Agricultural Marketing Service May 30, 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of Agriculture (USDA) is amending the Rules of Practice under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA) to increase from $60 to $100 the fee for filing an informal complaint; and to increase from $300 to $500 the fee for handling a formal complaint.

This rule would revise the reporting requirements for imports of commodities regulated under Sec. 608(e) (hereinafter referred to as ``8e'') of the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937. These changes would require that the inspection certificates generated for each lot of such commodities include the Entry Number from the Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) documentation that accompanies that lot. The proposed changes would also require that importers of raisins, dates, and dried prunes report products exempt from 8e import regulations on AMS Form FV-6``Importers' Exempt Commodity Form,'' which is the same form that is currently used by importers of all other commodities exempt from 8e import regulations. This proposal also announces the Agricultural Marketing Service's (AMS) intention to request revisions to a currently-approved information collection for specified exempt import commodities. These changes are intended to streamline the tracking of imported products and provide uniformity in electronic reporting systems used by the industries and the Department of Agriculture (USDA).