[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 212 (Monday, November 3, 2003)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 62225-62226]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-27540]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

9 CFR Part 71

[Docket No. 02-069-2]


Interstate Movement of Swine Within a Production System; 
Inspection of Swine

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: We are amending the regulations pertaining to the interstate 
movement of swine by limiting the requirement for mandatory veterinary 
inspections, at intervals of 30 days or less, to swine that are or will 
be in the process of moving interstate within a swine production system 
and to the premises on which such swine are housed. With this change, 
swine that have arrived at a finishing house or other final destination 
within a single swine production system will no longer be required to 
undergo veterinary inspections at intervals of 30 days or less. In 
order to ensure that finishing house animals will still undergo regular 
health monitoring, swine that have completed their interstate movement 
within the swine production system, as well as the premises on which 
they are housed, will have to be inspected in accordance with State 
regulations. This rule reduces the frequency of veterinary inspections 
for swine that have completed their interstate movement within a single 
swine production system without diminishing the effectiveness of our 
swine-disease monitoring and surveillance activities.

EFFECTIVE DATE: November 3, 2003.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Adam Grow, Senior Staff 
Veterinarian, National Center for Animal Health Programs, VS, APHIS, 
4700 River Road Unit 43, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231; (301) 734-7708.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    The regulations in subchapter C of chapter I, title 9, Code of 
Federal Regulations, govern the interstate movement of animals and 
animal products to prevent the dissemination of livestock and poultry 
diseases in the United States. Part 71 of subchapter C (referred to 
below as the regulations) includes, among other things, requirements 
for the identification and inspection of swine being moved interstate.
    On May 23, 2003, we published in the Federal Register (68 FR 28167-
28168, Docket No. 02-069-1) a proposal to amend the regulations to 
allow for greater flexibility in health inspections of swine that have 
completed their movement within a swine production system. 
Specifically, we proposed to amend our definition of swine production 
health plan in Sec.  71.1 by limiting the requirement for mandatory 
veterinary inspections, at intervals of 30 days or less, to swine that 
are or will be in the process of moving interstate within a swine 
production system and to the premises on which such swine are housed. 
Under our proposed rule, the swine production health plan would have to 
provide for health monitoring, including inspection by the swine 
production system accredited veterinarian(s), of all swine within the 
system. The required frequency of inspections would vary according to 
the nature of the premises and the swine that populate them. 
Inspections of premises that contain swine that are or will be in the 
process of moving interstate within the swine production system and of 
all swine on those premises would still have to be conducted by the 
accredited veterinarian(s) at intervals of no greater than 30 days. 
Inspections of premises containing only swine that have completed their 
interstate movement within a single swine production system and of all 
swine on those premises would have to be conducted in accordance with 
State regulations.
    The proposed rule was intended to allow for greater flexibility in 
health monitoring within a swine production system without diminishing 
the effectiveness of our swine-disease monitoring and surveillance 
activities.
    We solicited comments concerning our proposal for 60 days ending 
July 22, 2003. We received three comments by that date. They were from 
a veterinary association and pork producers' associations. All three 
commenters favored the proposed rule.
    Therefore, for the reasons given in the proposed rule, we are 
adopting the proposed rule as a final rule, without change.

Miscellaneous

    While we are adopting the proposed rule as a final rule without 
change, we are making three minor editorial changes to the regulations 
in part 71 in this final rule. First, in Sec.  71.3(c), we are 
correcting an outdated reference to certain provisions of the 
tuberculosis regulations in part 77. Those provisions had been 
contained in Sec.  77.5, but in a final rule published in the Federal 
Register on October 23, 2000 (65 FR 63502-63533, Docket No. 99-038-5), 
were moved to Sec.  77.17. The reference in Sec.  71.3(c) to those 
provisions should have been updated at that time, but was not; we are 
correcting that oversight in this final rule. The other two changes we 
are making simply correct the numbering of footnotes found in 
Sec. Sec.  71.18 and 71.20.

