[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 111 (Tuesday, June 10, 2003)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 34519-34522]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-14553]


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

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration

7 CFR Part 802


Official Performance and Procedural Requirements for Grain 
Weighing Equipment and Related Grain Handling Systems

AGENCY: Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration, USDA.

ACTION: Direct final rule.

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

SUMMARY: In accordance with a periodic review of existing regulations, 
the Federal Grain Inspection Service (FGIS) of the Grain Inspection, 
Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) is amending the 
regulations under the United States Grain Standards Act, as amended, 
entitled Performance and Procedural Requirements for Grain Weighing 
Equipment and Related Grain Handling Systems. FGIS is incorporating by 
reference the applicable requirements of the National Institute of 
Standards and Technology (NIST) Handbook 44, ``Specifications, 
Tolerances, and Other Technical Requirements for Weighing and Measuring 
Devices,'' 2002 edition (Handbook 44 issued November 2001) and 
continues to adopt all of the requirements of NIST Handbook 105-1, 
``Specifications and Tolerances for Reference Standard Weights and 
Measures,'' 1990 revision (Handbook 105-1). Currently, the 1994 Edition 
of Handbook 44 and the 1990 edition of Handbook 105-1 are incorporated 
into Part 802 by reference.

DATES: This rule is effective September 8, 2003 without further action, 
unless adverse comments or written notice of intent to submit adverse 
comments are received by July 10, 2003. If adverse comments are 
received, GIPSA will publish a timely withdrawal of the rule in the 
Federal Register. The incorporation by reference of certain 
publications in this rule is approved by the Director of the Federal 
Register as of September 8, 2003.

ADDRESSES: Please send any adverse comments or written notice of intent 
to submit adverse comments to H. Tess Butler, GIPSA, USDA, 1400

[[Page 34520]]

Independence Avenue, SW., Room 1647-S, Washington, DC 20250-3604, or 
fax to (202) 690-2755. Comments may also be sent by e-mail to: 
[email protected]. All comments received will be made available 
for public inspection at the above address during business hours (7 CFR 
1.27(b)).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David Orr, Director, Field Management 
Division, at his e-mail address: [email protected], or telephone him 
at (202) 720-0228.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Executive Order 12866

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

Executive Order 12988

    This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988, Civil 
Justice Reform. This action is not intended to have a retroactive 
effect. The United States Grain Standards Act provides in section 87g 
that no State or subdivision may require or impose any requirements or 
restrictions concerning the inspection, weighing, or description of 
grain under the Act. Otherwise, this rule will not preempt any State or 
local laws, regulations, or policies unless they present irreconcilable 
conflict with this rule. There are no administrative procedures which 
must be exhausted prior to any judicial challenge to the provisions of 
this rule.

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification

    Pursuant to the requirements set forth in the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), it has been determined that 
this rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial 
number of small entities. GIPSA has determined that most users of the 
official weighing service and those entities that perform these 
services do not meet the requirements for small entities. This rule 
will affect entities engaged in shipping grain to and from points 
within the United States and exporting grain from the United States. 
GIPSA estimates approximately 9,500 off-farm storage facilities and 57 
export elevators in the United States could receive official weighing 
services by GIPSA, delegated States, or designated agencies. GIPSA also 
estimates this rule affects 18 scale manufacturing and 39 scale service 
companies who provide weighing equipment and service to these elevators 
and storage facilities. Twelve GIPSA field offices, 2 Federal/State 
offices, 7 GIPSA suboffices, 7 delegated States, and 11 designated 
agencies provide official weighing service. Under provisions of the 
Act, it is not mandatory for non-export grain to be officially weighed 
except for waterborne carriers into export port locations. Further, 
most users of the official weighing services and those entities that 
perform these services do not meet the requirements for small entities. 
Even though some users could be considered small entities, this rule 
only updates regulatory requirements and makes GIPSA weighing 
guidelines more like State weights and measures organizations' laws and 
regulations who automatically adopt Handbook 44 on a yearly basis. 
Updating these requirements will help manufacturers of weighing 
equipment and grain elevators avoid making, installing, and maintaining 
equipment to meet two sets of design and performance requirements for 
commercial and official weighing to meet old specifications and new. No 
additional cost or burden is expected to result from this action.

