[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 166 (Monday, August 29, 1994)] [Unknown Section] [Page 0] From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] [FR Doc No: 94-21191] [[Page Unknown]] [Federal Register: August 29, 1994] ----------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Agricultural Marketing Service 7 CFR Part 931 [Docket No. FV94-931-1IFR] Fresh Bartlett Pears Grown in Oregon and Washington; Expenses and Assessment Rate for the 1994-95 Fiscal Year AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA. ACTION: Interim final rule with request for comments. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: This interim final rule authorizes expenses and establishes an assessment rate for the Northwest Fresh Bartlett Pear Marketing Committee (Committee) under Marketing Order No. 931 for the 1994-95 fiscal year. Authorization of this budget enables the Committee to incur expenses that are reasonable and necessary to administer the program. Funds to administer the program are derived from assessments on handlers. DATES: Effective July 1, 1994, through June 30, 1995. Comments received by September 28, 1994, will be considered prior to issuance of a final rule. ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments concerning this action. Comments must be sent in triplicate to the Docket Clerk, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 96456, Room 2523-S, Washington, DC 20090-6456, or by FAX: 202-720-5698. Comments should reference the docket number and the date and page number of this issue of the Federal Register and will be available for public inspection in the Office of the Docket Clerk during regular business hours. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Britthany E. Beadle, Marketing Order Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 96456, Room 2523-S, Washington, DC 20090-6456, telephone: 202-720- 5127; or Teresa L. Hutchinson, Northwest Marketing Field Office, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, Green-Wyatt Federal Building, Room 369, 1220 Southwest Third Avenue, Portland, Oregon 97204, telephone: 503-326-2724. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This rule is issued under Marketing Agreement No. 141 and Marketing Order No. 931, both as amended [7 CFR Part 931], regulating the handling of fresh Bartlett pears grown in Oregon and Washington. 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 interim final rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12778, Civil Justice Reform. Under the marketing order now in effect, Bartlett pears grown in Oregon and Washington are subject to assessments. Funds to administer the Bartlett pear marketing order are derived from such assessments. It is intended that the assessment rate as specified herein will be applicable to all assessable pears during the 1994-95 fiscal year beginning July 1, 1994, and ends June 30, 1995. This interim final 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 8c(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 requesting a modification of the order or to be exempted therefrom. Such 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 in equity to review the Secretary's ruling on the petition, provided a bill in equity is filed not later than 20 days after date of the entry of the ruling. Pursuant to requirements set forth in the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), the Administrator of the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) has considered the economic impact of this rule on small entities. 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 65 handlers regulated under the marketing order each year and approximately 1,800 producers of Bartlett pears. Small agricultural producers have been defined by the Small Business Administration [13 CFR 121.601] as those having annual receipts of less than $500,000, and small agricultural service firms are defined as those whose annual receipts are less than $5,000,000. The majority of Bartlett pear handlers and producers in Oregon and Washington may be classified as small entities. The budget of expenses for the 1994-95 fiscal year was prepared by the Committee, the agency responsible for local administration of the marketing order, and submitted to the Department for approval. The members of the Committee are producers and handlers of Bartlett pears. They are familiar with the Committee's needs and with the costs for goods and services in their local area and are thus in a position to formulate an appropriate budget. The budget was formulated and discussed in a public meeting. Thus, all directly affected persons have had an opportunity to participate and provide input. The assessment rate recommended by the Committee was derived by dividing anticipated expenses by expected shipments of fresh Bartlett pears grown in Oregon and Washington. Because that rate will be applied to actual shipments, it must be established at a rate that will provide sufficient income to pay the Committee's expenses. The Committee met on June 2, 1994, and unanimously recommended total expenses of $96,410 with an assessment rate of $0.02 per standard box or equivalent for the 1994-95 fiscal year. In comparison, 1993-94 budgeted expenses were $112,425, with an approved assessment rate of $0.025 per standard box or equivalent. This represents a $16,015 decrease in expenses and a $0.005 decrease in the assessment rate from the amounts recommended for the current fiscal year. The assessment rate, when applied to anticipated pear shipments of 2,721,886 standard boxes or equivalent, will yield $54,438 in assessment income. Assessment income, combined with $4,000 from other income sources, and $37,972 from the Committee's authorized reserve, will be adequate to cover budgeted expenses. The withdrawal of $37,972 from the Committee's authorized reserve fund will result in no reserve remaining at the end of the 1994-95 fiscal year. Major expense categories for the 1994-95 fiscal year include $42,683 for salaries, $17,597 for unshared contingency, and $4,695 in employee health benefits. While this action will impose some additional costs on handlers, the costs are in the form of uniform assessments on all handlers. Some of the additional costs may be passed on to producers. However, these costs will be offset by the benefits derived by the operation of the marketing order. Therefore, the Administrator of the AMS has determined that this action will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. After consideration of all relevant material presented, including the information and recommendation submitted by the Committee and other available information, it is hereby 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 action until 30 days after publication in the Federal Register because: (1) The Committee needs to have sufficient funds to pay its expenses which are incurred on a continuous basis; (2) the fiscal year began on July 1, 1994, and the marketing order requires that the rate of assessment for the fiscal year apply to all assessable Bartlett pears handled during the fiscal year; (3) handlers are aware of this action which was unanimously recommended by the Committee at a public meeting and is similar to other budget actions issued in past years; and (4) this interim final rule provides a 30-day comment period, and all comments timely received will be considered prior to finalization of this action. List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 931 Marketing agreements, Pears, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements. For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 7 CFR Part 931 is amended as follows: PART 931--FRESH BARTLETT PEARS GROWN IN OREGON AND WASHINGTON 1. The authority citation for 7 CFR Part 931 continues to read as follows: Authority: 7 U.S.C. 601-674. 2. A new Sec. 931.229 is added to read as follows: Note: This section will not appear in the annual Code of Federal Regulations. Sec. 931.229 Expenses and assessment rate. Expenses of $96,410 by the Northwest Fresh Bartlett Pear Marketing Committee, are authorized, and an assessment rate of $0.02 per standard box or equivalent of assessable pears is established for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1995. Unexpended funds may be carried over as a reserve. Eric M. Forman, Deputy Director, Fruit and Vegetable Division. [FR Doc. 94-21191 Filed 8-26-94; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 3410-02-P