In 2013, agriculture departments of various level implement the requirements by the CPC Central Committee of strengthen the government under the rule of law and deepening administration under the rule of law. Agriculture legal system building achieved fresh progress.
1. The improvement of agriculture legislation was accelerated On Oct. 8, 2013, the 26th executive meeting of the State Council, passed Livestock and Poultry Breeding Pollution Control Regulations, defined the service and guiding functions of the agriculture department to the regulation of waste from livestock and poultry breeding, strengthened support for livestock and poultry farms and communities in preventing pollution. The regulations bear great significance in preventing pollution and protecting ecosystem and living conditions of rural areas. The Agriculture Ministry and The State Council Legislative Affairs Office amended certain provisions of Seed Law, Law on Animal Epidemic Prevention, Grassland Law, Fishery Law, Regulations of the PRC for the Implementation of Wild Aquatic Animal Protection, and Regulations on Administration of Feeds and Feed Additives. Research was conducted on agricultural chemical business permission, in accordance with the Regulations on the Control of Agricultural Chemicals by the State Council Legislative Affairs Office. A series laws were drafted to fill the blank of agriculture legislation. In 2013, the Agriculture Ministry put forward such laws as Veterinary Prescription and Non-prescription Medicines Management Measures, among others.
2. Standardization of comprehensive enforcement of agriculture laws was promoted Since 2013, the Agriculture Ministry guided and prompted local agriculture departments to improve the mechanism and operation of comprehensive enforcement of agriculture laws. By the end of 2013, comprehensive enforcement of agriculture laws covered 30 provinces, 265 cities and 2,308 counties, comprehensive enforcement of agriculture laws at county-level cover 99 percent of China. Comprehensive enforcement of agriculture laws at county and city levels covered 11 provinces including Hebei, Shanxi, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, Hubei, Hunan, Guangxi, Sichuan, Guizhou and Gansu. Six province including Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Hubei, Hunan, Guizhou and Gansu established law enforcement teams at all provincial, city and county levels. The construction of the system of comprehensive enforcement of agriculture laws laid foundation for agriculture departments to enforce law, serve agriculture, rural areas and farmers and protect farmers' livelihood.
In 2013, the Agriculture Ministry continued to select demonstration program for comprehensive enforcement of agriculture laws. Ten comprehensive law enforcement institutions were elected as demonstrations sites for comprehensive enforcement of agriculture laws. In 2013, training courses on comprehensive enforcement of agriculture laws were held in Nanchang city of Jiangxi Province and Jinan city of Shandong Province, training a total of 280 people. To strengthen enforcement of agriculture laws and give full play to institutions for comprehensive enforcement of agriculture laws, in 2013, the Agriculture Ministry launched inspections on law enforcement situations by means of spot checks and self examination, which gave full play to agriculture law enforcement institutions. According to statistics, agriculture law enforcement institutions at various levels dispatched 1.57 million personnel, inspected 1.03 million shops, handled 53,000 cases of violation of law's and recovered economic loss of 1.1 billion yuan for farmers. In handling cases of violation of laws, authorities revoked 165 licenses, transferred 325 cases to the judiciary, and fined 210 million yuan. At the meantime, agriculture law enforcement institutions strengthened service, by settling 13,000 disputes among farmers, involving 176 million yuan, which protected farmers, interests and stability of rural areas.
3. Agriculture law popularization publicity and education were strengthened In 2013, law enforcement institutions implemented "Six five" law popularization plans, holding activities of various forms. The Justice Ministry, the Publicity Ministry, Civil Affairs Ministry and the Agriculture Ministry issued Opinions on Accelerating the Work to Encourage Farmers to Learn and Use the Law. Authorities of Zhejiang Province hold the activity of "Agriculture Law Enters Thousands of Enterprises and Thousands of Households." Authorities of Hunan Province set up evening law school in several villages. Authorities of Ningxia, Shandong, Shanxi and Inner Mongolia Provinces held contests on knowledge of law. Authorities of Beijing set brochures to households, achieving satisfactory results.
