On August 20, 2024, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) announced it will launch its electronic pesticide registration system, the California Pesticide Electronic Submission Tracking (CalPEST), on September 24, 2024. The launch of CalPEST will convert its paper-based pesticide registration process to a streamlined electronic system. According to DPR, it is conducting the final stages of testing and has identified areas for improvement in system functionality and security that...
Pesticide Law and Policy Blog® covering developments in conventional, biocidal, antimicrobial, and other pesticide product issues
Category: State Issues - California
On July 29, 2024, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) announced that it will move forward with an emergency rulemaking package to revise the fees for pesticide registrations and renewals in late August with a proposed effective date of no later than October 1, 2024. DPR states the fee increase is necessary to meet current baseline funding needs and the new positions approved as part of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2024-2025 budget. DPR states that the Governor’s Proposed 2024-2025...
On May 24, 2024, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) issued California Notice 2024-10 announcing that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and DPR have made recent policy changes regarding state-specific language on pesticide labels intended to reduce delays related to state-specific uses. As part of DPR’s evaluation process when reviewing a new registration application, DPR may determine there are not sufficient data to support registration of a specific use in...
On April 17, 2024, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) announced the details of its webinar scheduled for Tuesday, April 23, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. (PDT). The webinar is to discuss and receive feedback from registrants and other stakeholders on DPR’s intent to increase registration fees to a level that, according to DPR, supports the current and future business needs of the pesticide registration program. DPR states it has determined that current registration fees are not...
April 1, 2024
California DPR Announces Webinar to Be Held on April 23, 2024, to Discuss Proposed Registration Fee Increase
On March 29, 2024, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) announced it will hold a webinar on Tuesday, April 23, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. (PDT) to discuss and receive feedback from registrants and other stakeholders on its intent to increase registration fees to a level that, according to DPR, supports the current and future business needs of the pesticide registration program. DPR states it has determined that current registration fees are not sufficient to support the ongoing work...
On June 8, 2023, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) issued Notice 2023-07: Pesticide Registration Program Annual Processing Timelines. Under Notice 2023-07, DPR sets forth its annual report summarizing the past five years of registration and post-registration activities. This includes the number of pesticide product registration and amendment submissions received and processed, and average number of days to complete different types of registration submissions are also...
November 30, 2022
California Department of Pesticide Regulation Issues an Enforcement Action against TriCal and Announces Proposed Rule on Additional Use Restrictions on 1,3-D
On November 15, 2022, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) made two announcements: an enforcement action relating to 1,3-Dichloropropene (1,3-D) and chloropicrin and an announcement on a proposed rule on additional use restrictions on 1,3-D. These actions may have significant impacts on registrants and growers who use soil fumigants. Enforcement Action DPR issued a licensing action against TriCal, a company that performs field fumigations, primarily using...
November 7, 2022
DPR Announces Agreement with Amazon to Pay Nearly Five Million Dollars for Illegal Pesticide Sales in California
On November 3, 2022, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) announced it reached a settlement agreement with Amazon.com Services, LLC (Amazon) regarding the illegal sale of pesticides in California. According to DPR, its review of Amazon uncovered multiple violations. Among them, it sold unregistered pesticides in California, failed to report and pay required mill assessment fees associated with the sale of registered pesticides in California, and failed to hold a...
April 26, 2022
OEHHA Announces Modification to Proposed Regulation on Safe Harbor Warnings for Glyphosate and Addition of Documents to Rulemaking File
On April 13, 2022, the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) issued a Notice of Modification to Proposed Regulation on Safe Harbor Warnings for Glyphosate and Addition of Documents to Rulemaking File (Notice). OEHHA first proposed this regulation by publishing a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on July 23, 2021. OEHHA provided a 75-day comment period on the original proposal and its Initial Statement of Reasons (ISOR), including an extension to file comments until...
Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.’s (B&C®) April 20, 2022, webinar “FIFRA Hot Topics” is now available for on-demand viewing at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/recording/7426709986449689102. During this one-hour webinar, Lisa M. Campbell, Partner, B&C, moderated a lively and informative discussion between Edward Messina, Director, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP), and James V. Aidala, Senior Government Affairs Consultant, B&C, as...
October 16, 2020
California to Consider Prop 65 Listing for Glyphosate, Neonicotinoids, and Other Substances
On October 6, 2020, the California Developmental and Reproductive Toxicant Identification Committee (DARTIC) announced it will be meeting on December 11, 2020, to discuss the possible developmental and reproductive toxicity (DART) of 22 chemical substances and chemical groups, including glyphosate and its salts, and three neonicotinoid pesticides (acetamiprid, clothianidin, and imidacloprid). DARTIC is composed of scientists who advise California’s Office of Environmental Health...
