Maryland Pest Control Licensing Law
Maryland Code · 5 sections
The following is the full text of Maryland’s pest control licensing law statutes as published in the Maryland Code. For the official version, see the Maryland Legislature.
Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. GBO 16-3A-01
§16–3A–01.
(a) Except as otherwise provided in this title, an individual shall be licensed by the Commission as a home inspector before the individual may provide home inspection services in the State.
(b) This title does not apply to:
(1) an individual who is employed as a building code enforcement official by the State or a political subdivision of the State, while acting within the scope of that employment;
(2) an individual who is employed as a federal or State inspector, while acting within the scope of that employment;
(3) a plumber, electrician, professional engineer, real estate appraiser, real estate broker or agent, or heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, or refrigeration contractor who is licensed in the State, while acting within the scope of that license;
(4) a roofer, general contractor, remodeler, or structural pest control specialist, while acting within the scope of that occupation; or
(5) any other professional whose services may be required in the building or remodeling of real property and who does not claim to be a licensed home inspector.
Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. GBO 16-703.2
§16–703.2.
(a) This section applies only in Baltimore City.
(b) A licensed home inspector conducting an inspection of a rental dwelling under Article 13, § 5–7 of the Baltimore City Code may not make a certification as a part of that inspection relating to:
(1) the presence or identification of pests, unless the home inspector is certified as a pest control consultant, pest control applicator, or public agency applicator under § 5–207 of the Agriculture Article; or
(2) the dwelling’s electrical system, unless the home inspector has completed a minimum of 8 hours of training in electrical systems certified by the Baltimore City Housing Commissioner.
(c) The electrical training required under subsection (b)(2) of this section shall be in addition to the training required under Subtitle 3A of this title.
Md. Code § gag-4
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Article - Agriculture PreviousNext
§4–101. (a) In this subtitle the following words have the meanings indicated. (b) Any carcass, part of any carcass, or meat food product is “adulterated” if: (1) It bears or contains any poisonous or deleterious substance which may render it injurious to health. However, if the substance is not an added substance, the article shall not be considered adulterated under this clause if the quantity of the substance in or on the article ordinarily does not render it injurious to health; (2) Any substance is administered to it so that it bears or contains any added poisonous or deleterious substance which may make the article unfit for human food and which is prohibited in the quantity present under the Federal Meat Inspection Act; (3) It wholly or partially consists of any filthy, putrid, or decomposed substance or is for any other reason unsound, unhealthful, unwholesome, or otherwise unfit for human food; (4) It has been prepared, packed, or held under insanitary conditions that may have contaminated it with filth, or that may have rendered it injurious to health; (5) It is wholly or partially the product of an animal which has died other than by slaughter; (6) Its container is composed, wholly or partially, of any poisonous or deleterious substance which may render the contents injurious to health; (7) It intentionally has been subjected to radiation, unless the use of radiation was permissible under the Federal Meat Inspection Act and approved under this subtitle; (8) Any valuable constituent has been omitted or abstracted wholly or partially from it; if any substance has been substituted, wholly or partially, for it; if damage or inferiority has been concealed in any manner; or if any substance has been added to it or mixed or packed with it so as to increase its bulk or weight, or reduce its quality or strength, or make it appear better or of greater value than it is; or (9) It is margarine containing animal fat and any of the raw material used in the margarine consists wholly or partially of any filthy, putrid, or decomposed substance. (c) “Animal food manufacturer” means any person engaged in the business of manufacturing or processing animal food derived wholly or partially from any carcass of livestock, or parts or products of it. (d) “Capable of use as human food” applies to any livestock carcass, or part or product of it, that is not denatured, not naturally inedible by humans, or not identified as required by the departmental rules and regulations to deter its use as human food. (e) “Carcass” means every part, including viscera, of any slaughtered livestock capable of use as human food. (f) “Color additive” has the same meaning as under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, approved June 25, 1938. (g) “Federal Meat Inspection Act” means the act of Congress approved March 4, 1907 (34 Stat. 1260), as amended by the Wholesome Meat Act (81 Stat. 584). (h) “Food additive” has the same meaning as under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, approved June 25, 1938. (i) “Inspector” means a State employee or government employee authorized by the Secretary to inspect livestock or carcasses, parts of them, meat or meat food products. (j) “Label” means a