[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 171 (Friday, September 3, 1999)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 48243-48245]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-23012]
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Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
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This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains regulatory documents
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Federal Register / Vol. 64, No. 171 / Friday, September 3, 1999 /
Rules and Regulations
[[Page 48243]]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Marketing Service
7 CFR Part 955
[Docket No. FV99-955-1 IFR]
Vidalia Onions Grown in Georgia; Fiscal Period Change
AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.
ACTION: Interim final rule with request for comments.
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SUMMARY: This rule changes the fiscal period under the Vidalia onion
marketing order (order) to January 1-December 31 from September 16-
September 15. It also extends the current fiscal period which began
September 16, 1998, through December 31, 1999. The order is
administered locally by the Vidalia Onion Committee (Committee), which
recommends its program expenses on a fiscal period basis. An assessment
rate, levied on fresh Vidalia onion shipments, is established to pay
those expenses. When the current fiscal period was established, it
coincided with the Vidalia onion marketing season which ran from April
through June. Due largely to the use of Controlled Atmosphere (CA)
storage, Vidalia onions are now shipped through the fall. This action
will make the fiscal period consistent with the current marketing
season.
DATES: Effective September 7, 1999; comments received by November 2,
1999 will be considered prior to issuance of a final rule.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments
concerning this rule. Comments must be sent to the Docket Clerk, Fruit
and Vegetable Programs, AMS, USDA, room 2525-S, PO Box 96456,
Washington, DC 20090-6456; Fax: (202) 720-5698; or E-mail:
moab.docketclerk@usda.gov. All comments should reference the docket
number and the date and page number of this issue of the Federal
Register and will be made available for public inspection in the Office
of the Docket Clerk during regular business hours.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: William G. Pimental, Southeast
Marketing Field Office, F&V, AMS, USDA, PO Box 2276, Winter Haven, FL
33883-2276; telephone: (941) 299-4770, Fax: (941) 299-5169; or George
Kelhart, Technical Advisor, Marketing Order Administration Branch,
Fruit and Vegetable Programs, AMS, USDA, room 2525-S, PO Box 96456,
Washington, DC 20090-6456; telephone: (202) 720-2491, Fax: (202) 720-
5698.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This rule is issued under Marketing
Agreement and Order No. 955 (7 CFR part 955) regulating the handling of
Vidalia onions grown in Georgia, hereinafter referred to as the
``order.'' The marketing agreement and order are effective under the
Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, as amended (7 U.S.C. 601-
674), hereinafter referred to as the ``Act.''
The Department of Agriculture (Department) is issuing this rule in
conformance with Executive Order 12866.
This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988, Civil
Justice Reform. This rule is not intended to have retroactive effect.
This rule will not preempt any State or local laws, regulations, or
policies, unless they present an irreconcilable conflict with this
rule.
The Act provides that administrative proceedings must be exhausted
before parties may file suit in court. Under section 608c(15)(A) of the
Act, any handler subject to an order may file with the Secretary a
petition stating that the order, any provision of the order, or any
obligation imposed in connection with the order is not in accordance
with law and request a modification of the order or to be exempted
therefrom. A handler is afforded the opportunity for a hearing on the
petition. After the hearing the Secretary would rule on the petition.
The Act provides that the district court of the United States in any
district in which the handler is an inhabitant, or has his or her
principal place of business, has jurisdiction to review the Secretary's
ruling on the petition, provided an action is filed not later than 20
days after the date of the entry of the ruling.
Section 955.40 of the order provides authority for the Committee to
incur expenses that are reasonable and necessary to operate the
program. The order also provides that these expenses be paid by
assessments levied on fresh shipments of Vidalia onions. The Committee
prepares an annual budget of expenses on a fiscal year basis. Section
955.13 of the order defines ``fiscal period'' to mean September 16
through September 15 of the following year, or such other period that
may be recommended by the Committee and approved by the Secretary.
This rule changes the fiscal period to January 1 through December
31, making it consistent with the current Vidalia onion marketing
season. It also extends the 1998-99 fiscal period, currently September
16, 1998 through September 15, 1999, through December 31, 1999. These
changes were unanimously recommended by the Committee at its November
19, 1998, meeting.
