(a) Pursuant to the provisions of sections 411, 412, 414, 431, and 434 of the Plant Protection Act (7 U.S.C. 7711, 7712, 7714, 7751, and 7754), the Secretary of Agriculture heretofore determined after public hearing to quarantine the States of Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia in order to prevent the spread of the Japanese beetle, a dangerous insect injurious to cultivated crops and not theretofore widely prevalent or distributed within or throughout the United States.

(b) No person shall move any regulated article interstate from any regulated airport destined to any of the following States except in accordance with the conditions prescribed in this subpart: Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Washington.

Terms used in the singular form in this subpart shall be deemed to import the plural and vice versa, as the case may demand. The following terms, when used in this subpart shall be construed, respectively, to mean:

Administrator. The Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service or any person authorized to act for the Administrator.

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Compliance agreement. A written agreement between the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and a person engaged in the business of moving regulated articles interstate, in which the person agrees to comply with the provisions of this subpart.

Inspector. Any employee of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, or other person, authorized by the Administrator to enforce the provisions of the quarantine and regulations in this subpart.

Interstate. From any State into or through any other State.

Japanese beetle. The live insect known as the Japanese beetle (Popillia japonica Newm.) in any stage of development (egg, larva, pupa, or adult).

Person. Any individual, corporation, company, partnership, society, or association, or other organized group of any of the foregoing.

Regulated airport. Any airport or portions of an airport in a quarantined State declared regulated in accordance with provisions in § 301.48-2.

Regulated articles. Aircraft at or from regulated airports.

State. Any State, territory, or district of the United States, including Puerto Rico.

State Plant Regulatory Official. The authorized official of a State who has responsibility for the operation of the State plant regulatory program.

(a) An inspector may declare any airport within a quarantined State to be a regulated airport when he or she determines that adult populations of Japanese beetle exist during daylight hours at the airport to the degree that aircraft constitute a threat to spread the Japanese beetle and aircraft destined for the States listed in § 301.48(b) may be leaving the airport.

(b) An inspector shall terminate the designation provided for under paragraph (a) of this section when he or she determines that adult populations of Japanese beetle no longer exist at the airport to the degree that the aircraft pose a threat to spread the Japanese beetle.

Upon designating, or terminating the designation of, an airport as regulated, the inspector shall give written notice to the official in charge of the airport that the airport has been designated as a regulated airport or that the designation has been terminated. The inspector shall also give the same information in writing to the official at the airport in charge of each airline or the operator of any other aircraft, which will move a regulated article to any State designated in § 301.48(b). The Administrator shall also give the same information to the State Plant Regulatory Official of each State designated in § 301.48(b) to which any regulated article will move.

A regulated article may be moved interstate from a regulated airport to any State 1 designated in § 301.48(b) only if:

(a) An inspector, upon visual inspection of the airport and/or the aircraft, determines that the regulated article does not present a threat to spread the Japanese beetle because adult beetle populations are not present; or

(b) The aircraft is opened and loaded only while it is enclosed inside a hangar that an inspector has determined to be free of and safeguarded against Japanese beetle; or

(c) The aircraft is loaded during the hours of 8:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. only or lands and departs during those hours and, in either situation, is kept completely closed while on the ground during the hours of 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.; or

(d) If opened and loaded between the hours of 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., the aircraft is inspected, treated, and safeguarded. Inspection, treatment, and safeguarding must be done either under a compliance agreement in accordance with § 301.48-8 or under the direct supervision of an inspector. On a case-by-case basis, inspectors will determine which of the following conditions, and any supplemental conditions deemed necessary by the Administrator to prevent the spread of Japanese beetle, are required:

(1) All openings of the aircraft must be closed or safeguarded during the hours of 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. by exclusionary devices or by other means approved by the Administrator.

(2) All cargo containers that have not been safeguarded in a protected area must be inspected immediately prior to and during the loading process. All personnel must check their clothing immediately prior to entering the aircraft. All Japanese beetles found must be removed and destroyed.

(3) All areas around doors and hatches or other openings in the aircraft must be inspected prior to removing the exclusionary devices. All Japanese beetles found must be removed and destroyed. All doors and hatches must be closed immediately after the exclusionary devices are moved away from the aircraft.

(4) Aircraft must be treated in accordance with part 305 of this chapter no more than 1 hour before loading. Particular attention should be paid to the ball mat area and the holes around the main entrance. The aircraft must then be aerated under safeguard conditions as required by part 305 of this chapter.

(5) Aircraft treatment records must be maintained by the applicator completing or supervising the treatment for a period of 2 years. These records must be provided upon request for review by an inspector. Treatment records shall include the pesticide used, the date of application, the location where the pesticide was applied (airport and aircraft), the amount of pesticide applied, and the name of the applicator.

(6) When a designated aircraft is replaced with an alternate one just prior to departure (the procedure known as “tail swapping”), the alternate aircraft must be inspected and all Japanese beetles must be removed. The aircraft must be safeguarded by closing all openings and hatches or by equipping the aircraft with exclusionary devices until the aircraft is ready for use. During loading, all treatment and safeguard requirements applicable to regularly scheduled aircraft must be implemented.

(7) Aircraft may be retreated in the noninfested State if live Japanese beetles are found.

(8) Notification of unscheduled commercial flights and of all military flights must be given at least 1 hour before departure to the appropriate person in the destination airport of any of the States listed in § 301.48(b). Notification of arriving military flights should also be given to base commanders to facilitate the entrance of Federal and/or State inspectors onto the base if necessary.

Any properly identified inspector is authorized to stop and inspect, and to seize, destroy, or otherwise dispose of or require disposal of regulated articles and Japanese beetles as provided in sections 414, 421, and 434 of the Plant Protection Act (7 U.S.C. 7714, 7731, and 7754) in accordance with instructions issued by the Administrator.

Regulations requiring a permit for and otherwise governing the movement of live Japanese beetles in interstate or foreign commerce are contained in the Federal Plant Pest Regulations in part 330 of this chapter. Applications for permits for the movement of the pest may be made to the Administrator.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture disclaims liability for any costs incident to inspections or compliance with the provisions of the quarantine and regulations in this subpart other than for the services of the inspector.

(a) Any person engaged in the business of moving regulated articles may enter into a compliance agreement to facilitate the movement of such articles under this subpart. Any person who enters into a compliance agreement, and employees or agents of that person, must allow an inspector access to all records regarding treatment of aircraft and to all areas where loading, unloading, and treatment of aircraft occurs.

(b) A compliance agreement may be canceled by an inspector, orally or in writing, whenever he or she determines that the person who has entered into the compliance agreement has failed to comply with the agreement or this subpart. If the cancellation is oral, the cancellation and the reasons for the cancellation will be confirmed in writing within 20 days of oral notification. Any person whose compliance agreement has been canceled may appeal the decision, in writing, to the Administrator within 10 days after receiving written notification of the cancellation. The appeal must state all of the facts and reasons upon which the person relies to show that the compliance agreement was wrongfully canceled. A hearing will be held to resolve any conflict as to any material fact. The Administrator shall adopt rules of practice for the hearing. An appeal shall be granted or denied, in writing, as promptly as circumstances allow, and the reasons for the decision shall be stated. The compliance agreement will remain canceled pending the decision on the appeal.