E7-8573. Vidalia Onions Grown in Georgia; Continuance Referendum

AGENCY:

Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION:

Referendum order.

SUMMARY:

This document directs that a referendum be conducted among eligible growers of Vidalia onions in Georgia, to determine whether they favor continuance of the marketing order regulating the handling of Vidalia onions grown in the production area.

DATES:

The referendum will be conducted from September 10 to September 28, 2007. To vote in this referendum, growers must have been producing Vidalia onions within the designated production area in Georgia during the period January 1, 2006, through December 31, 2006.

ADDRESSES:

Copies of the marketing order may be obtained from the office of the referendum agents at the Southeast Marketing Field Office, Marketing Order Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Division, Agricultural Marketing Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 799 Overlook Dr., Suite A, Winter Haven, FL 33884-1671, Fax: [phone], or the Office of the Docket Clerk, Marketing Order Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Programs, AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., STOP 0237, Washington, DC 20250-0237; Fax: [phone], or Internet: http://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Doris Jamieson, Marketing Specialist, or Christian D. Nissen, Regional Manager, Southeast Marketing Field Office, Marketing Order Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Programs, AMS, USDA; Telephone: [phone], Fax: [phone] or E-mail: [e-mail] or [e-mail], respectively.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Pursuant to Marketing Agreement and Order No. 955 (7 CFR part 955), hereinafter referred to as the “order,” and the applicable provisions of the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, as amended (7 U.S.C. 601-674), hereinafter referred to as the “Act,” it is hereby directed that a referendum be conducted to ascertain whether continuance of the order is favored by the growers. The referendum shall be conducted from September 10 to September 28, 2007, among Vidalia onion growers in the production area. Only growers that were engaged in the production of Vidalia onions in Georgia, during the period of January 1 to December 31, 2006, may participate in the continuance referendum.

USDA has determined that continuance referenda are an effective means for determining whether growers favor continuation of marketing order programs. USDA would consider termination of the order if less than two-thirds of the growers voting in the referendum, and growers of less than two-thirds of the volume of Vidalia onions represented in the referendum favor continuance. In evaluating the merits of continuance versus termination, USDA will consider the results of the continuance referendum and other relevant information regarding operation of the order. USDA will evaluate the order's relative benefits and disadvantages to growers, handlers, and consumers to determine whether continuing the order would tend to effectuate the declared policy of the Act.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), the ballot materials to be used in the referendum herein ordered, are currently approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), under OMB No. 0581-0178, Vegetable and Specialty Crops. It has been estimated that it will take an average of 20 minutes for each of the approximately 101 growers of Vidalia onions in Georgia to cast a ballot. Participation is voluntary. Ballots postmarked after September 28, 2007, will not be included in the vote tabulation.

Christian D. Nissen and Doris Jamieson of the Southeast Marketing Field Office, Fruit and Vegetable Programs, AMS, USDA, are hereby designated as the referendum agents of the Secretary of Agriculture to conduct this referendum. The procedure applicable to the referendum shall be the “Procedure for the Conduct of Referenda in Connection With Marketing Orders for Fruits, Vegetables, and Nuts Pursuant to the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, as Amended” (7 CFR part 900.400 et seq).

Ballots will be mailed to all growers of record and may also be obtained from the referendum agents, or from their appointees.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 955

• Marketing agreements
• Onions
• Reporting and recordkeeping requirements

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 601-674.

Dated: May 1, 2007.

Lloyd C. Day,

Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service.