This bill directs the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to establish a voluntary pollinator-friendly plant labeling and certification program.
Specifically, a producer (i.e., a nursery or farmer growing a plant or cultivating a seed for sale) may submit an application to USDA for approval to sell or label a plant as a USDA pollinator-friendly plant. To qualify, a plant must (1) be living; (2) have a Natural Resources Conservation Service determination that it is native to the United States and known to be beneficial to pollinators (including providing habitat and forage for pollinators); and (3) be produced without any pesticide or substance prohibited from being used in the production or handling of organic products under the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990.
USDA must approve an application for certification if the producer meets the requirements and has been third-party certified.
Further, a plant labeled as USDA pollinator-friendly must comply with additional labeling requirements (e.g., include the name of the plant producer and an instruction specifying that distributors and retailers are not permitted to apply any pesticide product to the plant).
The bill also provides for USDA investigation and enforcement authority. Any person who knowingly mislabels a plant as USDA pollinator-friendly is subject to a civil penalty.
