[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 6 (Monday, January 10, 1994)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 1266-1268]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-421]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: January 10, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
7 CFR Parts 906 and 928

[Docket Nos. FV93-906-1, Amendment 1; and FV93-928-2, Amendment 1]

 

Finalization of Interim Final Rules for Specified Marketing 
Orders (Oranges, Grapefruit, and Papayas)

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Agriculture (Department) is adopting as a 
final rule, without change, the provisions of the interim final rules 
that authorized expenses and established assessment rates for the Texas 
Valley Citrus Committee and the Papaya Administrative Committee 
(Committees) under Marketing Order Nos. 906 and 928, respectively. 
Authorization of these budgets enables the Committees to incur expenses 
that are reasonable and necessary to administer their respective 
programs. Funds to administer these programs are derived from 
assessments on handlers.

EFFECTIVE DATE: Section 906.233 is effective August 1, 1993, through 
July 31, 1994; Sec. 928.233 is effective July 1, 1993, through June 30, 
1994.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Britthany E. Beadle, Marketing Order 
Administration Branch, F&V, AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 96456, room 2524-S, 
Washington, DC 20090-6456; telephone: (202) 720-5127; Belinda Garza 
(Sec. 906.233), McAllen Marketing Field Office, Marketing Order 
Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, 1313 E. 
Hackberry, McAllen, TX 78501, telephone: (512) 682-2833; or Kurt J. 
Kimmel (Sec. 928.233), California Marketing Field Office, Marketing 
Order Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, 
2202 Monterey Street, suite 102 B, Fresno, CA 93721, telephone: (209) 
487-5901.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This final rule is issued under Marketing 
Agreement and Marketing Order No. 906 [7 CFR part 906] regulating the 
handling of oranges and grapefruit grown in the lower Rio Grande Valley 
in Texas; and Marketing Agreement and Marketing Order No. 928, as 
amended [7 CFR part 928] regulating the handling of papayas grown in 
Hawaii. The marketing orders are effective under the Agricultural 
Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, as amended [7 U.S.C. 601-674], 
hereinafter referred to as the Act.
    The Department is issuing this rule in conformance with Executive 
Order 12866.
    This final rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12778, 
Civil Justice Reform. Under the marketing order provisions now in 
effect, oranges and grapefruit grown in Texas and papayas grown in 
Hawaii are subject to assessments. It is intended that the assessment 
rates specified herein will be applicable to all assessable oranges, 
grapefruit, and papayas handled during the 1993-94 fiscal year, 
beginning August 1, 1993, through July 31, 1994 (M.O. 906), and July 1, 
1993, through June 30, 1994 (M.O. 928). This final rule will not 
preempt any State or local laws, regulations, or policies, unless they 
present an irreconcilable conflict with this rule.
    The Act provides that administrative proceedings must be exhausted 
before parties may file suit in court. Under section 608c(15)(A) of the 
Act, any handler subject to an order may file with the Secretary a 
petition stating that the order, any provision of the order, or any 
obligation imposed in connection with the order is not in accordance 
with law and requesting a modification of the order or to be exempted 
therefrom. Such handler is afforded the opportunity for a hearing on 
the petition. After the hearing the Secretary would rule on the 
petition. The Act provides that the district court of the United States 
in any district in which the handler is an inhabitant, or has his or 
her principal place of business, has jurisdiction in equity to review 
the Secretary's ruling on the petition, provided a bill in equity is 
filed not later than 20 days after date of the entry of the ruling.
    Pursuant to requirements set forth in the Regulatory Flexibility 
Act (RFA), the Administrator of the Agricultural Marketing Service 
(AMS) has considered the economic impact of this action on small 
entities. The purpose of the RFA is to fit regulatory actions to the 
scale of business subject to such actions in order that small 
businesses will not be unduly or disproportionately burdened. Marketing 
orders issued pursuant to the Act, and rules issued thereunder, are 
