Olives Grown in California; Increased Assessment Rate, 16590-16592 [2015-07116]
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16590
Proposed Rules
Federal Register
Vol. 80, No. 60
Monday, March 30, 2015
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER
contains notices to the public of the proposed
issuance of rules and regulations. The
purpose of these notices is to give interested
persons an opportunity to participate in the
rule making prior to the adoption of the final
rules.
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Marketing Service
7 CFR Part 932
[Doc. No. AMS–FV–14–0105; FV15–932–1
PR]
Olives Grown in California; Increased
Assessment Rate
Agricultural Marketing Service,
USDA.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
AGENCY:
This proposed rule would
implement a recommendation from the
California Olive Committee (committee)
to increase the assessment rate
established for the 2015 and subsequent
fiscal years from $15.21 to $26.00 per
assessable ton of olives handled. The
committee locally administers the
marketing order and is comprised of
producers and handlers of olives grown
in California. Assessments upon olive
handlers are used by the committee to
fund reasonable and necessary expenses
of the program. The fiscal year begins
January 1 and ends December 31. The
assessment rate would remain in effect
indefinitely unless modified,
suspended, or terminated.
DATES: Comments must be received by
April 29, 2015.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are
invited to submit written comments
concerning this proposed rule.
Comments must be sent to the Docket
Clerk, Marketing Order and Agreement
Division, Fruit and Vegetable Program,
AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence
Avenue SW., STOP 0237, Washington,
DC 20250–0237; Fax: (202) 720–8938; or
Internet: https://www.regulations.gov.
Comments should reference the
document number and the date and
page number of this issue of the Federal
Register and will be available for public
inspection in the Office of the Docket
Clerk during regular business hours, or
can be viewed at:
https://www.regulations.gov. All
comments submitted in response to this
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SUMMARY:
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proposed rule will be included in the
record and will be made available to the
public. Please be advised that the
identity of the individuals or entities
submitting the comments will be made
public on the internet at the address
provided above.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Terry Vawter, Senior Marketing
Specialist or Martin Engeler, Regional
Manager, California Marketing Field
Office, Marketing Order and Agreement
Division, Fruit and Vegetable Program,
AMS, USDA; Telephone: (559) 487–
5901, Fax: (559) 487–5906, or Email:
Terry.Vawter@ams.usda.gov or
Martin.Engeler@ams.usda.gov.
Small businesses may request
information on complying with this
regulation by contacting Jeffrey Smutny,
Marketing Order and Agreement
Division, Fruit and Vegetable Program,
AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence
Avenue SW., STOP 0237, Washington,
DC 20250–0237; Telephone: (202) 720–
2491, Fax: (202)720–8938, or Email:
Jeffrey.Smutny@ams.usda.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
proposed rule is issued under Marketing
Agreement No. 148 and Order No. 932,
both as amended (7 CFR part 932),
regulating the handling of olives grown
in California, hereinafter referred to as
the ‘‘order.’’ The order is effective under
the Agricultural Marketing Agreement
Act of 1937, as amended (7 U.S.C. 601–
674), hereinafter referred to as the
‘‘Act.’’
The Department of Agriculture
(USDA) is issuing this proposed rule in
conformance with Executive Orders
12866, 13563, and 13175.
This proposed rule has been reviewed
under Executive Order 12988, Civil
Justice Reform. Under the marketing
order now in effect, California olive
handlers are subject to assessments.
Funds to administer the order are
derived from such assessments. It is
intended that the assessment rate
increase proposed herein would be
applicable to all assessable olives
beginning on January 1, 2015, and
continue until amended, suspended, or
terminated.
The Act provides that administrative
proceedings must be exhausted before
parties may file suit in court. Under
section 608c(15)(A) of the Act, any
handler subject to an order may file
with USDA a petition stating that the
order, any provision of the order, or any
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Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
obligation imposed in connection with
the order is not in accordance with law
and request a modification of the order
or to be exempted therefrom. Such
handler is afforded the opportunity for
a hearing on the petition. After the
hearing, USDA would rule on the
petition. The Act provides that the
district court of the United States in any
district in which the handler is an
inhabitant, or has his or her principal
place of business, has jurisdiction to
review USDA’s ruling on the petition,
provided an action is filed not later than
20 days after the date of the entry of the
ruling.
This proposed rule would increase
the assessment rate established for the
committee for the 2015 and subsequent
fiscal years from $15.21 to $26.00 per
ton of assessable olives.
