Notice of Funding Availability; Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) Additional Commodities Request for Information, 31062-31065 [2020-11155]
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31062
Proposed Rules
Federal Register
Vol. 85, No. 100
Friday, May 22, 2020
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
Office of the Secretary
7 CFR Part 9
[Docket ID: FSA–2020–0004]
Notice of Funding Availability;
Coronavirus Food Assistance Program
(CFAP) Additional Commodities
Request for Information
Office of the Secretary, USDA.
Notice of funding availability;
request for comments.
AGENCY:
ACTION:
The Coronavirus Food
Assistance Program (CFAP) helps
agricultural producers impacted by the
effects of the COVID–19 outbreak. As
provided in the CFAP regulation, this
document requests input to help USDA
identify information about additional
commodities that are not already
identified with payment rates in the
CFAP regulation for inclusion in CFAP.
DATES: We will consider comments that
we receive on additional commodities
by June 22, 2020.
We will consider comments that we
receive on the Paperwork Reduction Act
by July 21, 2020.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
William L. Beam, telephone (202) 720–
3175; email Bill.Beam@usda.gov.
Persons with disabilities or who require
alternative means for communication
(Braille, large print, audio tape, etc.)
should contact the USDA Target Center
at (202) 720–2600 (voice and TDD).
SUMMARY:
We invite you to submit
comments to provide information about
additional commodities and comment
on the information collection specified
in this document. In your comment,
specify [Docket ID: FSA–2020–0004],
and include the volume, date, and page
number of this issue of the Federal
Register. You may submit comments by
either of the following methods:
• Federal Rulemaking Portal: Go to
https://www.regulations.gov and search
for Docket ID FSA–2020–0004. Follow
the instructions for submitting
comments.
• Mail: Director, SND, FSA, U.S.
Department of Agriculture, 1400
Independence Avenue SW, Stop 0522,
Washington, DC 20250–0522.
Comments will be available for
viewing online at https://
www.regulations.gov. In addition,
comments will be available for public
inspection at the above address during
business hours from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.,
Monday through Friday, except
holidays.
ADDRESSES:
The
Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic
Security Act (CARES Act; Pub. L. 116–
136) provides $9,500,000,000 to the
Secretary of Agriculture to provide
assistance to agricultural producers
impacted by the effects of the COVID–
19 outbreak. In accordance with 15
U.S.C. 714b, the Secretary of Agriculture
is also using funds of the Commodity
Credit Corporation (CCC) to assist
producers with the purchase of
materials and facilities required in
connection with the production and
marketing of agricultural commodities,
and the removal of surplus commodities
from normal marketing channels that
may be currently unavailable. At this
time, the amount of CCC funds available
for these purposes is limited to $6.5
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
billion. USDA implemented CFAP for
certain commodities in the regulation in
7 CFR part 9.
For the purpose of potentially
supplementing the commodities listed
in the CFAP regulation, this document
requests information on agricultural
commodities not already included in
CFAP, which may be negatively
impacted by the COVID–19 pandemic,
and for which sufficient information is
not currently available to USDA to
include them in CFAP. If sufficient
information is received and a decision
is made to add commodities to the
program, USDA will issue another
NOFA listing the additional
commodities, the respective payment
rates, application dates, and any other
unique information that producers will
need to know for those commodities
and the availability of CFAP payments.
CFAP Background
Generally, in order to be eligible for
a CFAP payment, a producer must have
suffered a 5-percent-or-greater price loss
over a specified time resulting from the
COVID–19 outbreak or face additional
significant marketing costs for
inventories—whether caused by lower
prices given significant declines in
certain types of demand, surplus
production, or by disruptions to
shipping patterns and the orderly
marketing of commodities. In addition,
due to the COVID–19 outbreak, many
farmers markets, restaurants, and
schools have temporarily or
permanently closed, thus causing
significantly decreased demand for
commodities grown by producers that
are ordinarily supplied to these places.
The following commodities are
included in CFAP as specified in the
CFAP regulation in 7 CFR part 9.
Non-specialty crops
Specialty crops
Livestock
Barley (malting) ..............................
Canola ............................................
Corn ...............................................
Almonds ........................................
Apples ...........................................
Artichokes .....................................
Durum wheat .................................
Asparagus .....................................
Hard red spring wheat ...................
Millet ...............................................
Oats ...............................................
Sorghum ........................................
Soybeans .......................................
Sunflowers .....................................
Upland cotton .................................
Avocados ......................................
Beans ............................................
Blueberries ....................................
Broccoli .........................................
Cabbage.
Cantaloupe.
Carrots.
Slaughter cattle—mature cattle ....
Slaughter cattle—fed cattle ..........
Feeder cattle less than 600
pounds.
Feeder cattle 600 pounds or
more.
All other cattle.
Pigs.
Hogs.
Lambs and yearlings.
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Other
Dairy.
Wool.
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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 100 / Friday, May 22, 2020 / Proposed Rules
Non-specialty crops
Specialty crops
Livestock
Other
Cauliflower.
Celery.
Corn, sweet.
Cucumbers.
Eggplant.
Garlic.
Grapefruit.
Kiwifruit.
Lemons.
Lettuce, iceberg.
Lettuce, romaine.
Mushrooms.
Onions, dry.
Onions green.
Oranges.
Papaya.
Peaches.
Pears.
Pecans.
Peppers, bell type.
Peppers, other.
Potatoes.
Raspberries.
Rhubarb.
Spinach.
Squash.
Strawberries.
Sweet potatoes.
Tangerines.
Taro.
Tomatoes.
Walnuts.
Watermelons.
Agricultural commodities that are not
listed in the table above and have
widely published price data, such as
those whose prices are collected by
USDA and commodities traded on the
futures markets, have been determined
as having a minimal price impact due to
COVID–19 and are not included in
CFAP.
Information regarding producer
eligibility, the application process, and
calculation of payments is specified in
the regulation in 7 CFR part 9.
Agricultural commodities included in
the regulation were determined by
USDA to have incurred a price decline
of at least 5 percent between the weeks
of January 13–17, 2020, and April 6–9,
2020, for non-specialty crops, and April
6–10, 2020, for all other agricultural
commodities.
Potential Additional Commodities for
CFAP
One purpose of this document is to
request information from the public to
assist USDA in determining whether
additional agricultural commodities not
listed above should be eligible for
CFAP. It is not to collect information on
commodities already included in CFAP,
commodities already excluded from
CFAP, or information on nonagricultural products.
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USDA requests information about
agricultural commodities that the public
believes to have suffered a 5-percent-orgreater price loss between the weeks of
January 13–17, 2020, and April 6–10,
2020, for specialty crops, and April 6–
10, 2020, for all other agricultural
commodities. In providing input, please
consider the following questions; these
questions are not intended to limit the
type or amount of information provided.
The most helpful and informative
information for consideration by USDA
is information that describes how the
decline in price was determined and
documentation of the sources used to
make this determination.
(1) What commodities not listed
above have suffered a 5-percent-orgreater price loss between January and
April 2020 and face additional
marketing costs due to COVID–19?
(2) What was the price received per
unit of measure sold the week of
January 13 through January 17, 2020, (or
if not available, the nearest to this date)
and what is the basis for the
determination of this price?
(3) What was the price received per
unit of measure sold the week of April
6 through April 10, 2020, (or if not
available, the nearest date to this) and
what is the basis for the determination
of this price?
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USDA is particularly interested in the
obtaining information with respect to
the following specific categories of
agricultural commodities.
Nursery Products
If you are providing information for a
nursery that produces multiple
products, such as trees, shrubs, or
perennial plants, please specify your
responses to the questions below
separately by product:
(1) For live trees, shrubs, or other
plants that you produced, had vested
ownership in, and had in inventory at
some point between January 15, 2020,
and April 15, 2020, what was:
(a) The average price you received per
plant specified by type of nursery
product sold (for example, roses,
boxwoods, junipers) you sold the week
of January 13 through January 17, 2020,
(or if not available, nearest date to this);
(b) The average price you received per
plant you sold the week of April 6
through April 10, 2020, (or if not
available, nearest date to this);
(c) The number of plants you sold
between January 15, 2020, and April 15,
2020.
(2) The number and the contracted
price of plants you produced that left
your nursery by April 15, 2020, and
subsequently died or withered due to no
market, and for which you did not have
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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 100 / Friday, May 22, 2020 / Proposed Rules
Federal crop insurance or obtain
Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance
Program (NAP) to cover the loss.
