Agricultural Marketing Service January 28, 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This document invites comments on a proposed amendment to the Fluid Milk Promotion Order (Order). The proposed amendment, requested by the National Fluid Milk Processor Promotion Board (Board), which administers the Order, would reduce the burden of late-payment charges applied to processors who underreport the amount of assessments which they owe to the Board, provided that the processor has not made more than two reporting errors in the prior 12 months. This amendment would reduce the burden of late-payment charges on processors who underpay assessments due to unintentional errors or miscalculations. The Board believes the late-payment charge is a necessary provision of the Order to encourage payment by all processors subject to the assessment and helps ensure the receipt of assessments owed to the Board. However, the Board also believes that there are instances when unintentional errors and miscalculations occur, and in such cases, the late-payment charge could be viewed as excessive. All other provisions of the Order would remain unchanged.