Section 29.20. Commercial application business; license.

 

(1)   License required. Except as provided under sub. (2) , no person may do any of the following, either directly or through an employee, without an annual license from the department:

(a) Use or direct the use of any pesticide as an independent contractor for hire.

(b) Use or direct the use of a restricted-use pesticide.

(2)   Exemptions. The following persons are not required to obtain a license under sub. (1) :

(a) A government entity.

(b) An individual, employed by a person licensed under sub. (1) , who uses or directs the use of pesticides solely on behalf of that employer and not on the individual's own behalf.

(c) A person applying pesticides as part of a medical treatment provided by a licensed medical practitioner, or as part of a veterinary treatment provided by a licensed veterinary practitioner.

(d) A person applying pesticides in the laboratory in the course of bona fide laboratory research.

(e) A person applying germicides, sanitizers, or disinfectants.

(f) An agricultural producer, except that an agricultural producer who does any of the following is not exempt:

1. Uses or directs the use of pesticides for a person who is not an agricultural producer.

2. Uses or directs the use of pesticides for another agricultural producer for a purpose other than the production of agricultural commodities, or for the purpose of producing pesticide-treated commercial seed or pesticide-treated commercial wood products.

3. For compensation other than the exchange of goods or services, uses or directs the use of pesticides for more than 3 other agricultural producers in any calendar year.

4. For compensation other than the exchange of goods or services, uses or directs the use of pesticides applied in any calendar year to a total of more than 500 acres of land which the agricultural producer does not own or control.

(3)   License expiration. A license under sub. (1) expires on December 31 annually and is not transferable to another person.

(4)   License application. An applicant for an annual license under sub. (1) shall apply on a form provided by the department. The application shall include all of the following information, together with the fees required under sub. (6) :

(a) The applicant's correct name, mailing address, and street address. The application shall specify whether the applicant is an individual, corporation, or other business entity.

(b) Every other name under which the applicant does business.

(c) The mailing address and street address of each business location under sub. (5) . If 2 or more license applicants engage in activities under sub. (5) at the same business location, all of those applicants shall identify that business location in their own applications.

(d) The complete name and license number of each of the applicant's employees who are required to be licensed under s. ATCP 29.25 .

(e) Other information reasonably required by the department for the administration of this section.

(5)   Business locations. A business location under this section means any of the following:

(a) A site from which the person operates on a regular basis as a pesticide applicator for hire, including any site at which the person regularly takes orders for pesticide applications. A motorized vehicle, from which a person takes orders by mobile telephone, is not a site under this paragraph.

(b) A site, or a group of sites located within 1/2 mile of each other, at which a person mixes or loads a total of at least 1,500 pounds of pesticide active ingredient, excluding active ingredient applied at or immediately adjacent to the mixing or loading site.

(6)   Fees. A person required to be licensed under sub. (1) shall pay the following annual license fee and surcharge for each business location under sub. (5) from which that person operates during the license year:

(a) A basic annual license fee of $70.

(b) Beginning with the license year that begins on January 1, 2015, an agricultural chemical cleanup surcharge of $30.40.

(7)   Action on license application. The department shall grant or deny a license application under sub. (4) within 30 business days after the department receives a complete application.

(8)   Updated information. A person submitting an annual license application under sub. (4) shall promptly notify the department if any of the following occurs after that person submits that application:

(a) The person adds a business location under sub. (5) . The person shall pay a license fee and surcharge for that additional location, as provided under sub. (6) .

(b) There is any other significant change in information provided under sub. (4) .

Cr. Register, May, 1998, No. 509 , eff. 6-1-98; am. (6) (b), Register, May, 2000, No. 533 , eff. 6-1-00; CR 00-121 : am. (6) (b), Register October 2001 No. 550 , eff. 11-1-01; CR 08-075 : am. (6) (b) Register April 2009 No. 640 , eff. 5-1-09; CR 14-047 : am. (6) (b) Register May 2015 No. 713 , eff. 6-1-15.

Note

See s. 94.703 , Stats. A sole proprietor licensed under this section may also be required to obtain a license as an individual commercial applicator under s. ATCP 29.25 . Microsoft Windows NT 6.1.7601 Service Pack 1