[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 235 (Tuesday, December 8, 1998)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 67573-67575]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-32520]
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Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
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Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 235 / Tuesday, December 8, 1998 /
Rules and Regulations
[[Page 67573]]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
9 CFR Part 94
[Docket No. 97-086-2]
Changes in Disease Status of Belgium, France, Greece, Luxembourg,
Portugal, and Spain
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: We are declaring Luxembourg and Portugal free of rinderpest
and foot-and-mouth disease; Greece free of rinderpest; France, Greece,
Luxembourg, and Spain free of exotic Newcastle disease; Portugal free
of African swine fever; and Belgium, France, and Portugal free of swine
vesicular disease. These actions are based on a request from the
European Commission's Directorate General for Agriculture and on our
review of the supporting documentation supplied with that request.
These actions will relieve some restrictions on the importation into
the United States of certain animals and animal products from those
countries. However, because of the status of those countries with
respect to other diseases, and because of other factors that could
result in a risk of introducing animal diseases into the United States,
the importation into the United States of animals and animal products
from those countries will continue to be subject to certain
restrictions.
EFFECTIVE DATE: December 23, 1998.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. John Cougill, Staff Veterinarian,
Products Program, National Center for Import and Export, VS, APHIS,
4700 River Road Unit 40, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231, (301) 734-8695; or
e-mail: John.W.Cougill@usda.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The regulations in 9 CFR part 94 (referred to below as the
regulations) prohibit or restrict the importation of specified animals
and animal products into the United States in order to prevent the
introduction of various animal diseases, including foot-and-mouth
disease (FMD), rinderpest, exotic Newcastle disease (END), African
swine fever (ASF), hog cholera, swine vesicular disease (SVD), and
bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). These are dangerous and
destructive communicable diseases of ruminants, swine, and poultry.
On November 14, 1997, we published in the Federal Register (62 FR
61036-61041, Docket No. 97-086-1) a proposal to amend the regulations
to declare Luxembourg and Portugal free of FMD and rinderpest; Greece
free of rinderpest; France, Greece, Luxembourg, and Spain free of END;
Portugal free of ASF; and Belgium, France, and Portugal free of SVD. We
proposed those actions in response to a request submitted to the Animal
and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) in July 1997 by the
European Commission's Directorate General for Agriculture.
We solicited comments concerning our proposal rule for 60 days
ending January 13, 1998. We received one comment by that date. The
comment was from a veterinary association and fully supported the
proposed rule.
Therefore, based on the rationale set forth in the proposed rule,
we are adopting the provisions of the proposal as a final rule without
change.
Effective Date
This is a substantive rule that relieves restrictions and, pursuant
to the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 553, may be made effective less than 30
days after publication in the Federal Register. This rule removes
certain restrictions on the importation into the United States of
certain animals and animal products from Belgium, France, Greece,
Luxembourg, Portugal, and Spain. We have determined that approximately
2 weeks are needed to ensure that Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service personnel at ports of entry receive official notice of these
changes in the regulations. Therefore, the Administrator of the Animal
and Plant Health Inspection Service has determined that this rule
should be made effective 15 days after publication in the Federal
Register.
Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act
This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12866. For this
action, the Office of Management and Budget has waived its review
process required by Executive Order 12866.
This rule amends the regulations by declaring Luxembourg and
Portugal free of rinderpest and FMD; Greece free of rinderpest; France,
Greece, Luxembourg, and Spain free of END; Portugal free of ASF; and
Belgium, France, and Portugal free of SVD.
Pork and Pork Products and Swine
Although this rule declares Luxembourg and Portugal free of
rinderpest and FMD; Greece free of rinderpest; Belgium, France, and
Portugal free of SVD; and Portugal free of ASF, all those countries are
still considered affected with hog cholera, and Greece is still
considered to be affected with FMD. Because of this, this rule will not
lead to any substantive relaxation of restrictions imposed on the
importation of pork and pork products and live swine from those
countries, as these products will continue to be restricted based on
the presence of hog cholera and, in the case of Greece, FMD. Therefore,
the effect of this rule on the importation of pork and pork products
and live swine will be minimal, and thus the potential impact on the
domestic producers of pork and pork products and swine will be minimal.
Ruminants and Ruminant Products
This rule declares Greece free of rinderpest, but that country is
still considered to be affected with FMD and, as a result of an interim
rule effective on December 12, 1997, and published in the Federal
Register on January 6, 1998 (63 FR 406-408, Docket No. 97-127-1), is
listed in Sec. 94.18(a)(2) as a region from which the importation of
live ruminants, meat and meat products from ruminants, and certain
other ruminant products is restricted due to the risk of BSE.
Similarly, this rule declares Portugal and Luxembourg free of
rinderpest and FMD, but those countries are considered to be affected
with BSE. (Luxembourg was not considered to be affected with BSE at the
time the proposed rule was published, but it was added to the list
[[Page 67574]]
of regions where BSE exists in an interim rule that was effective on
December 2, 1997, and published in the Federal Register on December 17,
1997 (62 FR 65999-66001, Docket No. 97-118-1).) Because imports of
ruminants and ruminant products from Greece are restricted due to FMD
and BSE, and because imports of ruminants and ruminant products from
Portugal and Luxembourg are restricted due to BSE, this rule will not
lead to a substantive change in the restrictions imposed on the
importation of ruminants and ruminant products from those three
countries.
Bird and Poultry Products
This rule declares France, Greece, Luxembourg, and Spain free of
END. This action relieves restrictions on the importation of carcasses,
or parts or products of carcasses, of poultry, game birds, or other
birds from those countries, and relieves certain restrictions on the
importation of eggs (other than hatching eggs) laid by poultry, game
birds, or other birds from those countries. This action also relieves
the quarantine requirements for poultry hatching eggs imported from
France, Greece, Luxembourg, and Spain.
Egg production in those four countries is considerable: In 1995,
the reported egg production in Belgium and Luxembourg was 3,858
million; in France, 16,911 million; in Greece, 2,600 million; and in
Spain, 9,983 million (``Agriculture Statistics,'' 1997). U.S.
production is also large, 74,280 million in 1995. In addition, the U.S.
imports few eggs, with the total amount being equal to less than 0.1
percent of U.S. production. We believe that it is unlikely that these
countries will redirect a significant portion of their production
toward such a small U.S. import market.
Total poultry meat production in France, Greece, Luxembourg, and
Spain in 1995 was about 3.5 million metric tons, or about 26 percent
the size of U.S. production of 13.8 million metric tons. However, the
United States is a very strong net exporter of poultry meat, with
imports of only 3,546 metric tons and exports of more than 2 million
metric tons in 1996 (``World Trade Atlas,'' June 1997). Very few of the
imports are from western Europe. Moreover, more than 99 percent of U.S.
poultry meat imports originated in Canada. We do not expect that these
countries will redirect a significant amount of poultry meat toward
such a small U.S. import market.
Impact on Small Entities
The Regulatory Flexibility Act requires that the Agency
specifically consider the economic impact associated with the rule on
small entities. Those likely to be affected by this rule are those
entities engaged in the production of live swine, pork and pork
products, live ruminants, meat, meat products, and dairy products
derived from ruminants, and poultry products.
The Small Business Administration's (SBA's) definition of a
``small'' cattle, swine, or poultry farm is one whose total sales is
less than $0.5 million annually. In 1992, 97.8 percent of cattle and
calf farms would be considered small entities. The vast majority of the
domestic hog and pig farms qualify as small entities (96.3 percent in
1992). Eighty-seven percent of poultry farms would be considered small
entities in 1992 (``1992 Census of Agriculture,'' U.S. Department of
Commerce, 1993).
The SBA's guidelines state that a ``small'' producer of poultry
meat (Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) 2015, poultry
slaughtering and processing) is one employing fewer than 500 workers.
In 1992, 74 percent of 591 poultry slaughtering and processing
establishments were considered small entities. These small entities
accounted for approximately 30 percent of the total value of shipments
of the industry, $7.2 billion.
The SBA's guidelines state that a ``small'' producer of pork and
ruminant products (part of SIC 2011 or 2013, meat packing plants) is
one employing fewer than 500 workers. In 1992, 97 percent of the 1,367
meat packing establishments in SIC 2011 were considered small entities.
These small establishments accounted for approximately 40 percent of
the total value of shipments of the industry, $50.4 billion. Ninety-
eight percent of the 1,264 establishments in SIC 2013 were considered
small entities in 1992. These producers accounted for 84 percent of the
total value of shipments of the industry, $19.97 billion.
Although the majority of the domestic entities potentially affected
by this rule are small, there will likely be only a minimal change in
the level of imports that may compete with the output of these small
entities, and thus there will be a minimal impact on any domestic
producer of these products, whether small or large.
Under these circumstances, the Administrator of the Animal and
Plant Health Inspection Service has determined that this action will
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small
entities.
