Colorado Department of Agriculture
Plant Industry Division
Administration and Enforcement of the Organic Certification Act
8 CCR 1203-9
Section 1.	Purpose
1.01.	These permanent rules are intended to facilitate certification of organic producers and handlers by the Colorado Department of Agriculture (“Department”) under the United States Department of Agriculture's National Organic Program.
Section 2.	Certification of Producers and Handlers Under the National Organic Program
2.01.	All certification of organic producers and handlers shall be done by the Department in its capacity as an accredited certifying agent for the United States Department of Agriculture's National Organic Program and in accordance with the provisions of the Organic Food Production Act of 1990, 7 U.S.C. § 6501 et seq, (2002) (later amendments not included), incorporated by reference herein, and the National Organic Program Final Rule, 7 C.F.R. part 205 (2010) (later amendments not included), incorporated by reference herein.
2.02.	Certified copies of the above incorporated material are available for public inspection during regular business hours and may be obtained or examined by contacting the Organic Program Coordinator, Colorado Department of Agriculture, 700 Kipling Street, #4000, Lakewood, CO 80215-8000 or http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/nop. The incorporated material may also be examined at any state publications depository library.
Section 3.	Fees
3.01.	Each applicant for certification shall be charged an annual, non-refundable certification fee of not more than $5,000.00 based on the actual cost of certification activities including but not limited to the category or categories for which the applicant is seeking certification, the type, size and complexity of the operation, the timing of submission of the application with respect to when an inspection must be conducted and any other factors that affect the cost to perform required certification activities for the applicant. Applicants shall submit payment of this fee with their application for certification. Once certified, all producers and handlers certified under the program shall pay this fee on an annual basis for each subsequent year in which they wish to remain certified by the Department.
3.02.	In addition to the above annual fees, all applicants for and holders of certifications issued by the Department shall be required to pay the costs of any inspections necessary to obtain and maintain certification as follows:
a.	Inspection time, including travel, will be charged at a rate of not more than $40.00 per hour.
b.	Mileage for the inspector's travel will be charged at a rate of not more than $0.40 per mile.
c.	If travel and inspection cannot reasonably be accomplished within one day, the inspector's travel and per diem expenses will be charged according to the policies and rates set forth in Rule 5-1 of the State Fiscal Rules, 1 C.C.R. 101-1.
Section 4.	Minimum Standards for Contract Inspectors
4.01.	The inspector must have sufficient training, knowledge and experience with the National Organic Program rules and generally accepted inspection processes to conduct inspections in any certification category for which they apply to conduct inspections without further training. Inspectors will be selected only in the category or categories for which they can demonstrate sufficient training, knowledge and experience.
4.02.	A prospective inspector may demonstrate training, knowledge and experience by providing:
a.	Evidence of inspections conducted within the last three years in specific categories. Inspector evaluations for the inspections should be provided from the accredited certifier along with the contact name of the accredited certifier; or
b.	Documentation of successful attendance and completion Independent Organic Inspector Association or equivalent training in the past three years; or
c.	Evidence of other qualifications the Commissioner determines appropriate to demonstrate training, knowledge and experience.
4.03.	The Department reserves the right to require the prospective inspector to take an examination to determine his or her knowledge of the National Organic Program rules and general inspection processes.
Section 5 – 8	Reserved
Section 9	Statements of Basis, Specific Statutory Authority and Purpose
9.13.	Adopted 12-16-10 - Effective 1-30-11.
Statutory Authority
The amendments to the rules are adopted pursuant to the Organic Certification Act, § 35-11.5-104, C.R.S. (2010).
The purpose of these amendments is to carry out the provisions of the Organic Certification Act by:
1)	Identifying factors which lead to cost differentiation and the range of application fees charged to entities apply for organic certification; and
2)	Stating the minimum standards for contract inspectors. The option is now possible as the Organic Act was modified in 2010 adding the provision to allow for the use of contract inspectors.
Factual and Policy Issues
The factual and policy issues encountered when developing these rules include: 
1)	Clarification was needed as to what type of factors are considered when determining the application fee for certified entities.
2)	In 2010 the Organic Certification Act was amended to allow for contract inspectors. To implement this new provision, standards were needed to state what training, knowledge and experience the Department would require of potential inspectors. This provides the minimum qualification for the department to use in determining if a potential inspector is qualified. In addition it provides information to potential inspectors as to what credentials will be needed to apply as a contract inspector.