PART II. BRANDS
§142-41 Brands or marks to be registered and recorded; penalties. (a) Every owner of livestock in the State shall have the owner's brand or mark, in order to secure its validity and individuality, recorded in a separate book kept for that purpose by the department of agriculture and biosecurity to be known as the "Hawaii Brand Book". No brand or mark shall be recorded that may be similar or approximate in design to any brand or mark that has been previously recorded. No record shall be made of any earmark, except only as supplemental identification of a brand. Numerals from 1 to 9 and 0, not used in combination or with symbols, as a brand, shall not be subject to preemptive use but shall be the common property of all persons.
(b) The department of agriculture and biosecurity shall establish, by rule adopted pursuant to chapter 91, a fee for each application to register a brand or mark. The application may be made directly to the department of agriculture and biosecurity, through its duly authorized agents, or through any duly authorized police officer. The chief of police of the respective counties shall authorize police officers to receive applications for registration of brands under this section. All moneys received under this section shall be deposited with the director of finance who shall deposit the moneys into the animal industry special fund established pursuant to section 142-3.6. A signed and dated receipt shall be issued for each paid application. All applications shall be promptly forwarded to the department of agriculture and biosecurity.
(c) If it is determined that the application seeks the registration of a brand that either has not already been recorded by another person or is not similar in design to any other previously recorded brand that has not expired, then a certificate showing that the brand or mark has been duly recorded shall be issued forthwith to the applicant.
(d) It shall be unlawful for any person to use any brand that has not been duly registered pursuant to this section and any rule adopted thereunder. Any person who violates this subsection shall be fined not more than $200. Each instance a brand is used in violation of this subsection shall constitute a separate violation. [L 1888, c 35, §19; am L 1911, c 58, §1; RL 1925, §681; RL 1935, §259; am L 1939, c 104, §7; am L 1943, c 62, §21 and c 64, §22; RL 1945, §1068; am L 1953, c 235, §1(a); am L 1955, c 73, §1(a); RL 1955, §20-40; am L Sp 1959 2d, c 1, §§14, 22; am L 1961, c 132, §2; am L 1963, c 114, §1; HRS §142-41; am L 1982, c 149, §1; gen ch 1985; am L 2025, c 235, §16 and c 236, §17]