[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 7 (Tuesday, January 11, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-605]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: January 11, 1994]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
7 CFR Part 906
[Docket No. FV93-906-3FR]
Oranges and Grapefruit Grown in the Lower Rio Grande Valley in
Texas; Revision of the Handling Requirements for Oranges and Grapefruit
AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: This rule finalizes without change an interim final rule which
revised the handling requirements for Texas oranges and grapefruit to
require handlers to ensure that an inspection certificate accompanies
each shipment of fruit when it is transported by motor vehicle, and
that such inspection certificates are surrendered upon leaving the
production area when requested by Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA)
road guard station personnel designated as agents of the Texas Valley
Citrus Committee (committee). This revision was designed to help the
Texas citrus industry ensure that all fresh oranges and grapefruit are
inspected prior to shipment from the production area.
EFFECTIVE DATE: February 10, 1994.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Belinda Garza, McAllen Marketing Field
Office, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, 1313 East Hackberry,
McAllen, Texas 78501, telephone: (210) 682-2833; or Charles L. Rush,
Marketing Order Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Division,
AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 96456, Room 2523-S, Washington, DC 20090-6456,
telephone: (202) 720-2431.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This final rule is issued under Marketing
Agreement and Order No. 906 (7 CFR Part 906) regulating the handling of
oranges and grapefruit grown in the Lower Rio Grande Valley in Texas,
hereinafter referred to as the order. The agreement and order are
effective under the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, as
amended (7 U.S.C. 601-674), hereinafter referred to as the ``Act.''
The Department of Agriculture (Department) is issuing this rule in
conformance with Executive Order 12866.
This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12788, Civil
Justice Reform. This action is not intended to have retroactive effect.
This rule will not preempt any state or local laws, regulations, or
policies, unless they present an irreconcilable conflict with this
action.
The Act provides that administrative proceedings must be exhausted
before parties may file suit in court. Under section 608c(15)(A) of the
Act, any handler subject to an order may file with the Secretary a
petition stating that the order, any provision of the order, or any
obligation imposed in connection with the order is not in accordance
with law and requesting a modification of the order or to be exempted
therefrom. Such handler is afforded the opportunity for a hearing on
the petition. After the hearing the Secretary would rule on the
petition. The Act provides that the district court of the United States
in any district in which the handler is an inhabitant, or has his or
her principal place of business, has jurisdiction in equity to review
the Secretary's ruling on the petition, provided a bill in equity is
filed not later than 20 days after date of the entry of the ruling.
Pursuant to the requirements set forth in the Regulatory
Flexibility Act (RFA), the Administrator of the Agricultural Marketing
Service (AMS) has considered the economic impact of this rule on small
entities.
The purpose of the RFA is to fit regulatory actions to the scale of
business subject to such actions in order that small businesses will
not be unduly or disproportionately burdened. Marketing orders issued
pursuant to the Act, and rules issued thereunder, are unique in that
they are brought about through group action of essentially small
entities acting on their own behalf. Thus, both statutes have small
entity orientation and compatibility.
There are approximately 15 handlers of oranges and grapefruit
regulated under the marketing order each season and approximately 750
orange and grapefruit producers in Texas. Small agricultural producers
have been defined by the Small Business Administration [13 CFR
Sec. 121.601] as those having annual receipts of less than $500,000,
and small agricultural service firms are defined as those whose annual
receipts are less than $3,500,000. The majority of these handlers and
producers may be classified as small entities.
The committee met on August 3, 1993, and unanimously recommended
revising paragraph (a)(5) of Sec. 906.365 to require handlers to ensure
that an inspection certificate accompanies each shipment of fruit when
it is transported by motor vehicle, and that such inspection
certificates are surrendered upon leaving the production area when
requested by Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) road guard station
personnel designated as agents of the committee. The committee meets
prior to and during each season to review the handling regulations
effective on a continuous basis for fruit regulated under the marketing
order. Committee meetings are open to the public, and interested
persons may express their views at these meetings.
The committee recommended this action after discussions with TDA
road guard station personnel on the subject of operating road guard
stations located on the major roads leading out of the production area
for Texas oranges and grapefruit. TDA informed the committee that,
heretofore, TDA road guard station personnel had not been authorized to
require handlers to surrender a copy of their inspection certificates
to them, when checking fruit being transported from the production area
to determine if it had been inspected and certified as meeting order
requirements. Requiring handlers to surrender a copy of their
inspection certificates to the TDA will enable TDA personnel to
determine whether the fruit meets order requirements, thereby helping
ensure compliance with order provisions. The Department reviews
committee recommendations and information, as well as information from
other sources, to determine whether modification, suspension, or
termination of the handling regulation is needed.
The interim final rule was issued on October 4, 1993, with an
effective date of October 8, 1993, and published in the Federal
Register (58 FR 52400, October 8, 1993). The interim final rule
provided a 30-comment period ending November 8, 1993, and no comments
were received.
The interim final rule amended Sec. 906.365 by adding the following
sentence at the end of paragraph (a)(5). ``No handler may transport by
motor vehicle or cause the transportation of any shipment of fruit for
which an inspection certificate is required unless each such shipment
is accompanied by a copy of the inspection certificate applicable
thereto, and a copy of such inspection certificate is surrendered upon
request to Texas Department of Agriculture Road Guard personnel as
designated by the committee.''
This final rule reflects the committee's and the Department's
appraisal of the need to finalize the revision of handling requirements
set forth in the interim final rule. The Department's view is that this
action will have a beneficial impact on producers and handlers, since
it will authorize TDA road guard station personnel to require surrender
of inspection certificates upon leaving the production area.
Based on the above the Administrator of the AMS has determined that
this action will not have a significant economic impact on a
substantial number of small entities.
After consideration of all relevant matter presented, including the
information and recommendations submitted by the committee and other
available information, it is hereby found that this rule as hereinafter
set forth will tend to effectuate the declared policy of the Act.
List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 906
Grapefruit, Marketing agreements, Oranges, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements.
For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 7 CFR part 906 is
amended as follows:
PART 906--ORANGES AND GRAPEFRUIT GROWN IN LOWER RIO GRANDE VALLEY
IN TEXAS
1. The authority citation for 7 CFR part 906 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 601-674.
2. Accordingly, the interim final rule amending part 906, which was
published in the Federal Register at 58 FR 54200, October 8, 1993, is
adopted as a final rule without change.
Dated: January 5, 1994.
Robert C. Keeney,
Deputy Director, Fruit and Vegetable Division.
[FR Doc. 94-605 Filed 1-10-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P
