Review Inspection Requirements for Graded Commodities, 39199-39201 [05-13297]
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Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 129 / Thursday, July 7, 2005 / Proposed Rules
Accepted name of susceptible species
Synonyms
Chrysanthemum zawadskii and Herbich
subsp. yezoense (Maek.) Y. N. Lee.
Chrysanthemum arcticum subsp. maekawanum Kitam,
Chrysanthemum arcticum var. yezoense Maek.
[basionym],
Chrysanthemum
yezoense
Maek.
[basionym], Dendranthema yezoense (F. Maek.) D. J.
´
N. Hind, and Leucanthemum yezoense (Maek.) A.
¨
¨
Love & D. Love.
Chrysanthemum sibiricum Turcz. ex DC., nom. inval.,
Dendranthema zawadskii (Herbich) Tzvelev, and
Dendranthema zawadskii var. zawadskii.
Chrysanthemum
serotinum
L.,
Chrysanthemum
uliginosum (Waldst. & Kit. ex Willd.) Pers., and Pyrethrum uliginosum (Waldst. & Kit. ex Willd.).
Chrysanthemum nipponicum (Franch. ex Maxim.)
Matsum. and Leucanthemum nipponicum Franch. ex
Maxim.
Chrysanthemum zawadskii and Herbich
subsp. zawadskii.
Leucanthemella serotina (L.) Tzvelev ........
Nipponanthemum nipponicum (Franch. ex
Maxim.) Kitam.
(2) Chrysanthemum white rust is
considered to exist in the following
regions: Andorra, Argentina, Australia,
Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil,
Brunei, Bulgaria, Canary Islands, Chile,
China, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus,
Hungary, Iceland, Japan, Korea, Latvia,
Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Macedonia,
Malaysia, Mexico, Moldova, Monaco,
New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Poland,
Republic of South Africa, Romania,
Russia, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia,
Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Tunisia,
Ukraine, Uruguay, Venezuela,
Yugoslavia; the European Union
(Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland,
France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy,
Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal,
Spain, Sweden, and United Kingdom);
and all countries, territories, and
possessions of countries located in part
or entirely between 90° and 180° East
longitude.
(3) Cut flowers of any species listed in
paragraph (d)(1) of this section may be
imported into the United States from
any region listed in paragraph (d)(2) of
this section only under the following
conditions:
(i) The flowers must be grown in a
production site that is registered with
the national plant protection
organization of the country in which the
production site is located and the
national plant protection organization
must provide a list of registered sites to
APHIS.
(ii) Each shipment of cut flowers must
be accompanied by a phytosanitary
certificate issued by the national plant
protection organization of the country of
origin that contains an additional
declaration stating that the place of
production as well as the consignment
have been inspected and found free of
Puccinia horiana.
(iii) Box labels and other documents
accompanying shipments of cut flowers
must be marked with the identity of the
registered production site.
VerDate jul<14>2003
16:01 Jul 06, 2005
Jkt 205001
Common name
(iv) APHIS-authorized inspectors
must also be allowed access to
production sites and other areas
necessary to monitor the
chrysanthemum white rust-free status of
the production sites.
(4) Cut flowers not meeting these
conditions will be refused entry into the
United States. The detection of
chrysanthemum white rust in a
shipment of cut flowers from a
registered production site upon arrival
in the United States will result in the
prohibition of imports originating from
the production site until such time
when APHIS and the national plant
protection organization of the exporting
country can agree that the eradication
measures taken have been effective and
that the pest risk within the production
site has been eliminated.
*
*
*
*
*
Done in Washington, DC, this 30th day of
June 2005.
Elizabeth E. Gaston,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant
Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 05–13313 Filed 7–6–05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410–34–P
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Grain Inspection, Packers and
Stockyards Administration
7 CFR Part 868
RIN 0580–AA89
Review Inspection Requirements for
Graded Commodities
Grain Inspection, Packers and
Stockyards Administration, USDA.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: The Grain Inspection, Packers
and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA)
is proposing to revise the regulations
under the United States Agricultural
Marketing Act of 1946 (AMA), as
PO 00000
Frm 00006
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
39199
Giant daisy or high daisy.
