[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 196 (Wednesday, October 9, 2002)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 62871-62872]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-25271]



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 Rules and Regulations
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  Federal Register / Vol. 67, No. 196 / Wednesday, October 9, 2002 / 
Rules and Regulations  

[[Page 62871]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Farm Service Agency

7 CFR Parts 723 and 729

RIN 0560-AG75


2002 Farm Bill Regulations--Termination of Peanut Market Quota 
Program and Revised Flue-Cured Tobacco Reserve Stock Level

AGENCY: Farm Service Agency, Agriculture.

ACTION: Final Rule.

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SUMMARY: This rule takes two actions to reflect new law enacted in the 
Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (2002 Act). First, rules 
for the now terminated (as to 2002 and subsequent crops) marketing 
quota program for peanuts are removed. Second, the ``reserve stock 
level'' for flue-cured tobacco (used to set quotas) is changed. These 
two actions simply implement new law and in that sense are ministerial 
only.

EFFECTIVE DATE: October 9, 2002.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Daniel J. Stevens, USDA, Farm Service 
Agency, STOP 0514, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20250-
0514, telephone 202-720-5291. Electronic mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Executive Order 12866

    This final rule has been determined to be not significant for 
purposes of Executive Order 12866 and has not been reviewed by OMB.

Federal Assistance Program

    The title and number of the Federal Assistance Program, as found in 
the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance, to which this rule applies 
are: Commodity Loans and Loan Deficiency Payments--10.051.

Executive Order 12988

    This final rule has been reviewed in accordance with Executive 
Order 12988. The provisions of this final rule do not preempt State 
laws, are not retroactive, and do not involve administrative appeals.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    Section 1601(c) of the 2002 Act provides that the promulgation of 
regulations and the administration of Title I of the 2002 Act shall be 
done without regard to chapter 5 of title 44 of the United States Code, 
the Paperwork Reduction Act. Accordingly, these regulations and the 
forms and other information collection activities need to administer 
the program authorized by these regulations are not subject to review 
by the Office of Management and Budget under the Paperwork Reduction 
Act. Further, this rule does not contain new information collections or 
revise those collection currently approved by OMB.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act is not applicable to this final rule 
because FSA is not required by 5 U.S.C. 553 or any other law to publish 
a notice of proposed rulemaking for the subject of this rule.

Unfunded Federal Mandates

    This rule contains no Federal mandates for State, local, and tribal 
governments or the private sector as defined under the regulatory 
provisions of Title II of the Unfunded Mandate Reform Act (UMRA). Thus, 
this rule is not subject to the requirements of sections 202 and 205 of 
the UMRA.

Background

    Sections 1309 and 1310 of the 2002 Act terminated, beginning with 
the 2002 crop, the long standing marketing quota and price support 
program for peanuts. New and differing peanut programs were enacted in 
the same legislation. This rule removes, because of the new law, the 
marketing quota regulations in Chapter VII of Title 7 of the Code of 
Federal Regulations (CFR), specifically those at 7 CFR part 729. 
Removal of the price support regulations contained in Chapter XIV of 
Title 7 of the CFR will be covered by separate notice as will rules for 
the new program enacted in the 2002 Act. The revised text of 7 CFR part 
729 will not affect the 2001 and preceding crops. Those crops remain 
subject to the previous rules.
    Second, in the law that preceded the 2002 Act, the reserve stock 
level for flue cured tobacco was set to be the greater of 100,000 
pounds (farm sales weight) or 15 percent of the national quota for that 
tobacco for the marketing year immediately preceding the marketing year 
for which the determination is being made. Section 1610 of the 2002 Act 
changed 100,000 pounds to 60,000 pounds and 15 percent to 10 percent. 
This rule implements that change too. Reserve stock levels serve a 
function in the calculation of national tobacco quotas.

List of Subjects

7 CFR Part 723

    Agricultural commodities, Marketing quotas, Price support programs, 
Tobacco

7 CFR Part 729

    Agricultural commodities, Marketing quotas, Price support programs

    Accordingly, chapter VII is amended as follows:

PART 723--TOBACCO

    1. The authority citation for 7 CFR part 723 is revised to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1301 et seq.; 7 U.S.C. 1421; 7 U.S.C. 1445-1 
and 1445-2.


    2. Amend section 723.503 by revising paragraph (a)(3) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  723.503  Establishing the quotas.

    (a) * * *
    (3) Reserve stock level adjustment. The total calculated by adding 
the sums of paragraphs (a)(1) and (a)(2) of this section may be 
adjusted by the Director as necessary to maintain inventories of 
producer loan associations for burley and flue-cured tobacco at the 
reserve stock level. For burley, the reserve stock level is the larger 
of 50 million pounds farm sales weight or 15 percent of the previous 
year's national market quota. For flue-cured, the reserve stock level 
is the larger of 60 million pounds or 10 percent of the previous year's 
quota. The Director shall consider supply conditions when making any 
adjustment and a downward adjustment for burley tobacco may not exceed 
either 35 million pounds farm sales weight or 50 percent of the amount 
by which loan inventories exceed the reserve stock

[[Page 62872]]

level, whichever is larger. If the uncommitted pool stocks of burley 
tobacco for 2001 and subsequent crops equal or are less than the 
reserve stock level, then the downward adjustment in quota for that 
year may be made based on the reserve stock level for that kind of 
tobacco, with no downward limitation.
* * * * *

PART 729--[Revised]

    3. 7 CFR Part 729 is revised to read as follows:

PART 1729--PEANUT MARKETING QUOTAS

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 7271; 15 U.S.C. 714b-c; 7 U.S.C. 7959.


Sec.  729.1  Applicablity to 1996 through 2001 crops of peanuts.

    Sections 1309 and 1310 of the Farm Security Rural Investment Act of 
2002 terminated, beginning with the 2002 crop, the marketing quota and 
price support program for peanuts. However, 7 CFR part 729, revised as 
of January 1, 2002 continues to apply to the 1996 through 2001 crops of 
peanuts.

    Signed at Washington, DC on September 12, 2002.
James R. Little,
Administrator, Farm Service Agency.
[FR Doc. 02-25271 Filed 10-8-02; 8:45 am]
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