Information Collection and Recordkeeping Requirements

    In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 
chapter 35), the information collection and recordkeeping requirements 
in Part 802 have been approved previously by OMB and assigned OMB No. 
0580-0013.

Background

    Part 802 of the regulations, Official Performance and Procedural 
Requirements for Grain Weighing Equipment and Related Grain Handling 
Systems (7 CFR 802.0-802.1), sets forth certain procedures, 
specifications, tolerances, and other technical requirements for grain 
weighing equipment and related grain handling systems used in 
performing Class X and Class Y weighing services. This review of the 
regulations includes a determination of continued need for and 
consequences of the regulations. An objective of the review is to 
ensure that the regulations are consistent with FGIS policy and 
authority and are up-to-date. FGIS has determined that, in general, 
these regulations are serving their intended purpose, are consistent 
with FGIS policy and authority, and should remain in effect. FGIS, 
therefore, will incorporate the 2002 edition of Handbook 44 by 
reference into Part 802 of the regulations, in order to update the 
regulations, and continues to adopt all of the requirements of NIST 
Handbook 105-1 ``Specifications and Tolerances for Reference Standards 
and Field Standard Weights and Measures,'' 1990 edition.
    Effective August 18, 1995, FGIS incorporated by reference into Part 
802 of the regulations most provisions in NIST Handbook 44, 
``Specifications, Tolerances, and Other Technical Requirements for 
Weighing and Measuring Devices,'' 1994 edition (Handbook 44) (60 FR 
31907). Those provisions in Handbook 44 that obviously did not pertain 
to FGIS services were not incorporated by reference. The provisions 
that were not incorporated are listed in section 802.0(b) of the 
regulations.
    We are publishing this rule without a prior proposal because we 
regularly update this portion of the regulations and view this action 
as noncontroversial and anticipate no adverse public comment. This rule 
will be effective, as published in this document, 90 days after the 
date of publication in the Federal Register unless we receive written 
adverse comments or written notice of intent to submit adverse comments 
within 30 days of the date of publication of this rule in the Federal 
Register.
    Adverse comments are comments that suggest the rule should not be 
adopted or 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. Following the close of that 
comment period, the comments will be considered, and a final rule 
addressing the comments will be published.
    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 90 days following its publication.

Direct Final Action

    In 1995, FGIS incorporated by reference the 1994 edition of 
Handbook 44. FGIS will continue to adopt this edition by reference in 
section 802.0(a) of the regulations.
    The 1994 edition of Handbook 44 has been changed annually by NIST 
as new items are adopted, deleted, or revised by the National 
Conference on Weights and Measures. Many of these changes were for 
clarity. Further, most State weights and measures organizations 
automatically adopt each new edition of Handbook 44 and Handbook 105-1. 
FGIS will revise section 802.0(a) by incorporating by reference the 
2002

[[Page 34521]]

edition of Handbook 44 including the following sections:

Section 1.10 General Code
Section 2.20 Scales
Section 2.22 Automatic Bulk Weighing Systems
Section 2.23 Weights

