Invasive Plants Bill Passes

CONNECTICUT - According to the Connecticut Nursery & Landscape Association (CNLA), the state legislature passed the invasive plants bill and sent it to the governor for its signature May 5. The vote of 109-38 came after 40 minutes of late-night debate that showed a surprising amount of irritation and negativity about the banning of plants that are in the back yards of hundreds of thousands of Connecticut homeowners.

The manager of the bill on the House floor endured numerous questions from lawmakers who wanted to make sure ordinary people would not be harmed by the bill's new provision to apply fines of $100 per plant to violators of the ban.

Floor manager State Rep. Roberta Willis (D-Lakeville) said several times the bill was aimed at "commercial cultivation" of the invasive plants. The bill does not ban those 15 plants identified by the Connecticut green industries as valuable to florists, greenhouses, garden centers, nurseries and landscape contractors.

Previously, the connecticut Senate had unanimously passed the bill. Deputy Speaker Rep. Mary Fritz (D-Cheshire) said she voted against the bill soley because of the provision elevating fines from $100 per violation to $100 per plant. The green industry had also tried to get rid of that part of the bill, according to CNLA.