38-19A-1      Definition of terms.
38-19A-2      Distribution of adulterated soil amendments prohibited--Adulteration defined.
38-19A-3      Distribution of misbranded soil amendments prohibited--Misbranding defined.
38-19A-4      Registration of soil conditioners required before distribution--Application--Fee--Expiration--Labels and advertising literature submitted.
38-19A-5      Duplicate registration not required if labels do not differ.
38-19A-6      Minimum ingredients required for registration of soil amendments.
38-19A-7      Label required--Contents.
38-19A-8      False or misleading statements, labeling, advertising, or oral claims prohibited.
38-19A-9      Proof required of claims or usefulness and value--Evidence of proof.
38-19A-10      Approval required for listing or guaranteeing of ingredients on labels--Supportive data--Inspection and analysis--Quantities of ingredients required.
38-19A-11      Annual tonnage statement--Inspection fees.
38-19A-12      Failure to file, false filing, or failure to pay inspection fee as grounds for registration revocation.
38-19A-13      Inspection and analysis of soil amendments by secretary--Entry upon premises or carriers.
38-19A-14      Refusal of registration if soil amendment violates chapter or rules--Cancellation for fraud or deceptive practices--Hearing before revocation.
38-19A-15      Rules and regulations.
38-19A-16      Violation of chapter as misdemeanor.
38-19A-17      Stop sale, use or removal order--Duration--Release of withdrawn soil amendment--Costs and expenses.
38-19A-18      Deposit of fees.
38-19A-19      Analyses of lime or lime sludge compost provided by distributor.

38-19A-1. Definition of terms.

Terms as used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires, shall mean:

(1)    "Brand," any trademark, product name, or other specific designation under which any individual soil amendment is offered for sale;

(2)    "Bulk," nonpackaged form;

(3)    "Distributing," importing, consigning, manufacturing, producing, compounding, mixing or blending any soil amendment, or offering for sale, selling, bartering, or otherwise supplying any soil amendment in this state;

(4)    "Distributor," any person who distributes any soil amendment in this state;

(5)    "Investigational allowance," any allowance for variations inherent in the taking, preparation and analysis of an official sample of a soil amendment;

(6)    "Label," any display of all written, printed, or graphic matter upon the immediate container or statement accompanying a soil amendment;

(7)    "Labeling," any written, printed, or graphic matter, upon or accompanying any soil amendment, or advertisements, brochures, posters, or television or radio announcements used in promoting the sale of such soil amendment;

(7A)    "Manipulated manure," any animal or vegetable manure collected or stored in a manner consistent with practices commonly implemented in agricultural production that has been subjected to practices including composting, mechanical dewatering, or pelletizing or altered in any way to change chemical, physical, or biological characteristics;

(7B)    "Microbe," any microbiological organism or mixture of microbiological organisms intended to produce any physical, chemical, biochemical, biological, or other change in the soil;

(8)    "Minimum percentage," that percentage of soil amendment ingredient that shall be present in a product before the product may be accepted for registration when distributed in any form or manner;

(9)    "Official sample," any sample of a soil amendment taken by the secretary and so designated;

(10)    "Percent," percentage by weight;

(11)    "Registrant," any person who shall register any soil amendments under the provisions of this chapter;

(12)    "Secretary," the secretary of the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources of the State of South Dakota;

(13)    "Soil amending ingredient," any substance which will improve the physical, chemical, or other characteristic of the soil or improve crop production;

(14)    "Soil amendment," any substance which is intended to improve the physical, chemical, or other characteristics of the soil or improve crop production, except the following: commercial fertilizer, unmanipulated animal manures, unmanipulated vegetable manures, pesticides, lime or lime sludge produced by a water treatment facility, sewage sludge, as defined in § 38-19-1, and compost as defined in § 38-19-1;

(15)    "Soil ingredient form," any ingredient or the chemical compound of an ingredient;

(16)    "Ton," two thousand pounds avoirdupois net weight;

(17)    "Weight," the weight of that material offered for sale.

Source: SL 1976, ch 244, § 1; SL 1995, ch 324, § 5; SL 2015, ch 203, § 17; SL 2016, ch 200, § 2; SL 2021, ch 1 (Ex. Ord. 21-3), § 51, eff. Apr. 19, 2021.

38-19A-2. Distribution of adulterated soil amendments prohibited--Adulteration defined.

No person shall distribute an adulterated soil amendment. A soil amendment shall be deemed to be adulterated if it contains any deleterious or harmful agent in sufficient amount to render it injurious to beneficial plant, animal or aquatic life when applied in accordance with directions for use on the label or if it contains unwanted crop or weed seed.

Source: SL 1976, ch 244, § 14.

38-19A-3. Distribution of misbranded soil amendments prohibited--Misbranding defined.

No person shall distribute any misbranded soil amendment. A soil amendment shall be deemed misbranded if its labeling is false or misleading in any particular, or if it is not labeled as required pursuant to the provisions of this chapter and regulations promulgated pursuant to this chapter, or if it does not conform to ingredient form, minimums and investigational allowances in the regulations adopted by the secretary of agriculture and natural resources.

