National Institute of Food and Agriculture – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

As part of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture's (NIFA) strategy to successfully implement the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI), NIFA intends to initiate a new challenge area within AFRI in Fiscal Year (FY) 2014 to address water issues. NIFA will be holding a web-based listening session in order to solicit stakeholder input on this new challenge area. It is open to the public and the focus of the listening session is to gather stakeholder input that will be used in developing the Request for Applications (RFA) in FY 2014. NIFA is particularly interested in input on how best to achieve the most impact, within budget constraints, in the early years of this new challenge area. All comments must be received by close of business on July 30, 2013, to be considered in the initial drafting of the FY 2014 AFRI Water program RFA.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations (5 CFR part 1320) which implement the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), this notice announces the intention of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) to request approval to revise and extend a currently approved information collection for the 4-H Youth Enrollment Report.

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), as part of its compliance with the requirement of Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, invites the general public to comment on an information collection for the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP). This notice initiates a 30-day comment period and prescribes the proposed nomination form for the VMLRP that will be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for renewal. The NIFA may not conduct or sponsor, and the respondent is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless the collection of information displays a valid OMB control number.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations (5 CFR part 1320) which implement the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), this notice announces the intention of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) to request an extension for a currently approved information collection (OMB No. 0524-0026) for Form NIFA-666, ``Organizational Information.''

The Youth Farm Safety Education and Certification (YFSEC) program is authorized under Extension Activities, Smith-Lever 3(d) Programs. By this notice, NIFA is designated to act on behalf of the Secretary of Agriculture in soliciting public comment from interested persons regarding program and funding priorities for the Youth Farm Safety Education and Certification Program.

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is soliciting stakeholder input on the administration of the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP) authorized under section 1415A of the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 3151a). The purpose of this program is for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to enter into agreements with veterinarians under which the veterinarians agree to provide, for a specific period of time as identified in the agreement, veterinary services in veterinarian shortage situations. As part of the stakeholder input process, NIFA is inviting comments regarding the current procedures and processes in place for the VMLRP. Input collected will be used to modify and improve processes for subsequent calls of shortage situation nominations and request for applications.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13) and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations at 5 CFR part 1320 (60 FR 44977, Aug. 29, 1995), this notice announces the National Institute of Food and Agriculture's (NIFA) intention to revise a currently approved information collection entitled, ``Reporting Requirements for State Plans of Work for Agricultural Research and Extension Formula Funds.''

In accordance with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations that implement the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the National Institute of Food and Agriculture's (NIFA) intention to request approval for an extension of a currently approved information collection for Children, Youth, and Families at Risk (CYFAR).

This final rule establishes the process and procedures to certify a qualifying college or university as a Hispanic-Serving Agricultural Colleges and Universities (HSACU) institution. NIFA will publish 7 CFR part 3434 in the Code of Federal Regulations to chronicle the eligibility criteria colleges and universities must satisfy in order to be certified as HSACU institutions by the Secretary of Agriculture. The Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (FCEA) amended section 1404 of the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 to add a definition for a new group of cooperating educational institutions known as Hispanic-Serving Agricultural Colleges and Universities. Section 1404 defines HSACUs as colleges and universities that qualify as Hispanic-serving Institutions (HSIs) and offer associate, bachelors, or other accredited degree programs in agriculture-related fields. HSACUs do not include 1862 land-grant institutions, as defined in the Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998. A separate part, 7 CFR part 3437, will be published in the future to provide specific administrative provisions for the HSACU Endowment Program (e.g., applicability of regulations, purpose, definitions, eligibility, use of funds, administrative duties, and other sections, as appropriate).

The President's budget proposal for FY 2013 consolidates six funding lines addressing pest management and integrated pest management (IPM) issues into a single budgetary line, called the Crop Protection Program (CPP). The six budgetary lines being consolidated are Expert Integrated Pest Management Decision Support System, IPM and Biological Control, Minor Crop Pest Management/IR-4, Pest Management Alternatives, Smith-Lever 3(d) Pest Management, and Regional Pest Management Centers. The new program is described broadly to encompass all of the functions of the existing programs. A listening session was previously announced in the Federal Register on Wednesday, February 1, 2012 to be held on March 29 to guide future Request for Applications (RFAs) of the Extension of IPM Coordination and Support Program (EIPM-CS), one of the programs affected by this realignment. That session has been redefined to collect stakeholder input on the broader Crop Protection topic. Additional opportunities for comment are also being scheduled. By this notice, NIFA is designated to act on behalf of the Secretary of Agriculture in soliciting public comment from interesting persons regarding the future design and implementation of this proposed program.

Section 7403 of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (Pub. L. 110-246) (FCEA) amended section 3(d) of the Smith-Lever Act (7 U.S.C. 343(d)) to provide the opportunity for 1862 and 1890 Land-Grant Institutions, including Tuskegee University and West Virginia State University to compete for section 3(d) funds. Section 7417 of FCEA also provided the University of the District of Columbia the opportunity to compete for section 3(d) funds. The Children, Youth, and Families at Risk (CYFAR) Sustainable Community Projects is among the Extension programs funded under this authority. The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) plans to consider stakeholder input received from written comments in developing future competitive RFAs for this program.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations at (5 CFR part 1320), this notice announces the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) intention to request approval for an extension of the currently approved information collection for the NIFA proposal review process.

