The Texas Aquatic Life Act establishes institutional and regulatory frameworks for administering aquatic life with the purpose of protecting the public health in the state of Texas. The Act is composed of the following subchapters: Subchapter A- General Provisions providing definitions including that of "aquatic life" as animals and plants that live in water and acknowledging the health authority power to delegate any duty in this chapter to the local health authorities; Subchapter B- Prohibited Acts providing a list of sixteen acts that are unlawful and prohibited in the state of Texas including taking, selling, offering for sale, or holding for sale molluscan shellfish or crabmeat that is not labeled in accordance with department rules; that is not in a container bearing a valid certificate number; that is harvested from a closed or a restricted area; operating as a molluscan shellfish processor without a shellfish certificate or a crabmeat processor without a crabmeat processing license; etc; Subchapter C- Enforcement laying down provisions regarding the inspection powers of the health department or a health authority, emergency orders in cases of an immediate threat to human life or health, legal instruments available to the department or a health authority to restrain continuing violations or threats, detain and embargo rights, recall from commerce, condemnation and destruction of molluscan shellfish or crabmeat if the court finds that the article is adulterated or misbranded; and administrative and criminal penalties; Subchapter D- Adulterated Aquatic Life and Subchapter E- Misbranding providing rules on when a species of aquatic life is considered adulterated or misbranded; Subchapter F- Labeling and Packaging laying down rules regarding fair packaging and labeling and false advertisement; Subchapter G- Aquatic Life from Prohibited Areas regulating cases of declaration of prohibited areas; Subchapter H- molluscan shellfish laying down rules on the classification of growing areas, depuration, fees on oyster sales; temperature requirements and temperature abuse, creation of Texas Oyster Council, its composition, and powers and duties; Subchapter I- General Administrative Provisions And Rulemaking Authority recognizing the executive commissioner’s authority to adopt rules for the enforcement of this chapter and establishing specifications for molluscan shellfish processing and crabmeat processing while the administrative provisions regulate the certification and licensing procedures for operating as a molluscan shellfish or crabmeat processor.
Соединенные Штаты Америки · 1993-09-01