Common Crop Insurance Regulations; Florida Citrus Fruit Crop Insurance Provisions, 41709-41716 [2012-17235]
Download as PDF
<![CDATA[
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 136 / Monday, July 16, 2012 / Proposed Rules
§ 51.2075
U.S. No. 1.
*
*
*
*
*
(b) * * *
(5) For internal (kernel) defects. 10
percent, by weight, for almonds with
kernels failing to meet the requirements
of this grade: Provided, that not more
than one-half of this tolerance or 5
percent shall be allowed for kernels
affected by decay or rancidity, damaged
by insects or mold or seriously damaged
by shriveling: And provided further,
that no part of this tolerance shall be
allowed for live insects inside the shell.
*
*
*
*
*
3. § 51.2080 is revised to read as
follows:
Determination of Grade
§ 51.2080
Determination of Grade.
In grading the inspection sample, the
percentage of loose hulls, pieces of
shell, chaff and foreign material is
determined on the basis of weight. Next,
the percentages of nuts which are of
dissimilar varieties, undersize or have
adhering hulls or defective shells are
determined by count, using an adequate
portion of the total sample. Finally, the
nuts in that portion of the sample are
cracked and the percentage having
internal defects is determined on the
basis of weight.
Dated: July 11, 2012.
David R. Shipman,
Administrator, Agricultural Marketing
Service.
[FR Doc. 2012–17229 Filed 7–13–12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410–02–P
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Federal Crop Insurance Corporation
7 CFR Part 457
[Docket No. FCIC–12–0006]
RIN 0563–AC39
Common Crop Insurance Regulations;
Florida Citrus Fruit Crop Insurance
Provisions
Federal Crop Insurance
Corporation, USDA.
ACTION: Proposed rule; request for
comments.
wreier-aviles on DSK5TPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
AGENCY:
The Federal Crop Insurance
Corporation (FCIC) proposes to amend
the Common Crop Insurance
Regulations, Florida Citrus Fruit Crop
Insurance Provisions. The intended
effect of this action is to provide policy
changes, to clarify existing policy
provisions to better meet the needs of
policyholders, and to reduce
SUMMARY:
VerDate Mar<15>2010
14:23 Jul 13, 2012
Jkt 226001
vulnerability to program fraud, waste,
and abuse. The proposed changes will
be effective for the 2014 and succeeding
crop years.
DATES: Written comments and opinions
on this proposed rule will be accepted
until close of business August 15, 2012
and will be considered when the rule is
to be made final.
ADDRESSES: FCIC prefers that comments
be submitted electronically through the
Federal eRulemaking Portal. You may
submit comments, identified by Docket
ID No. FCIC–12–0006, by any of the
following methods:
• Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://
www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments.
• Mail: Director, Product
Administration and Standards Division,
Risk Management Agency, United States
Department of Agriculture, P.O. Box
419205, Kansas City, MO 64133–6205.
All comments received, including
those received by mail, will be posted
without change to https://www.
regulations.gov, including any personal
information provided, and can be
accessed by the public. All comments
must include the agency name and
docket number or Regulatory
Information Number (RIN) for this rule.
For detailed instructions on submitting
comments and additional information,
see https://www.regulations.gov. If you
are submitting comments electronically
through the Federal eRulemaking Portal
and want to attach a document, we ask
that it be in a text-based format. If you
want to attach a document that is a
scanned Adobe PDF file, it must be
scanned as text and not as an image,
thus allowing FCIC to search and copy
certain portions of your submissions.
For questions regarding attaching a
document that is a scanned Adobe PDF
file, please contact the RMA Web
Content Team at (816) 823–4694 or by
email at rmaweb.content@rma.usda.gov.
Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search
the electronic form of all comments
received for any dockets by the name of
the person submitting the comment (or
signing the comment, if submitted on
behalf of an association, business, labor
union, etc.). You may review the
complete User Notice and Privacy
Notice for Regulations.gov at https://
www.regulations.gov/#!privacyNotice.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tim
Hoffmann, Director, Product
Administration and Standards Division,
Risk Management Agency, United States
Department of Agriculture, Beacon
Facility, Stop 0812, Room 421, P.O. Box
419205, Kansas City, MO 64141–6205,
telephone (816) 926–7730.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
41709
Executive Order 12866
This rule has been determined to be
non-significant for the purposes of
Executive Order 12866 and, therefore, it
has not been reviewed by the OMB.
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
Pursuant to the provisions of the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44
U.S.C. chapter 35), the collections of
information in this rule have been
approved by OMB under control
number 0563–0053.
E-Government Act Compliance
FCIC is committed to complying with
the E-Government Act of 2002, to
promote 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.
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of
1995
Title II of the Unfunded Mandates
Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA), establishes
requirements for Federal agencies to
assess the effects of their regulatory
actions on State, local, and tribal
governments and the private sector.
This rule contains no Federal mandates
(under the regulatory provisions of title
II of the UMRA) for State, local, and
tribal governments or the private sector.
Therefore, this rule is not subject to the
requirements of sections 202 and 205 of
UMRA.
Executive Order 13132
It has been determined under section
1(a) of Executive Order 13132,
Federalism, that this rule does not have
sufficient implications to warrant
consultation with the States. The
provisions contained in this rule will
not have a substantial direct effect on
States, or on the relationship between
the national government and the States,
or on the distribution of power and
responsibilities among the various
levels of government.
Executive Order 13175
This rule has been reviewed in
accordance with the requirements of
Executive Order 13175, Consultation
and Coordination with Indian Tribal
Governments. The review reveals that
this regulation will not have substantial
and direct effects on Tribal governments
and will not have significant Tribal
implications.
Regulatory Flexibility Act
FCIC certifies that this regulation will
not have a significant economic impact
on a substantial number of small
E:\FR\FM\16JYP1.SGM
16JYP1
41710
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 136 / Monday, July 16, 2012 / Proposed Rules
entities. Program requirements for the
Federal crop insurance program are the
same for all producers regardless of the
size of their farming operation. For
instance, all producers are required to
submit an application and acreage
report to establish their insurance
guarantees and compute premium
amounts, and all producers are required
to submit a notice of loss and
production information to determine the
amount of an indemnity payment in the
event of an insured cause of crop loss.
Whether a producer has 10 acres or
1000 acres, there is no difference in the
kind of information collected. To ensure
crop insurance is available to small
entities, the Federal Crop Insurance Act
authorizes FCIC to waive collection of
administrative fees from limited
resource farmers. FCIC believes this
waiver helps to ensure that small
entities are given the same opportunities
as large entities to manage their risks
through the use of crop insurance. A
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis has not
been prepared since this regulation does
not have an impact on small entities,
and, therefore, this regulation is exempt
from the provisions of the Regulatory
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 605).
Federal Assistance Program
This program is listed in the Catalog
of Federal Domestic Assistance under
No. 10.450.
Executive Order 12372
This program is not subject to the
provisions of Executive Order 12372,
which require intergovernmental
consultation with State and local
officials. See the Notice related to 7 CFR
part 3015, subpart V, published at 48 FR
29115, June 24, 1983.
wreier-aviles on DSK5TPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
Executive Order 12988
This proposed rule has been reviewed
in accordance with Executive Order
12988 on civil justice reform. The
provisions of this rule will not have a
retroactive effect. The provisions of this
rule will preempt State and local laws
to the extent such State and local laws
are inconsistent herewith. With respect
to any direct action taken by FCIC or
action by FCIC directing the insurance
provider to take specific action under
the terms of the crop insurance policy,
the administrative appeal provisions
published at 7 CFR part 11, or 7 CFR
part 400, subpart J for determinations of
good farming practices, as applicable,
must be exhausted before any action
against FCIC for judicial review may be
brought.
VerDate Mar<15>2010
14:23 Jul 13, 2012
Jkt 226001
Environmental Evaluation
This action is not expected to have a
significant economic impact on the
quality of the human environment,
health, or safety. Therefore, neither an
Environmental Assessment nor an
Environmental Impact Statement is
needed.
Background
FCIC proposes to amend the Common
Crop Insurance Regulations (7 CFR part
457) by revising § 457.107 Florida Citrus
Fruit Crop Insurance Provisions, to be
effective for the 2014 and succeeding
crop years. Several requests have been
made for changes to improve the
insurance coverage offered, address
program integrity issues, simplify
program administration, and improve
clarity of the policy provisions.
Some of the proposed changes are a
result of the United States Department
of Agriculture (USDA) Acreage Crop
Reporting Streamlining Initiative, which
has an objective of using common
standardized data and terminology to
consolidate and simplify reporting
requirements for farmers. FCIC is
proposing to change the term ‘‘citrus
fruit crop’’ to ‘‘citrus fruit commodity’’
and to rename the ‘‘citrus fruit
commodities’’ to be consistent with the
terms developed under the Acreage
Crop Reporting Streamlining Initiative.
This change will allow more efficient
sharing of data among agencies and will
assist in the effort to reduce the burden
of reporting the same information
multiple times. Some of the proposed
changes herein, such as the addition of
the term ‘‘citrus fruit group’’ minimize
the impact of changes to crop names.
With the incorporation of the term
‘‘citrus fruit group’’ into the Florida
Citrus Fruit Crop Provisions, FCIC will
concurrently add a field in the actuarial
documents breaking each ‘‘citrus fruit
commodity’’ into ‘‘citrus fruit groups.’’
The ‘‘citrus fruit groups’’ will be the
basis for determining coverage levels,
basic units, and administrative fees. In
most cases these proposed changes will
result in no change from the current
basis by which coverage levels are
selected, basic units are established, and
administrative fees are assessed.
To be consistent with the objectives of
the Acreage Crop Reporting
Streamlining Initiative, FCIC is planning
to replace the category of ‘‘type’’ in the
actuarial documents with four
categories named ‘‘commodity type,’’
‘‘class,’’ ‘‘subclass,’’ and ‘‘intended
use.’’ FCIC is also planning to replace
the category of ‘‘practice’’ in the
actuarial documents with four
categories named ‘‘cropping practice,’’
PO 00000
Frm 00004
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
‘‘organic practice,’’ ‘‘irrigation practice,’’
and ‘‘interval.’’ Proposed changes to the
Florida Citrus Fruit Crop provisions,
such as replacing references to the term
‘‘fruit type’’ with the terms ‘‘commodity
type’’ and ‘‘intended use’’ where
applicable, will provide an avenue for
this transition.
Some of the other proposed changes
are in response to an audit (05099–29–
At) by the Office of the Inspector
General (OIG). The report concluded the
Florida Citrus Fruit policy contains a
significant vulnerability because the
policy does not adequately account for
the salvage value of fruit insured as
fresh that is sold for another use. FCIC
agreed to revise the Florida Citrus Fruit
Crop Provisions for the 2014 crop year
to address this vulnerability.
The proposed changes are as follows:
1. Section 1—FCIC proposes to revise
the definition of ‘‘amount of insurance
(per acre)’’ to specify the Reference
Maximum Dollar Amount used in the
calculation will be based on the
applicable ‘‘commodity type’’ and
‘‘intended use’’ in addition to the age of
trees. This change is being proposed
because the terms ‘‘commodity type’’
and ‘‘intended use’’ are the terms that
will replace type in the actuarial
documents that are applicable to
determining the amount of insurance
per acre.
FCIC proposes to revise the definition
of ‘‘citrus fruit crop’’ by renaming it as
‘‘citrus fruit commodity’’ since
insurable commodities are identified in
the actuarial documents. FCIC proposes
to replace the term ‘‘citrus fruit crop’’
with the term ‘‘citrus fruit commodity’’
where appropriate throughout the
Florida Citrus Fruit Crop Provisions.
However, in some places the term
‘‘crop’’ will be changed to ‘‘insured
crop’’ which is defined in the Basic
Provisions or the term ‘‘crop’’ may be
retained if using the common meaning.