Nippon daisy or Nippon-chrysanthemum.
amended, to allow interested persons to
specify the quality factor(s) that would
be redetermined during an appeal
inspection or a Board appeal inspection
for grade. Currently, both appeal and
Board appeal inspections for grade must
include a redetermination (i.e., a
complete review or examination) of all
official factors that may determine the
grade, as reported on the original
certificate, or as required to be shown.
Requiring that all quality factors be
completely reexamined during an
appeal or Board appeal inspection for
grade is not efficient, is time consuming,
and can be costly. Further, a detailed
review of the preceding inspection
service is not always needed to confirm
the quality of the commodity. This
proposed action would allow interested
parties to specify which quality factor(s)
should be redetermined during the
appeal or Board appeal inspection
service.
Comments must be received on
or before September 6, 2005.
ADDRESSES: We invite you to submit
comments on this proposed rule. You
may submit comments by any of the
following methods:
• E-mail: Send comments via
electronic mail to
comments.gipsa@usda.gov.
• Mail: Send hard copy written
comments to Tess Butler, GIPSA, USDA,
1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Room
1647–S, Washington, DC 20250–3604.
• Fax: Send comment by facsimile
transmission to: (202) 690–2755.
• Hand Delivery or Courier: Deliver
comments to: Tess Butler, GIPSA,
USDA, 1400 Independence Avenue,
SW., Room 1647–S, Washington, DC
20250–3604.
• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to
https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the
online instructions for submitting
comments.
Instructions: All comments should
make reference to the date and page
DATES:
E:\FR\FM\07JYP1.SGM
07JYP1
39200
Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 129 / Thursday, July 7, 2005 / Proposed Rules
number of this issue of the Federal
Register.
Background Documents: Regulatory
analyses and other documents relating
to this action will be available for public
inspection in the above office during
regular business hours.
Read Comments: All comments will
be available for public inspection in the
above office during regular business
hours (7 CFR 1.27(b)).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John
C. Giler, Deputy Director, Field
Management Division: e-mail address
john.c.giler@usda.gov, telephone: (202)
720–1748.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Pursuant to the United States AMA,
as amended, graded commodities have
established standards which are used to
measure and describe the physical and
biological properties of the commodities
at the time of inspection. The grade,
class, and condition that are reported on
the official inspection certificate are
based on factors that are defined in
these standards. There are three kinds of
factors: Condition factors, grade
determining factors, and non-grade
determining factors.
Condition factors include heating,
odor (musty, sour, and commercially
objectionable), infestation, special grade
factors (e.g., smut and aromatic), and
distinctly low quality factors, such as
toxic seeds. When a graded commodity
is found to contain an unacceptable
level of one or more of these condition
factors, the commodity is graded U.S.
Sample Grade or assigned a special
grade, such as Infested.
Grade determining factors include,
but are not limited to, foreign material,
defects, damaged kernels, and other
classes. These factors are common to
most commodities. As the percentage of
such factors increases, the numerical
grade decreases. For example: U.S. No.
2 Long Grain Milled Rice may contain
not more than 1.5 percent red rice and
damaged kernels, U.S. No. 3 may
contain not more than 2.5 percent, and
U.S. No. 4 may contain not more than
4.0 percent.
Non-grade determining factors
include, but are not limited to, total oil
and free-fatty acid in rice, and seed
count and checked seed coats in beans.
These factors are only determined upon
request as additional information and
do not affect the numerical grade
designation.
After the sample has been analyzed
for all factors, a grade is assigned to the
sample equal to the lowest grade
determined for any one of the factors.
For example, if all of the factors were
determined to be at the U.S. No. 1 level,
except for one factor that was at the U.S.
No. 3 level, then the lot would be
graded U.S. No. 3.
Therefore, the final grade assigned to
a sample or lot is directly dependent on
achieving accuracy (closeness to the
true value) and precision (repeatability)
in the values obtained for the various
grading factors. Accuracy and precision
are affected mainly by the type of
sampling device, the sampling
procedure, and the grading factors; i.e.,
machine-determined values (objective),
human judgment values (subjective),
and sample homogeneity (inherent). The
sources of variation are highly
interrelated; each is involved, to some
extent, in the final value ascribed to
each grading factor of a lot and to the
grade designation of that lot.
Due to inherent sampling and
inspection variability, users of the
official inspection system have an
opportunity to obtain another
Total inspections of beans, peas,
lentils, and rice
Fiscal year
(FY)
FY
FY
FY
FY
2001
2002
2003
2004
inspection service when certificated
results are questionable. That is, if an
interested party disagrees with the grade
or factor results assigned to the graded
commodity, they may request that the
GIPSA perform an appeal inspection.
From the original inspection service
an interested person may obtain an
appeal inspection service, or a Board
appeal inspection service. The same
inspection office that provided the
original inspection service provides the
appeal inspection. GIPSA’s Board of
Appeals and Review (BAR) in Kansas
City, Missouri, provides the Board
appeal inspection service, the highest
level of inspection service available.
The scope of the appeal or Board appeal
inspection is limited to the scope of the
original inspection.
Section 868.60 of the regulations
currently require that appeal
inspections for grade must include a
complete review of all official factors
that: (1) May determine the grade; or (2)
are reported on the original certificate;
and (3) are required to be shown.
Consequently, even if the official
inspector who is performing the appeal
inspection finds there is only one gradedetermining factor, all of the factors that
were reported on the original certificate
must be redetermined.
In most instances, the applicant for
service does not need a complete
review. Even though not allowed, most
applications currently request an appeal
inspection of a specific factor.
Redetermining all official factors
requires significant time to complete.
This increases inspection costs.
The following table shows the total
number of inspections versus number of
appeal and Board appeal inspections for
grade that have been determined during
the last four fiscal years for dry beans,
peas, lentils, and rice.
Original
inspections
.......................................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................................
.......................................................................................................................................
Under provisions of the AMA (7
U.S.C. 16210 et seq.), it is not
mandatory for rice and pulses (the
subject of this rule) to be officially
inspected. This proposed rule relieves
regulatory requirements and improves
the efficiency of official inspection
services.
VerDate jul<14>2003
16:01 Jul 06, 2005
Jkt 205001
The cost savings of the proposed
action on the graded commodity
industry could be very positive.
Although it is impossible to estimate an
exact dollar savings, the time spent
waiting for appeal inspection results
could be reduced by at least 50 percent
and could, in certain circumstances,
exceed 90 percent.
PO 00000
Frm 00007
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
104,730
61,270
62,784
57,182
Appeal
inspections
345
322
455
314
Board appeal
inspections
13
19
33
21
To provide effective and efficient
official inspection services that better
meet industry needs, GIPSA proposes
that applicants for service be allowed to
specify the factor(s) that are to be
redetermined as part of an appeal or
Board appeal inspection service for
grade. However, appeal and Board
appeal inspections for grade may
E:\FR\FM\07JYP1.SGM
07JYP1
Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 129 / Thursday, July 7, 2005 / Proposed Rules
include a review of any pertinent
factor(s), as deemed necessary by
official personnel. All official
inspections (original, appeal or Board
appeal inspection) must be accurate. If
there is an indication that a factor (or
factors) may have been misgraded or
overlooked on the previous inspection,
then the factor(s) in question will be
redetermined.
On August 21, 2002, GIPSA proposed
this same action under the U.S. Grain
Standards Act (67 FR 54133). GIPSA
received seven comments regarding the
proposed action. All comments
supported the action. Accordingly,
GIPSA amended the regulations to allow
requests for a reinspection and an
appeal inspection to one or more grade
or condition factors. This final rule was
published on October 28, 2003, in (68
FR 61326).
Two of the comments received from
the original proposal were from
associations involved with graded
commodities inspected under the
authority of the AMA, asking that
GIPSA extend the action to include
graded products (rice and pulses).
Proposed Action
GIPSA proposes to revise §868.1 to
redefine the definitions of appeal and
Board appeal inspection services, and
§868.60 to revise the conditions for
requesting appeal and Board appeal
inspection services.
