[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 226 (Friday, November 25, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-29089]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: November 25, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
7 CFR Part 1032

[DA-95-04]

 

Milk in the Southern Illinois-Eastern Missouri Marketing Area; 
Proposed Suspension of Certain Provisions of the Order

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Proposed suspension of rule.

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SUMMARY: This document invites written comments on a proposal to 
suspend a portion of the supply plant shipping requirement of the 
Southern Illinois-Eastern Missouri Federal milk marketing order (Order 
32) for the months of December 1994 and January 1995. The proposal was 
submitted by Prairie Farms Dairy, Inc., which contends the suspension 
is necessary to ensure that producers historically associated with 
Order 32 will continue to have their milk pooled under the order 
without having to move milk uneconomically.

DATES: Comments are due no later than December 2, 1994.

ADDRESSES: Comments (two copies) should be filed with the USDA/AMS/
Dairy Division, Order Formulation Branch, Room 2971, South Building, 
P.O. Box 96456, Washington, DC 20090-6456.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nicholas Memoli, Marketing Specialist, 
USDA/AMS/Dairy Division, Order Formulation Branch, Room 2971, South 
Building, P.O. Box 96456, Washington, DC 20090-6456, (202) 690-1932.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 
601-612) requires the Agency to examine the impact of a proposed rule 
on small entities. Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 605(b), the Administrator of 
the Agricultural Marketing Service has certified that this proposed 
rule would not have a significant economic impact on a substantial 
number of small entities. This rule would lessen the regulatory impact 
of the order on certain milk handlers and would tend to ensure that 
dairy farmers would continue to have their milk priced under the order 
and thereby receive the benefits that accrue from such pricing.
    The Department is issuing this proposed rule in conformance with 
Executive Order 12866.
    This proposed rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12778, 
Civil Justice Reform. This rule is not intended to have a retroactive 
effect. If adopted, this proposed rule will not preempt any state or 
local laws, regulations, or policies, unless they present an 
irreconcilable conflict with the rule.
    The Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, as amended (7 
U.S.C. 601-674), 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 provisions of the 
order, or any obligation imposed in connection with the order is not in 
accordance with law and request a modification of an order or to be 
exempted from the order. 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 
its 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 the date of the entry of the ruling.
    Notice is hereby given that, pursuant to the provisions of the 
Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act, the suspension of the following 
provision of the order regulating the handling of milk in the Southern 
Illinois-Eastern Missouri marketing area is being considered for the 
period of December 1, 1994, through January 31, 1995:
    In Sec. 1032.7(b), the words ``and at least 75 percent of the total 
producer milk marketed in that 12-month period by such cooperative 
association was delivered'' and the words ``and physically received 
at''.
    All persons who want to submit written data, views or arguments 
about the proposed suspension should send two copies of their views to 
the USDA/AMS/Dairy Division, Order Formulation Branch, Room 2971, South 
Building, P.O. Box 96456, Washington, DC 20090-6456, by the 7th day 
after publication of this notice in the Federal Register. The period 
for filing comments is limited to 7 days because a longer period would 
not provide the time needed to complete the required procedures before 
the requested suspension is to be effective.
    All written submissions made pursuant to this notice will be made 
available for public inspection in the Dairy Division during regular 
business hours (7 CFR 1.27(b)).

Statement of Consideration

    The proposed action would suspend a portion of the supply plant 
shipping requirement for a cooperative association that operates a 
supply plant under Order 32. It would permit a supply plant operated by 
a cooperative association to qualify as a pool plant if the cooperative 
shipped 25 percent of the plant's total producer receipts to pool 
distributing plants during the month and milk from the plant was 
delivered to a pool distributing plant during each of the immediately 
preceding months of September through August. It would remove a 
requirement that the cooperative must have shipped 75 percent of its 
milk to pool distributing plants during the September through August 
period.
    According to Prairie Farms, a dairy farmer cooperative based in 
Carlinville, Illinois, it owns and operates six fluid milk processing 
plants and five manufacturing plants. Prairie Farms states that four of 
the six fluid milk processing plants, as well as a cultured product/
supply plant, are regulated under the Southern Illinois-Eastern 
Missouri Federal milk order. It states that these plants are supplied 
by its own member dairy farmers and balanced by four cooperative 
associations, two of which operate supply plants.
    Prairie Farms indicates that its producer milk for recent months at 
its plants is about 12 to 14 percent higher than the same period in 
1993 from approximately the same number of producers. It states that 
the increased production from its members--primarily due to improved 
growing conditions that resulted in an abundant supply of high quality 
feed--has caused it to reduce purchases from other cooperative 
associations. As a result, it states that two pool supply plants 
operated by the cooperative associations barely met the shipping 
requirements for the month of October. Prairie Farms anticipates that a 
similar situation will occur in November and expects the problem to 
worsen in the months of December 1994 and January 1995.
    Prairie Farms states that the proposed suspension would allow Order 
32 supply plants to serve the market, but at a level that should reduce 
or eliminate the need to make expensive and inefficient movements of 
milk to meet the supply plant shipping requirement. Accordingly, it may 
be appropriate to suspend the aforesaid provisions from December 1, 
1994, through January 31, 1995.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 1032

    Milk marketing orders.

    The authority citation for 7 CFR Part 1032 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: Secs. 1-19, 48 Stat 31, as amended; 7 U.S.C. 601-674.

    Dated: November 21, 1994.
Lon Hatamiya,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 94-29089 Filed 11-23-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P