Department of Agriculture November 2, 2009 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

We are amending the regulations to allow the importation of commercial consignments of tomatoes from the Souss-Massa-Draa region of Morocco subject to a systems approach similar to that which is already in place for tomatoes imported into the United States from other areas within Morocco. The tomatoes will have to be produced under conditions that include requirements for pest exclusion at the production site, fruit fly trapping inside the production site, and pest-exclusionary packinghouse procedures. The tomatoes will also be required to be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate issued by the Moroccan national plant protection organization with an additional declaration stating that the tomatoes have been grown in registered pest- exclusionary structures in the Souss-Massa-Draa region and were pink at the time of packing. This action will allow for the importation of commercial consignments of tomatoes from the Souss-Massa-Draa region of Morocco into the United States while continuing to provide protection against the introduction of quarantine pests.

This notice announces the Agency intent to prioritize $400 million in funding that was previously made available in the Federal Register on July 23, 2009, for the refinance program to achieve the maximum amount of debt relief to existing borrowers and keep the borrowers in their homes, thereby, achieving long-term financial stability consistent with the goals of the Recovery Act. Additional requirements for such refinancing will ensure that existing borrowers are achieving measureable financial savings in refinancing and that Recovery Act funds are spent wisely and have transparent results.

The Rural Utilities Service (RUS) is amending its regulations to administer the Electric Program. This action implements the provision in the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 hereinafter called the ``2008 Farm Bill,'' amending the definition of ``rural area.'' The 2008 Farm Bill revises the definition of rural to include any area other than a city, town, or unincorporated area that has a population of greater than 20,000 inhabitants. The 2008 Farm Bill also includes in the revised rural definition those service areas of borrowers having an outstanding loan under Titles I through V of the Rural Electrification Act of 1936. The intended effect is to update agency regulations to reflect current statutory authority. No adverse comments are expected.

This rule changes the handling regulations prescribed under Marketing Agreement and Order No. 983 (order), which regulate the handling of pistachios grown in California, Arizona, and New Mexico. The changes were recommended by the Administrative Committee for Pistachios (committee), which is responsible for local administration of the order. The changes bring the handling regulations into conformance with amendments to the order by including certain regulatory language previously contained in the order's provisions in the order's administrative rules and regulations, lifting the suspension of certain language, removing obsolete language, and revising references to renumbered order provisions.