3.3 Recordkeeping, Contracts, Dealers, and Restricted-Area Herbicides

Why an Inspector Can End the Visit at the File Cabinet

Most Core items on records are not "did you spray." They are "can you produce the start time, the EPA Registration Number, and last year's wood infestation report before lunch." 2 O.S. § 3-83 is the statute. OAC 35:30-17-21 is the field list. OAC 35:30-17-20 is the structural-pest contract. Federal Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act (FACT Act) RUP rules (explained in OSU EPP-221) sit on top of Oklahoma's older all-application duty. Mixing those layers is the classic wrong answer.

2 O.S. § 3-83: Where Records Live and How Fast They Must Appear

Every commercial and noncommercial applicator shall keep accurate records pertaining to pesticide activities, applications, and wood infestation reports, as required by the Board. Keep them intact at the principal business location in this state for at least two (2) years after their date of expiration. Furnish copies to any authorized agent of the Board immediately upon request in person, at any time during regular business hours. Furnish copies within seven (7) working days of a written request, in summary form, by mail, fax, e-mail, website, or other customary electronic media.

Every restricted-use pesticide dealer keeps accurate purchase and sales records, same two-year intact storage at the principal business location in this state, same immediate in-person production and seven working-day written-copy rule (§ 3-83(B)). The Board audits record maintenance as needed (§ 3-83(C)).

OAC 35:30-17-21(d)–(f) close the gaps. Failure to allow inspection, to provide copies when requested in person, or to provide a summary within seven working days is a violation. Records must be easily accessible during reasonable business hours. Commercial and noncommercial applicators maintain the records at their principal place of business. That principal place shall not be located in a closed gated community or at a residence unless the applicator submits an access plan and the Board approves it. A Broken Arrow applicator who keeps 7a files behind a keypad gate with no approved plan has already failed the location rule, even if the PDFs exist.

What Must Be on a Commercial or Noncommercial Application Record

OAC 35:30-17-21(a) requires, at a minimum:

1. Start and stop time of application
2. Total amount of pesticide used
3. Company name and address
4. Certified applicator name, certification number, and certification expiration, plus the name of any noncertified person under direct supervision
5. Name and address of the person for whom applied
6. Legal description of the land (a marked street address is allowed; a Post Office Box is not)
7. Date of application
8. Application rate
9. Dilution rate for mixing
10. Total quantity tank mix used
11. Complete trade name of the product
12. EPA registration number
13. Adjuvants when the label requires specific adjuvants
14. Drift agents when the label requires specific drifting agents
15. Target pest
16. Site
17. Size of the area treated
18. Restricted Entry Interval (REI) as stated on the label
19. A copy of the label or labeling attached to the container or included in the shipping case
20. Copies of any contracts issued
21. Copies of any wood infestation reports issued
22. Other information the Board requires

You will not always see all 22 on one multiple-choice stem. Distinctive misses are start/stop time, certification expiration, noncertified helper name, EPA Reg. No., REI, label copy, contracts, and WIR copies. "I wrote 'bugs, 2 oz, Tuesday'" is not a record.

Private applicators of RUPs keep a parallel application list under 35:30-17-21(b) (start/stop, amount, applicator identity and certification data, legal description, date, rates, trade name, EPA number, adjuvants/drift agents when required, target pest, site, size, REI, label copy). Private records are RUP application records under that subsection; commercial/noncommercial Oklahoma records are pesticide activities generally.

RUP dealer sales records (35:30-17-21(c)) include complete brand name, EPA number, date sold, total amount, purchaser's residence or principal place of business, the certified or private applicator's identity and certification expiration (or a copy of the card), and the category(ies) in which the applicator is certified relevant to the pesticide(s) sold. Selling an RUP to a card-holder certified only in 7a, for an agricultural-plant use, is a category-match problem, not just a paperwork problem. Dealer permits themselves are $50 per location, expire December 31, and each location that sells or distributes RUPs needs its own permit (2 O.S. § 3-82(I)).