display of written, printed, or graphic matter on the immediate container, not including the package liner of any article. (k) “Labeling” means every label and other written, printed, or graphic matter (1) upon any article or any of its containers or wrappers, or (2) accompanying the article. (l) “Meat” means the edible part of the muscle of livestock which is skeletal or which is found in the tongue, diaphragm, heart, or esophagus, with or without the accompanying and overlying fat, and the portions of bone, skin, sinew, nerve, and blood vessels which normally accompany the muscle tissue and which are not separated from it in the process of dressing. It does not include the muscle found in the lips, snout, or ears. (m) “Meat broker” means any person engaged in the business of buying or selling livestock carcasses, parts of them, or meat food products, on commission, or negotiating purchases or sales of these articles, other than for his own account or as an employee of another person. (n) “Meat by–product” means any edible part other than meat which has been derived from livestock. (o) “Meat food product” means any product capable of use as human food which is made wholly or partially from any meat or other portion of the carcass of any livestock. The term does not apply to a product (i) containing meat or other portions of the carcasses only in a relatively small proportion, or (ii) which historically has not been considered by consumers as a product of the meat food industry, and (iii) which is exempted from the definition of a meat food product by departmental rules and regulations. (p) Any carcass, part of any carcass, or meat food product is “misbranded” if: (1) Its labeling is false or misleading in any particular; (2) It is offered for sale under the name of another food; (3) It is an imitation of another food, unless its label bears, in type of uniform size and prominence, the word “imitation” and immediately after it, the name of the food imitated; (4) Its container is made, formed, or filled so that it is misleading; (5) It is in a package or other container that does not bear a label showing (i) the name and place of business of the manufacturer, packer, or distributor, and (ii) an accurate statement of the quantity of the contents in terms of weight, measure, or numerical count. Under clause (ii) of this paragraph (5), reasonable variations may be permitted, and exemptions for small packages may be established by departmental rules and regulations; (6) Any word, statement, or other information, required by or under authority of this subtitle to appear on the label or other labeling, is not placed on it prominently and conspicuously, as compared with other words, statements, designs, or devices in the labeling and is not in terms that render it likely to be read and understood by the ordinary individual under customary conditions of purchase and use; (7) It purports to be or is represented as a food for which a definition and standard of identity or composition has been prescribed by rule or regulation adopted under § 4–112 of this subtitle, unless (i) it conforms to the definition and standard, (ii) its label bears the name of the food specified in the definition and standard, and (iii) its label bears the common names of optional ingredients, other than spices, flavoring, and coloring, present in the food as required by rule or regulation; (8) It purports to be or is represented as a food for which a standard of fill of container is prescribed by rules and regulations adopted under § 4–112 of this subtitle, and it falls below the standard of fill of container applicable to it, unless its label bears a statement that it falls below the standard, in the manner and form as the rules and regulations specify; (9) It is not subject to the provisions of paragraph (7) of this subsection, unless its label bears (i) the common or usual name of the food, if any, and (ii) in case it is fabricated from two or more ingredients, the common or usual name of each ingredient. However, the Secretary may authorize spices, flavorings, and colorings to be designated as spices, flavorings, and colorings, without requiring the naming of each. In addition, the Secretary may establish exemptions by rules and regulations under this subtitle to the extent that compliance with the requirements of clause (ii) of this paragraph (9) is not feasible or results in deception or unfair competition; (10) It purports to be or is represented for special dietary uses, unless its label bears information concerning its vitamin, mineral, and other dietary properties as the rule or regulation prescribes as necessary to inform fully purchasers as to its value for special dietary uses; (11) It bears or contains any artificial flavoring, artificial coloring, or chemical preservative, unless it bears labeling stating that fact. However, the Secretary may establish exemptions by rules and regulations under this subtitle to the extent that compliance with the requirements of this paragraph (11) is not feasible; or (12) It fails to bear, directly on it or on its containers, as rules and regulations prescribe, the inspection legend and other information, as required by departmental rules and regulations adopted under this subtitle. (q) “Official certificate” means any certificate adopted by departmental rules and regulations for issuance by an inspector. (r) “Official device” means any device prescribed by the Secretary for use in applying any official mark. (s) “Official establishment” means any establishment engaged in slaughtering of livestock, or processing