Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

SENATE BILL NO. 1140
     November 26, 2024, Introduced by Senator POLEHANKI and referred to the Committee on
       Regulatory Affairs.
          A bill to amend 1994 PA 451, entitled
    "Natural resources and environmental protection act,"
    by amending sections 41301, 41303, 41305, 41309, 41311, and 41323
    (MCL 324.41301, 324.41303, 324.41305, 324.41309, 324.41311, and
41323), sections 41301 and 41303 as amended by 2018 PA 451,
    section 41305 as amended by 2014 PA 537, section 41309 as amended
    by 2014 PA 541, sections 41311 and 41323 as amended by 2009 PA 52.
                    THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
       Sec. 41301. (1) As used in this part:
       (a) "Amphibian" means any frog, toad, or salamander of the
 class Amphibia.
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       (b) "Aquatic", except as used in subdivision (q), describes an
 amphibian, crustacean, fish, mollusk, reptile, wiggler, or aquatic
 plant.
       (c) "Aquatic plant" means a submergent, emergent, obligate
 wetland, facultative wetland, or floating-leaf plant or a fragment
 thereof, including a seed or other propagule. Aquatic plant does
 not include wild rice (Zizania aquatica or Zizania palustris).
       (d) "Crustacean" means freshwater crayfish, shrimp, or prawn
 of the order Decapoda.
       (e) "Genetically engineered" refers to an organism whose
 genome, chromosomal or extrachromosomal, is modified permanently
 and heritably, using recombinant nucleic acid techniques, or the
 progeny of such an organism.
       (f) "Introduce", with reference to an organism, means to
 knowingly and willfully stock, place, plant, release, or allow the
 release of the organism in this state at any specific location
 where the organism is not already naturalized.
       (g) "Mollusk" means any mollusk of the classes Bivalvia and
 Gastropoda.
       (h) "Native" means indigenous to any location in this state.
       (i) "Nonaquatic" describes a bird, insect other than a
 wiggler, or mammal.
       (j) "Nonnative" means not native.
       (k) "Prohibited species", subject to section 41302, means any
 of the following:
       (i) Any of the following prohibited species of aquatic plant,
 including a hybrid or genetically engineered variant of the
 species:
       (A) African oxygen weed (Lagarosiphon major).
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       (B) Brazilian elodea (Egeria densa).
       (C) Cylindro (Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii).
       (D) European frogbit (Hydrocharis morsus-ranae).
       (E) Fanwort (Cabomba caroliniana).
       (F) Giant salvinia (Salvinia molesta, auriculata, biloba, or
 herzogii).
       (G) Hydrilla (Hydrilla verticillata).
       (H) Parrot's feather (Myriophyllum aquaticum).
       (I) Starry stonewort (Nitellopsis obtusa).
       (J) Water chestnut (Trapa natans).
       (K) Yellow floating heart (Nymphoides peltata).
       (ii) Any of the following prohibited species of terrestrial
 plant, including a hybrid or genetically engineered variant of the
 species or a fragment, including a seed or other propagule, of the
 species or of a hybrid or genetically engineered variant:
       (A) Giant hogweed (Heracleum mantegazzianum).
       (B) Japanese knotweed (Fallopia japonica).
       (iii) The following prohibited bird species, including a hybrid
 or genetically engineered variant of the species or an egg of the
 species or of a hybrid or genetically engineered variant: Eurasian
 collared dove (Streptopelia decaocto).
       (iv) The following prohibited crustacean species, including a
 hybrid or genetically engineered variant of the species or an egg
 of the species or of a hybrid or genetically engineered variant:
 rusty crayfish (Faxonious resticus, formerly Orconectes rusticus).
       (v) Any of the following prohibited fish species, including a
 hybrid or genetically engineered variant of the species or an egg
 of the species or of a hybrid or genetically engineered variant:
       (A) Bighead carp (Hypophthalmichthys nobilis).
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       (B) Bitterling (Rhodeus sericeus).
       (C) Black carp (Mylopharyngodon piceus).
       (D) Eurasian ruffe (Gymnocephalus cernuus).
       (E) Grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus).
       (F) Ide (Leuciscus idus).
       (G) Japanese weatherfish (Misgurnus anguillicaudatus).
       (H) Round goby (Neogobius melanostomus).
       (I) Rudd (Scardinius erythrophthalmus).
       (J) Silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix).
       (K) A fish of the snakehead family (family Channidae).
       (L) Tench (Tinca tinca).
       (M) Tubenose goby (Proterorhinus marmoratus).
       (vi) Any of the following prohibited insect species, including
 a hybrid or genetically engineered variant of the species or an egg
 of the species or of a hybrid or genetically engineered variant:
       (A) Asian longhorned beetle (Anoplophora glabripennis).
