Agricultural Marketing Service August 2011 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is amending the Cotton Board Rules and Regulations by updating the value assigned to imported cotton for the purpose of calculating supplemental assessments collected for use by the Cotton Research and Promotion Program. An amendment is required to adjust the supplemental assessment and to ensure that assessments collected on imported raw cotton and the cotton content of imported cotton-containing products are the same as assessments collected on domestically produced cotton. In addition, AMS is updating the textile trade conversion factors used to determine the raw fiber equivalents of imported cotton-containing products and expanding the number of Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) statistical reporting numbers from the current 706 to 2,371 to assess all imported cotton and cotton-containing products.

This document invites comments on a proposed amendment to the Dairy Promotion and Research Order (Dairy Order). The proposal would modify the number of National Dairy Promotion and Research Board (Dairy Board) members in eight regions, merge Region 8 and Region 10, merge Region 12 and Region 13, and apportion Idaho as a separate region. The total number of domestic Dairy Board members would remain the same at 36 and the total number of regions would be reduced from 13 to 12. This modification was requested by the Dairy Board, which administers the Dairy Order, to better reflect the geographic distribution of milk production in the United States.

This rule decreases the assessment rate established for the Prune Marketing Committee (Committee) for the 2011-12 and subsequent crop years from $0.27 to $0.22 per ton of salable dried prunes handled. The Committee locally administers the marketing order which regulates the handling of dried prunes produced in California. Assessments upon dried prune handlers are used by the Committee to fund reasonable and necessary expenses of the program. The crop year begins August 1 and ends July 31. The assessment rate will remain in effect indefinitely unless modified, suspended, or terminated.

This rule decreases the assessment rate established for the Processed Pear Committee (Committee) for the 2011-2012 and subsequent fiscal periods from $8.41 to $7.73 per ton of summer/fall processed pears. The Committee locally administers the marketing order which regulates the handling of processed pears grown in Oregon and Washington. Assessments upon handlers of Oregon-Washington processed pears are used by the Committee to fund reasonable and necessary expenses of the program. The fiscal period begins July 1 and ends June 30. The assessment rate will remain in effect indefinitely unless modified, suspended, or terminated.

The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), prior to undertaking research and other work associated with revising official U.S. grade standards, is soliciting comments on a request to revise the United States Standards for Grades of Grapefruit Juice. AMS received a petition from the Florida Citrus Processors Association asking AMS to consider revising the current U.S. grade standards for grapefruit juice to account for advances in industry processing technology.

This rule would increase the assessment rate established for the Texas Valley Citrus Committee (Committee) for the 2011-12 and subsequent fiscal periods from $0.12 to $0.14 per 7/10-bushel carton or equivalent of oranges and grapefruit handled. The Committee locally administers the marketing order which regulates the handling of oranges and grapefruit grown in the Lower Rio Grande Valley in Texas. Assessments upon orange and grapefruit handlers are used by the Committee to fund reasonable and necessary expenses of the program. The fiscal period begins August 1 and ends July 31. The assessment rate would remain in effect indefinitely unless modified, suspended, or terminated.

This rule invites comments on proposed changes to the reporting requirements currently prescribed under the marketing order that regulates the handling of kiwifruit grown in California. The order is administered locally by the Kiwifruit Administrative Committee (Committee). This rule would require handlers to file two end-of-season reports with the Committee. One report would contain price and handler shipment information and the other report would contain grower shipment information. The Committee would use this information to determine appropriate grower representation on the Committee, to conduct grower nominations, to verify shipments for assessment collections, and to prepare the annual report and the annual marketing policy, as required under the order. This proposal also announces the Agricultural Marketing Service's (AMS) intention to request approval from Office of Management and Budget (OMB) of a new information collection.

This final rule addresses recommendations submitted to the Secretary of Agriculture (Secretary) by the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) on November 5, 2009, and April 29, 2010. The recommendations addressed in this final rule pertain to the continued exemption (use) of 12 substances in organic production and handling. Consistent with the recommendations from the NOSB, this final rule continues the exemption (use) of 12 substances (along with any restrictive annotations) on the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances (National List).

This rule establishes a Softwood Lumber Research, Promotion, Consumer Education and Industry Information Order (Order). Softwood lumber is used in products like flooring, siding and framing. The program will be financed by an assessment on softwood lumber domestic manufacturers and importers and will be administered by a board of industry members selected by the Secretary of Agriculture (Secretary). The initial assessment rate will be $0.35 per thousand board feet of softwood lumber shipped within or imported to the United States. The purpose of the program is to strengthen the position of softwood lumber in the marketplace, maintain and expand markets for softwood lumber, and develop new uses for softwood lumber within the United States. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) conducted a referendum among eligible domestic softwood lumber manufacturers and importers from May 23 through June 10, 2011. Sixty-seven percent of those voting in the referendum representing 80 percent of the volume of softwood lumber represented in the referendum favored implementation of the program.