livestock carcasses, parts of them, meat, or meat food products capable of use as human food solely for intrastate commerce and inspected under this subtitle. (t) “Official legend” means any symbol adopted by departmental rules and regulations indicating an article has passed inspection under this subtitle. (u) “Official mark” means the official inspection legend or any other symbol adopted by the departmental rules and regulations to identify the status of any article under this subtitle. (v) “Pesticide chemical” has the same meaning as under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, approved June 25, 1938. (w) “Prepared” means slaughtered, canned, salted, rendered, boned, cut up, or otherwise manufactured or processed. (x) “Raw agricultural commodity” has the same meaning as under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, approved June 25, 1938. (y) “Renderer” means any person engaged in the business of rendering livestock carcasses, or parts or products of them, except rendering conducted under inspection or exemption under this subtitle.PreviousNext
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Article - Agriculture PreviousNext
§5–101. (a) In this subtitle the following words have the meanings indicated. (b) “Active ingredient” means: (1) In the case of a pesticide other than a plant regulator, defoliant, or desiccant, an ingredient which prevents, destroys, repels, or mitigates insects, nematodes, fungi, rodents, weeds, bacteria, or other pests; (2) In the case of a plant regulator, an ingredient which, through physiological action, accelerates or retards the rate of growth or rate of maturation or otherwise alters the behavior of ornamental or crop plants or their produce; (3) In the case of a defoliant, an ingredient which causes the leaves or foliage to drop from a plant; and (4) In the case of a desiccant, an ingredient which artificially accelerates the drying of plant tissue. (c) A pesticide is “adulterated” if (1) its strength or purity falls below the professed standard or quality expressed on the labeling under which it is sold, (2) any substance has been substituted wholly or partially for the article, or (3) any valuable constituent of the article has been wholly or partially abstracted. (d) “Antidote” means the most practical immediate treatment in case of poisoning, including first aid treatment. (e) “Defoliant” means any substance or mixture of substances intended to cause leaves or foliage to drop from a plant, with or without causing abscission. (f) “Desiccant” means any substance or mixture of substances intended to accelerate artificially the drying of plant tissues. (g) “Distributor” means a person who imports, manufactures, produces, mixes, or consigns pesticides as part of a commercial enterprise. (h) “Fungi” means nonchlorophyll–bearing thallophytes, that is, all nonchlorophyll–bearing plants of an order lower than mosses and liverworts, such as, rusts, smuts, mildews, molds, yeasts, and bacteria, except those on or in any living man or animal. (i) “Fungicide” means any substance or mixture of substances intended to prevent, destroy, repel, or mitigate any fungus. (j) “Herbicide” means any substance or mixture of substances intended to prevent, destroy, repel, or mitigate any weed. (k) “Inert ingredient” means an ingredient which is not an active ingredient. (l) “Ingredient statement” means: (1) A statement of the name and percentage of each active ingredient, together with the total percentage of inert ingredients in the pesticide; (2) A statement of the name of each active ingredient, together with the name of each and total percentage of any inert ingredient in the pesticide; or (3) In the case of a pesticide containing arsenic in any form, a statement of the percentages of total and water soluble arsenic, each calculated as elemental arsenic, in addition to the requirements of paragraphs (1) and (2) of this subsection. Paragraph (1) of this subsection applies to any preparation declared highly toxic to humans, pursuant to § 5–104(b) of this subtitle. (m) “Insect” means any small invertebrate animal generally having a more or less obviously segmented body and, for the most part belonging to the class insecta, which is comprised of six–legged, usually winged forms, such as, beetles, bugs, bees, flies, and to other allied classes of arthropods whose members are wingless and usually have more than six legs, such as, spiders, mites, ticks, centipedes, and wood lice. (n) “Insecticide” means any substance or mixture of substances intended to prevent, destroy, repel, or mitigate any insects which may be present in any environment. (o) “Label” means the written, printed, or graphic matter on or attached to a pesticide, or its immediate container, and the outside container or wrapper of any retail package of a pesticide. (p) “Labeling” means every label and other written, printed, or graphic matter (1) on any pesticide, its container, or wrapper; (2) accompanying the pesticide at any time; or (3) to which reference is made on the label or in literature accompanying the pesticide, except when an accurate, not misleading reference is made to any current official publication of any federal agency, State agency, or any agency of another state which is authorized by law to conduct pesticide research. (q) A pesticide is “misbranded” if: (1) Its labeling bears any statement, design, or graphic representation relative to the pesticide or its ingredients which is false or misleading in any particular; (2) It is an imitation of another pesticide or is offered for sale under the name