Request for Information on Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (AFIDA) FSA-153 Form Modernization and Information Collection Request, 87385-87393 [2023-27683]
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87385
Notices
Federal Register
Vol. 88, No. 241
Monday, December 18, 2023
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER
contains documents other than rules or
proposed rules that are applicable to the
public. Notices of hearings and investigations,
committee meetings, agency decisions and
rulings, delegations of authority, filing of
petitions and applications and agency
statements of organization and functions are
examples of documents appearing in this
section.
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
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Submission for OMB Review;
Comment Request
The Department of Agriculture has
submitted the following information
collection requirement(s) to OMB for
review and clearance under the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995,
Public Law 104–13. Comments are
required regarding; whether the
collection of information is necessary
for the proper performance of the
functions of the agency, including
whether the information will have
practical utility; the accuracy of the
agency’s estimate of burden including
the validity of the methodology and
assumptions used; ways to enhance the
quality, utility and clarity of the
information to be collected; and ways to
minimize the burden of the collection of
information on those who are to
respond, including through the use of
appropriate automated, electronic,
mechanical, or other technological
collection techniques or other forms of
information technology.
Comments regarding this information
collection received by January 17, 2024
will be considered. Written comments
and recommendations for the proposed
information collection should be
submitted within 30 days of the
publication of this notice on the
following website www.reginfo.gov/
public/do/PRAMain. Find this
particular information collection by
selecting ‘‘Currently under 30-day
Review—Open for Public Comments’’ or
by using the search function
An agency may not conduct or
sponsor a collection of information
unless the collection of information
displays a currently valid OMB control
number and the agency informs
potential persons who are to respond to
the collection of information that such
persons are not required to respond to
the collection of information unless it
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displays a currently valid OMB control
number.
Farm Service Agency
Ruth Brown,
Departmental Information Collection
Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2023–27672 Filed 12–15–23; 8:45 am]
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Farm Service Agency
[Docket ID: FSA–2023–0017]
Title: Certified Mediation Program (7
CFR part 785).
OMB Control Number: 0560–0165.
Summary of Collection: The Farm
Service (FSA) is administering the
Certified Mediation Program as
mandated by Subtitle A and B of Title
V of the Agricultural Credit Act of 1987
(Pub. L. 100–233), as amended, under
the USDA Agricultural Mediation
Program. USDA authorized FSA to
administer the program. FSA makes
grants to state-designated entitles that
provide mediation to agricultural
producers, their lenders and others that
are directly affected by the action of
certain USDA agencies. In mediation, a
trained impartial mediator helps
participants review and discuss their
conflicts, identify options to resolve
disputes and agree on solutions.
Need and Use of the Information: FSA
will collect information to determine
whether the participants meet the
eligibility requirements to be recipients
of grant funds, and secondly, to
determine if the grant is being
administered as provided by the
Agricultural Credit Act. Lack of
adequate information to make these
determinations could result in the
improper administration and
appropriation of Federal grant funds.
Description of Respondents: State,
Local or Tribal Government.
Number of Respondents: 42.
Frequency of Responses: Reporting:
Annually.
Total Burden Hours: 2,772.
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
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Request for Information on
Agricultural Foreign Investment
Disclosure Act (AFIDA) FSA–153 Form
Modernization and Information
Collection Request
Notice; and request for
comment.
ACTION:
Farm Service Agency and Farm
Production and Conservation Business
Center, Department of Agriculture
(USDA).
SUMMARY: The Farm Service Agency
(FSA) is requesting information on
proposed revisions to the Agricultural
Foreign Investment Disclosure Act
Report (FSA–153 form). The FSA–153
requires updating. Specifically, the
FSA–153 form needs clarification and
updating to ensure that foreign owners
(or long-term lessees) who are required
to file the FSA–153 form have clear
instructions and that USDA is collecting
the most precise and meaningful data,
so that the report to Congress is as
accurate and insightful as possible.
Foreign owners are investors who buy,
sell, or hold a direct or indirect interest
in U.S. agricultural land (or who hold
long-term leases on agricultural land)
and must report their holdings and
transactions to USDA on the FSA–153
form. USDA uses the information on the
submitted forms to generate the report
that it submits to Congress. FSA is
moving towards modernizing the
collection of information process,
clarifying and modernizing the FSA–
153 form, and if funding becomes
available, creating an electronic
submission system that will allow
foreign owners to report by filing
electronically. In addition, this
document requests public input for our
plan to revise not only the information
request, but ultimately, the regulation
(which will likely result in further
modifications at a later date to the FSA–
153 form).
DATES: We will consider comments or
information that we receive by February
16, 2024.
ADDRESSES: We invite you to send
comments in response to this notice.
You may submit comments, identified
by Docket ID: FSA–2023–0017 in the
AGENCY:
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Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to
https://www.regulations.gov and search
for FSA–2023–0017. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments.
All comments will be posted without
change and will be publicly available on
www.regulations.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Mary Estep; telephone (202) 720–3217;
or email mary.estep@usda.gov.
Individuals who require alternative
means for communication should
contact the USDA TARGET Center at
(202) 720–2600 (voice and text
telephone (TTY)) or dial 711 for
Telecommunications Relay Service
(both voice and text telephone users can
initiate this call from any telephone).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
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Background
The Agricultural Foreign Investment
Disclosure Act of 1978 (Pub. L. 95–460)
requires ‘‘foreign persons’’ who hold,
acquire, or dispose of an interest in U.S.
agricultural land to report transactions
and holdings to USDA through the
Agricultural Foreign Investment
Disclosure Act Report (FSA–153 form)
within 90 days of the transaction. In this
document, we are using the term
‘‘foreign owners’’ to refer to the people,
companies, governments, and others
who are required to report their
transactions and holdings to USDA.
‘‘Foreign owners’’ is an umbrella term
that also includes long-term
leaseholders (typically in the wind and
solar industries).
