1.1 North Dakota Century Code Chapter 4.1-33, NDDA, and NDSU Extension Roles

1.1 North Dakota Century Code Chapter 4.1-33, NDDA, and NDSU Extension Roles

Quick Answer: Pesticide use and distribution in North Dakota are governed by North Dakota Century Code (NDCC) Chapter 4.1-33 (Pesticide Control). Three bodies share the work. The North Dakota Pesticide Control Board (the Agriculture Commissioner as chairman, the Director of NDSU Extension, and the Director of the NDSU Agricultural Experiment Station) administers the chapter and adopts the rules in NDAC Article 60-03. The Agriculture Commissioner, acting through the North Dakota Department of Agriculture (NDDA) Pesticide & Fertilizer Division, enforces the chapter — inspections, investigations, stop-sale orders, civil penalties of up to $5,000 for each violation, and suspension or revocation of certification. NDSU Extension, as the board's designee, provides training, administers exams, and issues the certificates through county Extension offices in all 53 North Dakota counties. A nonresident applicator or dealer must file a power of attorney naming NDSU Extension (or its designee) or a resident agent for service of process.

Legislative Authority: NDCC Chapter 4.1-33 (Pesticide Control)

The statutory foundation for pesticide regulation across North Dakota is codified in North Dakota Century Code (NDCC) Chapter 4.1-33, titled Pesticide Control and commonly called the North Dakota Pesticide Act. The chapter establishes authority over the distribution, sale, storage, handling, transportation, application, and disposal of pesticides. A companion chapter, NDCC Chapter 4.1-34, governs the registration of pesticide products themselves, and NDCC Chapter 4.1-35 governs chemigation.

The legislative design of NDCC Chapter 4.1-33 balances two public priorities:

• Environmental and public safety: preventing unreasonable adverse effects on the environment, a term the statute defines as unreasonable risk to humans or the environment, taking into account the economic, social, and environmental costs and benefits of using a pesticide.
• Agricultural productivity: ensuring producers and agribusinesses retain access to effective chemistry applied under verified competency standards.

Under NDCC 4.1-33-03, the Pesticide Control Board — not the Commissioner alone — holds the rulemaking power. Its rules are codified in the North Dakota Administrative Code (NDAC), Title 60, Article 60-03, principally Chapter 60-03-01 (pesticide distribution, handling, and use) and Chapter 60-03-03 (Worker Protection Standard).

The North Dakota Pesticide Control Board (NDCC 4.1-33-02 and 4.1-33-03)

The board is a three-member statutory body:

1. The North Dakota Agriculture Commissioner — permanent chairman.
2. The Director of the NDSU Extension Service (the cooperative extension division).
3. The Director of the NDSU Agricultural Experiment Station.

The board meets at the call of the chairman and:

• Administers NDCC Chapter 4.1-33 and adopts rules under NDCC Chapter 28-32 (administrative practice).
• Prescribes certification standards, and must adopt the standards prescribed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in the federal pesticide certification standards. NDCC 4.1-33-01 defines those standards as 40 CFR 171.101 through 171.107 as they existed on January 4, 2017 — the reason the ND Core exam is built on the federal core competency list.
• May restrict or prohibit pesticide use in designated areas during specified periods to prevent drift or misapplication damage to plants, wildlife, fish and aquatic life, persons, animals, or beneficial insects.
• May not adopt a rule permitting a use prohibited by FIFRA.
• Designates NDSU Extension to provide training, administer testing, and issue certifications (NDAC 60-03-01-05.1 and 60-03-01-05.2).

Exam trap: the board — a designated body chaired by the Commissioner — writes the rules. Do not answer that "the Commissioner alone" or "NDSU Extension" adopts the administrative rules.

Institutional Roles: Commissioner/NDDA vs. NDSU Extension

A core concept on the North Dakota Core exam is the split between the state's enforcement authority and its certifying/educational designee.

Agriculture Commissioner / NDDA authority and operations

• Product registration (NDCC 4.1-34-03): Before selling or offering a pesticide for use in North Dakota, a person must file biennially with the Commissioner. Each registration runs for a designated two-year period beginning January 1 of each even-numbered year and expiring December 31 of the following year, carries a $350 fee per product, and requires a current label and safety data sheet. A 50 percent penalty applies if registration is not applied for on or before January 31 following expiration. Registration fees are credited to the environment and rangeland protection fund and help support NDDA programs such as Project Safe Send.
• Inspection authority (NDCC 4.1-33-21(4)): the Commissioner may enter public or private premises at reasonable times to inspect equipment and storage or disposal areas, sample treated land, observe applications, investigate complaints of injury, and sample pesticides held for distribution. Application, sale, purchase, and repackaging records are confidential, but the Commissioner may use them to enforce the chapter; a record used as an enforcement exhibit is no longer confidential.
• Drift and incident investigations: the NDDA is the investigating agency for drift complaints, bee kills, and non-target injury. Inspectors collect samples, interview parties, audit spray records, and review meteorological data.

NDSU Extension Pesticide Program: training, testing, and certification

• Study materials and training: the NDSU Extension Pesticide Program publishes the core and class study materials and runs statewide recertification trainings (face-to-face, hosted, webinar, and home study for minor classes). Training attendance is not required in order to certify, but it is the most common renewal path.
• Examinations: certification exams are administered by appointment through local NDSU county Extension offices. Candidates must bring government-issued photo identification, and cell phones are barred from the testing room. NDSU county offices describe the exams as open book, using only reference materials the certifying authority authorizes and the proctor provides and collects; NDAC 60-03-01-05.3 otherwise forbids consulting written materials or using any electronic device capable of storing data. Order the study materials first, then call the county office for an appointment, because each county office sets its own scheduling procedures.
• Passing standard and retakes: the passing score is 70 percent. A person who fails may retake the exam after three or more days, and no more than three examinations may be given before further training is required.
• Issuance: when NDSU Extension finds the applicant qualified, it issues the commercial, public, or dealer certificate limited to the classes in which the applicant qualified. If certification is not issued as applied for, the applicant must be told the reasons in writing (NDCC 4.1-33-07(4)).

Violations, Enforcement Powers, and Penalties

Civil penalty (NDCC 4.1-33-20(4))

A person who violates the chapter or the rules adopted under it is subject to a civil penalty not to exceed five thousand dollars for each violation. The penalty may be imposed by a court in a civil proceeding or by the Agriculture Commissioner through an adjudicative proceeding under NDCC Chapter 28-32. Assessing a civil penalty does not preclude other sanctions. Under NDCC 4.1-33-21(7), the Commissioner may suspend or revoke a certification for failure to pay a civil penalty within thirty days after a final determination that it is owed.

Exam trap: NDCC 4.1-33-20 sets the ceiling per violation. It contains no "each day is a separate offense" multiplier — do not choose an option that adds one.

Criminal penalties (NDCC 4.1-33-20(1)–(2))

• Class A misdemeanor: any person other than a private applicator who knowingly violates the chapter. In North Dakota a class A misdemeanor carries a maximum of 360 days' imprisonment, a $3,000 fine, or both.
• Class B misdemeanor: a private applicator who knowingly violates the chapter (maximum 30 days' imprisonment, a $1,500 fine, or both).
• The act, omission, or failure of an officer, agent, or employee acting for a person is also deemed the act of that person — an employer cannot hide behind an employee's violation.

Administrative enforcement orders

• Stop-sale, use, or removal orders (NDCC 4.1-33-22): if the Commissioner has reason to believe a pesticide or device violates the chapter, or its registration has been canceled or suspended by the state or EPA, the Commissioner may issue a written stop-sale, use, or removal order. After receipt, the product may not be sold, used, or removed except as the order allows.
• Cease and desist, injunction, and subpoena (NDCC 4.1-33-19 and 4.1-33-21): the Commissioner may order a violator to cease and desist, may seek an injunction in district court, and may subpoena witnesses and records in enforcement hearings.
• Denial, suspension, revocation, or modification (NDCC 4.1-33-20(5)): after an opportunity for a hearing, the Commissioner may deny, suspend, revoke, or modify any certification for violations of the chapter or its rules, or for a FIFRA criminal conviction or final civil penalty order.

Nonresident Applicators and Service of Process (NDCC 4.1-33-09)

Out-of-state applicators and dealers must meet every North Dakota certification requirement — the certification fee, proof of a valid certificate from the state of residence, photo identification, and (for commercial applicators) proof of financial responsibility.

In addition, a nonresident applying for certification as an applicator or dealer must file a written power of attorney in a form that renders the jurisdiction of North Dakota courts effective, designating either:

1. NDSU Extension (or its designee) as the agent on whom service of process may be made in any suit against the nonresident; or
2. The nonresident's duly appointed resident agent on whom process may be served as provided by law.

The Extension service collects the same registered-agent fee allowed by law, and the nonresident must be furnished a duly certified copy of the designation.

Exam trap: the statutory agent is NDSU Extension or a resident agent — not the Agriculture Commissioner.

Independent Preparation Notice

This study guide is an independent educational publication developed by OpenExamPrep. It is not affiliated with, sponsored by, endorsed by, or produced in partnership with the North Dakota Department of Agriculture, North Dakota State University Extension, or the EPA.