[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 57 (Thursday, March 24, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-6945]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: March 24, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Part 955

[Docket No. FV93-955-2FIR]

 

Vidalia Onions Grown in Georgia; Revision of Handler Reporting 
Requirements

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 an interim final rule 
that revised the administrative rules and regulations established under 
the Federal marketing order for Vidalia onions grown in Georgia. The 
interim final rule relaxed the reporting requirements on handlers by 
expanding the period of coverage of the report for receipts and 
shipments of onions from one week to one month. This is the only form 
handlers are required to file with the Vidalia Onion Committee 
(Committee). The reduction in the reporting burden on handlers will not 
adversely impact program operations. This rule is based on a unanimous 
recommendation of the Committee, which is responsible for local 
administration of the order.

EFFECTIVE DATE: April 25, 1994.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Shoshana Avrishon, Marketing 
Specialist, Marketing Order Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable 
Division, AMS, USDA, Room 2536-S, P.O. Box 96456, Washington, DC 20090-
6456; telephone (202) 720-3610, or FAX (202) 720-5698; or William G. 
Pimental, Marketing Specialist, Southeast Marketing Field Office, Fruit 
and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 2276, Winter Haven, Florida 
33883-2276; (813) 299-4770, or FAX (813) 299-5169.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This final rule is issued under Marketing 
Agreement and Order No. 955 [7 CFR Part 955] regulating the handling of 
Vidalia onions grown in Georgia. The marketing agreement and order are 
authorized by 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 rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12778, Civil 
Justice Reform. This rule is not intended to have retroactive effect. 
This 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 8c(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. A handler is afforded the opportunity for a hearing on the 
petition. After a 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 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 rule 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 145 handlers of Vidalia onions that are 
subject to regulation under the marketing order and approximately 250 
producers in the production area. Small agricultural service firms are 
defined by the Small Business Administration [13 CFR 121.601] as those 
whose annual receipts are less than $3,500,000, and small agricultural 
producers have been defined as those having annual receipts of less 
than $500,000. The majority of the Vidalia onion handlers and producers 
may be classified as small entities.
    This rule finalizes an interim final rule which revised 
Sec. 955.101 of Subpart -- Administrative Rules and Regulations and is 
based on a unanimous recommendation of the Committee and other 
available information.
    Previously under Sec. 955.101, Report of Shipments, handlers were 
required to provide the Committee with information regarding the volume 
of Vidalia onions received and shipped during each week of the shipping 
season. The normal shipping season for cured Vidalia onions runs from 
April through June, approximately 12 weeks. In addition, green Vidalia 
onions usually are shipped beginning in January of each year. Handlers 
were required to provide this information to the Committee each week. 
The Committee provided a form to assist handlers in providing this 
information. The information required included the name and address of 
handler, the period covered for the report, the total weekly receipts 
of Vidalia onions and the total fresh market shipments of Vidalia 
onions.
    The Committee needs such information for the purpose of computing 
and collecting assessments, which are necessary to finance the program. 
When the reporting requirement was first implemented, the Committee 
believed that the best method for obtaining the necessary information 
was to require handlers to report to the Committee the volume of fresh 
market shipments at the end of each week during the harvesting and 
shipping season.
    The Committee also uses the information from the reports in 
planning and evaluating market development activities and recommending 
production research projects. This information is also made available 
to the industry on a composite basis to aid growers and handlers in 
planning their individual operations and making marketing decisions 
during the season. At the time of implementation, the reporting burden 
was estimated to be five minutes for a handler to complete each weekly 
report.
    The Committee was experiencing problems in receiving the reports on 
a timely basis from many handlers. Many of the handlers not reporting 
were smaller grower-handlers (2 to 10 acres) who only operate two or 
three weeks of the year and do their bookkeeping at the end of the 
season. During the harvest season, these small handlers, mostly family-
run operations, are very busy and have complained that weekly reporting 
is burdensome to them. These reports are used by the Committee in 
calculating the assessments owed by each handler. Thus, it is important 
that the reports be filed on a timely basis. Because many handlers 
filed reports late, the Committee experienced difficulty in collecting 
all assessments. The Committee expended much time and effort in 
identifying and locating these handlers. In addition, handlers who 
filed their reports on a timely basis complained to the Committee that 
others were not being assessed.
    The Committee met on August 28, 1993, to discuss these complaints 
and reporting problems and unanimously recommended revising the 
administrative rules and regulations by expanding the period of 
coverage of the reports to be filed from one week to one month. This 
reduced the number of reports filed on an annual basis from 
approximately 24 to approximately 6. Prior to the issuance of the 
interim final rule, the reporting process for the 24-week period 
expended approximately 203 reporting hours annually. The interim final 
rule reduced the reporting hours to approximately 93, a reduction of 
110 hours on an annual basis.
    The Committee also recommended that the report be required to be 
filed no later than seven days after the end of each month.
    The Committee believed that its recommendation would decrease the 
reporting burden on handlers by eliminating unnecessary reporting while 
still providing the Committee with the information it needs to properly 
administer the order. The interim final rule brought the reporting 
requirements into conformance with current industry operating practices 
and provided an acceptable time frame for the submission of reports.
    The Committee believed that this relaxation would enable the small 
family-run operations to file reports and pay assessments on a timely 
basis, and reduce the time and effort the Committee expends on locating 
handlers who have not filed reports.
    The Committee expressed concern about the effect monthly reporting 
will have on their marketing efforts. The weekly reporting provided a 
good source of information that was used in their marketing decisions. 
It was determined that the monthly reporting will provide sufficient 
information to assist the Committee in its marketing efforts and if any 
problems arise at a later date, alternate sources of obtaining this 
information on a weekly basis can be explored. The Committee continues 
to believe, at this time, that it is more important to ensure that all 
handlers are properly filing reports with the Committee and paying 
assessments that are due on a timely and equitable basis.
    The interim final rule was published in the Federal Register on 
January 13, 1994, [59 FR 1894]. That rule amended Sec. 955.101 of the 
rules and regulations in effect under the order. That rule provided a 
30-day comment period which ended February 14, 1994. No comments were 
received.
    Based on the above, the Administrator of the AMS has determined 
that this final rule will not have a significant economic impact on a 
substantial number of small entities.
    The information collection requirements contained in these 
regulations have been previously approved by the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) and have been assigned OMB Control Number 0581-0160.
    After consideration of all relevant information presented, 
including the Committee's unanimous recommendation and other 
information, it is found that finalizing the interim final rule, 
without change, will tend to effectuate the declared policy of the Act.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 955

    Marketing agreements, Onions, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.

    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 7 CFR part 955, is 
amended as follows:

PART 955--VIDALIA ONIONS GROWN IN GEORGIA

    Accordingly, the interim final rule amending 7 CFR part 955 which 
was published at 59 FR 1894, on January 13, 1994, is adopted as a final 
rule without change.

    Dated: March 17, 1994.
Robert C. Keeney,
Deputy Director, Fruit and Vegetable Division.
[FR Doc. 94-6945 Filed 3-23-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P