[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 59 (Friday, March 27, 1998)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 14839-14840]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-8177]
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Proposed Rules
Federal Register
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This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of
the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these
notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in
the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.
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Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 59 / Friday, March 27, 1998 /
Proposed Rules
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Marketing Service
7 CFR Part 28
[CN-98-004]
Revision of User Fees for 1998 Crop Cotton Classification
Services to Growers
AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is proposing to
reduce user fees for cotton producers for 1998 crop cotton
classification services under the Cotton Statistics and Estimates Act
in accordance with the formula provided in the Uniform Cotton Classing
Fees Act of 1987. The 1997 user fee for this classification service was
$1.40 per bale. This proposal would reduce the fee for the 1998 crop to
$1.30 per bale. The proposed reduction in fees resulted from increased
efficiency in classing operations. The fee is sufficient to recover the
costs of providing classification services, including costs for
administration, supervision, and development and maintenance of
standards.
DATES: Comments must be received by April 27, 1998.
ADDRESSES: Comments and inquiries should be addressed to, Cotton
Programs, AMS, USDA, Room 2641-S, P.O. Box 96456, Washington, DC 20090-
6456. Comments will be available for public inspection during regular
business hours at the above office in Rm. 2641--South Building, 14th &
Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lee Cliburn, 202-720-2145.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
This proposed rule has been determined to be not significant for
purposes of Executive Order 12866, and it has not been reviewed by the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
This proposed rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988,
Civil Justice Reform. It is not intended to have retroactive effect.
This rule would not preempt any state or local laws, regulations, or
policies unless they present an irreconcilable conflict with this rule.
There are no administrative procedures which must be exhausted prior to
any judicial challenge to the provisions of this rule.
The Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), has
considered the economic impact of this proposal on small entities
pursuant to the requirements set forth in the Regulatory Flexibility
Act (RFA) (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). It has been determined that the
implementation of this proposed rule would not have a significant
economic impact on a substantial number of small businesses.
The purpose of the RFA is to fit regulatory actions to the scale of
businesses subject to such actions in order that small businesses will
not be disproportionately burdened. There are an estimated 40,000
cotton growers in the U.S. who voluntarily use the AMS cotton classing
services annually, and the majority of these cotton growers are small
businesses under the criteria established by the Small Business
Administration (13 CFR 121.601). The Administrator of AMS has certified
that this action will not have a significant economic impact on a
substantial number of small entities as defined in the RFA because:
(1) The fee reduction reflects a decrease in the cost-per-unit
currently borne by those entities utilizing the services (the 1997 user
fee for classification services was $1.40 per bale; the fee for the
1998 crop would be reduced to $1.30 per bale; the 1998 crop is
estimated at 15,684,900 bales);
(2) The cost reduction will not affect competition in the
marketplace; and
(3) The use of classification services is voluntary. For the 1997
crop, 17,949,575 bales were classed out of 18,346,450 bales produced.
(4) Based on the average price paid to growers for cotton from the
1996 crop of 69.3 cents per pound, 500 pound bales of cotton are worth
an average of $346.50 each. The proposed user fee for classification
services, $1.30 per bale, is less than one percent of the value of an
average bale of cotton.
In compliance with OMB regulations (5 CFR part 1320) which
implement the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.),
the information collection requirements contained in the provisions to
be amended by this proposed rule have been previously approved by OMB
and were assigned OMB control number 0581-0009 under the Paperwork
Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).
It is anticipated that the proposed changes, if adopted, would be
made effective July 1, 1998, as provided by the Cotton Statistics and
Estimates Act.
Fees for Classification Under the Cotton Statistics and Estimates
Act of 1927
The user fee charged to cotton producers for High Volume Instrument
(HVI) classification services under the Cotton Statistics and Estimates
Act (7 U.S.C. 473a) was $1.40 per bale during the 1997 harvest season
as determined by using the formula provided in the Uniform Cotton
Classing Fees Act of 1987, as amended by Pub. L. 102-237. The fees
cover salaries, costs of equipment and supplies, and other overhead
costs, including costs for administration, supervision, and development
and maintenance of cotton standards.
This proposed rule establishes the user fee charged to producers
for HVI classification at $1.30 per bale during the 1998 harvest
season.
Public Law 102-237 amended the formula in the Uniform Cotton
Classing Fees Act of 1987 for establishing the producer's
classification fee so that the producer's fee is based on the
prevailing method of classification requested by producers during the
previous year. HVI classing was the prevailing method of cotton
classification requested by producers in 1997. Therefore, the 1998
producer's user fee for classification service is based on the 1997
base fee for HVI classification.
The fee was calculated by applying the formula specified in the
Uniform Cotton Classing Fees Act of 1987, as amended by Pub. L. 102-
237. The 1997 base fee for HVI classification exclusive of adjustments,
as provided by the Act, was $2.08 per bale. A two percent, or four
cents per bale increase due to the implicit price deflator of the gross
domestic product added to the $2.08 would result in a 1998 base fee of
$2.12 per bale. The formula in the Act provides for the use of the
percentage change in the implicit price deflator of the gross national
product (as indexed
[[Page 14840]]
for the most recent 12-month period for which statistics are
available). However, this has been replaced by the gross domestic
product by the Department of Commerce as a more appropriate measure for
the short-term monitoring and analysis of the U.S. economy.