In recent years, there has been great
interest in the annual AFIDA report to
Congress. Further, section 773 of title
VII of the Agriculture, Rural
Development, Food and Drug
Administration, and Related Agencies
Appropriations Act, 2023 (7 U.S.C. 3501
note; Division A of the Consolidated
Appropriations Act, 2023; Pub. L. 117–
328) requires the Secretary to establish
a streamlined process for electronic
submission and retention of disclosures
made under AFIDA, as well as to create
an internet database that contains
disaggregated data from each disclosure
submitted to USDA. In order to fulfill
this mandate, FSA must collect the data
that best captures all of the
requirements of AFIDA with minimal
burden on foreign owners. Until
additional funding is available, or reprioritization of funding occurs, FSA
will continue to collect information
through the paper-based FSA–153 form.
Given that the FSA–153 form has not
been updated for years, an internal
working group—composed of AFIDA
headquarters specialists, information
technology specialists, FSA field staff,
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and other USDA employees—met in the
spring and summer of 2023 to discuss
revisions to the form to gather more
precise data to prepare for meeting the
Section 773 mandate and to clarify and
modernize the form. This document
requests public input for our plan to
revise the information collection request
as part of our information collection
request, which will be submitted to
OMB to renew and revise their approval
for OMB control number 0560–0097.
AFIDA data collection has operated in
much the same way for the past 40
years. FSA administers AFIDA for the
Secretary. Foreign owners can work
through the FSA county office to fill out
the form or, for more complex cases,
directly with the AFIDA headquarters
staff in the FPAC Business Center’s
Economic and Policy Analysis Division.
Forms are typically filled out manually
and mailed in hard copy to headquarters
staff (whether originating in the FSA
county office or received directly, in the
case of complex situations, from foreign
owners or their representatives). The
AFIDA headquarters staff check all
incoming reports for accuracy and
completeness and work with the foreign
owner (or FSA county office) if
additional information is needed. The
data from each FSA–153 form is then
manually hand-entered in an in-house
data system designed to produce the
annual report to Congress.
Definitions
A foreign person is, generally, an
individual who is not a U.S. citizen or
permanent resident, or an entity that is:
• a foreign government,
• an entity formed under the laws of
a foreign government, or
• an entity formed under a U.S. law
in which a foreign person has a
reportable direct or indirect interest.
A reportable interest is an interest
held by a foreign person in agricultural
land as:
• a direct landowner (the title
holder),
• a direct leaseholder if the lease is
for 10 years or more,
• an indirect landowner or
leaseholder.
A reportable indirect interest is any
interest held by a foreign person in any
entity that has an interest in agricultural
land as an owner or leaseholder if the
lease is for 10 years or more (excluding
contingent future interests). To be
reportable, the interest held in the entity
by the foreign person must be:
(1) 10 percent or more by a foreign
person or group of foreign persons
acting in concert, or
(2) 50 percent by a group of foreign
persons not acting in concert.
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Form FSA–153, tracks ownership to
the third ownership tier.
For AFIDA purposes, agricultural
land is land used for ‘‘agricultural
purposes’’ that is:
• more than 10 acres in size in the
aggregate; or
• 10 acres or less in the aggregate
producing gross annual receipts of more
than $1,000 from the sale of farm, ranch,
or timber products in total.
‘‘Agricultural purposes’’ is defined as
land that during the current year or any
1 of the preceding 5 years was used for:
• farming, ranching, pasture,
orchards, vineyards, timber production,
and so on; or
• forestry production exceeding 10
acres in size in which 10 percent is
stocked by trees of any size, including
land that formerly had such tree cover
and will be naturally or artificially
regenerated. It does not matter whether
the foreign person ever intends to cut
and sell the trees.
These definitions apply even if the
land has been planned and plotted or rezoned for nonagricultural purposes.
Agricultural land is categorized as
cropland, forestland, pastureland, other
agriculture, and non-agricultural land
(homesteads, farm roads).
Reporting
Foreign owners (or often, their U.S.
attorney representatives) meeting the
requirements above report their
information on the existing FSA–153
form found at: https://forms.sc.egov.
usda.gov/efcommon/eFileServices/
eForms/FSA153.PDF. In addition, the
foreign filer must file a separate FSA–
153 form when:
• the agricultural land is acquired or
disposed of on different dates;
• the agricultural land is in multiple
counties; or
• partial vs. whole ownership
interests are different for the different
parcels acquired at the same time and in
the same county.
In addition to the FSA–153 form
itself, foreign owners must provide the
legal description of the parcels that they
acquired (or disposed of) and, if
applicable, the tiers of ownership (to the
third tier).
In addition to acquisitions and
dispositions, reporting of an amended
FSA–153 is triggered when the land use
changes, the tiers of ownership change,
or the name of the foreign person
changes.
The annual report to Congress is
available on: https://www.fsa.usda.gov/
programs-and-services/economic-andpolicy-analysis/afida/annual-reports/
index. The annual report contains
information on the top-five countries
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holding different forms of agricultural
land, the concentration of holdings
geographically, and other information.
Geographic Context for the Location of
the Land
AFIDA information has no direct
linkages to FSA’s Farm Records or other
FSA systems. Parcel and foreign owner
numbers are assigned by AFIDA
headquarters staff; these numbers have
no relevance for other FSA programs.
The current FSA–153 form requires that
the foreign owners provide the legal
description or FSA tract number. Very
few foreign owners provide an FSA tract
or farm number and only provide a hard
copy of the legal description.
Also, USDA is increasingly
questioned by agencies within the
federal government, and others, about
purchases by certain entities and the
geographic location of their holdings.
We can provide the legal description—
typically a ‘‘Platt type’’ map—that has
no context allowing immediate geospatial interpretation. Accordingly, we
are asking foreign owners to provide
their legal description for each parcel
and to also identify one or more of the
following:
• The longitude and latitude for each
parcel;
• The property tax ID number
assigned by the county; and
• The FSA tract number and the FSA
farm number.
We do not have the authority to
require that foreign owners provide this
information or that they obtain an FSA
tract and farm number. However, we are
requesting that they voluntarily provide
at least one of these additional data
points.
Request for Information
We are requesting public input for the
following questions:
(1) Is the request for additional
information an undue burden on foreign
owners or their representatives? If so,
why?
(2) Are there additional options that
should be added to the list above? If so,
what are those options?
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Long-Term Leaseholds
Currently, there are no specific
questions about leases on the form. As
a result, foreign owners are writing in
‘‘lease’’ in box 5.f on the FSA–153 form.