(3) The inventory of plants ready for
sale that did not leave the nursery by
April 15, 2020, and that will not be sold
due to lack of markets.
Aquaculture Products
The CFAP regulation provided that
certain aquaculture producers would be
eligible for participation in CFAP. The
determination of eligible producers was
made based upon consultation with the
Department of Commerce, as that
agency is also establishing a program to
assist certain aquaculture producers. For
CFAP, an eligible aquaculture producer
is one who has a privately-owned
aquaculture business that propagates
freshwater and saltwater products in
controlled environments (including
raceways, ponds, tanks, and
recirculating systems). Farmed shrimp
and salmonids (trout and salmon) will
be included in CFAP to the extent
USDA determines individual types of
these products have incurred a requisite
decline in price.
Accordingly, through this document,
USDA requests information from
aquaculture producers to make the
determination of a price decline. If the
farm produces multiple aquaculture
products, please specify your responses
to the questions below separately by
product.
(1) For live aquaculture that you
produced, had vested ownership in, and
had in inventory at some point between
January 15, 2020, and April 15, 2020,
what was:
(a) The average price you received per
product the week of January 13 through
January 17, 2020, (or if not available,
nearest date to this);
(b) The average price you received per
aquaculture product you sold the week
of April 6 through April 10, 2020, (or if
not available, nearest date to this);
(c) The number of aquaculture
products you sold between January 15,
2020, and April 15, 2020.
(2) The number and the contracted
price of aquaculture products you
produced that left your farm by April
15, 2020, and subsequently spoiled due
to no market, and for which you did not
have Federal crop insurance or obtained
NAP to cover the loss.
(3) The inventory of aquaculture
products as April 15, 2020, that will not
be sold due to lack of markets.
Paperwork Reduction Act
Requirements
In accordance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C.
Chapter 35), FSA is requesting
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comments from interested individuals
and organizations on the information
collection activities related to CFAP.
FSA received emergency approval from
OMB for 6 months, and FSA will
request 3-years approval for CFAP
information collection activities.
Title: Coronavirus Food Assistance
Program (CFAP).
OMB Control Number: 0560–0295.
Type of Request: New Collection.
Abstract: This information collection
is required to support all CFAP
information collection activities
(applicable NOFAs and the regulation in
7 CFR part 9) to provide payments to
eligible producers who, with respect to
their agricultural commodities, have
been impacted by the effects of the
COVID–19 outbreak. The information
collection is necessary to evaluate the
application and other required
paperwork for determining the
producer’s eligibility and assist in the
producer’s payment calculations. FSA
will start accepting CFAP applications
later this month. If a producer who
applies must submit additional
documentation for eligibility, such as
certifications of compliance with
adjusted gross income provisions and
conservation compliance activities,
those additional documents and forms
must be submitted no later than 60 days
from the date the producer signs the
application.
For the following estimated total
annual burden on respondents, the
formula used to calculate the total
burden hour is the estimated average
time per response multiplied by the
estimated total annual responses.
Type of Respondents: Producers or
farmers.
Estimated Annual Number of
Respondents: 1,630,000.
Estimated Number of Responses per
Respondent: 2.6822.
Estimated Total Annual Responses:
4,372,000.
Estimated Average Time per
Response: 0.79309 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on
Respondents: 3,467,400 hours.
FSA is requesting comments on all
aspects of this information collection to
help us to:
(1) Evaluate whether the collection of
information is necessary for the proper
performance of the functions of FSA,
including whether the information will
have practical utility;
(2) Evaluate the accuracy of FSA’s
estimate of burden, including the
validity of the methodology and
assumptions used;
(3) Enhance the quality, utility and
clarity of the information to be
collected; and
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(4) Minimize the burden of the
collection of information on
respondents, including through the use
of appropriate automated, electronic,
mechanical, or other technological
collection techniques or other forms of
information technology.
All comments received in response to
this document, including names and
addresses when provided, will be a
matter of public record. Comments will
be summarized and included in the
submission for Office of Management
and Budget approval.