Contracts and Termite Service-Technician Training

OAC 35:30-17-20 requires contracts for commercial application in the Structural Pest Category. Contract information includes the specifics drawn from 2 O.S. §§ 3-81(11) and 3-83 and OAC 35:30-17-21, plus minimum standards for termite work on existing structures and preconstruction. Any minimum requirement that will not be met must be explained in the contract. Visible termite-damaged material that will not be replaced or repaired at original contract time needs a clear statement (the rule's example: "No replacements of damaged material due to termites or other wood destroying organisms are to be made"). Replaced means remove visible damaged material and bring the area back to sound condition with new materials — putty and paint are not replacement. Repaired means bring the area back to sound condition. 2 O.S. § 3-81(11) defines the document that rule incorporates: a contract is a binding, written agreement between two or more persons spelling out terms and conditions, and it includes warranties or guarantees for pesticide application. For structural pest control work the contract must also carry a statement, plat, or diagram showing all locations of visible termites and termite-damaged materials that are observed, and how the application was performed. A priced one-line invoice is not that document.

OAC 35:30-17-21(g): proof of training for a service technician making a termite application shall be recorded by the licensee and available for Department review. Training records include name, date of training, and service technician number.

Oklahoma All-Application Records Versus Federal FACT Act RUP Records

OSU EPP-221 (Private Applicator Pesticide Recordkeeping Requirements) is the teaching distinction:

• Oklahoma, since 1955, has required commercial and noncommercial applicators to keep specified records for all pesticide applications, not only RUPs. That is § 3-83 and 35:30-17-21(a).
• The federal FACT Act (1990 Farm Bill) required certified applicators to keep records of RUP applications. Final federal rules took effect May 10, 1993. Private applicators must complete RUP application records within 14 days and keep them two years. Commercial applicators must provide a copy to the customer within 30 days of the RUP application, or enter an agreement to serve as the customer's official recordholder.

Wrong answer: "I have 30 days to write the Oklahoma commercial record." The FACT 30-day clock is a customer copy of RUP data. The Oklahoma commercial record is an all-application file that must already exist when an inspector is standing in the office. Wrong answer: "Private applicators record every general-use spray under FACT." FACT's private duty is RUP. Oklahoma private 35:30-17-21(b) is also framed as restricted-use applications.

Restricted-Area Herbicides: Southwest Counties

As of May 25, 2006, a rule took effect for certain herbicides in Greer, Harmon, Kiowa, Jackson, and Tillman Counties. ODAFF's pesticides page is the candidate-facing instruction: the rule lists specific herbicides by active ingredient; it does not prohibit use. If you apply the regulated herbicides from May 1 through October 15, notify ODAFF on the approved form before application, and send application records after. Use the current Restricted Area Herbicide Application form on ag.ok.gov/pesticides/. Ask the dealer or a County Extension Educator if you are unsure whether a product is covered. Do not rely on a memorized 2018 blog list if the live form and rule have been updated.

The current Combined Pesticide rule OAC 35:30-17-24.1 (as published in the 2025 unofficial compilation) is more specific than the web summary and is fair game if you can cite it: Greer, Harmon, and Kiowa — products containing 2,4-D esters or dicamba on agricultural lands during that May 1–October 15 window, except as the section allows; Jackson and Tillman — products containing 2,4-D, dicamba, picloram, triclopyr, or clopyralid. Notify the Department before application on the Department form; file a report no later than seven (7) working days after the last application date given in the original notification. These records are in addition to ordinary commercial records. The section does not apply to 2,4-DB. Always match the product in the tank to the current form and rule — Jackson/Tillman is broader than Greer/Harmon/Kiowa on 2,4-D (not only esters).

Sensitive Crop Viewer

ODAFF hosts the Environmentally Sensitive Area Registry and Sensitive Crop Viewer. Commercial applicators should check before treating near specialty crops. A right-of-way or ag-plant job along a Jackson County county road is exactly the setting where the Viewer, the restricted-area form, and the 35:30-17-21 record all apply on the same afternoon.

Scenario: the Tulsa gated-community "office"

A 7a/7b company lists its principal place as a house inside a closed gated community in south Tulsa. No access plan is on file. An inspector arrives during posted business hours and cannot enter. 35:30-17-21(f) is already in play. Even if the owner later emails PDFs on day eight, § 3-83 required immediate in-person production during regular hours and written copies within seven working days.

Scenario: cotton country in Jackson County

On June 12 a custom applicator intends to apply a dicamba product to agricultural land in Jackson County. Use is not banned, but May 1–October 15 notification on the current ODAFF Restricted Area Herbicide Application form is required before the application, and application records must go to the Department afterward (the rule's compilation also states a seven-working-day report after the last date on the original notice). The same firm should check the Sensitive Crop Viewer before treating near specialty acreage. Skipping the form because "dicamba is legal" is the error the rule was written to catch.