MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

1997 Regular Session

To: Agriculture

By: Representative Mitchell

AN ACT TO BRING FORWARD, FOR PURPOSES OF AMENDMENT, SECTIONS 69-17-3 THROUGH 69-17-201, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH RELATE TO LIVESTOCK BIOLOGICS, DRUGS AND VACCINES; TO BRING FORWARD, FOR PURPOSES OF AMENDMENT, SECTIONS 73-39-2 THROUGH 73-39-20, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, AND SECTIONS 73-39-27 THROUGH 73-39-37, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH RELATE TO THE VETERINARY PRACTICE LAW; TO BRING FORWARD, FOR PURPOSES OF AMENDMENT, SECTIONS 75-45-153 THROUGH 75-45-195, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH RELATE TO THE MISSISSIPPI COMMERCIAL FEED LAW; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. Section 69-17-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

69-17-3. No person, firm or corporation shall sell or offer for sale any biologics, drugs, remedies, tonics, medicine or other health preparation in the State of Mississippi designed for or to be administered to any livestock, poultry or any other animals until same has been registered with and approved for distribution by the Board of Animal Health as herein provided for. Nothing in this article shall be construed to prevent the sale of any antibiotics by any concern to farmers or livestock owners.

SECTION 2. Section 69-17-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

69-17-5. Nothing in this article shall apply to the dispensing of biologics, drugs, remedies, tonics, medicines or preparations hereinabove referred to by a licensed veterinarian if same is delivered by the licensed practitioner in the course of his professional practice or upon his prescription.

SECTION 3. Section 69-17-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

69-17-7. Any biologics, drugs, remedies, tonics, medicine or other preparation hereinabove referred to which are licensed or which are authorized to be sold under and in accordance with the Public Health Service Act of July 1, 1944 (58 Stat. 682; 42 U.S.C. Supp.V. 201 et seq.) or under the Animal Virus-Serum-Toxin Law of March 4, 1913 (37 Stat. 832; 21 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) shall be exempt from the provisions of this article.

SECTION 4. Section 69-17-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

69-17-9. The application for registration shall be made in such form and contain such information as may be prescribed by the Board of Animal Health of the State of Mississippi and shall give in detail the composition of the preparation, the safety of its use, recommendations and directions for use, claims of effectiveness and proof of all claims, and shall include an official product label and any other evidence which the said board considers necessary in determining eligibility of registration in compliance with this article.

SECTION 5. Section 69-17-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

69-17-11. The said Board of Animal Health is hereby authorized and directed to promulgate rules and regulations not inconsistent with this article, which may be necessary to its effective administration.

SECTION 6. Section 69-17-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

69-17-13. The said Board of Animal Health and its authorized representatives shall have the right to inspect, investigate, sample and seize in accordance with lawful procedure any product covered by this article.

SECTION 7. Section 69-17-15, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

69-17-15. Any person, firm or corporation violating any provision, or provisions, of this article shall have his registration rejected or revoked, and shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof, in addition to the foregoing, may be fined not to exceed One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) or imprisoned in jail not exceeding thirty (30) days, either or both.

SECTION 8. Section 69-17-101, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

69-17-101. Every person, except a bona fide merchant, who owns or possesses an instrument designed to project a tranquilizer or drug by means of compressed gas, explosion, or by mechanical means, into livestock for the purpose of rendering the animal docile, by whatever name known, shall register same within thirty (30) days with the Commissioner of Public Safety on forms to be provided by him. Any person hereafter coming into possession of or owning such instrument shall immediately register same with the Commissioner of Public Safety. The commissioner shall make forms available to the general public at all Mississippi Highway Safety Patrol substations.

SECTION 9. Section 69-17-103, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

69-17-103. Any person selling or dispensing tranquilizers or drugs manufactured for injection into livestock by means of an instrument identified in Section 69-17-101 for the purpose of rendering livestock docile, shall maintain a register wherein he shall enter the date such drug is sold or dispensed, the name and address of the purchaser or receiver, and the identity and quantity of said drug.

SECTION 10. Section 69-17-105, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

69-17-105. Any sheriff, constable, police officer, highway patrolman, or special investigator authorized under the provisions of Section 69-29-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, shall have the power to inspect the register of drugs dispensed required to be maintained by this article at a reasonable time during normal business hours of the dispenser or vendor thereof.

SECTION 11. Section 69-17-107, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

69-17-107. Any person who shall violate any provision of this article shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine of not less than One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) nor more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), or by imprisonment in the county jail not less than thirty (30) days nor more than six (6) months, or by both such fine and imprisonment.

SECTION 12. Section 69-17-201, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

69-17-201. (1) It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, corporation or association to have in possession or keep, sell or offer for sale, barter, exchange, give away or otherwise dispose of hog cholera virus, except at Mississippi State University of Agriculture and Applied Science and under the supervision of a licensed veterinarian and with a special written permit issued by the Board of Animal Health. "Hog cholera virus" means an unattenuated virus administered to swine for the purpose of immunizing such swine from the disease known as hog cholera.

(2) Any person, firm, corporation or association violating any of the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction shall be fined not less than Twenty-five Dollars ($25.00) nor more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00).

SECTION 13. Section 73-39-2, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-2. For the purposes of this chapter, the following words and phrases have the following meanings unless the context otherwise requires:

(a) "Abandonment" means to forsake entirely, or to neglect, or to refuse to provide for or to perform the legal or contractual obligation for the care and support of an animal, and such abandonment shall constitute a relinquishment of all rights and claims of the owner of an animal after notice is given as herein provided.

(b) "Animal" means any animal other than man, and includes birds, reptiles and fish, wild or domestic, living or dead.

(c) "Animal technician" is a person approved by the Mississippi Board of Veterinary Medicine to perform acts relating to the maintenance of health in or medical treatment of any animal within the State of Mississippi and provided further, that the performance of such acts shall be directly and immediately supervised by a veterinarian duly licensed to practice in the State of Mississippi. No animal technician may diagnose, perform surgery or prescribe medicine.

(d) "Board" means the Mississippi Board of Veterinary Medicine.

(e) "Complainant" means the board or any other person who initiates a proceeding.

(f) "Hearing" means any proceeding initiated before the board in which the legal rights, duties, privileges or immunities of a specific party or parties are determined.

(g) "License" means any permit, approval, registration or certificate issued by the board.

(h) "Respondent" is any person against whom a proceeding is initiated.

(i) "Responsible supervision" or words of similar purport means the control, direction and regulation by a veterinarian of the duties involved in the practice of veterinary medicine which he delegates to his unlicensed personnel.

(j) "Rule" means any regulation adopted by the board to govern its duties, functions, organization and procedure.

(k) "School of veterinary medicine" means any school or college, whose course of study is accredited by the American Veterinary Medical Association or any college or school that the board is able to determine that the curriculum is equal to or greater than the curriculum of colleges or schools accredited by the American Veterinary Medical Association.

(l) "Temporary permit" means temporary permission to practice veterinary medicine issued pursuant to this chapter.

(m) "Unprofessional or unethical conduct" means, among other things, any conduct of a character likely to deceive or defraud the public, unethical advertising, obtaining any fee or compensation by fraud or misrepresentation, sharing office space with any person illegally practicing veterinary medicine, employing, either directly or indirectly, any unlicensed person to practice veterinary medicine or render any veterinary service except as herein provided, or the violation of any rule adopted by the board.

(n) "Veterinarian" means a person who has received a doctor's degree in veterinary medicine from a school of veterinary medicine and is validly and currently licensed to practice veterinary medicine in this state.

(o) "Veterinary medicine" includes veterinary surgery, obstetrics, dentistry and all other branches or specialties of veterinary medicine.

SECTION 14. Section 73-39-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-3. No person shall practice veterinary medicine or veterinary surgery in any of their departments, including veterinary dentistry, in this state, unless and until such person shall have complied in all respects with the provisions of this chapter.

SECTION 15. Section 73-39-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-5. There shall be a Board of Veterinary Medicine composed of five (5) members, with at least one (1) member from each of the Supreme Court districts of the state and not more than two (2) members from the same Supreme Court district. All members of the Board of Veterinary Medicine shall be veterinarians who have practiced in this state for a period of not less than five (5) years and shall be graduates of a bona fide school of veterinary medicine recognized by and approved by the Bureau of Animal Industry of the United States Department of Agriculture and also by the American Veterinary Medical Association. In making the first appointments to the Board of Veterinary Medicine, the Governor shall designate one (1) member to serve for one (1) year, one (1) for two (2) years, one (1) for three (3) years, one (1) for four (4) years, and one (1) for five (5) years. After the expiration of the terms of all original board members, the terms of each member of the board shall be for five (5) years, or for the unexpired term. The Governor shall fill all vacancies on the board as they shall occur by appointment from a list of three (3) eligible veterinarians furnished to him by the Mississippi State Veterinary Medical Association for each vacancy, provided that if the vacancy to be filled is that caused by expiration of the terms, death, resignation or inability to serve of a board member whose residence is in a Supreme Court district having two (2) members of the board, the Mississippi State Veterinary Medical Association shall furnish to the Governor a list of six (6) names from which the vacancy shall be filled, three (3) of such names shall be from the Supreme Court district in which the former board member resided and three (3) from the Supreme Court district which had only one (1) member on the board, and the Governor shall fill the vacancy by appointment of one (1) of the six (6) nominees presented by the Mississippi State Veterinary Medical Association. From and after July 1, 1980, all appointments to the Board of Veterinary Medicine shall be with the advice and consent of the Senate. A majority of the board shall constitute a quorum.

SECTION 16. Section 73-39-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-7. (1) There shall be no obligation on the part of the state for the payment of any money as salary or otherwise to any member of the board, but the compensation and expenses of said board shall be paid out of the fees and fines as hereinafter provided. The members of the board shall receive as compensation for their services the sum of Forty Dollars ($40.00) for each day in actual service of said board and, in addition, their expenses incident to the meeting of the board. If the fines and fees are not sufficient to defray such compensation and expenses they shall be prorated among the members of said board, after paying operating expenses of said board.

(2) All fees and other monies received by the secretary-treasurer of the board shall be deposited in a special fund that is created in the State Treasury and shall be used for the implementation and administration of this chapter when appropriated by the Legislature for such purpose. The monies in the special fund shall be subject to all provisions of the state budget laws that are applicable to special fund agencies, and disbursements from the special fund shall be made by the State Treasurer only upon warrants issued by the State Fiscal Officer upon requisitions signed by the president or secretary-treasurer of the board. Any interest earned on this special fund shall be credited by the State Treasurer to the fund and shall not be paid into the State General Fund. Any unexpended monies remaining in the special fund at the end of a fiscal year shall not lapse into the State General Fund. The State Auditor shall audit the financial affairs of the board and the transactions involving the special fund at least once a year in the same manner as for other special fund agencies.

(3) The board is authorized to employ such personnel and incur such expense as may be necessary for the performance of its duties and the enforcement of this chapter including expenses for the promotion of education and standards of veterinary medicine through institutes, conferences, educational programs or such other means as may result in improved services.

SECTION 17. Section 73-39-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-9. The board shall elect from their members a president, vice-president and secretary-treasurer. The board is authorized:

(a) To adopt reasonable rules governing the practice of veterinary medicine as are necessary to enable it to carry out and make effective the purpose and intent of this chapter. Such rules shall be adopted and promulgated in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

(b) To adopt rules of professional conduct appropriate to establish and maintain a high standard of integrity, skills and practice in the profession of veterinary medicine. In prescribing such rules of professional conduct, the board may be guided by the principles of veterinary medical ethics adopted by the American Veterinary Medical Association and the Mississippi Veterinary Medical Association.

(c) To have its rules printed which shall be distributed to all licensed veterinarians.

(d) To bring proceedings in courts for the enforcement of this chapter or any rules made pursuant thereto.

(e) To hold at least one (1) regular meeting on the third Tuesday in June each year in the City of Jackson at such time and location as fixed by the board, for the purpose of conducting examinations of applicants for license to practice veterinary medicine, the election of officers and to consider any other business that may properly come before the board. Other meetings may be held upon the call of the president and secretary of the board.

(f) To pass upon the qualifications of applicants for a license to practice veterinary medicine in this state, or for a certificate as an animal technician.

(g) To prescribe the subjects, character, manner, time and place of holding examinations and the filing of applications for examinations and to conduct the examinations.

(h) To issue temporary permits to practice to duly qualified applicants which shall be signed by the secretary.

(i) To provide for, regulate and require all persons licensed in accordance with the provisions of this chapter to renew their license annually; to require as a condition precedent to such annual renewal the payment of the annual renewal fee as provided herein; to issue annual renewal licenses to such persons and to suspend or revoke the license of such persons who fail, refuse or neglect to renew same or pay such fees.

(j) To conduct investigations and hearings upon complaints calling for discipline of a licensee or applicant for license.

(k) To take testimony on any matter under its jurisdiction and any member thereof may administer oaths.

(l) To issue summons and subpoenas, including subpoenas duces tecum, for any witness in connection with any matter within the jurisdiction of the board, which shall be signed by either the president or the secretary-treasurer of the board.

(m) To adopt such forms as it may deem necessary.

SECTION 18. Section 73-39-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-11. All persons who are not already licensed under the laws of Mississippi to practice veterinary medicine, veterinary surgery and veterinary dentistry in this state prior to the passage of this chapter shall be required to take an examination and pay a fee of Fifty Dollars ($50.00) therefor when applying for permission to take the examination. Said fee shall not be returned to applicant whether or not he passes the examination.