The number of bales to be classed by the United States Department
of Agriculture from the 1998 crop is estimated at 15,684,900 bales. The
1998 base fee was decreased 15 percent based on the estimated number of
bales to be classed (one percent for every 100,000 bales or portion
thereof above the base of 12,500,000, limited to a maximum adjustment
of 15 percent). This percentage factor amounts to a 32 cents per bale
reduction and was subtracted from the 1998 base fee of $2.12 per bale,
resulting in a fee of $1.80 per bale.
With a fee of $1.80 per bale, the projected operating reserve would
be 46.806 percent. The Act specifies that the Secretary shall not
establish a fee which, when combined with other sources of revenue,
will result in a projected operating reserve of more than 25 percent.
Accordingly, the fee of $1.80 must be reduced by 50 cents per bale, to
$1.30 per bale, to provide an ending accumulated operating reserve for
the fiscal year of 25 percent of the projected cost of operating the
program. This would establish the 1998 season fee at $1.30 per bale.
Accordingly, Sec. 28.909, paragraph (b) would be revised to reflect
the reduction in the HVI classification fees.
As provided for in the Uniform Cotton Classing Fees Act of 1987, as
amended, a five cent per bale discount would continue to be applied to
voluntary centralized billing and collecting agents as specified in
Sec. 28.909 (c).
Growers or their designated agents requesting classification data
provided on computer punched cards will be charged a fee of 10 cents
per card to reflect the costs of providing this service. Requests for
punch card classification data represents only 2.6 percent of the total
bales classed. This change would be reflected in Sec. 28.910 (a).
Growers or their designated agents receiving classification data by
methods other than computer punched cards would continue to incur no
additional fees if only one method of receiving classification data was
requested. The fee for each additional method of receiving
classification data in Sec. 28.910 would remain at five cents per bale,
and it would be applicable even if the same method was requested.
However, if computer punched cards were requested, a fee of ten cents
per card would be charged. The fee in Sec. 28.910 (b) for an owner
receiving classification data from the central database would remain at
five cents per bale, and the minimum charge of $5.00 for services
provided per monthly billing period would remain the same. The
provisions of Sec. 28.910 (c) concerning the fee for new classification
memoranda issued from the central database for the business convenience
of an owner without reclassification of the cotton will remain the
same.
The fee for review classification in Sec. 28.911 would be reduced
from $1.40 per bale to $1.30 per bale.
The fee for returning samples after classification in Sec. 28.911
would remain at 40 cents per sample.
Finally, the authority citation for Subpart D of Part 28 was
revised at 61 FR 19512. This action would correct that revision by
specifying Subpart D rather than a reference to Part 28 in its
entirety.
A thirty-day comment period is provided for public comments. This
period is appropriate because it is anticipated that the proposed
changes, if adopted, would be made effective July 1, 1998, as provided
by the Cotton Statistics and Estimates Act.
List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 28
Administrative practice and procedure, Cotton, Cotton samples,
Grades, Market news, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements,
Standards, Staples, Testing, Warehouses.
For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 7 CFR Part 28 is
proposed to be amended as follows:
PART 28--[AMENDED]
1. The authority citation for Part 28, Subpart D, would be revised
to read as follows:
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 471--476.
2. In Sec. 28.909, paragraph (b) would be revised to read as
follows:
Sec. 28.909 Costs.
* * * * *
(b) The cost of High Volume Instrument (HVI) cotton classification
service to producers is $1.30 per bale.
* * * * *
3. In Sec. 28.910, paragraph (a) would be revised to read as
follows:
Sec. 28.910 Classification of samples and issuance of classification
data.
(a) (1) The samples submitted as provided in the subpart shall be
classified by employees of the Division and classification memoranda
showing the official quality determination of each sample according to
the official cotton standards of the United States shall be issued by
any one of the following methods at no additional charge:
(i) Computer diskettes,
(ii) Computer tapes, or
(iii) Telecommunications, with all long distance telephone line
charges paid by the receiver of data.
(2) When an additional copy of the classification memorandum is
issued by any method listed in (a)(1), there will be a charge of five
cents per bale. If provided as an additional method of data transfer,
the minimum fee for each tape or diskette issued shall be $10.00.
(3) Upon request, computer punch cards may be issued. The fee for
this service shall be 10 cents per card.
* * * * *
4. In Sec. 28.911, the last sentence of paragraph (a) would be
revised to read as follows:
Sec. 28.911 Review classification.
(a) * * * The fee for review classification is $1.30 per bale.
* * * * *
Dated: March 24, 1998.
Enrique E. Figueroa,
Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service.
[FR Doc. 98-8177 Filed 3-26-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P
