[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 145 (Friday, July 28, 1995)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 38767-38768]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-18593]



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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Part 1137

[DA-95-21]


Milk in the Eastern Colorado Marketing Area; Notice of 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 certain performance standards of the Eastern Colorado Federal 
milk order. The suspension was requested by Mid-America Dairymen, Inc., 
a cooperative association that supplies milk for the market's fluid 
needs. The suspension was requested to prevent uneconomic milk 
movements that otherwise would be required to maintain pool status for 
milk of producers who have been historically associated with the order.

DATES: Comments are due no later than August 17, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Comments (two copies) should be filed with the USDA/AMS/
Dairy Division, Order Formulation Branch, Room 2968, South Building, 
P.O. Box 96456, Washington, DC 20090-6456.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Clifford M. Carman, Marketing 
Specialist, USDA/AMS/Dairy Division, Order Formulation Branch, Room 
2968, South Building, P.O. Box 96456, Washington, DC 20090-6456, (202) 
720-9368.

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 
action would not have a significant economic impact on a substantial 
number of small entities. Such action 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. 

[[Page 38768]]

    The Department is issuing this proposed rule in conformance with 
Executive Order 12866.
    This proposed suspension 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, 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 
requesting a modification of the 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 Act, 
the suspension of the following provisions of the order regulating the 
handling of milk in the Eastern Colorado marketing area is being 
considered:
    1. For the months of September 1, 1995, through February 29, 1996: 
In Sec. 1137.7(b), the second sentence is amended by suspending the 
words ``plant which has qualified as a'' and ``of March through 
August''; and
    2. For the months of September 1, 1995, through August 31, 1996: In 
Sec. 1137.12(a)(1), the first sentence is amended by suspending the 
words ``from whom at least three deliveries of milk are received during 
the month at a distributing pool plant''; and in the second sentence 
``30 percent in the months of March, April, May, June, July, and 
December and 20 percent in other months of'', and the word 
``distributing''.
    All persons who want to send written data, views or arguments about 
the proposed suspension should send two copies to USDA/AMS/Dairy 
Division, Order Formulation Branch, Room 2971, South Building, P.O. Box 
96456, Washington, DC 20090-6456, by the 20th day after publication of 
this notice in the Federal Register. The period for filing comments is 
limited to 20 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 normal 
business hours (7 CFR 1.27(b)).

Statement of Consideration

    The proposed rule would suspend certain portions of the pool plant 
and producer definitions of the Eastern Colorado order. The proposed 
suspension would make it easier for handlers to qualify milk for 
pooling under the order.
    The proposed suspension was requested by Mid-America Dairyman, Inc. 
(Mid-Am), a cooperative association that has pooled milk of dairy 
farmers on the Eastern Colorado order for several years. Mid-Am has 
requested the suspension to prevent the uneconomic and inefficient 
movement of milk for the sole purpose of pooling the milk of producers 
who have been historically associated with the Eastern Colorado order.
    Mid-Am requests, for the months of September 1995 through February 
1996, the removal of the restriction on the months when automatic pool 
plant status applies for supply plants. Mid-Am also proposes that, for 
the months of September 1995 through August 1996, the touch-base 
requirement not apply and the diversion allowance for cooperatives be 
raised.
    These provisions have been suspended previously in order to 
maintain the pool status of producers who have historically supplied 
the fluid needs of Eastern Colorado distributing plants. Mid-Am states 
that the marketing conditions that justified the prior suspensions 
continue to exist.
    Mid-Am asserts that they have made a commitment to meet the fluid 
milk requirements of distributing plants if the suspension request is 
granted. Without the suspension, Mid-Am contends that it will be 
necessary to ship milk from distant farms to Denver-area bottling 
plants to qualify milk for pooling. The distant milk will displace 
locally-produced milk that would then have to be shipped from the 
Denver area to manufacturing plants located in outlying areas.
    In addition, Mid-Am maintains that ample supplies of locally-
produced milk that can be delivered directly to distributing plants 
will be available to meet the market's fluid needs without requiring 
shipments from supply plants. Mid-Am also claims that neither the 
elimination of the touch-base requirement for producers nor the 
increase in the amount of milk that can be diverted to nonpool plants 
by a cooperative should jeopardize the needs of the market's fluid 
processors.
    Accordingly, it may be appropriate to suspend the aforesaid 
provisions for the time periods stated.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 1137

    Milk marketing orders.

    The authority citation for 7 CFR Part 1137 continues to read as 
follows:

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

    Dated: July 24, 1995.
Lon Hatamiya,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 95-18593 Filed 7-27-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P