[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 235 (Tuesday, December 8, 1998)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 67573-67575]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-32520]



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  Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 235 / Tuesday, December 8, 1998 / 
Rules and Regulations  

[[Page 67573]]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

9 CFR Part 94

[Docket No. 97-086-2]


Changes in Disease Status of Belgium, France, Greece, Luxembourg, 
Portugal, and Spain

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: We are declaring Luxembourg and Portugal free of rinderpest 
and foot-and-mouth disease; Greece free of rinderpest; France, Greece, 
Luxembourg, and Spain free of exotic Newcastle disease; Portugal free 
of African swine fever; and Belgium, France, and Portugal free of swine 
vesicular disease. These actions are based on a request from the 
European Commission's Directorate General for Agriculture and on our 
review of the supporting documentation supplied with that request. 
These actions will relieve some restrictions on the importation into 
the United States of certain animals and animal products from those 
countries. However, because of the status of those countries with 
respect to other diseases, and because of other factors that could 
result in a risk of introducing animal diseases into the United States, 
the importation into the United States of animals and animal products 
from those countries will continue to be subject to certain 
restrictions.

EFFECTIVE DATE: December 23, 1998.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. John Cougill, Staff Veterinarian, 
Products Program, National Center for Import and Export, VS, APHIS, 
4700 River Road Unit 40, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231, (301) 734-8695; or 
e-mail: John.W.C[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The regulations in 9 CFR part 94 (referred to below as the 
regulations) prohibit or restrict the importation of specified animals 
and animal products into the United States in order to prevent the 
introduction of various animal diseases, including foot-and-mouth 
disease (FMD), rinderpest, exotic Newcastle disease (END), African 
swine fever (ASF), hog cholera, swine vesicular disease (SVD), and 
bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). These are dangerous and 
destructive communicable diseases of ruminants, swine, and poultry.
    On November 14, 1997, we published in the Federal Register (62 FR 
61036-61041, Docket No. 97-086-1) a proposal to amend the regulations 
to declare Luxembourg and Portugal free of FMD and rinderpest; Greece 
free of rinderpest; France, Greece, Luxembourg, and Spain free of END; 
Portugal free of ASF; and Belgium, France, and Portugal free of SVD. We 
proposed those actions in response to a request submitted to the Animal 
and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) in July 1997 by the 
European Commission's Directorate General for Agriculture.
    We solicited comments concerning our proposal rule for 60 days 
ending January 13, 1998. We received one comment by that date. The 
comment was from a veterinary association and fully supported the 
proposed rule.
    Therefore, based on the rationale set forth in the proposed rule, 
we are adopting the provisions of the proposal as a final rule without 
change.

Effective Date

    This is a substantive rule that relieves restrictions and, pursuant 
to the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 553, may be made effective less than 30 
days after publication in the Federal Register. This rule removes 
certain restrictions on the importation into the United States of 
certain animals and animal products from Belgium, France, Greece, 
Luxembourg, Portugal, and Spain. We have determined that approximately 
2 weeks are needed to ensure that Animal and Plant Health Inspection 
Service personnel at ports of entry receive official notice of these 
changes in the regulations. Therefore, the Administrator of the Animal 
and Plant Health Inspection Service has determined that this rule 
should be made effective 15 days after publication in the Federal 
Register.

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act

    This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12866. For this 
action, the Office of Management and Budget has waived its review 
process required by Executive Order 12866.
    This rule amends the regulations by declaring Luxembourg and 
Portugal free of rinderpest and FMD; Greece free of rinderpest; France, 
Greece, Luxembourg, and Spain free of END; Portugal free of ASF; and 
Belgium, France, and Portugal free of SVD.

Pork and Pork Products and Swine

    Although this rule declares Luxembourg and Portugal free of 
rinderpest and FMD; Greece free of rinderpest; Belgium, France, and 
Portugal free of SVD; and Portugal free of ASF, all those countries are 
still considered affected with hog cholera, and Greece is still 
considered to be affected with FMD. Because of this, this rule will not 
lead to any substantive relaxation of restrictions imposed on the 
importation of pork and pork products and live swine from those 
countries, as these products will continue to be restricted based on 
the presence of hog cholera and, in the case of Greece, FMD. Therefore, 
the effect of this rule on the importation of pork and pork products 
and live swine will be minimal, and thus the potential impact on the 
domestic producers of pork and pork products and swine will be minimal.