Executive Order 12866
This proposed rule has been
determined to be non-significant for the
purpose of Executive Order 12866 and,
therefore, has not been reviewed by the
Office of Management and Budget
(OMB). This action simplifies the
regulations concerning official
requirements for commodity
inspections. This action reduces cost to
the affected entities.
Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification
GIPSA has considered the economic
impact of this proposed rule on small
entities and has determined that its
provision would not have a significant
economic impact on a substantial
number of small entities, as defined in
the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) (5
U.S.C. 601 et seq.).
The proposed rule will affect entities
engaged in shipping graded
commodities to and from points within
the United States and exporting graded
commodities from the United States.
GIPSA estimates there are
approximately 2,500 rice mills, and
bean, pea, and lentil processing plants
in the United States that could receive
official inspection services by GIPSA,
VerDate jul<14>2003
16:01 Jul 06, 2005
Jkt 205001
designated/delegated states, and
cooperators. Inspections of graded
commodities are performed by eight
GIPSA offices, one Federal/State office,
and six designated States which operate
under cooperative agreements and
under GIPSA supervision. Under the
provisions of the AMA, it is not
mandatory for graded commodities to be
officially inspected. Further, most users
of the official inspection services and
those entities that perform these
services do not meet the requirement of
small entities. Even though some users
could be considered small entities, this
proposed rule relieves regulatory
requirements and improves the
efficiency of official inspection services.
No additional cost is expected to result
from this action.
Requiring all appeal inspections and
Board appeal inspections for grade to
include a complete review of all official
factors is not needed by applicants or
other parties to transactions, or by
official inspection personnel.
Furthermore, this requirement often
reduces the efficiency of providing
official inspection services and
increases the costs.
This proposed rule relieves regulatory
requirements and improves the
efficiency of official inspection services.
Further the regulations are applied
equally to all entities.
Executive Order 12988
Under Executive Order 12988, Civil
Justice Reform, this action is not
intended to have a retroactive effect.
This action will not preempt any State
or local laws, regulations, or policies
unless they present irreconcilable
conflict with this rule. There are no
administrative procedures that must be
exhausted prior to any judicial
challenge to the provisions of this
notice.
Information Collection and
Recordkeeping Requirements
In compliance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501
et seq.), the information collection and
recordkeeping requirements in part 868
have been previously approved by OMB
No. 0580–0013.
GIPSA is committed to compliance
with the Government Paperwork
Elimination Act, which requires
Government agencies, in general, to
provide the public the option of
submitting information or transacting
business electronically to the maximum
extent possible.
List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 868
Administrative practice and
procedure, Agricultural commodities.
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Frm 00008
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
39201
For reasons set out in the preamble,
7 CFR part 868 is proposed to be
amended as follows:
PART 868—GENERAL REGULATIONS
AND STANDARDS FOR CERTAIN
AGRICULTURAL COMMODITIES
1. The authority citation for part 868
continues to read as follows:
Authority: Secs. 202–208, 60 Stat. 1087, as
amended (7 U.S.C. 1621, et seq.)
2. Section 868.1, paragraphs (b)(3),
and (b)(6) are revised to read as follows:
§ 868.1
Meaning of terms.
*
*
*
*
*
(b) * * *
(3) Appeal inspection service. A
review by the Service of the result(s) of
an original inspection or retest
inspection service.
*
*
*
*
*
(6) Board appeal inspection service. A
review by the Board of Appeals and
Review of the result(s) of an original
inspection or appeal inspection service
on graded commodities.
*
*
*
*
*
3. Section 868.60, paragraph (b) and
the OMB citation at the end of the
section are revised to read as follows:
§ 868.60 Who may request appeal
inspection service.
*
*
*
*
*
(b) Kind and scope of request. When
the results for more than one kind of
service are reported on a certificate, an
appeal inspection or Board appeal
inspection service, as applicable, may
be requested on any or all kinds of
services reported on the certificate. The
scope of an appeal inspection service
will be limited to the scope of the
original inspection or, in the case of a
Board appeal inspection service, the
original or appeal inspection service. A
request for appeal inspection of a retest
inspection will be based upon the scope
of the original inspection. If the request
specifies a different scope, the request
shall be dismissed. Provided, however,
that an applicant for service may request
an appeal or Board appeal inspection of
a specific factor(s) or official grade and
factors. In addition, appeal and Board
appeal inspection for grade may include
a review of any pertinent factor(s), as
deemed necessary by official personnel.
