[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 190 (Tuesday, October 1, 2019)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Page 52041]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-20869]


 ========================================================================
 Proposed Rules
                                                 Federal Register
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 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of 
 the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these 
 notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in 
 the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.
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  Federal Register / Vol. 84, No. 190 / Tuesday, October 1, 2019 / 
Proposed Rules  

[[Page 52041]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Part 205

[Document Number AMS-NOP-11-0009; NOP-11-04PR]
RIN 0581-AD08


National Organic Program; Origin of Livestock

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Proposed rule; reopening of comment period.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural 
Marketing Service (AMS) is reopening the comment period on our April 
28, 2015, proposed rule to amend the origin of livestock requirements 
for dairy animals under the USDA organic regulations. We are reopening 
the proposed rule's comment period for 60 days to give all interested 
parties an additional opportunity to comment on the proposed rule. 
Comments previously submitted need not be resubmitted, as they are 
already incorporated into the public record and will be fully 
considered in any future final rule.

DATES: The comment period on the proposed rule that published April 28, 
2015 (80 FR 23455) is reopened. We will accept comments received or 
postmarked on or before December 2, 2019.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on this proposed rule via the 
Federal eRulemaking Portal at https://www.regulations.gov/. You can 
access a copy of the proposed rule, previous public comments received, 
and instructions for submitting public comments by searching for docket 
number AMS-NOP-11-0009. Comments may also be sent to: Paul Lewis, 
Standards Division, National Organic Program, USDA-AMS-NOP, 1400 
Independence Ave. SW, Room 2642-So., Ag Stop 0268, Washington, DC 
20250-0268; (202) 260-9151 (fax).
    Instructions: All submissions received must include docket number 
AMS-NOP-11-0009 or Regulatory Information Number (RIN) 0581-AD08 for 
this rulemaking. You should clearly indicate the topic and section 
number of this proposed rule to which your comment refers, state your 
position(s), offer any recommended language change(s), and include 
relevant information and data to support your position(s) (e.g., 
scientific, environmental, manufacturing, industry, or industry impact 
information, etc.). All comments and relevant background documents 
posted to https://www.regulations.gov will include any personal 
information provided.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul Lewis, Ph.D., Director, Standards 
Division, National Organic Program, AMS, USDA; email 
[email protected]; telephone (202) 720-3252.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On April 28, 2015, AMS (``we'') published in the Federal Register 
(80 FR 23455) a proposed rule to clarify requirements for organic dairy 
farms under the USDA organic regulations. The proposed rule would add 
requirements about transitioning dairy animals to organic production. 
Please refer to the proposed rule for information about AMS' proposed 
changes, rationale, and analysis, including estimated costs and 
benefits. AMS received over 1,500 public comments on the proposed rule. 
These comments may be viewed at https://www.regulations.gov under 
docket number AMS-NOP-11-0009.
    This document notifies the public that we are reopening the comment 
period on the April 28, 2015, proposed rule.

Information Requested

    AMS will accept written comments and information on our April 28, 
2015, proposed rule. We will consider information and recommendations 
from all interested parties. In the proposed rule, AMS requested 
comments on the following topics:
    1. The cost and benefit analysis presented, including assumptions 
and estimates, of limiting dairy transition to a one-time exception for 
a given producer;
    2. Procedures that certifying agents would use under this proposal 
to determine whether a producer is eligible for the one-time 
transition; and
    3. The proposed implementation approach for this rule.
    If you submitted comments or information on the April 28, 2015, 
proposed rule (80 FR 23455), please do not resubmit them unless you 
have new or different information to provide. All previous public 
comments will remain part of the public record, and we will fully 
consider them in the preparation of any final determinations. These 
comments can be viewed at https://www.regulations.gov under docket 
number AMS-NOP-11-0009.
    Any final determinations would consider all written comments and 
any additional information we receive during all comment periods.
    You may submit your comments and materials concerning the proposed 
rule by one of the methods listed in ADDRESSES. If you submit a comment 
via https://www.regulations.gov, your entire comment--including any 
personal identifying information--will be posted on the website. We 
will post all hardcopy comments on https://www.regulations.gov as well.
    Comments and materials we receive will be available for public 
inspection on https://www.regulations.gov under Docket No. AMS-NOP-11-
0009. You may obtain copies of the proposed rule on https://www.regulations.gov under Docket No. AMS-NOP-11-0009, or by mail from 
the National Organic Program Office (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION 
CONTACT).

Authority

    The Organic Foods Production Act of 1990, as amended (7 U.S.C. 6501 
et seq.), is the authority for this action.

    Dated: September 20, 2019.
Bruce Summers,
Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service.
[FR Doc. 2019-20869 Filed 9-30-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P