When the order was first issued in 1989, the harvesting and
marketing season for Vidalia onions ran from April through June. The
September 16 through September 15 fiscal period thus covered the entire
marketing season and was appropriate for budget planning purposes. Over
the past decade, changes in the industry have extended the marketing
season. In particular, the adoption of Controlled Atmosphere (CA)
storage by three-fourths of the handlers has allowed them to
economically store Vidalia onions through December. While there are
some added storage costs and losses due to shrinkage, these costs are
more than offset by prices received for Vidalia onions during the
holiday season (November and December).
The Committee's current annual budget is $373,577, and the
assessment rate is set at 7 cents per 50-pound bag. Major expenses
include $131,600 for marketing and promotion, $75,000 for research,
$135,127 for administrative expenses, and $31,850 for compliance. It is
appropriate that the Committee plan and finance its activities
consistent with the Vidalia onion marketing season.
The Committee will begin operating under the revised fiscal period
on January 1, 2000. Therefore, this rule also extends the current
fiscal period
[[Page 48244]]
through December 31, 1999. This will provide for continuous operation
of the program. The Committee will revise its current budget of
expenses to cover the 3\1/2\ months being added to the current fiscal
period.
The fiscal period change is designed to improve the functioning and
operation of the program. The majority of handlers maintain their
business records on a calendar year basis. Therefore, this rule will
better reflect current industry practices.
Pursuant to requirements set forth in the Regulatory Flexibility
Act (RFA), the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) has considered the
economic impact of this action on small entities. Accordingly, AMS has
prepared this initial regulatory flexibility analysis.
The purpose of the RFA is to fit regulatory actions to the scale of
business subject to such actions in order that small businesses will
not be unduly or disproportionately burdened. Marketing orders issued
pursuant to the Act, and the rules issued thereunder, are unique in
that they are brought about through group action of essentially small
entities acting on their own behalf. Thus, both statutes have small
entity orientation and compatibility.
There are approximately 86 handlers of Vidalia onions who are
subject to regulation under the order and approximately 133 Vidalia
onion producers in the regulated area. Small agricultural service firms
have been defined by the Small Business Administration (SBA) (13 CFR
121.601) as those having annual receipts of less than $5,000,000, and
small agricultural producers are defined as those having annual
receipts of less than $500,000.
During the 1996-97 fiscal year, about 14 percent of the handlers
shipped about 2,771,000 50-pound bags of Vidalia onions, for an average
of about 197,930 bags. The remaining 86 percent of the handlers shipped
about 1,262,940 bags, for an average of about 14,685 bags. Using an
average f.o.b. price of $12.80 per bag, the majority of handlers could
be considered small businesses under SBA's definition. Likewise, the
majority of Vidalia onion growers may be classified as small
businesses.
Section 955.40 of the order provides authority for the Committee to
incur expenses that are reasonable and necessary to operate the
program. The order also provides that these expenses be paid by
assessments levied on fresh shipments of Vidalia onions. The Committee
prepares an annual budget of expenses on a fiscal year basis. Section
955.13 of the order defines ``fiscal period'' to mean September 16
through September 15 of the following year, or such other period that
may be recommended by the Committee and approved by the Secretary.
This rule changes the fiscal period to January 1 through December
31, making it consistent with the current Vidalia onion marketing
season. It also extends the 1998-99 fiscal period, currently September
16, 1998, through September 15, 1999, through December 31, 1999. These
changes were unanimously recommended by the Committee at its November
19, 1998, meeting.
When the order was first issued in 1989, the harvesting and
marketing season for Vidalia onions ran from April through June. The
September 16 through September 15 fiscal period thus covered the entire
marketing season and was appropriate for budget and planning purposes.
Over the past decade, changes in the industry have extended the
marketing season. In particular, the adoption of Controlled Atmosphere
(CA) storage by three-fourths of the handlers has allowed them to
economically store Vidalia onions through December. While there are
some added storage costs and losses due to shrinkage, these costs are
more than offset by prices received for Vidalia onions during the
holiday season (November and December).