       (B) Emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis).
       (vii) The following prohibited mammal species, including a
 hybrid or genetically engineered variant: nutria (Myocastor
 coypus).
       (viii) Any of the following prohibited mollusk species,
 including a hybrid or genetically engineered variant of the species
 or an egg of the species or of a hybrid or genetically engineered
 variant:
       (A) Brown garden snail (Helix aspersa).
       (B) Carthusian snail (Monacha cartusiana).
       (C) Giant African snail (Achatina fulica).
       (D) Girdled snail (Hygromia cinctella).
       (E) Heath snail (Xerolenta obvia).
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       (F) Wrinkled dune snail (Candidula intersecta).
       (ix) Any species of the prohibited reptile order Crocodilia.
       (l) "Recombinant nucleic acid techniques" means laboratory
 techniques through which genetic material is isolated and
 manipulated in vitro and then inserted into an organism.
       (m) "Relevant commission", "relevant department", or "relevant
 director" means the following:
       (i) With respect to a species other than a plant or insect, but
 including a wiggler, the natural resources commission, department
 of natural resources, or the director of the department of natural
 resources, respectively.
       (ii) With respect to a plant species or insect species, other
 than a wiggler, the commission of agriculture and rural
 development, the department of agriculture and rural development,
 or the director of the department of agriculture and rural
 development, respectively.
       (n) "Reptile" means any crocodilian, turtle, snake, or lizard
 of the class Reptilia.
       (o) "Restricted species", subject to section 41302, means any
 of the following:
       (i) Any of the following restricted species of aquatic plant,
 including a hybrid or genetically engineered variant of the
 species:
       (A) Curly leaf pondweed (Potamogeton crispus).
       (B) Eurasian watermilfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum).
       (C) Flowering rush (Butomus umbellatus).
       (D) Phragmites or common reed (Phragmites australis).
       (E) Purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria), except that
 cultivars of purple loosestrife developed and recognized to be
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 sterile and approved by the director of the department of
 agriculture and rural development under section 16a of the insect
 pest and plant disease act, 1931 PA 189, MCL 286.216a, are not a
 restricted species.
       (ii) The following restricted species of terrestrial plant,
 including a hybrid or genetically engineered variant of the species
 or a fragment, including a seed or other propagule, of the species
 or of a hybrid or genetically engineered variant: autumn olive
 (Elaeagnus umbellata).
       (iii) Any of the following restricted mollusk species, including
 a hybrid or genetically engineered variant of the species or an egg
 of the species or of a hybrid or genetically engineered variant:
       (A) Quagga mussel (Dreissena bugensis).
       (B) Zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha).
       (p) "Watercraft" means any conveyance used or designed for
 navigation on water, including, but not limited to, any vessel,
 ship, boat, motor vessel, steam vessel, vessel operated by
 machinery, motorboat, sailboat, barge, scow, tugboat, and rowboat.
       (q) "Wiggler" means an aquatic egg, nymph, or larva of an
 insect.
       (2) For the purposes of this part:
       (a) A person is not considered to possess a live organism
 simply because the organism is present on land or in waters owned
 by that person unless the person has knowingly introduced that live
 organism on that land or in those waters.
       (b) A person is not considered to possess a live organism if
 the organism was obtained from the environment and the person only
 possesses the organism at the specific location at which it was
 obtained from the environment.
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       (c) A person is not considered to possess a live organism if
 the possession is for the purpose of promptly destroying the
 organism.
       Sec. 41303. (1) A person shall not knowingly possess a live
 organism if the organism is a prohibited species or restricted
 species, except under 1 or more of the following circumstances:
       (a) The person intends to present a specimen of the prohibited
 species or restricted species, for identification or similar
 purposes, to a person who is a certified applicator or registered
 applicator under part 83, to a public or private institution of
 higher education, or to the department of natural resources, the
 department of agriculture and rural development, or any other
 state, local, or federal agency with responsibility for the
 environment, natural resources, or agriculture.
       (b) The person has been presented with a specimen of a
 prohibited species or restricted species for identification or
 similar purposes under subdivision (a).
       (c) The person possesses the prohibited species or restricted
 species in conjunction with otherwise lawful activity to eradicate
 or control the prohibited species or restricted species.
       (d) The possession is pursuant to a permit issued for
 education or research purposes by the relevant department under
 section 41306 or, if the prohibited species or restricted species
 is a plant species or an insect other than a wiggler, by the United
 States Department of Agriculture.
       (e) The species is an aquatic restricted species and the
 person possesses the species in compliance with an order under
 section 41302(6).
       (f) The organism is a crocodilian that was in possession in
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 this state on the effective date of the amendatory act that added
 this subdivision and, beginning 180 days after that effective date,
 the possession is pursuant to a permit issued by the department of
 natural resources under section 41306.
