[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 145 (Friday, July 27, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39137-39138]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-18837]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Commodity Credit Corporation


Notice of Request for Extension and Revision of a Currently 
Approved Information Collection

AGENCY: Commodity Credit Corporation, USDA.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this 
notice announces the intention of the Commodity Credit Corporation 
(CCC) to request an extension for and revision to a currently-approved 
information collection for the Non-recourse Cotton Loan Program. This 
notice requests comments on proposed revisions to CCC-605, Designation 
of Agent--Cotton. The primary revision being proposed would provide 
producers the option of authorizing the Commodity Credit Corporation to 
use an electronic record of the producer's designation of an agent. 
Other format revisions to the CCC-605 are also proposed. The 
information collected is used to support the operation of the marketing 
assistance loan programs for cotton under authority of the Commodity 
Credit Corporation Charter Act (15 U.S.C. 714 et seq.) and the Federal 
Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996 (7 U.S.C. 7201 et seq.)

DATES: Comments on this notice must be received on or before September 
25, 2001 to be assured consideration.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gene S. Rosera, USDA/Farm Service 
Agency, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., STOP 0512; Washington, DC 20250-
0512, telephone number (202) 720-8481. Comments may also be submitted 
by e-mail to: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:   
    Title: Non-recourse Cotton Loan Program.
    OMB Control Number: 0560-0074.
    Expiration Date of Approval: October 31, 2002.
    Type of Request: Extension and revision to a currently approved 
information collection.
    Abstract: On behalf of CCC, the Farm Service Agency (FSA) has 
developed an Internet-based process (referred to as Centralized 
Certificate Redemption (CCR)) that will allow agents designated and 
approved by cotton producers to obtain and exchange commodity 
certificates for cotton loan collateral. Cotton producers commonly 
authorize entities engaged in the marketing of cotton to repay cotton 
loan obligations or obtain and exchange commodity certificates for 
cotton loan collateral at county FSA offices. The CCR will allow these 
approved entities to conduct these loan settlement functions online and 
ultimately obtain loan collateral without physically presenting paper 
documents and payments at multiple county FSA offices.
    Cotton producers currently designate and approve agents for these 
loan functions using CCC-605, Designation of Agent--Cotton. The CCC-605 
is also frequently used by the producer's agent to transfer their 
repayment authority to a subsequent agent. This form additionally 
identifies the loan to which the agent-designation applies, the 
quantity of the loan collateral applicable to the agent-designation, 
the number of bales, and other loan information.
    For loan collateral redemptions, the agent or subsequent agent 
presents the CCC-605, the list of bales to be redeemed from loan, and 
payment at the county FSA office that ``holds'' the cotton warehouse 
receipts or electronic warehouse receipts. Based on receipt of these 
documents, CCC accepts repayment of the loan and releases the loan 
collateral to the agent designated by the producer. This same process 
is followed when the producer's agent requests to exchange commodity 
certificates for the loan collateral. For such exchanges, the agent 
additionally signs a statement acknowledging receipt of the commodity 
certificate and its exchange for loan collateral valued at the 
marketing loan repayment rate.
    When the CCR process becomes fully operational, producers will be 
offered the option of authorizing CCC to accept certificate exchanges 
for their loan collateral from the agent identified on the electronic 
warehouse receipt (EWR) for the cotton. (This option is not being 
offered at this time for loan redemptions with cash.) This field of 
information on the EWR is referred to as the Electronic Agent 
Designation (EAD). However, for CCC to accept certificate redemptions 
from the agent identified on the EWR, the producer will need to 
authorize CCC to use such electronic records. This authorization will 
be required to protect both the producer and CCC from any liability 
arising from CCC's use of such records. Under the CCR process, the CCC-
605 form will not be required to be returned to the county FSA office 
in order to establish the CCR as a totally on-line process. The EAD 
will be entered onto the EWR by the EWR Provider based on procedures 
acceptable to the cotton producer, the producer's designated agent, and 
the EWR Provider. The establishment of the EAD and the use of the CCR 
process are entirely optional and producers will continue to have the 
option of requiring repayment or certificate exchanges at the county 
FSA office.
    CCC will request approval of a revised CCC-605, Designation of 
Agent--Cotton that would contain the following parts. Parts A, B, C, F, 
and G to the revised CCC-605 would provide functions that are new to 
the CCC-605. Part A would identify the contact producer authorizing CCC 
to use an EAD. This part would additionally identify the loan or loans 
for which the authorization is established by loan number, maturity 
date and farm number. The producer would have the option of providing 
authorization for CCC to use the EAD for all loans of a specific crop 
year. Part B would contain the definitions and terms of the 
authorization for CCC to use the EAD. Part C of the form would provide 
for the signatures and dates of signatures for all producers providing 
CCC authorization to use the EAD. Part D would provide the terms under 
which the producer authorizes an agent or, if applicable, the 
subsequent agent to redeem all or a portion of the cotton pledged as 
collateral for the identified loans. The terms of agent designation in 
Part D will not be revised from those currently provided by CCC-605 
(version dated 10-13-00) except for necessary notational corrections. 
Part F, Endorsements, will provide space for the producer's agent to 
transfer, by endorsement, the functions to a subsequent agent. The 
current version of the CCC-605 provides space for six such subsequent 
endorsements and the proposed CCC-605 will have room for only four such 
subsequent endorsements. It is proposed that a new Part F be added as a 
convenience to agents that may present the CCC-605 at a county FSA 
office by providing the following statement that would be followed by 
space for the agent's signature and date of the signature: `` I 
acknowledge: (1) Receipt of CCC Commodity Certificate which I requested 
to purchase from CCC; (2) that the certificate will be exchanged with 
CCC in the manner specified in CCC regulations at 7 CFR Part 1400 in 
order that I may receive commodities from CCC which had previously been 
pledged as collateral for a CCC marketing assistance loan; and (3) that 
for purposes of valuing the commodity acquired under this transaction, 
such value will be the marketing loan repayment rate applicable under 7 
CFR Parts 1427 for the commodity as of the day I made payment to CCC 
for the commodity certificate.'' Part G is

