Substitute House Bill No. 5225, Public Act No. 24-11, is an act concerning the recommendations of the Invasive Plants Council, which amends Section 22a-381d of the general statutes. The bill prohibits the import, movement, sale, purchase, transplant, cultivation, or distribution of a comprehensive list of invasive plants, effective October 1, 2024. The list includes various species such as curly-leaved pondweed, fanwort, eurasian water milfoil, and many others. The bill also introduces new insertions to the list of prohibited invasive plants, including porcelainberry, mugwort, quackgrass, Japanese angelica tree, Japanese wisteria, Chinese wisteria, and callery pear, with varying effective dates for these additions. Additionally, the bill specifies that the prohibition does not apply to the movement for eradication, research, or educational purposes, or to the cultivating for research purposes of any such plant or reproductive portion.

The bill also includes provisions for fines, stating that any person who violates the provisions of this section shall be fined not more than one hundred dollars per plant. Furthermore, it requires the Invasive Plants Council to submit a report by March 1, 2025, to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to the environment on the cultivars of Japanese barberry and Burning bush that are sterile and may reasonably be sold in the state. The act was approved on May 14, 2024.

Statutes affected:
Raised Bill:
ENV Joint Favorable Substitute:
File No. 84:
Public Act No. 24-11: