Article 1. General Provisions of California Food And Agricultural Code >> Division 6. >> Chapter 7. >> Article 1.

No person shall act in the capacity of a pest control dealer or shall engage or offer to engage in the business of, advertise as, or assume to act as a pest control dealer unless he or she is licensed as a pest control dealer pursuant to this chapter.

Each pest control dealer required to be licensed pursuant to Section 12101 shall have and maintain, at the principal office, and at each branch location, a designated agent qualified to actively supervise all operations conducted at that location. The designated agent shall be a person who holds a pest control dealer designated agent license, an agricultural pest control adviser license, a pest control aircraft pilot certificate, or a qualified applicator license issued pursuant to Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 12201).

The provisions of Section 12101 shall not apply to any federal, state, or county agency which provides pesticide materials for agricultural use.

An application for a license shall be in the form prescribed by the director. Each application shall state the name and address of the applicant specified on the application and any other information required by the director. The application shall be accompanied by a fee as prescribed by the director pursuant to Section 11502.5 to be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the Department of Pesticide Regulation Fund. All licenses issued under this article shall expire on December 31 of the year for which they are issued. To the amount of the license fee shall be added an additional fee, in an amount prescribed by the director pursuant to Section 11502.5, for each branch salesyard, store, or sales location that is owned and operated by the applicant in this state or in other states when doing business from that out-of-state location regarding pesticides to be sold or delivered into or within this state.

The license for a pest control dealer may be renewed annually upon application in the form prescribed by the director, accompanied by a fee as prescribed by the director pursuant to Section 11502.5, for each license and for each branch salesyard, store, or sales location that does business in the state, or that does business in this state from an out-of-state location as specified in Section 12103, by the date of expiration. These fees shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the Department of Pesticide Regulation Fund.

A penalty as prescribed by the director pursuant to Section 11502.5 shall be added to any fee that is not paid by the date of expiration.

Each applicant shall satisfy the director as to his or her knowledge of the laws and regulations governing the use and sale of pesticides, and his or her responsibility in carrying on the business of a pest control dealer.

The director shall issue to each applicant that satisfies the requirements of this article a license which entitles the applicant to conduct the business described in the application for the calendar year for which the license is issued, unless the license is sooner revoked or suspended.

Every licensed pest control dealer who changes his or her address or place of business shall immediately notify the director.

Each dealer shall be responsible for the acts of each person employed by him in the solicitation and sale of pesticides and all claims and recommendations for use of pesticides. The dealer's license shall be subject to disciplinary action for any violation of this chapter whether committed by the dealer, or by any officer, agent or employee.

The director may adopt such rules and regulations as are reasonably necessary to effectuate the purposes of this chapter.

The director may, after a hearing, refuse, revoke, or suspend a pest control dealer license for violation of the provisions of this division or Division 7 (commencing with Section 12501) relating to pesticides or the rules and regulations adopted pursuant to those provisions. The hearing shall be conducted in accordance with Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 11500) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code.

(a) Each licensed pest control dealer, and each person who is required to be licensed as a pest control dealer pursuant to Section 12101, shall maintain at his or her principal place of business the records of its purchases, sales, and distributions of pesticides into or within this state, including those of its branch locations, for four years. Each dealer shall also maintain the pesticide broker license number of any pesticide broker from whom the dealer purchased pesticides registered by the director and labeled for agricultural use. The records shall be available for audit by the director.
  (b) Each licensed pest control dealer, and each person who is required to be licensed as a pest control dealer pursuant to Section 12101, shall report quarterly to the director the total dollars of sales and total pounds or gallons sold into or within this state of each pesticide labeled for agricultural use, for all sales subject to Sections 12841 and 12841.1. The quarterly report shall be in the form prescribed by the director and shall include information from the dealer's licensed branch locations, if any, and any other information specified on the form or required by the director. The report shall include a certification, under penalty of perjury, that the information contained in the report is true and correct. The report shall accompany payment of assessments required by Sections 12841 and 12841.1.

Any licensed pest control dealer, or any person who is required to be licensed as a pest control dealer pursuant to Section 12101, who purchases pesticide products that are registered by the director pursuant to Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 12751) of Division 7 and labeled for agricultural use from a person other than a registrant or a licensed pest control dealer, shall report in writing the name, address, telephone number, and pesticide broker license number issued by the director, if any, of those persons to the director annually, by December 1 each year.

It is unlawful for a licensed pest control dealer to purchase for sale in this state a pesticide that is labeled for agricultural use except from a registrant, a pest control dealer licensed pursuant to Section 12107, or a pesticide broker licensed pursuant to Section 12402.