Environmental Review
The environmental impacts of CFAP
have been considered in a manner
consistent with the provisions of the
National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA), the regulations of the Council
on Environmental Quality (40 CFR parts
1500–1508), and, because USDA will be
making the payments to producers, the
USDA regulations for compliance with
NEPA (7 CFR part 1b).
Although OMB has designated the
CFAP rule as ‘‘economically significant’’
under Executive Order 12866, ‘‘. . .
economic or social effects are not
intended by themselves to require
preparation of an environmental impact
statement’’ when not interrelated to
natural or physical environmental
effects (see 40 CFR 1508.14). CFAP was
designed to avoid skewing planting
decisions. Producers continue to make
their planting and production decisions
with market signals in mind, rather than
any expectation of what a new USDA
program might look like. The
discretionary aspects of CFAP (for
example, determining Adjusted Gross
Income and payment limitations) were
designed to be consistent with
established USDA and CCC programs
and are not expected to have any impact
on the human environment, as CFAP
payments will only be made after the
commodity has been produced.
Accordingly, the following Categorical
Exclusion in 7 CFR part 1b applies:
1b.3(2), which applies to activities that
deal solely with the funding of
programs, such as program budget
proposals, disbursements, and the
transfer or reprogramming of funds. As
such, the implementation of and
participation in CFAP do not constitute
major Federal actions that would
significantly affect the quality of the
human environment, individually or
cumulatively. Therefore, an
environmental assessment or
environmental impact statement for
CFAP will not be prepared; this
document serves as documentation of
the programmatic environmental
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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 100 / Friday, May 22, 2020 / Proposed Rules
compliance decision for this federal
action.
Federal Assistance Programs
The title and number of the Federal
assistance programs, as found in the
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance,
to which this NOFA applies is CFAP
and 10.130.
Stephen L. Censky,
Vice Chairman, Commodity Credit
Corporation, and Deputy Secretary, U.S.
Department of Agriculture.
[FR Doc. 2020–11155 Filed 5–20–20; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3410–05–P
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
10 CFR Parts 430 and 431
[EERE–2016–BT–TP–0011]
RIN 1904–AD95
Energy Conservation Program: Test
Procedures for Residential and
Commercial Clothes Washers
Office of Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Energy, Department of
Energy.
ACTION: Request for information.
AGENCY:
The U.S. Department of
Energy (‘‘DOE’’) is initiating a data
collection process through this request
for information (‘‘RFI’’) to consider
whether to amend its test procedures for
clothes washers. As part of this RFI,
DOE seeks comment on whether there
have been changes in product testing
methodology or new products on the
market since the last test procedure
update that may create the need to make
amendments to the test procedure for
clothes washers. DOE also seeks data
and information that could enable the
agency to propose that the current test
procedure produces results that are
representative of an average use cycle
for the product and is not unduly
burdensome to conduct, and therefore
does not need amendment. DOE
requests comment on specific aspects of
the current test procedure, including
product definitions and configurations,
testing conditions and instrumentation,
measurement methods, representative
usage and efficiency factors, and metric
definitions. DOE also seeks comment on
any additional topics that may inform
DOE’s decision whether to conduct a
future test procedure rulemaking,
including methods to ensure that the
test procedure is reasonably designed to
measure energy and water use during a
representative average use cycle or
period of use and is not unduly
burdensome to conduct. DOE welcomes
SUMMARY:
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16:20 May 21, 2020
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written comments from the public on
any subject within the scope of this
document (including topics not raised
in this RFI).
DATES: Written comments and
information are requested and will be
accepted on or before June 22, 2020.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are
encouraged to submit comments using
the Federal eRulemaking Portal at
https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments.
Alternatively, interested persons may
submit comments, identified by docket
number EERE–2016–BT–TP–0011, by
any of the following methods:
1. Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://
www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments.
2. Email:
ResClothesWasher2016TP0011@
ee.doe.gov. Include docket number
EERE–2016–BT–TP–0011 in the subject
line of the message.
3. Postal Mail: Appliance and
Equipment Standards Program, U.S.
Department of Energy, Building
Technologies Office, Mailstop EE–5B,
1000 Independence Avenue SW,
Washington, DC 20585–0121.
Telephone: (202) 287–1445. If possible,
please submit all items on a compact
disc (‘‘CD’’), in which case it is not
necessary to include printed copies.
