[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 62 (Friday, March 31, 1995)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 16565-16566]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-7961]



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 Rules and Regulations
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  Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 62 / Friday, March 31, 1995 / Rules 
and Regulations  
[[Page 16565]]

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Part 948

[FV94-948-3FR]


Irish Potatoes Grown in Colorado; Reestablishment of Area No. 2 
and Area No. 3 Regulatory Boundaries, and Redistribution of Area No. 2 
Committee Representation

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: This rule reestablishes regulatory area boundaries by moving 
Chaffee County from Area No. 3 to Area No. 2, and combines Chaffee 
County with Saguache County for the purpose of providing Chaffee County 
with producer representation on the Area No. 2, rather than the Area 
No. 3, Committee. This rule will provide for more effective 
administration of the marketing order and more effective compliance 
efforts. This rule was unanimously recommended by the Area No.2 and 
Area No. 3 Committees, the administrative agencies established for 
these regulatory areas under the marketing order for Colorado potatoes.

EFFECTIVE DATE: March 31, 1995.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Dennis L.West, Northwest Marketing Field Office, Marketing Order 
Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, 1220 SW 
third Avenue, room 369, Portland, Oregon 97204-2807; telephone: (503) 
326-2724; or Mark A. Slupek, Marketing Order Administration Branch, 
Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 96456, room 2523-S, 
Washington, DC 20090-6456; telephone: (202) 205-2830.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This final rule is issued under Marketing 
Agreement No. 97 and Marketing Order No. 948 (7 CFR part 948), as 
amended, regulating the handling of Irish potatoes grown in Colorado. 
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 of Agriculture is issuing this rule in conformance 
with Executive Order 12866.
    This final rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12778, 
Civil Justice Reform. This rule is not intended to have retroactive 
effect. 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 request a modification of the order or to be exempted 
therefrom. A 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 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.
    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 final 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 120 handlers of Colorado potatoes who are 
subject to regulation under the marketing order and approximately 400 
producers of Colorado potatoes in the regulatory areas. Small 
agricultural service firms have been defined by the Small Business 
Administration (13 CFR 121.601) as those having annual receipts of less 
than $5,000,000, and small agricultural producers are defined as those 
whose annual receipts are less than $500,000. The majority of potato 
producers and handlers regulated under the marketing agreement and 
order may be classified as small entities.
    The production area under Marketing Order No. 948 is divided into 
three regulatory areas. Area No. 1 (Area 1), also called the Western 
Slope, consists of 17 counties in the western portion of the State of 
Colorado. Marketing order regulations are not currently in effect in 
Area 1 because of limited potato production. Area No. 2 (Area 2), known 
as the San Luis Valley, consists of 9 counties and is located in the 
southern part of the State. Area No. 3 (Area 3), the Greeley area, 
consists of 37 counties covering most of the eastern part of the State. 
Producers in Areas 2 and 3 produce significant quantities of potatoes, 
and, thus, have active committees and regulations.
    Section 948.150, reestablished area committees as administrative 
agencies for both of the active areas.
    Section 948.53 provides authority for areas, subdivisions of areas, 
or distribution of representation among the subdivision of areas, to be 
reestablished by the Secretary upon area committee recommendations.
    This final rule (1) reestablishes area boundaries by removing 
Chaffee County from Area 3 and adding it to Area 2, and (2) combines 
Chaffee County with Saguache County for the purpose of providing 
Chaffee County with producer representation on the Area 2 Committee.
    The Area 2 and Area 3 Committees met on October 13, 1994, and 
October 18, 1994, respectively, and each unanimously recommended this 
reestablishment of boundaries between Area 2 and Area 3. The Colorado 
Potato Committee, which consists of representatives from both of the 
area Committees, ratified the recommendation on November 2, 1994. The 
Area 2 Committee also unanimously recommended that Chaffee County be 
combined with Saguache County for the purpose of providing Chaffee 
County with producer [[Page 16566]] representation on the Area 2 
Committee, rather than the Area 3 Committee.
    The Committees made their recommendations to reestablish boundaries 
after reviewing a request from a producer/handler located near Salida, 
Colorado, a relatively new potato production area in Chaffee County. 
Salida is approximately 250 miles from the administrative headquarters 
of the Area 3 Committee in Greeley, Colorado, but only 65 miles from 
the administrative headquarters of the Area 2 Committee in Monte Vista, 
Colorado.
    There are approximately 115 acres of potatoes grown in Chaffee 
County. Arable land in Chaffee County is generally limited to the area 
around Salida. Industry estimates place the potential for additional 
potato production at about 500 acres.
    The Chaffee County production area is geographically separated from 
the rest of Area 3 potato production and is much closer to that of Area 
2. Potatoes produced in Chaffee County are marketed similarly to those 
in Area 2. Potatoes grown in Chaffee County are, for example, often 
marketed through handlers from Area 2, but seldom marketed by Area 3 
handlers located outside of Chafee County.
    The rule increases the opportunity for the producers or handlers to 
serve on an area committee by greatly decreasing travel time and cost 
to attend area Committee meetings. This rule also enable any Chaffeee 
County producers to be in the same committee area with handlers who 
most often handle their production.
    The rule also modifies the distribution of producer membership of 
the Area 2 Committee to accommodate the addition of Chaffee County to 
Area 2. Saguache County, immediately to the south of Chaffee County, 
currently has one producer representative on the Area 2 Committee. The 
rule combines Chaffee and Saguache Counties as one district for the 
purpose of nominating a producer member to the Area 2 Committee. The 
change will continue to provide balanced representation on the Area 2 
Committee, consistent with acreage and production. Chaffee County 
handlers also will be represented as the Area 2 Committee has five 
handler member positions, two representing bulk handlers.
    The close proximity of the Area 2 administrative office to Chaffee 
County will improve the efficiency of marketing order administration. 
Marketing order compliance in Chaffee County will be more efficiently 
administered by the Area 2 Administrative Committee office because of 
its proximity to Chaffee County.
    Although this final rule removes Chaffee County from Area 3, 
regulatory language in the newly created section 948.153 only 
references the addition of Chaffee County to Area 2. Section 948.4 
currently states that Area 3 includes and consists of all the remaining 
counties in the State of Colorado which are not included in Area 1 or 
Area 2. Therefore, the addition of Chaffee County to Area 2 
automatically removes Chaffee County from Area 3, with no other 
corresponding change needed.
    The proposed rule concerning this action was published in the 
January 30, 1995, Federal Register (60 FR 5597), with a 30-day comment 
period ending March 1, 1995. No comments were received.
    Based on the above, 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 found 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 Area 2 committee 
is planning to conduct its annual nomination meeting on March 31, 1995; 
and (2) producers and handlers are aware of this action, which was 
recommended at open committee meetings, and need no additional time to 
prepare for operation under this rule.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 948