The California olive marketing order
provides authority for the committee,
with the approval of USDA, to formulate
an annual budget of expenses and
collect assessments from handlers to
administer the program. The members
of the committee are producers and
handlers of California olives. They are
familiar with the committee’s needs and
with the costs for goods and services in
their local area and are thus in a
position to formulate an appropriate
budget and assessment rate.
The assessment rate is formulated and
discussed in a public meeting. Thus, all
directly affected persons have an
opportunity to participate and provide
input.
For the 2014 and subsequent fiscal
years, the committee recommended, and
USDA approved, an assessment rate that
would continue in effect from fiscal year
to fiscal year unless modified,
suspended, or terminated by USDA
upon recommendation and information
submitted by the committee or other
information available to USDA.
The committee met on December 9,
2014, and unanimously recommended
2015 fiscal year expenditures of
$1,374,072, and an assessment rate of
$26.00 per ton of assessable olives.
Olives are an alternate-bearing crop: a
large crop followed by a smaller crop.
Olive growers and handlers are
accustomed to wide swings in crop
yields, which necessarily result in
fluctuations in the assessment rate from
year to year. In comparison, last year’s
budgeted expenditures were $1,262,460.
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30MRP1
tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 60 / Monday, March 30, 2015 / Proposed Rules
The assessment rate of $26.00 is $10.79
higher than the rate currently in effect.
The committee recommended the
higher assessment rate because of a
substantial decrease in assessable olive
tonnage for the 2014 crop year. The
olive tonnage available for the 2014 crop
year was less than 40,000 tons, which
compares to the 91,000 tons reported for
the 2013 crop year, as reported by the
California Agricultural Statistics Service
(CASS).
The reduced crop is due to olives
being an alternate-bearing fruit. The
2014 crop was what is called the ‘‘off’’
crop: The smaller of the two bearingyear crops.
In addition to the funds from handler
assessments, the committee also plans
to use available reserve funds to help
meet its 2015 fiscal year expenses.
The major expenditures
recommended by the committee for the
2015 fiscal year include $259,231 for
research, $450,000 for marketing
activities, $122,000 for inspection
equipment and electronic reporting
development, and $393,500 for
administration. The major expenditures
for the 2014 fiscal year included
$312,560 for research, $565,600 for
marketing activities, $37,800 for
inspection equipment and electronic
reporting development, and $346,500
for administration.
Overall 2015 expenditures include an
increase in inspection equipment and
electronic reporting development
expenses due to the need to purchase,
test, install, and link new sizers to the
electronic reporting system.
Additionally, the research budget
contains a contingency of $41,000 for
new opportunities that may arise during
the fiscal year, and the administrative
budget includes a $31,000 contingency
for unforeseen issues.
The assessment rate recommended by
the committee resulted from
consideration of anticipated fiscal year
expenses, actual olive tonnage received
by handlers during the 2014 crop year,
and additional pertinent information.
As reported by CASS, actual assessable
tonnage for the 2014 crop year is under
40,000 tons or less than half of the
91,000 assessable tons in the 2013 crop
year, which is a result of the alternatebearing characteristics of olives.
Income derived from handler
assessments, along with interest income
and funds from the committee’s
authorized reserve would be adequate to
cover budgeted expenses. Funds in the
reserve would be kept within the
maximum permitted by the order of
approximately one fiscal year’s
expenses (§ 932.40).
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17:11 Mar 27, 2015
Jkt 235001
The proposed assessment rate would
continue in effect indefinitely unless
modified, suspended, or terminated by
USDA upon recommendation and
information submitted by the committee
or other available information.
Although this assessment rate would
be in effect for an indefinite period, the
committee would continue to meet prior
to or during each fiscal year to
recommend a budget of expenses and
consider recommendations for
modification of the assessment rate. The
dates and times of committee meetings
are available from the committee or
USDA. Committee meetings are open to
the public and interested persons may
express their views at these meetings.
USDA would evaluate committee
recommendations and other available
information to determine whether
modification of the assessment rate is
needed. Further rulemaking would be
undertaken as necessary. The
committee’s 2015 fiscal year budget and
those for subsequent fiscal years would
be reviewed and, as appropriate,
approved by USDA.
Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis
Pursuant to requirements set forth in
the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) (5
U.S.C. 601–612), the Agricultural
Marketing Service (AMS) has
considered the economic impact of this
proposed rule on small entities.
