[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 81 (Thursday, April 25, 1996)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 18233-18235]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-10260]
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Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
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Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 81 / Thursday, April 25, 1996 / Rules
and Regulations
[[Page 18233]]
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
7 CFR Part 301
[Docket No. 96-016-5]
Karnal Bunt
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Interim rule and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: We are amending the Karnal bunt regulations by adding Imperial
County, CA, and a portion of Riverside County, CA, to the list of areas
quarantined because of infestations of Karnal bunt. We are also adding
Tilletia indica (Mitra) Mundkur, the organism that causes Karnal bunt,
to the list of restricted articles. This action is necessary on an
emergency basis to prevent the artificial spread of Karnal bunt, a
serious fungal disease of wheat, durum wheat, and triticale, into
noninfected areas of the United States.
DATES: Interim rule effective April 19, 1996. Consideration will be
given only to comments received on or before June 24, 1996.
ADDRESSES: Please send an original and three copies of your comments to
Docket No. 96-016-5, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS,
suite 3C03, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale MD 20737-1238. Please
state that your comments refer to Docket No. 96-016-5. Comments
received may be inspected at USDA, room 1141, South Building, 14th
Street and Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC, between 8 a.m. and
4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except holidays. Persons wishing to
inspect comments are requested to call ahead on (202) 690-2817 to
facilitate entry into the comment reading room.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Stephen Poe, Operations Officer,
Domestic and Emergency Operations, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road, Unit
134, Riverdale, MD 20732, (301) 734-8247.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Karnal bunt is a serious fungal disease of wheat (Triticum
aestivum), durum wheat (Triticum durum), and triticale (Triticum
aestivum X Seale cereals), a hybrid of wheat and rye. The disease is
caused by the smut fungus Tilletia indica (Mitra) Mundkur and is spread
by spores. Karnal bunt is a serious disease that affects both yield and
grain quality. It adversely affects the color, odor, and palatability
of flour and other foodstuffs made from affected grain. Grain
containing any amount of bunted kernels is reduced in quality. Karnal
bunt does not present a risk to human health.
On March 20, 1996, the Secretary of Agriculture signed a
``Declaration of Extraordinary Emergency'' authorizing the Secretary to
take emergency action under 7 U.S.C. 150dd with regard to Karnal bunt
within the States of Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. The ``Declaration
of Extraordinary Emergency'' was published in the Federal Register on
March 25, 1996 (61 FR 12058, Docket No. 96-016-1). On March 26, 1996,
the Secretary of Agriculture signed a ``Declaration of Emergency''
authorizing the transfer and use of funds within the Department for a
program to control Karnal bunt wherever it may be found in the United
States. The ``Declaration of Emergency'' was published in the Federal
Register on March 29, 1996 (61 FR 14046, Docket No. 96-016-2).
In an interim rule effective March 25, 1996, and published in the
Federal Register March 28, 1996 (61 FR 13649-13655, Docket No. 93-016-
3), we established the Karnal bunt regulations (7 CFR 301.89-1 through
301.89-11) and quarantined the State of Arizona and a total of six
counties in the States of New Mexico and Texas. The regulations impose
restrictions on the interstate movement of regulated articles from
quarantined areas in order to prevent the artificial spread of Karnal
bunt to noninfested areas of the United States.
Additions to Quarantined Areas
Recently, Karnal bunt was detected in lots of seed that were either
planted or stored in California. On April 12, 1996, the Secretary of
Agriculture signed a ``Declaration of Extraordinary Emergency''
authorizing the Secretary to take emergency action under 7 U.S.C. 150dd
with regard to Karnal bunt within California.
The regulations in Sec. 301.89-3 provide that the Administrator of
APHIS will quarantine each State, or portion of a State, that is
infected with Karnal bunt or that the Administrator considers necessary
to regulate due to its proximity to an infestation or its
inseparability from an infected locality for quarantine purposes.
