1994 Wheat, Feed Grains, Cotton and Rice Programs; Interim Rule DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

SUMMARY: The statutory requirements that relate to the feed grains,

rice, upland and extra long staple cotton, and wheat programs were

amended by the Agricultural Reconciliation Act of 1993 (the 1993 Act),

which was enacted on August 11, 1993.

This interim rule sets forth amendments: to conform to the

provisions of the 1993 Act; to make certain technical corrections; to

delete references to obsolete provisions; to add references relating to

current policy; to set forth the provisions for The Options Pilot

Program (OPP) and Voluntary Production Limitation Program (VPLP); and

to improve the operations of these programs for the 1994 through 1997

crop years.

DATES: Interim rule effective November 16, 1994. Comments must be

received on or before December 16, 1994 in order to be assured of

consideration.

ADDRESSES: Submit comments to: Director, Cotton, Grain, and Rice Price

Support Division, Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service

(ASCS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), P.O. Box 2415,

Washington, DC 20013-2415. Comments may be inspected at USDA, ASCS,

14th and Independence Avenue, South Agriculture Building, room 3640,

Washington, DC 20013-2415 between 7:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday

through Friday, except holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bruce D. Hiatt, Agricultural Program

Specialist, ASCS, USDA, P.O. Box 2415, Washington, DC 20013-2415,

telephone 202-690-2798.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Executive Order 12866

This interim rule is issued in conformance with Executive Order

12866. Based on information compiled by the USDA, it has been

determined that this interim rule:

(1) Would have an annual effect on the economy of less than $100

million;

(2) Would not adversely affect in a material way the economy, a

sector of the economy, productivity, competition, jobs, the

environment, public health or safety, or State, local or tribal

governments or communities;

(3) Would not create a serious inconsistency or otherwise interfere

with an action taken or planned by another agency;

(4) Would not materially alter the budgetary impact of

entitlements, grants, user fees, or loan programs or rights and

obligations of recipients thereof; and

(5) Would not raise novel legal or policy issues arising out of

legal mandates, the President's priorities, or principles set forth in

Executive Order 12866.

Final Regulatory Impact Analyses

Final Regulatory Impact Analyses have been prepared with respect to

the programs for the 1994 crops of wheat, feed grains, cotton, and

rice. Copies of the analyses are available to the public from the

Deputy Administrator for Policy Analysis, ASCS, USDA, room 3741, South

Agriculture Building, 14th and Independence Avenue, P.O. Box 2415,

Washington, DC 20013-2415.

Federal Assistance Programs

The titles and numbers of the Federal Assistance Programs, as found

in the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance, to which this interim

rule applies are Cotton Production Stabilization--10.052; Feed Grain

Production Stabilization--10.055; Wheat Production Stabilization--

10.058; and Rice Production Stabilization--10.065.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

It has been determined that the Regulatory Flexibility Act is not

applicable to this interim rule since neither ASCS nor the Commodity

Credit Corporation (CCC) is required by 5 U.S.C. 553 or any other

provision of the law to publish a notice of proposed rulemaking with

respect to the subject matter of this rule.

Environmental Evaluation

It has been determined by an environmental evaluation that this

action will have no significant impact on the quality of the human

environment. Therefore, neither an environmental assessment nor an

Environmental Impact Statement is needed.

Executive Order 12778

This interim rule has been reviewed in accordance with Executive

Order 12778. The provisions of this interim rule preempt State laws to

the extent such laws are inconsistent with the provisions of this rule.

The provisions of this rule are not retroactive. Before any judicial

action may be brought concerning the provisions of this rule, the

administrative remedies at 7 CFR part 780 must be exhausted.

Executive Order 12372

This program/activity is not subject to the provisions of Executive

Order 12372, which requires intergovernmental consultation with State

and local officials. See the Notice related to 7 CFR part 3015, subpart

V, published at 48 FR 29115 (June 24, 1983).

Paperwork Reduction Act

The amendments set forth in this interim rule contain new and

revised information collections that require clearance by the Office of

Management and Budget (OMB) under the provisions of 44 U.S.C. 35. These

requirements have been submitted to OMB with a request for expedited

review.

Public reporting burden for these collections is estimated to vary

from 15 minutes to 45 minutes per response, including time for

reviewing instructions, searching existing sources, gathering and

maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the

collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate

or any other aspect of this collection of information, including

suggestions for reducing this burden, to Department of Agriculture,

Clearance Officer, OIRM, AG Box 7630, Washington, DC 20250; and to the

Office of Management and Budget, Paperwork Reduction Project (OMB Nos.

0560-0004 and 0560-0092), Washington, DC 20503.

Background

The Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (the

1990 Act) amended various Acts, including the Agricultural Adjustment

Act of 1938 and the Agricultural Act of 1949 (the 1949 Act). The Food,

Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act Amendments of 1991 made

technical corrections to these Acts in order to correct errors and to

improve the amendments made by the 1990 Act.

The 1993 Act, which was enacted on August 11, 1993, amended the

1949 Act to provide that the so-called ``0/92'' and ``50/92''

provisions of the annual acreage reduction programs (ARP's) be changed

to ``0/85'' and ``50/85'' for producers of wheat, feed grains, upland

cotton, and rice. Producers who plant minor oilseeds or industrial and

other crops (IOC's), or who were prevented from planting or had reduced

yields, shall be eligible for benefits under the so-called ``0/92'' or

``50/92'' provisions of the ARP's.

This interim rule:

(1) Sets forth the amendments provided by the 1993 Act,

(2) Includes provisions from policy set forth for county ASCS

offices,

(3) Provides the rules for incomplete performance based on

information provided by a representative of the Secretary, failure to

fully comply, the Options Pilot Program, and the VPLP,

(4) Makes minor editorial changes, and

(5) Revises many of the sections for clarity.

Discussion of Changes

A. 7 CFR Part 718, Determination of Acreage and Compliance

Section 718.10 State Committee (STC) Responsibilities

This section has been amended to allow STC's to set a per acre rate

for acres in excess of 25 acres to reflect the cost involved nationally

in performing measurement service from photographic slides, and to

provide for the cost of furnishing reproductions of aerial photographs.

Section 718.12 Authority for Farm Entry and Securing Information

This section has been amended to provide that a farm operator has

15 days to reply to the county office after receiving notice of refusal

to permit entry and inspection on the farm.

Section 718.21 Measurement Services

This section has been amended to include the requirements that must

be met in order to keep the measurement service guarantee when a

measurement service reveals acreage in excess of the permitted acreage.

Section 718.22 Acreage Reports

This section has been revised to include provisions for destroying

small grain acreage beyond the crop disposition date by haying and

grazing, and to provide the name and number of the form on which

producers report their acreage and land uses.

Section 718.24 Revised Reports

This section had been amended to include the provisions for

revising acreage reports for farms enrolled in the ARP, provisions for

items that cannot be revised, when the revision adversely affects the

program, provisions for releasing excess acreage conservation reserve

(ACR) resulting from an acreage determination, and provisions for

substituting acreage for previously reported ACR.

Section 718.25 Reporting out of Compliance

This section has been amended to add available flex acreage to the

maximum permitted acreage when determining if producers are in

compliance with acreage planting restrictions.

Section 718.26 Farm Inspections

This section has been amended to provide that producers that have

an interest in a farm and are a warehouse operator, manager, or dealer

are no longer required spot checks. This section also provides for

required spot checks for farms on which there is unmarketed tobacco.

Section 718.40 Tolerance and Variance Rules Applicability

This section has been amended to provide tolerance provisions for

corn and grain sorghum acreage enrolled in the production adjustment

programs, and to increase the tolerance to the larger of 1.0 acre or 5

percent not to exceed 50 acres.

Section 718.42 Skip Rows and Strip Crops

This section has been amended to provide for determining a farm's

history of planting 32-inch rows when producers have the option to

consider the crop as either solid planted or skip row, and to include

row widths that are wider than 32 inches when providing producers the

option to consider the crop as either solid planted or skip row.

Section 718.43 Deductions

This section has been amended to clarify that, for areas not

devoted to the crop or land use that are located within the planted

area, the part of any perimeter area that is more than 33 links in

width shall be an internal deduction if the standard deduction is used.

Section 718.45 Notice of Measured Acreage

This section had been revised to provide the number and name of the

form on which written notice of measured acreage is provided to

interested producers on the farm.

Section 718.47 Redeterminations

This section has been amended by removing verbiage that the

redetermination is final and is not appealable under part 780 of this

chapter. When the 1990 Act established the National Appeals Division,

all decisions and redeterminations made by STC's and County Committees

(COC's) became appealable.

B. 7 CFR Part 790--Incomplete Performance Based Upon Action Or Advice

of An Authorized Representative of the Secretary

Section 790.2 Action

Section 790.2 has been revised to clarify existing provisions.

Section 790.3 Delegation of Authority

Section 790.3 has been revised to provide that the STC may exercise

the authority provided in this part in cases where the total of

payments and benefits extended under this part does not exceed $5,000.

Section 790.4 Filing of Request for Consideration

Section 790.4 has been revised to provide that COC's may submit a

request for consideration under this part to the STC without a specific

request from the producer when the COC believes that the producer is

entitled to consideration under the provisions of this part.

C. 7 CFR Part 791--Authority To Make Payments When There Has Been a

Failure To Comply Fully With the Program

Section 791.2 The Making of Loans, Purchases, and Payments When There

Has Been a Failure to Fully Comply With the Program

This section has been revised to provide that the Deputy

Administrator, State and County Operations, the Deputy Administrator,

Commodity Operations, and the National Appeals Division, may authorize

the making of loans, purchases, or payments in such amounts as is

determined to be equitable in relation to the seriousness of the

failure to fully comply.

D. 7 CFR Part 1413, Feed Grain, Rice, Upland and Extra Long Staple

Cotton, Wheat, and Related Programs

Part 1413 has been revised into subparts to better organize the

information contained therein for the use of the public.

Section 1413.1 Applicability

This section has been amended to set forth the terms and conditions

under which producers of feed grains, rice, upland and extra long

staple (ELS) cotton and wheat may enter into agreements with CCC and

comply with the terms of such agreements and the provisions of this

part in order to qualify for program benefits.

Section 1413.2 Compliance With Part 12 of This Title, Highly Erodible

Land and Wetland Conservation Provisions

This section has been renumbered. This section requires compliance

with the provisions of part 12 of this title to retain eligibility for

program benefits.

Section 1413.3 Controlled Substance Violations

This section has been added to set forth the rules for making

payments when the provisions of part 796 of this title have been

violated.

Section 1413.4 Administration

This section has been renumbered. This section sets forth the

provisions for administering the programs through the STC's and COC's.

Section 1413.5 Performance Based Upon Advice or Action of County or

State Committee

This section has been renumbered. This section states that the

provisions of part 791 of this title apply to this part.

Section 1413.6 Appeals

This section has been renumbered. This section sets forth the rules

for producer appeals.

Section 1413.7 Paperwork Reduction Act Assigned Numbers

This section has been renumbered and amended to set forth the

provisions for information collection requirements for the regulations.

Section 1413.9 Definitions

This section has been renumbered and amended to set forth the

definitions applicable for all purposes of program administration.

Definitions added to this section include acreage reduction program

(ARP), actual ELS cotton yield per acre, custom farming, determined

acreage, disaster, farming operations and practices, high residue crop

(HRC), landlord, low residue crop (LRC), minor, nonrotation, offset,

operator, other cotton, participating crop, participating farm, program

benefits, repeat crop, sharecropper, and tenant. The definitions for

current year, farm program payment yield, and producer have been

revised for clarification.

Section 1413.10 Planted Crop Acreages

This section has been renumbered and the section heading has been

revised. Paragraph (a) has been amended to remove incorrect references.

Paragraph (c)(1) has been amended to reference the final planting date

in accordance with part 400 of this title. Paragraph (c)(4) has been

amended to correct the section reference. Subparagraphs (c)(6)(i)

through (iv) have been added to provide policy for the use of

experimental acreages. Paragraph (c)(7) has been amended to correct the

section reference and paragraph (c)(9) has been added to include any

crop acreages on a farm which are planted by a producer with no intent

to harvest.

Section 1413.11 Considered Planted Acreages

This section has been added to include the provisions for

determining considered planted acreage for a crop. References to

considered planted acreages which were previously referenced in other

sections have been consolidated into this section.

Section 1413.15 Farm Program Payment Yields

This section has been renumbered, and the text has been amended to

provide the rules for establishing farm program payment yields for a

crop.

Section 1413.16 Establishing Crop Yields for Soybeans and Minor

Oilseeds

This section has been added to provide the rules for establishing

yields for soybeans and minor oilseeds.

Section 1413.17 Historical Weighted Yields (HWY)

This section has been added to provide the rules for determining

the HWY for crop on a farm.

Section 1413.18 Irrigated Acreage Maximum (IAM) for Yields

This section has been added to include the provisions for

determining the IAM for a crop for a farm.

Section 1413.19 Submitting Production Evidence

This section has been added to include the rules for submitting

reports of production evidence of crops of wheat, feed grains, upland

cotton, and rice.

Section 1413.20 Reducing Yields

This section has been added to provide for reducing yields for

current year program payment purposes when a program crop is planted or

maintained in an unworkmanlike manner that, under normal conditions,

would not yield production comparable to the established yield for the

crop.

Section 1413.24 Crop Acreage Bases (CAB's)

This section has been renumbered and amended to include procedures

used in establishing CAB's.

Section 1413.25 Participation in the Conservation Reserve Program

This section has been renumbered and amended to reflect the change

of reference from a program contract to a program agreement.

Section 1413.26 Adjusting CAB's

This section has been renumbered and amended to include rules for

permanent or temporary adjustments of crop acreage bases (CAB's).

Section 1413.27 Conservation Compliance CAB Exchanges

This section has been amended to correct the section reference.

Section 1413.30 Reconstitution of Farms

This section has been renumbered and amended for clarity.

Section 1413.31 Notice of CAB's and Yields

This section has been renumbered and amended to provide the rules

for notifying producers of the CAB's and yields for a crop on a farm.

Section 1413.34 ELS Cotton Counties

This section has been added to include the rules for defining ELS

cotton and determining ELS cotton counties. These rules previously

appeared in other sections of this part.

Section 1413.35 ELS Cotton CAB's

This section has been added to include the rules for establishing

ELS cotton CAB's. These rules previously appeared in other sections of

this part.

Section 1413.36 ELS Cotton Crop Program Payment Yields

This section has been added to include rules for establishing ELS

cotton yields. These rules previously appeared in other sections of

this part.

Section 1413.37 Submitting ELS Cotton Production Evidence

This section has been added to include the rules for submitting ELS

cotton production evidence to the county ASCS office.

Section 1413.41 0/85/92 Program Provisions for Wheat and Feed Grains

This section has been added to provide the general rules for

participation in the 0/85 or 0/92 provisions of the feed grains and

wheat programs when an ARP is in effect.

Section 1413.42 50/85 and 50/92 Program Provisions for Upland Cotton

and Rice

This section has been added to provide the general rules for use of

the 50/85 or 50/92 provisions of the upland cotton and rice programs

when an ARP is in effect.

Section 1413.43 Planting Flexibility

This section has been renumbered and amended to include the

provisions related to planting flexibility.

