[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 243 (Monday, December 18, 2000)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 78897-78899]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-31981]



 ========================================================================
 Rules and Regulations
                                                 Federal Register
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains regulatory documents 
 having general applicability and legal effect, most of which are keyed 
 to and codified in the Code of Federal Regulations, which is published 
 under 50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.
 
 The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by the Superintendent of Documents. 
 Prices of new books are listed in the first FEDERAL REGISTER issue of each 
 week.
 
 ========================================================================
 

  Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 243 / Monday, December 18, 2000 / 
Rules and Regulations  

[[Page 78897]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

9 CFR Part 93

[Docket No. 00-115-1]


Specifically Approved States Authorized To Receive Mares and 
Stallions Imported from Regions Where CEM Exists

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Direct final rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: We are amending the animal importation regulations by adding 
Oregon to the lists of States approved to receive certain mares and 
stallions imported into the United States from regions affected with 
contagious equine metritis (CEM). We are taking this action because 
Oregon has entered into an agreement with the Administrator of the 
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service to enforce its State laws 
and regulations to control CEM and to require inspection, treatment, 
and testing of horses, as required by Federal regulations, to further 
ensure the horses' freedom from CEM. This action relieves unnecessary 
restrictions on the importation of mares and stallions from regions 
where CEM exists.

DATES: This rule will be effective on February 16, 2001, unless we 
receive written adverse comments or written notice of intent to submit 
adverse comments on or before January 17, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Please send four copies (an original and three copies) of 
your comments or notice of intent to submit adverse comments to: Docket 
No. 00-115-1, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Suite 
3C03, 4700 River Road, Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238.
    Please state that your comment refers to Docket No. 00-115-1.
    You may read any comments that we receive on this docket in our 
reading room. The reading room is located in room 1141 of the USDA 
South Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue SW., Washington, 
DC. Normal reading room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, except holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you, 
please call (202) 690-2817 before coming.
    APHIS documents published in the Federal Register, and related 
information, including the names of organizations and individuals who 
have commented on APHIS dockets, are available on the Internet at 
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/webrepor.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Karen James, Assistant Director, 
National Center for Import and Export, Technical Trade Services, VS, 
APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 39, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231; (301) 734-
8364.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

Background

    The animal importation regulations (contained in 9 CFR part 93 and 
referred to below as the regulations), among other things, prohibit or 
restrict the importation of certain animals, including horses, into the 
United States to protect U.S. livestock from communicable diseases. In 
Sec. 93.301, paragraph (c)(1) prohibits the importation of horses into 
the United States from certain regions where contagious equine metritis 
(CEM) exists. Paragraph (c)(2) lists categories of horses that are 
excepted from this prohibition, including, in Sec. 93.301(c)(2)(vi), 
horses over 731 days of age imported for permanent entry if the horses 
meet the requirements of Sec. 93.301(e).
    One of the requirements in Sec. 93.301(e) is that mares and 
stallions over 731 days old imported for permanent entry from regions 
where CEM exists must be consigned to States listed in 
Sec. 93.301(h)(6), for stallions, or in Sec. 93.301(h)(7), for mares. 
The Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 
(APHIS) has approved these States to receive stallions or mares over 
731 days of age from regions where CEM exists because each State has 
entered into a written agreement with the Administrator to enforce 
State laws and regulations to control CEM, and each State has agreed to 
quarantine, test, and treat mares and stallions over 731 days of age 
from a region where CEM exists in accordance with Sec. 93.301(e).
    Oregon has entered into a written agreement with the Administrator 
of APHIS and has agreed to comply with all of the requirements in 
Sec. 93.301(e) for importing mares and stallions over 731 days old from 
regions where CEM exists. Therefore, this direct final rule will add 
Oregon to the lists of States in Sec. 93.301(h)(6) and (h)(7) approved 
to receive certain stallions and mares imported into the United States 
from regions where CEM exists.

Dates

    We are publishing this rule without a prior proposal because we 
view this action as noncontroversial and anticipate no adverse public 
comments. This rule will be effective, as published in this document, 
February 16, 2001 unless we receive written adverse comments or written 
notice of intent to submit adverse comments by January 17, 2001.
    Adverse comments are comments that suggest the rule should not be 
adopted or that suggest the rule should be changed.
    If we receive written adverse comments or written notice of intent 
to submit adverse comments, we will publish a notice in the Federal 
Register withdrawing this rule before the effective date. We will then 
publish a proposed rule for public comment.
    As discussed above, if we receive no written adverse comments or 
written notice of intent to submit adverse comments within 30 days of 
publication of this direct final rule, this direct final rule will 
become effective 60 days following its publication. We will publish a 
notice in the Federal Register before the effective date of this direct 
final rule, confirming that it is effective on the date indicated in 
this document.

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.

[[Page 78898]]

Horse Imports From CEM-Affected Regions

    The share of purebred breeding horse imports coming from CEM-
affected regions is a relatively small fraction of the total number of 
horses imported, ranging between 5 and 10 percent between 1996 and 1999 
(table 1). However, horses supplied by CEM-affected countries are 
generally highly valued. In 1999, for example, the average value of a 
purebred breeding horse imported from a CEM-affected region was 
$52,300, whereas the average value of a purebred breeding horse 
imported from anywhere in the world (i.e., from both CEM-affected and 
CEM-free regions) was $11,700.
    During these same 4 years, the United States imported 28,374 horses 
classified as ``except purebred breeding'' from CEM-affected regions 
(table 2). While it is possible that some of these horses from CEM-
affected regions may be for breeding, it is more likely that they are 
imported for racing or exhibition.\1\ During 1996-1999, about one of 
every five ``except purebred breeding'' horses imported into the United 
States came from CEM-affected countries. Their combined annual value 
comprised, on average, 60 percent of the value of all ``except purebred 
breeding'' horse imports.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ As stated in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United 
States (2000), ``The expression `purebred breeding animals' covers 
only animals certified to the U.S. Customs Service by the Department 
of Agriculture as being purebred of a recognized breed and duly 
registered in a book of record recognized by the Secretary of 
Agriculture for that breed, imported specially for breeding 
purposes, whether intended to be used by the importer himself or for 
sale for such purposes.''

          Table 1.--Quantity and Value of Purebred Breeding Horses Imported From CEM-Affected         Regions,
                                                    1996-1999
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                        Quantity                                                   Value
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                             Percent  of             Percent  of
                                                                                  all      Dollars        all
                              Year                                  Number     purebred      (in       purebred
                                                                               breeding   millions)    breeding
                                                                               imports                 imports
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1996............................................................         69          5.2       $2.0         26.7
1997............................................................        115          7.2        2.7         19.9
1998............................................................        200         10.0       31.3         77.8
1999............................................................        187          8.1        9.8        36.2
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), ``Global Agricultural Trade
  System,'' using data from the United Nations Statistical Office. Harmonized tariff schedule 010111.


  Table 2.--Quantity and Value of Horses ``Except Purebred Breeding'' Imported From CEM-Affected Regions, 1996-
                                                      1999
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                        Quantity                                                   Value
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                             Percent  of             Percent  of
                                                                                  all                     all
                                                                               ``except    Dollars     ``except
                              Year                                  Number     purebred      (in       purebred
                                                                              breeding''  millions)   breeding''
                                                                               imports                 imports
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1996............................................................      2,642          8.7      $93.5         26.7
1997............................................................      3,677         15.5       99.9         76.7
1998............................................................     17,044         40.7      147.9         83.6
1999............................................................      5,011         17.9      170.9        54.8
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: USDA, FAS, ``Global Agricultural Trade System,'' using data from the United Nations Statistical Office.
  Harmonized tariff schedule 010119.