In accordance with these criteria and the recent detection of
Karnal bunt in California, we are amending Sec. 301.89-3(e) by adding
all of Imperial County and a portion of Riverside County, CA, to the
list of quarantined areas.
The quarantined area in Riverside County, CA, is that portion of
the county in the Blythe and Ripley areas bounded by a line drawn as
follows: Beginning at the intersection of State Highway 62 and the
Riverside-San Bernardino County line, then east along the Riverside-San
Bernardino County line to its intersection with the California-Arizona
State line; then south along the California-Arizona State line to its
intersection with the Riverside-Imperial County line; then west along
the Riverside-Imperial County line to its intersection with Graham Pass
Road; then northeast along Graham Pass Road to its intersection with
Chuckwalla Valley Road; then west and northwest along Chuckwalla Valley
Road to its intersection with Interstate Highway 10; then west along
Interstate Highway 10 to its intersection with State Highway 177; then
northeast and north along State Highway 177 to its intersection with
State Highway 62; then northeast along State Highway 62 to the point of
beginning.
Addition of Regulated Article
Section 301.89-2 of the regulations lists articles whose movement
from quarantined areas is restricted due to the risk of spreading
Karnal bunt. In this interim rule, we are adding to the list of
regulated articles ``Tilletia indica (Mitra) Mundkur,'' the organism
that causes Karnal bunt.
[[Page 18234]]
Emergency Action
The Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
has determined that an emergency exists that warrants publication of
this interim rule without prior opportunity for public comment.
Immediate action is necessary to prevent the artificial spread of
Karnal bunt to noninfected areas of the United States.
Because prior notice and other public procedures with respect to
this action are impracticable and contrary to the public interest under
these conditions, we find good cause under 5 U.S.C. 553 to make it
effective upon signature. We will consider comments that are received
within 60 days of publication of this rule in the Federal Register.
After the comment period closes, we will publish another document in
the Federal Register. It will include a discussion of any comments we
receive and any amendments we are making to the rule as a result of the
comments.
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 action quarantines one entire county and a portion of another
county in California because of Karnal bunt and restricts the
interstate movement of regulated articles from those quarantined areas.
This action also adds Tilletia indica (Mitra) Mundkur to the list of
regulated articles. This emergency situation makes compliance with
section 603 and timely compliance with section 604 of the Regulatory
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 603 and 604) impracticable. This rule may
have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small
entities. If we determine this is so, then we will discuss the issues
raised by section 604 of the Regulatory Flexibility Act in our Final
Regulatory Flexibility Act Analysis.
Executive Order 12372
This program/activity is listed in the Catalog of Federal Domestic
Assistance under No. 10.025 and is subject to Executive Order 12372,
which required intergovernmental consultation with State and local
officials. (See 7 CFR part 3015, subpart V.)
Executive Order 12778
This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12778, 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) only requires administrative proceedings
before parties may file suit in court challenging this rule upon the
cancellation of a certificate, limited permit, or compliance agreement.
National Environmental Policy Act
An environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact
have been prepared for this rule. The assessment provides a basis for
the conclusion that the treatment of regulated articles, under the
conditions specified in this rule, will not have a significant impact
on the quality of the human environment. Based on the finding of no
significant impact, the Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service has determined that an environmental impact
statement need not be prepared.
The environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact
were prepared in accordance with: (1) The National Environmental Policy
Act of 1969 (NEPA) (42 U.S.C 4321 et seq.), (2) Regulations on the
Council on Environmental Quality for implementing the procedural
provisions of NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500-1508), (3) USDA regulations
implementing NEPA (7 CFR part 1b), and (4) APHIS' NEPA Implementing
Procedures (7 CFR part 372).
Copies of the environmental assessment and finding of no
significant impact are available for public inspection at USDA, room
1141, South Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue SW.,
Washington, DC, between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday,
except holidays. Persons wishing to inspect copies are requested to
call ahead on (202) 690-2817 to facilitate entry into the reading room.
