[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 162 (Tuesday, August 20, 1996)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 42993-42994]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-20790]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
7 CFR Parts 997 and 998

[Docket No. FV96-998-1 FIR]


Increased Assessment Rate for Domestically Produced Peanuts 
Handled By Persons Not Subject to Peanut Marketing Agreement No. 146 
and for Marketing Agreement No. 146; Regulating the Quality of 
Domestically Produced Peanuts

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 increased the administrative assessment rate under Marketing 
Agreement 146 (agreement) for the 1995-96 crop year. Authorization of 
the increase in the administrative assessment rate enabled the Peanut 
Administrative Committee (Committee) to collect sufficient funds to pay 
expenses for the remainder of the year. Funds to administer this 
program are derived from assessments on handlers who have signed the 
agreement. Public Law 103-66 requires the Department to impose an 
administrative assessment on farmers' stock peanuts received or 
acquired by handlers who are not signatory (non-signatory handlers) to 
the agreement. Therefore, the increase in the assessment rate under the 
agreement must be applied to all non-signatory handlers.

EFFECTIVE DATE: Effective July 1, 1995, through June 30, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Martha Sue Clark, Program Assistant, 
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, FAX 202-720-5698, or William G. Pimental, 
Marketing Specialist, Southeast Marketing Field Office, Fruit and 
Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 2276, Winter Haven, FL 33883-
2276, telephone 941-299-4770, FAX 941-299-5169. Small businesses may 
request information on compliance with this regulation by contacting: 
Jay Guerber, Marketing Order Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable 
Division, AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 96456, room 2523-S, Washington, DC 20090-
6456, telephone 202-720-2491, FAX 202-720-5698.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This rule is issued pursuant to the 
requirements of the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, as 
amended (7 U.S.C. 601-674), and as further amended December 12, 1989, 
hereinafter referred to as the ``Act''; Pub. L. 101-220, section 4 (1), 
(2), 103 Stat. 1878, December 12, 1989; Pub. L. 103-66, section 
8b(b)(1), 107 Stat. 312, August 10, 1993; and under Marketing Agreement 
146 (7 CFR part 998) regulating the quality of domestically produced 
peanuts.
    The Department is issuing this rule in conformance with Executive 
Order 12866.
    This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988, Civil 
Justice Reform. The Department established a 1995-96 crop year 
assessment rate applicable to non-signatory and signatory handlers 
effective July 1, 1995, through June 30, 1996. This rule increases the 
administrative assessment rates for the crop year which began July 1, 
1995. Farmers' stock peanuts received or acquired by non-signatory 
handlers and farmers' stock peanuts received or acquired by handlers 
signatory to the agreement, other than from those described in 
Secs. 998.31 (c) and (d), are subject to the assessments. This rule 
will not preempt any state or local laws, regulations, or policies, 
unless they present an irreconcilable conflict with this rule. There 
are no administrative procedures which must be exhausted prior to any 
judicial challenge to the provisions of this rule.
    Pursuant to requirements set forth in the Regulatory Flexibility 
Act (RFA), 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.
    The interim final rule incorrectly stated that there are 
approximately 45 non-signers and 76 signatory handlers subject to the 
two regulations. Also, there are approximately 47,000 producers of 
peanuts in the 16 States covered under the agreement. 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. A majority of the 
producers and the non-signatory handlers may be classified as small 
entities, and some of the handlers covered under the agreement are 
small entities.
    Under the agreement, the assessment rate for a particular crop year 
applies to all assessable tonnage handled from the beginning of such 
year (i.e., July 1). Funds to administer the peanut agreement program 
are paid to the Committee and are derived from signatory handler 
assessments. An annual budget of expenses is prepared by the Committee 
and submitted to the Department for approval. The members of the 
Committee are handlers and producers of peanuts. They are familiar with 
the Committee's needs and with the costs for goods and services, and 
personnel for program operations and, thus, are in a position to 
formulate appropriate budgets. The budgets are formulated and discussed 
at industry-wide meetings. Thus, all directly affected persons have an 
opportunity to provide input in recommending the budget and assessment 
rate. The handlers of peanuts who are directly affected have signed the 
marketing agreement authorizing the expenses that

