Director’s Decision on Appeal of a County Agricultural Commissioner Decision (Marvin Nies, Docket Number 197)
The Director’s decision on Marvin Nies’s appeal of the $5,000 civil penalty levied by the County Agricultural Commissioner of the County of San Joaquin (San Joaquin CAC) is enclosed. The Director affirmed the San Joaquin CAC’s action and penalty, and his decision became final on March 31, 2014.
The San Joaquin CAC found Marvin Nies in violation of the following sections of California Code of Regulations, title 3 (3 CCR):
- 6614, Protection of Persons, Animals, and Property; and
- 6618, Notice of Applications.
Marvin Nies appealed the San Joaquin CAC’s civil penalty decision to the Director. The Director determined that the San Joaquin CAC made correct conclusions of law, correctly classified the violations, and exercised appropriate discretion in selecting fine amounts.
This decision addresses the following concepts:
- 3 CCR 6614(b)(1) prohibits pesticide applications when there is a reasonable possibility of contamination of persons not involved in the application. 3 CCR 6614(b)(1) does not only apply to the pesticide applicator. Instead, 3 CCR 6614(b)(1) applies broadly to all persons, including employers of applicators and operators of property on which applications occur.
- An employer is ordinarily liable for his or her employee’s actions during the course of the employee’s normal employment.
- When classifying pesticide use violations, county agricultural commissioners are required to follow the guidelines set forth in 3 CCR section 6130(b). For classifying a violation, a respondent’s compliance history, cooperation in the investigation, and regard for specific hazards of the pesticide are relevant only for determining whether or not to elevate a Class B violation to a Class A violation.
Please make this information available to your staff as a reference in preparing and processing cases. If you have any questions, please contact the Enforcement Branch Liaison assigned to your county.
Sincerely,