Effective Date

    This is a substantive rule that relieves restrictions and, pursuant 
to the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 553, may be made effective less than 30 
days after publication in the Federal Register.
    This rule limits the requirement for mandatory veterinary 
inspections, at intervals of 30 days or less, to swine that are or will 
be in the process of moving interstate within a swine production system 
and to the premises on which such swine are housed. By reducing the 
frequency of required veterinary inspections for swine that have 
completed their interstate movement within a single swine production 
system, this final rule eases the burden on swine producers, 
particularly those involved in the operation of swine finishing houses 
or other final receiving destinations in swine production systems. 
Therefore, the Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection 
Service has determined that this rule should be made effective upon 
publication in the Federal Register.

[[Page 62226]]

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act

    This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12866. The rule 
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.
    This final rule removes a requirement in Sec.  71.1 for veterinary 
inspections, at intervals no greater than 30 days, of swine that have 
already completed their interstate movement within a swine production 
system.
    The entities likely to be affected by this final rule are swine 
owners and swine finishing houses or other final receiving destinations 
in swine production systems. Data from the 1997 Census of Agriculture 
suggest that approximately 109,754 swine farms may be affected, and 
that 98 percent of these swine farms can be classified as small 
entities under the Small Business Administration criterion of $750,000 
or less in revenue per year.\1\
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    \1\ 1997 Census of Agriculture, Hogs and Pigs Inventory (http://www.nass.usda.gov).
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    The overall economic impact of this rule is likely to be positive 
but small. Swine operations will be able to forgo certain costs of 
inspections at the finishing houses or other final receiving premises 
in the swine production system. The annual savings that may be realized 
by each swine operation are difficult to estimate because many of the 
accredited veterinarians who perform the inspections are held under a 
retainer and perform other services for the swine operation. However, 
this rulemaking will allow the time and resources of the accredited 
veterinarian to be redirected to other issues at the finishing houses 
or other receiving premises, like caring for sick animals, thereby 
benefitting swine owners.
    Under these circumstances, the Administrator of the Animal and 
Plant Health Inspection Service has determined that this action will 
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities.

Executive Order 12372

    This program/activity is listed in the Catalog of Federal Domestic 
Assistance under No. 10.025 and is subject to Executive Order 12372, 
which requires intergovernmental consultation with State and local 
officials. (See 7 CFR part 3015, subpart V.)

Executive Order 12988

    This final rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988, 
Civil Justice Reform. This rule: (1) Preempts all State and local laws 
and regulations that are in conflict 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 final rule contains no new 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 71

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


0
Accordingly, we are amending 9 CFR part 71 as follows:

PART 71--GENERAL PROVISIONS

0
1. The authority citation for part 71 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 8301-8317; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.4.


0
2. In Sec.  71.1, in the definition of swine production health plan, in 
the second paragraph, the first sentence is removed and four new 
sentences are added in its place to read as follows:


Sec.  71.1  Definitions.

* * * * *
    Swine production health plan. * * * The plan must identify all 
premises that are part of the swine production system and that receive 
or send swine in interstate commerce and must provide for health 
monitoring of all swine within the system. Such health monitoring must 
include inspections by the swine production system accredited 
veterinarian(s). Inspections of all identified premises that contain 
swine that are or will be in the process of moving interstate within 
the swine production system and of all swine on those premises must be 
conducted by the accredited veterinarian(s) at intervals of no greater 
than 30 days. Inspections of all identified receiving premises that 
contain only swine that have completed their interstate movement within 
a single swine production system and of all swine on those premises 
must be conducted in accordance with State regulations. * * *
* * * * *


Sec.  71.3  [Amended]

0
3. In Sec.  71.3, paragraph (c)(3), the citation ``Sec.  77.5'' is 
removed and the citation ``Sec.  77.17'' is added in its place.


Sec.  71.18  [Amended]

0
4. In Sec.  71.18, paragraph (a)(5), redesignate footnote 2 as footnote 
6.


Sec.  71.20  [Amended]

0
5. In Sec.  71.20, paragraph (a), redesignate footnote 6 as footnote 7.

    Done in Washington, DC, this 28th day of October, 2003.
Kevin Shea,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 03-27540 Filed 10-31-03; 8:45 am]
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