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

This document amends the National Appeals Division rules of procedure to reflect recent judicial rulings regarding the applicability of the Equal Access to Justice Act and the Administrative Procedure Act to National Appeals Division administrative proceedings. The rules of procedure are amended to provide that the provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act generally applicable to agency adjudications, and the Equal Access to Justice Act and its implementing regulations, shall apply to National Appeals Division hearings.

We are amending the Asian longhorned beetle regulations by adding a portion of Worcester County, MA, to the list of quarantined areas and updating the description of the quarantined area in the Borough of Staten Island in the City of New York, NY. This action will restrict the interstate movement of regulated articles from these areas. This interim rule is necessary to prevent the artificial spread of the Asian longhorned beetle to noninfested areas of the United States.

We are advising the public that we have made changes to the area in the State of Idaho that is quarantined to prevent the spread of pale cyst nematode. The description of the quarantined area was updated on May 22, 2009, when 1,834 acres were removed from the quarantined area, and on June 3, 2009, when an additional 283 acres were removed from the quarantined area.

In accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974, as amended, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) is proposing to add a new Forest Service (FS) Privacy Act system of records to its inventory of records systems. USDA invites public comment on this new records system.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice invites the general public and other public agencies to comment on this proposed information collection which concerns the Performance Reporting System for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. This collection is a revision of a currently approved collection under OMB No. 0584-0010 which is due to expire March 31, 2010.

The Plumas County Resource Advisory Committee (RAC) will hold a meeting on November 13, 2009, in Quincy, CA. The purpose of the meeting is to review approved Cycle 9 projects and to identify a timeline for the Cycle 10 project application process. Project funding is available under Title II provisions of the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000.

Pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee Act, this constitutes notice of the upcoming meeting of the Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) Grain Inspection Advisory Committee (Advisory Committee). The Advisory Committee meets twice annually to advise the GIPSA Administrator on the programs and services that GIPSA delivers under the U.S. Grain Standards Act. Recommendations by the Advisory Committee help GIPSA better meet the needs of its customers who operate in a dynamic and changing marketplace.

This rule increases the assessment rate established for the California Walnut Board (Board) for the 2009-10 and subsequent marketing years from $0.0131 to $0.0177 per kernelweight pound of assessable walnuts. This rule also changes reporting and recordkeeping regulations in conformance with amendments made on March 3, 2008, to the marketing order that regulates the handling of walnuts grown in California. The Board locally administers the marketing order. Assessments upon walnut handlers are used by the Board to fund reasonable and necessary expenses of the program. The marketing year begins September 1 and ends August 31. The assessment rate will remain in effect indefinitely unless modified, suspended, or terminated.

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.