Department of Agriculture May 27, 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) is revising the Upland Cotton regulations to use Far East prices instead of Northern Europe prices in determining the upland cotton adjusted world price (AWP). The change is being made because of changes in the market and in the available price data. The AWP is used to determine repayment rates for marketing assistance loans (MAL) and to establish loan deficiency payments (LDP).

We are making several changes to the exotic Newcastle disease domestic quarantine regulations, including adding an option for the movement of pet birds; adding restrictions on the interstate movement of live ratites out of quarantined areas; harmonizing our domestic and import regulations regarding the movement of dressed carcasses of dead birds and dead poultry; providing for the use of alternative procedures for treating manure and litter and for composting; and adding an additional surveillance period after the conditions for removing quarantine are met before quarantine is removed. We concluded that these changes are necessary based on our experiences during the eradication programs for the 2002-2003 outbreaks of exotic Newcastle disease in California, Arizona, Nevada, and Texas. In the event of an exotic Newcastle disease outbreak, these changes will help to ensure that exotic Newcastle disease does not spread from quarantined areas and that exotic Newcastle disease is eradicated within quarantined areas.

This final rule revises regulations to establish a new prohibition for starting and negligently failing to maintain control of a prescribed fire. Proof of criminal negligence is required for this offense. The rule also clarifies that the prohibition for causing and failing to maintain control of all other fires is a strict liability offense, not requiring proof of criminal intent. In implementing the National Fire Plan, the Forest Service has encouraged adjacent landowners to develop integrated fire management plans for the use of prescribed fire for the restoration and protection of private lands adjacent to National Forest System lands. Without these changes, adjacent landowners might be discouraged from using prescribed fire.

The Rural Utilities Service, an agency delivering the United States Department of Agriculture's Rural Development Utilities Programs, hereinafter referred to as Rural Development and/or Agency, is amending its regulation on accounting policies and procedures for Rural Development Electric Programs borrowers as set forth in 7 CFR part 1767, Accounting Requirements for Rural Development Electric Program Borrowers. This final rule reconciles Part 1767 with the Uniform System of Accounts as set forth by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC); adopts FERC accounting guidance for Regional Transmission Organizations, Asset Retirement Obligations with modifications, Other Comprehensive Income, and Derivatives and Hedging Instruments; amends accounting interpretations for Special Equipment Accounting, Storm Damage, Rural Economic Development Loan and Grant Program and Consolidated Financial Statements; sets forth an accounting interpretation to establish uniform reporting procedures for Accounting for Cushion of Credit Accounts, and codifies guidance on records retention currently published in Bulletin 180-2. This final rule also corrects a number of administrative errors existing within this part. The section of the proposed rule that deals with accounting for and reporting on Renewable Energy Credits will be addressed in a subsequent final rule.