FCIC proposes to revise the definition of
the newly renamed term of ‘‘citrus fruit
commodity’’ by removing the old names
‘‘Citrus I–IX’’ and renaming the ‘‘citrus
fruit commodities’’ as ‘‘oranges,’’
‘‘grapefruit,’’ ‘‘tangelos,’’ ‘‘mandarins/
tangerines,’’ ‘‘tangors,’’ ‘‘lemons,’’
‘‘limes,’’ and ‘‘any other citrus fruit
commodity designated in the actuarial
documents.’’ In some cases the new
‘‘citrus fruit commodity’’ names will
result in several of the current ‘‘citrus
fruit crops’’ being combined into a
single ‘‘citrus fruit commodity.’’ For
example, the current ‘‘citrus fruit crops’’
named ‘‘Citrus I (Early and mid-season
oranges), Citrus II (Late oranges juice),
Citrus VII (Late oranges fresh), and
Citrus VIII (Navel oranges)’’ will all fall
under the new ‘‘citrus fruit commodity’’
E:\FR\FM\16JYP1.SGM
16JYP1
wreier-aviles on DSK5TPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 136 / Monday, July 16, 2012 / Proposed Rules
of ‘‘oranges.’’ In other cases the new
‘‘citrus fruit commodity’’ names will
result in current ‘‘citrus fruit crops’’
being split apart into multiple ‘‘citrus
fruit commodities.’’ For example, the
current ‘‘citrus fruit crop’’ named
‘‘Citrus VI (Lemons and Limes)’’ will
become two separate ‘‘citrus fruit
commodities’’ named ‘‘lemons’’ and
‘‘limes.’’ This change is being proposed
because of the Acreage Crop Reporting
Streamlining Initiative. This proposed
change in terminology does not change
the varieties of citrus that are insurable.
FCIC proposes to remove the
definition of ‘‘citrus fruit type (fruit
type)’’ and add definitions of
‘‘commodity type’’ and ‘‘intended use’’
to be consistent with the Acreage
Reporting and Streamlining Initiative.
‘‘Commodity type’’ and ‘‘intended use’’
are the categories that will replace type
in the actuarial documents that are
applicable to the Florida Citrus Fruit
Crop Provisions.
FCIC proposes to add the definition of
‘‘citrus fruit group.’’ The term ‘‘citrus
fruit group’’ refers to a method of
grouping ‘‘commodity types’’ and
‘‘intended uses’’ within the ‘‘citrus fruit
commodity’’ through the actuarial
documents for the purposes of electing
coverage levels, establishing basic units,
and assessing administrative fees. This
change is being proposed in order to
make the insurance coverage as similar
to that which was previously provided
while still being consistent with the
Acreage Crop Reporting Streamlining
Initiative.
FCIC proposes to revise the definition
of ‘‘excess wind’’ to allow the use of the
Florida Automated Weather Network
(FAWN) reporting stations and any
other weather reporting stations
identified in the Special Provisions in
addition to the U.S. National Weather
Service (NWS) reporting stations for
determining wind speeds. Using the
NWS reporting station, the FAWN
weather reporting station, or any other
weather reporting station identified in
the Special Provisions operating nearest
to the insured acreage at the time of
damage will result in a more precise
measurement of wind speeds due to the
availability of additional data points.
The use of FAWN data is currently
allowed by the Special Provisions.
FCIC proposes to add the definition of
‘‘unmarketable’’ because it is currently
undefined. FCIC proposes to define
‘‘unmarketable’’ as citrus fruit that
cannot be processed into products for
human consumption.
2. Section 2—FCIC proposes to revise
section 2(a) by adding language to allow
basic units by ‘‘citrus fruit group’’
designated within a ‘‘citrus fruit
VerDate Mar<15>2010
14:23 Jul 13, 2012
Jkt 226001
commodity’’ in the actuarial documents.
For example, under the new ‘‘citrus fruit
commodity’’ named ‘‘grapefruit,’’ all
‘‘grapefruit’’ with the intended use of
fresh could be in one ‘‘citrus fruit
group’’ and all ‘‘grapefruit’’ with the
intended use of juice could be in
another ‘‘citrus fruit group’’ identified
in the actuarial documents. In this
example, all ‘‘grapefruit’’ acreage with
an intended use of fresh can be insured
as one basic unit and all ‘‘grapefruit’’
acreage with an intended use of juice
can be insured as another basic unit.
This proposed change in terminology is
intended to allow policyholders to keep
their current unit structure to the
maximum extent practicable. However,
in some cases, such as with the ‘‘citrus
fruit crop’’ named ‘‘Citrus VI (Lemons
and Limes),’’ which will become
separate ‘‘citrus fruit commodities’’
named ‘‘lemons’’ and ‘‘limes,’’ the
policyholder will now be able to
establish separate basic units for each of
these ‘‘citrus fruit commodities.’’
3. Section 3—FCIC proposes to revise
section 3(a) by adding language to allow
the policyholder to select separate
coverage levels by ‘‘citrus fruit group’’
designated within a ‘‘citrus fruit
commodity’’ in the actuarial documents.
For example, under the new ‘‘citrus fruit
commodity’’ of ‘‘oranges,’’ all early and
mid-season oranges will be grouped
together as one ‘‘citrus fruit group’’ and
the policyholder must select the same
coverage level for all citrus fruit insured
under this ‘‘citrus fruit group.’’ These
revisions to terminology will allow
policyholders to continue to elect
coverage levels on the same basis they
currently elect for most crops. However,
in some cases, such as with the ‘‘citrus
fruit crop’’ named ‘‘Citrus VI (Lemons
and Limes)’’ which will become
separate ‘‘citrus fruit commodities’’
named ‘‘lemons’’ and ‘‘limes,’’ the
policyholder will now be able to select
separate coverage levels for the ‘‘citrus
fruit groups’’ within each of these
‘‘citrus fruit commodities.’’
FCIC proposes to revise section 3(c) to
specify the reporting requirements for
‘‘citrus fruit commodities’’ insured
under the Florida Citrus Fruit Crop
Provisions. The proposed revision to
section 3(c) includes four subparagraphs
stating what the policyholder must
report by the acreage reporting date
contained in the actuarial documents.
The reporting requirements include any
event or action that could reduce the
yield per acre of the insured ‘‘citrus fruit
commodity’’ and the number of affected
acres, the number of trees on insurable
and uninsurable acreage, age of the
trees, interplanted trees, planting
pattern, and any other information the
PO 00000
Frm 00005
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
41711
insurance provider requests in order to
establish the amount of insurance.
These requirements are being added
because this information is necessary to
establish the amount of insurance
because it affects the potential
production of the unit.
FCIC proposes to revise section 3(d)
by clarifying the reasons FCIC will
reduce insurable acreage or the amount
of insurance, or both. The reasons given
for a reduction are consistent with the
reporting requirements contained in the
proposed revision of section 3(c). Those
reasons include interplanted trees, a
decrease in plant stand, cultural
practices that may reduce the
productive capacity of the trees, disease,
damage, and any other circumstance
that may reduce the productive capacity
of the trees or that may reduce the yield
per acre from previous levels. FCIC
proposes to remove the term ‘‘fruit
type’’ and replace it with the term
‘‘commodity type’’ since this is the
category in the actuarial documents that
is relevant when determining the effect
of interplanted trees.
FCIC proposes to designate the second
sentence from section 3(d) as section
3(e) and revise it to state, ‘‘If you fail to
notify us of any circumstance that may
reduce the productive capacity of the
trees or that may reduce the yield per
acre from previous levels, we will
reduce the acreage or amount of
insurance or both as necessary any time
we become aware of the circumstance.’’
The current provision states these same
consequences, but is phrased
differently. This change is being
proposed to clarify ‘‘circumstances that
may reduce the productive capacity of
the trees or that may reduce the yield
per acre from previous levels’’ are the
reasons for reducing the acreage or
amount of insurance.
FCIC proposes to redesignate section
3(e) as 3(f). FCIC proposes to remove the
old provisions from section 3(f), which
states that we will reduce your amount
of insurance per acre for damage that
occurred prior to the insurance period.
This same information is contained in
the revised section 3(d). Therefore, with
the proposed revisions to section 3(d),
section 3(f) becomes redundant and is
no longer necessary.
4. Section 6—FCIC proposes to revise
section 6(a) by adding language to allow
the insured crop to be all acreage of
each ‘‘citrus fruit group,’’ designated
within a ‘‘citrus fruit commodity’’ in the
actuarial documents. The ‘‘citrus fruit
groups’’ within the ‘‘citrus fruit
commodity’’ will be assessed separate
administrative fees and the policyholder
can elect to insure one ‘‘citrus fruit
group’’ and not insure another within
E:\FR\FM\16JYP1.SGM
16JYP1
wreier-aviles on DSK5TPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
41712
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 136 / Monday, July 16, 2012 / Proposed Rules
the same ‘‘citrus fruit commodity.’’ For
example, if the ‘‘citrus fruit commodity’’
of oranges has a ‘‘citrus fruit group’’ for
all early and mid-season oranges and
another ‘‘citrus fruit group’’ for all late
oranges, the policyholder could elect to
insure all of his or her early and midseason oranges in the county, but not
insure any late oranges. Since ‘‘citrus
fruit groups’’ will provide the basis for
assessing administrative fees, in most
cases this change will result in no
change from the basis by which
administrative fees are currently
assessed. However, in some cases, such
as with the ‘‘citrus fruit crop’’ named
‘‘Citrus VI (Lemons and Limes)’’ which
will become separate ‘‘citrus fruit
commodities’’ named ‘‘lemons’’ and
‘‘limes,’’ separate administrative fees
will be assessed for each of the ‘‘citrus
fruit groups’’ within these ‘‘citrus fruit
commodities’’ and the policyholder can
elect to insure one and not the other.
FCIC proposes to revise section 6(b)(1)
by removing the term ‘‘fruit type’’ and
adding the term ‘‘commodity type’’ in
its place since this is the category in the
actuarial documents that is relevant
when determining the normal maturity
period.
FCIC proposes to revise section 6(b)(2)
by changing the date of ‘‘April 30’’ to
‘‘April 15.’’ This date is proposed to be
changed to coincide with the proposed
new April 16 insurance attachment date
to eliminate the current gap in coverage.
This provision requires trees to have
reached the fifth growing season after
being set out to be insurable. The
revision will require trees to have been
set out by April 15 in order for the year
of set out to be considered as a growing
season.
FCIC proposes to revise section 6(b)(3)
to include ‘‘Ambersweet’’ oranges in the
list of uninsurable fruit. FCIC has
determined ‘‘Ambersweet’’ orange trees
to be unreliable producers of fruit.
Furthermore, ‘‘Ambersweet’’ oranges are
a poor quality fruit and consequently
the trees are scarcely planted for
commercial production. Excluding
‘‘Ambersweet’’ oranges from insurability
will protect program integrity by
eliminating the risk associated with
insuring them.
FCIC proposes to revise section 6(b)(6)
by removing the term ‘‘fruit type’’ and
adding the term ‘‘commodity type’’ in
its place since this is the category in the
actuarial documents that is relevant
when determining the insurability of
citrus fruit. FCIC proposes to remove the
phrase ‘‘or within the definition of
citrus fruit crop’’ since the definition of
‘‘citrus fruit crop’’ is proposed to be
revised.
VerDate Mar<15>2010
14:23 Jul 13, 2012
Jkt 226001
FCIC proposes to add section 6(f)
which will require policyholders who
insure fresh fruit to provide
management records upon request to
verify good fresh citrus fruit production
practices were followed from the
beginning of bloom stage until harvest.
The proposed provision also requires
policyholders who insure fresh fruit to
provide acceptable fresh fruit sales
records upon request from at least one
of the previous three crop years; or for
fresh fruit acreage new to the operation
or for acreage in the initial year of fresh
fruit production, a current year fresh
fruit marketing contract must be
provided upon request. The proposed
provision protects program integrity by
safeguarding against policyholders
purchasing fresh fruit insurance without
the intention of producing fresh fruit
and without providing the necessary
inputs to produce fresh fruit. This
requirement is currently implemented
through the Special Provisions.
