[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 126 (Friday, July 1, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-16062]


  Federal Register / Vol. 59, No. 126 / Friday, July 1, 1994 /
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[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: July 1, 1994]


                                                   VOL. 59, NO. 126

                                               Friday, July 1, 1994

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Parts 916 and 917

[Docket No. FV94-916-31FR]

 

Nectarines and Fresh Peaches Grown in California; Expenses and 
Assessment Rates for the 1994-95 Fiscal Year

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Interim final rule with request for comments.

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SUMMARY: This interim final rule authorizes expenses and establishes 
assessment rates for the Nectarine Administrative Committee and the 
Peach Commodity Committee (Committees) under M.O. Nos. 916 and 917 for 
the 1994-95 fiscal year. Authorization of these budgets enable the 
Committees to incur expenses that are reasonable and necessary to 
administer their programs. Funds to administer these programs are 
derived from assessments on handlers.

DATES: Effective beginning March 1, 1994, through February 28, 1995. 
Comments received by August 1, 1994.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments 
concerning this interim final rule. Comments must be sent in triplicate 
to the Docket Clerk, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 
96456, Room 2523-S, Washington, DC 20090-6456, or by Facsimile (202) 
720-5698. Comments should reference the docket number and the date and 
page number of this issue of the Federal Register and will be available 
for public inspection in the Office of the Docket Clerk during regular 
business hours.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Britthany Beadle, Marketing Order 
Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, P.O. 
Box 96456, Room 2523-S, Washington, DC 20090-6456, telephone: (202) 
720-5127; or Terry Vawter, Marketing Specialist, California Marketing 
Field Office, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, 2202 Monterey 
Street, Suite 102 B, Fresno, California 93721, telephone: (209) 487-
5901.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This interim final rule is issued under 
Marketing Agreement and Order No. 916 (7 CFR part 916) regulating the 
handling of nectarines grown in California and Marketing Agreement and 
Order No. 917 (7 CFR part 917) regulating the handling of fresh peaches 
grown in California. The agreements and 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 of Agriculture (Department) is issuing this rule in 
conformance with Executive Order 12866.
    This interim final rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 
12778, Civil Justice Reform. Under the marketing order provisions now 
in effect, nectarines and peaches grown in California are subject to 
assessments. It is intended that the assessment rates specified herein 
will be applicable to all assessable nectarines and peaches handled 
during the 1994-95 fiscal year, which began March 1, 1994, through 
February 28, 1995. This interim 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 the 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 300 handlers of nectarines and peaches 
regulated under the marketing orders each season and approximately 
1,800 producers of these fruits in California. 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 $5,000,000. The majority of these handlers and 
producers may be classified as small entities.
    The nectarine and peach marketing orders, administered by the 
Department, require that the assessment rates for a particular fiscal 
year apply to all assessable nectarines and peaches handled from the 
beginning of such year. Annual budgets of expenses are prepared by the 
Committees, the agencies responsible for local administration of their 
respective marketing order, and submitted to the Department for 
approval. The members of the Committees are nectarine and peach 
handlers and producers. They are familiar with the Committees' needs 
and with the costs for goods, services, and personnel in their local 
area, and are thus in a position to formulate appropriate budgets. The 
Committees' 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 the anticipated expenses by expected shipments of nectarines 
and peaches. Because these rates are applied to actual shipments, they 
must be established at rates which will provide sufficient income to 
pay the Committees' expected expenses.
    The Nectarine Administrative Committee met on May 4, 1994, and 
unanimously recommended total expenses of $3,844,635 for the 1994-95 
fiscal year. In comparison, the 1993-94 fiscal year expenses amount was 
$3,804,962, representing a $39,673 increase in expenses from the 1993-
94 fiscal year.
    The Committee also unanimously recommended an assessment rate of 
$0.1825 per 25-pound container or equivalent for the 1994-95 fiscal 
year, which is the same assessment rate that was approved for the 1993-
94 fiscal year. The assessment rate, when applied to anticipated 
shipments of 18,144,000 25-pound containers or equivalent of nectarines 
would yield $3,311,280 in assessment income. Adequate funds exist in 
the Committee's reserve to cover additional expenses.
    Major expense categories for the 1994-95 nectarine budget include 
$447,118 for salaries and benefits, $1,402,000 for domestic market 
development, and $1,000,000 for inspection. Funds in the reserve at the 
end of the 1994-95 fiscal year, estimated at $363,483, will be within 
the maximum permitted by the order of one fiscal year's expenses.
    The Peach Commodity Committee also met May 4, 1994, and unanimously 
recommended total expenses of $3,967,335, for the 1994-95 fiscal year. 
In comparison, this is $113,790 more than the $3,853,545 expense amount 
that was recommended for the 1993-94 fiscal year.
    The Committee also unanimously recommended an assessment rate of 
$0.19 per 25-pound container or equivalent for the 1994-95 fiscal year, 
which is the same assessment rate that was approved for the previous 
fiscal year. The assessment rate, when applied to anticipated shipments 
of 17,571,000 25-pound containers or equivalent of peaches, would yield 
$3,338,490 in assessment income. Adequate funds exist in the 
Committee's reserve fund to cover additional expenses.
    Major expense categories for the 1994-95 fiscal period are $447,118 
in salaries and benefits, $1,402,000 for domestic market development, 
and $950,000 for inspection. Funds in the reserve at the end of the 
1994-95 fiscal year, estimated at $578,639, will be within the maximum 
permitted by the order of one fiscal year's expenses.
    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 should be significantly 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.
    After consideration of all relevant matter presented, including the 
information and recommendations submitted by the Committees and other 
available information, it is hereby found that this rule as hereinafter 
set forth will tend to effectuate the declared policy of the Act.
    Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553, it is also found and determined upon good 
cause that it is impracticable, unnecessary, and contrary to the public 
interest to give preliminary notice prior to putting this rule into 
effect and that good cause exists for not postponing the effective date 
of this action until 30 days after publication in the Federal Register 
because: (1) The Committees need to have sufficient funds to pay their 
expenses which are incurred on a continuous basis; (2) the fiscal year 
for the Committees began March 1, 1994, and the marketing orders 
require that the rates of assessment for the fiscal year apply to all 
assessable nectarines and peaches handled during the fiscal year; (3) 
handlers are aware of this action which was recommended by the 
Committees at public meetings and which are similar to budgets issued 
in past years; and (4) this interim final rule provides a 30-day 
comment period, and all comments timely received will be considered 
prior to finalization of this action.

