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<regulation prefix="Regulation" num=".04" citation="COMAR 15.16.01.04" title_num="15" subtitle_num="16" chapter_num="01" heading="Operator's License.">
  <paragraph num="A.">
    <text>Required to Conduct Business. Except as provided under §I of this regulation, a person may not operate or maintain a horse establishment without first obtaining an operator's license in at least one of the three different licensing classifications developed by the Board.</text>
  </paragraph>
  <paragraph num="B.">
    <text>Determination by Board. Before the Board may issue an operator's license in a particular class to a person, the Board shall first determine whether that person's horse establishment meets the requirements of that class. The requirements for each licensing class are stated in Regulation .07.</text>
  </paragraph>
  <paragraph num="C.">
    <text>Licensing Classifications. The licensing classifications developed by the Board are based on the three different activities that may be offered at a horse establishment and which, because any one of them is offered, requires that the establishment's operator be licensed. The licensing classifications and their respective activities are the:</text>
    <paragraph num="(1)">
      <text>Boarding stable class, for establishments that solicit or offer to the public to stable horses;</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(2)">
      <text>Rescue or sanctuary stable class, for establishments that offer to the public to shelter or keep one or more horses for humane purposes with or without compensation and with or without tax-exempt status; and</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(3)">
      <text>Lesson or rental stable class, for establishments in which one or more horses are offered to the public to be let for hire, to be ridden or driven, either with or without the furnishing of riding or driving instructions.</text>
    </paragraph>
  </paragraph>
  <paragraph num="D.">
    <text>Limitations on Licensee. A person who has been issued an operator's license may:</text>
    <paragraph num="(1)">
      <text>Conduct such business only at the horse establishment shown on his application; and</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(2)">
      <text>Offer only those activities allowed to be performed in the particular class or classes in which the person is licensed to do business.</text>
    </paragraph>
  </paragraph>
  <paragraph num="E.">
    <text>Who May Apply.</text>
    <paragraph num="(1)">
      <text>Only a person who either owns or is leasing a horse establishment may apply for an operator's license.</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(2)">
      <text>If the owner or lessee of a horse establishment is a corporation or other association, the application shall be made in the name of that corporation or other association.</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(3)">
      <text>If the owner or lessee of the horse establishment is an individual, the application shall be made in that individual's name.</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(4)">
      <text>The Board shall issue the operator's license in the name of the person shown on the application.</text>
    </paragraph>
  </paragraph>
  <paragraph num="F.">
    <text>Application and Renewal Process.</text>
    <paragraph num="(1)">
      <text>A person applying for or renewing an operator’s license shall:</text>
      <paragraph num="(a)">
        <text>Use a Board-approved form which is available on request at the Board's principal office located at 50 Harry S Truman Parkway, Annapolis, MD 21401;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(b)">
        <text>As established under §C of this regulation, indicate on the application form which class or classes of activities the person intends to do business in for that application year; and</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(c)">
        <text>Pay the nonrefundable fee of $125.</text>
      </paragraph>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(2)">
      <text>The Board may not issue an operator's license to a person until that person's horse establishment has passed Board inspection as provided in Regulation .05.</text>
    </paragraph>
  </paragraph>
  <paragraph num="G.">
    <text>Duration of License. After issuance, unless suspended or revoked, an operator's license is effective for a period of 1 year or until the following June 30, whichever occurs first.</text>
  </paragraph>
  <paragraph num="H.">
    <text>Posting Requirements. After issuance, the licensee shall display his operator's license in a conspicuous place on the stable's premises.</text>
  </paragraph>
  <paragraph num="I.">
    <text>If a person holds a livestock dealer's or livestock market license under Agriculture Article, Title 3, Subtitle 3, and is engaged only in the activity under the licensing classification “Sales”, that person need not obtain an operator's license.</text>
  </paragraph>
</regulation>