unique in that they are brought about through group action of 
essentially small entities acting on their own behalf. Thus, both 
statutes have small entity orientation and compatibility.
    There are approximately 135 handlers of oranges and grapefruit, and 
120 handlers of papayas subject to regulation under their respective 
marketing orders each season. In addition, there are approximately 
2,500 orange and grapefruit producers in Texas, and 300 papaya 
producers in Hawaii. Small agricultural producers have been defined by 
the Small Business Administration [13 CFR 121.601] as those having 
annual receipts of less than $500,000, and small agricultural service 
firms are defined as those whose annual receipts are less than 
$3,500,000. The majority of the orange, grapefruit, and papaya 
producers and handlers may be classified as small entities.
    The respective marketing orders require that the assessment rates 
for a particular fiscal year shall apply to all assessable oranges, 
grapefruit, and papayas handled from the beginning of such year. An 
annual budget of expenses is prepared by each Committee and submitted 
to the Department for approval. The members of the Committees are 
handlers and producers of the regulated commodities. They are familiar 
with the Committees' needs and with the costs for goods, services, and 
personnel in their local areas and are thus in a position to formulate 
appropriate budgets. The budgets are formulated and discussed in public 
meetings. Thus, all directly affected persons have an opportunity to 
participate and provide input.
    The assessment rates recommended by the Committees are derived by 
dividing anticipated expenses by expected shipments of oranges, 
grapefruit, and papayas. Because these rates are applied to actual 
shipments, they must be established at rates which will produce 
sufficient income to pay the Committees' expected expenses. The 
recommended budgets and rates of assessment are usually acted upon by 
the Committees shortly before a season starts, and expenses are 
incurred on a continuous basis. Therefore, the budget and assessment 
rate approval must be expedited so that the Committees will have funds 
to pay their expenses.
    An interim final rule was issued for the Texas Valley Citrus 
Committee (TVCC), on July 7, 1993, and published in the Federal 
Register [58 FR 37635, July 13, 1993] effective for the period August 
1, 1993, through July 31, 1994, with a 30-day comment period ending 
August 12, 1993. The interim final rule authorized expenses of $984,319 
and an assessment rate of $0.15 per \7/10\ bushel carton for the 1993-
94 fiscal year. No comments were filed on the expenses and assessment 
rate in the interim final rule.
    The TVCC met again on August 3, 1993, and unanimously recommended 
increasing authorized expenses to $1,180,925, a $196,606 increase from 
the previously authorized amount. The TVCC also unanimously recommended 
increasing the assessment rate from $0.15 per \7/10\ bushel carton to 
$0.18 per \7/10\ bushel carton, a $0.03 increase per \7/10\ bushel 
carton from the previously established assessment rate.
    An amended interim final rule was issued on October 7, 1993, and 
published in the Federal Register [58 FR 53111, October 14, 1993] 
effective for the period August 1, 1993 through July 31, 1994, and 
provided a 30-day comment period. This amended interim final rule 
increased authorized expenses to $1,180,925, and increased the 
assessment rate to $0.18 per \7/10\ bushel carton of assessable oranges 
and grapefruit for the 1993-94 fiscal year under the order. The 
$196,606 expense increase is necessary to provide additional funds for 
order operations, including $172,606 to fund increased administrative 
and compliance expenses, primarily for the maintenance of road guard 
stations, and $24,000 to cover a shortfall in the Mexican Fruit Fly 
support program. The increase in the assessment rate along with the 
withdrawal of additional funds from the TVCC's reserves, will 
adequately fund the increased expenses.
    An amended interim final rule was issued for the Papaya 
Administrative Committee (PAC), on June 14, 1993, and published in the 
Federal Register [58 FR 33759, June 21, 1993] effective for the period 
July 1, 1993, through June 30, 1994, with a 30-day comment period 
ending July 21, 1993. The interim final rule authorized expenses of 
$700,580 and an assessment rate of $0.0085 per pound of fresh papayas 
for the 1993-94 fiscal year. No comments were filed on the expenses and 
assessment rate in the interim final rule.
