Watermelon Research and Promotion Plan; Rules and Regulations; Realignment of Districts

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Part 1210

RIN 0581-AB08

[FV-93-705PR]

Watermelon Research and Promotion Plan; Rules and Regulations;

Realignment of Districts

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: This proposed rule would change the boundaries of five of the

seven districts established under the Watermelon Research and Promotion

Plan (Plan) to apportion membership on the National Watermelon

Promotion Board (Board). This action is necessary to reflect shifts in

production since the original districts were established. The Plan

requires the periodic realignment of the districts based on shifts in

production to ensure equitable representation of producers and handlers

on the Board.

DATES: Comments must be received by February 28, 1994.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments

concerning this proposed rule to: Docket Clerk, Fruit and Vegetable

Division, AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 96456, room 2535-S, Washington, DC 20090-

6456. Three copies of all written materials should be submitted, and

they will be made available for public inspection in the Office of the

Docket Clerk during regular working hours. All comments should

reference the docket number of this issue of the Federal Register.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sonia N. Jimenez, Research and

Promotion Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, P.O. Box

96456, room 2535-S, Washington, DC 20090-6456; telephone (202) 720-

9916.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This proposed rule is issued under the

Watermelon Research and Promotion Plan (Plan) (7 CFR part 1210). The

Plan is authorized under the Watermelon Research and Promotion Act (7

U.S.C. 4901-4916), hereinafter referred to as the Act.

The Department is issuing this proposed rule in conformance with

Executive Order 12866.

This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12778, Civil

Justice Reform. It is not intended to have retroactive effect. This

rule would 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 1650 of the Act, a

person subject to the Plan may file a petition with the Secretary

stating that the Plan or any provision of the Plan, or any obligation

imposed in connection with the Plan, is not in accordance with law and

requesting a modification of the Plan or an exemption from the Plan.

The petitioner is afforded the opportunity for a hearing on the

petition. After such hearing, the Secretary will make a ruling on the

petition. The Act provides that the district courts of the United

States in any district in which a person who is a petitioner resides or

carries on business are vested with jurisdiction to review the

Secretary's ruling on the petition, if a complaint for that purpose is

filed within 20 days after the date of the entry of the ruling.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

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.

There are approximately 750 watermelon handlers and 5,000

watermelon producers in the contiguous 48 States of the United States

who are subject to the Plan. Small agricultural service firms are

defined by the Small Business Administration [13 CFR 121.601] as those

having annual receipts of less than $3,500,000 and small agricultural

producers are defined as those having annual receipts of less than

$500,000. The majority of watermelon handlers and producers may be

classified as small entities.

The Administrator of AMS has determined that this action would not

have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small

entities.

Paperwork Reduction

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980 (40 U.S.C.

chapter 35), the information collection requirements contained in the

Plan have previously been approved by the Office of Management and

Budget (OMB) and assigned OMB number 0581-0093, except for the Board

nominee background statement form which is assigned OMB number 0505-

0001. This action adds no additional reporting burden.

Background

Under the Plan, the National Watermelon Promotion Board (Board)

administers a nationally coordinated program of research, development,

advertising, and promotion designed to strengthen the watermelon's

position in the market place and to establish, maintain, and expand

markets for domestic watermelons. This program is financed by

assessments on all producers, except those persons engaged in the

growing of less than five acres of watermelons, and handlers of

watermelons. The Plan specifies that handlers are responsible for

collecting and submitting both the producer and handler assessments to

the Board, reporting their handling of watermelons, and maintaining

records necessary to verify their reportings.

Membership on the Board is determined on the basis of two producers

and two handlers for each of seven districts established under the

Plan. The districts are required to have approximately equal annual

production volume. The initial (and current) districts were based on a

three-year average production derived from U.S. Department of

Agriculture (USDA) Crop Production Annual Summary Reports for 1979,

1980, and 1981.

These districts are:

District #1--South Florida, including all areas south of State

Highway 50.

District #2--North Florida, including all areas north of State

Highway 50.

District #3--The States of Alabama and Georgia.

District #4--The States of Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland,

Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North

Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Vermont,

Virginia, and West Virginia.

District #5--The States of Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana,

Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Minnesota, Missouri,

Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee,

and Wisconsin.

District #6--The State of Texas.

District #7--The States of Arizona, California, Idaho, Montana,

Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.

The Plan provides that two years after its effective date (June 8,

1989) and at least every five years thereafter, the Board should review

the districts to determine whether realignment of districts is

necessary.

When making such reviews, the Plan specifies that the Board should

consider such factors as the most recent three-year USDA production

reports or Board assessment reports, if USDA production reports are

unavailable, shifts and trends in quantities of watermelons produced,

and any other relevant factors.

The Plan further specifies that, as a result of such reviews, the

Board may realign the districts subject to the approval of the

Secretary. Any such alignment should be recommended by the Board at

least six months prior to the date of the call for nominations and

should become effective at least 30 days prior to such date.

In accordance with the Plan, the Board appointed a subcommittee to

review production and assessment collections in the current districts.

During the review, the subcommittee used USDA and State production and

marketing reports, as well as data derived from Board assessment

reports and field notes. The subcommittee focused on information

collected between 1990 and 1992.

After reviewing the available information, the subcommittee

recommended that the boundaries of Districts 3 through 7 be changed and

that Districts 1 and 2 remain unchanged. In order for each district to

represent approximately 3 million hundredweights of annual watermelon

production, the subcommittee's recommendation would: move Mississippi

from District 5 to District 3; move Indiana, Kentucky, and Tennessee

from District 5 to District 4; move Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Utah,

Nevada, Washington, Oregon, and California north of San Luis Obispo,

Kern, and San Bernadino counties from District 7 to District 5; move

Arkansas and Louisiana from District 5 to District 6; and move New

Mexico from District 5 to District 7.

The subcommittee's recommendation was approved by the Board's

executive committee, and the full Board voted by mail ballot. In the

mail ballot, 19 members voted ``yes,'' 4 members voted ``no,'' and 5

members did not return a ballot.

Therefore, this proposal would realign the districts as follows:

District #1--South Florida, including all areas south of State

Highway 50.

District #2--North Florida, including all areas north of State

Highway 50.

District #3--The States of Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi.

District #4--The States of Connecticut, Delaware, Indiana,

Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New

Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island,

South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia.

District #5--The States of California--north of San Luis Obispo,

Kern, and San Bernardino counties, Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa,

Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota,

Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, and

Wyoming.

District #6--The States of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas.

District #7--The State of Arizona, the remainder of the State of

California, including San Luis Obispo, Kern, and San Bernardino

counties, and the State of New Mexico.

The Board has recommended that the new districts become effective

for the three-year term of office which begins on January 1, 1995. If

adopted, this proposal would affect the eligibility of three current

Board members and could necessitate Board member nomination meetings

for Districts 4, 5, 6, and 7 in spring 1994. In the normal cycle of

nominating approximately one-third of the Board members each year,

spring 1994 nomination meetings were already planned for Districts 2

and 3.

In addition, if this proposal is adopted, it will be necessary to

make a conforming change to Sec. 1210.401. Section 1210.401 currently

states that the districts are defined in Sec. 1210.320 of the Plan.

Since, this rule would define new district boundaries in a new

Sec. 1210.501, this rule would also change Sec. 1210.401(b) to reflect

this new section number.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 1210

Advertising, Agricultural practice and procedure, Agricultural

research, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Watermelons.

For the reasons set forth in the preamble, part 1210, chapter XI of

title 7 is proposed to be amended as follows:

PART 1210--WATERMELON RESEARCH AND PROMOTION PLAN

1. The authority citation for 7 CFR Part 1210 continues to read as

follows:

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 4901-4916.

2. In Sec. 1210.401(b), the words ``1210.320'' in the last sentence

are revised to read ``1210.501''.

3. A new Sec. 1210.501 is added to read as follows:

Sec. 1210.501 Realignment of districts.

Pursuant to Sec. 1210.320(c) of the Plan, the districts shall be as

follows:

District #1--South Florida, including all areas south of State

Highway 50.

District #2--North Florida, including all areas north of State

Highway 50.

District #3--The States of Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi.

District #4--The States of Connecticut, Delaware, Indiana,

Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New

Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island,

South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia.

District #5--The States of California--north of San Luis Obispo,

Kern, and San Bernardino counties, Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa,

Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota,

Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, and

Wyoming.

District #6--The States of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas.

District #7--The State of Arizona, the remainder of the State of

California, including San Luis Obispo, Kern, and San Bernardino

counties, and the State of New Mexico.

Dated: January 20, 1994.

Lon Hatamiya,

Administrator.

[FR Doc. 94-1905 Filed 1-27-94; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410-02-P