4. Hand Delivery/Courier: Appliance
and Equipment Standards Program, U.S.
Department of Energy, Building
Technologies Office, 950 L’Enfant Plaza
SW, Suite 600, Washington, DC 20024.
Telephone: (202) 287–1445. If possible,
please submit all items on a CD, in
which case it is not necessary to include
printed copies.
No telefacsimilies (faxes) will be
accepted. For detailed instructions on
submitting comments and additional
information on this process, see section
IV of this document.
Docket: The docket for this activity,
which includes Federal Register
notices, comments, and other
supporting documents/materials, is
available for review at https://
www.regulations.gov. All documents in
the docket are listed in the https://
www.regulations.gov index. However,
some documents listed in the index,
such as those containing information
that is exempt from public disclosure,
may not be publicly available.
The docket web page can be found at:
https://www.regulations.gov/#!docket
Detail;D=EERE-2016-BT-TP-0011. The
docket web page contains simple
instructions on how to access all
documents, including public comments,
in the docket. See section IV for
information on how to submit
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31065
comments through https://
www.regulations.gov.
Mr.
Bryan Berringer, U.S. Department of
Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Energy, Building
Technologies Office, EE–5B, 1000
Independence Avenue SW, Washington,
DC 20585–0121. Telephone: (202) 586–
0371. Email:
ApplianceStandardsQuestions@
ee.doe.gov.
Ms. Elizabeth Kohl, U.S. Department
of Energy, Office of the General Counsel,
GC–33, 1000 Independence Avenue SW,
Washington, DC 20585–0121.
Telephone: (202) 586–7796. Email:
Elizabeth.Kohl@hq.doe.gov.
For further information on how to
submit a comment or review other
public comments and the docket,
contact the Appliance and Equipment
Standards Program staff at (202) 287–
1445 or by email:
ApplianceStandardsQuestions@
ee.doe.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Table of Contents
I. Introduction
A. Authority
B. Rulemaking History
II. Request for Information and Comments
A. Scope & Definitions
B. Test Procedure
1. Connected Clothes Washers
2. Testing Conditions, Instrumentation,
and Installation
3. Test Cloth
4. Capacity Measurement Alternatives
5. Cycle Selection and Settings
6. Wash/Rinse Temperature Selections for
Semi-Automatic Clothes Washers
7. Usage Factors
8. Associated Equipment Efficiencies
9. Non-Conventional Features
C. Metrics
1. Energy Efficiency Metric
2. Water Efficiency Metric
3. Annual Energy Calculation
III. Other Comments, Data, and Information
IV. Submission of Comments
I. Introduction
Residential clothes washers (‘‘RCWs’’)
are included in the list of ‘‘covered
products’’ for which DOE is authorized
to establish and amend energy
conservation standards and test
procedures. (42 U.S.C. 6292(a)(7)) DOE’s
test procedures for RCWs are prescribed
at 10 CFR 430.23(j) and appendices J1,
J2, and J3 to subpart B of 10 CFR part
430. Commercial clothes washers
(‘‘CCWs’’) are included in the list of
‘‘covered equipment’’ for which DOE is
authorized to establish and amend
energy conservation standards and test
procedures. (42 U.S.C. 6311(1)(H)) The
test procedures for CCWs must be the
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 100 (Friday, May 22, 2020)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 31062-31065]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-11155]
========================================================================
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. 85, No. 100 / Friday, May 22, 2020 / Proposed
Rules
[[Page 31062]]
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Office of the Secretary
7 CFR Part 9
[Docket ID: FSA-2020-0004]
Notice of Funding Availability; Coronavirus Food Assistance
Program (CFAP) Additional Commodities Request for Information
AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of funding availability; request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) helps
agricultural producers impacted by the effects of the COVID-19
outbreak. As provided in the CFAP regulation, this document requests
input to help USDA identify information about additional commodities
that are not already identified with payment rates in the CFAP
regulation for inclusion in CFAP.
DATES: We will consider comments that we receive on additional
commodities by June 22, 2020.