Source: SL 1976, ch 244, § 13; SL 2021, ch 1 (Ex. Ord. 21-3), § 51, eff. Apr. 19, 2021.

38-19A-4. Registration of soil conditioners required before distribution--Application--Fee--Expiration--Labels and advertising literature submitted.

Each separately identified soil conditioner product shall be registered before being distributed in this state. The application for registration shall be submitted to the secretary of agriculture and natural resources on the form furnished or approved by the secretary and shall be accompanied by a fee of twenty-five dollars per product. Upon approval by the secretary, a copy of the registration shall be furnished to the applicant. Each registration shall expire on December thirty-first of the year following the date of issuance. Each registrant shall submit to the secretary a copy of labels and advertising literature with the registration request for each soil amendment.

Source: SL 1976, ch 244, § 7; SL 2001, ch 215, § 18; SL 2021, ch 1 (Ex. Ord. 21-3), § 51, eff. Apr. 19, 2021.

38-19A-5. Duplicate registration not required if labels do not differ.

No distributor shall be required to register any brand of soil amendment which shall have already been registered under this chapter by another person; provided, however, that the label does not differ in any respect.

Source: SL 1976, ch 244, § 8.

38-19A-6. Minimum ingredients required for registration of soil amendments.

The secretary of agriculture and natural resources may establish rules pursuant to chapter 1-26 to set the minimum amount of any soil amending ingredient that shall be present before a soil amendment can be registered and sold.

Source: SL 1976, ch 244, § 9; SL 1986, ch 326, § 35; SL 2021, ch 1 (Ex. Ord. 21-3), § 51, eff. Apr. 19, 2021.

38-19A-7. Label required--Contents.

A label, in a readable and conspicuous form, shall appear on the face or display side of any soil amendment and shall consist of:

(1)    Net weight;

(2)    Brand name;

(3)    Analysis, including any soil amending ingredient and other ingredients and the percentage of each. In lieu of a guarantee expressed as a percentage, a product that claims the presence of a microbe or microbes shall guarantee the microbe or microbes as follows:

(a)    Minimum number of each claimed viable organism at the genus and species level in colony forming units (CFU), spores, or propagules per gram or milliliter (cm3);

(b)    Expiration date; and

(c)    Storage and handling instructions;

(4)    Purpose of the product;

(5)    Directions for application; and

(6)    Name and address of the registrant.

The secretary of agriculture and natural resources may establish rules, pursuant to chapter 1-26, to allow labeling by volume rather than weight pursuant to subdivision (1) of this section.

Source: SL 1976, ch 244, §§ 2, 6; SL 1986, ch 326, § 36; SL 2015, ch 203, § 18; SL 2021, ch 1 (Ex. Ord. 21-3), § 51, eff. Apr. 19, 2021.

38-19A-8. False or misleading statements, labeling, advertising, or oral claims prohibited.

No information or statement shall appear on any package, label, delivery slip, or advertising matter nor shall any oral claim be made which is false or misleading to the purchaser as to the use, value, quality, analysis, type, or composition of the soil amendment.

Source: SL 1976, ch 244, § 3.

38-19A-9. Proof required of claims or usefulness and value--Evidence of proof.

The secretary of agriculture and natural resources may require proof of claims made for any soil amendment. If no claim is made, he may, nevertheless, require proof of usefulness and value as a soil amendment. For evidence of proof the secretary may rely on experimental data, evaluations, or advice supplied from the agricultural experiment station. The experimental results shall be applicable to such regional conditions as to which the product is intended. The secretary may accept other sources of proof as additional evidence in evaluating soil amendments.

Source: SL 1976, ch 244, § 4; SL 2021, ch 1 (Ex. Ord. 21-3), § 51, eff. Apr. 19, 2021.

38-19A-10. Approval required for listing or guaranteeing of ingredients on labels--Supportive data--Inspection and analysis--Quantities of ingredients required.

No soil amending ingredient may be listed or guaranteed on the labels or labeling of any soil amendment without the approval of the secretary of agriculture and natural resources. The secretary may allow any soil amending ingredient to be listed or guaranteed on the label or labeling if satisfactory supportive data is provided the secretary to substantiate the value and usefulness of the soil amending ingredients. The secretary may rely on the agricultural experiment station for assistance in evaluating the data submitted. If any soil amending ingredient is permitted to be listed or guaranteed, it shall be determinable by laboratory methods and shall be subject to inspection and analysis of the soil amending ingredient. The secretary may stipulate by rules established pursuant to chapter 1-26 the quantities of the soil amending ingredients required in soil amendments.

Source: SL 1976, ch 244, § 5; SL 1986, ch 326, § 37; SL 2021, ch 1 (Ex. Ord. 21-3), § 51, eff. Apr. 19, 2021.

38-19A-11. Annual tonnage statement--Inspection fees.