    However, the PAC met again on August 13, 1993, and unanimously 
recommended decreasing authorized expenses from $700,580 to $597,860, a 
$102,720 decrease in expenses from the authorized amount. The PAC also 
unanimously recommended decreasing the assessment rate from $0.0085 to 
$0.0069, a $0.0016 decrease in the assessment rate, based upon 58 
million pounds of fresh papayas, from the previously established 
assessment rate.
    An amended interim final rule was issued on October 7, 1993, and 
published in the Federal Register [58 FR 53117, October 14, 1993] 
effective for the period July 1, 1993, through June 30, 1994, and 
provided a 30-day comment period. This amended interim final rule 
decreased authorized expenses to $597,860, and reduced the assessment 
rate to $0.0069 per pound of fresh papayas for the 1993-94 fiscal year 
under the order. Program income for the PAC decreased from $701,660 to 
$599,356, a $102,304 decrease from the previous estimate. Major program 
income reductions come from a $92,800 decrease in assessment income due 
to the lower assessment rate and a $9,504 reduction in income from the 
Department's Foreign Agricultural Service.
    The $102,720 decrease in expenses results from reductions in a 
number of expense items. Major expense reductions include expenditures 
for salaries and wages, office rent, auto expenses, and Japanese 
advertising and promotion. The projected income over expenses has 
increased from $1,080 to $1,496, a $416 increase from the previous 
amount. The excess funds will be added to the PAC's operational 
reserve.
    While this action will impose some additional costs on handlers, 
the costs are in the form of uniform assessments on all handlers. Some 
of the additional costs may be passed on to producers. However, these 
costs will be offset by the benefits derived from the operation of the 
marketing orders. Therefore, the Administrator of the AMS has 
determined that this action will not have a significant economic impact 
on a substantial number of small entities.
    The amended interim final rules were published in the Federal 
Register [58 FR 53111 October 14, 1993], for 7 CFR part 906, and [58 FR 
53117, October 14, 1993], for 7 CFR part 928. Each interim final rule 
provided a 30-day comment period for interested persons. No comments 
were received.
    It is found that the specified expenses for the marketing orders 
covered in this rule are reasonable and likely to be incurred and that 
such expenses and the specified assessment rates to cover such expenses 
will tend to effectuate the declared policy of the Act.
    It is further found that good cause exists for not postponing the 
effective date of this action until 30 days after publication in the 
Federal Register [5 U.S.C. 553]. The Committees need to have sufficient 
funds to pay their expenses which are incurred on a continuous basis. 
The 1993-94 fiscal years for the programs began on August 1, 1993, for 
Texas citrus and July 1, 1993, for Hawaii papayas. The marketing orders 
require that the rates of assessment for the fiscal year apply to all 
assessable oranges, grapefruit, and papayas handled during the fiscal 
years. In addition, handlers are aware of these actions which were 
recommended by the Committees at public meetings and published in the 
Federal Register as interim final rules. No comments were received 
concerning the two interim final rules that are adopted in this action 
as final rules without change.

List of Subjects

7 CFR Part 906

    Grapefruit, Marketing agreements, Oranges, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements.

7 CFR Part 928

    Marketing agreements, Papayas, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.

    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 7 CFR parts 906 and 928 
are hereby amended as follows:
    1. The authority citation for 7 CFR parts 906 and 928 continue to 
read as follows:

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 601-674.

PART 906--ORANGES AND GRAPEFRUIT GROWN IN LOWER RIO GRANDE VALLEY 
IN TEXAS

    2. For the reasons set forth in the preamble, the interim final 
rule revising Sec. 906.233 which was published at 58 FR 53111, is 
adopted as a final rule without change.

PART 928--PAPAYAS GROWN IN HAWAII

    3. For the reasons set forth in the preamble, the interim final 
rule revising Sec. 928.233 which was published at 58 FR 53117, is 
adopted as a final rule without change.

    Dated: January 3, 1994.
Robert C. Keeney,
Deputy Director, Fruit and Vegetable Division.
[FR Doc. 94-421 Filed 1-7-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P