[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 138 (Wednesday, July 19, 1995)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 36951-36952]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-17740]



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  Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 138 / Wednesday, July 19, 1995 / 
Rules and Regulations  


[[Page 36951]]


DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Part 989

[FV95-989-2FIR]


Raisins Produced From Grapes Grown In California; Final Free and 
Reserve Percentages for the 1994-95 Crop Year for Natural (sun-dried) 
Seedless Raisins

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Agriculture (Department) is adopting, 
without change, the provisions of an interim final rule which 
established final free and reserve percentages for 1994-95 crop Natural 
(sun-dried) Seedless raisins. The percentages are 77 percent free and 
23 percent reserve. These percentages are intended to stabilize 
supplies and prices and to help counter the destabilizing effects of 
the burdensome oversupply situation facing the raisin industry. This 
rule was recommended by the Raisin Administrative Committee 
(Committee), the body which locally administers the marketing order.

EFFECTIVE DATE: August 18, 1995.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Richard Van Diest, Marketing 
Specialist, California Marketing Field Office, Fruit and Vegetable 
Division, AMS, USDA, 2202 Monterey Street, suite 102B, Fresno, 
California 93721; telephone: 209-487-5901 or Mark A. Slupek, Marketing 
Specialist, Marketing Order Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable 
Division, AMS, USDA, room 2523-S, P.O. Box 96456, Washington, DC 20090-
6456; telephone: 202-205-2830.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This final rule is issued under marketing 
agreement and Order No. 989 (7 CFR part 989), both as amended, 
regulating the handling of raisins produced from grapes grown in 
California, hereinafter referred to as the ``order.'' The order is 
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 final rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12778, 
Civil Justice Reform. Under the marketing order provisions now in 
effect, final free and reserve percentages may be established for 
raisins acquired by handlers during the crop year. This action 
finalizes final free and reserve percentages for Natural (sun-dried) 
Seedless raisins for the 1994-95 crop year, beginning August 1, 1994, 
through July 31, 1995. 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 requesting a modification of the order or to be exempt 
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/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 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 action 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 20 handlers of California raisins who are 
subject to regulation under the raisin marketing order, and 
approximately 4,500 producers in the regulated area. Small agricultural 
service firms have been defined by the Small Business Administration 
(13 CFR 121.601) as those whose annual receipts (from all sources) are 
less than $5,000,000, and small agricultural producers are defined as 
those having annual receipts of less than $500,000. No more than eight 
handlers, and a majority of producers, of California raisins may be 
classified as small entities. Twelve of the 20 handlers subject to 
regulation have annual sales estimated to be at least $5,000,000, and 
the remaining eight handlers have sales less than $5,000,000, excluding 
receipts from any other sources.
    An interim final rule was published in the Federal Register on May 
17, 1995 (60 FR 26344), with an effective date of May 17, 1995. That 
rule established final free and reserve percentages for Natural (sun-
dried) Seedless raisins for the 1994-95 crop year. The percentages were 
established in a new section 989.248 of the rules and regulations in 
effect under the marketing order. That rule provided a 30-day comment 
period which ended June 16, 1995. No comments were received.
    The order prescribes procedures for computing trade demands and 
preliminary and final percentages that establish the amount of raisins 
that can be marketed throughout the season. The regulations apply to 
all handlers of California raisins. Raisins in the free percentage 
category may be shipped immediately to any market, while reserve 
raisins must be held by handlers in a reserve pool for the account of 
the Committee. Under the order, reserve raisins may be: Sold at a later 
date by the Committee to handlers for free use; used in diversion 
programs; exported to authorized countries; carried over as a hedge 
against a short crop the following year; or disposed of in other 
outlets noncompetitive with those for free tonnage raisins.

[[Page 36952]]