Long-term leases are a significant
category of reports, and Congress and
others have a strong interest in
capturing leasing data. There are several
changes proposed on the FSA–153 form
to capture data on the types of leases
and the value of the lease.
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Request for Information
We are requesting public input for the
following questions:
(1) Are long-term leasehold filings—
particularly those in the wind turbine
and solar panel industries—‘‘different
enough’’ from land ownership purchase
or sale filings that a separate version of
the FSA–153 form should be created?
Should a different ‘‘logic path’’ of
questions be developed for long-term
leasehold filings?
(2) Many foreign wind energy
companies have long-term leaseholds on
U.S. agricultural land farmed by U.S.
producers that trigger the AFIDA
reporting requirement. Currently, the
entire acreage of the parcel is captured;
this is because the number of wind
turbines that will be established on the
land (if any) is often an unknown at the
time of AFIDA reporting. In addition,
the existence of the leasehold generally
precludes other energy company
involvement on the acreage. Does this
approach overstate foreign energy
company activity on U.S. agricultural
land? If so, how should the acreage
associated with these leaseholds be
captured?
(3) How should solar panels or
photovoltaics—which are situated above
the agricultural land—be treated for
AFIDA reporting given that AFIDA uses
an acreage basis for reporting?
(4) Some foreign owners are providing
a very low estimate of the value of the
lease (as the flat payment is low) on the
FSA–153 form while others are
providing the estimated value of the
entire parcel. How should ‘‘interest in
the value of the agricultural land’’ be
defined for leases?
Impacts on Farms and Rural
Communities
AFIDA requires USDA to determine
the impacts of foreign ownership, which
the Economic Research Service
provided in the report to Congress
posted in December 2022 (containing
data as of December 31, 2021). In order
to assess impacts, and answer questions
from Congress and the media (for
example, are farmers being kicked off
their land?), questions 9 through 12 on
the existing FSA–153 form are being
considered to be replaced by a new set
of proposed questions 11 through 13.
Request for Information
We are requesting public input for the
following questions:
(1) Do the revised questions capture
the scenarios needed to ascertain the
impacts of foreign investment in U.S.
agricultural land? If not, what questions
should be added, or should the
proposed questions be modified?
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(2) Do these questions put an undue
burden on the foreign owner or their
representative?
(3) Are there situations where
responding to the questions as written
may result in unclear inferences—for
example, if there are foreigners who are
both farming land they have purchased
within a county, and renting? How
common are such situations?
FSA has several general questions
associated with the FSA–153 form,
which are listed below:
(1) By regulation, reporting by foreign
owners is required to the third tier of
ownership. The form does not capture
information on the ultimate owning
country or countries. Should this
information be captured?
(2) Should foreign owners be required
to report beyond the third tier of
ownership? If so, why?
(3) What ownership level should bear
the reporting obligation?
(4) Should the FSA Farm Records and
AFIDA definitions of ‘‘tract’’ be aligned?
If so, why?
(5) Should parcels that are part of the
same purchase or lease but are to be
used differently—say, for agricultural
vs. non-agricultural purposes—be
treated differently by AFIDA? If so, how
should the FSA–153 form be modified?
Please provide examples and explain
why.
(6) The AFIDA regulation currently
provides a list of exemptions to
reporting. Should filing be required in
situations of contingent future interests?
If so, what kind and what types should
be exempted, if any? Should reporting
be required under any circumstances for
easements? Please explain.
(7) Should foreign owners be required
to submit an amended FSA–153 form
when land use changes within the
agricultural category (say, if acres move
from pastureland to cropland relative to
the original reporting)?
Information Collection Request
FSA is requesting comments from all
interested individuals and organizations
on a revision to the currently approved
information collection request
associated with the Agricultural Foreign
Investment Disclosure Act (AFIDA) of
1978. FSA is proposing a modified
FSA–153 form and an appendix A
showing the tiers of ownership. The
modified FSA–153 and Appendix A are
available at the end of this notice; you
may provide comment in
www.regulations.gov. You can also
provide comments on all aspects of the
AFIDA information collection request
and the collected information as
described in this notice. We have
increased the burden estimate because
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we expanded the form and we estimated
the number of times changes have been
submitted over several years.
Description of Information Collection
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Title: Agricultural Foreign Investment
Disclosure Act Report.
OMB Control Number: 0560–0097.
Expiration Date of Approval: August
31, 2025.
Type of Request: Revision.
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 hours multiplied by
the estimated total annual responses.
Estimate of Respondent Burden:
Public reporting burden for the
information collection is estimated to
average 2 hours per response.
Respondents: Individuals or
households, businesses or other for
profit farms.
Estimated Annual Number of
Respondents: 7,775.
Estimated Number of Reponses per
Respondent: 5.
Estimated Total Annual Responses:
38,875.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on
Respondents: 77,750 hours.
We are 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 the
FSA, including whether the information
will have practical utility;
(2) Evaluate the accuracy of the FSA’s
estimate of burden including the
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validity of the methodology and
assumptions used;
(3) Enhance the quality, utility and
clarity of the information to be
collected;
(4) Minimize the burden of the
collection of information on those who
are to respond, 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 notice, 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.
Request for Meeting
In addition to providing input in your
written comment, if you would like to
meet to discuss the proposed changes,
please include that request in your
comment, also. If there is interest, we
will schedule a meeting.
USDA Non-Discrimination Policy
In accordance with Federal civil
rights law and USDA civil rights
regulations and policies, USDA, its
Agencies, offices, and employees, and
institutions participating in or
administering USDA programs are
prohibited from discriminating based on
race, color, national origin, religion, sex,
gender identity (including gender
expression), sexual orientation,
disability, age, marital status, family or
parental status, income derived from a
public assistance program, political
beliefs, or reprisal or retaliation for prior
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civil rights activity, in any program or
activity conducted or funded by USDA
(not all bases apply to all programs).
Remedies and complaint filing
deadlines vary by program or incident.
Individuals who require alternative
means of communication for program
information (for example, braille, large
print, audiotape, American Sign
Language, etc.) should contact the
responsible Agency or the USDA
TARGET Center at (202) 720–2600
(voice and text telephone (TTY)) or dial
711 for Telecommunications Relay
Service (both voice and text telephone
users can initiate this call from any
telephone). Additionally, program
information may be made available in
languages other than English.