We will consider comments that we receive on the Paperwork
Reduction Act by July 21, 2020.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William L. Beam, telephone (202) 720-
3175; email [email protected]. Persons with disabilities or who
require alternative means for communication (Braille, large print,
audio tape, etc.) should contact the USDA Target Center at (202) 720-
2600 (voice and TDD).
ADDRESSES: We invite you to submit comments to provide information
about additional commodities and comment on the information collection
specified in this document. In your comment, specify [Docket ID: FSA-
2020-0004], and include the volume, date, and page number of this issue
of the Federal Register. You may submit comments by either of the
following methods:
Federal Rulemaking Portal: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID FSA-2020-0004. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments.
Mail: Director, SND, FSA, U.S. Department of Agriculture,
1400 Independence Avenue SW, Stop 0522, Washington, DC 20250-0522.
Comments will be available for viewing online at https://www.regulations.gov. In addition, comments will be available for public
inspection at the above address during business hours from 8 a.m. to 5
p.m., Monday through Friday, except holidays.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic
Security Act (CARES Act; Pub. L. 116-136) provides $9,500,000,000 to
the Secretary of Agriculture to provide assistance to agricultural
producers impacted by the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak. In
accordance with 15 U.S.C. 714b, the Secretary of Agriculture is also
using funds of the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) to assist
producers with the purchase of materials and facilities required in
connection with the production and marketing of agricultural
commodities, and the removal of surplus commodities from normal
marketing channels that may be currently unavailable. At this time, the
amount of CCC funds available for these purposes is limited to $6.5
billion. USDA implemented CFAP for certain commodities in the
regulation in 7 CFR part 9.
For the purpose of potentially supplementing the commodities listed
in the CFAP regulation, this document requests information on
agricultural commodities not already included in CFAP, which may be
negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and for which sufficient
information is not currently available to USDA to include them in CFAP.
If sufficient information is received and a decision is made to add
commodities to the program, USDA will issue another NOFA listing the
additional commodities, the respective payment rates, application
dates, and any other unique information that producers will need to
know for those commodities and the availability of CFAP payments.
CFAP Background
Generally, in order to be eligible for a CFAP payment, a producer
must have suffered a 5-percent-or-greater price loss over a specified
time resulting from the COVID-19 outbreak or face additional
significant marketing costs for inventories--whether caused by lower
prices given significant declines in certain types of demand, surplus
production, or by disruptions to shipping patterns and the orderly
marketing of commodities. In addition, due to the COVID-19 outbreak,
many farmers markets, restaurants, and schools have temporarily or
permanently closed, thus causing significantly decreased demand for
commodities grown by producers that are ordinarily supplied to these
places.
The following commodities are included in CFAP as specified in the
CFAP regulation in 7 CFR part 9.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Non-specialty crops Specialty crops Livestock Other
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Barley (malting)..................... Almonds................ Slaughter cattle-- Dairy.
mature cattle.
Canola............................... Apples................. Slaughter cattle--fed Wool.
cattle.
Corn................................. Artichokes............. Feeder cattle less than .......................
600 pounds.
Durum wheat.......................... Asparagus.............. Feeder cattle 600 .......................
pounds or more.
Hard red spring wheat................ Avocados............... All other cattle. .......................
Millet............................... Beans.................. Pigs. .......................
Oats................................. Blueberries............ Hogs. .......................
Sorghum.............................. Broccoli............... Lambs and yearlings. .......................
Soybeans............................. Cabbage. .......................
Sunflowers........................... Cantaloupe. .......................
Upland cotton........................ Carrots. .......................
[[Page 31063]]
Cauliflower. .......................
Celery. .......................
Corn, sweet. .......................
Cucumbers. .......................
Eggplant. .......................
Garlic. .......................
Grapefruit. .......................
Kiwifruit. .......................
Lemons. .......................
Lettuce, iceberg. .......................
Lettuce, romaine. .......................
Mushrooms. .......................
Onions, dry. .......................
Onions green. .......................
Oranges. .......................
Papaya. .......................
Peaches. .......................
Pears. .......................
Pecans. .......................
Peppers, bell type. .......................
Peppers, other. .......................
Potatoes. .......................
Raspberries. .......................
Rhubarb. .......................
Spinach. .......................
Squash. .......................
Strawberries. .......................
Sweet potatoes. .......................
Tangerines. .......................
Taro. .......................
