The commissioner or his agent may enter, sample, test, inspect, and analyze pesticides, and people must allow entry for sampling and inspection.
(a) The commissioner or his agent is authorized to enter upon any public or private premise or carrier at reasonable times during regular business hours in the performance of his duties relating to pesticides, devices and records pertaining to same. It shall be a violation of the penalty provisions of this article for any person to refuse to allow such entrance for sampling and inspection purposes. (b) The commissioner or his agent is authorized and directed to sample, test, inspect and make analyses of pesticides sold or offered for sale or distributed within this state, at a time and place and to such an extent as he may deem necessary to determine whether such pesticides are in compliance with the provisions of this article. (c) The official analysis shall be made from the official sample. The registrant may obtain upon request a portion of said official sample. If the official analysis conforms to the provisions of this article, the official sample may be destroyed. If the official analysis does not conform to the provisions of this article, then the official sample shall be retained for a period to be determined by the State Board of Agriculture and Industries pursuant to regulations. (d) If any pesticide, pesticide container or device fails to comply with or is otherwise in violation of any of the provisions and requirements of this article, or rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, and the commissioner contemplates possible legal proceedings against the person responsible for any such violation, the commissioner shall, after due notice, accord such person an informal hearing or an opportunity to present his views, either orally or in writing, with regard to such violation or contemplated legal proceedings; and, if in the opinion of the commissioner the facts so warrant, the commissioner may refer the facts to the Attorney General of Alabama for appropriate legal action pursuant to the enforcement and penalty provisions of this article; provided, that nothing in this article shall be construed as requiring the commissioner to report for any legal action or prosecution minor violations whenever he believes that the public interest will be best served by a suitable notice of warning in writing. It shall be the duty of each district attorney, assistant district attorney or deputy district attorney to whom any violation is reported and referred to by the Attorney General to cause appropriate proceedings to be instituted and prosecuted in a court of competent jurisdiction to the end that appropriate legal action may be taken against persons who do not comply with the provisions of this article.