(Approved by the Office of Management
and Budget under control number 0580–
0013.)
JoAnn Waterfield,
Acting Administrator, Grain Inspection,
Packers and Stockyards Administration.
[FR Doc. 05–13297 Filed 7–6–05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410–EN–P
E:\FR\FM\07JYP1.SGM
07JYP1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 129 (Thursday, July 7, 2005)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 39199-39201]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-13297]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration
7 CFR Part 868
RIN 0580-AA89
Review Inspection Requirements for Graded Commodities
AGENCY: Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration, USDA.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration
(GIPSA) is proposing to revise the regulations under the United States
Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 (AMA), as amended, to allow
interested persons to specify the quality factor(s) that would be
redetermined during an appeal inspection or a Board appeal inspection
for grade. Currently, both appeal and Board appeal inspections for
grade must include a redetermination (i.e., a complete review or
examination) of all official factors that may determine the grade, as
reported on the original certificate, or as required to be shown.
Requiring that all quality factors be completely reexamined during an
appeal or Board appeal inspection for grade is not efficient, is time
consuming, and can be costly. Further, a detailed review of the
preceding inspection service is not always needed to confirm the
quality of the commodity. This proposed action would allow interested
parties to specify which quality factor(s) should be redetermined
during the appeal or Board appeal inspection service.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before September 6, 2005.
ADDRESSES: We invite you to submit comments on this proposed rule. You
may submit comments by any of the following methods:
E-mail: Send comments via electronic mail to
comments.gipsa@usda.gov.
Mail: Send hard copy written comments to Tess Butler,
GIPSA, USDA, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Room 1647-S, Washington, DC
20250-3604.
Fax: Send comment by facsimile transmission to: (202) 690-
2755.
Hand Delivery or Courier: Deliver comments to: Tess
Butler, GIPSA, USDA, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Room 1647-S,
Washington, DC 20250-3604.
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to https://
www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting
comments.
Instructions: All comments should make reference to the date and
page
[[Page 39200]]
number of this issue of the Federal Register.
Background Documents: Regulatory analyses and other documents
relating to this action will be available for public inspection in the
above office during regular business hours.
Read Comments: All comments will be available for public inspection
in the above office during regular business hours (7 CFR 1.27(b)).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John C. Giler, Deputy Director, Field
Management Division: e-mail address john.c.giler@usda.gov, telephone:
(202) 720-1748.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Pursuant to the United States AMA, as amended, graded commodities
have established standards which are used to measure and describe the
physical and biological properties of the commodities at the time of
inspection. The grade, class, and condition that are reported on the
official inspection certificate are based on factors that are defined
in these standards. There are three kinds of factors: Condition
factors, grade determining factors, and non-grade determining factors.
Condition factors include heating, odor (musty, sour, and
commercially objectionable), infestation, special grade factors (e.g.,
smut and aromatic), and distinctly low quality factors, such as toxic
seeds. When a graded commodity is found to contain an unacceptable
level of one or more of these condition factors, the commodity is
graded U.S. Sample Grade or assigned a special grade, such as Infested.
Grade determining factors include, but are not limited to, foreign
material, defects, damaged kernels, and other classes. These factors
are common to most commodities. As the percentage of such factors
increases, the numerical grade decreases. For example: U.S. No. 2 Long
Grain Milled Rice may contain not more than 1.5 percent red rice and
damaged kernels, U.S. No. 3 may contain not more than 2.5 percent, and
U.S. No. 4 may contain not more than 4.0 percent.
Non-grade determining factors include, but are not limited to,
total oil and free-fatty acid in rice, and seed count and checked seed
coats in beans. These factors are only determined upon request as
additional information and do not affect the numerical grade
designation.
After the sample has been analyzed for all factors, a grade is
assigned to the sample equal to the lowest grade determined for any one
of the factors. For example, if all of the factors were determined to
be at the U.S. No. 1 level, except for one factor that was at the U.S.
No. 3 level, then the lot would be graded U.S. No. 3.
