S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                   641

                       2015-2016 Regular Sessions

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                               (PREFILED)

                             January 7, 2015
                               ___________

Introduced  by M. of A. ROSENTHAL, ABINANTI -- read once and referred to
  the Committee on Agriculture

AN ACT to amend the agriculture and markets  law,  in  relation  to  the
  labeling requirements for seeds which are or include genetically engi-
  neered organisms

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Section 136 of the agriculture and markets law  is  amended
by adding two new subdivisions 22 and 23 to read as follows:
  22. THE TERM "MODERN BIOTECHNOLOGY" MEANS:
  (A) IN VITRO NUCLEIC ACID TECHNIQUES, INCLUDING RECOMBINANT DEOXYRIBO-
NUCLEIC  ACID  (DNA)  AND DIRECT INJECTION OF NUCLEIC ACID INTO CELLS OR
ORGANELLES THAT OVERCOME NATURAL PHYSIOLOGICAL REPRODUCTIVE OR  RECOMBI-
NANT  BARRIERS  AND THAT ARE NOT TECHNIQUES USED IN TRADITIONAL BREEDING
AND SELECTION. SUCH TECHNIQUES SHALL ALSO INCLUDE, BUT  NOT  BE  LIMITED
TO, RECOMBINANT DEOXYRIBONUCLEIC ACID TECHNIQUES THAT USE VECTOR SYSTEMS
AND  TECHNIQUES  INVOLVING  THE DIRECT INTRODUCTION INTO THE ORGANISM OF
HEREDITARY MATERIALS PREPARED OUTSIDE THE ORGANISM SUCH AS  MICRO-INJEC-
TION,  MACRO-INJECTION,  CHEMOPORATION, MICRO-ENCAPSULATION AND LIPOSOME
FUSION.
  (B) FUSION OF CELLS BEYOND THE TAXONOMIC FAMILY, INCLUDING  PROTOPLAST
FUSION  OR HYBRIDIZATION TECHNIQUES, THAT OVERCOME NATURAL PHYSIOLOGICAL
REPRODUCTIVE OR RECOMBINANT BARRIERS WHERE THE  DONOR  CELLS  OR  PROTO-
PLASTS  DO  NOT  FALL  WITHIN THE SAME TAXONOMIC FAMILY AND THAT ARE NOT
TECHNIQUES USED IN TRADITIONAL BREEDING AND SELECTION.
  23. THE TERM "GENETICALLY ENGINEERED ORGANISM" MEANS  AN  ORGANISM  IN
WHICH THE GENETIC MATERIAL HAS BEEN CHANGED THROUGH MODERN BIOTECHNOLOGY
IN  A WAY THAT DOES NOT OCCUR NATURALLY BY MULTIPLICATION AND/OR NATURAL
RECOMBINATION.

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD04130-01-5
              

A. 641                              2

  S 2. Section 137 of the agriculture and  markets  law  is  amended  by
adding a new subdivision I to read as follows:
  I.  FOR  ALL  SEEDS WHICH ARE OR INCLUDE GENETICALLY ENGINEERED ORGAN-
ISMS. THE FOLLOWING IN NOT LESS THAN TEN POINT TYPE:
  1. THE WORDS "THESE ARE GENETICALLY ENGINEERED SEEDS".
  2. THE IDENTITY OF THE RELEVANT TRAITS OR  CHARACTERISTICS  INTRODUCED
INTO SUCH SEED USING MODERN BIOTECHNOLOGY.
  3.  ANY REQUIREMENTS FOR THE SAFE HANDLING, STORAGE, TRANSPORT AND USE
OF THE SEED.
  4. THE NAME, ADDRESS AND TELEPHONE NUMBER OF THE MANUFACTURER  OF  THE
SEED.
  5.  THE  NAME  AND  ADDRESS OF THE PERSON WHO LABELED SAID SEED OR WHO
SELLS, OFFERS FOR SALE OR EXPOSES SAID SEED FOR SALE WITHIN THIS STATE.
  S 3. The opening paragraph of  section  139  of  the  agriculture  and
markets  law, as added by chapter 631 of the laws of 1955, is amended to
read as follows:
  The provisions of this article [do], WITH THE EXCEPTION OF SUBDIVISION
I OF SECTION ONE HUNDRED THIRTY-SEVEN OF THIS ARTICLE, SHALL  not  apply
TO THE FOLLOWING:
  S  4. The three undesignated paragraphs of section 142 of the agricul-
ture and markets law are designated subdivisions 1, 2 and 3, and  a  new
subdivision 4 is added to read as follows:
  4.  THE  COMMISSIONER  SHALL  PROMULGATE SUCH RULES AND REGULATIONS AS
SHALL BE NECESSARY TO IMPLEMENT  THE  PROVISIONS  OF  SUBDIVISION  I  OF
SECTION  ONE  HUNDRED  THIRTY-SEVEN  OF  THIS ARTICLE IN RELATION TO THE
LABELING OF SEEDS WHICH ARE OR INCLUDE GENETICALLY ENGINEERED ORGANISMS,
TAKING INTO CONSIDERATION: THE ORIGINS OF THE SEED, THE PRESENCE OF WEED
SEEDS, MIXTURES, HERMETICALLY  SEALED  CONTAINERS,  COATED  SEEDS,  CROP
SEEDS,  GENETICALLY  ENGINEERED  MATERIAL,  GENETICALLY ENGINEERED PLANT
PARTS, HYBRIDS, GERMINATION MEDIUM AND PRE-PLANTED CONTAINERS.
  S 5. This act shall take effect on the sixtieth  day  after  it  shall
have become a law.