OUR INDUSTRY IS APPEALING THE MONTGOMERY COUNTY PESTICIDE BAN DECISION AND SEEKING A STAY TO STOP ITS IMPLEMENTATION 

WE NEED YOUR HELP IMMEDIATELY BY

1. SIGNING ON TO A FRIEND OF THE COURT BRIEF BY JUNE 7, 2019. EMAIL KREARDON@PESTFACTS.ORG TO SIGN ON.
   
   
2. SENDING AN EMAIL TO KREARDON@PESTFACTS.ORG DESCRIBING THE IMPACTS THE PRIVATE PROPERTY PESTICIDE USE BAN IN MONTGOMERY COUNTY WILL HAVE ON YOUR BUSINESS, EMPLOYEES, CUSTOMERS AND FAMILY TO SUPPORT OUR PETITION FOR A STAY. I NEED THIS INFORMATION BY FRIDAY MORNING, MAY 24, 2019. BULLET POINTS OR A CALL TO TELL ME BY PHONE WILL WORK GIVEN OUR QUICK TURN AROUND ON THIS INFORMATION TO SUPPORT OUR PETITION FOR A STAY OF BAN IMPLEMENTATION.

Background 

On May 2, 2019, the Court of Special Appeals for Maryland upheld Montgomery County, Maryland’s ban on the use by licensed professionals and consumers of all EPA-registered pesticides on private lawns and landscapes. This decision:

Overturned the Montgomery County Circuit Court’s August 2017 ruling we received along with co-plaintiffs that the county’s private property use ban was preempted by existing state law and Maryland Department of Agriculture’s comprehensive regulatory program.

Gives broad authority to localities to regulate virtually any pesticide use on any property in Maryland, providing a basis for expansion of Montgomery County’s ban and for new bans across the state.

Absent further court action, the County ban will go into effect and will be fully enforceable as soon as June 3, 2019.  Companies and private citizens in Montgomery County would then face civil and criminal enforcement for any pesticide use in violation of the County ordinance.

The next step is petitioning Maryland’s highest court, the Court of Appeals, to undertake a review of the Court of Special Appeals decision. This court takes at its discretion some 20-25 percent of cases for review with those cases having met the standard of being in the public interest of the people of Maryland. 

To persuade the Court of Appeals to hear the case, we need to explain the practical impacts on residents and businesses if each Maryland locality is authorized to adopt its own bans of EPA- and State-approved pesticide products.  If the Court of Appeals refuses to take this case, no further appeal is available to us and the ruling will remain as binding state-wide precedent regarding the scope of local authority to regulate pesticides. Your support is essential to any effort to seek to reverse the Court of Special Appeals’ decision. 

As before, we are building a coalition of Friends of the Court (Amici) to show the Appellate Judges that there are many Maryland stakeholders who support the responsible use of pesticides under State and federal law, and who oppose local laws that attempt to countermand State law. We have plans to expand our group to even more interested parties. Please also connect me with other stakeholders in Maryland, and I will reach out to them.

Attachment

Contact:

Karen Reardon
Vice President, Public Affairs
RISE
1156 15^th St. N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20005
kreardon@pestfacts.org
O 202-872-3893
M 202-595-4964