On June 22, 2020, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California granted summary judgment for the Plaintiffs in National Association of Wheat Growers et. al. v. Becerra, and entered a permanent injunction against enforcement of a Proposition 65 (Prop 65) warning label for pesticide products containing glyphosate. The court found that requiring the registrants of glyphosate products to include such a warning could not be justified as a valid restriction on commercial...
On April 3, 2020, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) announced it would allow enforcement discretion by County Agricultural Commissioners (CAC) for licensing and certification requirements for pesticide applicators who perform sanitization services to control the spread of COVID-19. DPR states in its announcement that, under normal circumstances, a “Pest Control Business (PCB) must always have a Qualified Applicator License (QAL) holder to supervise pest control...
On February 6, 2020, Corteva Agriscience (Corteva), announced it will discontinue all production of the organophosphate (OP) insecticide chlorpyrifos by the end of the year. Corteva and its corporate predecessor, Dow AgroSciences, have been the principal global manufacturers of chlorpyrifos. Corteva announced that its decision to stop selling chlorpyrifos was based entirely on financial considerations. This announcement came on the same day that Corteva had previously agreed it...
On August 14, 2019, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) issued cancellation notices to thirteen California registrants of pesticide products containing chlorpyrifos, including Dow Agrosciences LLC (now Corteva). Each of these notices is referred to as an "Accusation," and each affected registrant has 15 days to request a hearing concerning the proposed cancellation. DPR's issuance of these notices followed a final decision by the U.S....
May 30, 2019
California DPR Announces Changes to California-like Conditions for Terrestrial Field Dissipation Studies
On May 29, 2019, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) released California Notice 2019-05: Changes to California Notice 2018-06: California-like Conditions for Terrestrial Field Dissipation Studies (Notice 2019-05), which updates the guidance in California Notice 2018-06: California-like Conditions for Terrestrial Field Dissipation Studies (Notice 2018-06). Notice 2018-06, issued in January of 2018, provided to applicants for California registration...
On May 28, 2019, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) posted a new presentation identifying the top ten agricultural pesticide use violations of 2018. Its announcement states that “DPR suggests reviewing these common violations of pesticide laws and regulations to help ensure … compliance.” The presentation, “Top 10 Agricultural Pesticide Use Violations of 2018,” is available here. The violations are listed from the least common (number 10) to...
On May 8, 2019, the California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA) announced that the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) will be initiating cancellation proceedings of chlorpyrifos. In its press release, CalEPA states that the decision to commence cancellation proceedings “follows mounting evidence, including recent findings by the state’s independent Scientific Review Panel on Toxic Air Contaminants, that the pesticide causes serious health...
January 3, 2019
CDPR Issues Notice 2018-26 for Changes to Notice of Decision and Public Report Documentation
On December 28, 2018, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) issued Notice 2018-26 changing its Notice of Decision (NOD) and public report documentation for proposed registration decisions to ensure continued compliance with its certified regulatory program obligations under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The new changes to the NODs and public report documentation will be effective May 1, 2019. These changes are as a result of a 2014...
September 27, 2018
California DPR Proposes Rule to Designate Chlorpyrifos as a Toxic Air Contaminant
On September 19, 2018, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) proposed a regulation to designate chlorpyrifos as a toxic air contaminant (TAC). DPR states that this proposal is being presented “after an extensive period of scientific and public review.” The proposed rule is based on a final evaluation issued in July 2018, in which DPR’s Human Health Assessment (HHA) Branch determined that chlorpyrifos meets the quantitative criteria for designation as...
In July 2018, the California Environmental Protection Agency’s Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR), Human Health Assessment (HHA) Branch, issued its final toxic air contaminant (TAC) evaluation of chlorpyrifos. This final TAC evaluation updates the December 2017 draft evaluation of chlorpyrifos as a TAC for the Scientific Review Panel (SRP) which updated the August 2017 draft and was reviewed by the SRP on TACs, and incorporates certain changes based on SRP...
April 30, 2018
OEHHA Proposes Regulations on Safe Harbor Warning Content as Part of Clear and Reasonable Warnings Regulations
On April 23, 2018, California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) announced it is proposing to amend Article 6 of Title 27 of the California Code of Regulations (C.C.R.), Section 25603, specifically the safe harbor warning content for on product warnings for exposures to listed chemicals in pesticides. OEHHA states that this regulation is “intended to provide compliance assistance for businesses that cause pesticide exposures in order to reduce the potential...