5. Section 7—FCIC proposes to revise
section 7 by designating the
undesignated introductory paragraph as
section 7(a) and redesignating sections
7(a), (b), and (c) as sections 7(a)(1), (2),
and (3) respectively. These paragraphs
are proposed to be redesignated in order
to add a new section 7(b). In
redesignated paragraphs 7(a)(1) and (2)
FCIC proposes to remove the term ‘‘fruit
type’’ everywhere this term appears and
add the term ‘‘commodity type’’ in its
place since this is the category in the
actuarial documents that will be used to
determine the effect of interplanted
trees.
FCIC proposes to add section 7(b)
which will exclude from insurability
any acreage that has been abandoned
without undergoing remediation
necessary to produce the amount and
quality of production needed to achieve
the applicable Reference Maximum
Dollar Amount prior to insurance
attaching. This provision is being added
to address situations where citrus
acreage has been abandoned prior to
insurance attaching. While section 11 of
the Basic Provisions states insurance
ends upon abandonment of the crop,
neither the Basic Provisions nor the
Florida Citrus Fruit Crop Provisions
address situations where acreage is
abandoned prior to the insurance
period. Abandoned orchards harbor
disease and insects, which without
proper control measures and
remediation efforts result in poor
quality fruit and diminished
production. A similar requirement is
currently implemented through the
Special Provisions.
6. Section 8—FCIC proposes to revise
section 8(a)(1) by changing the date
PO 00000
Frm 00006
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
insurance attaches from May 1 to April
16. FCIC is proposing this change to
eliminate the gap between the sales
closing date and the date insurance
attaches. For the 2013 crop year the
sales closing date was moved from April
1 to April 15 as part of the Acreage Crop
Reporting Streamlining Initiative. This
gap in coverage could adversely affect
producers who want to transfer their
property and transfer their coverage and
right to an indemnity. Producers can
only insure, and transfer, their share at
the time insurance attached and this gap
created a period in which the producer
had no share that could be transferred.
This change will eliminate this
situation.
FCIC proposes to revise section
8(a)(1)(i) by removing the phrase ‘‘for
the fruit type’’ from the parenthetical.
FCIC also proposes to revise this section
by removing the term ‘‘grove’’ and
adding the term ‘‘acreage’’ in its place
to be consistent with the terms used in
this provision. The revised provision
requires the policyholder to provide any
information required to determine the
condition of the acreage to be insured.
This change is being proposed because
it is the condition of the acreage that is
important and there are other factors to
consider besides just the information
regarding the fruit type.
FCIC proposes to revise section 8(a)(2)
by changing the end of insurance period
date for early oranges from February 7
to February 28. This change is being
proposed because February 28 coincides
more closely to the time harvest is
normally completed for early oranges.
This change has already been
implemented through the Special
Provisions.
FCIC proposes to revise section 8(b)(1)
to state acreage acquired after the
acreage reporting date for the crop year
is not insurable unless a transfer of
coverage and right to indemnity is
executed in accordance with section 28
of the Basic Provisions. The current
provision in this section only addresses
the insurability of acreage acquired after
coverage begins, but on or before the
acreage reporting date for the crop year.
Since none of the crops insurable under
the Florida Citrus Fruit Crop Provisions
have an acreage reporting date that
occurs after the date insurance attaches
for the crop year, this provision is not
applicable. Since the language is not
applicable, it has been replaced with
language that reflects the intent of the
provision.
FCIC proposes to revise section 8(b)(2)
to state if a policyholder relinquishes
their insurable share on any insurable
acreage of citrus before the acreage
reporting date of the crop year;
E:\FR\FM\16JYP1.SGM
16JYP1
wreier-aviles on DSK5TPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 136 / Monday, July 16, 2012 / Proposed Rules
insurance will not attach, no premium
will be due, and no indemnity will be
payable for such acreage for that crop
year. The current provision contains a
similar statement, but it also includes a
provision that allows a transfer of
coverage and right to indemnity if filed
before the acreage reporting date. The
current provision was written under the
assumption that the acreage reporting
date occurs after insurance attaches.
However, the acreage reporting date
established in the actuarial documents
for all crops insured under the Florida
Citrus Fruit Crop Provisions currently
occurs before the insurance attachment
date. Since, in accordance with section
28 of the Basic Provisions, a transfer of
coverage and right to indemnity can
only occur during the crop year, the
exception is not applicable given the
current dates or the dates contained in
this proposed rule. Therefore, the
language regarding a transfer of coverage
and right to indemnity is proposed to be
removed.
7. Section 9—FCIC proposes to revise
section 9(a)(6) by removing the
statement that only allows excess wind
to be a covered cause of loss if the
excess wind causes fruit insured as
fresh to be unmarketable as fresh.
Allowing excess wind to be a covered
cause of loss for all crops expands
coverage to citrus fruit insured as juice.
Allowing this additional level of
coverage provides more comprehensive
coverage against natural perils.
However, this additional coverage may
affect premium rates.
8. Section 10—FCIC proposes to
revise section 10(b)(1) by removing the
phrase ‘‘fruit type and multiplying that
result by your share’’ and adding the
phrase ‘‘applicable commodity type,
intended use, and age of trees.’’ The
term ‘‘fruit type’’ is proposed to be
replaced with the terms ‘‘commodity
type’’ and ‘‘intended use’’ because these
are the categories in the actuarial
documents that will replace type that
are applicable to determining the
amount of insurance for the unit. The
phrase ‘‘age of trees’’ is proposed to be
added because the amount of insurance
may also be different based on the age
of the trees. The phrase ‘‘multiplying
that result by your share’’ is proposed to
be removed because it is redundant. The
definition of ‘‘amount of insurance (per
acre)’’ already includes instructions to
calculate the dollar amount of insurance
by multiplying by your share.
FCIC proposes to revise sections
10(b)(2), (5), and (6) by removing the
term ‘‘fruit type’’ and adding the terms
‘‘commodity type’’ and ‘‘intended use’’
in its place since these are the categories
in the actuarial documents that will
VerDate Mar<15>2010
14:23 Jul 13, 2012
Jkt 226001
replace type that are applicable to
determining a loss. The phrase ‘‘age of
trees’’ is proposed to be added because
the amount of insurance may be
different based on the age of the trees.
FCIC proposes to revise the example
in section 10(b) by removing the phrase
‘‘citrus crop, fruit type’’ and adding the
phrase ‘‘commodity type, intended use’’
in its place to be consistent with the
proposed changes in this section.
FCIC proposes to remove section 10(c)
which pertains specifically to fruit
insured as fresh that is damaged by
freeze and is not harvested or could not
be marketed. Section 10(c) is proposed
to be removed because assessing 50
percent damage for freeze damaged fruit
when the amount of actual damage is
less than 50 percent can result in overpayment of the claim. Furthermore,
while section 10(c) attempts to address
the salvage value of fruit by using the
amount of juice loss to determine a final
percent of damage, it does not reflect the
actual salvage value of the fruit because
it does not account for price differences
between fresh fruit and juice fruit for
different ‘‘citrus fruit commodities.’’
FCIC proposes to add a new section
10(c) that pertains to fruit insured either
as fresh or juice. The proposed section
10(c)(1) will contain the information
from section 10(f), but will be revised to
clarify that individual citrus fruit
damaged due to an insurable cause that
is on the ground and unmarketable is
100 percent damaged. The proposed
section 10(c)(2) will contain the
information from section 10(g), but will
be revised to clarify individual fruit that
is unmarketable because it is immature,
unwholesome, decomposed,
adulterated, or otherwise unfit for
human consumption due to an insured
cause will be considered as 100 percent
damaged. FCIC proposes to remove
sections 10(f) and (g) because section
10(c) is proposed to contain the same
information. This change will improve
the readability of the provisions.
FCIC proposes to remove section
10(d), which pertains specifically to
fruit insured as fresh that is
mechanically separated using the
specific gravity (floatation) method into
undamaged and freeze damaged fruit.
Section 10(d) allows freeze damaged
fruit eliminated using the specific
gravity method to be considered as
damaged production not to exceed 50
percent damage. Section 10(d) is
proposed to be removed because it is no
longer relevant. The floatation method
is rarely used and many packing houses
do not keep track of the actual number
of fruit eliminated solely due to freeze
damage.
PO 00000
Frm 00007
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
41713
FCIC proposes to redesignate section
10(e) as section 10(d). FCIC proposes to
revise the newly redesignated section
10(d) by removing references specific to
freeze damage so the provision will
apply to all insured causes of loss.
References to juice crops are proposed
to be removed so the provision will
apply to ‘‘citrus fruit commodities’’
insured as fresh and juice. The
provision is proposed to be revised to
state that any fruit that can be processed
into products for human consumption
will be considered marketable. FCIC
proposes to remove the default juice
contents and state that these will be
found in the Special Provisions. Placing
the default juice contents in the Special
Provisions gives FCIC flexibility to add
new default juice contents if new types
are made insurable or if the current
default juice contents need to be
revised. The current method of
determining the percent of damage by
relating the juice content of the
damaged fruit to either the average juice
content of the fruit produced on the unit
for the three previous crop years or the
default juice content provided by FCIC
if three years of acceptable juice records
are not provided will be retained.
However, for fruit insured as fresh, an
additional adjustment will be made to
increase the percent of damage based on
a Fresh Fruit Factor located in the
Special Provisions. The Fresh Fruit
Factor will represent the difference
between historical fresh fruit and juice
values. These values will be obtained
from the National Agricultural Statistics
Service. The Fresh Fruit Factor will be
derived by dividing the five-year
average of juice prices by the five-year
average of fresh prices and subtracting
the result from one. When determining
the loss the Fresh Fruit Factor will be
multiplied by the result obtained by
subtracting the percent of damage
determined by relating the juice content
to the default juice content from 100.
This result would then be added to the
percent of damage determined by
relating the juice content to the default
juice content. This proposed provision
works by adjusting the percent of
undamaged fruit to an amount that
represents the salvage value of the juice.
This proposed change is in response to
an Office of the Inspector General audit
that requires FCIC to account for the
salvage value of fruit insured as fresh.
FCIC proposes to redesignate section
10(h) as section 10(e). FCIC proposes to
revise the newly redesignated section
10(e) to make it applicable to fruit
insured as fresh that do not have a
default juice content or a Fresh Fruit
Factor provided in the Special
E:\FR\FM\16JYP1.SGM
16JYP1
41714
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 136 / Monday, July 16, 2012 / Proposed Rules
Provisions. FCIC proposes to revise the
provision to apply to all insurable
causes of loss rather than limiting it to
hail and wind since the freeze damage
method is proposed to be removed. This
provision is intended to provide a
method for determining losses for fruit
insured as fresh in which a salvage
market does not exist.
List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 457
Crop insurance, Florida citrus fruit,
Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
Proposed Rule
Accordingly, as set forth in the
preamble, the Federal Crop Insurance
Corporation proposes to amend 7 CFR
part 457 effective for the 2014 and
succeeding crop years as follows:
PART 457—COMMON CROP
INSURANCE REGULATIONS
1. The authority citation for 7 CFR
part 457 continues to read as follows:
wreier-aviles on DSK5TPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1506(l), 1506(o).