SECTION 19. Section 73-39-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-13. All applicants for license to practice veterinary medicine in this state and not holding a license to practice on July 1, 1977, must successfully pass an examination before the Board of Veterinary Medicine, which examination shall be prescribed by the board. Applicants to be eligible for examination must present satisfactory evidence that they are more than twenty-one (21) years of age, a citizen of the United States or a resident alien of the State of Mississippi, of good moral character, and the graduate of a school of veterinary medicine. The Board of Veterinary Medicine, in its discretion, may grant a temporary permit to practice veterinary medicine to an applicant applying before the time of the regular meeting of the board, provided that the application is accompanied by the payment of the application fee as hereinbefore prescribed, and provided further, that the applicant shall furnish to the board sufficient evidence that he possesses the necessary qualifications, and provided further, that he furnishes to said board satisfactory evidence that he is actually residing in the State of Mississippi. The temporary permit shall entitle the holder thereof to practice only until the next regular meeting of the said board, at which time the said temporary permit shall automatically expire; the board may, however, in its discretion, grant another temporary permit, but not more than two (2) such temporary permits may be granted to any one (1) person.

SECTION 20. Section 73-39-15, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-15. Applicants for license to practice veterinary medicine in this state shall file their application with the Secretary-Treasurer of the Board of Veterinary Medicine at least thirty (30) days prior to the date of examination upon forms furnished by the secretary-treasurer for such purpose and shall pay the fee hereinbefore prescribed at the time the application is filed. Any person receiving a license from the Board of Veterinary Medicine shall forthwith and prior to engaging in the practice of veterinary medicine have same recorded in the office of the circuit clerk of the county in which he resides, and such person shall display his license in the place or office wherein he practices.

SECTION 21. Section 73-39-17, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-17. The circuit clerk of each county shall keep a complete list of the licenses received by him, together with the date of each, and the date recorded. He shall further record the name of the veterinary college which conferred the diploma on which permission was given to take the examination for license to practice.

SECTION 22. Section 73-39-19, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-19. (1) After a hearing held as set out in this chapter, the board, on concurrence of three (3) members, shall have the right and power to revoke or suspend the license of a veterinarian, or the certificate of an animal technician and may place said veterinarian or technician on prohibition conditioned on future good conduct and compliance with this chapter, and may impose an administrative fine not to exceed One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) for each such separate offense, for any of the following reasons:

(a) Insanity or mental incompetence or an adjudication of insanity or mental incompetence by a court of competent jurisdiction.

(b) Chronic inebriety or habitual use of drugs, or any adjudication by a court of competent jurisdiction that such veterinarian is an alcoholic or habitual user of drugs. Decrees of divorce shall not be construed as an adjudication that a veterinarian is an alcoholic or habitual user of drugs.

(c) A final conviction of a felony or of an offense involving moral turpitude by a court of competent jurisdiction.

(d) Fraud or dishonesty in the application or reporting of any test for disease in animals, including intentional misrepresentation on any forms filed with any governmental agency.

(e) Failure to report or making a false report of any contagious or infectious disease required by state or federal law to be reported.

(f) Dishonesty, intentional misrepresentation or gross negligence in the inspection of foodstuffs or the issuance of health or inspection certificates.

(g) The refusal of licensing authority of another state to issue or renew a license, permit or certificate to practice veterinary medicine in that state or the revocation, suspension or other restriction imposed on a license, permit or certificate issued by such licensing authority which prevents or restricts practice in that state; further, any probationary status imposed by another state which had the offense occurred in this state would have been a violation of this chapter.

(h) The employment of fraud, misrepresentation or deception in obtaining a license.

(i) The use of advertising or solicitation which is false or misleading or is deemed unprofessional under rules or regulations adopted by the board.

(j) Incompetence, gross negligence, cruelty or gross malpractice in the practice of veterinary medicine.

(k) Employing any person practicing veterinary medicine unlawfully with the knowledge of such illegal practice by said employee.

(l) Failure to keep veterinary premises and equipment in a clean and sanitary condition.

(m) Cruelty to animals in the practice of veterinary medicine.

(n) Unprofessional or unethical conduct as defined in regulations adopted by the board.

(o) Administering, dispensing or prescribing any narcotic drug having addiction-forming, addiction-sustaining or habituating liability otherwise than in the course of legitimate professional practice.

(p) Conviction of violation of any federal or state law regulating the possession, distribution or use of any narcotic drug or any drug considered a controlled substance under state or federal law.

(q) Obtaining or procuring, or attempting to obtain or procure by misrepresentation, fraud, deception or subterfuge, any narcotic or drug classified as a controlled substance.

(r) Making or causing to be made any false claims concerning the licensee's professional excellence.

(s) Being guilty of any dishonorable or unethical conduct likely to deceive, defraud or harm the public.

(t) Refusing to permit the board or any legal representative of the board to inspect the business premises of the licensee during regular business hours.

(u) Failure to complete requirement of continuing education.

(2) A certified copy of any judgment of conviction or finding of guilt by a court of competent jurisdiction or by a governmental board or agency authorized to issue licenses or permits, including the United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, the Mississippi Board of Animal Health and the Mississippi State Board of Health, of a veterinarian or animal technician of any of the matters listed in paragraph (a), (b), (c), (d), (e), (f) or (g) of subsection (1) shall be admissible in evidence in any hearing held by the board to discipline such veterinarian and shall constitute prima facie evidence of the commission of any such act.

(3) In addition to the reasons specified in subsection (1) of this section, the board shall be authorized to suspend the license or certificate of any licensee or certificate holder for being out of compliance with an order for support, as defined in Section 93-11-153. The procedure for suspension of a license or certificate for being out of compliance with an order for support, and the procedure for the reissuance or reinstatement of a license or certificate suspended for that purpose, and the payment of any fees for the reissuance or reinstatement of a license or certificate suspended for that purpose, shall be governed by Section 93-11-157 or 93-11-163, as the case may be. If there is any conflict between any provision of Section 93-11-157 or 93-11-163 and any provision of this chapter, the provisions of Section 93-11-157 or 93-11-163, as the case may be, shall control.

SECTION 23. Section 73-39-20, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-20. No action to revoke or suspend a license of a veterinarian or certificate of an animal technician shall be taken until the respondent has been furnished a statement of the charges against him and has been mailed a written notice by registered mail at least ten (10) days prior to said hearing of the time, date and place of said hearing. All such hearings shall be held in the City of Jackson, Hinds County, Mississippi. The respondent may be present at the hearing in person, or represented by counsel, or both. When a license or certificate is revoked or suspended, the secretary of the board, hereinafter referred to as "the secretary," shall certify the revocation or suspension to the clerk of the county or counties with whom the respondent shall have filed his license, or certified copy thereof. The board may, for good cause shown, reinstate any license or certificate so revoked or suspended and in case of reinstatement of the same, the secretary shall certify such reinstatement to said clerk. The procedure for the reinstatement of a license or certificate that is suspended for being out of compliance with an order for support, as defined in Section 93-11-153, shall be governed by Section 93-11-157 or 93-11-163, as the case may be. An appeal from the action of the board in revoking or suspending a license or certificate may be taken to the chancery court of the county in which such veterinarian or animal technician is residing within the State of Mississippi or the county in which practicing, if he be a nonresident of this state, within thirty (30) days after action of the board. The appeal is perfected upon filing notice of appeal, together with bond in the sum of One Hundred Dollars ($100.00), with two (2) resident sureties or one (1) corporate surety company authorized to do business in the State of Mississippi, conditioned that if the action of the board in revoking or suspending the license be affirmed by the chancery court, the appellant will pay the costs of the appeal. Such bonds shall be approved by the clerk of the chancery court to which such appeal is taken.