On April 23, 2018, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) circulated a presentation entitled “Top 10 Agricultural Pesticide Use Violations of 2017” that identifies the top ten agricultural most common pesticide use violations of 2017 in California. The violations are listed from the least common (#10) to the most common (#1): 10. Handler Training, regulated under Title 3 of the California Code of Regulations (C.C.R.) §...
On February 22, 2018, the Superior Court of the State of California, County of Sacramento, issued a judgment granting petition for writ of mandate and declaratory and injunctive relief (Judgment) to suspend further chemical activities undertaken by the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) to control or eradicate pests under the Statewide Plant Pest Prevention and Management Program (the Project) until CDFA has certified a Program Environmental Impact Report (PEIR) that...
February 28, 2018
Eastern District of California Rules on Motion to Enjoin Prop 65 Listing and Warning on Glyphosate Products
On February 26, 2018, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District Court of California issued a memorandum and order on the plaintiff’s motion for preliminary injunction (Order) to “enjoin the listing of glyphosate under Proposition 65 (Prop 65) and the application of its attendant warning requirement pending a final judgment in this case and set a schedule for expedited final resolution of the case.” The Order (1) grants plaintiffs’ request for a preliminary...
January 11, 2018
DPR Issues Notice Restricting Certain Applications or Amendments for Products Containing Active Ingredients under Reevaluation
On January 3, 2018, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) issued Notice 2018-01: Expanding Use of Pesticide Products Under Reevaluation. Under Notice 2018-01, effective immediately, DPR will not act upon an Application for Pesticide Registration or an Application to Amend a Pesticide Product if it determines the registration or acceptance would potentially “expand use” of an active ingredient or pesticide product currently under reevaluation until the...
November 8, 2017
California DPR Issues Guidance Intended to Align with EPA’s Secondary Container Labeling for Pesticides
On Friday, November 3, 2017, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) issued guidance (California Notice 2017-13) that DPR indicates is intended to align DPR policy with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) guidance on secondary container labeling for pesticides. DPR’s guidance states that secondary containers are used by the pesticide industry as part of the process of applying pesticides and “cannot be sold or distributed.” The guidance further...
September 26, 2017
California Court of Appeal Reverses Trial Court Decision Denying PANNA’s Petition Challenging Approval by DPR of Pesticides Containing Dinotefuran
On September 19, 2017, California’s Court of Appeal for the First Appellate District reversed a trial court decision denying a petition by the Pesticide Action Network North America (PANNA) challenging the approval by the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) of amended labeling for two previously registered pesticides containing the active ingredient dinotefuran, a neonicotinoid: Dinotefuran 20SG, manufactured by Mistui Chemicals Agro, Inc.; and Venom Insecticide,...
May 25, 2017
California DPR Requirement Issues Guidance on Registering Impregnated Materials – Registrations Due July 1, 2017
On May, 24, 2017, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) issued guidance regarding its Notice 2015-13 to applicants registering pesticide impregnated materials bearing pesticide claims to be sold and distributed into or within California, per Notice 2015-13, issued December 11, 2015. Each retailer (or authorized representative) of an affected product must submit an Application for Pesticide Registration (DPR-REG-030) to DPR by July 1, 2017. The...
February 1, 2017
California Court Tentatively Dismisses Monstano’s Lawsuit Against OEHHA to Block Addition of Glyphosate to Proposition 65 List
A tentative ruling issued January 26, 2017, in Monsanto Company v. Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, et al., Case No. 16 CE CG 00183, by the Superior Court of California, County of Fresno, granted the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment’s (OEHHA or Defendant) motion for judgment on the pleadings as to Monsanto Company’s (Monsanto) petition and complaint, and sustained the demurrers to Monsanto’s petition and complaint (Sierra Club) and California Citrus’...
November 4, 2016
California DPR Proposes Far-Reaching Regulation Giving Further Protections to Children
The California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) recently proposed a regulation that it states is intended to “(1) provide minimum statewide standards for all agricultural pesticide applications near public K-12 schools and child day care facilities; (2) provide an extra margin of safety in case of unintended drift or when other problems with applications occur (e.g., equipment failure causes an unintended release of pesticide, or an abrupt change in weather conditions); (3) increase...
On May 11, 2016, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued an unpublished memorandum decision in an environmental justice case, Garcia v. McCarthy, Case No. 14-15494, that many have been watching closely. The Ninth Circuit affirmed a decision by the U.S. District Court dismissing the Plaintiffs’ Complaint for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. The District Court case involved an effort by the original complainants (parents of Latino school children) to obtain...
