[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 113 (Thursday, June 12, 1997)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 32051-32053]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-15436]
========================================================================
Proposed Rules
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
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.
========================================================================
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 113 / Thursday, June 12, 1997 /
Proposed Rules
[[Page 32051]]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
9 CFR Parts 94 and 96
[Docket No. 97-002-1]
Change in Disease Status of Italy, Except the Island of Sardinia,
Because of African Swine Fever
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: We are proposing to declare Italy, with the exception of the
island of Sardinia, free of African swine fever. This proposed action
appears to be appropriate because there have been no confirmed
outbreaks of African swine fever in Italy, except on the island
Sardinia, since 1983. This proposed action would relieve certain
restrictions on the importation into the United States of pork and pork
products from all regions of Italy except Sardinia. However, because
hog cholera and swine vesicular disease exist in Italy, and because
Italy, as a member state of the European Union, has certain trade
practices regarding live swine and pork and pork products that are less
restrictive than are acceptable to the United States, the importation
into the United States of live swine and pork and pork products from
Italy would continue to be subject to certain restrictions.
DATES: Consideration will be given only to comments received on or
before August 11, 1997.
ADDRESSES: Please send an original and three copies of your comments to
Docket No. 97-002-1, 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. 97-002-1. 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: 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: jcougill@aphis.usda.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The regulations in 9 CFR part 94 (referred to below as the
regulations) prohibit or restrict the importation into the United
States of specified animals and animal products in order to prevent the
introduction into the United States of various animal diseases,
including rinderpest, foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), bovine spongiform
encephalopathy, swine vesicular disease, hog cholera, and African swine
fever (ASF). These are dangerous and destructive communicable diseases
of ruminants and swine.
Section 94.8 of the regulations states that ASF exists or is
reasonably believed to exist in all the countries of Africa and in
Brazil, Cuba, Haiti, Italy, Malta, and Portugal. Paragraph (a) of
Sec. 94.8 provides that no pork or pork products may be imported into
the United States from those countries (referred to below as ASF
countries) unless the pork or pork product:
Is fully cooked in accordance with Sec. 94.8(a)(1); or
Is not otherwise prohibited importation into the United
States and is consigned directly from the U.S. port of entry to an
approved establishment for further processing, as provided by
Sec. 94.8(a)(2); or
Is derived from swine raised and slaughtered in a country
where ASF is not known or believed to exist and is handled and
processed in accordance with Sec. 94.8(a)(3).
Also, Sec. 94.17 provides, in part, that dry-cured pork products
may be imported into the United States from ASF countries if the dry-
cured pork products meet the conditions specified in that section.
In addition to the restrictions on pork and pork products contained
in the regulations in part 94, live domestic swine from ASF countries
may not be imported into the United States because the regulations in 9
CFR 92.505(a) require, among other things, that live domestic swine be
accompanied by a certificate showing that the entire country of origin
of the swine is free of ASF and other specified diseases. The
importation of swine casings from ASF countries is likewise prohibited
by 9 CFR 96.2(a) unless the swine casings originated in a country free
of ASF and were processed in the ASF country at a facility that meets
the criteria of Sec. 94.8(a)(3)(iv) of the regulations.
The Government of Italy has requested that the U.S. Department of
Agriculture recognize Italy, with the exception of the island of
Sardinia, as free of ASF. We will consider declaring a country free of
ASF if there have been no reported cases of the disease in that country
for at least the previous 1-year period. The last case of ASF in Italy,
outside of the island of Sardinia, occurred in 1983.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has reviewed
the documentation submitted by the Government of Italy in support of
its request, and a team of APHIS officials traveled to Italy in
February 1997 to conduct an on-site evaluation of Italy's animal health
program with regard to ASF. The evaluation consisted of a review of
Italy's veterinary services, laboratory and diagnostic procedures,
vaccination practices, and administration of laws and regulations
intended to prevent the introduction of communicable animal diseases
into Italy, and from Sardinia into the rest of Italy. (Details
concerning the February 1997 on-site evaluation are available upon
written request from the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT.) After reviewing the documentation provided by Italy and the
data gathered during the on-site visit by APHIS officials, we believe
that Italy, with the exception of Sardinia, qualifies to be recognized
as free of ASF.