[[Page 42994]]

may be incurred and the imposition of assessments.
    The assessment rate recommended by the Committee for the 1995-96 
crop year was derived by dividing anticipated expenses by expected 
receipts and acquisitions of farmers' stock peanuts. It applies to all 
assessable peanuts received or acquired by handlers from July 1, 1995. 
Farmers' stock peanuts received or acquired by handlers signatory to 
the agreement, other than from those described in Secs. 998.31 (c) and 
(d), are subject to assessments. Because that rate is applied to actual 
receipts and acquisitions, it must be established at a rate which will 
produce sufficient income to pay the Committee's expenses. 
Approximately 95 percent of the domestically produced peanut crop is 
marketed by handlers who are signatory to the agreement.
    Public Law 101-220 amended section 608b of the Act to require that 
all peanuts handled by persons who have not entered into the agreement 
(non-signers) be subject to quality and inspection requirements to the 
same extent and manner as are required under the Agreement. 
Approximately 5 percent of the U.S. peanut crop is marketed by non-
signer handlers.
    Public Law 103-66 (107 Stat. 312) provides for mandatory assessment 
of farmers' stock peanuts acquired by non-signatory peanut handlers. 
Under this law, paragraph (b) of section 1001, of the Agricultural 
Reconciliation Act of 1993, specified that: (1) Any assessment (except 
indemnification assessments) imposed under the Agreement on signatory 
handlers also shall apply to non-signatory handlers, and (2) such 
assessment shall be paid to the Secretary.
    The 1995-96 Committee budget was published in the Federal Register 
as an interim final rule on May 17, 1995 (60 FR 26348), and finalized 
on July 18, 1995 (60 FR 36635). The non-signatory handler assessment 
rate was published in the Federal Register as an interim final rule on 
August 21, 1995 (60 FR 43353), and finalized on November 24, 1995 (60 
FR 57907). The administrative expenses and assessment rate for the 
1995-96 crop year were based on an estimated assessable tonnage of 
1,525,000. The Committee now projects that total tonnage will only be 
about 1,300,000. In order to have sufficient revenue to cover budgeted 
expenses of $1,067,500, the Committee met on March 19, 1996, and 
unanimously recommended that the 1995-96 crop year administrative 
assessment be increased from $0.70 to $0.83 per net ton of assessable 
farmers' stock peanuts.
    An interim final rule regarding this action was published in the 
June 13, 1996, issue of the Federal Register (61 FR 29926). That 
interim final rule amended Secs. 997.100 and 998.408 to increase the 
administrative assessment rate for the 1995-96 crop year for the 
Committee and non-signatory handlers. That rule provided that 
interested persons could file comments through July 15, 1996. No 
comments were received.
    While this action will impose some additional costs on handlers, 
the costs are in the form of uniform assessments on all handlers 
signatory to the agreement. Some of the additional costs may be passed 
on to producers. However, these costs will be significantly offset by 
the benefits derived from the operation of the marketing agreement. 
This administrative assessment is required by law to be applied 
uniformly to all non-signatory handlers and will be of benefit to all. 
Therefore, the AMS has determined that this rule will not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.
    After consideration of all relevant material 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 that good 
cause exists for not postponing the effective date of this rule 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) Public Law 103-66 requires the 
Department to impose an administrative assessment on peanuts received 
or acquired for the account of non-signatory handlers; (3) the 1995-96 
crop year began on July 1, 1995, and the marketing agreement and Pub. 
L. 103-66 require that the rate of assessment for the crop year apply 
to all peanuts handled during the crop year; (4) handlers are aware of 
this action which was unanimously recommended by the Committee at a 
public meeting and is similar to other budget actions issued in past 
years; and (5) an interim final rule was published on this action and 
provided for a 30-day comment period, and no comments were received.

List of Subjects

7 CFR Part 997

    Food grades and standards, Peanuts, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.

7 CFR Part 998

    Marketing agreements, Peanuts, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.

PART 997--PROVISIONS REGULATING THE QUALITY OF DOMESTICALLY 
PRODUCED PEANUTS HANDLED BY PERSONS NOT SUBJECT TO THE PEANUT 
MARKETING AGREEMENT

PART 998--MARKETING AGREEMENT REGULATING THE QUALITY OF 
DOMESTICALLY PRODUCED PEANUTS

    Accordingly, the interim final rule amending 7 CFR parts 997 and 
998 to increase the administrative assessment rates which was published 
at 61 FR 29926 on June 13, 1996, is adopted as a final rule without 
change.

    Dated: August 9, 1996.
Robert C. Keeney,
Director, Fruit and Vegetable Division.
[FR Doc. 96-20790 Filed 8-19-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P