Actions taken by the board in suspending a license or certificate when required by Section 93-11-157 or 93-11-163 are not actions from which an appeal may be taken under this section. Any appeal of a license or certificate suspension that is required by Section 93-11-157 or 93-11-163 shall be taken in accordance with the appeal procedure specified in Section 93-11-157 or 93-11-163, as the case may be, rather than the procedure specified in this section.

SECTION 24. Section 73-39-27, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-27. The board, by an affirmative vote of three (3) members, at any time after suspension or revocation of a license for good and sufficient cause, may reissue a license to the person affected, conferring upon him all the rights and privileges pertaining to the practice of veterinary medicine. Any person to whom such license may be reissued shall pay all fees that would have been paid if he had maintained his license in good standing, plus a special reinstatement fee of Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00). Any person affected, if aggrieved by the refusal of the board to reissue such license, may appeal to the chancery court of the county and judicial district in which he resides in the manner prescribed by law for all such appeals. The procedure for the reissuance of a license or certificate that is suspended for being out of compliance with an order for support, as defined in Section 93-11-153, shall be governed by Section 93-11-157 or 93-11-163, as the case may be.

SECTION 25. Section 73-39-29, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-29. Each person licensed to practice veterinary medicine, veterinary surgery or veterinary dentistry under this chapter except as otherwise provided, is required to attend an educational program in the twelve (12) months preceding each renewal date of his license. The educational program may be conducted by the Board of Veterinary Examiners, the Mississippi State Veterinary Medical Association and/or any other organized veterinary associations recognized by the board. However, postgraduate study or attendance at an institution or an educational session approved by the board shall be considered equivalent but the board shall have the right, for good cause shown, to prescribe the type and character of postgraduate study to be done by any doctor of veterinary medicine in order to comply with the requirements of this chapter.

SECTION 26. Section 73-39-31, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-31. The board shall have the authority to excuse licensees, as a group or an individual, from the annual educational requirements in any of the following instances:

(a) When no educational program meeting the requirement approved by the board is conducted within the state;

(b) The submission of an affidavit to the board evidencing that the licensee, for good cause assigned, was prevented from attending an educational program at the proper time;

(c) In the event of an unusual emergency;

(d) Persons who have reached the age of sixty-five (65) years or over; and

(e) For other good and sufficient reason.

SECTION 27. Section 73-39-32, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-32. The board shall issue a veterinary faculty license, which shall be required for employment in any state institution, to any veterinarian associated with one (1) of the state institutions of higher learning and involved in the instructional program of either undergraduate or graduate veterinary medical students, subject to the following conditions:

(a) That the holder of the veterinary faculty license shall not be remunerated for the practice aspects of his services, rather, the institution employing him shall receive any fees due from his services; except for services performed in connection with a practice in Mississippi owned and operated by a veterinarian holding a valid license to practice Veterinary Medicine in the State of Mississippi and with written permission to do so from the institution of higher learning where employed; and

(b) That the applicant will furnish the board with proof that he or she is a graduate of an accredited school or college of veterinary medicine and is duly licensed in this or another state; and

(c) That the license may be cancelled for any of the reasons enumerated in Section 73-39-19 or if the holder of the veterinary faculty license permanently moves out of the state or leaves the employment of the institution of higher learning.

SECTION 28. Section 73-39-33, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-33. Any person shall be regarded as practicing veterinary medicine, veterinary surgery or veterinary dentistry who shall treat, operate on, diagnose or prescribe for any animal for compensation. But nothing in this chapter shall prohibit anyone from dehorning, castrating or spaying or vaccinating or prescribing where no compensation is made, nor shall this chapter affect the duties of county agents or vocational agriculture teachers in high schools in the prevention and control of animal diseases.

SECTION 29. Section 73-39-34, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-34. (1) The board shall establish rules and regulations for the admission to practice and for the conduct of examinations for animal technicians.

(2) Applications for examination by the board for a certificate as an animal technician shall be made on a form prescribed by the board and obtainable from the secretary of the board. The application shall:

(a) Be delivered to the secretary of the board at least thirty (30) days prior to the announced date of the examination;

(b) Be accompanied by the following:

(i) A check or money order in the amount of Twenty-five Dollars ($25.00) made payable to the Mississippi Board of Veterinary Medicine;

(ii) A certified copy of the applicant's college transcript, if the applicant has attended college;

(iii) A photograph of the applicant taken within six (6) months of the date of the application; and

(iv) At least three (3) letters of recommendation from citizens of the United States, and if application is based on graduation from a school of animal technology, at least one (1) of them shall be from an instructor in the department of animal technology attended by the applicant, setting forth that the applicant is personally known and is of good moral character;

(c) Be subscribed and sworn to before a notary public; and

(d) Along with all supporting papers submitted to the board, become a part of the applicant's examination and become the property of the board.

(3) Any applicant who, being at least eighteen (18) years of age; of good moral character; has received a diploma in animal technology from a school approved by the board; or has obtained a high school diploma or G.E.D. Certificate and has completed a program of five (5) continuous years of practical training as an animal technician approved by the board; and who has completed and filed the application as provided herein and paid the requisite fees shall be eligible to take the examination for certification as an animal technician. A credit of two (2) years' practical training may be given at the discretion of the board for a degree conferred by an institution of higher learning.

(4) (a) All examinations by the board shall be both theoretical and practical and shall embrace such subjects as the board shall, from time to time, prescribe and shall be both written and oral. The board shall hold at least one (1) examination annually.

(b) The board, in its discretion, may waive the written part of the examination; provided, an applicant for such examination meets the following requirements:

(i) In the opinion of the board, the applicant has met all of the requirements provided for in this chapter.

(ii) The applicant has been certified as an animal technician in another state whose requirements are at least equal to those of Mississippi, and has submitted acceptable proof thereof.

(c) Any applicant failing to pass any examination for which he previously qualified shall be reexamined at his request without the necessity of filing a new application at any scheduled examination held by the board at the expiration of six (6) months, but not more than two (2) years following his original examination. However, such applicant shall not in any event be entitled to more than two (2) such reexaminations within the period of two (2) years. All requests for reexaminations shall be filed with the secretary of the board at least thirty (30) days prior to the date of the examination he wishes to take, and such request shall be accompanied by a fee in the amount of Twenty-five Dollars ($25.00).