Therefore, we are proposing to amend Sec. 94.8 of the regulations
by removing Italy, except the island of Sardinia, from the list of ASF
countries. This proposed action would result in pork and pork products
from all parts of Italy except Sardinia no longer being subject to the
restrictions found in Sec. 94.8 of the regulations. Another effect of
this proposed action would be that swine
[[Page 32052]]
casings that originated in or were processed in any region of Italy
other than Sardinia would no longer be subject to the restrictions in 9
CFR 96.2(a).
However, Italy is still considered to be affected with hog cholera
and swine vesicular disease, so pork and pork products from anywhere in
Italy offered for importation into the United States would remain
subject to the restrictions in Sec. 94.9 for hog cholera and in
Sec. 94.12 for swine vesicular disease. Similarly, dry-cured pork
products from Italy would continue to be subject to the regulations in
Sec. 94.17 due to hog cholera and swine vesicular disease. In addition,
pork and pork products from Italy would continue to be subject to the
restrictions in Sec. 94.11 because Italy is one of the countries listed
in Sec. 94.11(a) that have been declared free of rinderpest and FMD,
but from which the importation of all meat and other animal products is
restricted due to the nature of their trade with countries affected
with rinderpest or FMD or because they have a common land border with a
country affected with rinderpest or FMD. Finally, declaring all of
Italy except Sardinia free of ASF would not relieve any of the current
restrictions in 9 CFR part 92 on the importation into the United States
of live swine from Italy because Italy remains affected with hog
cholera and swine vesicular disease.
Miscellaneous
The regulations in Sec. 94.8 and Sec. 96.2 refer in several
instances to ``a country'' or ``any country'' listed in Sec. 94.8 as
being affected with ASF. Because this proposed rule would designate
only a portion of Italy--i.e., the island of Sardinia--as being
affected with ASF, it would no longer be accurate to refer to
``countries'' listed in Sec. 94.8. Therefore, for the purposes of
accuracy and consistency, we would amend those sections to include the
words ``or part of a country'' after each reference to countries listed
in Sec. 94.8.
We are also proposing to redesignate the footnotes in part 94 so
that the footnotes would be numbered consecutively by part, rather than
by section. We are also proposing to amend Sec. 94.17(a) to correct a
reference to ``paragraph (i) of this subpart'' by replacing it with a
reference to ``paragraph (i) of this section.''
Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act
This proposed rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12866.
The rule has been determined to be not significant for the purposes of
Executive Order 12866 and, therefore, has not been reviewed by the
Office of Management and Budget.
This proposed rule would amend the regulations in part 94 by
removing Italy, except the island of Sardinia, from the list of
countries where ASF exists or is reasonably believed to exist. This
action would relieve certain restrictions on the importation of pork
and pork products into the United States from all areas of Italy except
the island of Sardinia. However, because hog cholera and swine
vesicular disease exist in Italy, and because Italy, as a member state
of the European Union, has certain trade practices regarding live swine
and pork and pork products that are less restrictive than are
acceptable to the United States, the importation into the United States
of live swine and pork and pork products from Italy would continue to
be subject to restrictions. For this reason, no live swine, or fresh,
chilled, or frozen pork would be imported from Italy as a result of
this rule change.
Entities in the United States likely to be affected by this
proposed rule are those entities engaged in the production of swine and
processed pork products. According to the Small Business Administration
(SBA) definition, a ``small entity'' in the production of swine is an
entity whose total annual sales are less than $0.5 million. Under this
definition, approximately 96.3 percent of domestic producers are
considered to be small entities. According to the SBA definition, a
small entity in the production of pork products, including meat packing
plants, is an entity employing fewer than 500 workers. In 1992, the
most recent year for which complete figures are available, over 95
percent of pork processors of all types were considered small entities.
It is possible that imports of processed pork products would be
affected if this proposed rule is adopted, but we believe any change
would be minimal. Italy has not been declared free of swine vesicular
disease or hog cholera, so there would continue to be restrictions on
the importation into the United States of pork and pork products,
including dry-cured pork products, from anywhere in Italy. Given those
continuing restrictions, we believe any potential increase in imports
of processed pork products derived from Italian swine would be minimal.
The economic impact of a slight increase in those imports on U.S. swine
producers and processors of pork and pork products is likewise expected
to be minimal.
Under these circumstances, the Administrator of the Animal and
Plant Health Inspection Service has determined that this action would
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small
entities.
