[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 43 (Tuesday, March 5, 2013)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 14236-14238]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-04964]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Part 905

[Doc. No. AMS-FV-12-0052; FV12-905-2 PR]


Oranges, Grapefruit, Tangerines, and Tangelos Grown in Florida; 
Revising Reporting Requirements and New Information Collection

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: This rule invites comments on a proposed change to reporting 
requirements prescribed under the Federal marketing order for oranges, 
grapefruit, tangerines, and tangelos grown in Florida (order). The 
Citrus Administrative Committee (Committee) is responsible for local 
administration of the order. This action would require all fresh citrus 
handlers to provide the Committee with a list of all growers whose 
fruit they handled each season. This information would enable the 
Committee to more efficiently administer the order and improve 
communication with growers. This proposal also announces the 
Agricultural Marketing Service's (AMS) intention to request approval 
from Office of Management and Budget (OMB) of a new information 
collection.

DATES: Comments on the proposed rulemaking must be received by May 6, 
2013. Pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act, comments on the 
information collection burden must be received by May 6, 2013.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments 
concerning this proposal. Comments must be sent to the Docket Clerk, 
Marketing Order and Agreement Division, Fruit and Vegetable Program, 
AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., STOP 0237, Washington, DC 
20250-0237; Fax: (202) 720-8938; or Internet: http://www.regulations.gov. All comments should reference the document number 
and the date and page number of this issue of the Federal Register and 
will be made available for public inspection in the Office of the 
Docket Clerk during regular business hours, or can be viewed at: http://www.regulations.gov. All comments submitted in response to this rule 
will be included in the record and will be made available to the 
public. Please be advised that the identity of the individuals or 
entities submitting the comments will be made public on the Internet at 
the address provided above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jennie M. Varela, Marketing 
Specialist, or Christian D. Nissen, Regional Director, Southeast 
Marketing Field Office, Marketing Order and Agreement Division, Fruit 
and Vegetable Program, AMS, USDA; Telephone: (863) 324-3375, Fax: (863) 
325-8793, or Email: [email protected] or 
[email protected].
    Small businesses may request information on complying with this 
regulation by contacting Laurel May, Marketing Order and Agreement 
Division, Fruit and Vegetable Program, AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence 
Avenue SW., STOP 0237, Washington, DC 20250-0237; Telephone: (202) 720-
2491, Fax: (202) 720-8938, or Email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This proposal is issued under Marketing 
Order No. 905, as amended (7 CFR part 905), regulating the handling of 
oranges, grapefruit, tangerines, and tangelos grown in Florida, 
hereinafter referred to as the ``order.'' The order is effective under 
the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, as amended (7 U.S.C. 
601-674), hereinafter referred to as the ``Act.''
    The Department of Agriculture (USDA) is issuing this rule in 
conformance with Executive Order 12866.
    This proposal has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988, Civil 
Justice Reform. This rule is not intended to have retroactive effect.
    The Act provides that administrative proceedings must be exhausted 
before parties may file suit in court. Under section 608c(15)(A) of the 
Act, any handler subject to an order may file with USDA a petition 
stating that the order, any provision of the order, or any obligation 
imposed in connection with the order is not in accordance with law and 
request a modification of the order or to be exempted therefrom. A 
handler is afforded the opportunity for a hearing on the petition. 
After the hearing, USDA would rule on the petition. The Act provides 
that the district court of the United States in any district in which 
the handler is an inhabitant, or has his or her principal place of 
business, has jurisdiction to review USDA's ruling on the petition, 
provided an action is filed not later than 20 days after the date of 
the entry of the ruling.
    This proposed rule would revise the reporting requirements 
prescribed under the order. This action would require all fresh citrus 
handlers to provide the Committee with a list of all growers whose 
fruit they handled each season. This information would enable the 
Committee to more efficiently administer the order and better 
communicate fresh market issues to fresh market citrus growers. This 
proposed change was unanimously recommended by the Committee at a July 
17, 2012, meeting.
    Section 905.71 of the order provides the Committee, with the 
approval of the Secretary, authority to collect information from 
handlers that is deemed necessary for administering the order. This 
proposed rule would utilize this authority to establish a new Sec.  
905.171 under the rules and regulations of the order. This new section 
would require handlers of fresh citrus to report to the Committee a 
list of names and contact information for all growers whose fruit they 
have shipped by June 15 of each season.
    Currently, the Committee does not require handlers to report any 
information regarding the growers who supply them. In order to 
communicate with its grower base regarding the order or Committee 
actions, the Committee depends on mailing lists from other industry 
groups. However, third-party lists are often incomplete, out of date, 
or do not distinguish between those growing for the fresh market or 
those growing for the processed market.
    Ninety percent of the volume of citrus produced in Florida is sold 
for processing into juice, which is not regulated under the order. 
Consequently, while there are an estimated 8,000 citrus growers, it is 
estimated only 750 growers produce for

[[Page 14237]]

the fresh market. Because there is no readily available comprehensive 
list of fresh citrus growers, the Committee could allocate a great deal 
of resources into information distribution and still not be certain 
that the information is getting to those covered under the order.
    Recently, the Committee began discussing potential changes to the 
order to make it more efficient and responsive to industry needs. In 
these discussions, the Committee recognized that grower involvement 
could be improved through focused communication with fresh market 
citrus growers. However, in order to actively reach out to growers in 
the industry, the Committee must have accurate information. The 
Committee discussed developing a list of growers compiled annually from 
information provided by handlers to make effective outreach possible. 
Some members expressed concerns about the disclosure of proprietary 
information. The Committee addressed these concerns by stating the 
scope of the information collection could be limited to only grower 
contact information.
    In addition, while this action would assist the Committee in its 
efforts to keep growers informed and to solicit their input on 
potential changes to the order, it also could be used to increase 
grower outreach and involvement in Committee elections and membership, 
facilitate grower participation in amendment and continuance referenda, 
and provide for a more efficient use of Committee resources.
    As a result, Committee members recommended collecting grower names 
and contact information each season from handlers of fresh citrus so 
that the Committee would have an accurate and updated list to use in 
communicating with fresh market citrus growers. June 15 was selected as 
the due date for this information as it is toward the end of the 
season, and Committee members agreed handlers would have a complete 
list at that time.
    This change would revise reporting requirements to require all 
fresh citrus handlers regulated under the order to provide the 
Committee with contact information for all growers whose fruit they 
have shipped. This information would be due by June 15 of each season. 
The change would enable the Committee to more efficiently administer 
the order and communicate fresh market issues to fresh market citrus 
growers.

Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis

    Pursuant to requirements set forth in the Regulatory Flexibility 
Act (RFA) (5 U.S.C. 601-612), the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) 
has considered the economic impact of this action on small entities. 
Accordingly, AMS has prepared this initial regulatory flexibility 
analysis.
    The purpose of the RFA is to fit regulatory actions to the scale of 
business subject to such actions in order that small businesses will 
not be unduly or disproportionately burdened. Marketing orders issued 
pursuant to the Act, and rules issued thereunder, are unique in that 
they are brought about through group action of essentially small 
entities acting on their own behalf.
    There are approximately 8,000 growers of citrus in the production 
area and approximately 45 handlers subject to regulation under the 
marketing order; however, it is estimated that only 750 growers produce 
for the fresh market. Small agricultural producers are defined by the 
Small Business Administration (SBA) as those having annual receipts 
less than $750,000, and small agricultural service firms are defined as 
those whose annual receipts are less than $7,000,000 (13 CFR 121.201).
    Based on production data, grower prices as reported by the National 
Agricultural Statistics Service, and the total number of Florida citrus 
growers, the average annual grower revenue is below $750,000. In 
addition, based on industry and Committee data, the average annual 
f.o.b. price for fresh Florida citrus during the 2010-11 season was 
approximately $12.16 per \4/5\ bushel carton, and total fresh shipments 
were approximately 30.4 million cartons. Using the average f.o.b. price 
and shipment data, about 55 percent of the Florida citrus handlers 
could be considered small businesses under SBA's definition. Thus, 
assuming a normal distribution, the majority of producers and handlers 
of Florida citrus may be classified as small entities.
    This proposed rule would revise the reporting requirements 
prescribed under the order. This action would require all fresh citrus 
handlers to provide the Committee with a list of all growers whose 
fruit they handled by June 15 of each season. This information would 
enable the Committee to more efficiently administer the order and 
better communicate fresh market issues to fresh market citrus growers. 
This rule would create a new Sec.  905.171, which would establish the 
new reporting requirement. The authority for this action is provided 
for in Sec.  905.71 of the order. This proposed change was unanimously 
recommended by the Committee at a July 17, 2012, meeting.
    Requiring grower contact information each season would impose a 
minor increase in the reporting burden on all citrus handlers. However, 
this data is already recorded and maintained by handlers as a part of 
their daily business. Handlers, regardless of size, should be able to 
readily access this information. Consequently, any additional costs 
associated with this change would be minimal and apply equally to all 
handlers.
    This action should also help growers receive more information about 
the activities under the order and make them more aware of their 
opportunities to participate in the efforts of the Committee. The 
benefits of this rule are expected to be equally available to all fresh 
citrus growers, regardless of their size.
    The Committee discussed making no change as an alternative to this 
action but determined that in order to efficiently carry out the 
objectives of the marketing order, the information collection within 
this new report was necessary. Therefore, this alternative was 
rejected.
    This proposal would establish one new reporting requirement and 
would require one new Committee form. Therefore, this proposed rule 
would impose a minor increase in the reporting burden for all handlers, 
which is discussed in the Paperwork Reduction Act section of this 
document.
    As with all Federal Marketing order programs, reports and forms are 
periodically reviewed to reduce information requirements and 
duplication by industry and public sector agencies. USDA has not 
identified any relevant Federal rules that duplicate, overlap, or 
conflict with this rule.
    AMS is committed to complying with the E-Government Act, to promote 
the use of the Internet and other information technologies to provide 
increased opportunities for citizen access to Government information 
and services, and for other purposes.
    Further, the Committee's meeting was widely publicized throughout 
the citrus industry and all interested persons were invited to attend 
the meeting and participate in Committee deliberations on all issues. 
Like all Committee meetings, the July 17, 2012, meeting was a public 
meeting and all entities, both large and small, were able to express 
views on this issue. Finally, interested persons are invited to submit 
comments on this proposed rule, including the regulatory and 
informational impacts of this action on small businesses.
    A small business guide on complying with fruit, vegetable, and 
specialty crop marketing agreements and orders may be viewed at: 
www.ams.usda.gov/

[[Page 14238]]

MarketingOrdersSmallBusinessGuide. Any questions about the compliance 
guide should be sent to Laurel May at the previously mentioned address 
in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.
    A 60-day comment period is provided to allow interested persons to 
respond to this proposal. All written comments timely received will be 
considered before a final determination is made on this matter.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 
chapter 35), this notice announces AMS's intent to request approval 
from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for a new information 
collection under OMB No. 0581-NEW. It will be merged with the forms 
currently approved under OMB No. 0581-0189 ``Generic Fruit Crops.''
    Title: Oranges, Grapefruit, Tangerines, and Tangelos Grown in 
Florida; Marketing Order No. 905.
    OMB Number: 0581-NEW.
    Type of Request: New Collection.
    Abstract: The information requirements in this request are 
essential to carry out the intent of the Act, to provide the 
respondents the type of service they request, and to administer the 
Florida citrus marketing order program.
    On July 17, 2012, the Committee unanimously recommended that all 
fresh citrus handlers, covered under the order, provide the Committee 
with a list of all growers whose fruit they handled each season. This 
form, titled Handler Supplier Report, would be submitted directly to 
the Committee by handlers by June 15 of each year.
    This information collection would benefit the facilitation of 
communication between the Committee and the growers. The information 
collected would only be used by authorized representatives of the USDA, 
including the AMS Fruit and Vegetable Program regional and headquarters 
staff, and authorized employees of the Committee. Authorized Committee 
employees would be the primary users of the information, and the AMS 
would be the secondary users. The Committee's staff would compile the 
information and utilize it to distribute regulatory information, to 
seek grower nominations for Committee positions, to keep fresh growers 
informed of issues affecting the fresh segment of the industry, and to 
prepare both the annual report and marketing policy, as required under 
the order. All proprietary information would be kept confidential in 
accordance with the Act and the order.
    The proposed request for new information collection under the order 
is as follows:

Handler Supplier Report

    Estimate of Burden: Public reporting burden for this collection of 
information is estimated to be an average of 0.33 hours per response.
    Respondents: Handlers of fresh Florida citrus
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 45
    Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 1
    Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 14.85 hours
    Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the agency, including whether the information will have practical 
utility; (2) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways 
to minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who 
are to respond, including the use of appropriate automated, electronic, 
mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms 
of information technology.
    Comments should reference OMB No. 0581-NEW and the Marketing Order 
for Oranges, Grapefruit, Tangerines, and Tangelos Grown in Florida, and 
should be sent to the USDA in care of the Docket Clerk at the 
previously-mentioned address or at http://www.regulations.gov.
    All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the 
request for OMB approval. All comments received will become a matter of 
public record and will be available for public inspection during 
regular business hours at the address of the Docket Clerk or at http://www.regulations.gov.
    If this proposed rule is finalized, this information collection 
will be merged with the forms currently approved under OMB No. 0581-
0189 ``Generic Fruit Crops.''
    Citrus, Marketing agreements, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.
    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 7 CFR part 905 is 
proposed to be amended as follows:

PART 905--ORANGES, GRAPEFRUIT, TANGERINES, AND TANGELOS GROWN IN 
FLORIDA

0
1. The authority citation for 7 CFR part 905 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority:  7 U.S.C. 601-674.

0
2. Section 905.171 is added to read as follows:


Sec.  905.171  Handler Supplier Report.

    Each handler shall furnish a supplier report to the Committee on an 
annual basis. Such reports shall be made on forms provided by the 
Committee and shall include the name and business address of each 
grower whose fruit was shipped or acquired by the handler during the 
season. Handlers shall submit this report to the Committee not later 
than June 15 of each season.

    Dated: February 27, 2013.
Rex A. Barnes,
Acting Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service.
[FR Doc. 2013-04964 Filed 3-4-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P