(5) The certificate issued to a person qualifying as a certified animal technician shall contain the following language clearly displayed upon its face: "A certified animal technician may perform acts relating to the maintenance of health or medical treatment of any animal within the State of Mississippi; provided, that the performance of such acts by the certified animal technician shall be directly and immediately supervised by a veterinarian duly licensed to practice in the State of Mississippi. No animal technician may diagnose disease, perform surgery or prescribe medicine."

(6) The board shall have the power to evaluate and approve or disapprove, in its discretion, schools offering a course in animal technology.

(7) Practical training of candidates:

(a) No candidate shall be deemed to be in a program of practical training intended to satisfy the educational requirement for certification as animal technician until a form of intent shall have been executed by the training veterinarian and approved by the board.

(b) Any licensed veterinarian who has undertaken the practical training of a candidate shall immediately, upon completion of the candidate's training, submit to the board proof of such completion of training.

(c) Any person at least eighteen (18) years of age engaged in a program of practical training as a candidate for certification as an animal technician on March 8, 1977, shall have until May 1, 1977, to submit proof to the board of such training in the form of an affidavit from the veterinarian or veterinarians that supervised the training, setting forth the fact that the training did take place and the nature of the training. Upon receipt of such proof, together with the completed application and requisite fee, as provided for herein, the board shall issue to such person a certificate as a certified animal technician.

(8) The board shall establish a code of ethics and rules of conduct for animal technicians.

(9) The certificate as animal technician shall only be valid for use when the holder is in the employ of a veterinarian in the State of Mississippi or an exempt veterinarian in accordance with this chapter, and such veterinarian shall have certified in writing to the board the fact of such employment of said technician.

(10) The holder of a certificate as an animal technician shall not accept a direct fee for service rendered as an animal technician.

(11) Each holder of a certificate as animal technician shall, on July 1 of each and every year, pay to the secretary of the board an annual registration fee of Five Dollars ($5.00). Renewal applications shall be countersigned by the employing veterinarian.

(12) All certificates of animal technicians shall be recorded with the circuit clerk of the county or counties in which the animal technician works as an animal technician.

(13) No veterinarian shall have more than two (2) animal technicians employed at any one (1) time.

SECTION 30. Section 73-39-35, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-35. Any person who practices, or attempts to practice, veterinary medicine in this state in violation of the provisions of this chapter, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punishable, upon conviction, by a fine of not more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) nor less than One Hundred Dollars ($100.00). Each violation shall be deemed a separate offense.

SECTION 31. Section 73-39-37, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

73-39-37. (1) Any animal placed in the custody of a licensed veterinarian for treatment, boarding or other care shall be considered to be abandoned by its owner, or by the person who placed such animal in the custody of the veterinarian, after the period of time during which such treatment, boarding or other care would have been rendered, and following ten (10) days' written notice by registered mail being given by the licensed veterinarian to the owner or to such person who placed such animal in the custody of the veterinarian at the last-known address of such owner or person informing him: (i) that the animal is ready for discharge, (ii) of the amount owed for the care, treatment and maintenance of such animal, and (iii) of the veterinarian's intention to dispose of said animal under the provisions of this chapter and upon said owner or person not paying said amount and taking the custody of said animal from the veterinarian within said period of ten (10) days. When an animal has been so abandoned, the licensed veterinarian may sell said animal at public or private sale without any further notice to said owner or person placing said animal in his custody, except that the proceeds of such sale shall not exceed the indebtedness owed such veterinarian, and proceeds of such sale shall be credited first against the cost of such sale and thereafter against any indebtedness owed the veterinarian for the care and treatment of such animal in the custody of such veterinarian. Additionally, in case of such abandonment, if such a sale is not feasible, said veterinarian may elect not to sell said animal and may turn it over to the nearest humane society, dog pound or other facility for the care and disposal of animals, or may otherwise dispose of the animal. Nothing contained herein shall be construed as relieving the owner of such animal or person engaging the services of said veterinarian from any liability which the owner or such person may have incurred as a result of the furnishing of such treatment, boarding or other care by the veterinarian for the entire period the animal has been in the custody of said veterinarian.

(2) The veterinarian or custodian of a humane society or dog pound or other facility for the care and disposal of animals to which said animal may have been delivered by the veterinarian shall not be liable for disposal of said animal. Such procedure by the veterinarian shall not constitute grounds for disciplinary proceedings under this chapter.

SECTION 32. Section 75-45-153, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-153. When used in this article the terms:

(a) "Person" includes any individual, partnership, corporation and association.

(b) "Distribute" means to offer for sale, sell, exchange, give away, or barter, commercial feed or to supply, furnish, or otherwise provide commercial feed to a contract feeder.

(c) "Distributor" means any person who distributes commercial feedstuffs as defined herein.

(d) "Commercial feed" means all materials distributed for use as feed or for mixing in feed except unmixed seed, whole or processed, when not adulterated within the meaning of paragraph (a) of Section 75-45-165. The commissioner and State Chemist by regulation may exempt from this definition, or from specific provisions of this article, commodities such as hay, straw, stover, silage, cobs, husks, hulls, and individual chemical compounds or substances when such commodities, compounds or substances are not mixed with other materials, and are not adulterated within the meaning of paragraphs (a-d) of Section 75-45-165.

(e) "Feed ingredient" means each of the constituent materials making up a commercial feed.

(f) "Mineral feed" means a commercial feed intended to supply primarily mineral elements or inorganic nutrients.

(g) "Drug" means any article intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease in animals other than man and articles other than feed intended to affect the structure or any function of the animal body.

(h) "Customer-formula feed" means commercial feed which consists of a mixture of commercial feeds and/or feed ingredients, each batch of which is manufactured according to the specific instructions of the final purchaser.

(i) "Manufacture" means to grind, mix or blend, or further process a commercial feed for distribution.

(j) "Brand name" means any word, name, symbol, or device, or any combination thereof, identifying the commercial feed of a distributor or registrant and distinguishing it from that of others.

(k) "Product name" means the name of the commercial feed which identifies it as to kind, class or specific use.

(l) "Label" means a display of written, printed, or graphic matter upon or affixed to the container in which a commercial feed is distributed, or on the invoice or delivery slip with which a commercial feed is distributed.

(m) "Labeling" means all labels and other written, printed, or graphic matter (1) upon a commercial feed or any of its containers or wrappers (2) accompanying such commercial feed.

(n) "Ton" means a net weight of two thousand (2,000) pounds avoirdupois.

(o) "Percent" or "percentages" mean percentages by weights.

(p) "Official sample" means a sample of feed taken by the commissioner or his agent in accordance with the provisions of subsections (3), (4), (5) of Section 75-45-173.

(q) "Contract feeder" means a person who as an independent contractor, feeds commercial feed to animals pursuant to a contract whereby such commercial feed is supplied, furnished, or otherwise provided to such person and whereby such person's remuneration is determined all or in part by feed consumption, mortality, profits, or amount or quality of product.

(r) "Pet food" means any commercial feed prepared and distributed for consumption by pets.

(s) "Pet" means any domesticated animal normally maintained in or near the household(s) of the owner(s) thereof.