Section 1413.50 Requirements for Program Participation

The section heading has been revised and the text has been amended

to set forth the provisions for participating in an ARP or land

diversion program. Participation requirements for farms with both corn

and grain sorghum CAB's, or farms with either a corn or grain sorghum

CAB, are set forth in this section.

Section 1413.51 Successors in Interest

This section has been renumbered and amended to include the rules

applicable to CCC-477 successor in interest determinations.

Section 1413.52 Misrepresentation and Scheme or Device

This section has been renumbered and amended to refer to CCC-477.

Section 1413.53 Required Acreage Reduction

This section has been renumbered and amended to correct the method

for determining the acreage of eligible land devoted to conservation

uses (CU) for ELS cotton.

Section 1413.54 Land Diversion

This section has been renumbered and amended to provide current

provisions regarding a land diversion program. A land diversion program

will not be offered in 1994.

Section 1413.55 Acreage Reduction Program Provisions

This section has been renumbered and amended to provide 1994

acreage reduction factors for wheat, feed grains, and upland and ELS

cotton and rice. Rules are also set forth in this section for planting

of minor oilseeds and IOC's on ACR or CU for payment.

Section 1413.60 Basic Rules for ACR and CU for Payment Acreage

This section has been amended to include provisions for CU for

payment acreage because the rules for ACR and CU for payment acreage

are the same.

Section 1413.61 Eligible Land for ACR and CU for Payment Designation

This section has been amended to include the rules for determining

eligibility for CU for payment acreage. Other changes have been made to

clarify the provisions within this section.

Section 1413.62 Ineligible Land for ACR or CU for Payment Designation

This section has been amended to include the rules for determining

whether land is eligible to be designated for CU for payment. Other

changes have been made to clarify the provisions within this section.

Section 1413.63 Required Cover Crops and Practices on ACR

The section heading and the text have been amended to provide

references to ACR only for required cover and practices and to include

rules applicable to required cover crops and ACR practices.

Section 1413.64 Nationally Approved Cover Crops and Practices for ACR

and CU for Payment Acreages

This section has been added to set forth the rules for nationally

approved cover crops and practices for ACR and CU for payment acreage.

Section 1413.65 Locally Approved Cover crops and Practices for ACR and

CU for Payment

This section has been added to provide the rules for locally

approved cover crops and practices for ACR and CU for payment.

Section 1413.66 Use of ACR and CU for Payment Acreage

This section has been renumbered and amended to include references

to the use of CU for payment acreage.

Section 1413.67 Control of Erosion, Insects, Weeds, and Rodents on ACR

and CU for Payment Acreage

This section has been renumbered and amended to include references

to CU for payment acreage.

Section 1413.68 Orchards

This section has been renumbered and amended to include references

to CU for payment acreage.

Section 1413.69 Land Going Out of Agricultural Production

This section has been renumbered and amended to include references

to CU for payment acreage.

Section 1413.70 Wildlife Food Plots or Habitat

This section has been renumbered and amended to include references

to CU for payment acreage and rules for determining crop seeding

mixtures to be planted on such acreage.

Section 1413.71 Insufficient ACR Acreage

This section has been renumbered and amended for clarity.

Section 1413.72 Destroyed Crop Acreage

This section has been renumbered and amended to clarify the

provisions for requesting to substitute acreages of small grains or row

crops that were destroyed for designated ACR acreage.

Section 1413.74 Reduction in ACR

This section has been renumbered and amended for clarity.

Section 1413.75 Skip Rows

This section has been renumbered and amended to remove incorrect

paragraph references.

Section 1413.100 Determination of Farm Program Acreage

This section has been amended for clarity.

Section 1413.101 General Payment Provisions

This section has been amended for clarity.

Section 1413.102 Advance Payments

This section has been amended for clarity.

Section 1413.103 Established (Target) Prices

This section has been renumbered and amended for clarity.

Section 1413.104 Deficiency Payments

This section has been renumbered and amended for clarity.

Section 1413.105 Timing and Calculation of Deficiency Payments

This section has been renumbered and amended to correct paragraph

references.

Section 1413.106 Division of Payments

This section has been renumbered and amended to change references

to contract to read agreement; to provide for determinations of scheme

or device relative to cash leases; and to provide for determinations of

types of leases and payment shares, division of payment shares, and

clarification of determinations for hybrid seed corn growers with

contracts with seed corn companies.

Section 1413.107 Provisions Relating to Tenants and Sharecroppers

This section has been renumbered and amended.

Section 1413.108 Offsets and Assignments

This section has been renumbered.

Section 1413.109 Payments by Commodities and Commodity Certificates

and Refunds

This section has been renumbered.

Section 1413.110 Malting Barley

This section has been amended to remove incorrect references, add

correct references, and clarify the malting barley provisions.

Section 1413.121 Disaster Credit

This section has been renumbered and amended to provide the rules

for producer applications and COC determinations of prevented planting

and failed acreage credit.

Section 1413.122 Eligibility for Regular Prevented Planted and Reduced

Yield Payments

This section has been renumbered and amended to correct paragraph

references and to include provisions used to determine eligibility for

disaster payments.

Section 1413.123 Regular Disaster Payment Computations

This section has been renumbered and amended.

E. 7 CFR Part 1414--Integrated Farm Management Program Option

Part 1414 has been revised into subparts to better organize the

information therein for the use of the public.

Section 1414.1 General Description of the Program

This section has been amended to clarify the objectives of the

Integrated farm management (IFM) program.

Section 1414.8 Definitions

This section has been renumbered and the definitions of alternative

crops, and resource conserving crop (RCC) have been amended for

clarity.

Section 1414.9 Acreage Enrollment

This section has been renumbered and amended to clarify the program

years and the acreage limitation.

Section 1414.10 Eligibility

This section has been renumbered and amended to clarify eligibility

rules.

Section 1414.11 Agreements

This section has been renamed, renumbered and amended to provide

that producers must agree to devote to a RCC not less than 20 percent

of each crop acreage base on the farm enrolled in the IFM.

Section 1414.13 Displacement of Tenants or Lessees

This section has been renumbered and amended for clarity.

Section 1414.27 Resource-Conserving Crops on ACR

This section has been renumbered and amended to provide that ACR

having RCC's planted must meet minimum size and width requirements for

ACR. Haying and grazing requirements have also been clarified.

Section 1414.28 Resource-Conserving Crops on Payment Acres

This section has been renumbered and amended to clarify the haying,

grazing and harvesting provisions for RCC's on payment acres.

Section 1414.29 Traditionally Underplanted Acreage and Reduction of

Payment Acres

This section has been renumbered and amended for clarity.

F. 7 CFR Part 1415--Options Pilot Program

A pilot program for options contracts (the options program) for the

1993 crop year was announced by the Secretary of Agriculture. The

options program was administered in conjunction with the Chicago Board

of Trade (CBOT).

Under the options program, CCC entered into contracts with eligible

producers who (1) agreed to purchase at least one CBOT put option for

their chosen commodity, and (2) agreed to forgo other program benefits

on any enrolled bushels. Producers were reimbursed by CCC for the cost

of the premium for purchasing the put option and received an incentive

payment of 15 cents or 5 cents per enrolled bushel for participating in

the program, depending on whether producers enrolled at the target

price equivalent level or the price support equivalent level,

respectively. The enrollment period for this program was March 1

through April 30, 1993.

This program was available to corn producers in nine counties in

three States: Champaign, Logan, and Shelby Counties in Illinois;

Carroll, Clinton, and Tippecanoe Counties in Indiana; and Boone,

Grundy, and Hardin Counties in Iowa. In the three Illinois counties,

wheat and soybean producers could also participate. Producers were

required to participate in the annual ARP for corn and wheat to be

eligible for the options program on those commodities. Soybean

producers must have accurately reported their soybean plantings in

order to be eligible to participate.

Participation Choices

Producers could participate in the options program at levels that

are alternatives to either (1) deficiency payments and loan program

protection, or (2) loan program protection. Producers who chose the

``deficiency payments'' alternative enrolled production in the options

program as ``target price bushels'' and agreed to forgo deficiency

payments, price support benefits, and loan deficiency payments on any

enrolled bushels. Producers who chose the ``loan program protection''

alternative enrolled production in the options program as ``price

support bushels'' and agreed to forego price support benefits and loan

deficiency payments on any enrolled bushels. Production could have been

enrolled at either the target price or price support level, but not

both. However, a producer could enroll some production at each level.

Premiums and Incentives

Producers participating in the options program received:

(1) A subsidy to cover the cost of the premium for the purchase of

the put option(s), and

(2) An incentive payment of 15 cents per bushel on target price

bushels, or 5 cents per bushel on price support bushels.

Target Price Participation

Corn participants were required to purchase at least one CBOT

December 1993 corn put option contract (5,000 bushels) at a strike

price equivalent to the $2.75 per bushel target price on or before June

15, 1993. Wheat participants were required to purchase at least one

CBOT September 1993 wheat put option contract (5,000 bushels) at a

strike price equivalent to the $4 per bushel target price on or before

May 15, 1993.

Price Support Participation

Corn participants were required to purchase at least one CBOT March

1994 corn put option contract at a strike price equivalent to the

county price support price for corn. Wheat participants were required

to purchase at least one CBOT December 1993 wheat put option contract

at a strike price equivalent to the county price support price for

wheat. Soybean participants were required to purchase at least one CBOT

March 1994 soybean put option contract at a strike price equivalent to

the county soybean price support price, minus the 2 percent loan

origination fee. Put options at the price support level could be

purchased until the options expired, beginning at harvest of the crop

(at the time the crop was otherwise eligible to be placed under loan).

The Secretary determined that the strike price equivalent to the county

price support price for all nine counties was $2 per bushel for corn,

$2.90 per bushel for wheat, and $5.50 per bushel for soybeans.

Other Production

Eligible production not enrolled in either the target price or

price support levels of the options program was eligible to be pledged

as collateral for CCC price support loans and for deficiency payments.

Other Requirements and Restrictions

All put options purchased as required by the options program must

have been purchased through a separate account with a registered

commodity broker. A subaccount is not considered ``separate'' for

purposes of the options program.

Documentation

Documentation of all transactions involving the commodities covered

by the program was required to be provided to CCC. This documentation

includes, but is not limited to, copies of brokers' trade

confirmations, account statements, and copies of cash contracts or

bills of sale.

Corn and Wheat Options Program Participants

Options program participants for corn and wheat must have complied

with the acreage limitations and other requirements of the acreage

reduction programs. Additionally, participants agreed that (1) in the

case of target price participation, the total of the premium subsidies

received under the options program and the deficiency payments received

under the annual acreage reduction programs will not exceed $50,000 per

person; and (2) in the case of price support participation, the total

of premium subsidies received under the option program and loan

deficiency payments, marketing loan gains and ``Findley'' deficiency

payments received under such price support programs will not exceed

$75,000 per person. A ``person'' will be determined in the same manner

as a ``person'' is determined for payment limitation purposes for such

annual programs.

Incentive Payments

Incentive payments made under either participation level are not

subject to any payment limit, except to the extent that the total

number of bushels any one producer may enroll in the options program is

limited to 50,000 bushels for corn and 15,000 bushels for wheat and

soybeans. In the event that CCC made disaster assistance available with

respect to the 1993 crops of wheat, corn, or soybeans to producers

participating in the options program at the target price level, such

producers must refund any premium subsidies and incentive payments

received on any enrolled commodities in order to receive disaster

assistance from CCC.

CCC will be operating a similar program in 1994, with the following

changes.

Section 1413.13 Eligibility

The number of States and counties participating in the options

program has been increased. Participating States and counties now

include:

(1) For corn and soybeans, Champaign, Logan, and Shelby Counties in

Illinois.

(2) For corn only, Carroll, Clinton, and Tippecanoe Counties in

Indiana, and Boone, Grundy, and Hardin Counties in Iowa.

(3) For wheat, Ford and Thomas Counties in Kansas for hard red

winter wheat, and Barnes and Grand Forks Counties in North Dakota for

hard red spring wheat.

Wheat participation will not be available in the counties in

Illinois, Indiana, and Iowa. The counties in Kansas shall use the

Kansas City Board of Trade for hard red winter wheat put option

contracts, and the counties in North Dakota shall use the Minneapolis

Grain Exchange for hard red spring wheat put option contracts.

Section 1415.15 Agreements

In order to treat seed corn producers enrolled in the options

program the same as if they had remained in the acreage reduction

program, and to give them the same pricing flexibility as commercial

corn producers, the quantity eligible for enrollment and the quantity

eligible for pricing shall be based on the ratio of the program payment

yield established for the crop for the farm to the actual yield

produced.

Producers enrolled in the options program intending to price their

grain must price the grain to a licensed bonded grain dealer, grain

merchant, or warehouse, or for short hedges, through a registered

commodity broker. Documentation must indicate that a hedge position was

taken on the grain.

Section 1415.20 Premium and Incentive Payments

The amount of incentive payments has been revised for 1994.

Producers participating in the options program will receive an

incentive payment of $.05 cents per bushel for both target price or

price support participation. All producers will receive the incentive

payments on a specific date when the options program contract expires

instead of each producer receiving the incentive payment after closing

out the option and pricing the grain. This change will reduce the

motivation to close out the options position early just to receive the

incentive payment.

The total numbers of bushels that may be enrolled has been

increased from 20 million bushels of corn to 60 million bushels of both

corn and wheat. The expected cost of the program should remain

essentially the same as the 1993 program because the reduced incentive

payment will offset the increase in bushels accepted for participation.

There continues to be no overall limit on bushels accepted for wheat

and soybeans enrollment in the options program. Each county's share of

this limit will be allocated based on the total corn and wheat CAB's in

the county times the average of the percentage of such bases enrolled

in the 1991 through 1993 CCC price support and production adjustment

programs. If more bushels are enrolled than are allocated to a county,

a drawing will be held to determine participants within a county.

G. 7 CFR Part 1416, Voluntary Production Limitation Program

The 1990 Act amended the 1949 Act to provide that, effective for

the 1993 through 1995 crops of wheat and feed grains, if an ARP or a

land diversion program is announced for such crops, the Secretary may

conduct a pilot program in at least 15 counties in at least two States

where producers have expressed an interest in participating in the

pilot program. Under this program, producers on a farm shall be

considered to have met the requirements of an ARP or land diversion

program if such producers meet the requirements of the VPLP. After

concurrence with the authors of the legislation, it was determined that

the program would not be implemented until the 1994 crop year.

Producers who elect to participate in the VPLP for wheat and/or

feed grains shall enter into a agreement which provides that the

producer shall comply with the program by: (1) Not planting wheat or

feed grain crops exceeding the sum of the CAB's enrolled in the VPLP;

and

(2) Agreeing not to market, barter, donate, or use on the farm

(including use as feed for livestock) in a marketing year a quantity of

production in excess of the production limitation quantity (PLQ) and

eligible carryover from prior years for the crop on the farm for the

marketing year.

The PLQ for a crop shall be determined by multiplying the acreage

permitted to be planted to such crop under an ARP by the PLQ yield. The

PLQ yield is the higher of the farm program payment yield, or the

average of the yield per harvested acre for each of the 5 years

preceding the crop year in which the producers first participate in the

pilot program, excluding the highest and lowest crop year yields, and

any year in which the crop was not planted on the farm. Carryover

production is defined as eligible and ineligible carryover as follows:

(1) If the crop was enrolled in the VPLP the previous year and is

enrolled in the current year, the carryover production from any

previous crop year is considered ineligible carryover and if marketed,

bartered, donated, or used shall be counted against the PLQ for the

current year, except the producer may destroy the carryover, under

supervision of employees of the county ASCS office, so that no benefit

will be derived from the carryover; or

(2) If the crop was not enrolled in the VPLP the previous year but

is enrolled in the current year, the carryover production from a

previous crop year is considered eligible carryover and may be

marketed, bartered, donated, or used without being counted against the

PLQ for the current crop year; or

(3) If the crop was enrolled in the VPLP the previous year and is

enrolled in the ARP in the current year, the producer may devote an

amount of acreage to conservation use equal to the excess production

divided by the PLQ yield for the crop.

Producers shall be considered to have complied with the terms and

conditions of ARP or land diversion program for the crop, even though

the acreage planted to such crop might exceed the permitted acreage and

the available flex acreage under the terms and conditions of the ARP.

Producers may store any quantity of the enrolled crop exceeding the PLQ

for the crop for a period not to exceed 5 marketing years. Any excess

commodity stored longer than 5 years is subject to forfeiture to CCC.

Corn and grain sorghum permitted acreages are combined for the 1994

through 1997 crop years. A farm with both corn and grain sorghum CAB's

will have the PLQ determined by multiplying the combined permitted

acreages of such crops times the corn PLQ yield for the farm. If a farm

has a corn CAB, and a producer on such farm plants grain sorghum; or if

a farm has a grain sorghum CAB, and the producer plants corn; or if a

farm has both corn and grain sorghum CAB's, these farms will have the

PLQ expressed as corn equivalent bushels. An example calculation

follows:

(1) Corn-100 acre CAB, 100 bushel PLQ yield, permitted-100 acres.

(2) Grain Sorghum-100 acre CAB, 50 bushel PLQ yield, permitted-100

acres.

(3) Total permitted acres-200. 200 (permitted acres) X 100 (corn

PLQ yield) = 20,000 bushels total corn equivalent PLQ.

The result is the total PLQ for both crops. Grain sorghum

production is converted to corn equivalent production (CE) based on a

ratio of the corn PLQ yield to the grain sorghum PLQ yield for such

farm. In the preceding example, the yield ratio is 2 to 1. Therefore,

if the producer markets 100 bushels of corn, then 100 bushels of CE is

considered marketed. If 50 bushels of grain sorghum is marketed, then

100 bushels of CE is considered marketed.

The ``0/85/92'' provisions, in accordance with Sec. 1413.41, and

flex provisions, as set forth in Sec. 1413.43, will not apply to farms

enrolled in the VPLP.

Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota have been selected as the States

in which to conduct this pilot program. From these States, a total of

15 counties have been selected to participate in the VPLP. The proposed

counties are: Fremont, Harrison, Mills, Monona, and West Pottawatamie

Counties in Iowa; Adams, Furnas, Harlan, Kearney, and Phelps Counties

in Nebraska; and Bon Homme, Charles Mix, Douglas, Turner, and Yankton

Counties in South Dakota.

It is further proposed that the following provisions will apply to

the VPLP:

(1) Producers who have wheat and feed grain CAB's on a farm are not

required to enroll all wheat and feed grain CAB's into the VPLP;

(2) The acreage for payment for which deficiency payments shall be

earned shall be the smaller of the maximum payment acreage (MPA) or the

acreage of the crop planted for harvest on the farm; i.e. for corn and

grain sorghum, the sum of the corn and grain sorghum payment acres for

a farm shall be prorated to corn and grain sorghum based on the ratio

of the MPA for each crop to the total of the corn and grain sorghum

MPA's;

(3) The P&CP acreage for an enrolled crop shall equal the CAB of

the respective crop if the crop is in compliance with the VPLP

provisions; and

(4) The crop acreage plantings of all enrolled crops shall be

limited to the sum of the crop acreage bases for all crops enrolled in

the VPLP.

To ensure compliance with the provisions of the VPLP, producers

participating in this pilot program will be required to certify for

each enrolled crop:

(1) The quantity of the previous year's commodity on hand at the

beginning of the marketing year (June 1 for wheat, barley, and oats;

September 1 for corn and grain sorghum);

(2) The quantity of the current year commodity harvested; and

(3) The quantity of the crop on hand at the end of the marketing

year (May 31 for wheat, barley, and oats; August 31 for corn and grain

sorghum).

If the sum of number (1) and number (2) less number (3) is equal to

or less than the PLQ and eligible carryover, then the producer has

complied with the production limitation. Producers not complying with

the production limitations will be assessed penalties on all bushels

disposed of by the producer in excess of the PLQ.

Graduated penalties will be assessed based on the percentage of

bushels disposed of in excess of the sum of the PLQ and eligible

carryover as follows:

(1) 5 percent or less, the penalty is the larger of the loan rate

or the current market price times the excess bushels;

(2) 6 to 10 percent, the penalty is the larger of the loan rate or

1.2 times the current market price times the excess bushels; and

(3) Over 10 percent, the penalty is the larger of the target price

or 1.5 times the current market price times the excess bushels at the

time the violation occurred.

A penalty will be assessed against producers for certifying

inaccurate quantities for the inventory of enrolled crop of wheat or

feed grain on hand at the beginning of the marketing year, the quantity

of current year crop harvested from acreage enrolled in the VPLP, and

the quantity of commodities on hand at the end of the marketing year.

The penalty per bushel for discrepancies will be the higher of the

target price for the commodity or 1.5 times the market price for the

commodity on the date of the inaccurate report.

Example: corn target price = $3.00; market price on date of report

= $2.90 per bu.; excess bushels of corn = 300 bu.; therefore, $3.00

times 300 bu. = $900.00.

Producers on a farm who are participating in an ARP or a land

diversion program may market, barter, or use excess wheat or feed

grains in a year subsequent to the year they were produced, in an

amount that reflects what would be expected to be produced on acreage

that the producers agree to devote to approved conservation uses (in

excess of any acreage reduction or land diversion requirements) during

a crop year.

The total current year production from enrolled wheat and feed

grain crops shall be eligible for nonrecourse loans and entry into the

farmer owned reserve (FOR) if the FOR becomes available. Any commodity

that is forfeited to CCC is considered marketed.

This interim rule establishes 7 CFR part 1416 to set forth the

terms and conditions of the VPLP with which a producer must comply in

order to be eligible for benefits of the wheat and feed grains programs

for the 1994 and 1995 crop years.

List of Subjects

7 CFR Part 718

Acreage allotments, Marketing quotas, Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements.

7 CFR Parts 790 and 791

Price support programs.

7 CFR Parts 1413 and 1414

Acreage allotments, Cotton, Disaster assistance, Feed grains, Price

support programs, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Rice, Soil

conservation, Wheat.

7 CFR Part 1415

Acreage allotments, Appeals, Feed grains, Loan programs--

Agriculture, Price support programs, Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements, Soil conservation.

7 CFR Part 1416

Acreage allotments, Feed grains, Loan programs--Agriculture,

Penalties, Price support programs, Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements, Soybeans, Warehouses, Wheat.

Accordingly, chapters VII and XIV of the Code of Federal

Regulations are amended as follows:

PART 718--DETERMINATION OF ACREAGE AND COMPLIANCE

1. The authority citation for 7 CFR part 718 continues to read as

follows:

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1373 and 1374; 15 U.S.C. 714b and 714c.

2. Section 718.1 is revised to read as follows:

Sec. 718.1 Paperwork Reduction Act assigned number.

Information collection requirements contained in this part have

been approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under the

provisions of 44 U.S.C. 35, and assigned OMB Nos. 0560-0004 and 0560-

0092.

3. Section 718.2 is revised to read as follows:

Sec. 718.2 Applicability.

The provisions of this part apply to compliance determinations for

the 1994 and subsequent crop years as authorized by the Agricultural

Adjustment Act of 1938, as amended, the Agricultural Act of 1949, as

amended, and the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act, as amended,

with respect to the programs administered by the Agricultural

Stabilization and Conservation Service, (ASCS), through State and

county Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation (State and county

committees) committees.

4. In Sec. 718.3, paragraph (b) is amended by removing the

definitions for ``Director'' and ``Reporting date,'' and revising the

definitions for ``maintenance default'', ``nonprogram crop'',

``reported acreage'', ``reporting date'', and ``standard payment

reduction'' and adding definitions for ``Crop reporting and disposition

date'' and ``measurement service guarantee'' to read as follows:

Sec. 718.3 Definitions.

* * * * *

(b) * * *

* * * * *

Crop reporting and disposition date. Dates established by the

Deputy Administrator, State and County Operations (Deputy

Administrator), ASCS, representing:

(1) The final date to report crop acreages; and

(2) The final disposition date to dispose of excess crop acreages.

The final crop disposition date shall be the earlier of:

(i) The applicable final crop reporting date; or

(ii) 45 days prior to the normal harvesting date unless, for an

acreage of small grain only, an extension is granted in accordance with

Sec. 718.22(c) of this title.

Maintenance default. A failure by the producer to properly maintain

acreage designated as ACR, CU for payment, or CRP as provided in parts

1413 and 1410, respectively, of this title.

Measurement service guarantee. A producer who requests and pays for

an authorized ASCS representative to measure acreage may use such

measurement for ASCS and CCC program participation unless the producer

takes action to adjust the measured acreage. If the producer has taken

no such action, and the measured acreage is later discovered to be

incorrect, the acreage determined pursuant to the measurement service

will be used for program purposes for that program year.

* * * * *

Nonprogram crop. Any crop other than a program crop, ELS cotton,

oilseed, industrial or other crop as provided in part 1413 of this

title.

* * * * *

Reported acreage. The acreage reported by the farm operator, farm

owner, or a properly authorized agent on form ASCS-578, Report of

Acreage.

* * * * *

Standard payment reduction. A reduction in a producer's program

benefits made pursuant to Sec. 718.22 or as provided in parts 1410 and

1413 of this title.

* * * * *

5. Section 718.10 is amended by revising paragraph (a)(4) and

adding paragraphs (a)(7) and (d) to read as follows:

Sec. 718.10 State committee responsibilities.

(a) * * *

(4) Establish:

(i) Disposition dates for crops that are no later than the

applicable final reporting dates set forth in Sec. 718.22;

(ii) Normal planting periods for crops;

* * * * *

(7) Adjust the per acre rate for acreage in excess of 25 acres to

reflect the actual cost involved when performing measurement service

from aerial slides.

* * * * *

(d) The cost of furnishing reproductions of aerial or other

photographs, mosaics, and maps to farmers, governmental agencies, and

others is as follows:

(1) Free upon request to the farm operator, landowner, Federal Crop

Insurance Corporation (FCIC) and reinsured companies, including their

agents or adjusters, if needed for loss adjustment, Soil Conservation

Service (SCS) for highly erodible land and wetland determinations,

Farmers Home Administration, and other Federal or State Agencies to

perform their official duties in making ASCS program determinations;

(2) At the rate determined by ASCS to cover the costs of making

such items available.

6. Section 718.12 is amended by revising paragraph (a)(2) and the

introductory text of paragraph (b) to read as follows:

Sec. 718.12 Authority for farm entry and securing information.

(a) * * *

(2) Secure from producers data which are necessary to keep current

the farm records located in the county ASCS office or which are a

requirement to obtain program benefits under any mandatory or voluntary

program administered by ASCS.

(b) If a farm operator, owner, or other producer refuses to permit

entry for the purpose of ascertaining acreage or production or

determining adherence to any other program requirement under any

mandatory or voluntary program for which such determinations are

required, the county executive director shall notify the farm operator

in writing as soon as possible that, unless the farm operator advises

the county office within 15 days after the date of such notice that

such operator will permit entry and inspection on the farm and pay the

cost thereof, the following consequences, as applicable, will apply

until such time as the operator permits such entry and inspection:

* * * * *

7. Section 718.13 is amended by revising paragraph (a)(3) to read

as follows:

Sec. 718.13 Denial of program benefits.

(a) * * *

(3) Fails to maintain acreage designated as ACR, CU for payment, or

CRP as provided in parts 1413 and 1410, respectively, of this title.

* * * * *

8. Section 718.21 is amended by revising paragraph (b) and adding

paragraph (e) to read as follows:

Sec. 718.21 Measurement services.

* * * * *

(b) The acreage requested to be measured by staking and referencing

shall not exceed the effective farm allotment for marketing quota crops

or maximum permitted acreage for program crops plus the available flex

acreage with respect to other program crops enrolled in that crop's

production adjustment program for that year.

* * * * *

(e) When a measurement service reveals acreage in excess of the

permitted acreage plus the available flex acreage with respect to other

program crops enrolled in that crop's production adjustment program for

that year, the producer must do either of the following in order to

keep the measurement service guarantee:

(1) Destroy the excess acreage and pay for an authorized employee

of ASCS to verify destruction,

(2) Pay for measurement service for an authorized employee of ASCS

to verify destruction of an acreage of another crop on the farm that is

enrolled in a production adjustment program equal to the excess

acreage, if such other crop acreage is within permitted acreage

established for the farm for that crop.

9. Section 718.22 is revised to read as follows:

Sec. 718.22 Acreage reports.

(a) To be eligible for program benefits, a report of acreage shall

be required for all cropland on farms that produce an agricultural

commodity that includes:

(1) Number of acres,

(2) Land use,

(3) Production, including zero production,

(4) Prevented or failed acreage,

(5) Crop disposition, if required according to 7 CFR 1413.21, and

(6) Other program requirements.

(b) The reports required under paragraph (a) of this section shall

be timely filed by the farm operator, farm owner, or a duly authorized

representative with the county committee by the final reporting date

applicable to the crop as established by the county committee. Such

final reporting dates are available at the applicable State and county

ASCS offices.

(c) Small grain acreage may be destroyed beyond the crop

disposition date by haying or grazing provided the farm operator, prior

to using or delivering for sale hay derived from such small grain

acreage:

(1) Requests an extension in writing by the crop disposition date;

and

(2) Pays a fee to cover the cost of a farm visit by an authorized

ASCS employee to verify that:

(i) The small grain acreage was cut for hay before reaching hard

dough stage; and

(ii) None of the small grain acreage was harvested as grain.

(d) Acreage reports are not required to obtain burley tobacco

benefits, including types:

(1) 32; Maryland tobacco produced in a quota area on a farm that

had a Maryland quota in effect when quotas on Maryland tobacco were in

effect.

(2) 41; Cigar-filler tobacco produced in Pennsylvania.

(3) 61; Cigar-wrapper tobacco produced in Connecticut or

Massachusetts.

(4) 65; Cigar-wrapper tobacco produced in Georgia or Florida.

(e) Peanut producers shall provide the county office evidence of

disposition of any peanuts that are kept on the farm, including:

(1) Type and quantity for use for seed on any farm in which the

producer has an interest.

(2) Type, quantity, names, and addresses of purchases for peanuts

sold or given to others.

(f) Peanut producers shall provide the county office information

for acquisition of seed peanuts from other sources, including:

(1) Name and address of person who sold or gave producer the

peanuts.

(2) Type, farmer's stock or shelled basis, and quantity.

(3) Acquisition date.

(g) Acreage and land use reports shall be:

(1) Used to determine program eligibility and benefits.

(2) On form ASCS-578, Report of Acreage.

10. Section 718.24 is amended by revising the introductory text and

adding paragraphs (d), (e), (f), and (g) to read as follows:

Sec. 718.24 Revised reports.

The farm operator may revise a report of acreage to change the

acreage reported if the county committee determines that the revision

does not have an adverse impact on the program. Revised reports shall

be filed and accepted:

* * * * *

(d) For a farm enrolled in the ARP, if the requirements of

paragraph (a) of this section have been met as well as the following:

(1) The producer was in compliance with all other program

requirements by the earlier of the final disposition date or the

established reporting date for the crop,

(2) The producer met all ACR and CU for payment requirements for

the crop as provided in part 1413 of this title.

(e) For requests to hay and graze small grains beyond the

disposition date made according to Sec. 718.22(c).

(f) For excess ACR resulting from an acreage determination, the

farm operator may request in writing that the excess ACR be released at

any time.

(g) Other acreage may be substituted for previously reported ACR if

the:

(1) Designated ACR is later approved for CRP acreage, or

(2) The farm operator pays an inspection fee for an authorized ASCS

employee to witness the destruction of hay production on an acreage

that has been swathed before being designated as ACR, and all of the

following conditions are met:

(i) The farm is, and was, as of the final reporting date, in

compliance with all eligibility and minimum size and width requirements

as provided in part 1413 of this title,

(ii) The acreage has not been found out of compliance through a

spot check,

(iii) The farm operator pays an inspection fee for an authorized

ASCS employee to inspect the original and substituted acreage. A fee is

not charged for substituted ACR to CRP acreage.

11. Section 718.25 (a) is revised to read as follows:

Sec. 718.25 Reporting out of compliance.

* * * * *

(a) A program crop exceeds the sum of the maximum acreage permitted

and the available flex from other participating crops in ARP,

* * * * *

12. Section 718.26 is amended by revising paragraphs (a), (b)(3)

through (b)(8), adding paragraphs (b)(9) and (b)(10), and revising

paragraph (c) to read as follows:

Sec. 718.26 Farm inspections.

(a) A representative number of farms selected shall be inspected by

an authorized representative of ASCS to ascertain the acreage or

production, or to determine adherence to any requirement specified as a

prerequisite for obtaining benefits under ARP, CRP, disaster programs,

and highly erodible and wetland provisions under part 12 of this title.

(b) * * *

(3) A farm on which the county committee determines an estimate of

production is needed to properly administer the program for any

marketing quota crop.

(4) A farm for which an acreage report shows nonquota tobacco

produced in a State where marketing quotas are in effect for any kind

of tobacco.

(5) Farms that have an effective flue-cured tobacco allotment.

(6) Farms on which there is unmarketed tobacco.

(7) Farms on which no tobacco is grown that have zero effective

allotment for dark air-cured and fire-cured tobacco.

(8) A farm for which a review of the production evidence submitted

by the operator indicates that:

(i) Data is not valid,

(ii) Reported production is not reasonable when compared to other

farms in the area.

(9) Farms for which production evidence is submitted to document

farm and warehouse stored production, actual yields, and ginner and

buyer records.

(10) Farms for which an ASCS-574, Application for Disaster Credit,

is filed for prevented or failed acreage credit.

(c) County offices may conduct additional farm inspections when

evidence indicates possible noncompliance with any requirement

specified as a prerequisite for obtaining program benefits.

13. Section 718.40 is amended by revising paragraphs (d)(1),

(d)(2), and (e)(1) to read as follows:

Sec. 718.40 Tolerance and variance rules applicability.

* * * * *

(d) * * *

(1) For individual crop acreages or program requirements, except

for tobacco, the larger of 1.0 acre or 5 percent of the reported

acreage, but not to exceed 50 acres.

(2) For farms with corn and grain sorghum crop acreage bases that

are enrolled in a production adjustment program, the larger of 1.0 acre

or 5 percent of the combined reported acreage, not to exceed 50 acres.

* * * * *

(e) With respect to:

(1) Individual crop acreages or program requirements, except for

tobacco, the applicable requirements shall be considered to have been

met if:

(i) The determined acreage for each crop does not differ from the

reported acreage by more than the tolerance, and

(ii) A determination of good faith has been made by the county

committee.

* * * * *

14. Section 718.42 is amended by revising paragraph (b)(2) and

adding paragraph (b)(3) to read as follows:

Sec. 718.42 Skip rows and strip crops.

* * * * *

(b) * * *

(2) If the distance between the rows is 32 inches or wider and the

strips of idle land are at least 60 inches but less than 64 inches, the

producer has the option to consider the crop as either solid planted or

skip row if the producer has a history of planting 32-inch or wider

rows.

(3) The COC shall determine history of 32-inch or wider rows by

verifying that cotton acreage has been planted in 32-inch or wider rows

in past years and reported:

(i) On the acreage report,

(ii) To FCIC,

(iii) To other State or Federal Agencies.

* * * * *

15. Section 718.43 is amended by revising paragraphs (a)(2) and

(a)(3), redesignating paragraph (b) as (c), adding new paragraph (b)

and revising the newly designated paragraph (c) to read as follows:

Sec. 718.43 Deductions.

(a) * * *

(2) For tobacco, three-hundredths acre, except that turn areas,

terraces, permanent irrigation and drainage ditches, sod waterways,

noncropland, and subdivision boundaries each of which is at least 30

inches (approximately 3.8 links) in width may be combined to meet the

0.03-acre minimum requirement.

(3) For all other crops and land uses, one-tenth acre. Turn areas,

terraces, permanent irrigation and drainage ditches, sod waterways,

noncropland, and subdivision boundaries each of which is at least 30

inches (approximately 3.8 links) in width and each of which contain 0.1

acre or more may be combined to meet any larger minimum prescribed for

a State in accordance with Sec. 718.10(b).

(b) If the area not devoted to the crop or land use is located

within the planted area, then consider the part of any perimeter area

that is more than 33 links in width to be an internal deduction if the

standard deduction is used.

(c) A standard deduction of three percent of the area devoted to a

row crop and zero percent of the area devoted to a close-sown crop may

be used in lieu of measuring the acreage of turn areas. The COC may

use, upon approval by the STC, a different percentage when the three

percent or zero percent deduction does not adequately reflect the

normal cultural practice in the county.

16. Section 718.45 is revised to read as follows:

Sec. 718.45 Notice of measured acreage.

Written notice of measured acreage shall be on form ASCS-468,

Notice of Determined Acreage and shall constitute notice to all

interested producers on the farm. The county committee shall furnish

such notice to each farm operator when a farm is measured, remeasured,

or checked for adjustment credit.

17. Section 718.46 is revised to read as follows:

Sec. 718.46 Producer reliance on previous determinations.

If, in reporting an acreage, a producer relies in good faith on an

acreage previously determined for that crop year by an employee of ASCS

(except acreage determined from data furnished by the producer) and the

acreage is subsequently determined by the county committee to be

incorrect, the county committee shall consider the acreage on which the

producer relied to be correct for that program year upon obtaining

satisfactory proof from the producer that such producer relied in good

faith upon the incorrect determination. However, the county committee

may use the correct data if the producer would be adversely affected by

an error in producer service provided under Sec. 718.21.

18. Section 718.47 is amended by revising paragraphs (a),

(b)(1)(i), and (b)(1)(ii) to read as follows, and removing paragraph

(d).

Sec. 718.47 Redeterminations.

(a) A redetermination of crop and land use, acreage, appraised

yield, or farm-stored production for a farm may be initiated by the

county committee, State committee, or Deputy Administrator at any time.

Such redeterminations may also be initiated by a producer who has an

interest in the farm upon filing a request within 15 days after the

date of the notice furnished the farm operator in accordance with

Sec. 718.44 or within five days after the initial appraisal of the

yield of a crop or before any of the farm-stored production is removed

from storage and upon payment of the cost of making such

redetermination. A redetermination shall be undertaken in the manner

prescribed by the Deputy Administrator. Such redetermination shall be

used in lieu of any prior determination.

(b) The county committee shall refund the payment of the cost for a

redetermination when, because of an error in the initial determination:

(1)* * *

(i) Five percent or five pounds for cotton;

(ii) Five percent or one bushel for wheat, barley, oats, and rye;

* * * * *

19. Part 790 is revised to read as follows:

PART 790--INCOMPLETE PERFORMANCE BASED UPON ACTION OR ADVICE OF AN

AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE OF THE SECRETARY

Sec.

790.1 Applicability.

790.2 Action.

790.3 Delegation of authority.

790.4 Filing of request for consideration.

Authority: Sec. 326, 76 Stat. 631, 77 Stat. 47, 79 Stat. 1192; 7

U.S.C. 1339a.

Sec. 790.1 Applicability.

This part is applicable to all programs set forth in title 7 that

are administered by the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation

Service, hereinafter referred to as ``ASCS'' under which benefits are

extended or payments are made to farmers.

Sec. 790.2 Action.

(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, performance

rendered in good faith based upon action of or information provided by

any authorized representative of a County Committee or State Committee,

as defined in part 719 of this chapter, may be accepted by the

Administrator, ASCS (Executive Vice President, CCC), the Associate

Administrator, ASCS (Vice President, CCC), or the Deputy Administrator,

State and County Operations, ASCS (Vice President, CCC), as meeting the

requirements of the applicable program, and benefits may be extended or

payments may be made therefor in accordance with such action or advice

to the extent it is deemed desirable in order to provide fair and

equitable treatment.

(b) The provisions of this part shall be applicable only if a

producer relied upon the action of a county or State committee or an

authorized representative of such committee or took action based on

information provided by such representative. The authority provided in

this part does not extend to cases where the producer knew or had

sufficient reason to know that the action or advice of the committee or

its authorized representative upon which they relied was improper or

erroneous, or where the producer acted in reliance on their own

misunderstanding or misinterpretation of program provisions, notices,

or advice.

Sec. 790.3 Delegation of authority.

The State committee may, in accordance with instructions issued by

the Deputy Administrator, State and County Operations (DASCO), exercise

the authority provided in this part in programs administered by the

ASCS in cases where the total of any payments and benefits extended

under this part does not exceed $5,000.

Sec. 790.4 Filing of request for consideration.

(a) Any person who feels that they are entitled to consideration

under the provisions of this part may file a request with the county

committee, or (b) the county committee may submit a request for

consideration to the State committee without a specific request from

the producer when the county committee believes that the producer is

entitled to consideration under the provisions of this part.

20. Part 791 is revised to read as follows:

PART 791--AUTHORITY TO MAKE PAYMENTS WHEN THERE HAS BEEN A FAILURE

TO COMPLY FULLY WITH THE PROGRAM

Sec.

791.1 Applicability.

791.2 The making of loans, purchases, and payments when there has

been a failure to fully comply with the program.

791.3 Delegation of authority.

Authority: Sec. 602, 79 Stat. 1206, 7 U.S.C. 1838; sec. 379b, 84

Stat. 1362, 7 U.S.C. 1379b; sec. 105, 84 Stat. 1368, 7 U.S.C. 1441

note; sec. 103, 84 Stat. 1374, 7 U.S.C 1444.

Sec. 791.1 Applicability.

This part is applicable to the wheat, feed grain, cotton, and rice

programs, and to all other programs to which this part is made

applicable by individual program regulations.

Sec. 791.2 The making of loans, purchases, and payments when there has

been a failure to fully comply with the program.

In any case in which the failure of a producer to comply fully with

the terms and conditions of any program to which this part is

applicable precludes the making of loans, purchases, or payments, the

Deputy Administrator, State and County Operations (DASCO), Deputy

Administrator, Commodity Operations (DACO), and National Appeals

Division (NAD), may, nevertheless, authorize the making of such loans,

purchases, or payments in such amounts as determined to be equitable in

relation to the seriousness of the failure. The provisions of this part

shall be applicable only to producers who are determined to have made a

good faith effort to comply fully with the terms and conditions of the

program and rendered substantial performance. Any person who feels that

he or she is entitled to consideration under the provisions of this

part may file a request with the county committee.

Sec. 791.3 Delegation of authority.

The authority contained in Sec. 791.2 of this title may be

redelegated in whole or in part.

21. Part 1413 is revised to read as follows:

PART 1413--FEED GRAIN, RICE, UPLAND AND EXTRA LONG STAPLE COTTON,

WHEAT AND RELATED PROGRAMS

Subpart A--General Provisions

Sec.

1413.1 Applicability.

1413.2 Compliance with part 12 of this title, highly erodible land

and wetland conservation provisions.

1413.3 Controlled substance violations.

1413.4 Administration.

1413.5 Performance based upon advice or action of County or State

Committee.

1413.6 Appeals.

1413.7 Paperwork Reduction Act assigned numbers.

Subpart B--Definition of Terms Used in This Part

1413.8 Definitions.

Subpart C--Planted and Considered Planted Acreages

1413.10 Planted crop acreages.

1413.11 Considered planted acreages.

1413.12--1413.14 [Reserved]

Subpart D--Farm Program Yields

1413.15 Farm program payment yields.

1413.16 Establishing crop yields for soybeans and minor oilseeds.

1413.17 Historical Weighted Yields (HWY).

1413.18 Irrigated Acreage Maximum (IAM) for determining HWY's.

1413.19 Submitting production evidence.

1413.20 Reducing yields.

Subpart E--Crop Acreage Bases

1413.24 Crop acreage bases.

1413.25 Participation in Conservation Reserve Program.

1413.26 Adjusting CAB's.

1413.27 Conservation compliance CAB exchanges.

1413.28--1413.29 [Reserved]

1413.30 Reconstitution of farms.

1413.31 Notice of CAB's and yields.

Subpart F--Extra Long Staple Cotton Crop Acreage Bases and Yields

1413.34 ELS cotton counties.

1413.35 ELS cotton CAB's.

1413.36 ELS cotton program payment yields.

1413.37 Submitting ELS cotton production evidence.

Subpart G--Program Options

1413.41 0/85/92 program provisions for wheat and feed grains.

1413.42 50/85/92 program provisions for upland cotton and rice.

1413.43 Planting flexibility.

Subpart H--Program Agreement and Enrollment Provisions

1413.50 Requirements for program participation.

1413.51 Successors in interest.

1413.52 Misrepresentation and scheme or device.

1413.53 Required acreage reduction.

1413.54 Acreage reduction program provisions.

1413.55 Land diversion.

Subpart I--Acreage Conservation Reserve and Conserving Use for Payment

Provisions

1413.60 Basic rules for ACR and CU for payment acreage.

1413.61 Eligible land for ACR and CU for payment designation.

1413.62 Ineligible land for ACR and CU for payment designation.

1413.63 Required cover crops and practices on ACR.

1413.64 Nationally approved cover crops and practices for ACR and

CU for payment acreages.

1413.65 Locally approved cover crops and practices for ACR and CU

for payment acreages.

1413.66 Use of ACR and CU for payment acreage.

1413.67 Control of erosion, insects, weeds, and rodents on ACR and

CU for payment acreage.

1413.68 Orchards.

1413.69 Land going out of agricultural production.

1413.70 Wildlife food plots or habitat.

1413.71 Insufficient ACR acreage.

1413.72 Destroyed crop acreage.

1413.73 [Reserved]

1413.74 Reduction in ACR.

1413.75 Skip rows.

Subpart J--Payment Provisions

1413.100 Determination of farm payment acreage.

1413.101 General payment provisions.

1413.102 Advance payments.

1413.103 Established (target) prices.

1413.104 Deficiency payments.

1413.105 Timing and calculation of deficiency payments.

1413.106 Division of payments.

1413.107 Provisions relating to tenants and sharecroppers.

1413.108 Offsets and assignments.

1413.109 Payments by commodities and commodity certificates and

refunds.

1413.110 Malting barley.

Subpart K--Prevented Planting and Failed Acreage Credit

1413.121 Disaster credit.

1413.122 Eligibility for regular prevented planting and reduced

yield payments.

1413.123 Regular disaster payment computations.

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1308, 1308a, 1309, 1441-2, 1444-2, 1444f,

1445b-3a, 1461-1469; 15 U.S.C. 714b and 714c.

Subpart A--General Provisions

Sec. 1413.1 Applicability.

The regulations in this part applicable to the Commodity Credit

Corporation (CCC) 1994 and 1995 feed grain, rice, extra long staple

(ELS), and wheat programs, and the 1994 through 1997 upland cotton

programs. Producers of these commodities who enter into agreements with

the CCC and fully comply with the terms of such agreements and the

provisions of this part are eligible for program benefits. The programs

are conducted throughout the United States, including Puerto Rico.

Sec. 1413.2 Compliance with part 12 of this title, highly erodible

land and wetland conservation provisions.

Whenever a producer, or a person affiliated with such producer, is

determined to be ineligible in accordance with part 12 of this title,

such producer shall be ineligible for any payments under this part and

shall refund any payments already received in accordance with

Sec. 1413.101(f).

Sec. 1413.3 Controlled substance violations.

In accordance with the regulations in part 796 of this title,

payments shall not be made to program participants who are convicted of

planting, cultivating, growing, producing, harvesting or storing a

controlled substance as defined in part 796.

Sec. 1413.4 Administration.

(a) The programs are administered under the general supervision of

the Administrator, Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service

(ASCS) and shall be carried out in the field by State and county

Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation committees (herein called

``State and county committees'').

(b) State and county committees, and representatives and employees

thereof, do not have authority to modify or waive any of the provisions

of the regulations of this part.

(c) The State committee shall take any action required by these

regulations which has not been taken by the county committee. The State

committee shall also:

(1) Correct, or require a county committee to correct, any action

taken by such county committee which is not in accordance with the

regulations of this part, or

(2) Require a county committee to withhold taking any action which

is not in accordance with the regulation of this part.

(d) No provision or delegation herein to a State or county

committee shall preclude the Administrator, ASCS, or a designee, from

determining any question arising under the program or from reversing or

modifying any determination made by a State or county committee.

(e) The Deputy Administrator may authorize State and county

committees to waive or modify deadlines and other program requirements

in cases where lateness or failure to meet such other requirements does

not affect adversely the operation of the program.

(f) A representative of CCC may execute a CCC-477, Intention to

Participate in the 1995 Price Support and Production Adjustment

Programs only under the terms and conditions determined and announced

by the Executive Vice President, CCC. Any CCC-477 which is not executed

in accordance with such terms and conditions, including any purported

execution prior to the date authorized by the Executive Vice President,

CCC, shall be null and void and shall not be considered to be an

agreement between CCC and the operator and any other producer on the

farm.

Sec. 1413.5 Performance based upon advice or action of County or State

Committee.

The provisions of part 791 of this title with respect to

performance based upon action or advice of any authorized

representative of the Secretary shall be applicable to this part.

Sec. 1413.6 Appeals.

(a) A producer enrolled in the programs conducted in accordance

with this part may obtain reconsideration and review of any

determination made under this part in accordance with the appeal

regulations found at part 780 of this title.

(b) With respect to farm program payment yields, determinations

made before December 23, 1985, are not appealable.

Sec. 1413.7 Paperwork Reduction Act assigned numbers.

The information collection requirements contained in these

regulations have been approved by the Office of Management and Budget

(OMB) under the provisions of 44 U.S.C. 35, and assigned OMB Nos. 0560-

0004 and 0560-0092.

Subpart B--Definitions of Terms Used in This Part

Sec. 1413.8 Definitions.

The definitions set forth in this section shall be applicable for

all purposes of program administration. The terms defined in part 719

of this title governing the reconstitution of farms shall also be

applicable, except where those definitions conflict with the

definitions set forth in this section.

Acreage conservation reserve (ACR) means the acreage which is

required to be taken out of production and maintained according to

Sec. 1413.67.

Acreage for payment means the acreage used to compute deficiency

payments for the crop for the farm as determined in accordance with

Sec. 1413.104 (d) and (e).

Acreage reduction program (ARP) means a land retirement system in

which participating producers agree not to plant a specified number of

acres for cotton, feed grains, rice, and wheat in a program year in

return for the right to obtain deficiency payments, price support

loans, and other program benefits.

Actual ELS cotton yield per acre means the acceptable net

production divided by harvested acreage for the year.

Approved nonprogram crops (ANPC) means specified crops of dry peas

(Austrian peas, wrinkled seed, green, yellow, and umatilla) and

lentils, that producers are allowed to plant and harvest and receive

planted and considered planted credit on up to 20 percent of wheat or

feed grain crop acreage base, but not on acreage that is part of a rice

or upland cotton acreage base.

Conserving uses (CU) means all uses during a year of cropland as

defined in part 719 of this title except for:

(1) Acreage of crops planted for harvest or use during the current

crop year, which shall include:

(i) A crop of rice, upland cotton, feed grains, wheat, or ELS

cotton;

(ii) A crop of oilseeds;

(iii) Any nonprogram crop;

(iv) IOC's;

(v) Any crop for which price support is available through loans and

purchases in accordance with chapter XIV of this title; and

(vi) Any acreage which is harvested for green chop, hay, forage,

silage, or haylage in a State where the State committee, after

consulting with interested parties, has determined that haying of

conserving use acreage designated to a program crop for payment

purposes under Sec. 1413.104 shall not be permitted.

(2) Acreage which is not available to be cropped in the current

year because:

(i) Of a contract under the Water Bank Program in accordance with

part 752 of this title;

(ii) Of an agreement under the Great Plains Conservation Program in

accordance with part 631 of this title;

(iii) Of a contract under the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) in

accordance with part 704 of this title;

(iv) The acreage is designated as ACR acreage for the current year;

or

(v) The acreage is subject to a restrictive easement which

prohibits its use for program crops.

(3) Any land which the producer was prevented from planting to a

crop of rice, upland or ELS cotton, feed grains, or wheat and which is

considered as planted to such crop for the purpose of computing crop

acreage bases (CAB's);

(4) Any acreage which is determined to be ineligible in accordance

with Sec. 1413.62; and

(5) Any other acreage which is not available to be cropped in the

current year and which is excluded in accordance with Sec. 1413.43.

Corn means field corn or sterile high-sugar corn. Popcorn, corn

nuts, blue corn, sweet corn, and corn varieties grown for decoration

uses are excluded.

Cotton means upland cotton and ELS cotton meeting the definition

set forth in the definitions of ``upland cotton'' and ``extra long

staple (ELS)'' cotton in this section, respectively, and excludes

cotton not meeting such definitions.

Current year means the program year in which the crop with respect

to which payment may be made under this part would normally be

harvested, or the program year for which a CAB or yield is being

determined or other action being taken, which may not be the same as

the calendar year in which action is taken.

Custom farming means performing services such as land preparation,

seeding, cultivating, applying agricultural chemicals, and harvesting

for hire with renumeration on a unit-of-work basis excluding:

(1) Harvesting by an entity engaged in such business;

(2) Applying agricultural chemicals by an entity regularly engaged

in such business;

(3) Establishing enduring conservation measures, such as land

leveling, terracing, ditching, and tree planting performed by an entity

regularly engaged in such business.

Determined acreage means the acreage determined in accordance with

7 CFR part 718. If the acreage is not selected for spot-check and

determined in accordance with 7 CFR part 718, the determined acreage

shall be the reported acreage for program purposes.

Disaster means:

(1) A condition affecting a crop to cause prevented planting or

failed acreage of such crop, such as drought, excessive moisture, hail,

earthquake, freeze, tornado, hurricane, typhoon, volcano, excessive

wind, excessive heat, or any combination thereof;

(2) Related conditions of insect infestation, plant disease, or

other deterioration of such crop, including aflatoxin, that is

accelerated or exerbated naturally because of damaging weather

occurring before or during harvest; and

(3) Flooding within flood or flowage easement areas.

Farm program payment yield means the yield for the crop for the

farm which is determined by the county committee in accordance with

Sec. 1413.15 adjusted to reflect any determinations made with respect

to such yield in accordance with part 780 of this title. The 1985 farm

program payment yield means:

(1) The yield for the crop for the farm which was determined by the

county committee in accordance with the regulations in this part which

were applicable for the 1985 crop year; or

(2) The yield for the crop for the farm which is determined in

accordance with Sec. 1413.15 if no yield was determined for the crop

for the farm for the 1985 crop year.

Farming operations and practices means the integration of crops and

crop-plant variety selection, rotation practices, tillage systems, soil

conserving and soil building practices, nutrient management strategies,

biological control and integrated pest management strategies, livestock

production and management systems, animal waste management systems,

water and energy conservation measures, and health and safety

considerations.

Final disposition date means the date or time by which an acreage

of barley, wheat, oilseeds, or oats must be disposed of in order that

such acreage will not be considered as barley, wheat, oats, or oilseeds

for harvest or by which an acreage of rye or similar grain must be

disposed of in order for the acreage to qualify as ACR acreage in

accordance with Sec. 1413.63 or as a conserving or conservation use.

Grain sorghum means grain sorghum of a feed grain or dual purpose

variety (including any cross which, at all stages of growth, has most

of the characteristics of a feed grain or dual purpose variety). Sweet

sorghum is excluded regardless of use.

High residue program crop (HRC) means a crop of barley, corn, grain

sorghum, oats, and wheat that is not harvested for silage.

Industrial and other crops (IOC's) are: castor beans, chia, crambe,

crotalaria, cuphea, guar, guayule, hesperaloe, kenaf, lesquerella,

meadowfoam, milkweed, plantago ovato, and sesame, or other crops as

designated by the Secretary. Individual State ASC Committees may remove

individual crops of IOC's from the list permitted in such State.

Landlord means an individual, entity, or joint operation that rents

or leases land to another individual, entity, or joint operation

according to 7 CFR part 719.

Low residue crop (LRC) means a crop of barley, corn, grain sorghum,

oats, or wheat that has been harvested for silage, and cotton. A crop

of soybeans is considered a low residue crop.

Marketing year means the 12-month period beginning in the current

year and ending the next year as follows:

(1) For barley, oats, and wheat, June 1 through May 31.

(2) For cotton and rice, August 1 through July 31.

(3) For corn and grain sorghum, September 1 through August 31.

Maximum payment acres for wheat, feed grains, upland cotton, and

rice means 85 percent of the crop acreage base for the crop for the

farm less the required ACR.

Minor means an individual who is not at least 18 years of age on or

before the status date, as established by part 1497 of this title, of

the current calendar year.

Minor oilseeds means acreages of sunflowers, safflowers, mustard

seed, flaxseed, rapeseed, and canola that are planted for harvest as

seed, or volunteer acreages of such crops from which the seed is

harvested.

Nonprogram crop means any crop other than a program crop, ELS

cotton, oilseed, or IOC as determined in accordance with this section.

Nonrotation means the planted and considered planted acreage of a

crop that is generally consistent in every year on a farm.

Operator means an individual, entity, or joint operation that is in

general control of the farming operations on the farm during the

program year, as determined in accordance with 7 CFR part 719.

Other cotton means pure strain varieties of the barbadense species,

any hybrid thereof, or any other variety of cotton in which one or more

of these varieties predominate, if either of the following applies:

(1) The cotton is grown in a county that has not been designated as

an ELS cotton county; or

(2) The cotton is ginned on other than roller-type gins.

Permitted acres for wheat, feed grains, upland and ELS cotton, and

rice means the CAB minus the required ACR.

Person means an individual, joint stock company, corporation,

estate or trust, association, or other legal entity, except that two or

more entities shall be combined as one person in accordance with:

(1) The regulations found at part 1497 of this chapter for the

purpose of administering maximum payment limitation provisions of the

Food Security Act of 1985;

(2) The regulations found at part 796 of this title for the purpose

of administering the provisions of the Food Security Act of 1985 with

respect to the production of controlled substances; and

(3) The regulations found at part 12 of this title pertaining to

the highly erodible land and wetland provisions (commonly known as

``sodbuster and swampbuster'' provisions) of the Food Security Act of

1985.

Producer means an individual, entity, or joint operation that

shares in the risk of producing the crop, and is entitled to share in

the crops available for marketing from the farm, or would have shared

had the crops been produced.

Program benefits means loans, purchases, and payments authorized

for a program crop.

Program crop means a crop of wheat, corn, grain sorghum, oats,

barley, upland cotton, and rice.

Repeat crop means the same crop planted, harvested, and planted

again on the same acreage. A second crop must be planted to be a repeat

crop. Volunteer crops are not repeat crops.

Rice means rice excluding sweet, glutinous, or candy rice such as

Mochi Gomi.

Sharecropper means a producer who:

(1) Performs work concerning the production of a crop under the

supervision of the operator; and

(2) Receives a share of the crop for labor.

Small grains means barley, oats, wheat, and rye.

Soybeans means any variety of soybeans, except laredo and edamame,

which is planted regardless of the intended use.

Tenant means an:

(1) Individual, entity, or joint operation, usually called a cash

tenant, fixed-rent tenant, or standing-rent tenant, who rents land from

another for a fixed amount of cash or a fixed amount of a commodity to

be paid as rent;

(2) Individual, entity, or joint operation, usually called a share

tenant, who rents land from another individual, entity, or joint

operation and pays as rent a share of the crop or the proceeds thereof.

Upland cotton means planted and stub cotton which is produced from

other than pure strain varieties of the Barbadense species, any hybrid

thereof, or any other variety of cotton in which one or more of these

varieties predominate. For program purposes, brown lint cotton is

considered upland cotton.

Subpart C--Planted and Considered Planted Acreages

Sec. 1413.10 Planted crop acreages.

(a) The county committee shall apply the guidelines in paragraphs

(b) and (c) of this section in determining crop acreages planted for

harvest.

(b) The county committee shall include as crop acreage planted for

harvest any of the following:

(1) The acreage harvested;

(2) The acreage of small grains which was not disposed of before

the disposal deadline in accordance with 7 CFR part 718.22(c), unless

an extension has been granted for the crop on the farm by the county

committee; and

(3) The acreage of small grains which was disposed of before the

disposal deadline if such acreage qualified for a reduced yield payment

in accordance with the provisions of Secs. 1413.122 and 1413.123 or

failed acreage credit in accordance with the provisions of

Sec. 1413.121;

(4) Volunteer acreage of a crop that is harvested;

(5) Minor oilseed acreage that is planted for harvest as seed or a

volunteer acreage of such oilseed crop from which the seed is

harvested; and

(6) An acreage planted to oilseeds which is not disposed of before

the disposal date established for such a crop.

(c) The county committee shall exclude as crop acreage planted for

harvest any of the following:

(1) The acreage which failed and could have been replanted by the

final planting date established for the crop by Federal Crop Insurance

Corporation (FCIC), according to part 400 of this title, but which was

not replanted;

(2) The acreage that is approved as ACR acreage in accordance with

the provisions of Secs. 1413.59 through 1413.75;

(3) The acreage which was disposed of without feed or other benefit

(including lint benefit for cotton) and excluded by the operator on the

report of acreage as provided in part 718 of this title;

(4) The acreage which was approved for wildlife food plots or

planted for wildlife in accordance with Sec. 1413.70;

(5) The acreage that was planted so late that it could not mature

and produce grain or lint and, with respect to corn and grain sorghum,

was not harvested for silage;

(6)(i) Any acreage which is planted for experimental purposes under

the direct supervision of a State experimental station or a commercial

company and which meets the following requirements:

(A) The production is:

(1) Destroyed before harvest;

(2) Used for testing or other experimental purposes; or

(3) Donated to a wildlife agency and certified by a representative

from such agency as to the amount of production donated.

(B) A representative from the State experimental station or the

commercial company certifies that any production harvested from the

experimental acreage will not be marketed in any form.

(C) The producer certifies that no harvested production of the crop

has or will be received by such producer.

(D) By the final reporting date for such crop, the producer:

(1) Reports the acreage of the crop to be excluded;

(2) Identifies the acreage of the crop on a land photocopy for

reference; and

(3) Pays for a farm visit by a county committee representative,

according to part 718 of this title, to verify how the crop was used.

(ii) Acreages planted to program crops for experimental purposes

shall not be eligible for designation as ACR, CU for planted and

considered planted credit and CU for payment, or any other planted and

considered planted purpose.

(7) The acreage of barley, oats, wheat, or rice which is left

standing as a cover crop past the disposal deadline according to

Sec. 1413.63 if the producer:

(i) Requests from the county committee, in writing, permission to

allow such crop to be left standing before the crop reporting date;

(ii) Destroys the crop mechanically if the crop does not

deteriorate before the end of the nongrazing period so that no benefit

can be derived from the grain;

(iii) Does not obtain feed benefit from the crop; and

(iv) Pays the cost of a farm visit by a representative of the

county committee to determine compliance with program requirements for

disposal of the crop;

(8) Any acreage designated under the CRP in accordance with part

704 of this title; and

(9) Any crop acreage on a farm which is planted by a producer with

no intent to harvest.

(d) The county committee shall consider mixtures of crops to be the

crop that is predominant in the mixture, except when corn or grain

sorghum is mixed with another crop in the same row, the mixture shall

be considered to be corn or grain sorghum, as applicable.

Sec. 1413.11 Considered planted acreages.

Considered planted acreage for a crop means the following:

(a) With respect to the 1994 and subsequent crop years, the sum of

the following except that for farms enrolled in an acreage reduction or

land diversion program for the crop, the planted and considered planted

shall be limited to the CAB for each crop for the crop year:

(1) Any acreage devoted to ACR for the crop under an acreage

reduction, or land diversion program as set forth in this part or any

other part;

(2) The acreage determined to be intended to be planted to the crop

but which was prevented from being planted to the crop because of

drought, flood, other natural disaster, or quarantine in accordance

with Sec. 1413.121;

(3) For farms on which producers are participating in an ARP for

the crop, the acreage of crops designated for planted and considered

planted purposes and CU credited to the crop in accordance with

Sec. 1413.100;

(4) For farms on which the ACR acreage has been reduced in

accordance with Sec. 1413.74, the smaller of the following:

(i) The amount of the reduction in ACR acreage; or

(ii) The acreage of cropland on the farm which is not considered as

being planted to a program crop under any other provision of this part;

(5) For farms for which there is a CRP contract in effect, an

acreage equal to the amount by which any CAB is reduced in accordance

with Sec. 1413.25 due to participation in the CRP in accordance with

part 704 of this title.

(6) For program crops for which the acreage report filed in

accordance with part 718 of this title reflects zero acreage of the

program crop and which are not participating in an acreage reduction,

or land diversion program for the crop, the planted and considered

planted crop acreage shall equal the CAB of the crop. If the zero

acreage report provision is requested by the operator, such provision

cannot be used to increase the CAB for other crops on a farm.

(i) Producers growing fruits and vegetables, except for green

manure, haying, and grazing, as specified in Sec. 1413.43, must not

have planted or have been prevented from being planted in excess of

normal plantings of such crops for the farm. The cropping history for

fruits and vegetables shall be based on the higher of the farm's

history of planting such crops in the last year or 3 years preceding

the current year. Zero report provisions will be permitted only if the

current year acreage of fruits and vegetables for other than green

manure, haying, or grazing, is equal to or less than the farm's history

for the last year or the 3 years preceding the current year.

(ii) Planted and considered planted acreage of other

nonparticipating crops planted in excess of such crop's CAB will be

reduced, if the total planted and considered planted acreage exceeds

the cropland for the farm.

(7) For program crops for which the acreage report filed in

accordance with part 718 of this title reflects zero acreage of the

program crop and which are not participating in an acreage reduction,

or land diversion program for the crop, CU acreage may be used to

receive planted and considered planted credit for the crop.

(8) Any acreage devoted to approved nonprogram crops (ANPC), not to

exceed 20 percent of a wheat or feed grain CAB, but not rice, ELS

cotton, or upland cotton, if the acreage is planted to dry peas

(limited to Austrian peas, wrinkled seed, green, yellow, and umatilla)

and lentils;

(9) Acreage that is an amount equal to the difference between

program crop permitted acreage and planted acreage, if the considered

planted acreage is devoted to conservation uses, or the production of

commodities permitted under Secs. 1413.41 and 1413.42;

(10) Acreage that is an amount equal to the difference between

program crop permitted acreage and planted acreage, if the considered

planted acreage is devoted to the production of commodities as

permitted by Sec. 1413.43. Both acreages of double-cropped program

crops, oilseeds, and IOC's used on flex acreage will be used for

planted and considered planted acreage.

(b) With respect to farms owned by the Farmers Home Administration

(FmHA), in 1991 and subsequent crop years, an acreage equal to the CAB

established for the farm in accordance with Sec. 1413.24.

(c) The sum of the planted and considered planted acreage of corn

and grain sorghum for each crop year shall be prorated to corn and

grain sorghum based on the ratio of the CAB for the individual crop of

corn or grain sorghum, as applicable, to the sum of the CAB's for corn

and grain sorghum established for each crop year.

Subpart D--Farm Program Yields

Sec. 1413.15 Farm program payment yields.

(a) The bushel or pound per acre farm program payment yield for

program crops for the 1994 through 1997 crop years shall be the 1990

farm program payment yield established for the crop for the farm.

(b) If the 1990 farm program payment yield established for a crop

for a farm was less than 90 percent of the 1985 farm program payment

yield for such crop, the deficiency payments for the crop shall be

increased by the amount necessary to provide the same total return to

producers as if the payment yield had not been reduced more than 10

percent below the 1985 program payment yield.

(c) If no farm program payment yield for a crop was established for

the 1990 crop year, the county committee may assign a yield for any

such year based upon the farm program payment yields for such crops for

at least 3 similar farms in the county or other surrounding area with

similar yield capability, including land and cultural practices, not

including irrigation practices for feed grains and wheat.

Sec. 1413.16 Establishing yields for soybeans and minor oilseeds.

(a) State ASC Committees shall establish yields for soybeans and

minor oilseeds. Such yields shall be used for:

(1) Calculating failure to fully comply reductions in accordance

with part 791 of this title; and

(2) Price support purposes, in accordance with part 1421 of this

chapter.

(b) State committees shall calculate soybean and minor oilseed

yields as follows:

(1) Such yield shall be based on the county yield determined by the

National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) for the preceding 5

crop years;

(2) The highest and lowest yield in such 5-year period shall be

excluded; and

(3) The remaining 3 crop year yields shall be averaged.

(c) If a county yield is not available from NASS for the 5

preceding years for a crop of soybeans or minor oilseeds, State

committees shall calculate the yields using the following data:

(1) State or area yields determined by NASS for the 5 preceding

crop years, calculated as provided in paragraphs (a)(1) through (3) of

this section.

(2) If neither State or area yields for the 5 preceding years are

available from NASS, yields from FmHA for such years.

(3) If such yields are not available from FmHA, data for such

yields from other government entities, such as Extension Service (ES).

(4) If no yield information is available from the sources listed in

paragraphs (c) (1) through (3) of this section, obtain yields from

other available sources.

Sec. 1413.17 Historical weighted yields (HWY).

If separate irrigated and nonirrigated farm crop program payment

yields were established for the 1990 crop on a farm, the program

payment yield for such crop for the 1994 through 1997 crop years shall

be a HWY that is determined by:

(a) Multiplying the smaller of the effective irrigated acreage

maximum (IAM) determined according to Sec. 1413.18 or the CAB times the

1990 irrigated farm program payment yield for the crop;

(b) Subtracting the IAM from the current year CAB and multiplying

the result, not less than zero, times the 1990 nonirrigated farm

program payment yield for such crop; and

(c) Totaling the results of subparagraphs (a) and (b) of this

section and dividing by the current year effective CAB. If the result

is zero, the HWY yield is the 1990 nonirrigated program payment yield

for the crop.

Sec. 1413.18 Irrigated acreage maximum (IAM) for determining HWY's.

(a) General. The farm IAM represents the maximum acreage for which

deficiency payments using the irrigated payment yield will be computed.

Except as otherwise provided in this section, the IAM for the farm

shall not be changed for the 1994 through 1997 crop years.

(b) Calculation. The calculated farm IAM is the sum of the crop

IAM's calculated as follows:

(1) Base period. The calculated crop IAM shall be computed, at the

producer's option, on the basis of either the sum of the 1988, 1989, or

1990 irrigated planted and CU for payment acreages on the farm or the

result of the 1991 CAB multiplied by the result of dividing the 1988,

1989, or 1990 irrigated planted and CU for payment acreages by the sum

of the irrigated and nonirrigated planted and CU for payment acreages

for the same year.

(2) Base period for rotation farms. If 1 or more crops are produced

on a farm in a 2-year rotation, the producer has the option of using

the 1991 CAB and the 1990, 1989, and 1987 years or the 1992 projected

CAB and the years 1990, 1988, and 1986 for the computations explained

above. If 1 or more crops are produced on a farm in a 3-year rotation,

the producer has the option of using the 1991 CAB and the 1990, 1988,

and 1985 years or 1992 projected CAB and the years 1990, 1989, and 1986

years or 1993 projected CAB and the years 1990, 1987, and 1984 years

for the computations explained above.

(3) Calculations for farms enrolled in the CRP. Appropriate

adjustments in the IAM calculation shall be made to reflect the amount

of irrigated cropland enrolled in the CRP and the amount of reduction

in CAB required by the CRP contract.

(4) Calculations for FmHA inventory farms. If a farm was in FmHA

inventory prior to 1991 and had irrigated program crops prior to 1988,

the county committee may approve adjustments to the farm IAM upon

request from FmHA, operator, or owner. IAM calculations shall be based

on substituting the most recent years the farm was not in FmHA

inventory for the years the farm was in inventory.

(c) Allocation of IAM's to crops. If a farm has more than 1

irrigated crop, and the effective IAM for the crop exceeds the

effective CAB for the crop, the operator and owners have the option to

reallocate the amount of the excess, provided that the receiving crop

IAM does not exceed the effective CAB. Form CCC-507A, Agreement for

Reallocation of Farm Irrigated Acreage Maximum, must be signed by both

the operator and owners of the farm before the reallocation can be

completed. The deadline for filing form CCC-507A is the same as for

form CCC-477, Intention to Participate in the 1994 Price Support and

Production Adjustment Programs. The reallocation is final for the year

and becomes the following year crop IAM.

(d) Appeals of IAM's. The IAM for a farm may be appealed in

accordance with Sec. 1413.6 when it is first established for the farm,

if the farm had an irrigated farm program payment yield for a crop

established for 1990. The farm IAM established for 1994 and later years

cannot be increased by appeal, except to correct errors in calculation

or transferring data. The crop IAM established for 1994 and later

years, which includes the allocation of farm IAM, can be appealed if

the CCC-507A was not properly executed.

(e) Effects of terminating CRP contracts. When a CRP contract for a

farm expires or is otherwise terminated, the original IAM shall be

restored by multiplying the difference between the original IAM and

effective IAM by the result of dividing the total cropland that is

being released from CRP by the total cropland that was originally in

CRP.

Sec. 1413.19 Submitting production evidence.

(a)(1) Producers shall submit reports of production evidence in

accordance with this paragraph for crops of wheat, feed grains, upland

cotton, and rice enrolled in a production adjustment program.

Production evidence for program crops may be accepted by county

committees at any time throughout the crop year. Producer certification

shall not be accepted as proof of production.

(2) Certification of such production evidence shall be on form

ASCS-658, Record of Production and Yield, for feed grains, rice,

soybeans, and wheat. Production evidence for upland cotton shall be

certified on either form ASCS-658-1, Certification of Deliveries to

Handlers, or Form ASCS-503, Identification of Cotton Production, at the

option of the county Committee. Producers who have an interest in

program crops on more than one farm shall submit production evidence

for all farms.

(3) County committees shall determine whether the production

evidence submitted includes production from any other acreage for each

year the evidence has been provided by the producer for the crop.

(4) Producers may have actual crop yields calculated for program

crops and soybeans by paying a service fee of $15 for each crop on a

farm and for each crop of the same commodity which is the subject of a

different cropping practice.

(b)(1) When production has been disposed of through commercial

channels, the county committee may require the operator or other

producers to furnish documentary evidence in order to verify the

information provided on the report. Acceptable evidence may include

such items as the original or a copy of:

(i) Commercial receipts,

(ii) Gin records,

(iii) CCC loan documents,

(iv) Farm-stored loan documents, if the quantity of the grain has

been determined by measurement,

(v) Evidence from harvested or appraised acreage, approved for FCIC

or multiple-peril crop insurance loss adjustment settlement,

(vi) Settlement sheets,

(vii) Warehouse ledger sheets,

(viii) Elevator receipts or load summaries, supported by other

evidence showing disposition, such as sales documents.

(2) Such production evidence must show:

(i) Producer's name,

(ii) Commodity,

(iii) Buyer's or storer's name, and

(iv) The date of the transaction.

(3) Production evidence shall be reviewed by the county committee

for moisture content and applicable dockage, according to part 1421 of

this title.

(c)(1) Farm-stored production shall be measured at the expense of

the producer. Scale tickets or weight slips may be accepted for farm-

stored production evidence instead of the measured quantity, if such

scale tickets or weight slips show:

(i) The farm number,

(ii) The commodity being stored,

(iii) The date the commodity was weighed, and

(iv) The signature or initials of the weigh person, and company

name, if available.

(2) The county committee shall determine that measurements

indicating the weighed quantity of the commodity in the bin is

reasonable compared to the measured quantity of such commodity.