    While this rule continues in effect restrictions limiting the 
amount of Natural (sun-dried) Seedless raisins that enter domestic 
markets, final free and reserve percentages are intended to lessen the 
impact of the oversupply situation facing the industry and promote 
stronger marketing conditions, thus stabilizing prices and supplies and 
improving grower returns. In addition to the quantity of raisins 
released under the preliminary percentages and the final percentages, 
the order specifies methods to make available additional raisins to 
handlers by requiring sales of reserve pool raisins for use as free 
tonnage raisins under ``10 plus 10'' offers, and authorizing sales of 
reserve raisins under certain conditions.
    The Department's ``Guidelines for Fruit, Vegetable, and Specialty 
Crop Marketing Orders'' specifies that 110 percent of recent years' 
sales should be made available to primary markets each season before 
recommendations for volume regulation are approved. This goal is met by 
the establishment of a final percentage which releases 100 percent of 
the computed trade demand and the additional release of reserve raisins 
to handlers under ``10 plus 10'' offers. The ``10 plus 10'' offers are 
two simultaneous offers of reserve pool raisins which are made 
available to handlers each season. For each such offer, a quantity of 
raisins equal to 10 percent of the prior year's shipments is made 
available for free use.
    Pursuant to section 989.54(a) of the order, the Committee met on 
August 15, 1994, to review shipment and inventory data, and other 
matters relating to the supplies of raisins of all varietal types. The 
Committee computed a trade demand for each varietal type for which a 
free tonnage percentage might be recommended. The trade demand is 90 
percent of the prior year's shipments of free tonnage and reserve 
tonnage raisins sold for free use for each varietal type into all 
market outlets, adjusted by subtracting the carryin of each varietal 
type on August 1 of the current crop year and by adding to the trade 
demand the desirable carryout for each varietal type at the end of that 
crop year. As specified in section 989.154, the desirable carryout for 
each varietal type shall be equal to the shipments of free tonnage 
raisins of the prior crop year during the months of August, September, 
and one half of October. If the prior year's shipments are limited 
because of crop conditions, the total shipments during that period of 
time during one of the three years preceding the prior crop year may be 
used. In accordance with these provisions, the Committee computed and 
announced a 1994-95 trade demand of 294,422 tons for Natural (sun-
dried) Seedless raisins.
    As required under section 989.54(b) of the order, the Committee met 
on October 5, 1994, and computed and announced a preliminary crop 
estimate and preliminary free and reserve percentages for Natural (sun-
dried) Seedless raisins which released 65 percent of the trade demand 
since the field price had not been established. The preliminary crop 
estimate and preliminary free and reserve percentages were as follows: 
404,677 tons, and 47 percent free and 53 percent reserve. The Committee 
authorized the Committee staff to modify the preliminary percentages to 
release 85 percent of the trade demand when the field price was 
established. The preliminary percentages for Natural (sun-dried) 
Seedless raisins were adjusted soon thereafter to 62 percent free and 
38 percent reserve.
    Also at that meeting, the Committee computed and announced 
preliminary crop estimates and preliminary free and reserve percentages 
for Dipped Seedless, Oleate and Related Seedless, Golden Seedless, 
Zante Currant, Sultana, Muscat, Monukka, and Other Seedless raisins. On 
January 12, 1995, the Committee determined that volume control 
percentages only were warranted for Zante Currant, Other Seedless, and 
Natural (sun-dried) Seedless raisins, and it recommended final 
percentages of 40 percent free and 60 percent reserve for both Zante 
Currant and Other Seedless raisins. It determined that the supplies of 
the other varietal types would be less than or close enough to the 
computed trade demands for each of these varietals. In view of these 
factors, volume control percentages would not be necessary to maintain 
market stability for the other varietal types.
    Pursuant to section 989.54(c), the Committee may adopt interim free 
and reserve percentages. Interim percentages may release less than the 
computed trade demand for each varietal type. Interim percentages for 
Natural (sun-dried) Seedless raisins of 75 percent free and 25 percent 
reserve were computed and announced on January 15, 1995. That action 
released most, but not all, of the computed trade demand for Natural 
(sun-dried) Seedless raisins.
    Under section 989.54(d) of the order, the Committee is required to 
recommend to the Secretary, no later than February 15 of each crop 
year, final free and reserve percentages which, when applied to the 
final production estimate of a varietal type, will tend to release the 
full trade demand for any varietal type.
    The Committee's final estimate of 1994-95 production of Natural 
(sun-dried) Seedless raisins is 379,972 tons. Dividing the computed 
trade demand of 294,422 tons by the final estimate of production 
results in a final free percentage of 77 percent and a final reserve 
percentage of 23 percent.

    The free and reserve percentages established by the interim final 
rule, and continued in effect, without change, by this rule, apply 
uniformly to all handlers in the industry, whether small or large, and 
there are no known additional costs incurred by small handlers. 
Although raisin markets are limited, they are available to all 
handlers, regardless of size. The stabilizing effects of the 
percentages impact both small and large handlers positively by helping 
them maintain and expand markets.

    Based on available information, the Administrator of the AMS has 
determined that the issuance of this final rule will not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.

    After consideration of all relevant information presented, 
including the Committee's recommendations and other information, it is 
found that finalizing the interim final rule, without change, as 
published in the Federal Register on May 17, 1995 (60 FR 26344) will 
tend to effectuate the declared policy of the Act.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 989

    Grapes, Marketing agreements, Raisins, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.

    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 7 CFR Part 989 is 
amended as follows:

PART 989--RAISINS PRODUCED FROM GRAPES GROWN IN CALIFORNIA

    Accordingly, the interim final rule adding section 989.248, which 
was published at 60 FR 26344 on May 17, 1995, is adopted as a final 
rule without change.

    Dated: July 13, 1995.

Sharon Bomer Lauritsen,

Deputy Director, Fruit and Vegetable Division.

[FR Doc. 95-17740 Filed 7-18-95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410-02-P