Provide, if necessary, that extremely hazardous pesticides may be sold, distributed, exchanged, or applied only when special permission first is obtained from the Secretary;
(4) Define the formulations and establish the conditions and appropriate areas for application of any pesticide;
(5) Establish guidelines and requirements for the application of pesticides and providing for submission of records to the Secretary;
(6) Design and conduct an appropriate educational program on the use of pesticides and the necessity for care when applying them;
(7) Encourage, conduct and support research which will contribute to optimal uses of pesticides for maximum public benefit and minimum public damage;
(8) Require that records be kept by all licensees and permittees;
(9) Employ inspectors and other employees necessary for the proper enforcement of the provisions of this subtitle and the rules and regulations adopted pursuant to it;
(10) Coordinate and support pesticide monitoring programs;
(11) Establish appropriate categories and, if necessary, subcategories of applicators of pesticides;
(12) Establish guidelines and requirements for all licensees, certificate holders, and permittees for the identification of pests and their methods of inspection of property to determine the presence of pests;
(13) For purposes of uniformity and in order to enter into cooperative agreements, adopt use classifications and other pertinent pesticide regulation provisions that are established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; and
(14) Cooperate with State or federal agencies as is reasonable and proper to carry out the provisions of this subtitle.
[An. Code 1957, art. 66C, § 110A-3; 1973, 1st Sp. Sess., ch. 6, § 1; 1975, ch. 314, § 2; 1976, ch. 647; 1982, ch. 331; 1987, chs. 301, 302.]