Executive Order 12988
This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988, Civil
Justice Reform. This rule: (1) Preempts all State and local laws and
regulations that are inconsistent with this rule; (2) has no
retroactive effect; and (3) does not require administrative proceedings
before parties may file suit in court challenging this rule.
Paperwork Reduction Act
This rule contains no new information collection or recordkeeping
requirements under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501
et seq.).
List of Subjects in 9 CFR Part 94
Animal diseases, Imports, Livestock, Meat and meat products, Milk,
Poultry and poultry products, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Accordingly, 9 CFR part 94 is amended as follows:
PART 94--RINDERPEST, FOOT-AND-MOUTH DISEASE, FOWL PEST (FOWL
PLAGUE), EXOTIC NEWCASTLE DISEASE, AFRICAN SWINE FEVER, HOG
CHOLERA, AND BOVINE SPONGIFORM ENCEPHALOPATHY: PROHIBITED AND
RESTRICTED IMPORTATIONS
1. The authority citation for part 94 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 147a, 150ee, 161, 162, and 450; 19 U.S.C.
1306; 21 U.S.C. 111, 114a, 134a, 134b, 134c, 134f, 136, and 136a; 31
U.S.C. 9701; 42 U.S.C. 4331 and 4332; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and
371.2(d).
2. Section 94.1 is amended as follows:
a. In paragraph (a)(1), the words ``or (a)(3)'' are added
immediately after the words ``paragraph (a)(2)''.
b. In paragraph (a)(2), the word ``Luxembourg,'' is added
immediately after the word ``Japan,'' and the word ``Portugal,'' is
added immediately after the word ``Poland,'';
c. A new paragraph (a)(3) is added to read as set forth below.
d. In the introductory text of paragraph (c), the words ``paragraph
(a) of'' are removed and the words ``paragraph (a)(2) of'' are added in
their place.
Sec. 94.1 Regions where rinderpest or foot-and-mouth disease exists;
importations prohibited.
(a) * * *
(3) The following regions are declared to be free of rinderpest:
Greece.
* * * * *
Sec. 94.3 [Amended]
3. Section 94.3 is amended by adding the words ``where rinderpest
or foot-
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and-mouth disease exists, as'' immediately before the word
``designated''.
Sec. 94.4 [Amended]
4. In Sec. 94.4(a), the introductory text of the paragraph is
amended by adding the words ``where rinderpest or foot-and-mouth
disease exists, as'' immediately before the word ``designated''.
5. In Sec. 94.6, paragraph (a)(2) is revised to read as follows:
Sec. 94.6 Carcasses, or parts or products of carcasses, and eggs
(other than hatching eggs) of poultry, game birds, or other birds;
importations from regions where Exotic Newcastle disease (END) or S.
enteritidis is considered to exist.
(a) * * *
(2) The following regions are considered to be free of Exotic
Newcastle disease (END): Australia, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Denmark,
Fiji, Finland, France, Great Britain (England, Scotland, Wales, and the
Isle of Man), Greece, Iceland, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Republic of
Ireland, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.
* * * * *
Sec. 94.8 [Amended]
6. In Sec. 94.8, the introductory text of the section is amended by
removing the words ``Malta, and Portugal'' and adding in their place
the words ``and Malta''.
Sec. 94.11 [Amended]
7. In Sec. 94.11, paragraph (a), the first sentence is amended by
adding the word ``Luxembourg,'' immediately after the word ``Japan,'';
by adding the word ``Portugal,'' immediately after the word
``Poland,''; and by removing the reference ``Sec. 94.1'' and adding the
reference ``Sec. 94.1(a)(2)'' in its place.
Sec. 94.12 [Amended]
8. In Sec. 94.12, paragraph (a) is amended by adding the word
``Belgium,'' immediately after the words ``The Bahamas,''; by adding
the word ``France,'' immediately after the word ``Finland,''; and by
adding the word ``Portugal,'' immediately after the word ``Panama,''.
Sec. 94.13 [Amended]
9. In Sec. 94.13, the introductory text of the section is amended
by adding the word ``Belgium,'' immediately after the words ``The
Bahamas,''; by adding the word ``France,'' immediately after the word
``Denmark,''; and by adding the word ``Portugal,'' immediately after
the words ``Northern Ireland,''.
Done in Washington, DC, this 2nd day of December 1998.
Craig A. Reed,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 98-32520 Filed 12-7-98; 8:45 am]
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