SECTION 33. Section 75-45-155, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-155. This article shall be administered by the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce, hereinafter referred to as commissioner, and the State Chemist, as specified in the following sections.

SECTION 34. Section 75-45-157, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-157. (1) The commissioner and State Chemist are authorized to promulgate such rules and regulations for commercial feeds and pet foods as are specifically authorized in this article and such other reasonable rules and regulations as may be necessary for the efficient enforcement of this article. In the interest of uniformity the commissioner and State Chemist shall adopt by regulation, unless they determine that they are inconsistent with the provisions of this article or are not appropriate to conditions which exist in this state, the following:

(a) The official definitions of feed ingredients and official feed terms adopted by the Association of American Feed Control Officials and published in the official publication of that organization; and

(b) Any regulation promulgated pursuant to the authority of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (USCS Sections 301, et seq.): provided, that the commissioner and State Chemist would have the authority under this article to promulgate such regulations.

(2) Before the issuance, amendment, or repeal of any rule or regulation authorized by this article, the commissioner and State Chemist shall publish the proposed rule or regulation, amendment, or notice to repeal an existing rule or regulation in a manner reasonably calculated to give interested parties, including all current registrants, adequate notice and they shall afford all interested persons an opportunity to present their views thereon, orally or in writing, within a reasonable period of time. After consideration of all views presented by interested persons, the commissioner and State Chemist shall take appropriate action to issue the proposed rule or regulation or to amend or repeal an existing rule or regulation. The provisions of this subsection notwithstanding, if the commissioner and State Chemist pursuant to the authority of this article, adopt the official definitions of feed ingredients or official feed terms as adopted by the Association of American Feed Control Officials, or regulations promulgated pursuant to the authority of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, any amendment or modification adopted by said association or by the Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare in the case of regulations promulgated pursuant to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, shall be adopted automatically under this article without regard to the publications of the notice required by this subsection, unless the commissioner and State Chemist by order specifically determine that said amendment or modification shall not be adopted.

SECTION 35. Section 75-45-159, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-159. (1) No person shall manufacture a commercial feed in this state, unless he has filed with the commissioner and State Chemist on forms provided by the commissioner, his name, place of business and location of each manufacturing facility in this state.

(2) No person shall distribute in this state a commercial feed, except a customer-formula feed, which has not been registered pursuant to the provisions of this section. The application for registration shall be submitted in the manner prescribed by the commissioner. Before the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce may accept any certified copy guarantee or registration, he shall charge and collect a fee of Five Dollars ($5.00) on or by January 1 of each year the registration is in effect, for each such certified copy or guarantee accepted and registered by him and the funds so collected shall be deposited monthly in the State Treasury. Upon approval by the commissioner and State Chemist the registration shall be issued to the applicant. A registration shall continue in effect unless it is cancelled by the commissioner and State Chemist pursuant to subsection (3) of this section.

(3) The commissioner and the State Chemist are empowered to refuse registration of any commercial feed not in compliance with the provisions of this article and to cancel any registration subsequently found not to be in compliance with any provision of this article. No registration shall be refused or cancelled unless the registrant shall have been given an opportunity to be heard before the commissioner and State Chemist and to amend his application in order to comply with the requirements of this article.

SECTION 36. Section 75-45-161, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-161. A commercial feed shall be labeled as follows:

(a) In case of a commercial feed, except a customer-formula feed, it shall be accompanied by a label bearing the following information:

(1) The net weight.

(2) The product name and the brand name, if any, under which the commercial feed is distributed.

(3) The guaranteed analysis, stated in such terms which the commissioner and State Chemist by regulation determine are required to advise the user of the composition of the feed or to support claims made in the labeling. In all cases the substances or elements must be determinable by laboratory methods such as the methods published by the Association of Official Analytical Chemists.

(4) The common or usual name of each ingredient used in the manufacture of the commercial feed; the commissioner and State Chemist by regulation may permit the use of a collective term for a group of ingredients which perform a similar function, or they may exempt such commercial feeds, or any group thereof, from this requirement of an ingredient statement if they find that such statement is not required in the interest of consumers.

(5) The name and principal mailing address of the manufacturer or the person responsible for distributing the commercial feed.

(6) Adequate directions for use of all commercial feeds containing drugs and for such other feeds as the commissioner and State Chemist may require by regulation as necessary for their safe and effective use.

(7) Such precautionary statements as the commissioner and State Chemist by regulation determine are necessary for the safe and effective use of the commercial feed.

(b) In the case of a customer-formula feed, it shall be accompanied by a label, invoice, delivery slip, or other shipping document, bearing the following information:

(1) Name and address of the manufacturer.

(2) Name and address of the purchaser.

(3) Date of delivery.

(4) The product name and brand name, if any, and the net weight of each registered commercial feed used in the mixture, and the net weight of each other ingredient used.

(5) Adequate directions for use for all customer-formula feeds containing drugs and for such other feeds as the commissioner and State Chemist may require by regulation as necessary for their safe and effective use of the customer-formula feed.

SECTION 37. Section 75-45-163, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-163. A commercial feed shall be deemed to be misbranded:

(a) If its labeling is false or misleading in any particular.

(b) If it is distributed under the name of another commercial feed.

(c) If it is not labeled as required in Section 75-45-161.

(d) If it purports to be or is represented as a commercial feed, or if it purports to contain or is represented as containing a commercial feed ingredient, unless such commercial feed or feed ingredient conforms to the definition, if any, prescribed by regulation by the commissioner and State Chemist.

(e) If any word, statement, or other information required by or under authority of this article to appear on the label or labeling is not prominently placed thereon with such conspicuousness (as compared with other words, statements, designs, or devices in the labeling) and in such terms as to render it likely to be read and understood by the ordinary individual under customary conditions of purchase and use.

SECTION 38. Section 75-45-165, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-165. A commercial feed shall be deemed to be adulterated:

(a) (1) If it bears or contains any poisonous or deleterious substance which may render it injurious to health; however, in case the substance is not an added substance, such commercial feed shall not be considered adulterated under this subsection if the quantity of such substance in such commercial feed does not ordinarily render it injurious to health;

(2) If it bears or contains any added poisonous, added deleterious, or added nonnutritive substance which is unsafe within the meaning of Section 406 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (other than one which is (i) a pesticide chemical in or on a raw agricultural commodity, or (ii) a food additive);

(3) If it is, or it bears or contains any food additive which is unsafe within the meaning of Section 409 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act; or

(4) If it is a raw agricultural commodity and it bears or contains a pesticide chemical which is unsafe within the meaning of Section 408(a) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. However, where a pesticide chemical has been used in or on a raw agricultural commodity in conformity with an exemption granted or a tolerance prescribed under Section 408 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and such raw agricultural commodity has been subjected to processing such as canning, cooking, freezing, dehydrating, or milling, the residue of such pesticide chemical remaining in or on such processed feed shall not be deemed unsafe if such residue in or on the raw agricultural commodity has been removed to the extent possible in good manufacturing practice. In such case the concentration of such residue in the processed feed shall not exceed the tolerance prescribed for the raw agricultural commodity. Feeding of such processed feed shall not result, or be likely to result, in a pesticide residue, unsafe within the meaning of Section 408(a) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, in the edible product of the animal.