The Committee's current annual budget is $373,577, and the
assessment rate is set at 7 cents per 50-pound bag. Major expenses
include $131,600 for marketing and promotion, $75,000 for research,
$135,127 for administrative expenses, and $31,850 for compliance. It is
appropriate that the Committee plan and finance its activities
consistent with the Vidalia onion marketing season.
The Committee will begin operating under the revised fiscal period
on January 1, 2000. Therefore, this rule also extends the current
fiscal period through December 31, 1999. This will provide for
continuous operation of the program. The Committee will revise its
current budget of expenses to cover the 3\1/2\ months being added to
the current fiscal period.
This rule is a change to Committee operations which would not
impose any new requirements on Vidalia onion handlers. It could, on the
other hand, simplify handler operations by putting the program fiscal
period on the same basis as handlers' internal reporting and
recordkeeping procedures.
The Committee discussed the alternative of leaving the fiscal
period as it presently exists, but unanimously concluded that this
change would improve program operations.
This rule will not impose any additional reporting or recordkeeping
requirements on either small or large Vidalia onion handlers. As with
all Federal marketing order programs, reports and forms are
periodically reviewed to reduce information requirements and
duplication by industry and public sectors. In addition, the Department
has not identified any relevant Federal rules that duplicate, overlap
or conflict with this rule.
Further, the Committee's meeting was widely publicized throughout
the Vidalia onion industry and all interested persons were invited to
attend the meeting and participate in Committee deliberations. Like all
Committee meetings, the November 19, 1998, meeting was a public meeting
and all entities, both large and small, were able to express their
views on this issue. The Committee itself is composed of nine members:
eight producers and one public member.
Finally, interested persons are invited to submit information on
the regulatory and informational impacts of this action on small
businesses.
Small businesses may request information on compliance with this
regulation, or obtain a guide on complying with fruit, vegetable, and
specialty crop marketing agreements and orders by contacting Jay
Guerber, Marketing Order Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable
Programs, AMS, USDA, room 2525-S, PO Box 96456, Washington, DC 20090-
6456; telephone: (202) 720-2491, Fax: (202) 720-5698, or E-mail:
Jay.Guerber@usda.gov. You may view the marketing agreement and order
small business compliance guide at the following web site: http://
www.ams.usda.gov/fv/moab.html.
This rule invites comments on these changes to the fiscal period
currently prescribed under the order. Any comments received will be
considered prior to finalization of this rule.
After consideration of all relevant material presented, including
the Committee's recommendation, and other information, it is found that
this rule, as hereinafter set forth, will tend to effectuate the
declared policy of the Act.
Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553, it is also found and determined upon good
cause that it is impracticable, unnecessary, and contrary to the public
interest to give preliminary notice prior to putting this rule into
effect and that good cause exists for not postponing the effective date
of this rule until 30 days after publication in the Federal Register
because: (1) The 1998-99 fiscal period ends on September 15, 1999, and
this action is needed to be taken as soon as possible to assure
continuity in
[[Page 48245]]
Committee operations; (2) handlers are aware of this action which was
unanimously recommended by the Committee at a public meeting; and (3)
this interim final rule provides a 60-day comment period, and all
comments timely received will be considered prior to finalization of
this rule.
List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 955
Marketing agreements, Onions, Reporting and recordkeeping
requirements.
For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 7 CFR part 955 is
amended as follows:
PART 955--VIDALIA ONIONS GROWN IN GEORGIA
1. The authority citation for 7 CFR part 955 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 601-674.
2. A new Subpart--Rules and Regulations is added preceding
Sec. 955.101 to read as follows:
Subpart--Rules and Regulations
3. A new Sec. 955.113 is added to read as follows:
Sec. 955.113 Fiscal period.
Pursuant to Sec. 955.13, fiscal period shall mean the period
beginning January 1 and ending December 31 of each year, except that
the fiscal period that began on September 16, 1998, shall end on
December 31, 1999.
Dated: August 30, 1999.
Robert C. Keeney
Deputy Administrator, Fruit and Vegetable Programs.
[FR Doc. 99-23012 Filed 9-2-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P