Accordingly, AMS has prepared this
initial regulatory flexibility analysis.
The purpose of the RFA is to fit
regulatory actions to the scale of
businesses subject to such actions in
order that small businesses will not be
unduly or disproportionately burdened.
Marketing orders issued pursuant to the
Act, and the rules issued thereunder, are
unique in that they are brought about
through group action of essentially
small entities acting on their own
behalf.
There are approximately 1000
producers of olives in the production
area and 2 handlers subject to regulation
under the marketing order. The Small
Business Administration (13 CFR
121.201) defines small agricultural
producers as those having annual
receipts of less than $750,000, and small
agricultural service firms as those whose
annual receipts are less than $7,000,000
(13 CFR 121.210).
Based upon information from the
industry and CASS, the average grower
price for the 2014 crop year was
approximately $1,027 per ton, and total
assessable volume was less than 40,000
tons. Based on production, producer
prices, and the total number of
California olive producers, the average
annual producer revenue is less than
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16591
$750,000. Thus, the majority of olive
producers may be classified as small
entities. Both of the handlers may be
classified as large entities.
This proposed rule would increase
the assessment rate established for the
committee and collected from handlers
for the 2015 and subsequent fiscal years
from $15.21 to $26.00 per ton of
assessable olives. The committee
unanimously recommended 2015 fiscal
year expenditures of $1,374,072, and an
assessment rate of $26.00 per ton. The
higher assessment rate is necessary
because assessable olive receipts for the
2014 crop year were reported by CASS
to be less than 40,000 tons, compared to
91,000 tons for the 2013 crop year.
Income derived from the $26.00 per
ton assessment rate, along with funds
from the authorized reserve and interest
income, should be adequate to meet this
fiscal year’s expenses.
The major expenditures
recommended by the committee for the
2015 fiscal year include $259,231 for
research, $450,000 for marketing
activities, $122,000 for inspection
equipment development, and $393,500
for administration. Budgeted expenses
for these items in 2014 were $312,560
for research, $565,600 for marketing
activities, $37,800 for inspection
equipment and electronic reporting
development, and $346,500 for
administration.
The committee deliberated many of
the expenses, weighing the relative
value of various programs or projects,
and decreased their costs for research
and marketing, while increasing their
costs for inspection equipment and
electronic reporting development, as
well as their administrative expenses.
Prior to arriving at this budget, the
committee considered information from
various sources such as the committee’s
Executive, Marketing, Inspection, and
Research Subcommittees. Alternate
expenditure levels were discussed by
these groups based upon the relative
value of various projects to the olive
industry and the reduced olive
production. The assessment rate of
$26.00 per ton of assessable olives was
derived by considering anticipated
expenses, the volume of assessable
olives, and additional pertinent factors.
A review of preliminary information
indicates that average grower prices for
2014 crop olives was approximately
$1,027 per ton. Therefore, utilizing the
proposed assessment rate of $26.00 per
ton, the estimated assessment revenue
for the 2015 fiscal year as a percentage
of total grower revenue would be
approximately 2.5 percent.
This action would increase the
assessment obligation imposed on
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Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 60 / Monday, March 30, 2015 / Proposed Rules
handlers. While assessments impose
some additional costs on handlers, the
costs are minimal and uniform on all
handlers. Some of the additional costs
may be passed on to producers.
However, these costs would be offset by
the benefits derived from the operation
of the marketing order. In addition, the
committee’s meeting was widely
publicized throughout the California’s
olive industry and all interested persons
were invited to attend the meeting and
participate in committee deliberations
on all issues. Like all committee
meetings, the December 9, 2014,
meeting was a public meeting and all
entities, both large and small, were
encouraged to express views on this
issue. Finally, interested persons are
invited to submit comments on this
proposed rule including the regulatory
and informational impacts of this action
on small businesses.
In accordance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C.
Chapter 35), the order’s information
collection requirements have been
previously approved by the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) and
assigned OMB No. 0581–0178. No
changes in those requirements as a
result of this action are necessary.
Should any changes become necessary,
they would be submitted to OMB for
approval.
This proposed rule would impose no
additional reporting or recordkeeping
requirements on either small or large
California olive handlers. As with all
Federal marketing order programs,
reports and forms are periodically
reviewed to reduce information
requirements and duplication by
industry and public sector agencies.
AMS is committed to complying with
the E-Government Act 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.