Tomatoes. .......................
Walnuts. .......................
Watermelons. .......................
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Agricultural commodities that are not listed in the table above and
have widely published price data, such as those whose prices are
collected by USDA and commodities traded on the futures markets, have
been determined as having a minimal price impact due to COVID-19 and
are not included in CFAP.
Information regarding producer eligibility, the application
process, and calculation of payments is specified in the regulation in
7 CFR part 9. Agricultural commodities included in the regulation were
determined by USDA to have incurred a price decline of at least 5
percent between the weeks of January 13-17, 2020, and April 6-9, 2020,
for non-specialty crops, and April 6-10, 2020, for all other
agricultural commodities.
Potential Additional Commodities for CFAP
One purpose of this document is to request information from the
public to assist USDA in determining whether additional agricultural
commodities not listed above should be eligible for CFAP. It is not to
collect information on commodities already included in CFAP,
commodities already excluded from CFAP, or information on non-
agricultural products.
USDA requests information about agricultural commodities that the
public believes to have suffered a 5-percent-or-greater price loss
between the weeks of January 13-17, 2020, and April 6-10, 2020, for
specialty crops, and April 6-10, 2020, for all other agricultural
commodities. In providing input, please consider the following
questions; these questions are not intended to limit the type or amount
of information provided. The most helpful and informative information
for consideration by USDA is information that describes how the decline
in price was determined and documentation of the sources used to make
this determination.
(1) What commodities not listed above have suffered a 5-percent-or-
greater price loss between January and April 2020 and face additional
marketing costs due to COVID-19?
(2) What was the price received per unit of measure sold the week
of January 13 through January 17, 2020, (or if not available, the
nearest to this date) and what is the basis for the determination of
this price?
(3) What was the price received per unit of measure sold the week
of April 6 through April 10, 2020, (or if not available, the nearest
date to this) and what is the basis for the determination of this
price?
USDA is particularly interested in the obtaining information with
respect to the following specific categories of agricultural
commodities.
Nursery Products
If you are providing information for a nursery that produces
multiple products, such as trees, shrubs, or perennial plants, please
specify your responses to the questions below separately by product:
(1) For live trees, shrubs, or other plants that you produced, had
vested ownership in, and had in inventory at some point between January
15, 2020, and April 15, 2020, what was:
(a) The average price you received per plant specified by type of
nursery product sold (for example, roses, boxwoods, junipers) you sold
the week of January 13 through January 17, 2020, (or if not available,
nearest date to this);
(b) The average price you received per plant you sold the week of
April 6 through April 10, 2020, (or if not available, nearest date to
this);
(c) The number of plants you sold between January 15, 2020, and
April 15, 2020.
(2) The number and the contracted price of plants you produced that
left your nursery by April 15, 2020, and subsequently died or withered
due to no market, and for which you did not have
[[Page 31064]]
Federal crop insurance or obtain Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance
Program (NAP) to cover the loss.
(3) The inventory of plants ready for sale that did not leave the
nursery by April 15, 2020, and that will not be sold due to lack of
markets.
Aquaculture Products
The CFAP regulation provided that certain aquaculture producers
would be eligible for participation in CFAP. The determination of
eligible producers was made based upon consultation with the Department
of Commerce, as that agency is also establishing a program to assist
certain aquaculture producers. For CFAP, an eligible aquaculture
producer is one who has a privately-owned aquaculture business that
propagates freshwater and saltwater products in controlled environments
(including raceways, ponds, tanks, and recirculating systems). Farmed
shrimp and salmonids (trout and salmon) will be included in CFAP to the
extent USDA determines individual types of these products have incurred
a requisite decline in price.
Accordingly, through this document, USDA requests information from
aquaculture producers to make the determination of a price decline. If
the farm produces multiple aquaculture products, please specify your
responses to the questions below separately by product.
(1) For live aquaculture that you produced, had vested ownership
in, and had in inventory at some point between January 15, 2020, and
April 15, 2020, what was:
(a) The average price you received per product the week of January
13 through January 17, 2020, (or if not available, nearest date to
this);
(b) The average price you received per aquaculture product you sold
the week of April 6 through April 10, 2020, (or if not available,
nearest date to this);
(c) The number of aquaculture products you sold between January 15,
2020, and April 15, 2020.