    Marketing agreements, Potatoes, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.

    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 7 CFR part 948 is 
amended as follows:

PART 948--IRISH POTATOES GROWN IN COLORADO

    1. The authority citation for 7 CFR part 948 continues to read as 
follows:

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

    2. In Sec. 948.150, paragraph (a) is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 948.150  Reestablishment of committee membership.

* * * * *
    (a) Area No. 2 (San Luis Valley): Seven producers and five handlers 
selected as follows:

    Two (2) producers from Rio Grande County;
    One (1) producer from Chaffee County and Saguache County;
    One (1) producer from Conejos County;
    Two (2) producers from Alamosa County;
    One (1) producer from all other counties in Area No. 2;
    Two (2) handlers representing bulk handlers in Area No. 2;
    Three (3) handlers representing handlers in Area No. 2 other 
than bulk handlers.
* * * * *
    3. A new Sec. 948.153 is added to read as follows:


Sec. 948.153  Reestablishment of area.

    Pursuant to Sec. 948.53, Area No. 2 is reestablished as follows:

    Area No. 2 (San Luis Valley) includes and consists of the 
counties of Chaffee, Saguache, Huerfano, Las Animas, Mineral, 
Archuleta, Rio Grande, Conejos, Costilla, and Alamosa, in the State 
of Colorado.

    Dated: March 27, 1995.
Sharon Bomer Lauritsen,
Deputy Director, Fruit and Vegetable Division.
[FR Doc. 95-7961 Filed 3-30-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P