November SPCC Commission Meeting Notes

Georgia Structural Pest Control Commission Meeting Notes

October 10, 2023

Open – Chris Gorecki

Minutes – Approved

Old Business – None

New Business

• Blake Chastain – New Location – Northwest Exterminating Company
• George Lester Carter – New Company – Carter’s Pest Control – Valdosta, GA
• Jo’el Jessie Moore – New Company – Moore’s Pest Control LLC – Cairo, GA
• Justin Breda – New Company – Angry Ant Pest Solutions – Lilburn, GA
• Calvin Joseph Berksteiner – New Company – A La Carte Pest Services – Acworth, GA
• Name Change from Wayne Holden Pest Services to Elgin Pest Solutions

Brian Forschler – Nothing to report.

Georgia Department of Agriculture Report – (My Internet went down during this portion of the meeting.  It picked back up at the end of Tim Taylor’s Report.)

Tim Taylor – The New Investigative arm of the Dept. of Agriculture has been helpful in enforcement measures.  Violations are reported in the “Inside Buzz” Newsletter.

Ali Ikner – Reports they are out of renewal season.  There are 1248 licensed companies, 2234 – Pesticide Operators, and 7185 Registered Employees.  Ali continued with the Outreach report – Nan Collier is at the Georgia National Fairgrounds representing the Dept of Ag.  They will have representation at Ray Days Celebration and at the South Georgia Conference of the GPCA.  They recently attended the CPCO Conference.   There has been a FAQ section added to the “Inside Buzz” Newsletter to help answer commonly asked questions that the SPCC is receiving.

Yellow Legged Hornet Response Update – The Department has been staying in touch with the Chatham County area pest control companies to continue monitoring for this species.  So far only 2 nests have been found.

Honey Bee Removal experience requirement – (My internet went down again during this portion of the meeting, but came back up in the middle of the discussion.  I captured as much as I could.)

Bobby Chaison has had a blueprint created for the building that would simulate the bee removal experience for the participants.  He is currently looking for sites on which to build it.  Several locations are being considered.  The SPCC will team up with Bobby to answer questions about how best to implement the experience.  The question was asked who would pay for this and the answer was the Georgia Beekeepers Association.  Questions were considered about how best to have an experience that would not require disturbance of the bees too often and without having to regrow honeycomb between each experience.  Will revisit this at the next meeting.

TermiTek System – this system would be for monitoring termite activity only and would not be for killing termites.  The SPCC sought legal opinion on the system and what would need to be done to allow for this system to operate in Georgia.  The determination was the language is already there for this to be implemented in Georgia but would probably need some language in regs added.  The company using the system must inform the customer that pests have been found and a no-treatment bond must be issued.  Will revisit this at the next meeting.

Business Naming Draft Revision – Adding a proper name to an existing name can be confusing.  You can’t add a proper name to the front of a business name and that makes it different enough.  Derrick and Chris are going to work on language and bring it back next month.

The November Meeting will be held at the Dept of Agriculture in room 201 on November 14, 2023, at 10:00 a.m.

The 2024 meetings are in the works.

Legislative Update – Prefiling of Legislation will begin in November.  Looks like there will be no special session.

NPMA Update – Watching Rodenticides.  The EPA has reviewed the NPMA concerns and issued a reply.  Speaker of the House issues have put the Farm Bill in doubt.  Pest World is next week in Hawaii.

Adjourned.