§ 7760. — State terminal inspection; transmission of mailed packages for State inspection; nonmailable matter; punishment for violations; rules and regulations by United States Postal Service.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 7USC7760]
TITLE 7--AGRICULTURE
CHAPTER 104--PLANT PROTECTION
SUBCHAPTER III--MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
Sec. 7760. State terminal inspection; transmission of mailed
packages for State inspection; nonmailable matter; punishment
for violations; rules and regulations by United States Postal
Service
When any State shall provide for terminal inspection of plants and
plant products, and shall establish and maintain, at the sole expense of
the State, such inspection at one or more places therein, the proper
officials of said State may submit to the Secretary of Agriculture a
list of plants and plant products and the plant pests transmitted
thereby, that in the opinion of said officials should be subject to
terminal inspection in order to prevent the introduction or
dissemination in said State of pests injurious to agriculture. Upon his
approval of said list, in whole or in part, the Secretary of Agriculture
shall transmit the same to the United States Postal Service, and
thereafter all packages containing any plants or plant products named in
said approved lists shall, upon payment of postage therefor, be
forwarded by the postmaster at the destination of said package to the
proper State official at the nearest place where inspection is
maintained. If the plants or plant products (including seed) are found
upon inspection to be free from injurious pests and not in violation of
a plant-quarantine law or plant-quarantine regulation of the United
States Department of Agriculture or of the State of destination
pertaining to such injurious pests, or if infected shall be disinfected
by said official, they shall upon payment of postage therefor be
returned to the postmaster at the place of inspection to be forward \1\
to the person to whom they are addressed; but if found to be infected
with injurious pests and incapable of satisfactory disinfection or in
violation of a plant-quarantine law or plant-quarantine regulation of
the United States Department of Agriculture or of the State of
destination pertaining to such injurious pests, the State inspector
shall so notify the postmaster at the place of inspection who shall
promptly notify the sender of said plants or plant products that they
will be returned to him upon his request and at his expense, or in
default of such request that they will be turned over to the State
authorities for destruction.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ So in original.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, or corporation to deposit
in the United States mails any package containing any plant or plant
product addressed to any place within a State maintaining inspection
thereof, as herein defined, without plainly marking the package so that
its contents may be readily ascertained by an inspection of the outside
thereof. Whoever shall fail to so mark said packages shall be punished
by a fine of not more than $100.
The United States Postal Service is authorized and directed to make
all needful rules and regulations for carrying out the purposes hereof.
(Mar. 4, 1915, ch. 144, 38 Stat. 1113; June 4, 1936, ch. 495, 49 Stat.
1461; Pub. L. 91-375, Sec. 4(a), Aug. 12, 1970, 84 Stat. 773.)
Codification
Section was formerly classified to section 166 of this title.
Section was enacted as part of the Agricultural Appropriation Act,
1916, and not as part of the Plant Protection Act which comprises this
chapter.
Amendments
1936--Act June 4, 1936, amended last sentence of first par. by
changing introductory word ``plant'' to ``plants'', inserting
``(including seed)'', ``and not in violation of a plant-quarantine law
or plant-quarantine regulation of the United States Department of
Agriculture or of the State of destination pertaining to such injurious
pests'', ``or in violation of a plant-quarantine law or plant-quarantine
regulation of the United States Department of Agriculture or of the
State of destination pertaining to such injurious pests,'' and striking
out the comma after ``place of inspection''.
Short Title
This section is popularly known as the ``Terminal Inspection Act.''
Transfer of Functions
In first and third pars., ``United States Postal Service''
substituted for ``Postmaster General'' pursuant to Pub. L. 91-375,
Sec. 4(a), Aug. 12, 1970, 84 Stat. 773, set out as a note under section
201 of Title 39, Postal Service, which abolished office of Postmaster
General of Post Office Department and transferred its functions to
United States Postal Service.
Functions of all officers, agencies, and employees of Department of
Agriculture transferred, with certain exceptions, to Secretary of
Agriculture by 1953 Reorg. Plan No. 2, Sec. 1, eff. June 4, 1953, 18
F.R. 3219, 67 Stat. 633, set out as a note under section 2201 of this
title.