(b) If any valuable constituent has been in whole or in part omitted or abstracted therefrom or any less valuable substance substituted therefor.

(c) If its composition or quality falls below or differs from that which it is purported or is represented to possess by its labeling.

(d) If it contains a drug and the methods used in or the facilities or controls used for its manufacture, processing, or packaging do not conform to current good manufacturing practice regulations promulgated by the commissioner and State Chemist to assure that the drug meets the requirement of this article as to safety and has the identity and strength and meets the quality and purity characteristics which it purports or is represented to possess. In promulgating such regulations, the commissioner and State Chemist shall adopt the current good manufacturing practice regulations for medicated feed premixes and for medicated feeds established under authority of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, unless they determine that they are not appropriate to the conditions which exist in this state.

(e) If it contains viable weed seeds in amounts exceeding the limits which the commissioner and State Chemist shall establish by rule or regulation.

SECTION 39. Section 75-45-167, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-167. An inspection fee at the rate of Twenty-five Cents (254) per ton shall be paid on commercial feeds distributed in this state by the person who distributes the commercial feed to the consumer, subject to the following:

(a) No fee shall be paid on a commercial feed if the payment has been made by a previous distributor.

(b) No fee shall be paid on customer-formula feeds if the inspection fee is paid on the commercial feeds which are used as ingredients therein.

(c) No fee shall be paid on commercial feeds which are used as ingredients for the manufacture of commercial feeds which are registered. If the fee has already been paid, credit shall be given for such payment.

(d) In the case of a commercial feed which is distributed in the state only in packages of ten (10) pounds or less, an annual fee of Twenty-five Dollars ($25.00) per brand shall be paid in lieu of the inspection fee specified above.

(e) The minimum inspection fee shall be Five Dollars ($5.00) per quarter.

(f) Any feed manufactured and used by a distributor or his contract feeders to feed his own livestock, poultry, or fish shall be exempt from the inspection fee on both purchased ingredients and finished feed. To qualify for the above exemption, a permit must be obtained from the commissioner annually and said permit used to obtain exemption on feed ingredients. Any services the Mississippi State Chemical Laboratory or the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce provide for permit holders will be paid for according to mutually agreeable prices between both parties.

SECTION 40. Section 75-45-169, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-169. Each person who is liable for the payment of an inspection fee shall:

(a) File, not later than the last day of January, April, July, and October of each year, a quarterly statement, setting forth the number of net tons of commercial feeds distributed in this state during the preceding calendar quarter, and upon filing such statement shall pay the inspection fee at the rate stated in Section 75-45-167. Inspection fees which are due and owing and have not been remitted to the Department of Agriculture and Commerce within fifteen (15) days following the due date shall have a penalty fee of ten percent (10%) (minimum Ten Dollars ($10.00)) added to the amount due when payment is finally made. The assessment of this penalty fee shall not prevent the department from taking other actions as provided in this article.

(b) Keep such records as may be necessary or required by the commissioner to indicate accurately the tonnage of commercial feed distributed in this state; the commissioner shall have the right to examine such records to verify statements of tonnage. Failure to make an accurate statement of tonnage or to pay the inspection fee or comply as provided herein shall constitute sufficient cause for the cancellation of all registrations on file for the distributor.

SECTION 41. Section 75-45-171, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-171. The Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce shall deposit with the State Treasurer to the credit of the General Fund all funds received by him as registration and inspection fees and, by act of the Legislature, such funds shall be used for defraying the cost of the inspection and analysis of commercial feeds as provided herein.

All penalties collected, whether from fines or sales of the condemnation of the articles defined above, shall be deposited with the State Treasurer to the credit of the General Fund. It shall be the duty of the Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce to include in his annual report an itemized statement of all such funds so collected and deposited.

SECTION 42. Section 75-45-173, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-173. (1) For the purpose of enforcement of this article, and in order to determine whether its provisions have been complied with, including whether or not any operations may be subject to such provisions, officers or employees duly designated by the commissioner, upon presenting appropriate credentials, and a written notice to the owner, operator, or agent in charge, are authorized (a) to enter, during normal business hours, any factory, warehouse, or establishment within the state in which commercial feeds are manufactured, processed, packed or held for distribution, or to enter any vehicle being used to transport or hold such feeds; and (b) to inspect during normal business hours and within reasonable limits and in a reasonable manner, such factory, warehouse, establishment or vehicle and all pertinent equipment, finished and unfinished materials, containers, and labeling thereon. The inspection may include the verification of only such records, and production and control procedures as may be necessary to determine compliance with the good manufacturing practice regulations established under paragraph (d) of Section 75-45-165.

(2) A separate notice shall be given for each such inspection, but a notice shall not be required for each entry made during the period covered by the inspection. Each such inspection shall be commenced and completed with reasonable promptness. Upon completion of the inspection, the person in charge of the facility or vehicle shall be so notified.

(3) If the officer or employee making such inspection of a factory, warehouse, vehicle or other establishment has obtained a sample in the course of the inspection, upon completion of the inspection and prior to leaving the premises or vehicle he shall give to the owner, operator, or agent in charge, a receipt describing the samples obtained.

(4) If the owner of any factory, warehouse, vehicle or establishment described in subsection (1), or his agent, refuses to admit the commissioner or his agent to inspect in accordance with subsections (1) and (2), the commissioner is authorized to obtain from any state court a warrant directing such owner or his agent to submit the premises described in such warrant to inspection.

(5) For the purpose of the enforcement of this article, the commissioner or his duly designated agent is authorized to enter upon any public or private premises including any vehicle of transport during regular business hours to have access to, and to obtain samples, and to examine records relating to distribution of commercial feeds.

(6) Sampling and analysis shall be conducted in accordance with methods published by the Association of Official Analytical Chemists, or in accordance with other generally recognized methods.

(7) The results of all analyses of official samples shall be forwarded by the State Chemist to the person named on the label and to the purchaser. When the inspection and analysis of an official sample indicates a commercial feed has been adulterated or misbranded and upon request within thirty (30) days following receipt of the analysis the State Chemist shall furnish to the registrant a portion of the sample concerned.

(8) The commissioner and State Chemist, in determining for administrative purposes whether a commercial feed is deficient in any component, shall be guided by the official sample as defined in paragraph (p) of section 75-45-153 and obtained and analyzed as provided for in subsections (3), (5), and (6) of this section.