[[Page 39138]]

proposed to be added for use by CCC only to enter the holder ID of the 
entity to which the cotton loan collateral was released.
    Estimate of Burden: Public reporting burden for the revised CCC-605 
is estimated to average 4 minutes per producer and 2 minutes per 
producers' agent for a total burden of 6 minutes per completed form.
    Respondents: Individual producers and cotton merchants.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 24,450 producers  x  4 minutes per 
response and 24,450 agents  x  2 minutes per response.
    Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 1
    Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 2,445 burden hours 
times $12.00 per hour=$29,340.
    Proposed topics for comment include: (a) Whether the collection of 
the proposed EAD authorization is necessary for the proper performance 
of the CCR, including whether the information will have practical 
utility and protect the interests of CCC and the producer; (b) the 
accuracy of the agency's estimate of burden including the validity of 
the methodology and assumptions used; (c) alternatives to the proposed 
information collection; or (d) ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection of the information on cotton producers expected to respond, 
including the use of appropriated automated, electronic, mechanical, or 
techniques or other forms of information technology.
    Comments should be sent to the Desk Officer for Agriculture, Office 
of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, 
Washington, DC 20503 and to Gene S. Rosera, USDA/Farm Service Agency, 
1400 Independence Avenue, SW., STOP 0512; Washington, DC 20250-0512, 
telephone number (202) 720-8481. All responses to this notice will be 
summarized and included in the request for OMB approval. All comments 
will become a matter of public record.

    Signed at Washington, DC on July 24, 2001.
Larry Walker,
Acting Administrator, Farm Service Agency.
[FR Doc. 01-18837 Filed 7-26-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-05-P