To file a program discrimination
complaint, complete the USDA Program
Discrimination Complaint Form, AD–
3027, found online at https://
www.usda.gov/oascr/how-to-file-aprogram-discrimination-complaint and
at any USDA office or write a letter
addressed to USDA and provide in the
letter all the information requested in
the form. To request a copy of the
complaint form, call (866) 632–9992.
Submit your completed form or letter to
USDA by: (1) mail to: U.S. Department
of Agriculture, Office of the Assistant
Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400
Independence Avenue SW, Washington,
DC 20250-–9410; (2) fax: (202) 690–
7442; or (3) email: program.intake@
usda.gov.
USDA is an equal opportunity
provider, employer, and lender.
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0MB Approval No.: 0560-0097
AMENDED
0MB Expiration Date· 08/31/2025
1. Tvpe of Activitv /See Instructions; check ontv one)
0
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
FSA-153
Farm Service Agency
(proposal)
A. Land Acquisition:
D has filed with AFIDA prior; D new filer
B. Land Disposition □
C. Entry into Long-term Land Lease:1L
AGRICULTURAL FOREIGN INVESTMENT
DISCLOSURE ACT REPORT
D
has filed with AFIDA prior;
D. Long-term Lease Expiration/Termination
D new filer
D
E. Other:
1.
2.
Note: Read the "general instructions" on p. 3 of this form before filling in any data.
(If additional space is needed, use additional sheets.)
Land held prior to AFIDA law passage in 1978 □
Amendment to Prior Filing:
D Lane Use Change to Agriculture
D Land Use Change to NonAgriculture
Chance
in
Name
from
Prior
Filina
D Uodate to Tiers of Ownershio
□
ITEM
ITEM
F. Complete only if Item 1B or Item 1Dis checked; use additional pages if needed.
1) Name of Person(s) Receiving Tract(s)
2. Tract Location and Description
A. Provide Legal Description (use additional pages if necessary). The legal
description must be provided.
2) Address (Street, City, State/Province, Country)
B. Please provide one or more of the following (note that this is the only non-mandatory
item on this form) Longitude/Latitude; Parcel Property Tax ID used by County; and/or the
USDA Tract and Farm Number. Use for new filers and filers with additional acquisitions.
County or Parish
Long/Lat
Property Tax
USDA Tract
USDA Farm
Acres
3) Citizenship of Purcl1aser(s)
ID assigned by
Name & State
Centroid
Number
Number
County
Foreign
Unknown
U.S.
Tract 1
Representative
of
Foreign
Person
(Completing
farm, if applicable)
4.
Name
Tract2
A. Name
Name
B. Address (Street, City, State/Province, Country)
D
0
D
C. Telephone no. (Area Code):
,..,.,
C. County or Parish
D. Email:
E. Relationship of Representative to Foreign Person (Check one)
1)
Attorney
D. Number of Acres
E. State:
2)
Operator
3)
Agent
Other (Explain)
4)
3.
5. Type of Interest Held in the Agricultural Land (Check one)
D Owner or D Lessee of Tract(s) (In Item 2A)
A. Fee interest (ownership)
n
A. Name:
B. Life Estate
□
B. Tax ID No. (Nine Digits):
C. Trust Be1eficiary
□
□
□
O Employee ID Number (EIN) 0
D Social Security Number (SSN)
C. Tax ID Type
D. Purchase Contract
IRS Number (ITIN)
E. Lease
D. Legal Address (Street, City, State/Province, Country):
1) Number of Years:
E. Type of Owner (If Item E(1) is checked below, skip Items E(2) and E(3)).
(1) Individual. (Indicate citizenship of husband and/or wife If appllcable).
a. Citizenship of individual(s):
2) Type of Lease
(a) Wind energy rights
(b) Solar energy rights
(2) Government (Country):
3)
□
(3) Organization (Check one):
1)
2)
3)
4)
□
LLC
Estate
Trust
Institution
6)
Association
Partnership
(c)
□
Corporation
5)
7)
(b)
□
8) Other (Check box and explain):
b. Government or country under whose law the organization is created.
□
□
□
□
□
□
□
□
□
(c) Other (please specify):
Payment Type:
(a)
a. Type
D Fixed
amount per year: $
D Royalty or revenue-based est. amount per year: $
D Combination fixed/royalty or revenue based_
est. amount per year: $
(d)
D Other (please specify) __
est. amount per year
$
4)
Name on Land Title:
F Other (Please explain below)
6. Percent Interest in the Agricultural Land, if not a Lease
A. What is the f1ler·s percent interest 1n the agricultural land?
B. Is the filer the title holder to the agricultural land?
C. If not, at what tier is the filer?
D Yes D No
(Must be consistent with information
provided in 3)E.d.)
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□
□
□
□
87390
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 241 / Monday, December 18, 2023 / Notices
c. Principal place of business (For organizations only)
cl. Use Appendix A to report tiers of ownership (to the 3"' tier) for all
foreign persons who individually or in aggregate hold a significant
interest or substantial control in the person holding the land. 'U
:!! Refers to leases of 10 years or more. See 7 CFR Part 781.2 Definitions for more information (including exceptions).
"II SignWicant interest or substantial control as defined in 7 CFR Part 781.2(k).
FSA-153 (proposal)
Page 2 of 4
7. How was this Tract Acquired or Transferred, if not a Lease? (If more ll!an one payment method is used for the acquisitions listed, please complete a separate FSA-153 form)
B. Credit or Installment Transaction
□
□
E. Foreclosure
□
□
C. Trade
□
F. Other (Check box and explain)
□
A Cash Transaction
D. Gift or Inheritance
ITEM
Current Land
Use Acres
ITEM
8. Value of Agricultural Land:
Intended Land
Use
11. Of the Acres on this Farm, How Many Are:
A.
Purchase price of land or, if a land disposition, the
original price paid by seller
B. Non-purchase; estimated value at the time of
acquisition
C. What is the estimated current value or, if a land
disposition, the selling price of the tract of land?
D. How much of the purchase price in Item 7B remains to be
paid?
9. Date of Acquisition or Transfer
$
$
A.
Operated by the Landowner
B.
Rented or Leased for
Agricultural Purposes
Rented or Leased for NonAgricultural Purposes
C.