USDA has not identified any relevant
Federal rules that duplicate, overlap, or
conflict with this action.
A small business guide on complying
with fruit, vegetable, and specialty crop
marketing agreements and orders may
be viewed at: https://www.ams.usda.gov/
MarketingOrdersSmallBusinessGuide.
Any questions about the compliance
guide should be sent to Jeffrey Smutny
at the previously-mentioned address in
the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
section.
A 30-day comment period is provided
to allow interested persons to respond
to this proposed rule. Thirty days is
deemed appropriate because: (1) The
2015 fiscal year began on January 1,
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18:31 Mar 27, 2015
Jkt 235001
2015, and the marketing order requires
that the rate of assessment for each
fiscal year apply to all assessable olives
handled during such fiscal year; (2) the
committee needs to have sufficient
funds to pay its expenses, which are
incurred on a continuous basis; and (3)
both regulated handlers were present at
the December 9, 2014, meeting, and are
aware of this action, which was
unanimously recommended by the
committee at a public meeting, and is
similar to other assessment rate actions
issued in past years.
List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 932
Olives, Marketing agreements,
Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
For the reasons set forth in the
preamble, 7 CFR part 932 is proposed to
be amended as follows:
PART 932—OLIVES GROWN IN
CALIFORNIA
1. The authority citation for 7 CFR
part 932 continues to read as follows:
■
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 601–674.
2. Section 932.230 is revised to read
as follows:
■
§ 932.230
Assessment rate.
On and after January 1, 2015, an
assessment rate of $26.00 per ton is
established for California olives.
Dated: March 24, 2015.
Rex A. Barnes,
Associate Administrator, Agricultural
Marketing Service.
[FR Doc. 2015–07116 Filed 3–27–15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410–02–P
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service
9 CFR Parts 1 and 2
[Docket No. APHIS–2014–0050]
Petition To Define Alternatives to
Procedures That May Cause Pain or
Distress and To Establish Standards
Regarding Consideration of These
Alternatives
Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of petition.
AGENCY:
We are notifying the public
that the Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service has received a
petition requesting that we amend the
Animal Welfare Act (AWA) regulations
to define the term alternatives, clarify
the existing definition of painful
SUMMARY:
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Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
procedure, and establish standards
governing the consideration of such
alternatives at research facilities that are
registered under the AWA regulations.
We are making this petition available to
the public and soliciting comments
regarding the petition and any issues
raised by the petition that we should
take into account as we consider this
petition.
We will consider all comments
that we receive on or before May 29,
2015.
DATES:
You may submit comments
by either of the following methods:
• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to
https://www.regulations.gov/
#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2014-0050.
• Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery:
Send your comment to Docket No.
APHIS–2014–0050, Regulatory Analysis
and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station
3A–03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118,
Riverdale, MD 20737–1238.
Supporting documents and any
comments we receive on this docket
may be viewed at https://
www.regulations.gov/
#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2014-0050 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.
Carol Clarke, Research Program
Manager, USDA, APHIS, Animal Care,
4700 River Road Unit 84, Riverdale, MD
20737–1234; (301) 851–3751.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The
Animal Welfare Act (AWA, 7 U.S.C.
2131 et seq.) authorizes the Secretary of
Agriculture to promulgate standards and
other requirements governing research
facilities. The Secretary has delegated
the responsibility for enforcing the
AWA to the Administrator of the
Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service (APHIS). Within APHIS, the
responsibility for administering the
AWA has been delegated to the Deputy
Administrator for Animal Care.
Regulations and standards
promulgated under the AWA are
contained in Title 9 of the Code of
Federal Regulations, parts 1, 2, and 3
(referred to collectively below as the
AWA regulations). Part 1 contains
definitions of terms used within parts 2
and 3. Part 2 contains licensing and
registration regulations, regulations
specific to research facilities, and
regulations governing veterinary care,
ADDRESSES:
E:\FR\FM\30MRP1.SGM
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 60 (Monday, March 30, 2015)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 16590-16592]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-07116]
========================================================================
Proposed Rules
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of
the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these
notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in
the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.