Executive Order 12988
This proposed rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988,
Civil Justice Reform. If this proposed rule is adopted: (1) All State
and local laws and regulations that are inconsistent with this rule
will be preempted; (2) no retroactive effect will be given to this
rule; and (3) administrative proceedings will not be required before
parties may file suit in court challenging this rule.
Paperwork Reduction Act
This proposed 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
9 CFR Part 94
Animal diseases, Imports, Livestock, Meat and meat products, Milk,
Poultry and poultry products, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
9 CFR Part 96
Imports, Livestock, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Accordingly, 9 CFR parts 94 and 96 would be 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 would continue 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).
Sec. 94.4 [Amended]
2. In Sec. 94.4, in the introductory text of paragraph (b)(8) and
in paragraph (b)(8)(i)(C), footnotes 1 and 2 and their references in
the text would be redesignated as footnotes 2 and 3, respectively.
Sec. 94.6 [Amended]
3. Section 94.6 would be amended as follows:
a. In paragraph (c)(2), footnote 1 and its reference in the text
would be redesignated as footnote 4.
b. In the introductory text of paragraph (d), footnote 2 and its
[[Page 32053]]
reference in the text would be redesignated as footnote 5.
c. In paragraph (d)(1)(ix)(C)(1), footnote 3 and its reference in
the text would be redesignated as footnote 6.
Sec. 94.8 [Amended]
4. Section 94.8 would be amended as follows:
a. In the introductory text of the section, footnote 1 and its
reference in the text would be redesignated as footnote 7, and, in the
text of newly redesignated footnote 7, the words ``or a part of a
country'' would be added after the word ``country'' the first time it
appears.
b. In the introductory text of the section, the words ``All the
countries of Africa, Brazil, Cuba, Haiti, Italy, Malta, and Portugal''
would be removed and the words ``All the countries of Africa; Brazil,
Cuba, Haiti, Malta, and Portugal; and the island of Sardinia, Italy''
would be added in their place.
c. In the introductory text of paragraph (a), the words ``or part
of a country'' would be added after the word ``country''.
d. In paragraph (a)(3)(i)(A), the words ``or part of a country''
would be added after the word ``country''.
e. In paragraph (a)(3)(i)(B), footnote 2 and its reference in the
text would be redesignated as footnote 8, and the words ``country
listed'' would be removed and the words ``country or part of a country
listed'' would be added in their place.
f. In paragraph (a)(3)(iv)(A), the words ``or parts of countries''
would be added after the word ``countries''.
g. In paragraph (a)(3)(v), the words ``or part of a country'' would
be added after the word ``country''.
h. In paragraph (c), the words ``or part of a country'' would be
added after the word ``country''.
Sec. 94.9 [Amended]
5. In Sec. 94.9, paragraph (a), footnote 1 and its reference in the
text would be redesignated as footnote 9, and in paragraph (b)(3)
footnote 2 and its reference in the text would be redesignated as
footnote 10.
Sec. 94.12 [Amended]
6. In Sec. 94.12, paragraph (b)(1)(iii)(B), footnote 1 and its
reference in the text would be redesignated as footnote 11, and in
paragraph (b)(3) footnote 2 and its reference in the text would be
redesignated as footnote 12.
Sec. 94.16 [Amended]
7. In Sec. 94.16, paragraph (b)(2), footnote 1 and its eight
references in the text would be redesignated as footnote 13.
Sec. 94.17 [Amended]
8. In Sec. 94.17, in paragraph (a), the word ``subpart'' would be
removed and the word ``section'' would be added in its place, and in
paragraph (e), footnote 1 and its reference in the text would be
redesignated as footnote 14.
Sec. 94.18 [Amended]
9. In Sec. 94.18, in paragraph (c)(2), footnote 1 and its reference
in the text would be redesignated as footnote 15, and in paragraph
(d)(1), footnote 2 and its reference in the text would be redesignated
as footnote 16.
PART 96--RESTRICTION OF IMPORTATIONS OF FOREIGN ANIMAL CASINGS
OFFERED FOR ENTRY INTO THE UNITED STATES
10. The authority citation for part 96 would continue to read as
follows:
Authority: 21 U.S.C. 111, 136, and 136a; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and
371.2(d).
Sec. 96.2 [Amended]
11. In Sec. 96.2, paragraph (a) would be amended by adding the
words ``or part of a country'' after the word ``country'' each time it
appears.
Done in Washington, DC, this 5th day of June 1997.
Bobby R. Acord,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 97-15436 Filed 6-11-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P