       (2) A person described in subsection (1)(b) or (c) shall
 notify the department of natural resources, the department of
 agriculture and rural development, or the department of
 environmental quality if the prohibited species or restricted
 species was found at a location where it was not previously known
 to be present.
       Sec. 41305. A person shall not introduce a prohibited species,
 a restricted species, or a genetically engineered or nonnative
 bird, crustacean, fish, insect, mammal, mollusk, reptile, or
 aquatic plant unless the introduction is authorized by 1 of the
 following, as applicable:
       (a) For a fish, by a permit issued by the department of
 natural resources under section 48735.
       (b) For a plant or an insect other than a wiggler, by a permit
 issued by the department of agriculture and rural development under
 section 41306.
       (c) For any other species, by a permit issued by the
 department of natural resources under section 41306.
       Sec. 41309. (1) A person who violates section 41303(2) is
 subject to a civil fine of not more than $100.00.
       (2) A person who violates section 41303(1), or a condition of
 a permit issued under this part, with respect to a restricted
 species is subject to a civil fine of not more than $5,000.00. A
 person who violates section 41303(1), or a condition of a permit
 issued under this part, with respect to a prohibited species is
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 subject to a civil fine of not more than $10,000.00.
       (3) A person who violates section 41303(1) knowing the
 possession is unlawful or who willfully or in a grossly negligent
 manner violates a condition of a permit issued under this part is
 guilty as follows:
       (a) For a violation involving a restricted species, the person
 is guilty of a misdemeanor and may be imprisoned for not more than
 1 year and shall be fined not less than $1,000.00 or more than
 $10,000.00.
       (b) For a violation involving a prohibited species that is not
 an aquatic species, the person is guilty of a felony and may be
 imprisoned for not more than 2 years and shall be fined not less
 than $2,000.00 or more than $20,000.00.
       (c) For a violation involving a prohibited species that is an
 aquatic species, the person is guilty of a felony and may be
 imprisoned for not more than 3 years and shall be fined not less
 than $2,000.00 or more than $100,000.00.
       (4) A person who, with intent to damage natural, agricultural,
 or silvicultural resources or human health:
       (a) Violates section 41303(1) with respect to a restricted
 species or possesses a nonnative bird, crustacean, fish, insect,
 mammal, mollusk, reptile, or aquatic plant is guilty of a felony
 and may be imprisoned for not more than 2 years and shall be fined
 not less than $1,000.00 or more than $250,000.00.
       (b) Violates section 41303(1) with respect to a prohibited
 species or possesses a genetically engineered bird, crustacean,
 fish, insect, mammal, mollusk, reptile, or aquatic plant is guilty
 of a felony and may be imprisoned for not more than 4 years and
 shall be fined not less than $2,000.00 or more than $500,000.00.
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       (5) A person who sells or offers to sell a restricted species
 is subject to a civil fine of not less than $1,000.00 or more than
 $10,000.00. A person who sells or offers to sell a prohibited
 species or who violates section 41303(3) is subject to a civil fine
 of not less than $2,000.00 or more than $20,000.00.
       (6) A person who violates section 41305 is guilty as follows:
       (a) For a violation involving a restricted species or a
 nonnative bird, crustacean, fish, insect, mammal, mollusk, reptile,
 or aquatic plant, the person is guilty of a misdemeanor and may be
 imprisoned for not more than 6 months and shall be fined not less
 than $500.00 or more than $5,000.00.
       (b) For a violation involving a prohibited species or a
 genetically engineered bird, crustacean, fish, insect, mammal,
 mollusk, reptile, or aquatic plant, the person is guilty of a
 misdemeanor and may be imprisoned for not more than 1 year and
 shall be fined not less than $1,000.00 or more than $10,000.00.
       (7) A person who violates section 41305 with respect to a
 restricted species or nonnative bird, crustacean, fish, insect,
 mammal, mollusk, reptile, or aquatic plant and who has actual or
 constructive knowledge of the identity of the restricted species or
 that the organism, whether a restricted species or other bird,
 crustacean, fish, insect, mammal, mollusk, reptile, or aquatic
 plant, is nonnative is guilty of a misdemeanor and may be
 imprisoned for not more than 1 year and shall be fined not less
 than $1,000.00 or more than $10,000.00.
       (8) A person who violates section 41305 with respect to a
 prohibited species that is not an aquatic species or with respect
 to a genetically engineered bird, crustacean, fish, insect, mammal,
 mollusk, reptile, or aquatic plant and who has actual or
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 constructive knowledge of the identity of the prohibited species or
 that the bird, crustacean, fish, insect, mammal, mollusk, reptile,
 or aquatic plant is genetically engineered, respectively, is guilty
 of a felony and may be imprisoned for not more than 2 years and
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