AFM Legal & Regulatory Compliance in Agriculture 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A farm employee suffers a serious injury requiring hospitalization. Under OSHA regulations, within how many hours must the employer report the in-patient hospitalization to OSHA?
- 24 hours
- 8 hours (Correct answer)
- 72 hours
- Immediately, within 1 hour
Correct answer: 8 hours
OSHA requires employers to report any work-related in-patient hospitalization within 8 hours of learning about the incident.
Question 2: The Sodbuster provision of the Farm Bill denies USDA benefits to farmers who produce an agricultural commodity on highly erodible land without an approved:
- Environmental Impact Statement
- Conservation compliance plan (conservation system) (Correct answer)
- Wetland Reserve Easement
- Nutrient management permit
Correct answer: Conservation compliance plan (conservation system)
Sodbuster requires farmers planting crops on highly erodible land to have and apply an approved conservation system to remain eligible for USDA program benefits.
Question 3: Which federal agency enforces the Animal Welfare Act (AWA), which covers certain animals used in agriculture for exhibition and research?
- FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine
- USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) (Correct answer)
- EPA Office of Pesticide Programs
- USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS)
Correct answer: USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)
USDA's APHIS administers and enforces the Animal Welfare Act, which sets minimum standards for the care and treatment of certain animals.
Question 4: A farm manager hires workers who are not U.S. citizens on H-2A agricultural visas. Which agency administers the H-2A temporary agricultural worker program?
- USDA Farm Service Agency
- Department of Labor and Department of Homeland Security jointly (Correct answer)
- Department of State alone
- EPA and OSHA jointly
Correct answer: Department of Labor and Department of Homeland Security jointly
The H-2A program is jointly administered by the Department of Labor (which certifies labor need) and the Department of Homeland Security (which grants visa approval through USCIS).
Question 5: Under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), a landowner who purchases contaminated farmland may be protected from cleanup liability under which defense?
- Third-party defense
- Innocent landowner defense (Correct answer)
- Agricultural exemption
- Good Samaritan provision
Correct answer: Innocent landowner defense
CERCLA's innocent landowner defense protects a buyer who conducted all appropriate inquiry (AAI) before purchase and did not know of, or have reason to know of, contamination.
Question 6: A farm operating as a limited liability company (LLC) must file organizational documents with which government entity to maintain its liability protection status?
- IRS
- State Secretary of State or equivalent state agency (Correct answer)
- USDA Farm Service Agency
- County recorder's office
Correct answer: State Secretary of State or equivalent state agency
LLCs are formed by filing Articles of Organization with the Secretary of State (or equivalent agency) in the state where the business is organized.
Question 7: Under the Worker Protection Standard (WPS) for agricultural pesticides, the restricted-entry interval (REI) defines the period after pesticide application during which:
- The pesticide must remain registered with the EPA
- Workers cannot enter treated areas without specific personal protective equipment (Correct answer)
- Produce cannot be harvested for sale
- The label must be retained by the farm manager
Correct answer: Workers cannot enter treated areas without specific personal protective equipment
The REI is the time after a pesticide application when workers are prohibited from entering treated areas without required personal protective equipment, as specified on the pesticide label.
AFM Legal & Regulatory Compliance in Agriculture 5
A farm employee suffers a serious injury requiring hospitalization.
Under OSHA regulations, within how many hours must the employer report the in-patient hospitalization to OSHA?