State agriculture officials say the new rules, effective Jan. 10, are not "necessary or justified" because the state has done an "excellent" job of finding plants in nurseries affected by sudden oak death, reports the Puget Sound Business Journal.

Twenty-five nurseries have tested positive for the disease and state officials said 20 of them have "undergone complete disease eradication procedures required by federal mandates, and five nurseries are nearing completion" of the procedures, the report said.

"Washington is being unfairly penalized for doing an excellent job of finding and destroying SOD-infected plants. This is a disservice to our nurseries, which have been extremely diligent and cooperative in trying to get rid of this destructive plant disease," said Agriculture Director Valoria Loveland.

The fungus-caused disease attacks common Northwest plants.