    The following table lists those relevant codes and paragraphs, but 
not definitions, in which amendments and editorial changes were made in 
1994 through 2001 by the 79th, 80th, 81st, 82nd, 83rd, 84th, 85th, and 
86th National Conference on Weights and Measures (NCWM) as they 
appeared in the 1995 through 2002 editions of Handbook 44. The column 
headed ``Action'' indicates changes noted as ``added'', ``amended'', 
``deleted'', ``renumbered'', or provides an explanation.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
              Code                     Paragraph            Action
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                             1994 Amendments
------------------------------------------------------------------------
General.........................  G-UR.4.6..........  Added.
Scales..........................  S.2.5.1...........  Changed Electronic
                                                       in title and lead
                                                       sentence to
                                                       Digital
                                                       Indicating to be
                                                       consistent with
                                                       other references
                                                       in code.
---------------------------------
                             1995 Amendments
------------------------------------------------------------------------
General.........................  G-S.6.............  Amended.
Scales..........................  S.1.7.............  Amended.
Scales..........................  S.2.5.1...........  Amended.
Scales..........................  S.5.3.............  Amended.
Scales..........................  UR.1. Footnote....  Added.
Scales..........................  UR.1.5............  Added.
Scales..........................  Table 7a..........  Amended.
Scales..........................  S.5.1., S.5.2.,     Added paragraph
                                   S.5.3..             titles.
Scales..........................  Table S.6.3.b.--    Added missing
                                   Note 9.             third line.
---------------------------------
                             1996 Amendments
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Scales..........................  UR.3.2.1., Table    Added.
                                   UR.3.2.1..
Scales..........................  S.5.4.............  Amended.
Scales..........................  UR.4.3............  Amended.
---------------------------------
                             1997 Amendments
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Scales..........................  Table 3...........  Amended.
Scales..........................  N.1.3.4. a. & b...  Amended.
Scales..........................  T.N.9.............  Amended.
Automatic Bulk Weighing Systems.  S.3.3(b)..........  Added.
Scales..........................  T.N.8.1.2. & Table  Added title of
                                                       Table T.N.8.1.2.
                                                       and added
                                                       reference in
                                                       paragraph for
                                                       clarity.
Scales..........................  T.N.9.............  Revised Footnote.
---------------------------------
                             1998 Amendments
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Scales..........................  S.2.1.6...........  Amended.
Scales..........................  N.1.2.1...........  Amended.
Scales..........................  N.1.2.2...........  Amended.
Scales..........................  Table 1.1.1.,       Added Footnote.
                                   Footnote 3.
---------------------------------
                             1999 Amendments
------------------------------------------------------------------------
General.........................  G-S.1.............  Amended.
Scales..........................  S.1.2.2.1.........  Amended.
Scales..........................  S.1.2.2.2.........  Amended.
Scales..........................  Table 3...........  Amended Footnote
                                                       1.
Scales..........................  Table S.6.3.a.....  Amended.
Scales..........................  Table S.6.3.b.....  Amended Note
                                                       7.
Scales..........................  Table S.3.6.a. and  Added Note 20 &
                                   b..                 21.
Scales..........................  S.6.1.............  Amended.
Scales..........................  S.6.1.............  Amended.
Scales..........................  N.1.3.6.1.........  Amended.
Scales..........................  T.N.3.8...........  Amended.
Scales..........................  UR.1.3............  Amended.
Scales..........................  S.1.2.2.1.,         Added.
                                   UR.1.3.1., and
                                   UR.3.10.
Scales..........................  Table UR.3.2.1....  Amended.
---------------------------------
                             2000 Amendments
------------------------------------------------------------------------
General.........................  G-S.1.............  Added new (c).
                                                       Relettered d, e,
                                                       and f.
Scales..........................  S.1.4.3.(a).......  Amended.
Scales..........................  N.1.3.4...........  Amended.
Scales..........................  Tables S.6.3.(a)    Amended.
                                   and (b) Note 1.

[[Page 34522]]

 
Scales..........................  UR.3.9............  Amended.
---------------------------------
                             2001 Amendments
------------------------------------------------------------------------
General.........................  G-S.1.1...........  Added.
                                  G.S.1.(g).........
                                  G.S.1.(c).........
Scales..........................  Table S.6.3.a.....  Amended Column
                                  Table S.6.3.a.....   Headings.
                                  S.6.4.............  Added footnote 1.
                                  N.1.3.4.(a).......  Amended.
                                                      Amended.
Automatic Bulk Weighing Systems.  U.R.1.1...........  Removed ``and
                                                       enforceable'' for
                                                       consistency with
                                                       other
                                                       nonretroactive
                                                       statements.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 802

    Administrative practice and procedure, Export, Grain, Incorporation 
by reference, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.