$
$
Month
Day
Year
12. Which of the Following is a U.S. Person? (Check all that apply)
Current Land
Use Acres
1O. Current and Intended Land Use
Intended Land
Use
A.
The Current Landowner
A Crop
B.
The Current Principal Farm Operator
B. Pasture
C.
The Previous Landowner
C. Forest or Timber
D.
The Previous Principal Farm Operator
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
D
13. What Best Describes the Foreign Person's Prior Relationship to the
Land?
D. Other Agriculture (Specify)
Check all that a I :
A.
The foreign person had an existing business relationship
with the previous owner prior to acquiring this land
B.
The foreign person was involved in day-to-day
operations on
this land prior to acquiring it
E. Non-Agriculture
1) Renewable energy development
(Include access roads)
C.
2) Farm roads, buildings, or parking lots
The foreign person had no prior relationship with the
land or its owner prior to acquiring it
D
D
□
□
□
□
3) Other non-agricultural land
F. Total Acres (Should equal the number of
acres reported in Item 2D and, if reported,
the total in 2B
U. CERTIFTCA TION: I certify that the information entered in this report is complete and co"ect. I understand that falsification of reporting is subject to
a civil penalty not to exceed 25% of the fair market value of the interest held in the tract ofland.
14B. TITLE
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14A. SIGNATURE (Owner or Legally Authorized Representative)
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 241 / Monday, December 18, 2023 / Notices
NOTE:
87391
Privacy Act Statement: The following statement is made in accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 USC 552a - as amended). The authority for
requesting the information identified on this form is 7 CFR Part 781 and the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act of 1978 (Pub. L 95-460). The
information will be used to ensure that a foreign person who acquires, disposes of, or holds an interest in United States agricultural land discloses such
transactions and holdings to the Secretary of Agriculture and to determine the effects of such transactions and holdings on family farms and rural
communities. The information collected on this form may be disclosed to other Federal, State, Local government agencies, Tribal agencies, and
nongovernmental entities that have been authorized access to the information by statute or regulation and/or as described in applicable Routine Uses
identified in the System of Records Notice for USDAIFSA-2, Farm Records File (Automated). Providing the requested information is mandato,y. Failure to
furnish the requested information or falsification of reporting will result in a determination of non-compliance with the program which is subject to a civil
penalty not to exceed 25 percent of the fair market value, as determined by the Farm Service Agency on the date of the assessment of such penalty, of the
foreign person's interest in the agricultural land with respect to which such violation occurred.
Public Burden Statement (Paperwork Reduction Act): The information collected on this form may be disclosed to other Federal, State, Local government
agencies, Tribal agencies, and nongovernmental entities that have been authorized access to the information by statute or regulation and/or as described in
applicable Routine Uses identified in the System of Records Notice for USDA/FSA-2. Farm Records File (Automated). Providing the requested information is
mandatory. Failure to furnish the requested information or falsification of reporting will result in a determination of non-compliance with the program which is
subject to a civil penalty not to exceed 25 percent of the fair market value, as determined by the Farm Service Agency on the date of the assessment of such
penalty, of the foreign person's interest in the agricultural land with respect to which such violation occurred.
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According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to. a collection of
information unless it displays a valid 0MB control number. The valid 0MB control number for this information collection is 0560-0097. The time required to
complete this information collection is estimated to average 30 minutes per response. including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data
sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. The provisions of appropriate criminal and
civil fraud, privacy, and other statutes may be applicable to the information provided. RETURN THIS COMPLETED FORM TO YOUR COUNTY FSA
OFFICE.
87392
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 241 / Monday, December 18, 2023 / Notices
DEFINITION: "Person" means any individual, corporation, company, association, firm, partnership, society, joint stock company, trust, estate, or any other
legal
enf .
You are an "individual/foreign person" under the provisions of Pub. L. 95-460 and must complete this form (FSA-153) if your answer is "NO" to all
the statements in Items 1, 2, and 3 below:
YES
NO
1. I AM a citizen of the United States.
□
□
2. I AM a citizen of the Northern Mariana Islands or the Trust Territories of the Pacific Islands.
□
□
3. I AM lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence, or paroled into the United States, under the Immigration
and Nationality Act.
□
□
YES
NO
□
□
□
□
□
□
You are a ''foreign person, organization or government," under the provisions of Pub. L. 95-460 and must complete this form (FSA-153) if your
answer is "YES" to any of the statements in Items 4a, 4b, and 5 below:
4. I AM a "person" other than an individual or government, which is created or organized under the laws of:
a. A foreign government of which has its principal place of business located outside the United States.
b. Any State of the United States, and in which significant interest or substantial contro~ is held directly or indirectly by any foreign
individual, government, or person.
5. I AM a foreign government.
Complete this form for all acreages under the same ownership in each county or parish acquired or transferred on the same date. Land in different counties
or parishes, land acquired or transferred on different dates, and land with different persons/entities on the title must be reported in separate FSA-153 filings.
After the original FSA-153 filing, each subsequent change of ownership or use (see 1.e. 2.) must be reported by filing another FSA-153. If one of the four
items in 1.e.2 is marked, also mark the "AMENDED" box at the very top of the form.
Return the original and two (2) copies to the local USDNFarm Service Agency (FSA) Office where the land is located. See "instructions to filers" (which
appears on the FSA AFIDA webpage) for filings that may be submitted to the headquarters office in Washington, D.C. Retain a copy of your filing for your
records.
NOTE: The completed FSA-153 must be received within ninety (90) days from the date of the transaction (acquisition or disposition).
6. Additional Information (Use additional sheets if more space is needed).
w Significant interest or substantial control as defined in 7 CFR Part 781.2(k)
In accordance with Federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, the USDA, its Agencies, offices,
and employees, and institutions participating in or administering USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, national origin,
religion, sex, gender identity (including gender expression), sexual orientation, disability, age, marital status, family/parental status, income derived from a
public assistance program, political beliefs, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity, in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA (not
all bases apply to all programs). Remedies and complaint filing deadlines vary by program or incident.
Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign
Language, etc.) should contact the responsible Agency or USDA 's TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal
Relay SeNice at (800) 877-8339. Additionally, program information may be made available in languages other than English.
