[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 36 (Tuesday, February 24, 2026)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 8707-8708]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2026-03645]
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Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains regulatory documents
having general applicability and legal effect, most of which are keyed
to and codified in the Code of Federal Regulations, which is published
under 50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.
The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by the Superintendent of Documents.
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Federal Register / Vol. 91, No. 36 / Tuesday, February 24, 2026 /
Rules and Regulations
[[Page 8707]]
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Marketing Service
7 CFR Part 870
[Doc. No. AMS-FTPP-25-0683]
RIN 0581-AE48
Economic Adjustment Assistance for Textile Mills--Payment Rate
AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), USDA.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: The Economic Adjustment Assistance for Textile Mills (EAATM)
program provides qualified domestic users of upland cotton financial
assistance that can be used to acquire, construct, install, modernize,
develop, convert, or expand land, plant, buildings, equipment,
facilities, or machinery used in the manufacture of final cotton
products. Under the program, the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC)
makes payments to eligible domestic users who have entered into an
Upland Cotton Domestic User Agreement with AMS to participate in the
EAATM. In this final rule, AMS is revising the payment rate from three
cents per pound to five cents per pound, applicable August 1, 2025, as
provided for in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA).
DATES:
Effective: This final rule is effective February 24, 2026.
Applicable: This final rule is applicable August 1, 2025.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ian Edmonds, Deputy Director,
Warehouse and Commodity Management Division, Fair Trade Practices
Program, AMS, USDA; telephone: (816) 926-6638; email:
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 10311 of OBBBA (Pub. L. 119-21)
increases the EAATM payment rate to five cents per pound beginning on
August 1, 2025. Accordingly, AMS is revising 7 CFR 870.9(a) to reflect
this change.
Section 1207(c) of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008
(Pub. L. 110-234) directed the Secretary of Agriculture to provide
economic adjustment assistance to domestic users of upland cotton. The
EAATM program was initially authorized with a payment rate of four
cents per pound, which was reduced effective August 1, 2013, to three
cents per pound. EAATM was further authorized in the Agricultural Act
of 2014 (Pub. L. 113-79), and the Agricultural Improvement Act of 2018
(Pub. L. 115-334) changed the name of the program to ``The Economic
Adjustment Assistance for Textile Mills'' or ``EAATM''. No payment rate
changes have been enacted until passage of the OBBBA.
The Commodity Credit Corporation is authorized to make EAATM
payments to eligible participants. Eligible participants are domestic
users who are regularly engaged in the business of opening bales of
eligible upland cotton for the purpose of spinning such cotton into
yarn, papermaking, or production of non-woven cotton products.
Justification for Final Rule and Immediate Effective Date
The EAATM program is authorized under title I of the Agricultural
Act of 2014 (7 U.S.C. 9037(c)). As such, regulations for EAATM are
without regard to the notice and comment provisions of the
Administrative Procedure Act at 5 U.S.C. 553 (see 7 U.S.C.
9091(c)(2)(A)). Further, AMS finds there is good cause for making this
final rule effective immediately. Under the OBBBA, the payment rate
change was effective August 1, 2025; this final rule merely updates the
text of the implementing regulation to align with the statute.
Paperwork Reduction Act
The EAATM program is exempt from the requirements of the Paperwork
Reduction Act at 44 U.S.C. chapter 35 (see 7 U.S.C. 9091(c)(2)(B)).
Regulatory Flexibility Act
Pursuant to the requirements set forth in the Regulatory
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), AMS considered the economic
impact of the action on small entities, and, accordingly, prepared this
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (RFA). AMS concluded this rule will not
have a significant impact on small entities, and to the extent it may
create a burden, the program is voluntary, and the impacts are
economically advantageous.
The purpose of the Regulatory Flexibility Act is to fit regulatory
actions to the scale of businesses subject to such actions so that
small businesses will not be unduly or disproportionately burdened. AMS
certifies that this rule will not have a significant economic impact or
burden on small textile mill entities. In making this determination,
AMS considered the current and possible participant base of the EAATM
program and the nature of this action. The EAATM program is authorized
by various ``Farm Bills:'' first in 2008 (Food, Conservation, and
Energy Act (Pub. L. 110-246)) and reauthorized in 2014 (Agricultural
Act of 2014 (Pub. L. 113-79)); in 2018 (Agriculture Improvement Act of
2018 (Pub. L. 115-334)); and again in 2025 (One Big Beautiful Bill Act
(Pub. L. 119-21)). This program is funded through the Commodity Credit
Corporation with administrative oversight and operational authority
delegated to the Agricultural Marketing Service.
