[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 15 (Tuesday, January 24, 1995)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 4530-4532]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-1750]



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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Part 932

[Docket No. FV94-932-2IFR]


Olives Grown in California; Expenses and Assessment Rate for 1995 
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 an 
assessment rate for the California Olive Committee (Committee) under 
Marketing Order No. 932 for the 1995 fiscal year. Authorization of this 
budget enables the Committee to incur expenses that are reasonable and 
necessary to administer this program. Funds to administer this program 
are derived from assessments on handlers.

DATES: Effective beginning January 1, 1995, through December 31, 1995. 
Comments received by February 23, 1995 will be considered prior to 
issuance of a final rule.

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, D.C. 20090-6456; Fax # (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, D.C. 20090-6456, telephone: (202) 
720-5127; or Terry Vawter, 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. 932 [7 CFR Part 932], as amended, 
regulating the handling of olives grown in California. The marketing 
agreement and order 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, olives grown in California are subject to assessments. It is 
intended that the assessment rate specified herein will be applicable 
to all assessable olives handled during the 1995 fiscal year, beginning 
January 1, 1995, through December 31, 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 5 handlers of olives regulated under the 
marketing order each season and approximately 1,350 olive producers in 
California. Small agricultural producers have been defined by the Small 
Business Administration [13 CFR Sec. 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. 
None of the handlers may be classified as small entities. The majority 
of the producers may be classified as small entities.
    The marketing order, administered by the Department, requires that 
the assessment rate for a particular fiscal year apply to all 
assessable olives handled from the beginning of such year. Annual 
budgets of expenses are prepared by the Committee, the agency 
responsible for local administration of this marketing order, and 
submitted to the Department for approval. The members of the Committee 
are handlers and producers of California olives. They are familiar with 
the Committee's 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 Committee's budget is formulated and discussed 
in a public meeting. Thus, all directly affected persons have an 
opportunity to participate and provide input.
    The assessment rate recommended by the Committee is derived by 
dividing the anticipated expenses by expected shipments of olives. 
Because that rate is applied to actual shipments, it must be 
established at a rate which will provide sufficient income to pay the 
Committee's expected expenses.
    The California Olive Committee met on December 8, 1994, and 
unanimously recommended a total expense amount of $2,881,650, for its 
1995 budget. This is $866,640 less in expenses than the previous year.
    The Committee also unanimously recommended an assessment rate of 
$30.04 per ton for the 1995 fiscal year, which is $2.83 more in the 
assessment rate from the 1994 fiscal year. The assessment rate, when 
applied to anticipated shipments of 69,300 tons from the 1994 olive 
crop, would yield $2,081,772 in assessment income. This, along with 
approximately $800,000 from the Committee's authorized reserves will be 
adequate to cover estimated expenses.
    Major expense categories for the 1995 fiscal year include 
$1,479,000 for marketing expenses, $682,000 for food service industry 
promotion, $251,000 for public relations and administration, and 
$178,630 for salaries. Funds in the reserve at the end of the fiscal 
year, estimated at $200,000 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 
[[Page 4532]] derived from the operation of the marketing order. 
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 Committee 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 Committee needs to have sufficient funds to pay its 
expenses which are incurred on a continuous basis; (2) the fiscal year 
for the Committee begins January 1, 1995, and the marketing order 
requires that the rate of assessment for the fiscal year apply to all 
assessable olives handled during the fiscal year; (3) handlers are 
aware of this action which was recommended by the Committee at a public 
meeting; 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 in 7 CFR Part 932

    Marketing agreements, Olives, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.

    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 7 CFR Part 932 is 
amended as follows:

PART 932--OLIVES GROWN IN CALIFORNIA

    1. The authority citation for 7 CFR Part 932 continues to read as 
follows:

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

    Note: This section will not appear in the annual Code of Federal 
Regulations.

    2. A new Sec. 932.228 is added to read as follows:


Sec. 932.228  Expenses and assessment rate.

    Expenses of $2,881,650 by the California Olive Committee are 
authorized and an assessment rate of $30.04 per ton of assessable 
olives is established for the fiscal year ending December 31, 1995. 
Unexpended funds may be carried over as a reserve.

    Dated: January 18, 1995.
Sharon Bomer Lauritsen,
Deputy Director, Fruit and Vegetable Division.
[FR Doc. 95-1750 Filed 1-23-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P