[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 74 (Monday, April 20, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17945-17947]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-9012]



[[Page 17945]]

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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration


Proposed Posting, Posting, and Deposting of Stockyards

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

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration 
(GIPSA) is taking several actions to post and depost stockyards under 
the Packers and Stockyards Act (P&S Act). Specifically, we are 
proposing that 23 stockyards now operating subject to the P&S Act be 
posted. We are posting 12 stockyards that were identified previously as 
operating subject to the Act. Eleven other facilities, however, were 
not posted because they were found to be abandoned or no longer 
functioning as a stockyard and no longer operating subject to the P&S 
Act. Finally, we are deposting 19 stockyards that can no longer be used 
as stockyards.

DATES: For the proposed posting of stockyards, we will consider 
comments that we receive by May 5, 2009.
    For the deposted stockyards, the deposting is effective on April 
20, 2009.

ADDRESSES: We invite you to submit comments on this notice. You may 
submit comments by any of the following methods:
     E-Mail: [email protected].
     Mail: H. Tess Butler, GIPSA, USDA, 1400 Independence 
Avenue, SW., Room 1654-S, Washington, DC 20250-3604.
     Fax: (202) 690-2755.
     Hand Delivery or Courier: H. Tess Butler, GIPSA, USDA, 
1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Room 1654-S, Washington, DC 20250-3604.
     Internet: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-
line instructions for submitting comments.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards 
Administration (GIPSA) administers and enforces the P&S Act of 1921 (7 
U.S.C. 181 et seq.). The P&S Act prohibits unfair, deceptive, and 
fraudulent practices by livestock market agencies, dealers, stockyard 
owners, meat packers, swine contractors, and live poultry dealers in 
the livestock, poultry, and meatpacking industries.
    Section 302 of the P&S Act (7 U.S.C. 202) defines the term 
``stockyard'' as follows: ``* * * any place, establishment, or facility 
commonly known as stockyards, conducted, operated, or managed for 
profit or nonprofit as a public market for livestock producers, 
feeders, market agencies, and buyers, consisting of pens, or other 
enclosures, and their appurtenances, in which live cattle, sheep, 
swine, horses, mules, or goats are received, held, or kept for sale or 
shipment in commerce.''
    Section 302(b) of the P&S Act requires the Secretary of Agriculture 
to determine which stockyards meet this definition, and to notify the 
owner of the stockyard and the public of that determination by posting 
a notice in each designated stockyard. Once the Secretary provides 
notice to the stockyard owner and the public, the stockyard is subject 
to the provisions of Title III of the P&S Act (7 U.S.C. 201-203 and 
205-217a) until the Secretary deposts the stockyard by public notice. 
To post a stockyard, we assign the stockyard a facility number, notify 
the stockyard owner, and send an official posting notice to the 
stockyard owner to display in a public area of the stockyard. This 
process is referred to as ``posting.'' The date of posting is the date 
that the posting notices are physically displayed at the stockyard. A 
facility that does not meet the definition of a stockyard is not 
subject to the Act, and therefore cannot be posted. A posted stockyard 
can be deposted, which occurs when the facility is no longer used as a 
stockyard.
    We are hereby notifying stockyard owners and the public that the 
following 23 stockyards meet the definition of a stockyard, and that we 
propose to designate these stockyards as posted stockyards.

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           Proposed facility no.                                                     Stockyard name and location
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AL-197....................................  Screamer 5L Auction, Abberville, Alabama.
AR-182....................................  R. Tucker, LLC, dba Madison County Livestock Auction, Inc., Huntsville, Arkansas.
KS-209....................................  Lyon County Livestock Sales & Services, LLC, dba Admire Livestock Auction, Admire, Kansas.
KY-182....................................  Cattlemen's Livestock Market, LLC, Rockfield, Kentucky.
KY-183....................................  Mill's 31-E Auction Center, Scottsville, Kentucky.
KY-184....................................  Blue Grass South Livestock Market, LLC, Stanford, Kentucky.
MI-151....................................  Tom Moore Sales, Onsted, Michigan.
MI-152....................................  United Producers, Inc., St. Louis, Michigan.
MI-153....................................  United Producers, Inc., Manchester, Michigan.
MI-154....................................  United Producers, Inc., Cass City, Michigan.
NC-178....................................  Taylorsville Lions Club Alexander County Fair, Taylorsville, North Carolina.
NC-179....................................  Edward Johnson Auctioneers, Inc., dba Johnson's Cattle Auction, Canton, North Carolina.
NM-124....................................  Cow House Auction, Kirtland, New Mexico.
OH-153....................................  Larue Horse Sale, LLC, LaRue, Ohio.
OK-215....................................  Old Goat Enterprises, LLC, dba Countryside Auction, Chandler, Oklahoma.
TN-200....................................  Longhorn Auction Company and Livestock Sales, Mountain City, Tennessee.
TN-201....................................  James Linville, dba Scotts Hill Stockyard, Scotts Hill, Tennessee.
TN-202....................................  Tennessee Livestock Producers, Inc., Columbia, Tennessee.
TX-351....................................  Great Western Auctions, LLC, Magnolia, Texas.
TX-352....................................  Texas Cattle Exchange, Inc., Eastland, Texas.
TX-353....................................  Elkhart Horse Center, Elkhart, Texas.
TX-354....................................  Marion County Stockyards, Jefferson, Texas.
VA-164....................................  Victoria Livestock Market, Victoria, Virginia.
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    We are also notifying the public that the stockyards listed in the 
following table meet the P&S Act's definition of a stockyard and that 
we have posted the stockyards. On March 26, 2008, we published a notice 
in the Federal

[[Page 17946]]

Register (70 FR 15969-15970) of our proposal to post these 12 
stockyards. Since we received no comments to our proposal, we have now 
assigned the stockyards a facility number, notified the owner of the 
stockyard facilities, and sent notices to the owner of the stockyard to 
be displayed in public areas of the stockyard. The table below reflects 
the date of posting for each stockyard.

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                                Stockyard name and
         Facility No.                location          Date of posting
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AL-196.......................  Clay County Goat &    July 11, 2008.
                                Poultry Auction,
                                Goodwater, Alabama.
AR-172.......................  G.P. Rivers, dba      July 21, 2008.
                                Rivers Horse
                                Center, Lewisville,
                                Arkansas.
AR-180.......................  King Livestock Goat   July 16, 2008.
                                and Sheep Auction,
                                North Lonoke,
                                Arkansas.
CO-156.......................  Western Slope         July 11, 2008.
                                Cattlemen's
                                Livestock Auction,
                                LLC, Loma, Colorado.
GA-231.......................  Thomas County         July 7, 2008.
                                Stockyards, Inc.,
                                Thomasville,
                                Georgia.
MS-176.......................  Cuevas Auction,       July 10, 2008.
                                Picayune,
                                Mississippi.
NY-176.......................  Howard W. Visscher,   July 16, 2008.
                                Hilltop Dairy
                                Auction, Savannah,
                                New York.
SC-162.......................  Claxton's Auction     July 16, 2008.
                                Co., LLC, Ruffin,
                                South Carolina.
TN-197.......................  Jimmy Brown, dba JB   July 16, 2008.
                                Livestock Auction,
                                Gleason, Tennessee.
TN-198.......................  Wallace P. Mitchell,  July 21, 2008.
                                dba Mitchell's
                                Trade Center &
                                Auctions, Inc.,
                                Castalian Springs,
                                Tennessee.
TX-350.......................  Hereford Livestock    July 11, 2008.
                                Exchange, Hereford,
                                Texas.
VA-148.......................  Blythe Livestock,     July 15, 2008.
                                LLC, Courtland,
                                Virginia.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    We are further notifying the public that the following facilities, 
which met the definition of a stockyard previously, were not posted. We 
published notices proposing to post these 11 stockyards in the Federal 
Register on July 25, 2005, (70 FR 42532-42533); April 5, 2006 (71 FR 
17071-17072); and March 26, 2008, (73 FR 15969-15970) respectively, 
however, the facilities were not posted because they no longer meet the 
definition of a stockyard. The facilities were either abandoned or 
underwent a change such that they no longer function as stockyards.

