[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 166 (Tuesday, August 31, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48659-48660]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-18771]


 ========================================================================
 Notices
                                                 Federal Register
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules 
 or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings 
 and investigations, committee meetings, agency decisions and rulings, 
 delegations of authority, filing of petitions and applications and agency 
 statements of organization and functions are examples of documents 
 appearing in this section.
 
 ========================================================================
 

  Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 166 / Tuesday, August 31, 2021 / 
Notices  

[[Page 48659]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

[Document No. AMS-CN-21-0064]


2021/2022 Rates Charged for AMS Services: Revised Tobacco Grading 
Rates

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is announcing 
revisions to the 2021/2022 rates it will charge for voluntary grading 
services for tobacco. Revised rates are based on financial information 
obtained since the 2021/2022 rates were announced on April 21, 2021, 
and will be applied to all services provided since July 1, 2021, and 
thereafter.

DATES: September 1, 2021.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Stephen Slinsky, Economist, Cotton 
and Tobacco Program, AMS, USDA, 3275 Appling Road, Memphis, TN 38133; 
telephone (901) 384-3000, or email [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946, as 
amended (AMA) (7 U.S.C. 1621-1627), provides for the collection of fees 
to cover costs of various inspection, grading, certification, or 
auditing services covering many agricultural commodities and products. 
More specifically, the Tobacco Inspection Act (7 U.S.C. 511-511s) 
provides for the recovery of costs associated with tobacco inspection 
and grading services.
    On November 13, 2014, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) 
published in the Federal Register a final rule that established 
standardized formulas for calculating fee rates charged by AMS user-
funded programs (79 FR 67313). Every year since then, USDA has 
published in the Federal Register a notice announcing rates for its 
user-funded programs.
    On April 21, 2021, the notice announcing the 2021/2022 fee rates 
was published in the Federal Register (86 FR 20476). Since publication 
of this notice, per-unit rates necessary to cover direct and indirect 
costs associated with providing tobacco inspection and grading services 
and necessary to maintain mandated financial reserves have decreased. 
Therefore, AMS is announcing revisions to the 2021/2022 rates it will 
charge for voluntary grading services for tobacco. Revised rates are 
based on updated financial information and will be applied to all 
services provided since July 1, 2021, and thereafter.
    Rates reflect direct and indirect costs of providing services. 
Direct costs include the cost of salaries, employee benefits, operating 
costs and, if applicable, travel costs. Indirect or overhead costs 
include the cost of Program and Agency activities supporting services 
provided to the industry. The formula used to calculate these rates 
also considers the need to maintain operating reserves.
    Services provided to the tobacco industry include the grading and 
certification of quality factors in accordance with established U.S. 
Grade Standards. The quality grades serve as a basis for market prices 
and reflect the value of agricultural commodities to both producers and 
consumers. AMS's grading and certification services are voluntary tools 
paid for by the users on a fee-for-service basis. Industry participants 
may choose to use these tools to promote and communicate the quality of 
tobacco to consumers. AMS is required by statute to recover costs 
associated with providing these services.

Rates Calculations

    AMS calculated rates for services, on a per-unit basis, by dividing 
total AMS operating cost associated with tobacco grading, inspection 
and certification by the total number of units graded, inspected and 
certified the previous year, which is then multiplied by the next 
year's percentage of cost-of-living increase, plus an allowance for bad 
debt rate. If applicable, travel expenses may also be added to the cost 
of providing the service.

                             2021/2022 Rates
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                              Tobacco fees
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
7 CFR Part 29--Tobacco Inspection:
    Subpart A--Policy Statement and Regulations Governing the Extension
     of Tobacco Inspection and Price Support Services to New Markets and
     to Additional Sales on Designated Markets; Subpart B--Regulations;
        Sec.  Sec.   29.123-29.129 Fees and Charges; Sec.   29.500 Fees
         and charges for inspection and acceptance of imported tobacco
    Subpart F--Policy Statement and Regulations Governing the
     Identification and Certification of Non-quota Tobacco Produced and
     Marketed in Quota Area;
        Sec.   29.9251 Fees and Charges
------------------------------------------------------------------------


 
                                               Regular        Overtime         Holiday       Includes travel costs in rate            Start date
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Domestic Permissive Inspection and                 $55.00          $64.00          $72.00  ................................  July 1, 2021.
 Certification (re-grading of domestic
 tobacco for processing plants, retesting
 of imported tobacco, and grading tobacco
 for research stations).
                                          ------------------------------------------------
Export Permissive Inspection and                            $0.0025/pound                  X...............................  July 1, 2021.
 Certification (grading of domestic
 tobacco for manufacturers and dealers
 for duty drawback consideration).

[[Page 48660]]

 
Grading for Risk Management Agency (for                     $0.015/pound                   X...............................  July 1, 2021.
 Tobacco Crop Insurance Quality
 Adjustment determinations).
Pesticide Test Sampling (collection of               $0.0065/kg or $0.0029/pound           X...............................  July 1, 2021.
 certified tobacco sample and shipment to
 AMS National Science Laboratory for
 testing).
Pesticide Retest Sampling (collection of           $115.00/sample and $55.00/hour          X...............................  July 1, 2021.
 certified tobacco sample from a
 previously sampled lot for re-testing at
 the AMS National Science Laboratory; fee
 includes shipping).
Standards Course (training by USDA-                       $1,250.00/person                 ................................  July 1, 2021.
 certified instructor on tobacco grading
 procedures).
Import Inspection and Certification                  $0.0170/kg or $0.0080/pound           X...............................  July 1, 2021.
 (grading of imported tobacco for
 manufacturers and dealers).
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 511, 511s; and 7 U.S.C. 1621-1627.

Erin Morris,
Associate Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service.
[FR Doc. 2021-18771 Filed 8-30-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE P