22-103. DUTIES OF DIRECTOR. The director of the department of agriculture shall execute the powers and discharge the duties vested by law in him or in the department, including, but not limited to, the following:

(1) Pursuant to chapter 53, title 67, Idaho Code, hire, assign duties and evaluate the performance of all employees of the department.

(2) Designate employees for special assignment, office or function as the needs of the department may require.

(3) Acquire, generate, develop and disseminate information and data concerning agricultural pursuits, productivity and product quality.

(4) Encourage and promote in every practical manner, the interests of agriculture, horticulture, apiculture, aquaculture, the livestock industries, poultry and fowl raising, wool and fur-bearing animals and their allied industries.

(5) Assist, encourage and promote the organization of farmers’ institutes, agricultural, horticultural, management or cooperative societies and organizations for the benefit of agricultural pursuits in this state.

(6) Promote improved methods of production, storage, sales and marketing of agricultural industries.

(7) Establish and promulgate standards of construction, use and sanitation of open and closed receptacles for farm products, and standards for grade or other classification of farm products.

(8) Prescribe and promulgate rules governing marks, brands and labels, and the registration thereof, for use upon receptacles for farm products.

(9) Promote, in the interest of the public, economical and efficient use of products and commodities used in the production of agricultural, horticultural, meats and other products and farm commodities and their distribution.

(10) Cooperate with producers, processors and consumers in devising and maintaining economical and efficient systems of distribution, and to assist in the reduction of waste and expense incidental to the marketing of agricultural products.

(11) Cooperate with the secretary, colleges and universities, experiment stations, and other agencies which cooperate in devising, research and development and utilization of improved agricultural production and other activities.

(12) Investigate the practices, methods of factors, management techniques of commission merchants, track buyers and others who receive, solicit, buy, sell, handle on commission or otherwise, or deal in grains, eggs, livestock, vegetables or other products used as human foods, to the end that distribution of such commodities through such factors, commission merchants, track buyers and others be efficiently and economically accomplished without hardship, waste or fraud.

(13) Enter and inspect any right-of-way of any irrigation canal, railway, public highway, field, orchard, nursery, fruit or vegetable packing house, store room, sales room, storage facility, depot or other place where fruits and vegetables are grown or stored and to inspect fruits, trees, plants, vines, shrubs or other articles within the state, and if such places or articles are infested with pests, insects or their eggs or larvae, or with any contagious or transmittable diseases injurious to plant life, to abate or eradicate the same as a nuisance.

(14) Provide treatment for and prevent the spread of infectious or communicable diseases among bees, livestock, fur-bearing animals or domestic animals through the systematic and periodic inspection, testing or treatment of such bees and animals at the expense of the owner thereof.

(15) Protect the livestock interests of the state from losses due to disease or hazards to animal health and communicable to humans through agricultural products. The director is authorized to regulate, as deemed necessary, commercial livestock truck washing facilities. This includes permitting for the treatment or disposal, at any location, of any wash water generated by the facility. This subsection preempts Idaho department of environmental quality’s authority to issue land application permits and to do plan and specification reviews under section 39-118, Idaho Code, for livestock truck wash facilities, but does not affect any other authority of the Idaho department of environmental quality.

(16) Maintain recording of earmarks, eartags or other identifying marks not covered under any other provisions of law.

(17) Purchase, lease, hold, sell, and dispose of real and personal property of the department when, in the judgment of the director, such transactions promote the purposes for which the department is established.

(18) Contract with any state agency, federal agency or agency of another state concerning any matter, program or cooperative effort within the scope and jurisdiction of its authority pursuant to law.

(19) Assist in the improvement of country life, farm occupations and to cooperate in effectuating equality of opportunity of those employed in agricultural pursuits in the state of Idaho.

(20) Investigate diseases, contamination of livestock and poultry, agricultural, horticultural, and farm products, suspected to be infected or contaminated by bacterial, viral, protozoal, parasitic, chemical, nuclear, botanical or other disease-producing agents, or carrying a residue of any such disease-producing agent or chemical in excess of any tolerance established by federal or state law or regulation and to examine, conduct tests, and issue "hold orders" on any livestock, poultry, agricultural, horticultural or farm products as deemed necessary to effectuate a diagnosis of disease, contamination or chemical level to safeguard and protect animal and man. And additionally, authorize and implement a predator control program on state and private lands using any kind of toxic material or substance suitable for such purpose. Any toxic material or substance shall be approved for use by the director. In order to carry out the provisions of this subsection, the director shall prescribe and promulgate rules pursuant to chapter 52, title 67, Idaho Code.

(21) Prescribe by rule an interest charge which may be assessed on all accounts which are thirty (30) days past due from the initial billing date or the assessment due date. The interest rate charged shall not exceed twelve percent (12%) per annum.

(22) To take all steps that are deemed necessary to prevent and control damage or conflicts on federal, state, or other public or private lands caused by predatory animals, rodents, or birds, including threatened or endangered wildlife within the state of Idaho as are established by federal or state law, federal or state regulation, or county ordinance, that are injurious to animal husbandry, agriculture, horticulture, forestry, wildlife and human health and safety.

(23) Administer a range program to provide support, coordination and expertise to Idaho rangeland livestock producers and land and wildlife management agencies for the planning and management of vegetation, grazing permits and other rangeland resources that are of importance to the livestock industry. The program shall also provide technical expertise and support to state and industry entities in reviewing various federal environmental impact statements, federal environmental assessments and other state and federal proposals that impact grazing, vegetation management or other rangeland resources or uses important to the livestock industry.

(24) To administer oaths, certify to all official acts and subpoena any person in this state as a witness; to compel through subpoena the production of books, papers, and records; and to take the testimony of any person on deposition in the same manner as prescribed by law in the procedure before the courts of this state. A subpoena issued by the director shall extend to all parts of the state and may be served by any person authorized to do so. All powers of the director enumerated in this subsection with respect to administering oaths, power of subpoena, and other powers in hearings on complaints shall likewise be applicable to hearings held on applications for the issuance or renewal of licenses.

(25) To appoint, as necessary, committees for the purpose of advising the director on any and all matters relating to agricultural programs within the Idaho department of agriculture.

(26) Cooperate with producers, industry and technology groups, and other agencies to encourage the growth of technology within the state’s agricultural industries while protecting, as necessary, the integrity of existing agriculture and agricultural marketing channels.

History:

[22-103, added 1974, ch. 18, sec. 2, p. 364; am. 1976, ch. 90, sec. 1, p. 304; am. 1978, ch. 238, sec. 1, p. 508; am. 1982, ch. 9, sec. 1, p. 12; am. 1990, ch. 376, sec. 1, p. 1039; am. 1993, ch. 30, sec. 1, p. 98; am. 1994, ch. 96, sec. 1, p. 219; am. 1998, ch. 120, sec. 1, p. 448; am. 2002, ch. 104, sec. 1, p. 282; am. 2006, ch. 220, sec. 1, p. 657; am. 2009, ch. 32, sec. 1, p. 87; am. 2009, ch. 123, sec. 1, p. 388; am. 2010, ch. 79, sec. 4, p. 134; am. 2011, ch. 95, sec. 1, p. 206.]