Restricted Materials Permits & Private Applicator Certification

The Agricultural Commissioner’s Office issues permits for the purchase and use of California Restricted Use Pesticides and operator identification numbers for agricultural uses of all other pesticides. If you need a grower permit or operator ID, please see our Operator  ID page.

Purpose

The purpose of Restricted Material permits is to allow our office to evaluate the application site and surrounding properties and to require site-specific use practices to be followed (beyond the label and applicable regulations) to mitigate potentially adverse effects.

Restricted Material Permits are only issued to the operator of the property or his or her authorized representative. You must bring a copy of your private or commercial applicator certification; a signed owner authorization letter (if applicable) and copies of clear, legible maps for each location on your permit. Maps must include permit/operator ID number, company/organization name, ranch name, ranch number, year, lot numbers and acreage, pesticide storage areas, section, township, and range (if known), adjacent neighbors, wells, reservoirs, north arrow, ranch access/entry point, cross streets or physical address, landmarks (power poles, equipment yards, gates, fences, ditches, trees, etc.), and sensitive sites within a ¼ mile.

You must provide a Notice of Intent (NOI) 24 hours prior to the planned application, during business hours.

Private Applicator Certification (PAC)

California and Federally Restricted Use Pesticides may only be used or the use supervised by a certified applicator. In California, a Private Applicator Certificate is issued by the County Agricultural Commissioner’s office. A private applicator is a person who uses or supervises the use of a restricted-use pesticide for the purpose of producing an agricultural commodity on property owned, leased, or rented by him/her or his/her employer; or a householder who uses or supervises the use of a restricted-use pesticide outside their residence to control plant or turf pests on residential property owned, leased, or rented by the householder. Those individuals who already possess a qualified license or certificate issued by the Department of Pesticide Regulation do not need a Private Applicator Certificate.

To become certified, a private applicator must come into our office, take and pass a written examination with a minimum score of 70%. There is no fee for taking the examination, obtaining the certification card, or renewing the certification by passing the written examination.

Restricted Material Alternatives and Mitigation Worksheet

Title 3 of the California Code of Regulations (CCR), section 6426 requires a permit applicant (grower) and their pest control adviser to consider feasible alternatives to the use of restricted materials. You will need to provide us with documentation that you have considered non-restricted alternatives to each restricted material for each pesticide that you request on your permit.

We will consider the information provided in our review of your permit application and will document feasible alternatives and mitigation measures, per Title 3, CCR section 6432.   We have included a DPR sample Alternatives Worksheet for you to use to document this information, as well as an informational handout and FAQ with more details. 

If you already have a Restricted Material permit,  you submit your alternatives statements using CalAgPermits. Use these directions for how to access and submit the required information.