(2) The number and the contracted price of aquaculture products you
produced that left your farm by April 15, 2020, and subsequently
spoiled due to no market, and for which you did not have Federal crop
insurance or obtained NAP to cover the loss.
(3) The inventory of aquaculture products as April 15, 2020, that
will not be sold due to lack of markets.
Paperwork Reduction Act Requirements
In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C.
Chapter 35), FSA is requesting comments from interested individuals and
organizations on the information collection activities related to CFAP.
FSA received emergency approval from OMB for 6 months, and FSA will
request 3-years approval for CFAP information collection activities.
Title: Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP).
OMB Control Number: 0560-0295.
Type of Request: New Collection.
Abstract: This information collection is required to support all
CFAP information collection activities (applicable NOFAs and the
regulation in 7 CFR part 9) to provide payments to eligible producers
who, with respect to their agricultural commodities, have been impacted
by the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak. The information collection is
necessary to evaluate the application and other required paperwork for
determining the producer's eligibility and assist in the producer's
payment calculations. FSA will start accepting CFAP applications later
this month. If a producer who applies must submit additional
documentation for eligibility, such as certifications of compliance
with adjusted gross income provisions and conservation compliance
activities, those additional documents and forms must be submitted no
later than 60 days from the date the producer signs the application.
For the following estimated total annual burden on respondents, the
formula used to calculate the total burden hour is the estimated
average time per response multiplied by the estimated total annual
responses.
Type of Respondents: Producers or farmers.
Estimated Annual Number of Respondents: 1,630,000.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 2.6822.
Estimated Total Annual Responses: 4,372,000.
Estimated Average Time per Response: 0.79309 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 3,467,400 hours.
FSA is requesting comments on all aspects of this information
collection to help us to:
(1) Evaluate whether the collection of information is necessary for
the proper performance of the functions of FSA, including whether the
information will have practical utility;
(2) Evaluate the accuracy of FSA's estimate of burden, including
the validity of the methodology and assumptions used;
(3) Enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the information to
be collected; and
(4) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on
respondents, including through the use of appropriate automated,
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or
other forms of information technology.
All comments received in response to this document, including names
and addresses when provided, will be a matter of public record.
Comments will be summarized and included in the submission for Office
of Management and Budget approval.
Environmental Review
The environmental impacts of CFAP have been considered in a manner
consistent with the provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA), the regulations of the Council on Environmental Quality (40 CFR
parts 1500-1508), and, because USDA will be making the payments to
producers, the USDA regulations for compliance with NEPA (7 CFR part
1b).
Although OMB has designated the CFAP rule as ``economically
significant'' under Executive Order 12866, ``. . . economic or social
effects are not intended by themselves to require preparation of an
environmental impact statement'' when not interrelated to natural or
physical environmental effects (see 40 CFR 1508.14). CFAP was designed
to avoid skewing planting decisions. Producers continue to make their
planting and production decisions with market signals in mind, rather
than any expectation of what a new USDA program might look like. The
discretionary aspects of CFAP (for example, determining Adjusted Gross
Income and payment limitations) were designed to be consistent with
established USDA and CCC programs and are not expected to have any
impact on the human environment, as CFAP payments will only be made
after the commodity has been produced. Accordingly, the following
Categorical Exclusion in 7 CFR part 1b applies: 1b.3(2), which applies
to activities that deal solely with the funding of programs, such as
program budget proposals, disbursements, and the transfer or
reprogramming of funds. As such, the implementation of and
participation in CFAP do not constitute major Federal actions that
would significantly affect the quality of the human environment,
individually or cumulatively. Therefore, an environmental assessment or
environmental impact statement for CFAP will not be prepared; this
document serves as documentation of the programmatic environmental
[[Page 31065]]
compliance decision for this federal action.
Federal Assistance Programs
The title and number of the Federal assistance programs, as found
in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance, to which this NOFA
applies is CFAP and 10.130.
Stephen L. Censky,
Vice Chairman, Commodity Credit Corporation, and Deputy Secretary, U.S.
Department of Agriculture.
[FR Doc. 2020-11155 Filed 5-20-20; 4:15 pm]
BILLING CODE 3410-05-P