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              Proposed facility No.                                                     Facility name and location
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AL-195..........................................  R&S Auctions, Clayton, Alabama.
AR-178..........................................  B-B Livestock Auction & Sales, Inc., Beebe, Arkansas.
FL-138..........................................  Col. Jerry Colvin, dba C.J. Auctions, Lamont, Florida.
IN-167..........................................  Northern Indiana Collection Point, LLC, Shipshewana, Indiana.
KY-180..........................................  Southern Kentucky Livestock Market, Inc., Rockfield, Kentucky.
KY-181..........................................  Wigwam Livestock Market, Inc., Horse Cave, Kentucky.
MO-288..........................................  CRS Sales, LLC, Highlandville, Missouri.
TN-196..........................................  Country Horse Sales, LLC, Westmoreland, Tennessee.
TN-199..........................................  Middle Tennessee Sheep and Goat Sale, LLC, Dickson, Tennessee.
WI-150..........................................  Turenne Livestock Market, Thorp, Wisconsin.
WV-120..........................................  Meadow View Farm, Thornton, West, Virginia.
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    Finally, we are notifying the public that the following 19 
stockyards no longer meet the definition of a stockyard and they are 
being deposted. We depost stockyards when the facility can no longer be 
used as a stockyard. The reasons a facility can no longer be used as a 
stockyard may include the following: (1) The market agency has moved 
and the posted facility is abandoned; (2) the facility has been torn 
down or otherwise destroyed, such as by fire; (3) the facility is 
dilapidated beyond repair; or (4) the facility has been converted and 
its function has changed.

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              Facility No.                   Stockyard name and location                 Date posted
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AR-105..................................  B-B Livestock Sales,              February 16, 1959.
                                           Incorporated.
AR-131..................................  Morrilton Livestock Auction,      September 30, 1959.
                                           Morrilton, Arkansas.
AZ-116..................................  Arizona Livestock Auction, Inc.,  May 13, 1997.
                                           Phoenix, Arizona.
CO-152..................................  Garfield Livestock Market, Inc.,  February 25, 1986.
                                           Silt, Colorado.
ID-114..................................  Custer County Livestock           August 22, 1961.
                                           Marketing Association, Inc.,
                                           MacKay, Idaho.
KS-108..................................  Cedar Vale Sale Barn, Inc.,       May 26, 1959.
                                           Cedar Vale, Kansas.
KS-113..................................  Coldwater Livestock Sales Co.,    April 12, 1950.
                                           Inc., Coldwater, Kansas.
KS-137..................................  Great Bend Livestock Sales,       April 18, 1950.
                                           Inc., Great Bend, Kansas.
KS-145..................................  Hutchinson Livestock Commission   April 10, 1950.
                                           Co., Inc., Hutchinson, Kansas.
KS-169..................................  Onaga Livestock Auction, Inc.,    May 27, 1959.
                                           Wheaton, Kansas.
KS-172..................................  Franklin County Livestock         February 12, 1963.
                                           Commission Co., Ottawa, Kansas.
KS-186..................................  Smith Center Livestock Auction,   October 23, 1957.
                                           Smith Center, Kansas.
MO-100..................................  South Central Stockyards, LLC,    April 21, 1960.
                                           Alton, Missouri.
MO-152..................................  Licking Livestock Auction,        May 15, 1959.
                                           Licking, Missouri.
TX-280..................................  Weatherford Stockyards Company,   August 12, 1960.
                                           Mineral Wells, Texas.
UT-112..................................  Spanish Fork Livestock Auction,   October 24, 1959.
                                           Co., Spanish Fork, Utah.
VA-133..................................  Smithfield Livestock, Inc.,       March 9, 1959.
                                           Smithfield, Virginia.
VA-144..................................  Abingdon Stockyard Exchange,      March 4, 1959.
                                           Inc., dba Wytheville Stockyard,
                                           Wytheville, Virginia.
VA-149..................................  Central Virginia Livestock        April 13, 1976.
                                           Market, Inc., Amherst, Virginia.
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[[Page 17947]]

Effective Date

    These depostings are effective upon publication in the Federal 
Register because they relieve a restriction and, therefore, may be made 
effective in less than 30 days after publication in the Federal 
Register without prior notice or other public procedure.

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 202.

Alan R. Christian,
Acting Administrator, Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards 
Administration.
[FR Doc. E9-9012 Filed 4-17-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-KD-P