96-30859. Oranges and Grapefruit Grown in the Lower Rio Grande Valley in Texas; Change in Reporting Requirements  

  • [Federal Register Volume 61, Number 234 (Wednesday, December 4, 1996)]
    [Rules and Regulations]
    [Pages 64253-64255]
    From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
    [FR Doc No: 96-30859]
    
    
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    DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
    7 CFR Part 906
    
    [Docket No. FV96-906-2FR]
    
    
    Oranges and Grapefruit Grown in the Lower Rio Grande Valley in 
    Texas; Change in Reporting Requirements
    
    AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.
    
    ACTION: Final rule.
    
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    SUMMARY: This final rule changes the reporting requirements currently 
    prescribed under the Texas orange and grapefruit marketing order. The 
    marketing order regulates the handling of oranges and grapefruit grown 
    in three counties in the Lower Rio Grande Valley in Texas and is 
    administered locally by the Texas Valley Citrus Committee (committee). 
    Shipments of oranges and grapefruit out of the production area must 
    meet minimum standards of grade, size, quality, and pack. Such 
    shipments are subject to mandatory inspection. This final rule adds 
    language in the
    
    [[Page 64254]]
    
    order's rules and regulations to require that all sales of over 400 
    pounds of oranges and grapefruit for resale inside the production area 
    be covered by a ``Buyer Certification'' form (Certification Form). This 
    requirement will ensure that handlers are aware of and accept 
    responsibility for complying with the order's requirements and that 
    buyers do not transport uninspected oranges and grapefruit out of the 
    three-county production area.
    
    EFFECTIVE DATE: This final rule becomes effective December 5, 1996.
    
    FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Belinda G. Garza, McAllen Marketing 
    Field Office, Marketing Order Administration Branch, Fruit and 
    Vegetable Division, 1313 E. Hackberry, McAllen, Texas 78501; telephone: 
    (210) 682-2833, Fax # (210) 682-5942; or Charles L. Rush, Marketing 
    Order Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, 
    room 2525-S, P.O. Box 96456, Washington, DC 20090-6456; telephone: 
    (202) 690-3670, Fax # (202) 720-5698. Small businesses may request 
    information on compliance with this regulation by contacting: Jay 
    Guerber, Marketing Order Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable 
    Division, AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 96456, room 2525-S, Washington, DC 20090-
    6456; telephone (202) 720-2491; Fax # (202) 720-5698.
    
    SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This final rule is issued under Marketing 
    Agreement and Order No. 906 (7 CFR Part 906), as amended, regulating 
    the handling of oranges and grapefruit grown in the Lower Rio Grande 
    Valley in Texas, hereinafter referred to as the ``order.'' The order is 
    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 final 
    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 retroactive 
    effect. This final rule will not preempt any State or local laws, 
    regulations, or policies, unless they present an irreconcilable 
    conflict with this rule.
        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 request a modification of the order or to be exempted 
    therefrom. A 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 to review the Secretary's 
    ruling on the petition, provided an action 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 Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) has 
    considered the economic impact of this final 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 who 
    are subject to regulation under the order and approximately 2,000 
    orange and grapefruit producers in the regulated area. Small 
    agricultural service firms, which includes handlers, have been defined 
    by the Small Business Administration (13 CFR 121.601) as those having 
    annual receipts of less than $5,000,000, and small agricultural 
    producers are defined as those having annual receipts of less than 
    $500,000. The majority of handlers and producers of Texas oranges and 
    grapefruit may be classified as small entities.
        This final rule establishes a requirement that handlers (sellers) 
    complete a Certification Form on all sales of over 400 pounds of 
    oranges or grapefruit, or both, destined for resale inside the 
    production area to help ensure that such oranges or grapefruit do not 
    leave the production area without meeting order requirements. The use 
    of this new form was unanimously recommended by the committee at a 
    public meeting on May 29, 1996.
        Implementation of the requirement to submit Certification Forms 
    will result in a small increase in reporting requirements imposed on 
    handlers. The added cost of complying with this requirement will be 
    minimal and will be offset by benefits derived from enhanced compliance 
    with the order and more complete statistical data beneficial to the 
    entire industry. Therefore, the AMS has determined that this action 
    will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of 
    small entities.
        Under the order, Texas orange and grapefruit shipments to fresh 
    markets in the United States, Canada, and Mexico are required to be 
    inspected and are subject to grade, size, quality, container and pack 
    requirements. Exempt from such handling requirements are shipments 
    made: (1) within the production area (Cameron, Hidalgo, and Willacy 
    counties in Texas); (2) in individually addressed gift packages which 
    are not for resale; (3) under the 400-pound minimum quantity exemption 
    provision; and (4) for relief or charity. In addition, fruit shipped to 
    approved processors for processing are exempt from handling 
    requirements. These handling requirements do not change substantially 
    from season to season, and are in effect on a continuing basis subject 
    to amendment, modification, or suspension as may be determined by the 
    Secretary. Currently, the handling regulations under the order are 
    effective from September 1 through June 30 each year.
        Section 906.51 of the order provides authority for the committee, 
    with the approval of the Secretary, to require that each handler 
    furnish to the committee reports and other information as may be 
    necessary for the committee to perform its duties under the marketing 
    order.
        The committee recommended the establishment of a requirement that 
    handlers of Texas oranges and grapefruit complete a Certification Form 
    on all sales of over 400 pounds of oranges or grapefruit or a 
    combination of both that are not intended to leave the production area. 
    (The order currently provides that 400 pounds of Texas oranges or 
    grapefruit or a combination of both not for resale may be shipped per 
    day outside the production area without having to meet marketing order 
    requirements.) The form will require the following information: (1) 
    names and addresses of the seller and the buyer; (2) description and 
    quantity of the oranges or grapefruit sold; and (3) the destination of 
    the fruit. In addition, the buyer will certify that fruit that is 
    subsequently taken outside the production area for resale will be 
    inspected in accordance with the order and its rules and regulations. 
    The information compiled from use of this form will also provide the 
    committee, its staff, and the industry with valuable statistics on 
    fruit sold and marketed within the production area.
        Handling of oranges and grapefruit inside the production area is 
    not
    