Every distributor shall file with the secretary, on forms furnished by the secretary of agriculture and natural resources, an annual statement for the period ending December thirty-first of each year setting forth the number of net tons of each soil amendment distributed in the state during that period. The report shall be due within thirty-one days following each annual reporting period. If the report is not filed and the payment of the inspection fee is not made within the time period specified, a collection fee amounting to ten percent of the amount shall be assessed against the registrant. However, the minimum collection fee is ten dollars. The secretary may examine such records to verify statements of tonnage. The statement shall be accompanied by payment of an inspection fee of twenty cents per ton for all soil amendments distributed in this state. The secretary may allow payment of inspection fees on a calculated equivalent of volume to tons.

Source: SL 1976, ch 244, §§ 6, 10; SL 2001, ch 215, § 19; SL 2015, ch 203, § 19; SL 2021, ch 1 (Ex. Ord. 21-3), § 51, eff. Apr. 19, 2021.

38-19A-12. Failure to file, false filing, or failure to pay inspection fee as grounds for registration revocation.

If the report is not filed or is filed falsely or the inspection fee is not paid within thirty days following each semiannual reporting period, the secretary of agriculture and natural resources may revoke the registration.

Source: SL 1976, ch 244, § 11; SL 2021, ch 1 (Ex. Ord. 21-3), § 51, eff. Apr. 19, 2021.

38-19A-13. Inspection and analysis of soil amendments by secretary--Entry upon premises or carriers.

The secretary of agriculture and natural resources shall sample, inspect, make analyses of, and test soil amendments distributed within the state at any time and place and to such an extent as he may deem necessary to determine whether such soil amendments are in compliance with the provisions of this chapter. The secretary may enter upon any public or private premises or carriers during regular business hours in order to have access to soil amendments subject to the provisions of this chapter and the rules and regulations pertaining thereto and to the records relating to their distribution.

Source: SL 1976, ch 244, § 12; SL 2021, ch 1 (Ex. Ord. 21-3), § 51, eff. Apr. 19, 2021.

38-19A-14. Refusal of registration if soil amendment violates chapter or rules--Cancellation for fraud or deceptive practices--Hearing before revocation.

The secretary of agriculture and natural resources may refuse registration of any brand of soil amendment if he shall find the brand of soil amendment violates any section of this chapter or the rules and regulations promulgated pursuant to this chapter. The secretary may cancel the registration of any brand of soil amendment upon satisfactory evidence that the registrant has used fraudulent or deceptive practices to evade the provisions of this chapter, or any rules or regulations promulgated thereunder. However, no registration shall be revoked until the registrant shall have been given the opportunity to appear for a hearing.

Source: SL 1976, ch 244, § 15; SL 2021, ch 1 (Ex. Ord. 21-3), § 51, eff. Apr. 19, 2021.

38-19A-15. Rules and regulations.

The secretary of agriculture and natural resources may, pursuant to chapter 1-26, adopt rules concerning:

(1)    The establishment of minimum amounts of soil amending ingredients that shall be present before a soil amendment can be registered and sold;

(2)    The allowance of labeling by volume rather than weight; and

(3)    Labeling, inspection, sampling, analysis, and distribution of soil amendment products.

Source: SL 1976, ch 244, § 18; SL 1986, ch 326, § 38; SL 2021, ch 1 (Ex. Ord. 21-3), § 51, eff. Apr. 19, 2021.

38-19A-16. Violation of chapter as misdemeanor.

Any person violating any provisions of this chapter is guilty of a Class 2 misdemeanor.

Source: SL 1976, ch 244, § 17; SL 1977, ch 190, § 326.

38-19A-17. Stop sale, use or removal order--Duration--Release of withdrawn soil amendment--Costs and expenses.

The secretary of agriculture and natural resources may issue and enforce a written or printed "stop sale, use or removal" order to the owner or custodian of any lot of soil amendment and to hold at a designated place when the secretary finds such soil amendment is being offered or exposed for sale in violation of any of the provisions of this chapter until the law has been complied with and such soil amendment is released in writing by the secretary, or such violation has been otherwise legally disposed of by written authority. The secretary shall release the soil amendment so withdrawn when the requirements of the provisions of this chapter have been complied with and all costs and expenses incurred in connection with the withdrawal have been paid.

Source: SL 1976, ch 244, § 16; SL 2021, ch 1 (Ex. Ord. 21-3), § 51, eff. Apr. 19, 2021.

38-19A-18. Deposit of fees.

Fees collected under this chapter shall be deposited in the fertilizer fund established pursuant to § 38-19-14.

Source: SL 1993, ch 304, § 5.

38-19A-19. Analyses of lime or lime sludge compost provided by distributor.

Any distributor of lime or lime sludge, compost as defined in § 38-19-1, or sewage sludge, as defined in § 38-19-1, shall make available, upon request, the analyses of any product to the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the end user of the product.

Source: SL 1995, ch 324, § 6; SL 2021, ch 1 (Ex. Ord. 21-3), § 51, eff. Apr. 19, 2021.