00-29943. Milk in the Tennessee Valley Marketing Area; Termination of the Order

AGENCY:

Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION:

Final rule; termination order.

SUMMARY:

This document terminates the remaining administrative provisions of the Tennessee Valley Federal milk marketing order (Order 1011). All of the monthly operating provisions of the order were terminated as of October 1, 1997.

EFFECTIVE DATE:

November 27, 2000.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Nicholas Memoli, Marketing Specialist, USDA/AMS/Dairy Programs, Order Formulation Branch, Room 2971, South Building, P.O. Box 96456, Washington, DC 20090-6456, [phone], [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The Department is issuing this rule in conformance with Executive Order 12866.

This final rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice Reform. This rule is not intended to have a retroactive effect. This rule will not preempt any state or local laws, regulations, or policies, unless they present an irreconcilable conflict with this rule.

The Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, as amended (7 U.S.C. 601-674), 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 request modification or exemption from such order by filing 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 the law. A handler is afforded the opportunity for a hearing on the petition. After a 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 its 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 the date of the entry of the ruling.

Small Business Consideration

In accordance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), the Agricultural Marketing Service has considered the economic impact of this action on small entities and has certified that this final rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities because the Tennessee Valley milk order ceased operating as of October 1, 1997, and there are no handlers or dairy farmers that will be affected by the termination of its one remaining administrative provision.

Preliminary Statement

This order of termination is issued pursuant to the provisions of the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act, as amended (7 U.S.C. 601-674), and of the order regulating the handling of milk in the Tennessee Valley marketing area.

Notice of proposed rulemaking was published in the Federal Register on July 3, 1997 (62 FR 36022), concerning a proposed termination of the order. Interested persons were afforded opportunity to file written data, views and arguments thereon.

In total, 11 comments were received, 3 supporting the termination, 3 opposed to it, and 5 taking no position on the termination but offering comments on questions raised by the Department in the notice of proposed termination.

After consideration of all relevant material, including the proposal in the notice, the comments received, and other available information, the Administrator of the Agricultural Marketing Service found and determined that the order regulating the handling of milk in the Tennessee Valley marketing area (7 CFR 1011) did not tend to effectuate the declared policy of the Act and terminated all of the operating provisions of the order on September 5, 1997, effective October 1, 1997 (62 FR 47923).

Statement of Consideration

This rule terminates the last remaining provision of the Tennessee Valley Federal milk marketing order effective one day after publication of this final rule in the Federal Register.

On May 12, 1997, the Department issued a partial final decision on proposed amendments to the Carolina, Southeast, Tennessee Valley, and Louisville-Lexington-Evansville milk orders (i.e., Orders 5, 7, 11, and 46) which was published on May 20, 1997 (62 FR 27525). The final decision document contained proposed amended orders for the 4 southeast marketing areas, including the Tennessee Valley order, and directed the respective market administrators of the 4 orders to ascertain whether producers approved the issuance of the amended orders. The final decision concluded that amended orders were needed to effectuate the declared policy of the Act.

Less than two-thirds of the producers whose milk is pooled in the Tennessee Valley marketing area approved the issuance of the proposed amended order. The Act requires approval by at least two-thirds of the producers before an amended order may be issued.

Pursuant to the provisions of the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act and of the order regulating the handling of milk in the Tennessee Valley marketing area, the operating provisions of the Tennessee Valley Federal milk order were terminated effective October 1, 1997. Notice of the termination was published in the Federal Register on September 12, 1997 (62 FR 47923). Certain administrative provisions were left intact at that time so that the market administrator, in his capacity as the order's liquidating agent, could disburse all of the money remaining in the administrative, producer-settlement, and marketing service funds established under the order. These tasks having been completed, the remaining provisions of the order are unnecessary and may be removed immediately. Therefore, it is determined that the remaining provisions of Part 1011 no longer tend to effectuate the declared policy of the Act and are hereby terminated pursuant to provisions of 7 U.S.C. 608(c)(16)(A).

For the same reasons, it is hereby found and determined, upon good cause, that it is impracticable, unnecessary, and contrary to the public interest to give preliminary notice or engage in further rulemaking prior to putting this rule into effect and that good cause exists for not postponing the effective date of this rule until 30 days after publication in the Federal Register.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 1011

• Milk marketing orders

PART 1011—MILK IN THE TENNESSEE VALLEY MARKETING AREA [REMOVED AND RESERVED]

For the reasons set forth in the preamble and under the authority 7 U.S.C. 601-674, 7 CFR part 1011 is removed and reserved.

Dated: November 15, 2000.

Richard M. McKee,

Deputy Administrator, Dairy Programs.