Department of Agriculture June 2, 2021 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Risk Management Agency (RMA), on behalf of the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC), is announcing the availability of funding under the Pandemic Cover Crop Program (PCCP) to help agricultural producers impacted by the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak. Given cover crop cultivation requires sustained, long-term investments to improve soil health and gain other agronomic benefits, the economic challenges due to the pandemic made maintaining cover cropping systems financially challenging for many producers. For the 2021 crop year, PCCP premium support is available to eligible producers for eligible insured acres on a spring crop insurance policy on which the producer planted a qualifying cover crop during the 2021 crop year.

Notice is hereby given, pursuant to the provisions of the rules and regulations of the Department of Agriculture and the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), that a public teleconference of the Advisory Committee on Minority Farmers (ACMF) will be held to discuss USDA outreach, technical assistance, and capacity building for and with minority farmers; the implementation of the Socially Disadvantaged and Veteran Farmer and Rancher Grant Program (2501 Program); and methods of maximizing the participation of minority farmers and ranchers in the U.S. Department of Agriculture; and to plan mechanisms for best providing advice to the Secretary on the issues outlined above.

We are advising the public of our decision to add 26 taxa of plants for planting that are quarantine pests (weeds), all Myrtaceae taxa (when destined to Hawaii), and 43 other taxa of plants for planting that are hosts of 17 quarantine pests, to our lists of plants for planting whose importation is now not authorized pending pest risk analysis. A previous notice made datasheets available for public comment that listed the evidence we used to determine that the taxa are quarantine pests or hosts of quarantine pests. This notice responds to the comments we received and announces final versions of the datasheets.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service's intention to request a revision to and extension of approval of an information collection associated with the regulations for the interstate movement of fruits and vegetables from Hawaii and the Territories.