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To file a program discrimination complaint, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, AD-3027, found online at
https://www.ascr.usda.gov/complaint_fi/ing_cust.html and at any USDA office or write a letter addressed to USDA and provide in the letter all of the information
requested in the form. To request a copy of the complaint form, ca/I (866) 632-9992. Submit your completed form or letter to USDA by: (1) mail: U.S.
Department of Agriculture Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights 1400 Independence Avenue, SW Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; (2) fax: (202)
690-7442; or (3) email: program.intake@usda.gov. USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 241 / Monday, December 18, 2023 / Notices
FSA-153 (proposal 14)
87393
Page 4 of 4
Appendix A-Tiers of Ownership
Steven Peterson,
Acting Administrator, Farm Service Agency.
[FR Doc. 2023–27683 Filed 12–15–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410–E2–C
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service
Region 5 and Region 6; California,
Oregon, and Washington; Forest Plan
Amendment for Planning and
Management of Northwest Forests
Within the Range of the Northern
Spotted Owl
Forest Service, Agriculture
(USDA).
ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an
environmental impact statement.
AGENCY:
The Pacific Northwest and
Pacific Southwest Regions of the Forest
Service, USDA, are proposing to amend
the 1994 Northwest Forest Plan (NWFP).
The amendment would apply to those
Forest Service units, or parts thereof,
with land management plans amended
in 1994 by the NWFP or with land
management plans developed later to
include provisions of the NWFP. Units
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SUMMARY:
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in the Pacific Northwest Region (Region
6) include: Deschutes National Forest,
Fremont-Winema National Forest,
Gifford Pinchot National Forest, Mt.
Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, Mt.
Hood National Forest, OkanoganWenatchee National Forest, Olympic
National Forest, Rogue River-Siskiyou
National Forest, Siuslaw National
Forest, Umpqua National Forest, and
Willamette National Forest. Units in the
Pacific Southwest Region (Region 5)
include: Klamath National Forest and
Butte Valley National Grassland, Lassen
National Forest, Mendocino National
Forest, Modoc National Forest, Six
Rivers National Forest, and ShastaTrinity National Forest. This notice
initiates a scoping period on a
preliminary proposed action and
advises the public that the Forest
Service is preparing an Environmental
Impact Statement (EIS) to evaluate the
effects of amending the Northwest
Forest Plan.
DATES: Comments concerning the scope
of the analysis are most valuable to the
Forest Service if received by January 29,
2024. The draft EIS is expected in June
2024 and will be accompanied by a 90day comment period. The final EIS is
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expected to be available for review in
October 2024. These dates are subject to
changes in the project schedule. The
dates and times of webinars that will be
scheduled to share more information on
the Northwest Forest Plan and potential
proposed actions can be found at
https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/r6/
landmanagement/planning/
?cid=fsbdev2_026990.
ADDRESSES: Individuals and entities are
encouraged to submit comments via
webform at https://cara.fs2c.usda.gov/
Public//CommentInput?Project=64745.
Hardcopy letters must be submitted to
the following address: Regional
Forester, U.S. Forest Service, 1220 SW
3rd Avenue, Portland, OR 97204. For
those submitting hand-delivered
comments, please call 971–260–7808 to
make arrangements.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Dennis Dougherty, Planning Portfolio
Supervisor, via email at sm.fs.nwfp_
faca@usda.gov or at 541–519–0154.
Individuals who use telecommunication
devices for the deaf and hard of hearing
(TDD) may call the Federal Relay
Service at 800–877–8339, 24 hours a
day, every day of the year, including
holidays.
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Note: Tier 1 should reflect the title holder to the agricultural land.
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 241 (Monday, December 18, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 87385-87393]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-27683]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Farm Service Agency
[Docket ID: FSA-2023-0017]
Request for Information on Agricultural Foreign Investment
Disclosure Act (AFIDA) FSA-153 Form Modernization and Information
Collection Request
ACTION: Notice; and request for comment.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
AGENCY: Farm Service Agency and Farm Production and Conservation
Business Center, Department of Agriculture (USDA).
SUMMARY: The Farm Service Agency (FSA) is requesting information on
proposed revisions to the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure
Act Report (FSA-153 form). The FSA-153 requires updating. Specifically,
the FSA-153 form needs clarification and updating to ensure that
foreign owners (or long-term lessees) who are required to file the FSA-
153 form have clear instructions and that USDA is collecting the most
precise and meaningful data, so that the report to Congress is as
accurate and insightful as possible. Foreign owners are investors who
buy, sell, or hold a direct or indirect interest in U.S. agricultural
land (or who hold long-term leases on agricultural land) and must
report their holdings and transactions to USDA on the FSA-153 form.
USDA uses the information on the submitted forms to generate the report
that it submits to Congress. FSA is moving towards modernizing the
collection of information process, clarifying and modernizing the FSA-
153 form, and if funding becomes available, creating an electronic
submission system that will allow foreign owners to report by filing
electronically. In addition, this document requests public input for
our plan to revise not only the information request, but ultimately,
the regulation (which will likely result in further modifications at a
later date to the FSA-153 form).
DATES: We will consider comments or information that we receive by
February 16, 2024.
ADDRESSES: We invite you to send comments in response to this notice.
You may submit comments, identified by Docket ID: FSA-2023-0017 in the
[[Page 87386]]
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and
search for FSA-2023-0017. Follow the instructions for submitting
comments.
All comments will be posted without change and will be publicly
available on www.regulations.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mary Estep; telephone (202) 720-3217;
or email [email protected]. Individuals who require alternative means
for communication should contact the USDA TARGET Center at (202) 720-
2600 (voice and text telephone (TTY)) or dial 711 for
Telecommunications Relay Service (both voice and text telephone users
can initiate this call from any telephone).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act of 1978 (Pub. L.
95-460) requires ``foreign persons'' who hold, acquire, or dispose of
an interest in U.S. agricultural land to report transactions and
holdings to USDA through the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure
Act Report (FSA-153 form) within 90 days of the transaction. In this
document, we are using the term ``foreign owners'' to refer to the
people, companies, governments, and others who are required to report
their transactions and holdings to USDA. ``Foreign owners'' is an
umbrella term that also includes long-term leaseholders (typically in
the wind and solar industries).