2. Amend § 457.107 as follows:
a. Amend the introductory text by
removing ‘‘2009’’ and adding ‘‘2014’’ in
its place;
b. Amend section 1 by:
i. Revising the definitions of ‘‘amount
of insurance (per acre),’’ ‘‘citrus fruit
crop,’’ and ‘‘excess wind’’;
ii. Adding the definitions of ‘‘citrus
fruit group,’’ ‘‘commodity type,’’
‘‘intended use,’’ and ‘‘unmarketable’’;
and
iii. Removing the definition of ‘‘citrus
fruit type (fruit type)’’;
c. Amend section 2(a) by removing
the phrase ‘‘crop designated in the
Special Provisions’’ and add the phrase
‘‘group designated within a citrus fruit
commodity in the actuarial documents;
d. Revise section 3;
e. Amend section 6 by:
i. Revising paragraph (a);
ii. Amending paragraph (b)(1) by
removing the term ‘‘fruit type’’ and
adding the term ‘‘commodity type’’ in
its place;
iii. Amending paragraph (b)(2) by
removing the number ‘‘30’’ and adding
the number ‘‘15’’ in its place;
iv. Revising paragraph (b)(3);
v. Revising paragraph (b)(6); and
vi. Adding a new paragraph (f);
f. Amend section 7 by:
i. Designating the undesignated
introductory paragraph as section 7(a);
ii. Redesignating paragraphs (a), (b),
and (c) as (a)(1), (2), and (3)
respectively;
iii. Revising the redesignated
paragraph (a)(1);
iv. Revising the redesignated
paragraph (a)(2); and
VerDate Mar<15>2010
14:23 Jul 13, 2012
Jkt 226001
v. Adding a new section 7(b);
g. Amend section 8 by:
i. Amending paragraph (a)(1) by
removing the date of ‘‘May 1’’ and
adding the date of ‘‘April 16’’ in its
place;
ii. Amending paragraph (a)(1)(i) by
removing the phrase ‘‘for the fruit type’’
and by removing the term ‘‘grove’’ and
adding the term acreage in its place;
iii. Amending paragraph (a)(2)(i) by
removing the phrase ‘‘early and’’;
iv. Amending paragraph (a)(2)(ii) by
adding the phrase ‘‘early oranges and’’
after the phrase ‘‘February 28 for’’;
v. Amending paragraph (a)(2)(iv) by
removing the comma after the term
‘‘lemons’’ and adding the term ‘‘and’’
before the term ‘‘limes’’; and
vi. Revising paragraph (b);
h. Amend section 9(a)(6) by removing
the phrase ‘‘, but only if it causes the
individual citrus fruit from Citrus IV, V,
VII, and VIII to be unmarketable as fresh
fruit’’;
i. Amend section 10 by:
i. Revising paragraph (b)(1);
ii. Amending paragraph (b)(2) by
removing the term ‘‘fruit type’’ and
adding the phrase ‘‘commodity type,
intended use, and age of trees’’ in its
place;
iii. Amending paragraph (b)(3) by
removing the parenthesis around the
number ‘‘10’’;
iv. Amending paragraph (b)(4) by
removing the parenthesis around the
number ‘‘10’’ in the first sentence;
v. Amending paragraph (b)(5) by
removing the parenthesis around the
number ‘‘10’’ and by removing the term
‘‘fruit type’’ and adding the phrase
‘‘commodity type, intended use, and age
of trees’’ in its place;
vi. Amending paragraph (b)(6) by
removing the parenthesis around the
number ‘‘10’’ and by removing the term
‘‘fruit types’’ and adding the phrase
‘‘applicable commodity types, intended
uses, and ages of trees’’ in its place;
vii. Amending the example in
paragraph (b) by removing the opening
parenthesis at the beginning of the
example and by removing the phrase
‘‘citrus crop, fruit type,’’ and adding the
phrase ‘‘commodity type, intended
use,’’ in its place;
viii. Removing paragraphs (c) and (d);
ix. Adding a new paragraph (c);
x. Redesignating paragraph (e) as (d)
and revising the newly redesignated
paragraph (d);
xi. Removing paragraph (f) and (g);
and
xii. Redesignating paragraph (h) as (e)
and revising the newly redesignated
paragraph (e).
The revised and added text reads as
follows:
PO 00000
Frm 00008
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
§ 457.107 Florida citrus fruit crop
insurance provisions.
*
*
*
*
*
1. Definitions
Amount of insurance (per acre). The
dollar amount determined by
multiplying the Reference Maximum
Dollar Amount shown on the actuarial
documents for each applicable
commodity type, intended use, and age
of trees within a citrus fruit commodity,
times the coverage level percent that
you elect, times your share.
*
*
*
*
*
Citrus fruit commodity. Citrus fruit as
follows:
(1) Oranges;
(2) Grapefruit;
(3) Tangelos;
(4) Mandarins/Tangerines;
(5) Tangors;
(6) Lemons;
(7) Limes; and
(8) Any other citrus fruit commodity
designated in the actuarial documents.
Citrus fruit group. A designation in
the actuarial documents used to identify
commodity types and intended uses
within a citrus fruit commodity that
may be grouped together for the
purposes of electing coverage levels,
establishing basic units, and assessing
administrative fees.
Commodity type. A specific subgroup
of a commodity having a characteristic
or set of characteristics distinguishable
from other subgroups of the same
commodity.
Excess wind. A natural movement of
air that has sustained speeds exceeding
58 miles per hour (50 knots) recorded at
the U.S. National Weather Service
(NWS) reporting station (reported as
MAX SUST (KT)), the Florida
Automated Weather Network (FAWN)
reporting station (reported as 10m Wind
(mph)), or any other weather reporting
station identified in the Special
Provisions operating nearest to the
insured acreage at the time of damage.
*
*
*
*
*
Intended use. The producer’s
expected end use or disposition of the
commodity at the time the commodity
is reported.
*
*
*
*
*
Unmarketable. Citrus fruit that cannot
be processed into products for human
consumption.
*
*
*
*
*
3. Insurance Guarantees, Coverage
Levels, and Prices for Determining
Indemnities
In addition to the requirements of
section 3 of the Basic Provisions:
(a) You may select only one coverage
level for each citrus fruit group
designated within a citrus fruit
E:\FR\FM\16JYP1.SGM
16JYP1
wreier-aviles on DSK5TPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 136 / Monday, July 16, 2012 / Proposed Rules
commodity in the actuarial documents
that you elect to insure. If different
amounts of insurance are available for
commodity types within a citrus fruit
group, you must select the same
coverage level for each commodity type.
For example, if you choose the 75
percent coverage level for one
commodity type, you must also choose
the 75 percent coverage level for all
other commodity types within that
citrus fruit group.
(b) The production reporting
requirements contained in section 3 of
the Basic Provisions are not applicable.
(c) You must report, by the acreage
reporting date designated in the
actuarial documents:
(1) Any event or action that could
reduce the yield per acre of the insured
citrus fruit commodity (including
interplanted trees, removal of trees, any
damage, change in practices, or any
other circumstance that may reduce the
productive capacity of the trees) and the
number of affected acres;
(2) The number of trees on insurable
and uninsurable acreage;
(3) The age of the trees and the
planting pattern; and
(4) Any other information we request
in order to establish your amount of
insurance.
(d) We will reduce insurable acreage
or the amount of insurance or both, as
necessary:
(1) Based on our estimate of the effect
of the interplanted trees on the insured
commodity type;
(2) Following a decrease in plant
stand;
(3) If cultural practices are performed
that may reduce the productive capacity
of the trees;
(4) If disease or damage occurs to the
trees that may reduce the productive
capacity of the trees; or
(5) Any other circumstance that may
reduce the productive capacity of the
trees or that may reduce the yield per
acre from previous levels.
(e) If you fail to notify us of any
circumstance that may reduce the
productive capacity of the trees or that
may reduce the yield per acre from
previous levels, we will reduce the
acreage or amount of insurance or both
as necessary any time we become aware
of the circumstance.
(f) For carryover policies:
(1) Any changes to your coverage
must be requested on or before the sales
closing date;
(2) Requested changes will take effect
on April 16, the first day of the crop
year, unless we reject the requested
increase based on our inspection, or
because a loss occurs on or before April
15 (Rejection can occur at any time we
VerDate Mar<15>2010
14:23 Jul 13, 2012
Jkt 226001
discover loss has occurred on or before
April 15); and
(3) If the increase is rejected, coverage
will remain at the same level as the
previous crop year.
*
*
*
*
*
6. Insured Crop.
(a) In accordance with section 8 of the
Basic Provisions, the insured crop will
be all acreage of each citrus fruit group
designated within a citrus fruit
commodity in the actuarial documents
that you elect to insure, in which you
have a share, that is grown in the county
shown on the application, and for
which a premium rate is quoted in the
actuarial documents.
(b) * * *
*
*
*
*
*
(3) Of ‘‘Meyer Lemons’’ and oranges
commonly known as ‘‘Sour Oranges,’’
‘‘Clementines,’’ or ‘‘Ambersweet’’;
*
*
*
*
*
(6) Of any commodity type not
specified as insurable in the Special
Provisions.
*
*
*
*
*
(f) For citrus fruit in which fresh fruit
coverage is available as designated in
the actuarial documents, management
records must be available upon request
to verify good fresh citrus fruit
production practices were followed
from the beginning of bloom stage until
harvest. In addition, unless otherwise
provided in the Special Provisions
acceptable fresh fruit sales records must
be provided upon request from at least
one of the previous three crop years; or
for fresh fruit acreage new to the
operation or for acreage in the initial
year of fresh fruit production, a current
year fresh fruit marketing contract must
be provided to us upon request.
7. Insurable Acreage.
(a) * * *
(1) Citrus fruit from trees interplanted
with another commodity type or another
commodity is insurable unless we
inspect the acreage and determine it
does not meet the requirements
contained in your policy.
(2) If the citrus fruit is from trees
interplanted with another commodity
type or another commodity, acreage will
be prorated according to the percentage
of the acres occupied by each of the
interplanted commodity types or
commodities. For example, if grapefruit
have been interplanted with oranges on
100 acres and the grapefruit trees are on
50 percent of the acreage, grapefruit will
be considered planted on 50 acres and
oranges will be considered planted on
50 acres.
*
*
*
*
*
(b) In addition to section 9 of the
Basic Provisions, any acreage of citrus
PO 00000
Frm 00009
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
41715
fruit that has been abandoned and has
not subsequently undergone
remediation necessary to produce the
amount and quality of production
needed to achieve the applicable
Reference Maximum Dollar Amount
prior to insurance attaching is not
insurable.
8. Insurance Period.
*
*
*
*
*
(b) In addition to the provisions of
section 11 of the Basic Provisions:
(1) Acreage acquired after the acreage
reporting date for the crop year is not
insurable unless a transfer of coverage
and right to indemnity is executed in
accordance with section 28 of the Basic
Provisions.
(2) If you relinquish your insurable
share on any insurable acreage of citrus
fruit on or before the acreage reporting
date of the crop year, insurance will not
attach, no premium will be due, and no
indemnity payable, for such acreage for
that crop year.
*
*
*
*
*
10. Settlement of Claim.
*
*
*
*
*
(b) * * *
(1) Calculating the amount of
insurance for the unit by multiplying
the number of acres by the respective
dollar amount of insurance per acre for
each applicable commodity type,
intended use, and age of trees in the
unit.
*
*
*
*
*
(c) Any individual citrus fruit that,
due to an insured cause of loss, is
unmarketable because it is:
(1) On the ground will be considered
100 percent damaged; or
(2) Immature, unwholesome,
decomposed, adulterated, or otherwise
unfit for human consumption will be
considered as 100 percent damaged.
(d) In addition to section 10(c), any
citrus fruit that can be processed into
products for human consumption will
be considered marketable. The percent
of damage for the marketable citrus fruit
will be determined by:
(1) Relating the juice content of the
damaged fruit to:
(i) The average juice content of the
fruit produced on the unit for the three
previous crop years based on your
records, if they are acceptable to us; or
(ii) The default juice content provided
in the Special Provisions, if at least
three years of acceptable juice records
are not furnished or the citrus fruit is
insured as fresh;
(2) For citrus fruit insured as fresh,
the final percent of damage for the
marketable citrus fruit will be
determined by:
(i) Subtracting the result of section
10(d)(1)(ii) from 100;
E:\FR\FM\16JYP1.SGM
16JYP1
41716
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 136 / Monday, July 16, 2012 / Proposed Rules
(ii) Multiplying the result of section
10(d)(2)(i) by the applicable Fresh Fruit
Factor located in the Special Provisions;
and
(iii) Adding the result of section
10(d)(2)(ii) to the result of section
10(d)(1)(ii).
