[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 87 (Tuesday, May 6, 2014)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 25661-25662]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-10375]
========================================================================
Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains regulatory documents
having general applicability and legal effect, most of which are keyed
to and codified in the Code of Federal Regulations, which is published
under 50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.
The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by the Superintendent of Documents.
Prices of new books are listed in the first FEDERAL REGISTER issue of each
week.
========================================================================
Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 87 / Tuesday, May 6, 2014 / Rules and
Regulations
[[Page 25661]]
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Commodity Credit Corporation
7 CFR Part 1487
RIN 0551-AA71
Technical Assistance for Specialty Crops
AGENCY: Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) and Commodity Credit
Corporation (CCC), USDA.
ACTION: Final rule.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This final rule amends an existing provision in the
regulations for the Technical Assistance for Specialty Crops Program
(TASC). Section 3205 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 enacted on
February 7, 2014, amended the existing TASC statute by striking
``related barriers to trade'' and inserting ``technical barriers to
trade''. This rule makes the corresponding change to the TASC
regulations.
DATE: Effective June 5, 2014.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mark Slupek at (202) 720-4327, fax at
(202) 720-9361, or by email at: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Executive Order 12866
This rule is issued in conformance with Executive Order 12866. It
has been determined to be not significant for the purposes of Executive
Order 12866 and has not been reviewed by the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB). A cost-benefit assessment of this rule was not completed.
Executive Order 12988
This rule has been reviewed in accordance with Executive Order
12988. This rule does not preempt State or local laws, regulations, or
policies unless they present an irreconcilable conflict with this rule.
This rule would not be retroactive.
Executive Order 12372
This program is not subject to Executive Order 12372, which
requires intergovernmental consultation with State and local officials.
See 7 CFR part 3015, subpart V, and the related notice published at 48
FR 29115 (June 24, 1983).
Executive Order 13175
This rule does not have tribal implications as specified by
Executive Order 13175 (65 FR 67249, November 9, 2000) that will preempt
Tribal law.
Executive Order 13132
This rule does not have any substantial direct effect on States, on
the relationship between the Federal government and the States, or on
the distribution of power and responsibilities among the various levels
of government, nor does this rule impose substantial direct compliance
costs on State and local governments. Therefore, consultation with the
States was not required.
Regulatory Flexibility Act
The Regulatory Flexibility Act does not apply to this rule because
CCC is not required by 5 U.S.C. 553 or any other law to publish a
notice of proposed rulemaking with respect to the subject matter of
this rule.
Environmental Assessment
CCC has determined that this rule does not constitute a major State
or Federal action that would significantly affect the human or natural
environment, consistent with the regulations implementing the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), 40 CFR parts 1500-1508. Therefore, no
environmental assessment or environmental impact statement will be
prepared.
Unfunded Mandates
Although CCC is publishing this as a final rule, Title II of the
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA) does not apply to this rule
because this rule contains no unfunded mandates as defined in section
202 of UMRA. Nor does this rule potentially affect small governments or
contain significant Federal intergovernmental mandates.
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, CCC has
previously received approval from OMB with respect to the information
collection required to support this program. The information collection
is described below:
Title: Technical Assistance for Specialty Crops.
OMB Control Number: 0551-0038.
E-Government Act Compliance
CCC is committed to complying with the E-Government Act to promote
the use of the Internet and other information technologies to provide
increased opportunities for citizen access to Government information
and services and for other purposes. The forms, regulations, and other
information collection activities required to be utilized by a person
subject to this rule are available at http://www.fas.usda.gov.
Background
This final rule amends the regulations at 7 CFR part 1487
applicable to the TASC program. The Farm Security and Rural Investment
Act of 2002, which was reauthorized by the Food, Conservation, and
Energy Act of 2008, directed CCC to establish a program to provide
mandatory funding to assist U.S. organizations to undertake projects
that address sanitary, phytosanitary, and related barriers that
prohibit or threaten the export of U.S. specialty crops. The Foreign
Agricultural Service (FAS), which administers the TASC program on
behalf of CCC, provides grant funds as direct assistance to U.S.
organizations.
In addressing sanitary and phytosanitary trade barriers, FAS has
provided TASC funding for projects such as pre-clearance programs,
export protocol and work support plans, pest and disease research, the
development of pest lists, field surveys, seminars and other plant
health related projects. Until the passage of the Agricultural Act of
2014 (Pub. L. 113-79), certain export barriers such as quality or
packaging issues and environmental sustainability labeling requirements
could not be addressed under the TASC program because, although
legitimate export barriers, they did not appear to meet the requirement
of being related to a sanitary or phytosanitary barrier to trade.
Industry groups requested Congress amend the law to broaden the types
of trade barriers eligible under TASC. Section 3205 of the Agriculture
[[Page 25662]]
Act of 2014 amended the TASC statute by striking ``related barriers to
trade'' and inserting ``technical barriers to trade'' in 7 U.S.C.
5680(b).
Notice and Comment
In general, the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 551 et.al)
requires that a notice of proposed rulemaking be published in the
Federal Register and interested persons be given an opportunity to
participate in the rulemaking through submission of written data,
views, or arguments with or without opportunity for oral presentation,
except when the rule involves a matter relating to public property,
loans, grants, benefits, or contracts. Because this rule involves
grants and is a minor administrative change with no discretionary
interpretation of law possible, CCC is publishing this rule without
opportunity for public comment. The change will allow TASC funding of
projects that address technical barriers to trade that are not related
to any sanitary or phytosanitary barrier. In the past, the TASC program
has been undersubscribed, while significant, but ineligible, trade
barriers for specialty crops were unable to be addressed through the
program. The specialty crops industry will now be able to use the
program to fund a broader range of projects that all have the same
underlying goal of increasing U.S. specialty crop exports. This change
will increase the number of proposals that qualify for the program.
List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 1487
Agricultural commodities, Exports, Specialty crops.
For the reasons set out in the preamble, 7 CFR part 1487 is amended
as follows:
PART 1487--TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE FOR SPECIALTY CROPS
0
1. The authority citation for part 1487 continues to read as follows:
Authority: Sec. 3205 of Pub. L. 107-171.
0
2. Revise Sec. 1487.2 to read as follows:
Sec. 1487.2 What is the TASC program?
Under the TASC program, CCC, an agency and instrumentality of the
United States within the Department of Agriculture, provides funds to
eligible organizations, on a grant basis, to implement activities that
are intended to address a sanitary, phytosanitary, or technical barrier
that prohibits or threatens the export of U.S. specialty crops that are
currently available on a commercial basis. The TASC program is intended
to benefit the represented industry rather than a specific company or
brand. This program is administered by FAS.
Signed at Washington, DC, on the 22nd of April, 2014.
Bryce Quick,
Acting Administrator, Foreign Agricultural Service, and Vice President,
Commodity Credit Corporation.
[FR Doc. 2014-10375 Filed 5-5-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-10-P