In conducting its analysis, AMS used the Small Business
Administration's (SBA) definition of ``small business'' applicable to
textile mills, found at 13 CFR 121.201. The affected industry falls
under the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) as
Subsector 313, with most current participants classified as code
313110--Textile Mills, Fiber, Yarn, and Thread Mills. This
classification includes firms that process raw cotton into cotton
products. SBA determines firm size for this industry by number of
employees, but on a per firm basis, with ``small firms'' defined as
having fewer than 1,500 employees. The EAATM program has fewer than 30
participants, and AMS does not anticipate any surge in participation
due to this action. Current participants of the EAATM program are
required to be registered with the System for Awards Management,
however none of the current participants appear to have the small
business registration denoted on the entity profile. EAATM participants
do not disclose the number of employees in the agreements or
applications submitted to CCC but based on familiarity with the
industry and information from SBA's Dynamic Small
[[Page 8708]]
Business Search Database, AMS estimates that 21 out of the 23 current
participants can be considered ``small entities.''
In analyzing the current economic impact on small entities, AMS
could only deduce positive economic impact based on rate of eligible
consumption. That is, this program does not impose new regulations on
textile mills; rather, it is designed to provide them with economic
assistance. Small textile mill participants in the EAATM program will
not be unduly or disproportionately burdened. Textile mills of all
sizes benefit proportionately from the program, as it provides a
payment per pound of cotton consumed to encourage domestic consumption
of cotton. This action merely increases the payment rate from $0.03 to
$0.05 per pound of eligible consumption and does not impose any new
requirements.
The definition of an eligible participant in reference to the EAATM
program is someone regularly engaged in opening bales of eligible
upland cotton for the purposes of spinning cotton into yarn, paper
making, or production of non-woven cotton products in the United
States, and who has entered into an agreement with the CCC to
participate in the upland cotton user program. Participants may be
public or private nonprofit entities. All entities that meet the
program's definition of ``eligible domestic user'' and submit a monthly
application indicating consumed bales of upland cotton, regardless of
size, can voluntarily participate and benefit from the EAATM program.
The application asks only for information that is part of normal
business records. Program provisions are administered without regard
for business size. The information collection burden for eligible
participants is minimal as they must only complete the domestic user
agreement with the textile mill's monthly consumption report. The
voluntary nature of the program allows any eligible participant to stop
participating if they find program participation causes an undue or
disproportionate burden.
Executive Order 12866
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) designated this rule as
not significant under Executive Order 12866, ``Regulatory Planning and
Review.'' Therefore, OMB has not reviewed this rule.
Executive Order 12988
This final rule was reviewed under Executive Order 12988, ``Civil
Justice Reform.'' This rule will not preempt State or local laws,
regulations, or policies unless they represent an irreconcilable
conflict with this rule. The final rule is not intended to have
retroactive effect. Before any judicial actions may be brought
regarding the provisions of this rule, administrative appeal provisions
of 7 CFR parts 11 and 780 must be exhausted.
Executive Order 13175
This final rule was reviewed under Executive Order 13175,
``Consultation and Coordination with Indian Tribal Governments,'' which
requires agencies to consider whether their rulemaking actions have
Tribal implications. AMS has determined that this final rule is
unlikely to have substantial direct effects on one or more Indian
Tribes, on the relationship between the Federal Government and Indian
Tribes, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities between
the Federal Government and Indian Tribes.
E-Government Act
USDA is committed to complying with the E-Government Act (44 U.S.C.
3601 et seq.) by promoting 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.
List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 870
Agricultural commodities, Cotton, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
For the reasons set forth in the preamble, AMS amends 7 CFR part
870 as follows:
PART 870--ECONOMIC ADJUSTMENT ASSISTANCE FOR TEXTILE MILLS
0
1. The authority citation for part 870 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 9037(c).
Sec. 870.9 [Amended]
0
2. Amend Sec. 870.9(a) by removing the number ``3'' and adding the
number ``5'' in its place.
Melissa Bailey,
Associate Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service.
[FR Doc. 2026-03645 Filed 2-23-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P