(e) Notwithstanding section 10(d), for
citrus fruit insured as fresh that do not
have a default juice content or a Fresh
Fruit Factor provided in the Special
Provisions, any individual citrus fruit
not meeting the United States standards
for packing as fresh fruit due to an
insured cause of loss, will be considered
100 percent damaged.
*
*
*
*
*
Signed in Washington, DC, on July 10,
2012.
William J. Murphy,
Manager, Federal Crop Insurance
Corporation.
[FR Doc. 2012–17235 Filed 7–13–12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410–08–P
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service
9 CFR Parts 1 and 2
[Docket No. APHIS–2011–0003]
RIN 0579–AC36
Animal Welfare; Retail Pet Stores and
Licensing Exemptions
Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Proposed rule; extension of
comment period.
AGENCY:
We are extending the
comment period for our proposed rule
that would revise the definition of retail
pet store and related regulations to bring
more pet animals sold at retail under the
protection of the Animal Welfare Act
(AWA). We are also announcing the
availability of a revised factsheet
regarding our proposal. These actions
will allow interested persons additional
time to prepare and submit comments.
DATES: We will consider all comments
that we receive on or before August 15,
2012.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments
by either of the following methods:
• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to
https://www.regulations.gov/
#!documentDetail;D=APHIS-2011-0003.
• Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery:
Send your comment to Docket No.
APHIS–2011–0003, Regulatory Analysis
and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station
3A–03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118,
Riverdale, MD 20737–1238.
wreier-aviles on DSK5TPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
SUMMARY:
VerDate Mar<15>2010
16:56 Jul 13, 2012
Jkt 226001
Supporting documents and any
comments we receive on this docket
may be viewed at https://www.
regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;
D=APHIS-2011-0003 or in our reading
room, which is located in room 1141 of
the USDA South Building, 14th Street
and Independence Avenue SW.,
Washington, DC. Normal reading room
hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday
through Friday, except holidays. To be
sure someone is there to help you,
please call (202) 799–7039 before
coming.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr.
Gerald Rushin, Veterinary Medical
Officer, Animal Care, APHIS, 4700 River
Road Unit 84, Riverdale, MD 20737–
1231; (301) 851–3740.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
her premises for use as pets or
exhibition, regardless of whether those
animals are sold at retail or wholesale.
Comments on the proposed rule were
required to be received on or before July
16, 2012. We are extending the
comment period on Docket No. APHIS–
2011–0003 for an additional 30 days.
This action will allow interested
persons additional time to prepare and
submit comments.
We are also announcing the
availability of a revised factsheet to
clarify our proposed actions. The
revised factsheet is available on the Web
at https://www.aphis.usda.gov/
publications/animal_welfare/2012/
retail_pets_faq.pdf.
Background
On May 16, 2012, we published in the
Federal Register (77 FR 28799–28805,
Docket No. APHIS–2011–0003) a
proposal to revise the definition of retail
pet store and related regulations to bring
more pet animals sold at retail under the
protection of the Animal Welfare Act
(AWA).
‘‘Retail pet stores’’ are not required to
obtain a license under the AWA or
comply with the AWA regulations and
standards. Currently, anyone selling, at
retail, the following animals for use as
pets are considered retail pet stores:
Dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs,
hamsters, gerbils, rats, mice, gophers,
chinchilla, domestic ferrets, domestic
farm animals, birds, and cold-blooded
species.
Under the proposed rule, ‘‘retail pet
store’’ status would not apply to such
retailers if buyers do not physically
enter the seller’s place of business or
residence in order to personally observe
the animals available for sale prior to
purchase and/or to take custody of the
animals after purchase. Unless
otherwise exempt under the regulations,
these entities would be required to
obtain a license from APHIS and would
become subject to the requirements of
the AWA. The proposed rule would
exempt from regulation anyone who
sells or negotiates the sale or purchase
of any animal, except wild or exotic
animals, dogs, or cats, and who derives
no more than $500 gross income from
the sale of such animals. In addition, the
proposed rule would increase from
three to four the number of breeding
female dogs, cats, and/or small exotic or
wild mammals that a person may
maintain on his or her premises and be
exempt from licensing and inspection if
he or she sells only the offspring of
those animals born and raised on his or
Done in Washington, DC, this 11th day of
July 2012.
Edward Avalos,
Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory
Programs.
PO 00000
Frm 00010
Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 2131–2159; 7 CFR 2.22,
2.80, and 371.7.
[FR Doc. 2012–17283 Filed 7–13–12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410–34–P
DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Employee Benefits Security
Administration
29 CFR Part 2550
RIN 1210–AB54
Amendment Relating to Reasonable
Contract or Arrangement Under
Section 408(b)(2)—Fee Disclosure/Web
Page
Employee Benefits Security
Administration, Labor.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
AGENCY:
This proposed rule is a
companion to the Department of Labor
(Department) Employee Benefits
Security Administration’s direct final
rule (published today in the ‘‘Rules and
Regulations’’ section of the Federal
Register) amending the Department’s
fiduciary-level fee disclosure regulation
under section 408(b)(2) of the Employee
Retirement Income Security Act of 1974
(ERISA) to revise the mailing address
and enhance the web-based submission
procedure for notices filed under the
regulation’s fiduciary class exemption
provision.
The Department is publishing this
amendment as a direct final rule
without prior proposal because the
Department views this as highly
technical and anticipates no significant
adverse comment. The Department has
explained its reasons in the preamble to
SUMMARY:
E:\FR\FM\16JYP1.SGM
16JYP1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 136 (Monday, July 16, 2012)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 41709-41716]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-17235]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Federal Crop Insurance Corporation
7 CFR Part 457
[Docket No. FCIC-12-0006]
RIN 0563-AC39
Common Crop Insurance Regulations; Florida Citrus Fruit Crop
Insurance Provisions
AGENCY: Federal Crop Insurance Corporation, USDA.
ACTION: Proposed rule; request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC) proposes to
amend the Common Crop Insurance Regulations, Florida Citrus Fruit Crop
Insurance Provisions. The intended effect of this action is to provide
policy changes, to clarify existing policy provisions to better meet
the needs of policyholders, and to reduce vulnerability to program
fraud, waste, and abuse. The proposed changes will be effective for the
2014 and succeeding crop years.
DATES: Written comments and opinions on this proposed rule will be
accepted until close of business August 15, 2012 and will be considered
when the rule is to be made final.
ADDRESSES: FCIC prefers that comments be submitted electronically
through the Federal eRulemaking Portal. You may submit comments,
identified by Docket ID No. FCIC-12-0006, by any of the following
methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
Mail: Director, Product Administration and Standards
Division, Risk Management Agency, United States Department of
Agriculture, P.O. Box 419205, Kansas City, MO 64133-6205.
All comments received, including those received by mail, will be
posted without change to https://www.regulations.gov, including any
personal information provided, and can be accessed by the public. All
comments must include the agency name and docket number or Regulatory
Information Number (RIN) for this rule. For detailed instructions on
submitting comments and additional information, see https://www.regulations.gov. If you are submitting comments electronically
through the Federal eRulemaking Portal and want to attach a document,
we ask that it be in a text-based format. If you want to attach a
document that is a scanned Adobe PDF file, it must be scanned as text
and not as an image, thus allowing FCIC to search and copy certain
portions of your submissions. For questions regarding attaching a
document that is a scanned Adobe PDF file, please contact the RMA Web
Content Team at (816) 823-4694 or by email at
rmaweb.content@rma.usda.gov.
Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search the electronic form of all
comments received for any dockets by the name of the person submitting
the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf of an
association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review the complete
User Notice and Privacy Notice for Regulations.gov at https://www.regulations.gov/#!privacyNotice.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tim Hoffmann, Director, Product
Administration and Standards Division, Risk Management Agency, United
States Department of Agriculture, Beacon Facility, Stop 0812, Room 421,
P.O. Box 419205, Kansas City, MO 64141-6205, telephone (816) 926-7730.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Executive Order 12866
This rule has been determined to be non-significant for the
purposes of Executive Order 12866 and, therefore, it has not been
reviewed by the OMB.
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
Pursuant to the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
(44 U.S.C. chapter 35), the collections of information in this rule
have been approved by OMB under control number 0563-0053.
E-Government Act Compliance
FCIC is committed to complying with the E-Government Act of 2002,
to promote 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.
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995
Title II of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA),
establishes requirements for Federal agencies to assess the effects of
their regulatory actions on State, local, and tribal governments and
the private sector. This rule contains no Federal mandates (under the
regulatory provisions of title II of the UMRA) for State, local, and
tribal governments or the private sector. Therefore, this rule is not
subject to the requirements of sections 202 and 205 of UMRA.
Executive Order 13132
It has been determined under section 1(a) of Executive Order 13132,
Federalism, that this rule does not have sufficient implications to
warrant consultation with the States. The provisions contained in this
rule will not have a substantial direct effect on States, or on the
relationship between the national government and the States, or on the
distribution of power and responsibilities among the various levels of
government.
Executive Order 13175
This rule has been reviewed in accordance with the requirements of
Executive Order 13175, Consultation and Coordination with Indian Tribal
Governments. The review reveals that this regulation will not have
substantial and direct effects on Tribal governments and will not have
significant Tribal implications.
Regulatory Flexibility Act
FCIC certifies that this regulation will not have a significant
economic impact on a substantial number of small
[[Page 41710]]
entities. Program requirements for the Federal crop insurance program
are the same for all producers regardless of the size of their farming
operation. For instance, all producers are required to submit an
application and acreage report to establish their insurance guarantees
and compute premium amounts, and all producers are required to submit a
notice of loss and production information to determine the amount of an
indemnity payment in the event of an insured cause of crop loss.
Whether a producer has 10 acres or 1000 acres, there is no difference
in the kind of information collected. To ensure crop insurance is
available to small entities, the Federal Crop Insurance Act authorizes
FCIC to waive collection of administrative fees from limited resource
farmers. FCIC believes this waiver helps to ensure that small entities
are given the same opportunities as large entities to manage their
risks through the use of crop insurance. A Regulatory Flexibility
Analysis has not been prepared since this regulation does not have an
impact on small entities, and, therefore, this regulation is exempt
from the provisions of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 605).
Federal Assistance Program
This program is listed in the Catalog of Federal Domestic
Assistance under No. 10.450.
Executive Order 12372
This program is not subject to the provisions of Executive Order
12372, which require intergovernmental consultation with State and
local officials. See the Notice related to 7 CFR part 3015, subpart V,
published at 48 FR 29115, June 24, 1983.
Executive Order 12988
This proposed rule has been reviewed in accordance with Executive
Order 12988 on civil justice reform. The provisions of this rule will
not have a retroactive effect. The provisions of this rule will preempt
State and local laws to the extent such State and local laws are
inconsistent herewith. With respect to any direct action taken by FCIC
or action by FCIC directing the insurance provider to take specific
action under the terms of the crop insurance policy, the administrative
appeal provisions published at 7 CFR part 11, or 7 CFR part 400,
subpart J for determinations of good farming practices, as applicable,
must be exhausted before any action against FCIC for judicial review
may be brought.
Environmental Evaluation
This action is not expected to have a significant economic impact
on the quality of the human environment, health, or safety. Therefore,
neither an Environmental Assessment nor an Environmental Impact
Statement is needed.
Background
FCIC proposes to amend the Common Crop Insurance Regulations (7 CFR
part 457) by revising Sec. 457.107 Florida Citrus Fruit Crop Insurance
Provisions, to be effective for the 2014 and succeeding crop years.
