[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 24 (Wednesday, February 5, 2003)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 5802-5805]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-2682]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

9 CFR Part 94

[Docket No. 01-037-2]


Importation of Used Farm Equipment From Regions Affected With 
Foot-and-Mouth Disease

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Affirmation of interim rule as final rule.

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SUMMARY: We are adopting as a final rule, without change, an interim 
rule that amended the regulations concerning foot-and-mouth disease to 
prohibit the importation of used farm equipment from regions affected 
with foot-and-mouth disease unless the equipment has been steam-cleaned 
prior to export to the United States so that it is free of exposed dirt 
and other particulate matter. The interim rule also provided that 
cleaned equipment that arrives at the port of arrival with a minimal 
amount of exposed dirt may, under certain conditions, be cleaned at

[[Page 5803]]

the port of arrival. The interim rule was necessary to help prevent the 
introduction of foot-and-mouth disease into the United States.

EFFECTIVE DATE: The interim rule became effective on March 31, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Karen James-Preston, Assistant 
Director, Technical Trade Services Team, National Center for Import and 
Export, VS, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 40, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231; 
(301) 734-8364.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The regulations in 9 CFR part 94 (referred to below as the 
regulations) govern 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). 
Because of the highly communicable nature of FMD, it is necessary to 
protect livestock that are free of the disease from any animals, animal 
products, or other articles that might be contaminated with the FMD 
virus.
    In an interim rule effective March 31, 2001, and published in the 
Federal Register on May 13, 2002 (67 FR 31935-31938, Docket No. 01-037-
1), we amended the regulations to prohibit the importation of used farm 
equipment from regions affected with FMD unless the equipment was 
steam-cleaned prior to export to the United States so that it is free 
of exposed dirt and other particulate matter. Such equipment must also 
be accompanied by an original certificate signed by an authorized 
official of the national animal health service of the country of origin 
stating that such cleaning was done. We also provided that cleaned 
equipment that arrives at a U.S. port with the required certification 
from the exporting region but is found upon Animal and Plant Health 
Inspection Service (APHIS) inspection to contain a minimal amount of 
exposed dirt or other particulate matter may be cleaned at the port of 
arrival should the APHIS inspector determine that there are adequate 
facilities and personnel at the port to conduct such cleaning without 
the risk of disease contamination.
    Comments on the interim rule were required to be received on or 
before July 12, 2002. We received two comments by that date, from a 
farmer and a representative of a dairy industry organization. Both 
commenters supported the interim rule but requested that additional 
steps be taken to prevent the introduction of FMD into the United 
States. One commenter asked APHIS to ensure that dirt or other 
particulate matter trapped in large tires on farm equipment would be 
adequately cleaned. We believe that the cleaning and inspection 
requirements established by the interim rule will be adequate to ensure 
that any such residue will be eliminated.
    The second commenter supported the requirement for pre-export steam 
cleaning, but suggested that if an APHIS inspector notes exposed dirt 
on the equipment at the port of arrival and determines that the 
equipment can be cleaned, APHIS should require not only that the 
equipment be steam-cleaned but disinfected as well, using an approved 
disinfectant. The interim rule provides that all used farm equipment 
imported into the United States must be steam-cleaned free of all 
exposed dirt and other particulate matter. If such equipment were to 
arrive at the port of entry with more than a minimal amount of exposed 
soil present, it would be clear to an inspector that the required 
cleaning was not properly conducted and the equipment would be denied 
entry. The inspector may only allow cleaning at the port of entry if 
the amount of exposed soil is minimal enough to allow cleaning and 
there are adequate facilities and personnel at the port to accomplish 
the cleaning. Thus any cleaning that might take place at a port of 
entry would be necessary to address the presence of only minimal 
amounts of exposed soil. Steam-cleaning, whether conducted in the 
equipment's country of origin or at a U.S. port, is sufficient to 
disinfect the equipment. Therefore, we do not believe that it is 
necessary to prescribe the use of a disinfectant in addition to the 
cleaning that would be conducted.
    Therefore, for the reasons given in the interim rule and in this 
document, we are adopting the interim rule as a final rule without 
change.
    This action also affirms the information contained in the interim 
rule concerning Executive Orders 12866 and 12988 and the Paperwork 
Reduction Act.
    Further, this action has been determined to be not significant for 
the purposes of Executive Order 12866 and, therefore, has not been 
reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    This rule affirms an interim rule that amended the regulations by 
prohibiting the importation of used farm equipment from regions 
affected with FMD unless the equipment is steam-cleaned prior to export 
to the United States so that it is free of exposed dirt and other 
particulate matter and the equipment is accompanied by an original 
certificate from an authorized official of the national animal health 
service of the region of origin stating that such cleaning was done. 
The interim rule also provided that cleaned equipment that arrives at 
the port of arrival with a minimal amount of exposed dirt may, under 
certain conditions, be cleaned at the port of arrival.
    The following analysis addresses the economic effect of the interim 
rule on small entities, as required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act.
    While the term ``farm equipment,'' as defined in Sec.  94.0 of the 
regulations, refers to a variety of vehicles and machinery used in 
agriculture, tractors are the one category of farm equipment for which 
trade data are maintained on previously used items.\1\ Between 1996 and 
2001, U.S. imports of used tractors were valued at about $62 million 
annually, and comprised about 4 percent of the value of all U.S. 
agricultural tractor imports (table 1). U.S. exports of used tractors 
were worth a little more than half that amount, about $34 million per 
year. Net imports of used tractors were thus worth about $28 million 
per year, about 10 percent of the value of net imports of tractors.\2\
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    \1\ Harmonized tariff code 8701901090: Tractors, suitable for 
agricultural use, used, except track-laying type.
    \2\ The term ``net imports'' refers to the total value of 
tractor imports minus the total value of tractor exports.