December 11, 2015
California Issues Notice Requiring Registration for Products Made From Pesticide Impregnated Materials and Bearing Pesticide Claims
On December 11, 2015, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) issued California Notice 2015-13 that will require each person/company with products made from pesticide impregnated material that are sold into or within California under their own company name to register their product(s) as a pesticide. Examples of pesticide impregnated materials affected by this Notice include apparel (e.g., jackets, shirts, hats, socks, pants, shorts) and non-apparel (e.g.,...
September 14, 2015
Ninth Circuit Vacates EPA’s Unconditional Registration for the Neonicotinoid Pesticide Sulfoxaflor Based on Hazard to Bees
In an opinion issued on September 10, 2015, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit vacated the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) unconditional registration for the pesticide sulfoxaflor and remanded the matter to EPA to obtain further studies and data regarding the effects of sulfoxaflor on bees and bee colonies. Sulfoxaflor is a new insecticide in the class of insecticides referred to as neonicotinoids, but its mechanism of action is distinct from other...
On June 16, 2015, the California Superior Court for the County of Almeda denied the petition of the Pesticide Action Network North America, et al. (PANNA) for a writ of mandate to direct the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) to set aside and vacate its final decisions approving amended registrations of Dinotefuran 20SG manufactured by Mitsui Chemicals Agro and Venom manufactured by Valent USA. The active ingredient in both products at issue, dinotefuran, is a...
On May 8, 2015, in El Comite Para El Bienestar De Earlimart v. EPA, a Panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit denied a petition for review filed by several groups that the court describes as “community organizations” who challenged the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) 2012 approval of California State Implementation Plan (SIP) elements under the Clean Air Act (CAA), including its related approval of certain fumigant regulations. This challenge was...
April 27, 2015
DPR Proposal for Right-to-Know Notifications Prior to Soil Fumigant Applications Could Have Far-Reaching Implications
On April 9, 2015, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) held the first of a planned series of workshops intended to help DPR develop “regulation concepts” for possible notifications prior to field fumigations. The presentations and video from that workshop are now available on DPR’s website. DPR’s presentation at the workshop focused on the background that it believes supports the consideration of a notification requirement, and on current methyl bromide...
March 4, 2015
DPR Issues California Notice 2015-3 Regarding Concurrent Application Submissions to DPR and EPA
On February 27, 2015, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) released California Notice 2015-3, entitled Concurrent Submission of Pesticide Products to the Department of Pesticide Regulation and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In this Notice, DPR describes the four types of applications that may be submitted concurrently to DPR and to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the procedure applicants should follow to request concurrent submission, and how...
The California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) announced on February 26, 2015, a revision to the process for evaluation of the potential for a pesticide to move off-site into surface water when the pesticide is used in an urban area. The former evaluation method followed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approach with California specific parameters. This revision will continue to use the EPA approach but allow incorporation of a module specific for California urban...
The California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) recently issued its Progress Report 2012-2014, which highlights DPR’s view of achievements under the leadership of Director Brian Leahy. Among the achievements noted are the following; others are also discussed in the report. • Restricting sales of Second Generation Anticoagulant Rodenticides (SCAR). This action is described as having been “the catalyst for a national change, as the manufacturer agreed with U.S. EPA to phase...
The California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) has extended, from February 27, 2015, to Friday, March 13, 2015, the submission of written comments following DPR’s January 14, 2015, Registration Fee Workshop where DPR discussed the potential increase in registration fees for pesticide products pursuant to Food and Agricultural Code (FAC) § 12812(a). Under the proposal, DPR would increase fees for applications and renewals from $750 to $1,150, decrease fees for certain...
February 11, 2015
Ninth Circuit to Consider Civil Rights Issue in Review of California SIP
On February 12, 2015, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals will hear arguments in El Comite Para El Bienestar De Earlimart v. EPA, a case challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) approval of provisions in a State Implementation Plan (SIP) adopted by California under the Clean Air Act (CAA) that regulate emissions of pesticides (primarily fumigants like methyl bromide) that potentially may contribute to possible exceedances of the National Ambient Air Quality Standard...
An ad hoc committee of the National Research Council (NRC) released a report, Review of California's Risk-Assessment Process for Pesticides, following its scientific and technical evaluation of the California Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) risk assessment process for pesticides. The NRC committee review, which commenced in October 2013, examined documents provided by the California EPA’s Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) regarding the processes it uses for hazard...