Several requests have been made for changes to improve the insurance
coverage offered, address program integrity issues, simplify program
administration, and improve clarity of the policy provisions.
Some of the proposed changes are a result of the United States
Department of Agriculture (USDA) Acreage Crop Reporting Streamlining
Initiative, which has an objective of using common standardized data
and terminology to consolidate and simplify reporting requirements for
farmers. FCIC is proposing to change the term ``citrus fruit crop'' to
``citrus fruit commodity'' and to rename the ``citrus fruit
commodities'' to be consistent with the terms developed under the
Acreage Crop Reporting Streamlining Initiative. This change will allow
more efficient sharing of data among agencies and will assist in the
effort to reduce the burden of reporting the same information multiple
times. Some of the proposed changes herein, such as the addition of the
term ``citrus fruit group'' minimize the impact of changes to crop
names. With the incorporation of the term ``citrus fruit group'' into
the Florida Citrus Fruit Crop Provisions, FCIC will concurrently add a
field in the actuarial documents breaking each ``citrus fruit
commodity'' into ``citrus fruit groups.'' The ``citrus fruit groups''
will be the basis for determining coverage levels, basic units, and
administrative fees. In most cases these proposed changes will result
in no change from the current basis by which coverage levels are
selected, basic units are established, and administrative fees are
assessed.
To be consistent with the objectives of the Acreage Crop Reporting
Streamlining Initiative, FCIC is planning to replace the category of
``type'' in the actuarial documents with four categories named
``commodity type,'' ``class,'' ``subclass,'' and ``intended use.'' FCIC
is also planning to replace the category of ``practice'' in the
actuarial documents with four categories named ``cropping practice,''
``organic practice,'' ``irrigation practice,'' and ``interval.''
Proposed changes to the Florida Citrus Fruit Crop provisions, such as
replacing references to the term ``fruit type'' with the terms
``commodity type'' and ``intended use'' where applicable, will provide
an avenue for this transition.
Some of the other proposed changes are in response to an audit
(05099-29-At) by the Office of the Inspector General (OIG). The report
concluded the Florida Citrus Fruit policy contains a significant
vulnerability because the policy does not adequately account for the
salvage value of fruit insured as fresh that is sold for another use.
FCIC agreed to revise the Florida Citrus Fruit Crop Provisions for the
2014 crop year to address this vulnerability.
The proposed changes are as follows:
1. Section 1--FCIC proposes to revise the definition of ``amount of
insurance (per acre)'' to specify the Reference Maximum Dollar Amount
used in the calculation will be based on the applicable ``commodity
type'' and ``intended use'' in addition to the age of trees. This
change is being proposed because the terms ``commodity type'' and
``intended use'' are the terms that will replace type in the actuarial
documents that are applicable to determining the amount of insurance
per acre.
FCIC proposes to revise the definition of ``citrus fruit crop'' by
renaming it as ``citrus fruit commodity'' since insurable commodities
are identified in the actuarial documents. FCIC proposes to replace the
term ``citrus fruit crop'' with the term ``citrus fruit commodity''
where appropriate throughout the Florida Citrus Fruit Crop Provisions.
However, in some places the term ``crop'' will be changed to ``insured
crop'' which is defined in the Basic Provisions or the term ``crop''
may be retained if using the common meaning. FCIC proposes to revise
the definition of the newly renamed term of ``citrus fruit commodity''
by removing the old names ``Citrus I-IX'' and renaming the ``citrus
fruit commodities'' as ``oranges,'' ``grapefruit,'' ``tangelos,''
``mandarins/tangerines,'' ``tangors,'' ``lemons,'' ``limes,'' and ``any
other citrus fruit commodity designated in the actuarial documents.''
In some cases the new ``citrus fruit commodity'' names will result in
several of the current ``citrus fruit crops'' being combined into a
single ``citrus fruit commodity.'' For example, the current ``citrus
fruit crops'' named ``Citrus I (Early and mid-season oranges), Citrus
II (Late oranges juice), Citrus VII (Late oranges fresh), and Citrus
VIII (Navel oranges)'' will all fall under the new ``citrus fruit
commodity''
[[Page 41711]]
of ``oranges.'' In other cases the new ``citrus fruit commodity'' names
will result in current ``citrus fruit crops'' being split apart into
multiple ``citrus fruit commodities.'' For example, the current
``citrus fruit crop'' named ``Citrus VI (Lemons and Limes)'' will
become two separate ``citrus fruit commodities'' named ``lemons'' and
``limes.'' This change is being proposed because of the Acreage Crop
Reporting Streamlining Initiative. This proposed change in terminology
does not change the varieties of citrus that are insurable.
FCIC proposes to remove the definition of ``citrus fruit type
(fruit type)'' and add definitions of ``commodity type'' and ``intended
use'' to be consistent with the Acreage Reporting and Streamlining
Initiative. ``Commodity type'' and ``intended use'' are the categories
that will replace type in the actuarial documents that are applicable
to the Florida Citrus Fruit Crop Provisions.
FCIC proposes to add the definition of ``citrus fruit group.'' The
term ``citrus fruit group'' refers to a method of grouping ``commodity
types'' and ``intended uses'' within the ``citrus fruit commodity''
through the actuarial documents for the purposes of electing coverage
levels, establishing basic units, and assessing administrative fees.
This change is being proposed in order to make the insurance coverage
as similar to that which was previously provided while still being
consistent with the Acreage Crop Reporting Streamlining Initiative.
FCIC proposes to revise the definition of ``excess wind'' to allow
the use of the Florida Automated Weather Network (FAWN) reporting
stations and any other weather reporting stations identified in the
Special Provisions in addition to the U.S. National Weather Service
(NWS) reporting stations for determining wind speeds. Using the NWS
reporting station, the FAWN weather reporting station, or any other
weather reporting station identified in the Special Provisions
operating nearest to the insured acreage at the time of damage will
result in a more precise measurement of wind speeds due to the
availability of additional data points. The use of FAWN data is
currently allowed by the Special Provisions.
FCIC proposes to add the definition of ``unmarketable'' because it
is currently undefined. FCIC proposes to define ``unmarketable'' as
citrus fruit that cannot be processed into products for human
consumption.
2. Section 2--FCIC proposes to revise section 2(a) by adding
language to allow basic units by ``citrus fruit group'' designated
within a ``citrus fruit commodity'' in the actuarial documents. For
example, under the new ``citrus fruit commodity'' named ``grapefruit,''
all ``grapefruit'' with the intended use of fresh could be in one
``citrus fruit group'' and all ``grapefruit'' with the intended use of
juice could be in another ``citrus fruit group'' identified in the
actuarial documents. In this example, all ``grapefruit'' acreage with
an intended use of fresh can be insured as one basic unit and all
``grapefruit'' acreage with an intended use of juice can be insured as
another basic unit. This proposed change in terminology is intended to
allow policyholders to keep their current unit structure to the maximum
extent practicable. However, in some cases, such as with the ``citrus
fruit crop'' named ``Citrus VI (Lemons and Limes),'' which will become
separate ``citrus fruit commodities'' named ``lemons'' and ``limes,''
the policyholder will now be able to establish separate basic units for
each of these ``citrus fruit commodities.''
3. Section 3--FCIC proposes to revise section 3(a) by adding
language to allow the policyholder to select separate coverage levels
by ``citrus fruit group'' designated within a ``citrus fruit
commodity'' in the actuarial documents. For example, under the new
``citrus fruit commodity'' of ``oranges,'' all early and mid-season
oranges will be grouped together as one ``citrus fruit group'' and the
policyholder must select the same coverage level for all citrus fruit
insured under this ``citrus fruit group.'' These revisions to
terminology will allow policyholders to continue to elect coverage
levels on the same basis they currently elect for most crops. However,
in some cases, such as with the ``citrus fruit crop'' named ``Citrus VI
(Lemons and Limes)'' which will become separate ``citrus fruit
commodities'' named ``lemons'' and ``limes,'' the policyholder will now
be able to select separate coverage levels for the ``citrus fruit
groups'' within each of these ``citrus fruit commodities.''
FCIC proposes to revise section 3(c) to specify the reporting
requirements for ``citrus fruit commodities'' insured under the Florida
Citrus Fruit Crop Provisions. The proposed revision to section 3(c)
includes four subparagraphs stating what the policyholder must report
by the acreage reporting date contained in the actuarial documents. The
reporting requirements include any event or action that could reduce
the yield per acre of the insured ``citrus fruit commodity'' and the
number of affected acres, the number of trees on insurable and
uninsurable acreage, age of the trees, interplanted trees, planting
pattern, and any other information the insurance provider requests in
order to establish the amount of insurance. These requirements are
being added because this information is necessary to establish the
amount of insurance because it affects the potential production of the
unit.
FCIC proposes to revise section 3(d) by clarifying the reasons FCIC
will reduce insurable acreage or the amount of insurance, or both. The
reasons given for a reduction are consistent with the reporting
requirements contained in the proposed revision of section 3(c). Those
reasons include interplanted trees, a decrease in plant stand, cultural
practices that may reduce the productive capacity of the trees,
disease, damage, and any other circumstance that may reduce the
productive capacity of the trees or that may reduce the yield per acre
from previous levels. FCIC proposes to remove the term ``fruit type''
and replace it with the term ``commodity type'' since this is the
category in the actuarial documents that is relevant when determining
the effect of interplanted trees.
FCIC proposes to designate the second sentence from section 3(d) as
section 3(e) and revise it to state, ``If you fail to notify us of any
circumstance that may reduce the productive capacity of the trees or
that may reduce the yield per acre from previous levels, we will reduce
the acreage or amount of insurance or both as necessary any time we
become aware of the circumstance.'' The current provision states these
same consequences, but is phrased differently. This change is being
proposed to clarify ``circumstances that may reduce the productive
capacity of the trees or that may reduce the yield per acre from
previous levels'' are the reasons for reducing the acreage or amount of
insurance.
FCIC proposes to redesignate section 3(e) as 3(f). FCIC proposes to
remove the old provisions from section 3(f), which states that we will
reduce your amount of insurance per acre for damage that occurred prior
to the insurance period. This same information is contained in the
revised section 3(d). Therefore, with the proposed revisions to section
3(d), section 3(f) becomes redundant and is no longer necessary.
4. Section 6--FCIC proposes to revise section 6(a) by adding
language to allow the insured crop to be all acreage of each ``citrus
fruit group,'' designated within a ``citrus fruit commodity'' in the
actuarial documents. The ``citrus fruit groups'' within the ``citrus
fruit commodity'' will be assessed separate administrative fees and the
policyholder can elect to insure one ``citrus fruit group'' and not
insure another within
[[Page 41712]]
the same ``citrus fruit commodity.'' For example, if the ``citrus fruit
commodity'' of oranges has a ``citrus fruit group'' for all early and
mid-season oranges and another ``citrus fruit group'' for all late
oranges, the policyholder could elect to insure all of his or her early
and mid-season oranges in the county, but not insure any late oranges.
Since ``citrus fruit groups'' will provide the basis for assessing
administrative fees, in most cases this change will result in no change
from the basis by which administrative fees are currently assessed.
However, in some cases, such as with the ``citrus fruit crop'' named
``Citrus VI (Lemons and Limes)'' which will become separate ``citrus
fruit commodities'' named ``lemons'' and ``limes,'' separate
administrative fees will be assessed for each of the ``citrus fruit
groups'' within these ``citrus fruit commodities'' and the policyholder
can elect to insure one and not the other.
FCIC proposes to revise section 6(b)(1) by removing the term
``fruit type'' and adding the term ``commodity type'' in its place
since this is the category in the actuarial documents that is relevant
when determining the normal maturity period.
FCIC proposes to revise section 6(b)(2) by changing the date of
``April 30'' to ``April 15.'' This date is proposed to be changed to
coincide with the proposed new April 16 insurance attachment date to
eliminate the current gap in coverage. This provision requires trees to
have reached the fifth growing season after being set out to be
insurable. The revision will require trees to have been set out by
April 15 in order for the year of set out to be considered as a growing
season.