of another pesticide; (3) Its labeling bears any reference to registration under this subtitle; (4) The labeling accompanying it does not contain instructions for use which are necessary and adequate if complied with, for the protection of the public and the environment; (5) The label does not contain a warning or caution statement which may be necessary and adequate if complied with, to prevent injury to living man and other vertebrate animals; (6) The label of the retail package does not bear an ingredient statement on the immediate container and on any outside container or retail package wrapper, through which the ingredient statement on the immediate container cannot be clearly read as presented or displayed under customary conditions of purchase; (7) Any word, statement, or other information required by this subtitle to appear on the labeling is not placed prominently and conspicuously, as compared with other words, statements, designs, or graphic matter in the labeling and in terms that render it likely to be read and understood by the ordinary individual under customary conditions of purchase and use; (8) In the case of an insecticide, fungicide, or herbicide, when used as directed or in accordance with commonly recognized practice, the pesticide is injurious to living man including any person applying it, other vertebrate animals, or vegetation, except weeds; (9) In the case of a plant regulator, defoliant, or desiccant when used as directed, the pesticide is injurious to living man including any person applying it, other vertebrate animals, or vegetation to which it is applied, except that physical or physiological effects on any plant, or part of it, is not deemed to be injury, when this is the purpose for which the plant regulator, defoliant, or desiccant is applied, in accordance with the label claims and recommendations. (r) “Nematicide” means any substance or mixture of substances intended to prevent, destroy, repel, or mitigate nematodes. (s) “Nematode” means any invertebrate animal of the phylum nemathelminthes and class nematoda, that is, an unsegmented round worm, commonly known as a nema or eelworm, with an elongated, fusiform or saclike body covered with cuticle, and which inhabits soil, water, plants, or plant parts. (t) “Pesticide” means (1) any substance or mixture of substances intended for preventing, destroying, repelling, or mitigating any insects, rodents, fungi, weeds, or other forms of plant or animal life or viruses, except viruses on or in living humans or other animals, which the Secretary declares to be a pest; and (2) any substance or mixture of substances intended for use as a plant regulator, defoliant, or desiccant. (u) “Plant regulator” means any substance or mixture of substances, intended to accelerate or retard, through physiological action, the rate of growth or maturation, or to otherwise alter the behavior of ornamental or crop plants or their produce, but does not include any substance to the extent that it is intended as a plant nutrient, trace element, nutritional chemical, plant inoculant, or soil amendment. (v) “Registrant” means any person who registers any pesticide pursuant to the provisions of this subtitle. (w) “Rodenticide” means any substance or mixture of substances intended to prevent, destroy, repel, or mitigate rodents or any other vertebrate animal which the Secretary declares to be a pest. (x) “Weed” means any plant or plant part which grows where it is not wanted.PreviousNext
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Article - Natural Resources PreviousNext
§5–101. IN EFFECT (a) In this title the following words have the meanings indicated. (b) “County” includes Baltimore City unless otherwise indicated. (c) “Department” means Department of Natural Resources. (d) “Environmental services” means the benefits generated for society by the existence and dynamic development of forests, including: (1) Producing oxygen and removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere; (2) Regulating the surface and underground flow of water; (3) Providing effective filtration systems for higher water quality; (4) Supporting a myriad of native flora and fauna; and (5) Providing goods and services ranging from forest products to aesthetics. (e) (1) “Forest land” means a biological community dominated by trees and other woody plants that are capable of producing timber or other wood products with a stocking of at least 100 trees per acre with at least 50% of those trees having a 2–inch or greater diameter at 4.5 feet above the ground. (2) “Forest land” includes forested areas that have been cut but not converted to other land uses. (f) “Forest stewardship plan” means a document written by a professional forester who is licensed under Title 7, Subtitle 3 of the Business Occupations and Professions Article, regarding a parcel of land comprising not less than 5 contiguous forested acres that lists activities that enhance or improve forest resources, including soil, water, timber, recreation, and aesthetics over a 15–year period. (g) “Forestry” or “silviculture” means the science, art, and practice of creating, managing, using, and conserving forests and associated resources for human benefit and in a sustainable manner to meet desired goals, including goals for: (1) Clean air and water; (2) Biodiversity; (3) Wildlife habitat; (4) Fiber production; and (5) Recreation. (h) (1) “Forestry practices” means activities conducted to achieve land management objectives. (2) “Forestry practices” includes: (i) Planting; (ii) Prescribed burning; (iii) Thinning; (iv) Pruning; (v) Harvesting; (vi) Fertilizing; and (vii) Pesticide and herbicide application. (i) “No net loss of forest” means 40% of all land in Maryland is covered by tree canopy. (j) “Person” includes the State, any county, municipal corporation, or other political subdivision of the State, or any of their units, or an individual, receiver, trustee, guardian, executor, administrator, fiduciary, or representative of any kind, or any partnership, firm, association, public or private corporation, or any other entity. (k) “Secretary” means Secretary of Natural Resources. (l) “Silvicultural product” or “forest product” means any raw material yielded by a forest, including: (1) Timber; (2) Timber products; and (3) Any other forest materials, such as lumber, poles, pulpwood, firewood, and pine straw. (m) “Sustainable forestry” or “sustainable forestry management” means an internationally accepted and applied stewardship concept for the use of forests and forest lands in a manner and at a rate that maintains a forest’s: (1) Biodiversity; (2) Productivity; (3) Regeneration capacity; (4) Nutrient reduction benefits; (5) Vitality; and (6) Ecological, economic, and social purposes at local and national levels that do not cause damage to other ecosystems. (n) “Working landscapes” means: (1) Forest lands that are managed consistently with the requirements of a forest stewardship plan or a forest conservation plan, approved by the Department or a professional forester who is licensed under Title 7, Subtitle 3 of the Business Occupations and Professions Article, that advances sustainable forestry management as defined in subsection (m) of this section; and (2) Agricultural lands that are managed consistently with criteria set forth by the Department of Agriculture.§5–101. ** TAKES EFFECT JULY 1, 2026 PER CHAPTER 457 OF 2024 ** (a) In this title the following words have the meanings indicated. (b) “County” includes Baltimore City unless otherwise indicated. (c) “Department” means Department of Natural Resources. (d) “Environmental services” means the benefits generated for society by the existence and dynamic development of forests, including: (1) Producing oxygen and removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere; (2) Regulating the surface and underground flow of water; (3) Providing effective filtration systems for higher water quality; (4) Supporting a myriad of native flora and fauna; and (5) Providing goods and services ranging from forest products to aesthetics. (e) (1) “Forest land” means a contiguous patch of trees that is at least 1 acre in size exhibiting at least one transect of at least 120 feet in width. (2) “Forest land” includes forested areas that have been cut but not converted to other land uses. (f) “Forest stewardship plan” means a document written by a professional forester who is licensed under Title 7, Subtitle 3 of the Business Occupations and Professions Article, regarding a parcel of land comprising not less than 5 contiguous forested acres that lists activities that enhance or improve forest resources, including soil, water, timber, recreation, and aesthetics over a 15–year period. (g) “Forestry” or “silviculture” means the science, art, and practice of creating, managing, using, and conserving forests and associated resources for human benefit and in a sustainable manner to meet desired goals, including goals for: (1) Clean air and water; (2) Biodiversity; (3) Wildlife habitat; (4) Fiber production; and (5) Recreation. (h) (1) “Forestry practices” means activities conducted to achieve land management objectives. (2) “Forestry practices” includes: (i) Planting; (ii) Prescribed burning; (iii) Thinning; (iv) Pruning; (v) Harvesting; (vi) Fertilizing; and (vii) Pesticide and herbicide application. (i) “Person” includes the State, any county, municipal corporation, or other political subdivision of the State, or any of their units, or an individual, receiver, trustee, guardian, executor, administrator, fiduciary, or representative of any kind, or any partnership, firm, association, public or private corporation, or any other entity. (j) “Secretary” means Secretary of Natural Resources. (k) “Silvicultural product” or “forest product” means any raw material yielded by a forest, including: (1) Timber; (2) Timber products; and (3) Any other forest materials, such as lumber, poles, pulpwood, firewood, and pine straw. (l) “Sustainable forestry” or “sustainable forestry management” means an internationally accepted and applied stewardship concept for the use of forests and forest lands in a manner and at a rate that maintains a forest’s: (1) Biodiversity; (2) Productivity; (3) Regeneration capacity; (4) Nutrient reduction benefits; (5) Vitality; and (6) Ecological, economic, and social purposes at local and national levels that do not cause damage to other ecosystems. (m) “Tree canopy” means the crowns of deciduous and evergreen woody vegetation that is: (1) The product of natural growth or human planting; and (2) Greater than 3 meters in height. (n) “Working landscapes” means: (1) Forest lands that are managed consistently with the requirements of a forest stewardship plan or a forest conservation plan, approved by the Department or a professional forester who is licensed under Title 7, Subtitle 3 of the Business Occupations and Professions Article, that advances sustainable forestry management as defined in subsection (l) of this section; and (2) Agricultural lands that are managed consistently with criteria set forth by the Department of Agriculture.PreviousNext
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