Therefore, the final grade assigned to a sample or lot is directly
dependent on achieving accuracy (closeness to the true value) and
precision (repeatability) in the values obtained for the various
grading factors. Accuracy and precision are affected mainly by the type
of sampling device, the sampling procedure, and the grading factors;
i.e., machine-determined values (objective), human judgment values
(subjective), and sample homogeneity (inherent). The sources of
variation are highly interrelated; each is involved, to some extent, in
the final value ascribed to each grading factor of a lot and to the
grade designation of that lot.
Due to inherent sampling and inspection variability, users of the
official inspection system have an opportunity to obtain another
inspection service when certificated results are questionable. That is,
if an interested party disagrees with the grade or factor results
assigned to the graded commodity, they may request that the GIPSA
perform an appeal inspection.
From the original inspection service an interested person may
obtain an appeal inspection service, or a Board appeal inspection
service. The same inspection office that provided the original
inspection service provides the appeal inspection. GIPSA's Board of
Appeals and Review (BAR) in Kansas City, Missouri, provides the Board
appeal inspection service, the highest level of inspection service
available. The scope of the appeal or Board appeal inspection is
limited to the scope of the original inspection.
Section 868.60 of the regulations currently require that appeal
inspections for grade must include a complete review of all official
factors that: (1) May determine the grade; or (2) are reported on the
original certificate; and (3) are required to be shown. Consequently,
even if the official inspector who is performing the appeal inspection
finds there is only one grade-determining factor, all of the factors
that were reported on the original certificate must be redetermined.
In most instances, the applicant for service does not need a
complete review. Even though not allowed, most applications currently
request an appeal inspection of a specific factor. Redetermining all
official factors requires significant time to complete. This increases
inspection costs.
The following table shows the total number of inspections versus
number of appeal and Board appeal inspections for grade that have been
determined during the last four fiscal years for dry beans, peas,
lentils, and rice.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total inspections of beans, peas, lentils,
and rice
Fiscal year (FY) -----------------------------------------------
Original Appeal Board appeal
inspections inspections inspections
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FY 2001......................................................... 104,730 345 13
FY 2002......................................................... 61,270 322 19
FY 2003......................................................... 62,784 455 33
FY 2004......................................................... 57,182 314 21
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Under provisions of the AMA (7 U.S.C. 16210 et seq.), it is not
mandatory for rice and pulses (the subject of this rule) to be
officially inspected. This proposed rule relieves regulatory
requirements and improves the efficiency of official inspection
services.
The cost savings of the proposed action on the graded commodity
industry could be very positive. Although it is impossible to estimate
an exact dollar savings, the time spent waiting for appeal inspection
results could be reduced by at least 50 percent and could, in certain
circumstances, exceed 90 percent.
To provide effective and efficient official inspection services
that better meet industry needs, GIPSA proposes that applicants for
service be allowed to specify the factor(s) that are to be redetermined
as part of an appeal or Board appeal inspection service for grade.
However, appeal and Board appeal inspections for grade may
[[Page 39201]]
include a review of any pertinent factor(s), as deemed necessary by
official personnel. All official inspections (original, appeal or Board
appeal inspection) must be accurate. If there is an indication that a
factor (or factors) may have been misgraded or overlooked on the
previous inspection, then the factor(s) in question will be
redetermined.
On August 21, 2002, GIPSA proposed this same action under the U.S.
Grain Standards Act (67 FR 54133). GIPSA received seven comments
regarding the proposed action. All comments supported the action.
Accordingly, GIPSA amended the regulations to allow requests for a
reinspection and an appeal inspection to one or more grade or condition
factors. This final rule was published on October 28, 2003, in (68 FR
61326).
Two of the comments received from the original proposal were from
associations involved with graded commodities inspected under the
authority of the AMA, asking that GIPSA extend the action to include
graded products (rice and pulses).
Proposed Action
GIPSA proposes to revise Sec. 868.1 to redefine the definitions of
appeal and Board appeal inspection services, and Sec. 868.60 to revise
the conditions for requesting appeal and Board appeal inspection
services.
