13.1.
March 30, 1992 - Effective April
30, 1992
The Statement of Basis, Specific Statutory Authority
and Purpose for this rulemaking activity is no longer in the Department's
files.
13.2.
February 17, 1998 - Effective April 30, 1998
These rules are adopted pursuant to
35-24.5-105(1)
and 35-24.5-106(1).
These recommended changes are the result of a review of the
existing regulation by the Colorado Aquaculture Board. This review resulted in
both technical and operational changes being recommended.
13.3.
May 13, 2008 - Effective June 30,
2008
Statutory Authority
These amendments to these rules are proposed for adoption by
the Commissioner of the Colorado Department of Agriculture ("CDA") pursuant to
his authority under the Aquaculture Act (the "Act"), §
35-24.5-107(1)(a),(c),
and 5, C.R.S.
Purpose
The purpose of these proposed rules is to:
1. Require all fish in Colorado aquaculture
holding and aquaculture production facilities to be certified as Viral
Hemorrhagic Septicemia ("VHS")-free in accordance to Colorado Division of
Wildlife Chapter 0 Regulations.
2.
Reduce the aquaculture facility permit fee from $150.00 to $100.00.
3. Correct several typographical errors,
delete obsolete language, and to add a section to contain the statements of
basis, specific statutory authority and purpose.
Factual and Policy Issues
The factual and policy issues encountered when developing
these rules include:
1. Rule III(A)
currently requires all production facilities that sell or stock live salmonids
to obtain an annual fish health inspection. In March of 2008 the Colorado
Division of Wildlife expanded its Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia ("VHS")-free
certification requirements for salmonids to include testing for all species of
fish. The requirement applies to all in-state aquaculture holding and
aquaculture production facilities and is intended to maintain Colorado's
VHS-free status. CDA proposes to amend Rule III(A) to expand the VHS-free
certificate carrying requirement to all fish in Colorado aquaculture holding
and aquaculture production facilities.
2. Section
35-24.5-106(1)(a),
C.R.S. allows for the Colorado Aquaculture Board to consider and recommend to
the Commissioner rules concerning fees to fund all direct and indirect costs of
the administration and enforcement of the Act. CDA recommends a reduction in
the aquaculture facility permit yearly fee from $150.00 to $100.00 because the
current level of administration of the program would remain intact, and there
would be a reduction in cost to the aquaculture industry.
3. After review of these Rules, the
Aquaculture Board found three typographical errors that needed to be corrected
and, if these amendments are passed, an obsolete sentence that needs to be
struck from the Rules.
13.4.
December 9, 2008 - Effective
January 30, 2009
Statutory Authority
The amendments to these rules are proposed to the
Commissioner of the Colorado Department of Agriculture ("Commissioner") for his
adoption pursuant to his authority under the Aquaculture Act (the "Act"),
§
35-24.5-107(1) and
(5), C.R.S.
The purpose of these proposed rules is to:
1. Define "aquaculture facility permit" to
comport with the current definition as codified within the Aquaculture Act,
§
35-24.5-103(2),
C.R.S.
2. Define the common,
biological term "Gamete(s)" as it specifically relates to fish and
aquaculture.
3. Clarify aquaculture
facility permitting requirements for the following groups of persons in the
following ways:
a. To articulate that a broker
who never physically possesses a live fish or viable gamete does not need a
permit;
b. To create an exemption
for those persons who sell live fish to individuals from grocery stores, fish
markets, and restaurants, but to maintain the requirement that those who
transport live fish to these types of outlets must have a permit;
c. To distinguish bait dealers who propagate,
transport, or release live fish or viable gametes into state waters from those
who do not such that only bait dealers who propagate, transport, or release
live fish or viable gametes into state waters need a permit. Those who do not
undertake these specified activities do not need such a permit as long as they
obtain their live fish and viable gametes from a Division fish health certified
source, maintain records of fish acquisition, and provide their customers
receipts for sale of live fish and viable gametes;
d. To maintain the exemption from requiring a
permit for those who hold live fish or viable gametes in closed aquaria or
backyard ponds, including those facilities that are municipal, state, or
federal facilities or any accredited zoological garden; and
e. To clarify that persons transporting live
fish or viable gametes that have been legally obtained for a non-commercial,
personal use in aquaria or backyard ponds or as bait do not need a
permit.
4. To articulate
and clarify the results of non-compliance with the provisions of the rule and
to allow the Commissioner to set the time limit for disposal of live fish and
viable gametes in the event that a permit is denied, suspended, or
revoked.
5. To establish
record-keeping requirements of bait dealers who are exempt from the permitting
requirements of the Aquaculture Act.
6. To move this rule within the Code of
Colorado Regulations from the Markets Division (
8 CCR 1204-7)
to the Animal Industry Division (
8 CCR 1201-21) to reflect a
reorganization of the Aquaculture Act to the Animals Division within the
Colorado Department of Agriculture.
7. To make general changes to language within
the rule to ensure consistency with the newly proposed definitions, exemptions,
and other changes.
Factual and Policy Issues
The factual policy issues encountered when developing these
rules include:
1. The definitions of
the rule are changed to provide more consistent, clear language to define that
a permit is for an aquaculture facility as defined within the Aquaculture Act,
§
35-24.5-101, et seq.
2. Section II.A is expanded to define more
clearly who does and who does not need a permit pursuant to the Aquaculture
Act. The previous definition broadly stated that no aquaculturist could engage
in the described acts without a permit. The proposed language articulates five
exemptions from permitting based upon a variety of factors, thus more clearly
guiding the public.
3. Throughout
the rule, changes in language are incorporated to clarify intent, remove
obsolete provisions, and to bring the rule as a whole into conformity with the
newly proposed parts.
13.5.
February 15, 2013 - Effective
March 30, 2013
Statutory Authority
The amendments to these rules are proposed to the
Commissioner of the Colorado Department of Agriculture ("Commissioner") for his
adoption pursuant to his authority under the Aquaculture Act (the "Act"),
§
35-24.5-107(1) and
(1)(c), C.R.S.
The purpose of these proposed rules is to:
1. Define "aquatic organism" to comport with
the current definition as codified within the Aquaculture Act, §
35-24.5-103(5),
C.R.S.
2. Change language
throughout the rule to conform terms to the new definition of "aquatic
organism" and removal of the term "gamete."
3. Define "Division" to comport with its new
name, the Division of Parks and Wildlife.
4. Change language throughout the rule to
conform terms to the new definition of "Division" and removal of any references
to the non-existent Division of Wildlife.
5. Introduce new structure to the rules to
provide ease of comprehension and application without modifying any current
requirements or limitations.
6.
Provide a registration process for bait dealers who are exempt from the
aquaculture facility permitting process to ensure that the Department properly
records them as bait dealers and thus exempt from permitting
requirements.
Factual and Policy Issues
The factual policy issues encountered when developing these
rules include:
1. The Department
continues to attempt to make these rules easier to read and more effective. The
use of "aquatic organism" allowed the Department to simplify the rule to get
rid of "live fish and viable gametes," characterizing this group, generally, as
"aquatic organisms." Similarly, the Department had to change the reference to
Division of Wildlife to match its new name, Division of Parks and
Wildlife.
2. Throughout the rule,
the Department has used new paragraphs, indentation, and numbering to make the
rule more readable and accessible. The Department has moved lists of items from
paragraph form into numbered form to improve ease of access and increase reader
comprehension. These changes are cosmetic in nature and do not change any
regulatory requirements.
3. Because
bait dealers are exempt from the permit process, the Department needed a method
to identify them more quickly and simply. Thus, the Department created a system
by which bait dealers could register with the Department as a "bait dealer" and
avoid any confusion with regard to whether they did or did not meet the
exemption status for permitting.
4.
The Department created a new "Non-Compliance" section and moved
already-existing language into that section, illustrating its stand-alone
application.
5. These revisions
incorporate changes as a result of the Department's Regulatory Efficiency
Review Process conducted in accordance with the Governor's Executive Order D
2012-002.
13.6
Adopted September 26, 2018 - Effective November 15, 2018
Statutory Authority
The amendments to these rules are proposed to the
Commissioner of the Colorado Department of Agriculture ("Commissioner") for his
adoption pursuant to his authority under the Aquaculture Act (the "Act"),
§
35-24.5-107(1) and
(1)(c), C.R.S.
Purpose
The purpose of this rule-making is to make the Rules easier
to read and understand while updating the Rules to reflect changes in Colorado
Parks and Wildlife's ("Division") regulations. Other changes include:
clarifying sentences; updating language; increase overall readability; and
updating the numbering system to be consistent with other Department
Rules.
Factual and Policy Issues
A definition was added for "Retail Food Establishment" to
Part 1, which corresponds to a change in Part 2 that now clarifies that retail
food establishments that hold and display live aquatic organisms for the
purpose of selling such organisms directly to individuals for food do not need
an aquaculture permit so long as their live aquatic organism holding tanks are
not connected to the waters of the state and so long as the establishment does
not propagate, transport, or release live aquatic organisms into the waters of
the state. This clarification limits regulatory oversight of establishments
that hold live aquatic organisms when those organisms pose minimal threat to
Colorado's indigenous species.
Division staff requested removing Rule IV.F so as to reduce
unnecessary barriers to the issuance of aquaculture facility permits to persons
who might purchase or otherwise acquire waters that had previously been stocked
with aquatic organisms at the publics expense. Further, the Division updated
its rule sets with regard to what species of aquatic organisms will be
permitted in the state of Colorado. As a result of that change, the
Commissioner will now rely on the Division's list of approved aquatic wildlife
when contemplating his issuance of an Aquaculture Facility Permit. To reference
the Division's new regulations, the reviewers incorporate by reference the
revised Division regulation, 2 C.R. 406-0, Chapter W-0, Article VII, #012, into
a revised Rule 4.6.