FCIC proposes to revise section 6(b)(3) to include ``Ambersweet''
oranges in the list of uninsurable fruit. FCIC has determined
``Ambersweet'' orange trees to be unreliable producers of fruit.
Furthermore, ``Ambersweet'' oranges are a poor quality fruit and
consequently the trees are scarcely planted for commercial production.
Excluding ``Ambersweet'' oranges from insurability will protect program
integrity by eliminating the risk associated with insuring them.
FCIC proposes to revise section 6(b)(6) by removing the term
``fruit type'' and adding the term ``commodity type'' in its place
since this is the category in the actuarial documents that is relevant
when determining the insurability of citrus fruit. FCIC proposes to
remove the phrase ``or within the definition of citrus fruit crop''
since the definition of ``citrus fruit crop'' is proposed to be
revised.
FCIC proposes to add section 6(f) which will require policyholders
who insure fresh fruit to provide management records upon request to
verify good fresh citrus fruit production practices were followed from
the beginning of bloom stage until harvest. The proposed provision also
requires policyholders who insure fresh fruit to provide acceptable
fresh fruit sales records upon request from at least one of the
previous three crop years; or for fresh fruit acreage new to the
operation or for acreage in the initial year of fresh fruit production,
a current year fresh fruit marketing contract must be provided upon
request. The proposed provision protects program integrity by
safeguarding against policyholders purchasing fresh fruit insurance
without the intention of producing fresh fruit and without providing
the necessary inputs to produce fresh fruit. This requirement is
currently implemented through the Special Provisions.
5. Section 7--FCIC proposes to revise section 7 by designating the
undesignated introductory paragraph as section 7(a) and redesignating
sections 7(a), (b), and (c) as sections 7(a)(1), (2), and (3)
respectively. These paragraphs are proposed to be redesignated in order
to add a new section 7(b). In redesignated paragraphs 7(a)(1) and (2)
FCIC proposes to remove the term ``fruit type'' everywhere this term
appears and add the term ``commodity type'' in its place since this is
the category in the actuarial documents that will be used to determine
the effect of interplanted trees.
FCIC proposes to add section 7(b) which will exclude from
insurability any acreage that has been abandoned without undergoing
remediation necessary to produce the amount and quality of production
needed to achieve the applicable Reference Maximum Dollar Amount prior
to insurance attaching. This provision is being added to address
situations where citrus acreage has been abandoned prior to insurance
attaching. While section 11 of the Basic Provisions states insurance
ends upon abandonment of the crop, neither the Basic Provisions nor the
Florida Citrus Fruit Crop Provisions address situations where acreage
is abandoned prior to the insurance period. Abandoned orchards harbor
disease and insects, which without proper control measures and
remediation efforts result in poor quality fruit and diminished
production. A similar requirement is currently implemented through the
Special Provisions.
6. Section 8--FCIC proposes to revise section 8(a)(1) by changing
the date insurance attaches from May 1 to April 16. FCIC is proposing
this change to eliminate the gap between the sales closing date and the
date insurance attaches. For the 2013 crop year the sales closing date
was moved from April 1 to April 15 as part of the Acreage Crop
Reporting Streamlining Initiative. This gap in coverage could adversely
affect producers who want to transfer their property and transfer their
coverage and right to an indemnity. Producers can only insure, and
transfer, their share at the time insurance attached and this gap
created a period in which the producer had no share that could be
transferred. This change will eliminate this situation.
FCIC proposes to revise section 8(a)(1)(i) by removing the phrase
``for the fruit type'' from the parenthetical. FCIC also proposes to
revise this section by removing the term ``grove'' and adding the term
``acreage'' in its place to be consistent with the terms used in this
provision. The revised provision requires the policyholder to provide
any information required to determine the condition of the acreage to
be insured. This change is being proposed because it is the condition
of the acreage that is important and there are other factors to
consider besides just the information regarding the fruit type.
FCIC proposes to revise section 8(a)(2) by changing the end of
insurance period date for early oranges from February 7 to February 28.
This change is being proposed because February 28 coincides more
closely to the time harvest is normally completed for early oranges.
This change has already been implemented through the Special
Provisions.
FCIC proposes to revise section 8(b)(1) to state acreage acquired
after the acreage reporting date for the crop year is not insurable
unless a transfer of coverage and right to indemnity is executed in
accordance with section 28 of the Basic Provisions. The current
provision in this section only addresses the insurability of acreage
acquired after coverage begins, but on or before the acreage reporting
date for the crop year. Since none of the crops insurable under the
Florida Citrus Fruit Crop Provisions have an acreage reporting date
that occurs after the date insurance attaches for the crop year, this
provision is not applicable. Since the language is not applicable, it
has been replaced with language that reflects the intent of the
provision.
FCIC proposes to revise section 8(b)(2) to state if a policyholder
relinquishes their insurable share on any insurable acreage of citrus
before the acreage reporting date of the crop year;
[[Page 41713]]
insurance will not attach, no premium will be due, and no indemnity
will be payable for such acreage for that crop year. The current
provision contains a similar statement, but it also includes a
provision that allows a transfer of coverage and right to indemnity if
filed before the acreage reporting date. The current provision was
written under the assumption that the acreage reporting date occurs
after insurance attaches. However, the acreage reporting date
established in the actuarial documents for all crops insured under the
Florida Citrus Fruit Crop Provisions currently occurs before the
insurance attachment date. Since, in accordance with section 28 of the
Basic Provisions, a transfer of coverage and right to indemnity can
only occur during the crop year, the exception is not applicable given
the current dates or the dates contained in this proposed rule.
Therefore, the language regarding a transfer of coverage and right to
indemnity is proposed to be removed.
7. Section 9--FCIC proposes to revise section 9(a)(6) by removing
the statement that only allows excess wind to be a covered cause of
loss if the excess wind causes fruit insured as fresh to be
unmarketable as fresh. Allowing excess wind to be a covered cause of
loss for all crops expands coverage to citrus fruit insured as juice.
Allowing this additional level of coverage provides more comprehensive
coverage against natural perils. However, this additional coverage may
affect premium rates.
8. Section 10--FCIC proposes to revise section 10(b)(1) by removing
the phrase ``fruit type and multiplying that result by your share'' and
adding the phrase ``applicable commodity type, intended use, and age of
trees.'' The term ``fruit type'' is proposed to be replaced with the
terms ``commodity type'' and ``intended use'' because these are the
categories in the actuarial documents that will replace type that are
applicable to determining the amount of insurance for the unit. The
phrase ``age of trees'' is proposed to be added because the amount of
insurance may also be different based on the age of the trees. The
phrase ``multiplying that result by your share'' is proposed to be
removed because it is redundant. The definition of ``amount of
insurance (per acre)'' already includes instructions to calculate the
dollar amount of insurance by multiplying by your share.
FCIC proposes to revise sections 10(b)(2), (5), and (6) by removing
the term ``fruit type'' and adding the terms ``commodity type'' and
``intended use'' in its place since these are the categories in the
actuarial documents that will replace type that are applicable to
determining a loss. The phrase ``age of trees'' is proposed to be added
because the amount of insurance may be different based on the age of
the trees.
FCIC proposes to revise the example in section 10(b) by removing
the phrase ``citrus crop, fruit type'' and adding the phrase
``commodity type, intended use'' in its place to be consistent with the
proposed changes in this section.
FCIC proposes to remove section 10(c) which pertains specifically
to fruit insured as fresh that is damaged by freeze and is not
harvested or could not be marketed. Section 10(c) is proposed to be
removed because assessing 50 percent damage for freeze damaged fruit
when the amount of actual damage is less than 50 percent can result in
over-payment of the claim. Furthermore, while section 10(c) attempts to
address the salvage value of fruit by using the amount of juice loss to
determine a final percent of damage, it does not reflect the actual
salvage value of the fruit because it does not account for price
differences between fresh fruit and juice fruit for different ``citrus
fruit commodities.''
FCIC proposes to add a new section 10(c) that pertains to fruit
insured either as fresh or juice. The proposed section 10(c)(1) will
contain the information from section 10(f), but will be revised to
clarify that individual citrus fruit damaged due to an insurable cause
that is on the ground and unmarketable is 100 percent damaged. The
proposed section 10(c)(2) will contain the information from section
10(g), but will be revised to clarify individual fruit that is
unmarketable because it is immature, unwholesome, decomposed,
adulterated, or otherwise unfit for human consumption due to an insured
cause will be considered as 100 percent damaged. FCIC proposes to
remove sections 10(f) and (g) because section 10(c) is proposed to
contain the same information. This change will improve the readability
of the provisions.
FCIC proposes to remove section 10(d), which pertains specifically
to fruit insured as fresh that is mechanically separated using the
specific gravity (floatation) method into undamaged and freeze damaged
fruit. Section 10(d) allows freeze damaged fruit eliminated using the
specific gravity method to be considered as damaged production not to
exceed 50 percent damage. Section 10(d) is proposed to be removed
because it is no longer relevant. The floatation method is rarely used
and many packing houses do not keep track of the actual number of fruit
eliminated solely due to freeze damage.
FCIC proposes to redesignate section 10(e) as section 10(d). FCIC
proposes to revise the newly redesignated section 10(d) by removing
references specific to freeze damage so the provision will apply to all
insured causes of loss. References to juice crops are proposed to be
removed so the provision will apply to ``citrus fruit commodities''
insured as fresh and juice. The provision is proposed to be revised to
state that any fruit that can be processed into products for human
consumption will be considered marketable. FCIC proposes to remove the
default juice contents and state that these will be found in the
Special Provisions. Placing the default juice contents in the Special
Provisions gives FCIC flexibility to add new default juice contents if
new types are made insurable or if the current default juice contents
need to be revised. The current method of determining the percent of
damage by relating the juice content of the damaged fruit to either the
average juice content of the fruit produced on the unit for the three
previous crop years or the default juice content provided by FCIC if
three years of acceptable juice records are not provided will be
retained. However, for fruit insured as fresh, an additional adjustment
will be made to increase the percent of damage based on a Fresh Fruit
Factor located in the Special Provisions. The Fresh Fruit Factor will
represent the difference between historical fresh fruit and juice
values. These values will be obtained from the National Agricultural
Statistics Service. The Fresh Fruit Factor will be derived by dividing
the five-year average of juice prices by the five-year average of fresh
prices and subtracting the result from one. When determining the loss
the Fresh Fruit Factor will be multiplied by the result obtained by
subtracting the percent of damage determined by relating the juice
content to the default juice content from 100. This result would then
be added to the percent of damage determined by relating the juice
content to the default juice content. This proposed provision works by
adjusting the percent of undamaged fruit to an amount that represents
the salvage value of the juice. This proposed change is in response to
an Office of the Inspector General audit that requires FCIC to account
for the salvage value of fruit insured as fresh.
FCIC proposes to redesignate section 10(h) as section 10(e). FCIC
proposes to revise the newly redesignated section 10(e) to make it
applicable to fruit insured as fresh that do not have a default juice
content or a Fresh Fruit Factor provided in the Special
[[Page 41714]]
Provisions. FCIC proposes to revise the provision to apply to all
insurable causes of loss rather than limiting it to hail and wind since
the freeze damage method is proposed to be removed. This provision is
intended to provide a method for determining losses for fruit insured
as fresh in which a salvage market does not exist.