Executive Order 12866
This proposed rule has been determined to be non-significant for
the purpose of Executive Order 12866 and, therefore, has not been
reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). This action
simplifies the regulations concerning official requirements for
commodity inspections. This action reduces cost to the affected
entities.
Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification
GIPSA has considered the economic impact of this proposed rule on
small entities and has determined that its provision would not have a
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities,
as defined in the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) (5 U.S.C. 601 et
seq.).
The proposed rule will affect entities engaged in shipping graded
commodities to and from points within the United States and exporting
graded commodities from the United States. GIPSA estimates there are
approximately 2,500 rice mills, and bean, pea, and lentil processing
plants in the United States that could receive official inspection
services by GIPSA, designated/delegated states, and cooperators.
Inspections of graded commodities are performed by eight GIPSA offices,
one Federal/State office, and six designated States which operate under
cooperative agreements and under GIPSA supervision. Under the
provisions of the AMA, it is not mandatory for graded commodities to be
officially inspected. Further, most users of the official inspection
services and those entities that perform these services do not meet the
requirement of small entities. Even though some users could be
considered small entities, this proposed rule relieves regulatory
requirements and improves the efficiency of official inspection
services. No additional cost is expected to result from this action.
Requiring all appeal inspections and Board appeal inspections for
grade to include a complete review of all official factors is not
needed by applicants or other parties to transactions, or by official
inspection personnel. Furthermore, this requirement often reduces the
efficiency of providing official inspection services and increases the
costs.
This proposed rule relieves regulatory requirements and improves
the efficiency of official inspection services. Further the regulations
are applied equally to all entities.
Executive Order 12988
Under Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice Reform, this action is
not intended to have a retroactive effect. This action will not preempt
any State or local laws, regulations, or policies unless they present
irreconcilable conflict with this rule. There are no administrative
procedures that must be exhausted prior to any judicial challenge to
the provisions of this notice.
Information Collection and Recordkeeping Requirements
In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C.
3501 et seq.), the information collection and recordkeeping
requirements in part 868 have been previously approved by OMB No. 0580-
0013.
GIPSA is committed to compliance with the Government Paperwork
Elimination Act, which requires Government agencies, in general, to
provide the public the option of submitting information or transacting
business electronically to the maximum extent possible.
List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 868
Administrative practice and procedure, Agricultural commodities.
For reasons set out in the preamble, 7 CFR part 868 is proposed to
be amended as follows:
PART 868--GENERAL REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS FOR CERTAIN
AGRICULTURAL COMMODITIES
1. The authority citation for part 868 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: Secs. 202-208, 60 Stat. 1087, as amended (7 U.S.C.
1621, et seq.)
2. Section 868.1, paragraphs (b)(3), and (b)(6) are revised to read
as follows:
Sec. 868.1 Meaning of terms.
* * * * *
(b) * * *
(3) Appeal inspection service. A review by the Service of the
result(s) of an original inspection or retest inspection service.
* * * * *
(6) Board appeal inspection service. A review by the Board of
Appeals and Review of the result(s) of an original inspection or appeal
inspection service on graded commodities.
* * * * *
3. Section 868.60, paragraph (b) and the OMB citation at the end of
the section are revised to read as follows:
Sec. 868.60 Who may request appeal inspection service.
* * * * *
(b) Kind and scope of request. When the results for more than one
kind of service are reported on a certificate, an appeal inspection or
Board appeal inspection service, as applicable, may be requested on any
or all kinds of services reported on the certificate. The scope of an
appeal inspection service will be limited to the scope of the original
inspection or, in the case of a Board appeal inspection service, the
original or appeal inspection service. A request for appeal inspection
of a retest inspection will be based upon the scope of the original
inspection. If the request specifies a different scope, the request
shall be dismissed. Provided, however, that an applicant for service
may request an appeal or Board appeal inspection of a specific
factor(s) or official grade and factors. In addition, appeal and Board
appeal inspection for grade may include a review of any pertinent
factor(s), as deemed necessary by official personnel.
(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control number
0580-0013.)
JoAnn Waterfield,
Acting Administrator, Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards
Administration.
[FR Doc. 05-13297 Filed 7-6-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-EN-P