In recent years, there has been great interest in the annual AFIDA
report to Congress. Further, section 773 of title VII of the
Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and
Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2023 (7 U.S.C. 3501 note; Division
A of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023; Pub. L. 117-328)
requires the Secretary to establish a streamlined process for
electronic submission and retention of disclosures made under AFIDA, as
well as to create an internet database that contains disaggregated data
from each disclosure submitted to USDA. In order to fulfill this
mandate, FSA must collect the data that best captures all of the
requirements of AFIDA with minimal burden on foreign owners. Until
additional funding is available, or re-prioritization of funding
occurs, FSA will continue to collect information through the paper-
based FSA-153 form.
Given that the FSA-153 form has not been updated for years, an
internal working group--composed of AFIDA headquarters specialists,
information technology specialists, FSA field staff, and other USDA
employees--met in the spring and summer of 2023 to discuss revisions to
the form to gather more precise data to prepare for meeting the Section
773 mandate and to clarify and modernize the form. This document
requests public input for our plan to revise the information collection
request as part of our information collection request, which will be
submitted to OMB to renew and revise their approval for OMB control
number 0560-0097.
AFIDA data collection has operated in much the same way for the
past 40 years. FSA administers AFIDA for the Secretary. Foreign owners
can work through the FSA county office to fill out the form or, for
more complex cases, directly with the AFIDA headquarters staff in the
FPAC Business Center's Economic and Policy Analysis Division. Forms are
typically filled out manually and mailed in hard copy to headquarters
staff (whether originating in the FSA county office or received
directly, in the case of complex situations, from foreign owners or
their representatives). The AFIDA headquarters staff check all incoming
reports for accuracy and completeness and work with the foreign owner
(or FSA county office) if additional information is needed. The data
from each FSA-153 form is then manually hand-entered in an in-house
data system designed to produce the annual report to Congress.
Definitions
A foreign person is, generally, an individual who is not a U.S.
citizen or permanent resident, or an entity that is:
a foreign government,
an entity formed under the laws of a foreign government,
or
an entity formed under a U.S. law in which a foreign
person has a reportable direct or indirect interest.
A reportable interest is an interest held by a foreign person in
agricultural land as:
a direct landowner (the title holder),
a direct leaseholder if the lease is for 10 years or more,
an indirect landowner or leaseholder.
A reportable indirect interest is any interest held by a foreign
person in any entity that has an interest in agricultural land as an
owner or leaseholder if the lease is for 10 years or more (excluding
contingent future interests). To be reportable, the interest held in
the entity by the foreign person must be:
(1) 10 percent or more by a foreign person or group of foreign
persons acting in concert, or
(2) 50 percent by a group of foreign persons not acting in concert.
Form FSA-153, tracks ownership to the third ownership tier.
For AFIDA purposes, agricultural land is land used for
``agricultural purposes'' that is:
more than 10 acres in size in the aggregate; or
10 acres or less in the aggregate producing gross annual
receipts of more than $1,000 from the sale of farm, ranch, or timber
products in total.
``Agricultural purposes'' is defined as land that during the
current year or any 1 of the preceding 5 years was used for:
farming, ranching, pasture, orchards, vineyards, timber
production, and so on; or
forestry production exceeding 10 acres in size in which 10
percent is stocked by trees of any size, including land that formerly
had such tree cover and will be naturally or artificially regenerated.
It does not matter whether the foreign person ever intends to cut and
sell the trees.
These definitions apply even if the land has been planned and
plotted or re-zoned for nonagricultural purposes.
Agricultural land is categorized as cropland, forestland,
pastureland, other agriculture, and non-agricultural land (homesteads,
farm roads).
Reporting
Foreign owners (or often, their U.S. attorney representatives)
meeting the requirements above report their information on the existing
FSA-153 form found at: https://forms.sc.egov.usda.gov/efcommon/eFileServices/eForms/FSA153.PDF. In addition, the foreign filer must
file a separate FSA-153 form when:
the agricultural land is acquired or disposed of on
different dates;
the agricultural land is in multiple counties; or
partial vs. whole ownership interests are different for
the different parcels acquired at the same time and in the same county.
In addition to the FSA-153 form itself, foreign owners must provide
the legal description of the parcels that they acquired (or disposed
of) and, if applicable, the tiers of ownership (to the third tier).
In addition to acquisitions and dispositions, reporting of an
amended FSA-153 is triggered when the land use changes, the tiers of
ownership change, or the name of the foreign person changes.
The annual report to Congress is available on: https://www.fsa.usda.gov/programs-and-services/economic-and-policy-analysis/afida/annual-reports/index. The annual report contains information on
the top-five countries
[[Page 87387]]
holding different forms of agricultural land, the concentration of
holdings geographically, and other information.
Geographic Context for the Location of the Land
AFIDA information has no direct linkages to FSA's Farm Records or
other FSA systems. Parcel and foreign owner numbers are assigned by
AFIDA headquarters staff; these numbers have no relevance for other FSA
programs. The current FSA-153 form requires that the foreign owners
provide the legal description or FSA tract number. Very few foreign
owners provide an FSA tract or farm number and only provide a hard copy
of the legal description.
Also, USDA is increasingly questioned by agencies within the
federal government, and others, about purchases by certain entities and
the geographic location of their holdings. We can provide the legal
description--typically a ``Platt type'' map--that has no context
allowing immediate geo-spatial interpretation. Accordingly, we are
asking foreign owners to provide their legal description for each
parcel and to also identify one or more of the following:
The longitude and latitude for each parcel;
The property tax ID number assigned by the county; and
The FSA tract number and the FSA farm number.
We do not have the authority to require that foreign owners provide
this information or that they obtain an FSA tract and farm number.
However, we are requesting that they voluntarily provide at least one
of these additional data points.
Request for Information
We are requesting public input for the following questions:
(1) Is the request for additional information an undue burden on
foreign owners or their representatives? If so, why?
(2) Are there additional options that should be added to the list
above? If so, what are those options?
Long-Term Leaseholds
Currently, there are no specific questions about leases on the
form. As a result, foreign owners are writing in ``lease'' in box 5.f
on the FSA-153 form. Long-term leases are a significant category of
reports, and Congress and others have a strong interest in capturing
leasing data. There are several changes proposed on the FSA-153 form to
capture data on the types of leases and the value of the lease.