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    regulated. While monitoring compliance during the 1995-96 season, 
    committee staff became aware of a lack of documentation on fruit 
    intended for use within the production area. Such fruit was on occasion 
    found outside the production area without having been inspected and 
    certified as meeting marketing order requirements. The committee 
    recognized the need to make handlers responsible for ensuring that 
    sales of their fruit intended for resale inside the production area, 
    but subsequently leaving the production area, meet the provisions of 
    the order. The Certification Form was developed to help track such 
    sales. Currently, documentation on sales to peddlers and cash buyers, 
    and other transactions not supported by an inspection certificate or a 
    diversion report (used to track shipments for processing, relief, or 
    charity), is minimal or non-existent. In the process of conducting its 
    compliance program, the committee encountered difficulty in tracking 
    movement of such citrus and detecting violations of the order.
        The form will be completed by the seller (handler) in triplicate. 
    The buyer will sign the certification statement on the form. One copy 
    will be submitted by the handler to the committee within 7 days after 
    the sale. One copy will be retained by the handler and the third copy 
    will be given to the buyer. The forms will be reviewed by the 
    committee's compliance staff as they are received and will be compared 
    against handler records and inspection certificates. In addition, the 
    form will also provide valuable statistical information on fruit sold 
    and marketed for use within the production area. Currently, there is no 
    tracking system for local use fruit. Collection of this information 
    will fill a void in the committee's statistical database which will be 
    used to determine total utilization of fruit and further assist the 
    industry in making marketing decisions.
        Throughout the past season, the committee considered possible 
    options to monitor shipments of uninspected oranges and grapefruit. It 
    was noted that local use fruit is presently not accounted for, which 
    leaves a significant void in the committee's database. The committee 
    considered, for example, compiling an ``approved peddler'' list, and 
    allowing uninspected fruit to be sold only to those appearing on the 
    list. This option was determined to be impractical for the industry, as 
    such a list would change constantly and could never be accurately 
    maintained. Development of the Certification Form was the only option 
    believed to be viable. Use of the form will raise awareness of both the 
    sellers' and buyers' responsibility to comply with the provisions of 
    the marketing order. This option will result in the smallest increase 
    in regulatory burden of the options considered, including the 
    establishment of additional regulatory requirements, such as inspection 
    of all shipments, regardless of destination. Therefore, the committee 
    recommended that Sec. 906.151 be amended by designating the existing 
    paragraph in this section as (a) and adding a new paragraph (b).
        The proposed rule concerning this action was published in the 
    September 18, 1996, Federal Register (61 FR 49078), with a 30-day 
    comment period ending October 18, 1996. No comments were received. The 
    proposed rule also announced AMS's intention to request a revision to 
    the currently approved information collection requirements issued under 
    the marketing order. The informal collection requirements in the 
    referenced section have been approved by the Office of Management and 
    Budget (OMB) under the provisions of 44 U.S.C. Chapter 35 and have been 
    assigned OMB No. 0581-0068.
        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.
        It is further found that good cause exists for not postponing the 
    effective date of this rule until 30 days after publication in the 
    Federal Register (5 U.S.C. 553) because: (1) the Texas citrus shipping 
    season began in mid-September; (2) this rule was unanimously 
    recommended by the committee at a public meeting and all interested 
    persons had an opportunity to express their views and provide input; 
    (3) Texas orange and grapefruit handlers are aware of this rule and 
    need no additional time to comply with the requirements; and (4) a 30-
    day comment period was provided for in the proposed rule and no 
    comments were received.
    
    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 THE 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. In Sec. 906.151 the existing text is designated as paragraph (a) 
    and new paragraphs (b) and (c) are added to read as follows:
    
    
    Sec. 906.151  Reports.
    
    * * * * *
        (b) Each handler who sells over 400 pounds of oranges or grapefruit 
    or a combination of both for resale inside the production area shall, 
    for each transaction, report to the committee on a form approved by it 
    the following information:
        (1) Name and address of seller;
        (2) Name and address of buyer;
        (3) Description and quantity of oranges or grapefruit sold;
        (4) Destination of fruit;
        (5) A statement that the buyer certifies that fruit that is 
    subsequently taken outside the production area for resale will be 
    inspected; and
        (6) Such other pertinent information as the committee may require.
        (c) The handler shall prepare the report in triplicate. The buyer 
    shall sign the certification statement. The pink copy shall be 
    submitted to the committee within 7 days. The green copy shall be 
    retained by the handler and the blue copy shall be given to the buyer. 
    Such form shall be reviewed by the committee staff and the information 
    compiled for the committee's use.
    
        Dated: November 27, 1996.
    Robert C. Keeney,
    Director, Fruit and Vegetable Division.
    [FR Doc. 96-30859 Filed 12-3-96; 8:45 am]
    BILLING CODE 3410-02-P
    
    
    

Document Information

Effective Date:
12/5/1996
Published:
12/04/1996
Department:
Agriculture Department
Entry Type:
Rule
Action:
Final rule.
Document Number:
96-30859
Dates:
This final rule becomes effective December 5, 1996.
Pages:
64253-64255 (3 pages)
Docket Numbers:
Docket No. FV96-906-2FR
PDF File:
96-30859.pdf
CFR: (1)
7 CFR 906.151