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is soliciting stakeholder input on the administration of the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP) authorized under section 1415A of the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 3151a). The purpose of this program is for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to enter into agreements with veterinarians under which the veterinarians agree to provide, for a specific period of time as identified in the agreement, veterinary services in veterinarian shortage situations. As part of the stakeholder input process, NIFA is inviting comments regarding the current procedures and processes in place for the VMLRP. Input collected will be used to modify and improve processes for subsequent calls of shortage situation nominations and request for applications.

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) published in the Federal Register of June 17, 2011, a document adopting as final an interim rule published June 14, 2010, which contained a set of specific administrative requirements for the Biomass Research and Development Initiative (BRDI). This document contains minor changes to those regulations.

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is affirming, without change, an interim rule containing a set of specific administrative requirements for the Biomass Research and Development Initiative (BRDI) to supplement the Competitive and Noncompetitive Non- formula Federal Assistance ProgramsGeneral Award Administrative Provisions for this program. The BRDI is authorized under section 9008 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (FSRIA), as amended by section 9001 of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (FCEA).

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is announcing the release of the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP) Request for Applications (RFA) at https:// www.nifa.usda.gov/vmlrp.

This document amends a number of regulations of the Department of Agriculture (USDA) principally to reflect the establishment of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture and the abolishment of the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, as mandated by section 251(f)(2) of the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 6971(f)(2)) (as added by section 7511 of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (FCEA), Pub. L. 110-246). This rule also makes a number of miscellaneous amendments to the delegations of authority in 7 CFR part 2, as summarized below.

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is soliciting stakeholder input on the recent implementation of the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP) authorized under section 1415A of the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 3151a). The purpose of this program is for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to enter into agreements with veterinarians under which the veterinarians agree to provide, for a specific period of time as identified in the agreement, veterinary services in veterinarian shortage situations. As part of the stakeholder input process, NIFA is conducting a public meeting to solicit comments regarding the processes developed and implemented for the first application cycle that concluded with the first group of awards under this program in September 2010. Input collected will be used to modify and improve processes for subsequent calls of shortage situation nominations and request for applications.

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is publishing program-specific administrative provisions for the following Federal assistance programs: Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) as subpart G; the Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative (OREI); and the Integrated Research, Education, and Extension Competitive Grants Program (406), to supplement the Competitive and Noncompetitive Non-formula Federal Assistance ProgramsGeneral Award Administrative Provisions for these programs. Section 7406 of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (FCEA or the ``2008 Farm Bill'') amended section 2(b) of the Act of August 4, 1965, Competitive, Special, and Facilities Research Grant Act, to authorize the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) to provide funding for fundamental and applied research, extension, and education to address food and agricultural sciences. The Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative is authorized under section 1672B of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (FACT Act), as amended by FCEA. The Integrated Research, Education, and Extension, Competitive Grants Program is authorized under section 406 of the Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998, as amended by FCEA.

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), formerly known as the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES) requests input from the public regarding (1) the assessment of methods and tools used by non-governmental organizations and international agencies to measure, characterize and describe nutritional gaps among populations served by U.S. humanitarian food assistance programs, including recommendations on how to improve such programs in the field at the lowest possible cost, and (2) the assessment of the most cost-effective technologies for the purification and supply of safe water which could be implemented in the field to benefit highly vulnerable populations, including recommendations on the most cost-effective and commercially available systems that require priority research assistance.

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), formerly the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES), is publishing a set of specific administrative requirements for the Biomass Research and Development Initiative (BRDI) to supplement the Competitive and Noncompetitive Non-formula Federal Assistance ProgramsGeneral Award Administrative Provisions for this program. The BRDI is authorized under section 9008 of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (FSRIA), as amended by the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008(FCEA).

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is announcing the release of the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP) Request for Applications (RFA) at https:// www.nifa.usda.gov/vmlrp.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations (5 CFR part 1320), which implement the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), this notice announces the National Institute of Food and Agriculture's (NIFA) intention to request an extension for the currently approved information collection for the NIFA Current Research Information System (CRIS).

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is soliciting nominations for veterinary service shortage situations for the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP; [74 FR 32788- 32798]), as authorized under the National Veterinary Medical Services Act (NVMSA), 7 U.S.C. 3151a. This Notice initiates a 45-day nomination solicitation period and prescribes the procedures and criteria to be used by State, Insular Area, DC and Federal Lands (hereafter referred to as State(s)) Animal Health Officials (SAHO) in order to nominate veterinary shortage situations. All States are eligible to submit nominations, up to the maximum indicated for each State in this notice. NIFA is conducting this solicitation of veterinary shortage situation nominations under previously approved information collection (OMB Control Number 0524-0046).

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is requesting written stakeholder input on the following NIFA grant programs: (1) Tribal College Research Grants Program, (2) Tribal Colleges Education Equity Grants Program, and (3) Tribal Colleges Extension Services Program. The programs are authorized under Sections 534(a), 534(b), and 536 of the Equity in Educational Land-Grant Status Act of 1994.