(d) Subject to the county committee's approval, a producer may

certify that a quantity of a commodity was used as seed for personal

use if such certification includes:

(1) The production amount used for the commodity,

(2) The seeding rate for the commodity, and

(3) The number of acres that were planted using such commodity.

(e) Producers may request to have a crop appraised for production

evidence purposes. Such appraisals shall be performed in accordance to

7 CFR Sec. 401.8. The county committee has the option of:

(1) Accepting such appraisal's production estimates; or

(2) Reducing the appraised yield to reflect yields based on 3

similar farms and recording such appraised yield as an assigned yield,

and notifying the producer of the reduction of the yield and the

producer's right to appeal such yield.

(f)(1) Production that a producer intends to commingle with other

production must be supported by acceptable production evidence, which

shall be provided by the producer by:

(i) Having such production evidence measured,

(ii) Having the current year's production appraised, and

(iii) Establishing each producer's shares.

(2) The county committee may also verify the evidence submitted by

the producer with the warehouse, gin, or other entity which received

production. If the evidence is not furnished or the information

provided on the report cannot be verified, the county committee has the

option to:

(i) Disapprove the report of production; or

(ii) Require additional evidence to be provided.

(g) If production evidence is found to be unacceptable, false, or

incorrect, the county committee shall make all determinations,

including determinations as to whether the producer acted in good faith

or took an action defeating the purpose of the program, as specified in

accordance with part 791 of this title. If the county committee

determines the producer did not act in good faith or took action

defeating the purpose of the program, the actual yield shall be

considered zero. If the county committee determines the producer acted

in good faith, a yield shall be assigned for the crop year based on

yields established for 3 similar farms in the county.

Sec. 1413.20 Reducing yields.

(a) For the purpose of determining the amount of any deficiency

payment as provided in Sec. 1413.104 or the amount of any disaster

payment as provided in Secs. 1413.122 and 1413.123, the farm program

payment yield for a crop for a farm shall be temporarily reduced for a

farm for the applicable crop year when the county committee determines

that the producer planted or maintained the acreage of the crop in an

unworkmanlike manner such that, under normal conditions, it would not

produce a yield comparable to the established yield for the crop for

the farm.

(b) The following farming practices will not be considered as

unworkmanlike unless the county committee determines that the actions

are not an acceptable management practice for the crop and area:

(1) Continuous cropping when the yield for the crop was established

based on the crop normally being planted on summer-fallow acreage on

the farm;

(2) Cultural practices normal to the area or introduced by

Extension Service or Soil Conservation Service (SCS) to improve

conservation;

(3) Double cropping 2 crops that are normally double cropped in the

area;

(4) Changes in irrigation practices, except for rice;

(5) Minimum till and no till practices according to practices

customary for the area; and

(6) Introduction of new farm equipment into the area that was

manufactured or built by an entity that normally builds farm equipment.

(c) The county ASC committee shall:

(1) Review the newly determined yield;

(2) Adjust the established yield, if the new yield is less than 90

percent of the current established yield for the crop; and

(3) Consider adjusting the current established yield for the crop

if both of the following apply:

(i) The new determined yield is 90 percent or more of the current

established yield for the crop; and

(ii) The conditions initiating the reduced yield justify such

adjustment.

(d) Producers on a farm who have the yield for a crop temporarily

reduced may file a request for reconsideration of such reduced yield.

Production evidence that indicates that the actual yield exceeds the

temporarily reduced yield must be provided by the producer.

(e) If such production evidence indicates that the actual yield

justifies an increase in the temporarily reduced yield, such increased

yield may not exceed the program payment yield established for the crop

for a farm before the temporary reduction, irrespective of such actual

yield.

(f) If a temporary yield is increased, such increase must be

approved by a representative of the State committee.

(g) With respect to farms with repeat cropping, the total plantings

of the crop shall be considered as the crop acreage. Temporary yield

reductions may be made by the county committee with respect to the

acreage of the second planting if the yield originally established for

the farm was based on a history of a single planting.

(h) If a producer plants either corn or grain sorghum on the

permitted acreage of either corn or grain sorghum, respectively, and

the county committee determines that the crop planted was cared for in

an unworkmanlike manner, and the other crop was earning payments;

(1) A percentage of the reduced production of the crop cared for in

an unworkmanlike manner shall be determined, and the yield for the crop

earning deficiency payments shall be reduced by the determined

percentage.

(2) The producer may submit to the county committee actual

production evidence for approval to increase such that was reduced

yield for the crop.

Subpart E--Crop Acreage Bases

Sec. 1413.24 Crop acreage bases.

(a) A CAB shall be established for a farm for each year for barley,

corn, grain sorghum, oats, rice, upland cotton, ELS cotton, and wheat.

With respect to the 1994 and 1995 crops of corn and grain sorghum, the

permitted acreages of corn and grain sorghum for a farm shall be

combined. Separate corn and grain sorghum crop acreage bases shall be

calculated for the purpose of making deficiency payments in accordance

with Sec. 1413.104, and for planted and considered planted credit, in

accordance with Sec. 1413.11. Producers may plant any combination of

corn and grain sorghum on the total of the combined permitted acreages

for such crops.

(b) Except as provided in paragraphs (d) and (e) of this section,

the CAB for each program crop of wheat, barley, corn, grain sorghum,

and oats, for the 1991 and subsequent crop years shall be the number of

acres that is equal to the average of the acreage planted and

considered planted to the program crop for harvest on the farm in each

of the 5 crop years preceding the crop year.

(c) For upland cotton and rice, except as provided in paragraphs

(d) and (e) of this section, the CAB shall be equal to the average of

the acreages planted and considered planted to such crop for harvest on

the farm in each of the 3 crop years preceding such crop year.

(d) If the county committee determines that a crop is grown on a

farm in a clearly established crop-rotation pattern for 2 or more

years, the acreage base established for such crop will be determined by

using the average of the planted and considered planted acreages for

the 3 immediately preceding crop years in the rotation cycle that

corresponds to the current year.

(e) The sum of the CAB's for a farm for a crop year shall not

exceed the cropland for the farm, except to the extent that such excess

is due to an established practice of doublecropping on the farm,

according to paragraph (f) of this section.

(f) Acreages on a farm shall be considered to be double cropped if

in the same crop year on the same acreage any of the following apply:

(1) Two different crops are harvested, or if not harvested,

received failed or prevented planted acreage credit;

(2) The first crop was approved as prevented planted or failed

acres and the second crop is not considered ghost acres, in accordance

with Sec. 1413.121; or

(3) Two different crops are planted such that:

(i) Small grains must reach the hard dough stage on or before the

final disposition date in accordance with part 718 of this title; and

(ii) Other crops must reach maturity.

(g) The planting flexibility provisions in Sec. 1413.43 allow

nonprogram crops to be planted instead of program crops. Therefore,

producers who have a history of double cropping program crops may plant

nonprogram crop acreage as a double crop without losing double cropping

history.

(h)(1) Nonprogram crop acreage following program crop acreage is

eligible to receive double cropped planting credit if the farm has a

history of a program crop following a program crop in 3 of the previous

5 years. Such acreage credited for double crop history purposes is

limited to the smaller of the following:

(i) Nonprogram crop acreage considered double cropped; or (ii)

Nonprogram crop acreage credited to planted and considered planted as

flexible acreage, approved nonprogram crop, or other nonprogram crop.

(2) Program crop acreage, regardless of whether such acreage is the

first or second crop planted, shall be credited as a program crop for

planted and considered planted purposes, according to Sec. 1413.9.

Sec. 1413.25 Participation in Conservation Reserve Program.

(a) Whenever the owner or operator of a farm signs a contract to

participate in the CRP in accordance with part 1410 of this title:

(1) The total of the CAB's, acreage allotments, and marketing

quotas established for the farm for the first crop year for which such

contract is applicable shall be reduced in the same proportion as the

ratio of the cropland taken out of production under the conservation

reserve contract to the total cropland on the farm. If acreage bases,

acreage allotments, and marketing quotas were established for more than

one crop, the owner or operator shall determine which acreage bases,

acreage allotments, or marketing quotas shall be reduced to achieve the

total reduction required.

(2) The CAB's established for the farm for each succeeding crop

year for which the conservation reserve contract is in effect shall be:

(i) Computed in accordance with Sec. 1413.24; and

(ii) Reduced in accordance with part 1410 of this title.

(3) The amount of the reduction made in accordance with paragraphs

(a) (1) and (2) of this section shall be considered as planted to the

applicable crop for the purpose of establishing future CAB's.

(4) If there is an agreement in effect between CCC and the

producers with respect to the annual program for one or more of the

crops for which the acreage base is reduced in accordance with

paragraph (a)(1) of this section, the operator and producers shall have

the option of:

(i) Complying with the agreement using the acreage base for the

crop after such reduction is determined; or

(ii) Canceling such agreement without liability.

(b) After the end of the period of a conservation reserve contract,

the CAB's for the next crop year shall be computed in accordance with

Sec. 1413.24.

Sec. 1413.26 Adjusting CAB's.

(a)(1) A one-time forfeiture of all or a portion of a farm's CAB

shall be allowed at the request of the owner and operator if the

request for the permanent base reduction is filed not later than the

end of the ARP signup period.

(2) With respect to farms on which a base forfeiture is requested

and approved, the planted and considered planted history for each of

the previous years which were used to establish the CAB shall be

reduced by the same percentage that the base was reduced.

(b)(1) Producers may request such permanent reduction because:

(i) ACR is calculated on the CAB and the entire maximum permitted

acreage will not be planted or credited with payment acres;

(ii) The historical weighted yield can be increased by decreasing

such CAB if both irrigated and nonirrigated yields are present for such

crop; or

(iii) The CAB exceeds the cropland and the producer prefers a

permanent reduction instead of a temporary reduction.

(2) The crop involved in the reduction does not have to be

participating in the ARP.

(c)(1) The operator of a farm may request that the acreage base for

a crop of a commodity produced on a farm be established in accordance

with either Sec. 1413.24(b) or (d) for wheat and feed grains and

Sec. 1413.24(c) or (d) for upland cotton and rice. The sum of the CAB's

in the rotation cycle after adjustment cannot exceed the sum of the CAB

in the cycle before adjustment. The county or State committee may

approve an increase in the acreage base established for such crop in

future crop years.

(2) If the sum of CAB's, plus double cropping history, exceeds the

cropland, the operator will be given the opportunity to reduce one or

more CAB's. If the operator fails to make such a reduction, such a

reduction shall be made by the county committee. Producers must

designate, in writing, the CAB's to be reduced before any current year

participation in the ARP, or CRP is requested, reconstitution to the

farm is requested, or crop acreage report is filed according to part

718 of this title. Producers shall not reduce the CAB below the amount

of the CAB that is designated for the CRP according to part 704 of this

title, and the CAB's shall not be reduced below the cropland acreage.

(d)(1) For the 1994 through 1997 crops of upland cotton, and the

1994 and 1995 crops of rice, producers may increase individual CAB's on

the farm above the levels that would otherwise be established under

Sec. 1413.24 in order to restore the total of the upland cotton CAB's

on the farm for the 1994 through 1997 crop years, and the 1994 and 1995

total of the rice CAB's on the farm to the same level as the total of

CAB's on the farm for the 1990 crop year, if the county committee

determines:

(i) A producer of upland cotton or rice was required to reduce one

or more individual CAB's on the farm during the 1991 crop year because

of CAB's exceeding cropland in order to comply with Sec. 1413.24(e) for

establishing bases for upland cotton and rice; and

(i) The producers on the farm have participated in the production

adjustment program during the 1991 crop year and each subsequent crop

year through the current crop year.

(2) Producers affected by this method of calculation may request

that the county committee adjust the rice and cotton CAB's on a farm to

the higher of the preceding 3-year average or the preceding 5-year

average.

(3) To determine the adjustment, county committees may:

(i) Calculate a 5-year average;

(ii) Compare the 5-year average to the current 3-year average;

(iii) Adjust the CAB to equal the 5-year calculation if the 5-year

calculation is higher than the 3-year calculation.

(4) Such eligible producers may appeal:

(i) The 3-year calculation of upland cotton and rice CAB's each

year,

(ii) No later than the final date as shown on Form ASCS-476, Notice

of Bases and Yields.

Sec. 1413.27 Conservation compliance CAB exchanges.

CAB's established in accordance with Sec. 1413.24 may be adjusted

on a one-time basis by the county committee to increase the high

residue CAB's on the farms, with an offsetting decrease in the low

residue CAB's on the farm, so that producers can plant in compliance

with the approved conservation plan for the farm.

Secs. 1413.28-1413.29 [Reserved]

Sec. 1413.30 Reconstitution of farms.

(a) Farms shall be reconstituted in accordance with part 719 of

this title.

(b) The yield established by the county committee for any crop on a

farm resulting from a combination of farms or portions of farms shall

not, except for rounding, exceed the weighted average of the applicable

yields established for the component portions of such farm.

(c) The yield established by the county committee for any crop on a

farm resulting from a division of a farm shall not, except for

rounding, exceed the applicable yields established for the parent farm

before the division of such farm.

(d) In determining the weighted average yields determined in

accordance with paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section, the CAB for the

farm for the current year shall be used.

(e) The actual yield established for ELS cotton for a farm

resulting from a combination of farms or portions of farms shall not,

except for rounding, exceed the weighted average of the applicable

yields established for the component portions of such farm.

(f) The weighted average of the actual yield established for ELS

cotton for a farm resulting from a division of a farm shall not, except

for rounding, exceed the applicable yields established for the parent

farm before the division of such farm.

(g) The IAM for a crop established in accordance with Sec. 1413.18

for a farm shall be divided among the farms resulting from the division

of such farm in proportion to the CAB for such crop established for

each resulting farm. However, such division may be modified in order to

more fairly reflect the cropping history of the land in such resulting

farms in accordance with part 719 of this title. The sum of the IAM's

established for any crop for a farm resulting from a division of a farm

shall equal, except for rounding, the IAM established for the parent

farm before the division of such farm.

Sec. 1413.31 Notice of CAB's and yields.

(a) The operator and all producers on a farm shall be notified in

writing of the CAB's, yields and IAM's that are established for the

farm, unless such operator or producer has on file in the county office

a request in writing that such operator or producer not be furnished

with the notice.

(b) Representatives of the county committee may correct errors that

resulted in incorrect yields and CAB's on form ASCS-476, Notice of

Acreage Bases, Yields, Allotments and/or Quotas, and use the correct

entry for program crops enrolled in a production adjustment program for

all the current crop year calculations unless the county committee

determines, with State committee representative approval, that both of

the following situations apply:

(1) The error was not so great that the producer should have

noticed the error;

(2) The producer, relying on the erroneous ASCS-476 notice and

acting in good faith:

(i) Materially changed plans because of the erroneous form ASCS-

476, and

(ii) Was not notified by the county committee in time to comply

with the corrected form ASCS-476 without suffering a loss.

(c) County committees shall use the correct entry for all purposes

for nonparticipating program crops.

Subpart F--Extra Long Staple Cotton Crop Acreage Bases and Yields.

Sec. 1413.34 ELS cotton counties.

(a) ELS cotton means any of the following varieties of cotton which

is ginned on a roller gin and is grown in counties specified by CCC:

(1) American-Pima;

(2) Sea Island;

(3) Sealand;

(4) All other varieties of the Barbadense species of cotton, and

any hybrid thereof; and

(5) Any other variety of cotton in which one or more of these

varieties predominate.