In addition, copies may be obtained by writing to the individual listed
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
Paperwork Reduction Act
In accordance with section 3507(j) of the Paperwork Reduction Act
of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), the information collection and
recordkeeping requirements included in this interim rule have been
submitted for emergency approval to the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB). OMB has assigned control number 0579-0121 to the information
collection and recordkeeping requirements. Notwithstanding any other
provision of the law, no person is required to respond to, nor shall
any person be subject to a penalty for failure to comply with a
collection of information, subject to the requirements of the Paperwork
Reduction Act, unless that collection of information displays a
currently valid OMB Control Number. Please send written comments to the
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, OMB, Attention: Desk
Officer for APHIS, Washington, DC 20503. Please state that your
comments refer to Docket No. 96-016-5. Please send a copy of your
comments to: (1) Docket No. 96-016-5, Regulatory Analysis and
Development, PPD, APHIS, suite 3C03, 4700 River Road Unit 118,
Riverdale, MD 20737-1238, and (2) Clearance Officer, OIRM, USDA, room
404-W, 14th Street and Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20250.
The paperwork associated with the Karnal bunt program will include
the completion of compliance agreements, certificates, and limited
permits. There will also be requests for inspections. We are soliciting
comments from the public (as well as affected agencies) concerning our
proposed information collection and recordkeeping requirements. We need
this outside input to help us accomplish the following:
(1) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is
necessary for the proper performance of our agency's functions,
including whether the information will have practical utility;
(2) Evaluate the accuracy of our estimate of the burden of the
proposed collection of information, including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used;
(3) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to
be collected; and
(4) Minimize the burden of the information collection on those who
are to respond (such as through the use of appropriate automated,
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic
submission responses).
Estimate of burden: Public reporting burden for this collection of
information is estimated to average 20 minutes per response.
Respondents: State plant regulatory officials, shippers, growers,
and representatives of the plant industry.
Estimated number of respondents: 1,915.
Estimated number of responses per respondent: 3.824.
Estimated total annual burden on respondents: 2,410 hours.
Copies of this information collection can be obtained from:
Clearance Officer, OIRM, USDA, room 404-W, 14th Street and Independence
Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20250.
[[Page 18235]]
List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 301
Agricultural commodities, Plant diseases and pests, Quarantine,
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Transportation.
PART 301--DOMESTIC QUARANTINE NOTICES
Accordingly, 7 CFR part 301 is amended as follows:
1. The authority citation for part 301 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 150bb, 150dd, 150ee, 150ff, 161, 162, and
164-167; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.2(c).
2. In Sec. 301.89-2, paragraphs (e) through (n) are redesignated as
paragraphs (f) through (o), respectively, and a new paragraph (e) is
added, as follows:
Sec. 301.89-2 Regulated articles.
* * * * *
(e) Tilletia indica (Mitra) Mundkur;
* * * * *
3. In Sec. 301.89-3, paragraph (e), the designation of quarantined
areas is amended by adding, in alphabetical order, entries for Imperial
County and Riverside County in California, as follows:
Sec. 301.89-3 Quarantined areas.
* * * * *
(e) * * *
* * * * *
California
Imperial County. The entire county.
Riverside County. That portion of Riverside County in the Blythe
and Ripley areas bounded by a line drawn as follows: Beginning at
the intersection of State Highway 62 and the Riverside-San
Bernardino County line, then east along the Riverside-San Bernardino
County line to its intersection with the California-Arizona State
line; then south along the California-Arizona State line to its
intersection with the Riverside-Imperial County line; then west
along the Riverside-Imperial County line to its intersection with
Graham Pass Road; then northeast along Graham Pass Road to its
intersection with Chuckwalla Valley Road; then west and northwest
along Chuckwalla Valley Road to its intersection with Interstate
Highway 10; then west along Interstate Highway 10 to its
intersection with State Highway 177; then northeast and north along
State Highway 177 to its intersection with State Highway 62; then
northeast along State Highway 62 to the point of beginning.
Done in Washington, DC, this 19th day of April, 1996.
Terry L. Medley,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 96-10260 Filed 4-24-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P
