Agricultural Marketing Service August 2016 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is announcing the availability of a draft guidance document intended for use by accredited certifying agents and organic producers. The draft guidance document is entitled: Treated Lumber (NOP 5036). This draft guidance document is intended to inform the public of the National Organic Program's (NOP) current thinking on this topic. The AMS invites interested parties to submit comments about these guidance provisions.

This interim rule invites comments on revising the time frame for continuance referenda under the Softwood Lumber Research, Promotion, Consumer Education and Industry Information Order (Order). The Order is administered by the Softwood Lumber Board (Board) with oversight by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The Order requires USDA to conduct a continuance referendum five years after the program took effect (2011). This action revises this time frame from five years (2016) to no later than seven years (2018). This will allow time for USDA to complete a separate rulemaking action on the Order's exemption threshold. That rulemaking is being initiated in response to a federal district court decision in Resolute Forest Products Inc., v. USDA, et al. (Resolute). Once USDA completes that action, a continuance referendum will be conducted. The results of the exemption threshold rulemaking could impact who votes in the referendum and who pays assessments under the Order.

This proposed rule would amend the Beef Promotion and Research Order (Order) established under the Beef Promotion and Research Act of 1985 (Act) to add six Harmonized Tariff System (HTS) codes for imported veal and veal products and update assessment levels for imported veal and veal products based on revised determinations of live animal equivalencies.

This proposed rule would implement a recommendation from the Texas Valley Citrus Committee (Committee) to increase the assessment rate established for the 2016-17 and subsequent fiscal periods from $0.08 to $0.09 per 7/10-bushel carton or equivalent of oranges and grapefruit handled under the marketing order (order). The Committee locally administers the order and is comprised of producers and handlers of oranges and grapefruit operating within the area of production. 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.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), this notice announces the Agricultural Marketing Service's (AMS) intention to request approval, from the Office of Management and Budget, for an extension of and revision to the currently approved information collection for report forms under the Federal milk marketing order program.

On April 2, 2001, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) implemented the Livestock Mandatory Reporting (LMR) program as required by the Livestock Mandatory Reporting Act of 1999 (1999 Act). The LMR program was reauthorized in October 2006 and September 2010. On September 30, 2015, the Agriculture Reauthorizations Act of 2015 (2015 Reauthorization Act) reauthorized the LMR program for an additional 5 years until September 30, 2020, and directed the Secretary of Agriculture (Secretary) to amend the LMR swine reporting requirements. This final rule incorporates the swine reporting revisions contained within the 2015 Reauthorization Act and a minor revision to the lamb reporting requirements under the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946, USDA Livestock Mandatory Reporting regulations.

This final rule informs the public that the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is removing the Program to Assess Organic Certifying Agencies from the Code of Federal Regulations. This action removes unnecessary regulations from the CFR. Since the publication of the organic regulations, the Program to Assess Organic Certifying Agencies is no longer applicable or necessary.

The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is revising 41 U.S. Standards for Grades of fresh fruits and vegetables, fruits and vegetables for processing, nuts, and specialty crops by removing the ``Unclassified'' category from each standard. This revision brings these grade standards in line with other recently amended standards and current terminology. The change also updates the standards to more accurately represent today's marketing practices and provide the industry with greater flexibility.

This proposed rule invites comments on a proposed amendment to Marketing Orders, which regulates the handling of cranberries grown in the states of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Oregon, Washington, and Long Island in the State of New York. The Cranberry Marketing Committee (Committee), which is responsible for the local administration of the order and is comprised of growers of cranberries operating within the production area, recommended adding authority to accept donations from domestic contributors. Contributed funds would be used solely for research and development activities authorized under the regulation of the order and would be free from any encumbrances as to their usage by the donor.

This rule implements a recommendation from the Peanut Standards Board (Board) to revise the minimum quality and handling standards for domestic and imported peanuts marketed in the United States (Standards). The Board advises the Secretary of Agriculture regarding potential changes to the Standards and is comprised of producers and industry representatives. This rule revises the minimum quality, positive lot identification, and reporting and recordkeeping requirements under the Standards. It also makes numerous other changes to better reflect current industry practices and revises outdated language. The Board believes these changes will make additional peanuts available for sale, help increase efficiencies, and reduce costs to the industry.

In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, as amended, (5 U.S.C. App.), the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), is announcing a meeting of the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) to assist the USDA in the development of standards for substances to be used in organic production and to advise the Secretary of Agriculture on any other aspects of the implementation of Organic Foods Production Act.