RD200 - Annual Report on the Activities of the Pest Control Insurance Fund


Executive Summary:
Annual Report from the Executive Director
September, 2005

Membership
Currently there are 36 total parties to the Interstate Pest Control Compact (IPCC). The latest State to join is Indiana which passed its enabling legislation effective in July 2005 and submitted their complete membership fee of $32,342 also in July of 2005.

The States of Arkansas and Rhode Island completed their membership installment payments in May and June of 2005 and have now fulfilled their financial obligations as members of the Compact. Colorado continues to make installment payments of their membership fee.

Texas passed its enabling legislation which became effective September 1, 2005. Wyoming passed its enabling legislation in February 2005. Seven (7) party/member states still have not passed specific enabling legislation (AZ, AR, CO, FL, NE, PR, and RI) as legally required by the Compact. These member states have until September 2010 in which to pass enabling legislation or they will rescind all voting rights. Florida, a current member without enabling legislation, has its enabling legislation written and intends to introduce it in the coming year.

Kansas reintroduced and passed enabling legislation in March 2005 following repeal of their original (1996) legislation in 2002.

In May 2005 Maine's legislature passed new legislation which repealed the Pest Control Compact contained in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 12 under the laws governing the Department of Conservation, Bureau of Forestry and enacted the Compact instead in Title 7 under the laws governing the Department of Agriculture, Food and Rural Resources. This legislation essentially changed Maine's Pest Control Compact Administrator to the Commissioner of Agriculture, Food and Rural Resources. The legislation was signed by the Governor on May 20 and is expected to become law in late September.

Mississippi had drafted enabling legislation to join the Compact as a new member, but later felt that the timing for introduction of the legislation was just not right. They intend to introduce the legislation at the next legislative session.

Insurance Fund Claims/Projects
In response to a request by the New Mexico Department of Agriculture (NMDA), the Interstate Pest Control Compact granted $60,000 to the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) in March 2004 for eradication of "Diaprepes abbreviatus", citrus root weevil. In 2004, Texas was confronted with a budget shortfall coupled with an urgent need to maintain a program to contain and eradicate the "Diaprepes" root weevil that had become established in a small area in McAllen, Texas. It was crucial that continuity in the eradication program be maintained because of the insect's potential for dramatic rate of increase, difficulty to control, and wide host range. These funds, which were matched by an in-kind $15,000 contribution by TDA, paid for applications of adulticides and larvicides to two quarantined groves and 21 homeowner properties, weekly monitoring of adult "Diaprepes," and employment of a half-time technician to enforce the quarantine and interface with pesticide applicators, trappers, and property owners.

All funded activities were completed on schedule. Chemical treatments reduced populations of larvae and adults in quarantined orchards and home landscapes. Monitoring of adults allowed optimization of treatment timing and disclosed a single escape from the quarantine. Patrolling of the quarantine area interdicted attempts to remove quarantined plant materials. In summary, eradication momentum was maintained. TDA has now secured interim state funding, has expanded the area being treated, has sought and obtained valuable suggestions from experts in other parts of the country, is mapping the locations of trap catches (with assistance from USDA), is conducting educational meetings with concerned citizens, and is implementing an enhanced action plan to speed progress toward eradication.

No other requests for claims have been received although one is expected from a state(s) neighboring Wyoming.

IRS Status of the Interstate Pest Control Compact
Following evaluation by the Internal Revenue Service of our December 2004 request for an "Instrumentality Affirmation Letter" regarding our tax exempt status as a government instrumentality according to Section 170(c)( I), we decided to instead seek tax exempt status under Section 501 (c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. In August we submitted the extensive application and fee for such status. Obtaining this tax exempt status will enable donations to the IPCC to be considered as tax deductible by the donor. This should assist us in our efforts to obtain non-membership funding from foundations and other sources in the future.

Our Employer Identification Number (EIN) has been reinstated.

Alternative Funding
At the February meeting of the Pest Control Insurance Fund's Governing Board, Chairman Kuperus requested that each of the Compact Administrators submit to the Executive Director a list of at least six potential contacts/donors to the Compact from their States. We received a list from only one State (Texas). If our application to receive tax exempt status under IRS Code 501(c)(3) is approved, we will utilize that list to seek alternative funding for the Compact.

IPCC Website
In May, at the approval of the Executive Committee, the IPCC website was moved from the USDA server to a commercial server (Hostway.com). The IPCC's new website address is http://www.pestcompact.org. The Executive Director will continue to maintain the site, but a cost of approximately $200 per year will be incurred for the domain name and web hosting.

Bylaws Amendments
Changes to the bylaws of the Pest Control Insurance Fund were approved at the February 2005 mid-year meeting of the Governing Board, The members were subsequently notified of the approved revisions and the revised bylaws have been posted on the Compact's website.

Respectfully submitted,

Robert J. Balaam
Executive Director