[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 159 (Thursday, August 18, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50827-50828]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-17744]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

[Doc. No. AMS-AMS-22-0056]


2022/2023 Rates Charged for AMS Services: Revised Rates for Audit 
Services

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is announcing 
revisions to the 2022/2023 rates it will charge for Federal and State 
Audit Services provided by the Specialty Crop Program. Revisions 
correct the base units for these user fee rates, which were published 
on June 14, 2022. All other AMS user fee rates will remain unchanged.

DATES: August 19, 2022.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Stephen Slinsky, Legislative and 
Regulatory Review Officer, AMS, USDA, AMS, USDA, Room 2036-S, 1400 
Independence Ave. SW, Washington, DC 20250; telephone (901) 287-9719, 
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.
    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 June 14, 2022, the notice announcing the 2022/2023 fee rates was 
published in the Federal Register (87 FR 35956). Since publication of 
this notice, personnel in AMS's Specialty Crop Program realized that 
the 2022/2023 rates pertaining to Federal and State Auditing Services 
were published with the wrong units specified--per-audit fee rates were 
published rather than per-hour rates. Therefore, AMS is announcing 
revisions to the 2022/2023 Federal and State Auditing Services rates. 
Revised rates are hourly rates and will become October 1, 2022, as 
anticipated.

Rates Calculations

    AMS Specialty Crop Program's inspection, certification, and 
auditing 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 fresh and processed fruits 
and vegetables to consumers. AMS is required by statute to recover 
costs associated with providing these services. 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.
    AMS calculated rates for services, on a per-hour basis or per-unit 
basis, by dividing total AMS operating cost associated with inspection, 
certification and auditing by the total number of hours required or 
units 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

[[Page 50828]]

added to the cost of providing the service.
    All rates are per-hour except when a per-unit cost is noted. The 
specific amounts in each rate calculation are available upon request.

                                                 2022/2023 Rates
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                                                                                  Includes
                                   Regular        Overtime         Holiday      travel costs      Start date
                                                                                  in rate
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                                              Specialty Crops Fees
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      7 CFR Part 51--Fresh Fruits, Vegetables and Other Products (Inspection, Certification, and Standards)
    Subpart A--Requirements;....................................................................................
        Sec.  Sec.   51.37-51.44 Schedule of Fees and Charges at Destination Markets............................
        Sec.   51.45 Schedule of Fees and Charges at Shipping Point Areas.......................................
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Quality and Condition                          $225.00 per lot                 .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
 Inspections for Whole Lots.
Quality and Condition Half                     $186.00 per lot                 .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
 Lot or Condition-Only
 Inspections for Whole Lots.
Condition--Half Lot..........                  $172.00 per lot                 .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
Quality and Condition or                       $103.00 per lot                 .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
 Condition-Only Inspections
 for Additional Lots of the
 Same Product.
Dockside Inspections--Each                     $0.044 per pkg.                 .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
 package weighing <30 lbs.
Dockside Inspections--Each                       $0.068/pkg.                   .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
 package weighing >30 lbs.
Charge per Individual Product                    $225.00/lot                   .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
 for Dockside Inspection.
Charge per Each Additional                       $103.00/lot                   .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
 Lot of the Same Product.
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Inspections for All Hourly            $100.00         $137.00         $175.00  .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
 Work.
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Audit Services--Federal......                      $132.00                     .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
Audit Services--State........                      $132.00                     .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
GFSI Certification Fee \1\...                   $250.00/audit                  .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
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  7 CFR Part 52--Processed Fruits and Vegetables, Processed Products Thereof, and Other Processed Food Products
    Subpart A--Requirements Governing Inspection and Certification;.............................................
        Sec.  Sec.   52.41--52.51 Fees and Charges..............................................................
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Lot Inspections..............          $85.00         $112.00         $139.00  .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
In-plant Inspections Under             $85.00         $107.00         $129.00  .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
 Annual Contract (year-round).
Additional Graders (in-plant)          $91.00         $120.00         $149.00  .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
 or Less Than Year-Round.
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Audit Services--Federal......                      $132.00                     .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
Audit Services--State........                      $132.00                     .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
GFSI Certification Fee\1\....                   $250.00/audit                  .............  Oct. 1, 2022.
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\1\ Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) Certification Fee--$250 per GFSI audit to recoup the costs associated
  with attaining technical equivalency to the GFSI benchmarking requirements.

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1621-1627.

Melissa Bailey,
Associate Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-17744 Filed 8-17-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P