[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 11 (Tuesday, January 19, 2016)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 2774-2775]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-00958]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration

7 CFR Part 810


United States Standards for Sunflower Seed

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

ACTION: Request for information.

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SUMMARY: The United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Grain 
Inspection, Packers, and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) is seeking 
comment from the public regarding the United States (U.S.) Standards 
for Sunflower Seed under the United States Grain Standards Act (USGSA). 
To ensure that standards and official grading practices remain 
relevant, GIPSA invites interested parties to comment on whether the 
current sunflower seed standards and grading practices need to be 
changed.

DATES: We will consider comments we receive by April 18, 2016.

ADDRESSES: You may submit written or electronic comments on this 
proposed rule to:
     Mail: Irene Omade, GIPSA, USDA, STOP 3642, 1400 
Independence Avenue SW., Room 2530-B, Washington, DC 20250-3604.
     Fax: (202) 690-2173
     Internet: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and follow the 
on-line instruction for submitting comments.
    All comments will become a matter of public record and should be 
identified as ``U.S. Standards for Sunflower Seed request for 
information comments,'' making reference to the date and page number of 
this issue of the Federal Register. All comments received become the 
property of the Federal government, are a part of the public record, 
and will generally be posted to www.regulations.gov without change. If 
you send an email comment directly to GIPSA without going through 
www.regulations.gov, or you submit a comment to GIPSA via fax, the 
originating email address or telephone number will be automatically 
captured and included as part of the comment that is placed in the 
public docket and made available on the Internet. Also, all personal 
identifying information (for example, name, address, etc.) voluntarily 
submitted by the commenter may be publicly accessible. Do not submit 
confidential business information or otherwise sensitive or protected 
information.
    Electronic submissions should avoid the use of special characters, 
avoid any form of encryption, and be free of any defects or viruses, 
since these may prevent GIPSA from being able to read and understand, 
and thus consider your comment.
    GIPSA will post a transcript or report summarizing each substantive 
oral comment that we receive. This would include comments made at any 
public meetings hosted by GIPSA during the comment period, unless GIPSA 
publically announces otherwise.
    All comments will also be available for public inspection at the 
above address during regular business hours (7 CFR 1.27(b)). Please 
call the GIPSA Management and Budget Services support staff (202) 720-
8479 for an appointment to view the comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Andrew Greenfield at GIPSA, USDA, 1400 
Independence Avenue SW., Washington. DC 20250; Telephone (202) 720-
0277; Fax Number (202) 720-1015; email [email protected]..

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the authority of the USGSA (7 U.S.C. 
76), GIPSA establishes standards for sunflower seed and other grains 
regarding kind, class, quality and condition. The sunflower seed 
standards, established by USDA on September 1, 1984, were last revised 
in 1988 and appear in the USGSA regulations at 7 CFR 810.1801 through 
810.1804. The standards facilitate sunflower seed marketing and define 
U.S. sunflower seed quality in the domestic and global marketplace. The 
standards define commonly used industry terms; contain basic principles 
governing the application of standards, such as the type of sample used 
for a particular quality analysis; the basis of determination; and 
specify grades and grade requirements. Official procedures for 
determining grading factors are provided in GIPSA's Grain Inspection 
Handbook, Book II, Chapter 11, ``Sunflower Seed'' which also includes 
standardized procedures for additional quality attributes not used to 
determine grade, such as moisture content and official criteria. 
Together, the grading standards and testing procedures allow buyers and 
sellers to communicate quality requirements, compare sunflower seed 
quality using equivalent forms of measurement and assist in price 
discovery.
    GIPSA's grading and inspection services are provided through a 
network of federal, state, and private laboratories that conduct tests 
to determine the quality and condition of sunflower seed. These tests 
are conducted in accordance with applicable standards using approved 
methodologies and can be applied at any point in the marketing chain. 
Furthermore, the tests yield rapid, reliable and consistent results. In 
addition, GIPSA-issued certificates describing the quality and 
condition of graded sunflower seed are accepted as prima facie evidence 
in all Federal courts. U.S. Standards for Sunflower Seed and the 
affiliated grading and testing services offered by GIPSA verify that a 
seller's sunflower seed meets specified requirements, and ensure that 
customers receive the quality of sunflower seed they purchased.
    In order for U.S. standards and grading procedures for sunflower 
seed to remain relevant, GIPSA is issuing this request for information 
to invite interested parties to submit comments, ideas, and suggestions 
on all aspects of the U.S. Standards for Sunflower Seed and inspection 
procedures.


[[Page 2775]]


    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 71-87K.

Larry Mitchell,
Administrator, Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration.
[FR Doc. 2016-00958 Filed 1-15-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-KD-P