========================================================================
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 60 / Monday, March 30, 2015 /
Proposed Rules
[[Page 16590]]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Marketing Service
7 CFR Part 932
[Doc. No. AMS-FV-14-0105; FV15-932-1 PR]
Olives Grown in California; Increased Assessment Rate
AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This proposed rule would implement a recommendation from the
California Olive Committee (committee) to increase the assessment rate
established for the 2015 and subsequent fiscal years from $15.21 to
$26.00 per assessable ton of olives handled. The committee locally
administers the marketing order and is comprised of producers and
handlers of olives grown in California. Assessments upon olive handlers
are used by the committee to fund reasonable and necessary expenses of
the program. The fiscal year begins January 1 and ends December 31. The
assessment rate would remain in effect indefinitely unless modified,
suspended, or terminated.
DATES: Comments must be received by April 29, 2015.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments
concerning this proposed rule. Comments must be sent to the Docket
Clerk, Marketing Order and Agreement Division, Fruit and Vegetable
Program, AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., STOP 0237,
Washington, DC 20250-0237; Fax: (202) 720-8938; or Internet: https://www.regulations.gov. Comments should reference the document number and
the date and page number of this issue of the Federal Register and will
be available for public inspection in the Office of the Docket Clerk
during regular business hours, or can be viewed at: https://www.regulations.gov. All comments submitted in response to this
proposed rule will be included in the record and will be made available
to the public. Please be advised that the identity of the individuals
or entities submitting the comments will be made public on the internet
at the address provided above.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Terry Vawter, Senior Marketing
Specialist or Martin Engeler, Regional Manager, California Marketing
Field Office, Marketing Order and Agreement Division, Fruit and
Vegetable Program, AMS, USDA; Telephone: (559) 487-5901, Fax: (559)
487-5906, or Email: Terry.Vawter@ams.usda.gov or
Martin.Engeler@ams.usda.gov.
Small businesses may request information on complying with this
regulation by contacting Jeffrey Smutny, Marketing Order and Agreement
Division, Fruit and Vegetable Program, AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence
Avenue SW., STOP 0237, Washington, DC 20250-0237; Telephone: (202) 720-
2491, Fax: (202)720-8938, or Email: Jeffrey.Smutny@ams.usda.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This proposed rule is issued under Marketing
Agreement No. 148 and Order No. 932, both as amended (7 CFR part 932),
regulating the handling of olives grown in California, hereinafter
referred to as the ``order.'' The order is effective under the
Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, as amended (7 U.S.C. 601-
674), hereinafter referred to as the ``Act.''
The Department of Agriculture (USDA) is issuing this proposed rule
in conformance with Executive Orders 12866, 13563, and 13175.
This proposed rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988,
Civil Justice Reform. Under the marketing order now in effect,
California olive handlers are subject to assessments. Funds to
administer the order are derived from such assessments. It is intended
that the assessment rate increase proposed herein would be applicable
to all assessable olives beginning on January 1, 2015, and continue
until amended, suspended, or terminated.
The Act provides that administrative proceedings must be exhausted
before parties may file suit in court. Under section 608c(15)(A) of the
Act, any handler subject to an order may file with USDA a petition
stating that the order, any provision of the order, or any obligation
imposed in connection with the order is not in accordance with law and
request a modification of the order or to be exempted therefrom. Such
handler is afforded the opportunity for a hearing on the petition.
After the hearing, USDA would rule on the petition. The Act provides
that the district court of the United States in any district in which
the handler is an inhabitant, or has his or her principal place of
business, has jurisdiction to review USDA's ruling on the petition,
provided an action is filed not later than 20 days after the date of
the entry of the ruling.
This proposed rule would increase the assessment rate established
for the committee for the 2015 and subsequent fiscal years from $15.21
to $26.00 per ton of assessable olives.
The California olive marketing order provides authority for the
committee, with the approval of USDA, to formulate an annual budget of
expenses and collect assessments from handlers to administer the
program. The members of the committee are producers and handlers of
California olives. They are familiar with the committee's needs and
with the costs for goods and services in their local area and are thus
in a position to formulate an appropriate budget and assessment rate.
The assessment rate is formulated and discussed in a public
meeting. Thus, all directly affected persons have an opportunity to
participate and provide input.
For the 2014 and subsequent fiscal years, the committee
recommended, and USDA approved, an assessment rate that would continue
in effect from fiscal year to fiscal year unless modified, suspended,
or terminated by USDA upon recommendation and information submitted by
the committee or other information available to USDA.
The committee met on December 9, 2014, and unanimously recommended
2015 fiscal year expenditures of $1,374,072, and an assessment rate of
$26.00 per ton of assessable olives. Olives are an alternate-bearing
crop: a large crop followed by a smaller crop. Olive growers and
handlers are accustomed to wide swings in crop yields, which
necessarily result in fluctuations in the assessment rate from year to
year. In comparison, last year's budgeted expenditures were $1,262,460.