Ruminants and Ruminant Products

    This rule declares Greece free of rinderpest, but that country is 
still considered to be affected with FMD and, as a result of an interim 
rule effective on December 12, 1997, and published in the Federal 
Register on January 6, 1998 (63 FR 406-408, Docket No. 97-127-1), is 
listed in Sec. 94.18(a)(2) as a region from which the importation of 
live ruminants, meat and meat products from ruminants, and certain 
other ruminant products is restricted due to the risk of BSE. 
Similarly, this rule declares Portugal and Luxembourg free of 
rinderpest and FMD, but those countries are considered to be affected 
with BSE. (Luxembourg was not considered to be affected with BSE at the 
time the proposed rule was published, but it was added to the list

[[Page 67574]]

of regions where BSE exists in an interim rule that was effective on 
December 2, 1997, and published in the Federal Register on December 17, 
1997 (62 FR 65999-66001, Docket No. 97-118-1).) Because imports of 
ruminants and ruminant products from Greece are restricted due to FMD 
and BSE, and because imports of ruminants and ruminant products from 
Portugal and Luxembourg are restricted due to BSE, this rule will not 
lead to a substantive change in the restrictions imposed on the 
importation of ruminants and ruminant products from those three 
countries.

Bird and Poultry Products

    This rule declares France, Greece, Luxembourg, and Spain free of 
END. This action relieves restrictions on the importation of carcasses, 
or parts or products of carcasses, of poultry, game birds, or other 
birds from those countries, and relieves certain restrictions on the 
importation of eggs (other than hatching eggs) laid by poultry, game 
birds, or other birds from those countries. This action also relieves 
the quarantine requirements for poultry hatching eggs imported from 
France, Greece, Luxembourg, and Spain.
    Egg production in those four countries is considerable: In 1995, 
the reported egg production in Belgium and Luxembourg was 3,858 
million; in France, 16,911 million; in Greece, 2,600 million; and in 
Spain, 9,983 million (``Agriculture Statistics,'' 1997). U.S. 
production is also large, 74,280 million in 1995. In addition, the U.S. 
imports few eggs, with the total amount being equal to less than 0.1 
percent of U.S. production. We believe that it is unlikely that these 
countries will redirect a significant portion of their production 
toward such a small U.S. import market.
    Total poultry meat production in France, Greece, Luxembourg, and 
Spain in 1995 was about 3.5 million metric tons, or about 26 percent 
the size of U.S. production of 13.8 million metric tons. However, the 
United States is a very strong net exporter of poultry meat, with 
imports of only 3,546 metric tons and exports of more than 2 million 
metric tons in 1996 (``World Trade Atlas,'' June 1997). Very few of the 
imports are from western Europe. Moreover, more than 99 percent of U.S. 
poultry meat imports originated in Canada. We do not expect that these 
countries will redirect a significant amount of poultry meat toward 
such a small U.S. import market.

Impact on Small Entities

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act requires that the Agency 
specifically consider the economic impact associated with the rule on 
small entities. Those likely to be affected by this rule are those 
entities engaged in the production of live swine, pork and pork 
products, live ruminants, meat, meat products, and dairy products 
derived from ruminants, and poultry products.
    The Small Business Administration's (SBA's) definition of a 
``small'' cattle, swine, or poultry farm is one whose total sales is 
less than $0.5 million annually. In 1992, 97.8 percent of cattle and 
calf farms would be considered small entities. The vast majority of the 
domestic hog and pig farms qualify as small entities (96.3 percent in 
1992). Eighty-seven percent of poultry farms would be considered small 
entities in 1992 (``1992 Census of Agriculture,'' U.S. Department of 
Commerce, 1993).
    The SBA's guidelines state that a ``small'' producer of poultry 
meat (Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) 2015, poultry 
slaughtering and processing) is one employing fewer than 500 workers. 
In 1992, 74 percent of 591 poultry slaughtering and processing 
establishments were considered small entities. These small entities 
accounted for approximately 30 percent of the total value of shipments 
of the industry, $7.2 billion.
    The SBA's guidelines state that a ``small'' producer of pork and 
ruminant products (part of SIC 2011 or 2013, meat packing plants) is 
one employing fewer than 500 workers. In 1992, 97 percent of the 1,367 
meat packing establishments in SIC 2011 were considered small entities. 
These small establishments accounted for approximately 40 percent of 
the total value of shipments of the industry, $50.4 billion. Ninety-
eight percent of the 1,264 establishments in SIC 2013 were considered 
small entities in 1992. These producers accounted for 84 percent of the 
total value of shipments of the industry, $19.97 billion.
    Although the majority of the domestic entities potentially affected 
by this rule are small, there will likely be only a minimal change in 
the level of imports that may compete with the output of these small 
entities, and thus there will be a minimal impact on any domestic 
producer of these products, whether small or large.
    Under these circumstances, the Administrator of the Animal and 
Plant Health Inspection Service has determined that this action will 
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities.

