Fee Increase for Inspection Services

SUMMARY: The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is proposing to

amend the Federal meat and poultry products inspection regulations to

increase the fees charged by FSIS to provide overtime and holiday

inspection, voluntary inspection, identification, certification, or

laboratory services to meat and poultry establishments. The proposed

fee increases reflect the increased costs of providing these services

due primarily to the increase in salaries of Federal employees

allocated by Congress under the Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act

of 1990.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before: July 27, 1994.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to the Policy Evaluation and Planning

Staff, Attention: Diane Moore, FSIS Hearing Clerk, Room 3171, South

Agriculture Building, Food Safety and Inspection Service, U.S.

Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC 20250-3700. Oral comments as

provided under the Poultry Products Inspection Act should be directed

to Mr. William L. West, (202) 720-3367. (See also ``Comments'' under

Supplementary Information.)

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. William L. West, Director, Budget

and Finance Division, Administrative Management, Food Safety and

Inspection Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC

20250-3700, (202) 720-3367.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Executive Order 12866

This proposed rule has been determined to be not significant for

purposes of Executive Order 12866 and therefore has not been reviewed

by the Office of Management and Budget. The proposed fee increases

reflect the increased costs of providing certain inspection services

due primarily to an increase in salaries of Federal employees allocated

by Congress under the Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act of 1990.

Since FSIS is required to recover the reimbursable portion of the

increase in employee salaries, FSIS is only providing a 30-day comment

period for this proposed rule.

Executive Order 12778

This proposed rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12778,

Civil Justice Reform. This proposed rule is intended to have preemptive

effect with respect to any State or local laws, regulations or policies

which conflict with its provisions or which would otherwise impede its

full implementation. This proposed rule is not intended to have

retroactive effect unless so specified in the EFFECTIVE DATE section of

this preamble. Prior to any judicial challenge to the provisions, all

applicable administrative procedures must be exhausted. Under the

Federal Meat and Poultry Products Inspection Acts, the administrative

procedures are set forth in 7 CFR part 1.

Effect on Small Entities

The Administrator, Food Safety and Inspection Service, has

determined that this action will not have a significant economic impact

on a substantial number of small entities as defined by the Regulatory

Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601). The fees provided for in this document

reflect only a minimal increase in the costs currently borne by those

entities which elect to utilize certain inspection services.

Comments

Interested persons are invited to submit written comments

concerning this proposal. Written comments should be sent to the Policy

Evaluation and Planning Staff and should refer to docket number 94-

013P. Any person desiring an opportunity for oral presentation of views

as provided under the Poultry Products Inspection Act must make such

request to Mr. West so that arrangements may be made for such views to

be presented. A record will be made of all views orally presented. All

comments submitted in response to this proposal will be available for

public inspection in the Policy Office from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.,

Monday through Friday.

Background

Mandatory inspection by Federal inspectors of meat and poultry

slaughtered and/or processed at official establishments is provided for

under the Federal Meat Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 601 et seq.). and the

Poultry Products Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 451 et seq.). Such

inspection is required to ensure the safety, wholesomeness, and proper

labeling of meat and poultry products; the ordinary costs of inspection

are borne by the U.S. Government. However, costs for these inspection

services performed on holidays or on an overtime basis may be incurred

to accommodate the business needs of particular establishments. All of

these costs which are not a part of the mandatory inspection service

are recoverable by the Government.

Each year the fees for certain services rendered to operators of

official meat and poultry establishments, importers, or exporters by

FSIS are reviewed and a cost analysis is performed to determine if such

fees are adequate to recover the cost of providing the services.\1\ The

analysis relates to fees changed in connection with overtime and

holiday inspection, voluntary inspection, identification,

certification, or laboratory services. The proposed new fees discussed

below were determined by an analysis of data on the current cost of

these services and by increases in costs due primarily to an increase

in the salaries of Federal employees allocated by Congress under the

Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act of 1990 which provided an

average FSIS locality pay raise of 3.2 percent in January 1994. Other

increases affecting Federal employees, such as costs for benefits, are

due to the increasing number of employees covered by the Federal

Employees Retirement System in 1994 which is subject to the Federal

Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) tax, and increased health insurance

costs. Based on the Agency's analysis of the costs in providing these

services, FSIS is proposing to increase the fees relating to overtime

and holiday inspection, voluntary inspection, identification,

certification and laboratory services.