[[Page 16591]]
The assessment rate of $26.00 is $10.79 higher than the rate currently
in effect.
The committee recommended the higher assessment rate because of a
substantial decrease in assessable olive tonnage for the 2014 crop
year. The olive tonnage available for the 2014 crop year was less than
40,000 tons, which compares to the 91,000 tons reported for the 2013
crop year, as reported by the California Agricultural Statistics
Service (CASS).
The reduced crop is due to olives being an alternate-bearing fruit.
The 2014 crop was what is called the ``off'' crop: The smaller of the
two bearing-year crops.
In addition to the funds from handler assessments, the committee
also plans to use available reserve funds to help meet its 2015 fiscal
year expenses.
The major expenditures recommended by the committee for the 2015
fiscal year include $259,231 for research, $450,000 for marketing
activities, $122,000 for inspection equipment and electronic reporting
development, and $393,500 for administration. The major expenditures
for the 2014 fiscal year included $312,560 for research, $565,600 for
marketing activities, $37,800 for inspection equipment and electronic
reporting development, and $346,500 for administration.
Overall 2015 expenditures include an increase in inspection
equipment and electronic reporting development expenses due to the need
to purchase, test, install, and link new sizers to the electronic
reporting system. Additionally, the research budget contains a
contingency of $41,000 for new opportunities that may arise during the
fiscal year, and the administrative budget includes a $31,000
contingency for unforeseen issues.
The assessment rate recommended by the committee resulted from
consideration of anticipated fiscal year expenses, actual olive tonnage
received by handlers during the 2014 crop year, and additional
pertinent information. As reported by CASS, actual assessable tonnage
for the 2014 crop year is under 40,000 tons or less than half of the
91,000 assessable tons in the 2013 crop year, which is a result of the
alternate-bearing characteristics of olives.
Income derived from handler assessments, along with interest income
and funds from the committee's authorized reserve would be adequate to
cover budgeted expenses. Funds in the reserve would be kept within the
maximum permitted by the order of approximately one fiscal year's
expenses (Sec. 932.40).
The proposed assessment rate would continue in effect indefinitely
unless modified, suspended, or terminated by USDA upon recommendation
and information submitted by the committee or other available
information.
Although this assessment rate would be in effect for an indefinite
period, the committee would continue to meet prior to or during each
fiscal year to recommend a budget of expenses and consider
recommendations for modification of the assessment rate. The dates and
times of committee meetings are available from the committee or USDA.
Committee meetings are open to the public and interested persons may
express their views at these meetings. USDA would evaluate committee
recommendations and other available information to determine whether
modification of the assessment rate is needed. Further rulemaking would
be undertaken as necessary. The committee's 2015 fiscal year budget and
those for subsequent fiscal years would be reviewed and, as
appropriate, approved by USDA.
Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis
Pursuant to requirements set forth in the Regulatory Flexibility
Act (RFA) (5 U.S.C. 601-612), the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS)
has considered the economic impact of this proposed rule on small
entities. Accordingly, AMS has prepared this initial regulatory
flexibility analysis.
The purpose of the RFA is to fit regulatory actions to the scale of
businesses subject to such actions in order that small businesses will
not be unduly or disproportionately burdened. Marketing orders issued
pursuant to the Act, and the rules issued thereunder, are unique in
that they are brought about through group action of essentially small
entities acting on their own behalf.
There are approximately 1000 producers of olives in the production
area and 2 handlers subject to regulation under the marketing order.
The Small Business Administration (13 CFR 121.201) defines small
agricultural producers as those having annual receipts of less than
$750,000, and small agricultural service firms as those whose annual
receipts are less than $7,000,000 (13 CFR 121.210).
Based upon information from the industry and CASS, the average
grower price for the 2014 crop year was approximately $1,027 per ton,
and total assessable volume was less than 40,000 tons. Based on
production, producer prices, and the total number of California olive
producers, the average annual producer revenue is less than $750,000.
Thus, the majority of olive producers may be classified as small
entities. Both of the handlers may be classified as large entities.
This proposed rule would increase the assessment rate established
for the committee and collected from handlers for the 2015 and
subsequent fiscal years from $15.21 to $26.00 per ton of assessable
olives. The committee unanimously recommended 2015 fiscal year
expenditures of $1,374,072, and an assessment rate of $26.00 per ton.