Executive Order 12988

    This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988, Civil 
Justice Reform. This rule: (1) Preempts all State and local laws and 
regulations that are inconsistent with this rule; (2) has no 
retroactive effect; and (3) does not require administrative proceedings 
before parties may file suit in court challenging this rule.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    This rule contains no new information collection or recordkeeping 
requirements under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 
et seq.).

List of Subjects in 9 CFR Part 94

    Animal diseases, Imports, Livestock, Meat and meat products, Milk, 
Poultry and poultry products, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Accordingly, 9 CFR part 94 is amended as follows:

PART 94--RINDERPEST, FOOT-AND-MOUTH DISEASE, FOWL PEST (FOWL 
PLAGUE), EXOTIC NEWCASTLE DISEASE, AFRICAN SWINE FEVER, HOG 
CHOLERA, AND BOVINE SPONGIFORM ENCEPHALOPATHY: PROHIBITED AND 
RESTRICTED IMPORTATIONS

    1. The authority citation for part 94 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 147a, 150ee, 161, 162, and 450; 19 U.S.C. 
1306; 21 U.S.C. 111, 114a, 134a, 134b, 134c, 134f, 136, and 136a; 31 
U.S.C. 9701; 42 U.S.C. 4331 and 4332; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 
371.2(d).

    2. Section 94.1 is amended as follows:
    a. In paragraph (a)(1), the words ``or (a)(3)'' are added 
immediately after the words ``paragraph (a)(2)''.
    b. In paragraph (a)(2), the word ``Luxembourg,'' is added 
immediately after the word ``Japan,'' and the word ``Portugal,'' is 
added immediately after the word ``Poland,'';
    c. A new paragraph (a)(3) is added to read as set forth below.
    d. In the introductory text of paragraph (c), the words ``paragraph 
(a) of'' are removed and the words ``paragraph (a)(2) of'' are added in 
their place.


Sec. 94.1  Regions where rinderpest or foot-and-mouth disease exists; 
importations prohibited.

    (a) * * *
    (3) The following regions are declared to be free of rinderpest: 
Greece.
* * * * *


Sec. 94.3  [Amended]

    3. Section 94.3 is amended by adding the words ``where rinderpest 
or foot-

[[Page 67575]]

and-mouth disease exists, as'' immediately before the word 
``designated''.


Sec. 94.4  [Amended]

    4. In Sec. 94.4(a), the introductory text of the paragraph is 
amended by adding the words ``where rinderpest or foot-and-mouth 
disease exists, as'' immediately before the word ``designated''.
    5. In Sec. 94.6, paragraph (a)(2) is revised to read as follows:


Sec. 94.6  Carcasses, or parts or products of carcasses, and eggs 
(other than hatching eggs) of poultry, game birds, or other birds; 
importations from regions where Exotic Newcastle disease (END) or S. 
enteritidis is considered to exist.

    (a) * * *
    (2) The following regions are considered to be free of Exotic 
Newcastle disease (END): Australia, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Denmark, 
Fiji, Finland, France, Great Britain (England, Scotland, Wales, and the 
Isle of Man), Greece, Iceland, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Republic of 
Ireland, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.
* * * * *


Sec. 94.8  [Amended]

    6. In Sec. 94.8, the introductory text of the section is amended by 
removing the words ``Malta, and Portugal'' and adding in their place 
the words ``and Malta''.


Sec. 94.11  [Amended]

    7. In Sec. 94.11, paragraph (a), the first sentence is amended by 
adding the word ``Luxembourg,'' immediately after the word ``Japan,''; 
by adding the word ``Portugal,'' immediately after the word 
``Poland,''; and by removing the reference ``Sec. 94.1'' and adding the 
reference ``Sec. 94.1(a)(2)'' in its place.


Sec. 94.12  [Amended]

    8. In Sec. 94.12, paragraph (a) is amended by adding the word 
``Belgium,'' immediately after the words ``The Bahamas,''; by adding 
the word ``France,'' immediately after the word ``Finland,''; and by 
adding the word ``Portugal,'' immediately after the word ``Panama,''.


Sec. 94.13  [Amended]

    9. In Sec. 94.13, the introductory text of the section is amended 
by adding the word ``Belgium,'' immediately after the words ``The 
Bahamas,''; by adding the word ``France,'' immediately after the word 
``Denmark,''; and by adding the word ``Portugal,'' immediately after 
the words ``Northern Ireland,''.

    Done in Washington, DC, this 2nd day of December 1998.
Craig A. Reed,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 98-32520 Filed 12-7-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P