Request for Information
We are requesting public input for the following questions:
(1) Are long-term leasehold filings--particularly those in the wind
turbine and solar panel industries--``different enough'' from land
ownership purchase or sale filings that a separate version of the FSA-
153 form should be created? Should a different ``logic path'' of
questions be developed for long-term leasehold filings?
(2) Many foreign wind energy companies have long-term leaseholds on
U.S. agricultural land farmed by U.S. producers that trigger the AFIDA
reporting requirement. Currently, the entire acreage of the parcel is
captured; this is because the number of wind turbines that will be
established on the land (if any) is often an unknown at the time of
AFIDA reporting. In addition, the existence of the leasehold generally
precludes other energy company involvement on the acreage. Does this
approach overstate foreign energy company activity on U.S. agricultural
land? If so, how should the acreage associated with these leaseholds be
captured?
(3) How should solar panels or photovoltaics--which are situated
above the agricultural land--be treated for AFIDA reporting given that
AFIDA uses an acreage basis for reporting?
(4) Some foreign owners are providing a very low estimate of the
value of the lease (as the flat payment is low) on the FSA-153 form
while others are providing the estimated value of the entire parcel.
How should ``interest in the value of the agricultural land'' be
defined for leases?
Impacts on Farms and Rural Communities
AFIDA requires USDA to determine the impacts of foreign ownership,
which the Economic Research Service provided in the report to Congress
posted in December 2022 (containing data as of December 31, 2021). In
order to assess impacts, and answer questions from Congress and the
media (for example, are farmers being kicked off their land?),
questions 9 through 12 on the existing FSA-153 form are being
considered to be replaced by a new set of proposed questions 11 through
13.
Request for Information
We are requesting public input for the following questions:
(1) Do the revised questions capture the scenarios needed to
ascertain the impacts of foreign investment in U.S. agricultural land?
If not, what questions should be added, or should the proposed
questions be modified?
(2) Do these questions put an undue burden on the foreign owner or
their representative?
(3) Are there situations where responding to the questions as
written may result in unclear inferences--for example, if there are
foreigners who are both farming land they have purchased within a
county, and renting? How common are such situations?
FSA has several general questions associated with the FSA-153 form,
which are listed below:
(1) By regulation, reporting by foreign owners is required to the
third tier of ownership. The form does not capture information on the
ultimate owning country or countries. Should this information be
captured?
(2) Should foreign owners be required to report beyond the third
tier of ownership? If so, why?
(3) What ownership level should bear the reporting obligation?
(4) Should the FSA Farm Records and AFIDA definitions of ``tract''
be aligned? If so, why?
(5) Should parcels that are part of the same purchase or lease but
are to be used differently--say, for agricultural vs. non-agricultural
purposes--be treated differently by AFIDA? If so, how should the FSA-
153 form be modified? Please provide examples and explain why.
(6) The AFIDA regulation currently provides a list of exemptions to
reporting. Should filing be required in situations of contingent future
interests? If so, what kind and what types should be exempted, if any?
Should reporting be required under any circumstances for easements?
Please explain.
(7) Should foreign owners be required to submit an amended FSA-153
form when land use changes within the agricultural category (say, if
acres move from pastureland to cropland relative to the original
reporting)?
Information Collection Request
FSA is requesting comments from all interested individuals and
organizations on a revision to the currently approved information
collection request associated with the Agricultural Foreign Investment
Disclosure Act (AFIDA) of 1978. FSA is proposing a modified FSA-153
form and an appendix A showing the tiers of ownership. The modified
FSA-153 and Appendix A are available at the end of this notice; you may
provide comment in www.regulations.gov. You can also provide comments
on all aspects of the AFIDA information collection request and the
collected information as described in this notice. We have increased
the burden estimate because
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we expanded the form and we estimated the number of times changes have
been submitted over several years.
Description of Information Collection
Title: Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act Report.
OMB Control Number: 0560-0097.
Expiration Date of Approval: August 31, 2025.
Type of Request: Revision.
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 hours multiplied by the estimated total
annual responses.
Estimate of Respondent Burden: Public reporting burden for the
information collection is estimated to average 2 hours per response.
Respondents: Individuals or households, businesses or other for
profit farms.
Estimated Annual Number of Respondents: 7,775.
Estimated Number of Reponses per Respondent: 5.
Estimated Total Annual Responses: 38,875.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 77,750 hours.
We are 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 the FSA, including whether
the information will have practical utility;
(2) Evaluate the accuracy of the 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;
(4) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those
who are to respond, 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 notice, 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.
Request for Meeting
In addition to providing input in your written comment, if you
would like to meet to discuss the proposed changes, please include that
request in your comment, also. If there is interest, we will schedule a
meeting.
USDA Non-Discrimination Policy
In accordance with Federal civil rights law and USDA civil rights
regulations and policies, USDA, its Agencies, offices, and employees,
and institutions participating in or administering USDA programs are
prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, national origin,
religion, sex, gender identity (including gender expression), sexual
orientation, disability, age, marital status, family or parental
status, income derived from a public assistance program, political
beliefs, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity, in
any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA (not all bases
apply to all programs). Remedies and complaint filing deadlines vary by
program or incident.
Individuals who require alternative means of communication for
program information (for example, braille, large print, audiotape,
American Sign Language, etc.) should contact the responsible Agency or
the USDA TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and text telephone
(TTY)) or dial 711 for Telecommunications Relay Service (both voice and
text telephone users can initiate this call from any telephone).
Additionally, program information may be made available in languages
other than English.
To file a program discrimination complaint, complete the USDA
Program Discrimination Complaint Form, AD-3027, found online at https://www.usda.gov/oascr/how-to-file-a-program-discrimination-complaint and
at any USDA office or write a letter addressed to USDA and provide in
the letter all the information requested in the form. To request a copy
of the complaint form, call (866) 632-9992. Submit your completed form
or letter to USDA by: (1) mail to: U.S. Department of Agriculture,
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence
Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20250--9410; (2) fax: (202) 690-7442; or (3)
email: [email protected].
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.
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Steven Peterson,
Acting Administrator, Farm Service Agency.
[FR Doc. 2023-27683 Filed 12-15-23; 8:45 am]
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