SECTION 43. Section 75-45-175, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

75-45-175. When the commissioner or his authorized agent has reasonable cause to believe any lot of commercial feed is being distributed in violation of any of the provisions of this article or of any of the prescribed regulations under this article, he may, according to his judgment of the gravity of the offense and regulations promulgated by the commissioner and State Chemist, take either or both of the following actions:

(a) Issue a letter of warning and assess a fine as penalty as specified in subsection (2) of section 75-45-181 for adulterated products, or

(b) Issue and enforce a written or printed "withdrawal from distribution" order, warning the distributor not to dispose of the lot of commercial feed in any manner until written permission is given by the commissioner or the court. The commissioner shall release the lot of commercial feed so withdrawn when said provisions and regulations have been complied with. If compliance is not obtained within thirty (30) days, the commissioner may begin, or upon request of the distributor or registrant shall begin, proceedings for condemnation.

SECTION 44. Section 75-45-177, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-177. Any lot of commercial feed not in compliance with the provisions of this article and regulations issued thereunder shall be subject to seizure on complaint of the commissioner to a court of competent jurisdiction in the area in which said commercial feed is located. In the event the court finds the said commercial feed to be in violation of this article and orders the condemnation of said commercial feed, it shall be disposed of in any manner consistent with the quality of the commercial feed and the laws of the state. Provided, that in no instance shall the disposition of said commercial feed be ordered by the court without first giving the claimant an opportunity to apply to the court for release of said commercial feed or for permission to process or relabel said commercial feed to bring it into compliance with this article.

SECTION 45. Section 75-45-179, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-179. The following acts and the causing thereof within the State of Mississippi are hereby prohibited:

(a) The manufacture or distribution of any commercial feed that is adulterated or misbranded.

(b) The adulteration or misbranding of any commercial feed.

(c) The distribution of agricultural commodities such as whole seed, hay, straw, stover, silage, cobs, husks and hulls, which are adulterated within the meaning of paragraph (a) of Section 75-45-165.

(d) The removal or disposal of a commercial feed in violation of an order under Section 75-45-175 or 75-45-177.

(e) The failure or refusal to register in accordance with Section 75-45-159.

(f) The violation of Section 75-45-191.

(g) Failure to pay inspection fees and file reports as required by Sections 75-45-167 and 75-45-169.

(h) Failure to pay penalties assessed under Section 75-45-175 and subsection (2) of Section 75-45-181.

SECTION 46. Section 75-45-181, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-181. (1) Any person convicted of violating any of the provisions of this article or who shall impede, hinder, or otherwise prevent, or attempt to prevent, said commissioner or his duly authorized agent in performance of his duty in connection with the provisions of this article, shall be adjudged guilty of a misdemeanor and shall upon conviction, be punished according to law.

(2) Any distributor distributing commercial feed adjudged by the commissioner and State Chemist to be adulterated under subsection (a) of Section 75-45-165 and accompanying regulations shall be guilty of violating the provisions of this article, and shall pay to the commissioner a penalty prescribed by regulations issued by the commissioner and State Chemist according to Section 75-45-175, if the commissioner decides such penalty is more appropriate than "withdrawal from distribution" or "condemnation and confiscation" of the product under Sections 75-45-175 and 75-45-177. Such penalties shall in no case exceed Twenty Dollars ($20.00) per ton per violation on the lot or shipment so found to be adulterated, but in no case shall a penalty of less than Ten Dollars ($10.00) be imposed. Such penalties shall be levied on all quantities of a shipment of feed which have already been sold should the commissioner decide the appropriate regulatory action is issuance of a "withdrawal from distribution" order on the remainder of the lot under Section 75-45-175, or a "condemnation and confiscation" order under Section 75-45-177.

For the purposes of adjudging adulteration under subsection (c) of Section 75-45-165, the commissioner shall be guided by "permitted analytical variations" from the guaranteed value for each feed component or analytically measurable index of the feed quality. Such permitted analytical variations from guaranteed values shall be set forth by regulation by the commissioner and State Chemist.

If any manufacturer, registrant or distributor fails or refuses to pay within thirty (30) days after request has been made by the commissioner any fine assessed as penalty against a feed adjudged adulterated within the meaning of subsection (c) of Section 75-45-165 and accompanying regulations, it shall then be the duty of the commissioner and State Chemist to cancel all registrations of said manufacturer, registrant or distributor and refuse to accept further registrations from him until all penalties due the State of Mississippi have been paid.

SECTION 47. Section 75-45-183, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-183. Nothing in this article shall be construed as requiring the commissioner or his representative to: (1) report for prosecution, or (2) institute seizure proceedings or (3) issue a withdrawal from distribution order, as a result of minor violations of this article, or when he believes the public interest will best be served by suitable notice of warning in writing and enforcement of a penalty as authorized in Section 75-45-175.

SECTION 48. Section 75-45-185, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-185. It shall be the duty of each prosecuting attorney to whom any violation is reported to cause appropriate proceedings to be instituted and prosecuted in a court of competent jurisdiction without delay. Before the commissioner reports a violation for such prosecution, an opportunity shall be given the distributor to present his view to the commissioner.

SECTION 49. Section 75-45-187, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-187. The commissioner is hereby authorized to apply for and the court to grant a temporary or permanent injunction restraining any person from violating or continuing to violate any of the provisions of this article or any rule or regulation promulgated under this article notwithstanding the existence of other remedies at law. Said injunction shall be issued without bond.

SECTION 50. Section 75-45-189, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-189. Any person adversely affected by an act, order or ruling made pursuant to the provisions of this article may within forty-five (45) days thereafter bring action in the Hinds County Circuit Court for judicial review of such actions. The form of the proceeding shall be any which may be provided by statutes of this state to review decisions of administrative agencies, or in the absence or inadequacy thereof, any applicable form of legal action, including actions for declaratory judgments or writs of prohibitory or mandatory injunctions.

SECTION 51. Section 75-45-191, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-191. Any person who uses to his own advantage, or reveals to other than the commissioner and State Chemist, or officers of the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce and Mississippi State Chemical Laboratory, or to the courts when relevant in any judicial proceeding, any information acquired under the authority of this article, concerning any method, record, formulation or process which as a trade secret is entitled to protection, is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished according to law. In addition to the criminal remedy set forth herein, remedies for misappropriation of a trade secret shall be governed by the Mississippi Uniform Trade Secrets Act, Sections 75-26-1 through 75-26-19. This prohibition shall not be deemed as prohibiting the commissioner and State Chemist, or their duly authorized agents, from exchanging information of a regulatory nature with duly appointed officials of the United States Government, or of other states, who are similarly prohibited by law from revealing this information.

SECTION 52. Section 75-45-193, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-193. The commissioner and State Chemist may cooperate with and enter into agreements with governmental agencies of this state, agencies of the federal government, and private associations in order to carry out the purpose and provisions of this article.

SECTION 53. Section 75-45-195, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:

75-45-195. The commissioner shall publish at least annually, in such forms as he may deem proper, information concerning the sales of commercial feeds, together with such data on their production and use as he may consider advisable, and a report of the results of the analyses of official samples of commercial feeds sold within the state as compared with the analyses guaranteed in the registration and on the label. The information concerning production and use of commercial feed shall not disclose the operation of any person.

SECTION 54. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 1997.