[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 248 (Wednesday, December 27, 1995)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 66859-66860]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-31274]



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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
7 CFR Part 966

[Docket No. FV95-966-1FIR]


Tomatoes Grown in Florida; Expenses and Assessment Rate

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Agriculture (Department) is adopting as a 
final rule, without change, the provisions of an interim final rule 
that authorized expenses and established an assessment rate that 
generated funds to pay those expenses. Authorization of this budget 
enables the Florida Tomato Committee (Committee) to incur expenses that 
are reasonable and necessary to administer the program. Funds to 
administer this program are derived from assessments on handlers.

EFFECTIVE DATE: August 1, 1995, through July 31, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Martha Sue Clark, Marketing Order 
Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, P.O. 
Box 96456, room 2523-S, Washington, DC 20090-6456, telephone 202-720-
9918, or Aleck J. Jonas, Southeast Marketing Field Office, Fruit and 
Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 2276, Winter Haven, FL 33883-
2276, telephone 941-299-4770.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This rule is issued under Marketing 
Agreement No. 125 and Order No. 966, both as amended (7 CFR part 966), 
regulating the handling of tomatoes grown in Florida, 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 is issuing this rule in conformance 
with Executive Order 12866.
    This rule has been reviewed under Executive order 12778, Civil 
Justice Reform. Under the provisions of the marketing order now in 
effect, Florida tomatoes are subject to assessments. It is intended 
that the assessment rate as issued herein will be applicable to all 
assessable tomatoes handled during the 1995-96 fiscal period, which 
began August 1, 1995, and ends July 31, 1996. 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. 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 the 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 the 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.
    Since the interim final rule was issued, new information on the 
actual number of producers and handlers was received. There are 
approximately 90 producers of Florida tomatoes under this marketing 
order, and approximately 75 handlers. Small agricultural producers have 
been defined by the Small Business Administration (13 CFR 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. The majority of Florida tomato producers and 
handlers may be classified as small entities.
    The budget of expenses for the 1995-96 fiscal period was prepared 
by the Florida Tomato Committee, the agency responsible for local 
administration of the marketing order, and submitted to the Department 
for approval. The members of the Committee are producers of Florida 
tomatoes. They are familiar with the Committee's needs and with the 
costs of goods and services in their local area and are thus in a 
position to formulate an appropriate budget. The budget was formulated 
and discussed in a public meeting. Thus, all directly affected persons 
have had an opportunity to participate and provide input.
    The assessment rate recommended by the Committee was derived by 
dividing anticipated expenses by expected shipments of Florida 
tomatoes. Because that rate will be applied to actual shipments, it 
must be established at a rate that will provide sufficient income to 
pay the Committee's expenses.
    The Committee met September 7, 1995, and unanimously recommended a 
1995-96 budget of $2,025,000, $190,000 less than the previous year. 
Budget items for 1995-96 which have increased compared to those 
budgeted for 1994-95 (in parentheses) are: Office salaries, $319,100 
($297,300), depreciation, $19,000 ($18,200), employee's retirement 
program, $50,500 ($46,600), insurance and bonds, $8,000 ($7,000), 
payroll tax, $22,150 ($20,000), supplies and printing, $8,500 ($7,500), 
and miscellaneous, $2,000 ($1,600), audit, $3,750 ($2,500), and 
research expense, $245,000 ($192,100). Items which have decreased 
compared to those budgeted for 1994-95 (in parentheses) are: Office 

[[Page 66860]]
rent, $24,500 ($24,700), and education and promotion expense, 
$1,225,000 ($1,500,000). All other items are budgeted at last year's 
amounts.
    The Committee also unanimously recommended an assessment rate of 
$0.04 per 25-pound container, the same as last year. This rate, when 
applied to anticipated shipments of 50,000,000 25-pound containers, 
will yield $2,000,000 in assessment income. This, along with $25,000 in 
interest and other income, will be adequate to cover budgeted expenses.
    An interim final rule was published in the Federal Register on 
October 30, 1995 (60 FR 55176). That interim final rule added 
Sec. 966.233 to authorize expenses and establish an assessment rate for 
the Committee. That rule provided that interested persons could file 
comments through November 29, 1995. No comments were received.
    While this action will impose some additional costs on handlers, 
the costs are in the form of uniform assessments on handlers. Some of 
the additional costs may be passed on to producers. However, these 
costs will be offset by the benefits derived by 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.
    It is further found that good cause exists for not postponing the 
effective date of this action until 30 days after publication in the 
Federal Register (5 U.S.C. 553) because the Committee needs to have 
sufficient funds to pay its expenses which are incurred on a continuous 
basis. The 1995-96 fiscal period began on August 1, 1995. The marketing 
order requires that the rate of assessment for the fiscal period apply 
to all assessable tomatoes handled during the fiscal period. In 
addition, handlers are aware of this action which was unanimously 
recommended by the Committee at a public meeting and published in the 
Federal Register as an interim final rule.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 966

    Marketing agreements, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, 
Tomatoes.

    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 7 CFR part 966 is 
amended as follows:

PART 966--TOMATOES GROWN IN FLORIDA

    Accordingly, the interim final rule amending 7 CFR part 966 which 
was published at 60 FR 55176 on October 30, 1995, is adopted as a final 
rule without change.

    Dated: December 18, 1995.
Sharon Bomer Lauritsen,
Deputy Director, Fruit and Vegetable Division.
[FR Doc. 95-31274 Filed 12-26-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P