List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 457
Crop insurance, Florida citrus fruit, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
Proposed Rule
Accordingly, as set forth in the preamble, the Federal Crop
Insurance Corporation proposes to amend 7 CFR part 457 effective for
the 2014 and succeeding crop years as follows:
PART 457--COMMON CROP INSURANCE REGULATIONS
1. The authority citation for 7 CFR part 457 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1506(l), 1506(o).
2. Amend Sec. 457.107 as follows:
a. Amend the introductory text by removing ``2009'' and adding
``2014'' in its place;
b. Amend section 1 by:
i. Revising the definitions of ``amount of insurance (per acre),''
``citrus fruit crop,'' and ``excess wind'';
ii. Adding the definitions of ``citrus fruit group,'' ``commodity
type,'' ``intended use,'' and ``unmarketable''; and
iii. Removing the definition of ``citrus fruit type (fruit type)'';
c. Amend section 2(a) by removing the phrase ``crop designated in
the Special Provisions'' and add the phrase ``group designated within a
citrus fruit commodity in the actuarial documents;
d. Revise section 3;
e. Amend section 6 by:
i. Revising paragraph (a);
ii. Amending paragraph (b)(1) by removing the term ``fruit type''
and adding the term ``commodity type'' in its place;
iii. Amending paragraph (b)(2) by removing the number ``30'' and
adding the number ``15'' in its place;
iv. Revising paragraph (b)(3);
v. Revising paragraph (b)(6); and
vi. Adding a new paragraph (f);
f. Amend section 7 by:
i. Designating the undesignated introductory paragraph as section
7(a);
ii. Redesignating paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) as (a)(1), (2), and
(3) respectively;
iii. Revising the redesignated paragraph (a)(1);
iv. Revising the redesignated paragraph (a)(2); and
v. Adding a new section 7(b);
g. Amend section 8 by:
i. Amending paragraph (a)(1) by removing the date of ``May 1'' and
adding the date of ``April 16'' in its place;
ii. Amending paragraph (a)(1)(i) by removing the phrase ``for the
fruit type'' and by removing the term ``grove'' and adding the term
acreage in its place;
iii. Amending paragraph (a)(2)(i) by removing the phrase ``early
and'';
iv. Amending paragraph (a)(2)(ii) by adding the phrase ``early
oranges and'' after the phrase ``February 28 for'';
v. Amending paragraph (a)(2)(iv) by removing the comma after the
term ``lemons'' and adding the term ``and'' before the term ``limes'';
and
vi. Revising paragraph (b);
h. Amend section 9(a)(6) by removing the phrase ``, but only if it
causes the individual citrus fruit from Citrus IV, V, VII, and VIII to
be unmarketable as fresh fruit'';
i. Amend section 10 by:
i. Revising paragraph (b)(1);
ii. Amending paragraph (b)(2) by removing the term ``fruit type''
and adding the phrase ``commodity type, intended use, and age of
trees'' in its place;
iii. Amending paragraph (b)(3) by removing the parenthesis around
the number ``10'';
iv. Amending paragraph (b)(4) by removing the parenthesis around
the number ``10'' in the first sentence;
v. Amending paragraph (b)(5) by removing the parenthesis around the
number ``10'' and by removing the term ``fruit type'' and adding the
phrase ``commodity type, intended use, and age of trees'' in its place;
vi. Amending paragraph (b)(6) by removing the parenthesis around
the number ``10'' and by removing the term ``fruit types'' and adding
the phrase ``applicable commodity types, intended uses, and ages of
trees'' in its place;
vii. Amending the example in paragraph (b) by removing the opening
parenthesis at the beginning of the example and by removing the phrase
``citrus crop, fruit type,'' and adding the phrase ``commodity type,
intended use,'' in its place;
viii. Removing paragraphs (c) and (d);
ix. Adding a new paragraph (c);
x. Redesignating paragraph (e) as (d) and revising the newly
redesignated paragraph (d);
xi. Removing paragraph (f) and (g); and
xii. Redesignating paragraph (h) as (e) and revising the newly
redesignated paragraph (e).
The revised and added text reads as follows:
Sec. 457.107 Florida citrus fruit crop insurance provisions.
* * * * *
1. Definitions
Amount of insurance (per acre). The dollar amount determined by
multiplying the Reference Maximum Dollar Amount shown on the actuarial
documents for each applicable commodity type, intended use, and age of
trees within a citrus fruit commodity, times the coverage level percent
that you elect, times your share.
* * * * *
Citrus fruit commodity. Citrus fruit as follows:
(1) Oranges;
(2) Grapefruit;
(3) Tangelos;
(4) Mandarins/Tangerines;
(5) Tangors;
(6) Lemons;
(7) Limes; and
(8) Any other citrus fruit commodity designated in the actuarial
documents.
Citrus fruit group. A designation in the actuarial documents used
to identify commodity types and intended uses within a citrus fruit
commodity that may be grouped together for the purposes of electing
coverage levels, establishing basic units, and assessing administrative
fees.
Commodity type. A specific subgroup of a commodity having a
characteristic or set of characteristics distinguishable from other
subgroups of the same commodity.
Excess wind. A natural movement of air that has sustained speeds
exceeding 58 miles per hour (50 knots) recorded at the U.S. National
Weather Service (NWS) reporting station (reported as MAX SUST (KT)),
the Florida Automated Weather Network (FAWN) reporting station
(reported as 10m Wind (mph)), or any other weather reporting station
identified in the Special Provisions operating nearest to the insured
acreage at the time of damage.
* * * * *
Intended use. The producer's expected end use or disposition of the
commodity at the time the commodity is reported.
* * * * *
Unmarketable. Citrus fruit that cannot be processed into products
for human consumption.
* * * * *
3. Insurance Guarantees, Coverage Levels, and Prices for
Determining Indemnities
In addition to the requirements of section 3 of the Basic
Provisions:
(a) You may select only one coverage level for each citrus fruit
group designated within a citrus fruit
[[Page 41715]]
commodity in the actuarial documents that you elect to insure. If
different amounts of insurance are available for commodity types within
a citrus fruit group, you must select the same coverage level for each
commodity type. For example, if you choose the 75 percent coverage
level for one commodity type, you must also choose the 75 percent
coverage level for all other commodity types within that citrus fruit
group.
(b) The production reporting requirements contained in section 3 of
the Basic Provisions are not applicable.
(c) You must report, by the acreage reporting date designated in
the actuarial documents:
(1) Any event or action that could reduce the yield per acre of the
insured citrus fruit commodity (including interplanted trees, removal
of trees, any damage, change in practices, or any other circumstance
that may reduce the productive capacity of the trees) and the number of
affected acres;
(2) The number of trees on insurable and uninsurable acreage;
(3) The age of the trees and the planting pattern; and
(4) Any other information we request in order to establish your
amount of insurance.
(d) We will reduce insurable acreage or the amount of insurance or
both, as necessary:
(1) Based on our estimate of the effect of the interplanted trees
on the insured commodity type;
(2) Following a decrease in plant stand;
(3) If cultural practices are performed that may reduce the
productive capacity of the trees;
(4) If disease or damage occurs to the trees that may reduce the
productive capacity of the trees; or
(5) Any other circumstance that may reduce the productive capacity
of the trees or that may reduce the yield per acre from previous
levels.
(e) If you fail to notify us of any circumstance that may reduce
the productive capacity of the trees or that may reduce the yield per
acre from previous levels, we will reduce the acreage or amount of
insurance or both as necessary any time we become aware of the
circumstance.
(f) For carryover policies:
(1) Any changes to your coverage must be requested on or before the
sales closing date;
(2) Requested changes will take effect on April 16, the first day
of the crop year, unless we reject the requested increase based on our
inspection, or because a loss occurs on or before April 15 (Rejection
can occur at any time we discover loss has occurred on or before April
15); and
(3) If the increase is rejected, coverage will remain at the same
level as the previous crop year.
* * * * *
6. Insured Crop.
(a) In accordance with section 8 of the Basic Provisions, the
insured crop will be all acreage of each citrus fruit group designated
within a citrus fruit commodity in the actuarial documents that you
elect to insure, in which you have a share, that is grown in the county
shown on the application, and for which a premium rate is quoted in the
actuarial documents.
(b) * * *
* * * * *
(3) Of ``Meyer Lemons'' and oranges commonly known as ``Sour
Oranges,'' ``Clementines,'' or ``Ambersweet'';
* * * * *
(6) Of any commodity type not specified as insurable in the Special
Provisions.
* * * * *
(f) For citrus fruit in which fresh fruit coverage is available as
designated in the actuarial documents, management records must be
available upon request to verify good fresh citrus fruit production
practices were followed from the beginning of bloom stage until
harvest. In addition, unless otherwise provided in the Special
Provisions acceptable fresh fruit sales records must be provided upon
request from at least one of the previous three crop years; or for
fresh fruit acreage new to the operation or for acreage in the initial
year of fresh fruit production, a current year fresh fruit marketing
contract must be provided to us upon request.
7. Insurable Acreage.
(a) * * *
(1) Citrus fruit from trees interplanted with another commodity
type or another commodity is insurable unless we inspect the acreage
and determine it does not meet the requirements contained in your
policy.
(2) If the citrus fruit is from trees interplanted with another
commodity type or another commodity, acreage will be prorated according
to the percentage of the acres occupied by each of the interplanted
commodity types or commodities. For example, if grapefruit have been
interplanted with oranges on 100 acres and the grapefruit trees are on
50 percent of the acreage, grapefruit will be considered planted on 50
acres and oranges will be considered planted on 50 acres.
* * * * *
(b) In addition to section 9 of the Basic Provisions, any acreage
of citrus fruit that has been abandoned and has not subsequently
undergone remediation necessary to produce the amount and quality of
production needed to achieve the applicable Reference Maximum Dollar
Amount prior to insurance attaching is not insurable.
8. Insurance Period.
* * * * *
(b) In addition to the provisions of section 11 of the Basic
Provisions:
(1) Acreage acquired after the acreage reporting date for the crop
year is not insurable unless a transfer of coverage and right to
indemnity is executed in accordance with section 28 of the Basic
Provisions.
(2) If you relinquish your insurable share on any insurable acreage
of citrus fruit on or before the acreage reporting date of the crop
year, insurance will not attach, no premium will be due, and no
indemnity payable, for such acreage for that crop year.
* * * * *
10. Settlement of Claim.
* * * * *
(b) * * *
(1) Calculating the amount of insurance for the unit by multiplying
the number of acres by the respective dollar amount of insurance per
acre for each applicable commodity type, intended use, and age of trees
in the unit.
* * * * *
(c) Any individual citrus fruit that, due to an insured cause of
loss, is unmarketable because it is:
(1) On the ground will be considered 100 percent damaged; or
(2) Immature, unwholesome, decomposed, adulterated, or otherwise
unfit for human consumption will be considered as 100 percent damaged.
(d) In addition to section 10(c), any citrus fruit that can be
processed into products for human consumption will be considered
marketable. The percent of damage for the marketable citrus fruit will
be determined by:
(1) Relating the juice content of the damaged fruit to:
(i) The average juice content of the fruit produced on the unit for
the three previous crop years based on your records, if they are
acceptable to us; or
(ii) The default juice content provided in the Special Provisions,
if at least three years of acceptable juice records are not furnished
or the citrus fruit is insured as fresh;
(2) For citrus fruit insured as fresh, the final percent of damage
for the marketable citrus fruit will be determined by:
(i) Subtracting the result of section 10(d)(1)(ii) from 100;
[[Page 41716]]
(ii) Multiplying the result of section 10(d)(2)(i) by the
applicable Fresh Fruit Factor located in the Special Provisions; and
(iii) Adding the result of section 10(d)(2)(ii) to the result of
section 10(d)(1)(ii).
(e) Notwithstanding section 10(d), for citrus fruit insured as
fresh that do not have a default juice content or a Fresh Fruit Factor
provided in the Special Provisions, any individual citrus fruit not
meeting the United States standards for packing as fresh fruit due to
an insured cause of loss, will be considered 100 percent damaged.
* * * * *
Signed in Washington, DC, on July 10, 2012.
William J. Murphy,
Manager, Federal Crop Insurance Corporation.
[FR Doc. 2012-17235 Filed 7-13-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-08-P