List of Subjects

7 CFR Part 916

    Marketing agreements, Nectarines, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.

7 CFR Part 917

    Marketing agreements, Pears, Peaches, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.

    For the reason set forth in the preamble, 7 CFR parts 916 and 917 
are amended as follows:
    1. The authority citation for 7 CFR parts 916 and 917 continues to 
read as follows:

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

    Note: These sections will not appear in the annual Code of 
Federal Regulations.

PART 916--NECTARINES GROWN IN CALIFORNIA

    2. A new Sec. 916.232 is added to read as follows:


Sec. 916.232  Expenses and assessment rate.

    Expenses of $3,844,635 by the Nectarine Administrative Committee 
are authorized and an assessment rate of $0.1825 per 25-pound container 
or equivalent on assessable nectarines is established for the fiscal 
year ending February 28, 1995. Unexpended funds may be carried over as 
a reserve.

PART 917--FRESH PEARS AND PEACHES GROWN IN CALIFORNIA

    3. A new Sec. 917.256 is added to read as follows:


Sec. 917.256  Expenses and assessment rate.

    Expenses of $3,967,355 by the Peach Commodity Committee are 
authorized and an assessment rate of $0.19 per 25-pound container or 
equivalent on assessable peaches is established for the fiscal year 
ending February 28, 1995. Unexpended funds may be carried over as a 
reserve.

    Dated: June 27, 1994
Robert C. Keeney,
Deputy Director, Fruit and Vegetable Division.
[FR Doc. 94-16062 Filed 6-30-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P