[[Page 5804]]



 Table 1.--Value of U.S. Imports and Exports of Tractors and Used Tractors Suitable for Agricultural Use, 6-Year
                                              Averages (1996-2001)
                                   [Tractor values are in millions of dollars]
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                                                                                                   Percent used
                                                                  New and used    Used tractors    tractors, by
                                                                  tractors \1\         \2\            value
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Imports........................................................       $1,483.12          $62.01              4.2
Exports........................................................        1,190.79           33.79              2.8
    Net imports................................................          292.33           28.22              9.7 
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Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, as reported by the World Trade Atlas.
\1\ Harmonized tariff code 870190: Tractors, not elsewhere specified or included.
\2\ Harmonized tariff code 8701901090: Tractors, suitable for agricultural use, used, except track-laying type.

    The United Kingdom is the largest supplier of used tractors to the 
United States, followed by Japan and Germany (table 2). These three 
countries have, on average, supplied nearly three-fourths of annual 
used tractor imports by the United States over the past 6 years. 
Canada, Netherlands, France, and Belgium supplied about 20 percent of 
imports combined.

 Table 2.--Value of Used Tractor Imports\1\ From the Leading Sources, 6-
                        Year Averages (1996-2001)
               [Tractor values are in millions of dollars]
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                                                              Percentage
                  Country                    Average value     of total
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United Kingdom............................          $18.766         30.3
Japan.....................................           13.875         22.4
Germany...................................           13.524         21.8
Canada....................................            5.481          8.8
Netherlands...............................            3.411          5.5
France....................................            1.960          3.2
Belgium...................................            1.509          2.4
Total from above sources..................           58.526         94.3
    Total from all sources................           62.014         -
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Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, as reported
  by the World Trade Atlas.
\1\ Harmonized tariff code 8701901090: Tractors, suitable for
  agricultural use, used, except track-laying type.

    Imports of used farm equipment from several of these countries have 
already been restricted by the interim rule because of FMD outbreaks in 
those countries after the rule became effective on March 31, 2001. 
However, import levels suggest that the interim rule has had little 
impact on trade volumes. For example, the value of used tractor imports 
from the United Kingdom (Great Britain and Northern Ireland) during 
2001--throughout which its FMD-free status was revoked, except for the 
first 14 days of January--totaled $18.025 million. This amount compares 
closely with its 1996-2001 annual average of $18.766 million. Used 
tractor imports in the same year from Netherlands and France, both of 
which had their FMD-free status revoked at different times during 2001, 
were valued at $2.977 million and $1.800 million, respectively, amounts 
not very different from their 1996-2001 annual averages of $3.411 
million and $1.960 million. Finally, used tractor imports from Japan in 
2001, which had its FMD-free status revoked throughout the year, were 
valued at $15.071 million, an amount larger than its 1996-2001 annual 
average of $13.875 million.
    Used tractors entering the United States from regions affected with 
FMD must be certified by the national animal health service of their 
region of origin as having been steam-cleaned before being exported. 
APHIS does not have information on steam-cleaning costs overseas, but 
costs at U.S. ports provide a basis for assessing the impact of the 
interim rule. The cost for steam-cleaning all the tractors shipped in a 
40-foot container holding approximately 16 tractors with rotary tillers 
is roughly $2,000.\3\ We expect the cost of certification would likely 
be less than $50. The average price of imported used tractors is about 
$4,940 each.\4\ Thus, the value of the tractors in a container would 
total about $79,040, of which the $2,050 cost of cleaning and 
certification represents about 2.6 percent.
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    \3\ APHIS cost estimates for the port of Long Beach, CA.
    \4\ Six-year average, 1996-2001. U.S. Department of Commerce, 
Bureau of the Census, as reported by the World Trade Atlas.
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    The principal cost component in both cleaning and certification is 
labor. It is expected, therefore, that cleaning and certification costs 
would not be any higher overseas, and could well be lower, depending on 
relative labor costs. The 2.6 percent may represent an upper bound of 
the additional import expenses that would be attributable to the 
interim rule.
    The two groups that can be expected to incur some costs as a result 
of the interim rule are importers of used farm equipment and farmers; 
if passed along by the exporter, importers and farmers will likely 
split the additional cost of the required cleaning and certification 
depending on the demand elasticity in the market for used farm 
equipment. Most importers likely employ fewer than 100 people, the 
threshold the Small Business Administration has set for such firms to 
be called small entities. Most farms earn $750,000 or less in annual 
receipts, the corresponding threshold for agricultural operations to be 
called small entities. Therefore, most businesses likely to be affected 
by the interim rule are small entities. However, the data on used 
tractors, currently the only data available on used farm equipment, 
indicate that the effects will

[[Page 5805]]

not be large; cleaning and certification expenses will add less than 3 
percent to the cost of imported used tractors.
    Under these circumstances, the Administrator of the Animal and 
Plant Health Inspection Service has determined that this rule will not 
have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities.

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.

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

    Accordingly, we are adopting as a final rule, without change, the 
interim rule that amended 9 CFR part 94 and that was published at 67 FR 
31935-31938 on May 13, 2002.

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 450, 7711-7714, 7751, 7754, 8303, 8306, 
8308, 8310, 8311, and 8315; 21 U.S.C. 136 and 136a; 31 U.S.C. 9701; 
42 U.S.C. 4331 and 4332; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.4.

    Done in Washington, DC, this 30th day of January 2003.
Kevin Shea,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 03-2682 Filed 2-4-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P