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\1\The cost analysis is on file with the FSIS Hearing Clerk.

Copies may be requested free of charge from the FSIS Hearing Clerk,

Room 3171, South Agriculture Building, Food Safety and Inspection

Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC 20250-3700.

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9 CFR 307.5 of the Federal meat inspection regulations provides

that FSIS shall be reimbursed for the cost of meat inspection on

holidays or on an overtime basis at the rate specified in 9 CFR 391.3,

currently $30.72 per hour, per program employee. Similarly, 9 CFR

381.38 of the poultry products inspection regulations provides that

FSIS shall be reimbursed for the cost of poultry inspection on holidays

or on an overtime basis at the rate specified in 9 CFR 391.3, currently

$30.72 per hour, per program employee. FSIS is proposing to increase

the fee set forth in section 391.3 to $31.80 per hour, per program

employee.

FSIS also provides a range of voluntary inspection and

certification services (9 CFR 350.7, 351.8, 351.9, 352.5, 354.101,

355.12, and 362.5); the costs of which are totally recoverable by the

Government. These services, provided under Subchapter B--Voluntary

Inspection and Certification Service--are provided under the

Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946, as amended (7 U.S.C. 1621 et seq.)

to assist in the orderly marketing of various animal products and

byproducts not subject to the Federal Meat Inspection Act or the

Poultry Products Inspection Act.

The base time rate for providing voluntary inspection and

certification services is currently $29.84 per hour, per program

employee, as specified in 9 CFR 391.2. The overtime and holiday rate

for voluntary inspection services is currently $30.72 per hour, per

program employee, as specified in 9 CFR 391.3. As stated above, these

fees would be increased to $31.12 per hour and $31.80 per hour, per

program employee, respectively.

The rate for laboratory services is currently $51.80 per hour, per

program employee, as specified in 9 CFR 391.4. FSIS is proposing to

increase the fee set forth in section 391.4 to $52.04 per hour, per

program employee.

List of Subjects in 9 CFR Part 391

Fees and charges, Meat inspection, Poultry products inspection.

For the reasons set out in the preamble, 9 CFR part 391 is proposed

to be amended as set forth below.

PART 391--FEES AND CHARGES FOR INSPECTION SERVICES

1. The authority citation for part 391 would continue to read as

follows:

Authority: 21 U.S.C. 601 et seq., 460 et seq.; 7 CFR 2.17 (g)

and (i), 2.55; 7 U.S.C. 394, 1622, and 1624.

2. Sections 391.2, 391.3, and 391.4 would be revised to read as

follows:

Sec. 391.2 Base time rate.

The base time rate for inspection services provided pursuant to

Secs. 350.7, 351.8, 351.9, 352.5, 354.101, 355.12, and 362.5 shall be

$31.13 per hour, per program employee.

Sec. 391.3 Overtime and holiday rate.

The overtime and holiday rate for inspection services provided

pursuant to Secs. 307.5, 350.7, 351.8, 351.9, 352.5, 354.101, 355.12,

362.5, and 381.38 shall be $31.80 per hour, per program employee.

Sec. 391.4 Laboratory services rate.

The rate for laboratory services provided pursuant to Secs. 350.7,

351.9, 352.5, 354.101, 355.12, and 362.5 shall be $52.04 per hour, per

program employee.

Done at Washington, DC, on June 22, 1994.

Patricia Jensen,

Acting Assistant Secretary, Marketing and Inspection Services.

[FR Doc. 94-15504 Filed 6-24-94; 8:45 am]

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