0
For reasons set out in the preamble, accordingly, 7 CFR part 802 is 
amended as follows:

PART 802--OFFICIAL PERFORMANCE AND PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS FOR 
GRAIN WEIGHING EQUIPMENT AND RELATED GRAIN HANDLING SYSTEMS

0
1. The authority citation for part 802 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: Pub. L. 94-582, 90 Stat. 2867, as amended (7 U.S.C. 
71 et seq.).


0
2. Section 802.0 is revised to read as follows:


Sec.  802.0  Applicability.

    (a) The requirements set forth in this part 802 describe certain 
specifications, tolerances, and other technical requirements for grain 
weighing equipment and related grain handling systems used in 
performing Class X and Class Y weighing services, official inspection 
services, and commercial services under the Act. All scales used for 
official grain weight and inspection certification services provided by 
FGIS shall meet applicable requirements contained in the FGIS Weighing 
Handbook, the General Code, the Scales Code, the Automatic Bulk 
Weighing Systems Code, and the Weights Code of the 2002 edition of 
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Handbook 44, 
``Specifications, Tolerances, and Other Technical Requirements for 
Weighing and Measuring Devices'' (Handbook 44); and NIST Handbook 105-1 
(1990 Edition), ``Specifications and Tolerances for Reference Standards 
and Field Standard Weights and Measures,'' (Handbook 105-1). These 
requirements are confirmed to be met by having National Type Evaluation 
Program or Federal Grain Inspection Service type approval. Scales used 
for commercial purposes will be required to meet only the applicable 
requirements of the 2002 edition of the NIST Handbook 44. Pursuant to 
the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552(a), with the exception of the Handbook 
44 requirements listed in paragraph (b) of this section, the materials 
in Handbooks 44 and 105-1 are incorporated by reference as they exist 
on the date of approval and a notice of any change in these materials 
will be published in the Federal Register. This incorporation by 
reference was approved by the Director of the Federal Register in 
accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. The NIST Handbooks 
are for sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government 
Printing Office, Washington, DC 20403. They can be downloaded without 
charge at http://ts.nist.gov/ts/htdocs/230/235owmhome.htm. They are 
also available for inspection at the Office of the Federal Register, 
800 North Capital, Street, NW., Suite 700, Washington, DC.
    (b) The following Handbook 44 requirements are not incorporated by 
reference:

Scales (2.20)

S.1.8. Computing Scales
S.1.8.2. Money-Value Computation
S.1.8.3. Customer's Indications
S.1.8.4. Recorded Representations, Point of Sale
S.2.5.2. Jeweler's, Prescription, & Class I & II Scales
S.3.3. Scoop Counterbalance
N.1.3.2. Dairy-Product Test Scales
N.1.5. Discrimination Test (Not adopted for Grain Test Scales only)
N.1.8. Material Tests
N.3.1.2. Interim Approval
N.3.1.3. Enforcement Action For Inaccuracy
N.4. Coupled-in-Motion Railroad Weighing Systems
N.6. Nominal Capacity of Prescription Scales
T.1.2. Postal and Parcel Post Scales
T.2.3. Prescription Scales
T.2.4. Jewelers' Scales (all sections)
T.2.5. Dairy--Product-Test Scales (all sections)
T.N.3.9. Materials Test on Customer-Operated Bulk-Weighing Systems for 
Recycled Materials
UR.1.4. Grain Test Scales: Value of Scale Divisions
UR.3.1. Recommended Minimum Load
UR.3.1.1. Minimum Load, Grain Dockage

Automatic Bulk Weighing Systems (2.22)

N.1.3. Decreasing-Load Test

    Dated: June 4, 2003.
JoAnn Waterfield,
Acting Administrator.
[FR Doc. 03-14553 Filed 6-9-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-EN-P