The higher assessment rate is necessary because assessable olive
receipts for the 2014 crop year were reported by CASS to be less than
40,000 tons, compared to 91,000 tons for the 2013 crop year.
Income derived from the $26.00 per ton assessment rate, along with
funds from the authorized reserve and interest income, should be
adequate to meet this fiscal year's expenses.
The major expenditures recommended by the committee for the 2015
fiscal year include $259,231 for research, $450,000 for marketing
activities, $122,000 for inspection equipment development, and $393,500
for administration. Budgeted expenses for these items in 2014 were
$312,560 for research, $565,600 for marketing activities, $37,800 for
inspection equipment and electronic reporting development, and $346,500
for administration.
The committee deliberated many of the expenses, weighing the
relative value of various programs or projects, and decreased their
costs for research and marketing, while increasing their costs for
inspection equipment and electronic reporting development, as well as
their administrative expenses.
Prior to arriving at this budget, the committee considered
information from various sources such as the committee's Executive,
Marketing, Inspection, and Research Subcommittees. Alternate
expenditure levels were discussed by these groups based upon the
relative value of various projects to the olive industry and the
reduced olive production. The assessment rate of $26.00 per ton of
assessable olives was derived by considering anticipated expenses, the
volume of assessable olives, and additional pertinent factors.
A review of preliminary information indicates that average grower
prices for 2014 crop olives was approximately $1,027 per ton.
Therefore, utilizing the proposed assessment rate of $26.00 per ton,
the estimated assessment revenue for the 2015 fiscal year as a
percentage of total grower revenue would be approximately 2.5 percent.
This action would increase the assessment obligation imposed on
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handlers. While assessments impose some additional costs on handlers,
the costs are minimal and uniform on all handlers. Some of the
additional costs may be passed on to producers. However, these costs
would be offset by the benefits derived from the operation of the
marketing order. In addition, the committee's meeting was widely
publicized throughout the California's olive industry and all
interested persons were invited to attend the meeting and participate
in committee deliberations on all issues. Like all committee meetings,
the December 9, 2014, meeting was a public meeting and all entities,
both large and small, were encouraged to express views on this issue.
Finally, interested persons are invited to submit comments on this
proposed rule including the regulatory and informational impacts of
this action on small businesses.
In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C.
Chapter 35), the order's information collection requirements have been
previously approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and
assigned OMB No. 0581-0178. No changes in those requirements as a
result of this action are necessary. Should any changes become
necessary, they would be submitted to OMB for approval.
This proposed rule would impose no additional reporting or
recordkeeping requirements on either small or large California olive
handlers. As with all Federal marketing order programs, reports and
forms are periodically reviewed to reduce information requirements and
duplication by industry and public sector agencies.
AMS is committed to complying with the E-Government Act 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.
USDA has not identified any relevant Federal rules that duplicate,
overlap, or conflict with this action.
A small business guide on complying with fruit, vegetable, and
specialty crop marketing agreements and orders may be viewed at: https://www.ams.usda.gov/MarketingOrdersSmallBusinessGuide. Any questions
about the compliance guide should be sent to Jeffrey Smutny at the
previously-mentioned address in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
section.
A 30-day comment period is provided to allow interested persons to
respond to this proposed rule. Thirty days is deemed appropriate
because: (1) The 2015 fiscal year began on January 1, 2015, and the
marketing order requires that the rate of assessment for each fiscal
year apply to all assessable olives handled during such fiscal year;
(2) the committee needs to have sufficient funds to pay its expenses,
which are incurred on a continuous basis; and (3) both regulated
handlers were present at the December 9, 2014, meeting, and are aware
of this action, which was unanimously recommended by the committee at a
public meeting, and is similar to other assessment rate actions issued
in past years.
List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 932
Olives, Marketing agreements, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 7 CFR part 932 is
proposed to be amended as follows:
PART 932--OLIVES GROWN IN CALIFORNIA
0
1. The authority citation for 7 CFR part 932 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 601-674.
0
2. Section 932.230 is revised to read as follows:
Sec. 932.230 Assessment rate.
On and after January 1, 2015, an assessment rate of $26.00 per ton
is established for California olives.
Dated: March 24, 2015.
Rex A. Barnes,
Associate Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-07116 Filed 3-27-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P