§150A-5.5  What constitutes importation. 
(a)  The landing of any article for the purpose of inspection or quarantine
shall not be construed to give the article any status or the owner any right
incident to articles which have actually been passed and allowed into the
State.



(b)  In legal effect, articles landed for the
purpose of inspection or quarantine shall be construed to be still outside the
State seeking entry, and shall not, in whole or in part, be considered suitable
for entry into the State unless a tag, label, or stamp has been affixed to the
article, its container, or its delivery order by the inspector as provided in
section 150A-5(9), except that articles quarantined in the biocontrol
containment facilities of the department or of other government agencies
engaged in joint projects with the department may be released upon issuance of
a permit approved by the board.



(c)  Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b),
the import of articles in violation of this chapter or rules adopted under this
chapter may subject the importer to penalty although the articles have not been
passed for entry. [L 1985, c 133, §4; am L 1990, c 243, §3; am L 1996, c 153,
§3]