# Title 74 — Seed Commission

## Article 74-01 — General Administration

## Chapter 74-01-01 — Organization of Commission

### § 74-01-01-01. Organization of seed commission.

1. History. The state seed department was established by the 1931 legislative assembly. The
main office was designated to be at North Dakota state university. Branch offices are
maintained in Grafton to more efficiently serve the potato industry with official grade inspection
services. The department is governed by the state seed commission.
2. Commission. The state seed commission consists of a representative of the North Dakota
crop improvement association, a representative of the North Dakota certified seed potato
growers association, a representative of the North Dakota dry edible bean seed growers
association, a representative of the North Dakota agricultural association, an elected member
of the North Dakota potato council selected by the North Dakota potato council, a
representative of the northern plains potato growers association who is a North Dakota
resident, a representative of the North Dakota grain dealers association who also operates a
state-approved seed conditioning plant, selected by the board of directors of the North Dakota
grain dealers association, and the agriculture commissioner or the commissioner's designee,
who shall serve as chairman. The director of the experiment station, or the director's
designee, of the college of agriculture of the North Dakota state university of agriculture and
applied science is a voting member of the commission.
3. Functions. The seed department is designated as the official seed certification agency of the
state. The seed department enforces state seed laws, inspects and analyzes seed offered for
sale, provides a public laboratory service for examining and analyzing seed and commercially
produced crops for planting and consumption purposes, maintains a seed certification system
for field seeds and potatoes, inspects and grades potatoes and other produce, regulates
wholesale potato dealers, and establishes grade standards and grades commodities not in the
federal grain standards. Lists of field-inspected seeds published by the seed department,
specifically bulletin nos. 92 and 95, are produced for the express purpose of informing
producers of the availability of certified seed grown in North Dakota, and are not intended to
induce reliance on the part of producers on the department's inspection, certifications, or any
other act or undertaking relating to quantity or quality of the seed or crop produced, fitness,
presence or absence of disease, or identity of variety or selection.
4. For the purposes of this section, North Dakota Century Code chapter 4.1-53 and North Dakota
Administrative Code article 74-03 generally apply to the certification and conditioning of field
seeds; North Dakota Century Code chapter 4.1-53 and North Dakota Administrative Code
article 74-02 to the regulation of field crops and seeds; North Dakota Century Code chapter
4.1-55 and North Dakota Administrative Code article 74-04 to the certification and inspection
of potatoes; North Dakota Century Code chapter 4.1-57 and North Dakota Administrative
Code article 74-05 to the regulation of wholesale potato dealers; and North Dakota Century
Code chapter 4.1-53 and North Dakota Administrative Code article 74-06 to the inspection and
grading of crops not in federal grain standards.

5. Seed commissioner. The commission appoints the seed department manager, who is the state
seed commissioner.
6. Inquiries. Inquiries regarding the seed department may be addressed to the commissioner:
State Seed Commissioner
State Seed Department
1313 18th Street North
Fargo, ND 58105
History: Amended effective December 1, 1981; November 1, 1985; October 1, 1989; September 1,
2002; January 2, 2006; July 1, 2010; October 1, 2024.
General Authority: NDCC 4.1-52-10, 28-32-02.1
Law Implemented: NDCC 4.1-52-07, 4.1-53-42, 4.1-53-59