CEM Testing

    To minimize the risk of the CEM organism entering the United 
States, restrictions are applied to stallions and mares imported from 
CEM-affected regions, including health certification and preembarkation 
and postentry testing and treatment. During 1996 through 1999, 21,882 
cultures were tested at approved laboratories for CEM and a similar 
CEM-like organism. Forty of the cultures tested positive, of which at 
least one-third to one-half were infections by the CEM-like organism 
(several of domestic origin). Thus, the likelihood of a specimen 
testing CEM-positive during this period was roughly about 0.1 percent.
    As this small percentage indicates, breeding horses imported from 
CEM-affected regions rarely test positive for CEM. When they do, they 
are treated and remain in isolation until examined and subsequent 
cultures test negative. Nevertheless, the potential consequences of the 
establishment of CEM in the United States make the risk posed by this 
disease a serious concern. Besides the health costs associated with 
infected horses, establishment of CEM would have a disruptive impact on 
U.S. horse exports, especially on high-value breeding horses. At a 
minimum, more extensive testing and extended quarantining would be 
required of exporters. The addition of Oregon to the list of approved 
States is explicit recognition of the capability of Oregon facilities 
to carry out postentry testing and treatment requirements.

Affected Entities

    Importers of breeding horses in Oregon--owners of horse farms and 
race

[[Page 78899]]

horses--are the entities most likely to be affected by this rule. This 
rule will enable importers in Oregon to import stallions and mares 
directly from CEM-affected regions, whereas at present, those animals 
must first be imported into another approved State, the closest of 
which is California, and undergo postentry testing and treatment before 
being transported to Oregon.
    The Regulatory Flexibility Act requires that agencies consider the 
impacts of their rules on small entities. Whether affected entities may 
be considered small depends on their annual gross receipts. Annual 
receipts of $500,000 or less is the small entity criterion set by the 
Small Business Administration for establishments primarily engaged in 
raising horses and other equines (NAICS code 112920). For operations 
owning race horses (NAICS code 711219), the small entity criterion is 
annual gross receipts of $5 million or less.
    Most horse owners in Oregon will be unaffected by this rule, since 
they do not purchase horses imported from CEM-affected countries. Of 
those firms that will be affected, it is reasonable to assume that at 
least some may be small entities. According to the 1997 Census of 
Agriculture, a total of 13,952 horses were sold by 2,579 farms in 
Oregon in 1997, implying an average income per farm from horse sales of 
$5,410. However, given the generally higher value of breeding horses 
from CEM-affected countries, larger operations will be the more likely 
affected entities.
    The impact for affected Oregon establishments will be positive in 
terms of postentry transport cost savings; the horses will be able to 
be imported directly into Oregon rather than through California or 
other approved States. However, the savings is not expected to be large 
when compared to the value of the imported horses, and a substantial 
number of small entities are not expected to be significantly affected.
    Under these circumstances, the Administrator of the Animal and 
Plant Health Inspection Service has determined that this action will 
not have a significant 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 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 93

    Animal diseases, Imports, Livestock, Poultry and poultry products, 
Quarantine, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    Accordingly, 9 CFR part 93 is amended as follows:

PART 93--IMPORTATION OF CERTAIN ANIMALS, BIRDS, AND POULTRY, AND 
CERTAIN ANIMAL, BIRD, AND POULTRY PRODUCTS; REQUIREMENTS FOR MEANS 
OF CONVEYANCE AND SHIPPING CONTAINERS

    1. The authority citation for part 93 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1622; 19 U.S.C. 1306; 21 U.S.C. 102-105, 
111, 114a, 134a, 134b, 134c, 134d, 134f, 136, and 136a; 31 U.S.C. 
9701; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.4.


Sec. 93.301  [Amended]

    2. Section 93.301 is amended as follows:
    a. In paragraph (h)(6), by adding, in alphabetical order, ``The 
State of Oregon''.
    b. In paragraph (h)(7), by adding, in alphabetical order, ``The 
State of Oregon''.

    Done in Washington, DC, this 11th day of December 2000.
Bobby R. Acord,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 00-31981 Filed 12-15-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-U