(b) (1) An annual review of counties designated as suitable for the

production of ELS cotton will be conducted. Counties in which ELS

cotton is currently being grown and for which a roller-type gin is

available will be designated or redesignated, as appropriate. For 1991-

1995 such counties are:

(i) Alabama: Butler and Monroe;

(ii) Arizona: Cochise, Gila, Graham, Greenlee, La Paz, Maricopa,

Mohave, Pima, Pinal, Santa Cruz, Yavapai, and Yuma;

(iii) California: Fresno, Imperial, Kern, Kings, Madera, Riverside,

and Tulare;

(iv) Florida: Alachua, Escambia, Hamilton, Jefferson, Madison,

Marion, Santa Rosa, Suwannee, and Union;

(v) Georgia: Berrien, Brooks, Cook, Early, and Thomas;

(vi) Mississippi: Bolivar, Carroll, Coahoma, DeSoto, Hinds, Holmes,

Humphreys, Issaquena, Lafayette, Leflore, Madison, Panola, Quitman,

Sharkey, Sunflower, Tallahatchie, Tunica, Warren, Washington, and

Yazoo;

(vii) New Mexico: Chaves, Dona Ana, Eddy, Hidalgo, Luna, Otero, and

Sierra;

(viii) Texas: Andrews, Atascosa, Bee, Bexar, Borden, Brewster,

Cochran, Culberson, Dawson, Dimmit, El Paso, Frio, Gaines, Hockley,

Hudspeth, Jeff Davis, Kinney, La Salle, Loving, Lynn, Medina, Pecos,

Presidio, Reeves, Refugio, Terry, Uvalde, Ward, Yoakum, and Zavala.

(2) Additional counties may be designated by CCC during the year as

deemed appropriate, and a list of these counties will be available in

State and county ASCS offices.

Sec. 1413.35 ELS cotton CAB's.

The CAB established for a crop of ELS cotton on a farm shall be the

average of the planted and considered planted acreages, according to

Secs. 1413.10 and 1413.11, for ELS cotton for the 3 years immediately

preceding the year prior to the current year. A county must have an ELS

cotton designation before ELS cotton CAB's can be established.

Sec. 1413.36 ELS cotton crop program payment yields.

(a) For ELS cotton, the crop program payment yield in pounds per

acre for the current year shall be the average of the actual yields per

harvested acre for the farm for the 3 preceding years, adjusted as

follows:

(b)(1) If no acreage of the crop was grown on the farm for a year,

a yield for the crop shall be assigned by the county committee for the

farm for such year based upon the actual yields for at least 3 similar

farms in the county or surrounding area.

(2) The county committee may consider an assigned yield for ELS

cotton as an actual yield, but may assign a yield for any year only if:

(i) Zero acreage was reported; or

(ii) Zero acreage was not reported, but evidence indicates that a

cotton crop was not planted on the farm for the year involved.

(c) If any yield in the 3-year period preceding the current year is

affected adversely as the result of a natural disaster or other

condition beyond the producer's control, the county committee may

temporarily adjust the yield for any such year upward to no more than

the simple average of the highest 4 actual yields of the most recent 5

years.

(d) A report of ELS cotton production is required to determine the

actual yield per harvested acre. The actual yield for ELS cotton shall

be computed by dividing the total production by the total acreage

harvested for lint, rounded to the nearest pound. Such acreage is the

planted acreage, unless a smaller acreage is reported as harvested. If

the total of such planted acreage is not harvested by the producer, the

actual yield for such acreage shall be zero.

(e) If the planted acreage of ELS cotton on the farm is

significantly less than the normal planting on the farm and the county

committee determines that the reduction in planted acreage caused the

ELS cotton yield on the farm to be unreasonably high, then the county

committee may reduce the yield for the crop.

Sec. 1413.37 Submitting ELS cotton production evidence.

(a) Production evidence for ELS cotton shall be submitted according

to Sec. 1413.19 by a final date:

(1) Established by the State ASC Committee,

(2) Which shall be no later than April 1 of the crop year following

the current crop year.

(b) Production evidence for ELS cotton shall be certified on either

form ASCS-658-1, Certification of Deliveries to Handlers, or form ASCS-

503, Identification of Cotton Production, at the option of the county

committee.

Subpart G--Program Options for Program Crops

Sec. 1413.41 0/85/92 provisions for wheat and feed grains.

(a) 0/85. If an ARP is in effect for the 1994 and 1995 crops of

wheat and feed grains and producers file form

CCC-477, Intention to Participate in the Price Support and

Production Adjustment Programs, for such a crop with the county ASCS

office and such producers devote a portion of the maximum payment acres

for wheat and feed grains equal to more than 15 percent of such acreage

to conservation uses; such producers shall be eligible to receive

deficiency payments on such portion of the maximum payment acres in

excess of 15 percent of such acreage devoted to conservation uses at a

per bushel rate that will be established by the Secretary, except that

the rate may not be established at less than the projected deficiency

payment rate.

(b) Exceptions to 0/85. (1) In the case of each of the 1994 and

1995 crops of wheat and feed grains, producers on a farm shall be

eligible to receive deficiency payments for such crops not to exceed 92

percent of the maximum payment acreage, if an ARP is in effect for the

crops, and

(i) Producers have been determined to be prevented from planting

the crop, or have a reduced yield of a program crop on a farm because

of a natural disaster, and such producers elect to designate such

prevented planted or reduced yield acreage as CU for payment for such

crop and devote more than 8 percent of the wheat or feed grains acreage

to CU for payment; or

(ii) Producers elect to devote a portion of the maximum payment

acres for wheat and feed grains in excess of 8 percent of such maximum

payment acres to minor oilseeds and IOC's.

(2) If producers elect to devote a portion of the maximum payment

acres for wheat and feed grains in excess of 8 percent of the maximum

payment acres to a combination of minor oilseeds, IOC's, and CU for

payment, a weighted average amount of between 8 percent and 15 percent

of the maximum payment acres shall be determined by:

(i) Multiplying 92 percent times the minor oilseed and IOC acreage

divided by the total of the minor oilseed, IOC, and CU for payment

acreage; and

(ii) Multiplying 85 percent times the CU for payment acreage

divided by the total of the minor oilseed, IOC, and CU for payment

acreage.

(iii) The weighted average factor determined in paragraphs

(b)(2)(i) and (ii) of this section shall be:

(A) Multiplied by the maximum payment acres; and

(B) Subtracted from the result of the maximum payment acres minus

the total of the minor oilseed, IOC, and CU for payment acreage.

(3) Producers who have been determined to be prevented from

planting the crop, or have reduced yields with respect to a program

crop, and designate such acreage as CU for payment in accordance with

paragraphs (b)(1)(i) and (ii) of this section, may plant such acreage

to eligible minor oilseeds or IOC's.

(4) In order to receive deficiency payments with respect to such

acreage, producers shall agree to forego eligibility to receive

commodity price support loans and purchases under parts 1421 and 1427

of this chapter for the crop of a minor oilseed planted on the maximum

payment acres according to paragraph (b)(1)(ii) and (2).

(5)(i) All or any portion of the acreage devoted to an IOC, minor

oilseed, or other crop according to paragraph (b)(1)(ii) of this

section may be subsequently planted during the same crop year to any

oilseed, any IOC designated by CCC, or any other crop, except any fruit

and vegetable crop (including potatoes and dry edible beans) not

designated by CCC as an IOC; or a crop for which no substantial

domestic production or market exists.

(ii) The planting of soybeans as a subsequently planted crop shall

be limited to farms having an established history of double cropping

soybeans following any other crop in at least 3 of the preceding 5

years.

(iii) Producers shall agree to forego eligibility to receive

commodity price support loans and purchases under parts 1421 and 1427

of this chapter for the crop of the subsequently planted crop that is

produced on a farm under this section.

Sec. 1413.42 50/85/92 program provisions for upland cotton and rice.

(a)(1) 50/85. If an ARP is in effect for the 1994 through 1997

crops of upland cotton and the 1994 and 1995 crops of rice and

producers file form CCC-477, Intention to Participate in the Price

Support and Production Adjustment Programs, with the county ASCS

office, and such producers devote a portion of the maximum payment

acres for upland cotton and rice equal to more than 15 percent of such

acreage to conservation uses:

(i) Such portion of the maximum payment acres in excess of 15

percent of such acreage devoted to conservation uses shall be

considered to be planted to upland cotton or rice for the purpose of

determining the acreage on the farm required to be devoted to

conservation uses; and,

(ii) Producers shall be eligible for payments with respect to such

acreage at a per pound rate that will be established by the Secretary,

except that the rate may not be established at less than the projected

deficiency payment rate.

(2) Producers shall be eligible for payments in accordance with

paragraph (a)(1)(ii) of this section, except as provided in paragraph

(c) of this section, if the acreage producers plant to upland cotton

and rice for harvest, or the sum of the acreage planted for harvest

plus the acreage credited as prevented planted under Sec. 1413.121

equals at least 50 percent of the maximum payment acres for the farm.

(b) Exceptions to 50/85. (1) In the case of each of the 1994

through 1997 crops of rice and upland cotton, producers on a farm shall

be eligible to receive deficiency payments for such crops in accordance

with paragraph (a)(1)(ii) of this section if:

(i) An ARP is in effect for rice and upland cotton, and producers

plant such crops of upland cotton or rice for harvest; and

(ii) The producers have been determined by the county committee to

be prevented from planting such crops, or have reduced yields for such

crops due to a natural disaster, and devote acreage to conservation

uses; or

(iii) The producers elect to devote a portion of the maximum

payment acres for rice and upland cotton equal to more than 8 percent

of the rice or upland cotton acreage to IOC's.

(2) Acreages of upland cotton and rice that were subject to reduced

yields or were prevented from being planted and are later devoted to CU

for payment, in accordance with subparagraph (b)(1) (ii) and (iii) of

this section, may be planted to IOC's.

(3) In order to receive payments under Sec. 1413.101, producers

shall agree to forego eligibility to receive a price support loan under

part 1421 of this chapter if such loans are made available by CCC for a

crop of sesame or crambe produced on the farm.

(c) Quarantine. If a quarantine has been imposed by a State or

local agency on the planting of upland cotton or rice for harvest on

farms in such State or County Office area, the following rules apply:

(1) The State committee may recommend to the Deputy Administrator,

State and County Operations, that deficiency payments be made without

regard to the 50 percent planting requirement under the provisions of

this section to producers in the area who were required to not plant

upland cotton and rice.

(2) In order for the quarantined acreage to be eligible for

deficiency payments, the quarantined acreage must be devoted to

eligible conserving use for payment acreage in accordance with

Sec. 1413.61.

Sec. 1413.43 Planting flexibility.

(a) With respect to the 1991 through 1997 crop years, producers may

plant for harvest on the established CAB, a commodity, which is other

than the program crop for which the CAB was established and receive

planted and considered planted credit for such program crop as the

result of planting such other crop only if CCC has approved the

planting of such other crop as provided in this part.

(b) Crops that may be planted for harvest on an established program

CAB include the following:

(1) Any program crop;

(2) Any minor oilseed;

(3) Any industrial or other crop, including adzuki, fabin, lupin,

and mung beans;

(4) Sugarcane, if the producer elects not to receive planted and

considered planted credit for sugarcane;

(5) Nonparticipating ELS cotton; and

(6) Any other crop, except peanuts, tobacco, wild rice, trees, tree

crops, nuts, and fruits and vegetables (including fruits and vegetables

grown for seed or ornamentals), which include apples, apricots,

arugala, artichokes, asparagus, avocados, babaco papayas, bananas,

beans (except soybeans, adzuki, faba, and lupin), beets--other than

sugar, blackberries, blueberries, bok choy, boysenberries, broccoli,

brussel sprouts, cabbage, calabaza, cauliflower, celeriac, celery,

chayote, cherimoyas, canary melon, cantaloupes, cardoon, carrots,

casaba melon, cassava, cherries, chinese bitter melon, chicory, chinese

cabbage, chinese mustard, chinese water chestnuts, chufes, citron,

citron melon, coffee, collards, cowpeas, crabapples, cranberries,

crenshaw melon, cucumbers, currants, daikon, dasheen, dates, dry edible

beans, eggplant, elderberries, endive, escarole, feijoas, figs,

gooseberries, grapefruit, grapes, guavas, honeydew melon,

huckleberries, jerusalem artichokes, kale, kiwifruit, kohlrabi,

kumquats, leeks, lemons, lentils, lettuce, limequats, limes,

loganberries, loquats, mandarins, mangos, marionberries, mulberries,

murcotts, mustard greens, nectarines, olallieberries, onions, oranges,

okra, olives, papaya, paprika, parsnip, passion fruits, peaches, pears,

peas, all peppers, persimmon, persian melon, pineapple, plantain,

plumcots, plums, pomegranates, potatoes, prunes, pumpkins, quinces,

radiochio, radishes, raisins, rapini, raspberries, rhubarb, rutabaga,

santa claus melon, salsify, savory, shallots, spinach, squash,

strawberries, Swiss chard, sweet corn, sweet potatoes, tangelos,

tangerines, tangos, tangors, taniers, taro root, tomatillo, tomatoes,

turnips, turnip greens, watercress, watermelons, white sapote, yam, and

yu choy, unless the crop has been approved by the county committee to

be planted for green manure, haying (which includes silage, haylage,

and green chop), or grazing.

(c) If producers plant fruits and vegetables on such acreage,

according to paragraph (a) of this section, for green manure, haying,

or grazing, such producers shall pay a fee to cover the cost of a farm

visit, according to part 718 of this title, to verify that the crop has

not been harvested. Each farm must be verified to ensure the crop has

not been harvested.

(d) With regard to paragraphs (b)(1) through (b)(6) of this

section, a list of the commodities that may not be planted on the

program CAB's shall be available in the county ASCS offices.

(e) With regard to the CAB, except as provided in paragraphs (d)

and (f) of this section, the quantity of CAB that may be planted to a

commodity, other than the specific program crop, may not exceed 25

percent of the contributing crop's CAB.

(f) The total of the planted, prevented planted, and failed acreage

of all participating crops shall not exceed the total of the permitted

acreage for all participating crops on the farm.

(g) Nonprogram crops approved for prevented planting or failed

acreage credit planted on flex acreage may be credited as flex for

participating program crops.

(h)(1) Acreages that are flexed according to this section may be

double cropped according to Sec. 1413.24(e). State committees will

establish beginning and ending flex dates for spring and fall program

crops.

(i) The beginning date for the fall flex period shall be the normal

planting date for fall planted program crops, and the ending date for

the fall flex period shall be the normal harvest date for fall planted

program crops;

(ii) The beginning date for the spring flex period shall be the

normal planting date for spring planted crops, and the ending date for

the spring flex period shall be the normal harvest date for spring

planted program crops.

(2) Eligible flex acreage or ACR must be present on the farm from

the time the program crop is normally planted until the program crop is

normally harvested.

(i) The CAB for a crop shall not be increased using the flex

provisions of this section.

(1) Planted and considered planted credit for all crops on a

participating farm will be limited to the CAB for the crop.

(2) Crop acreage planted in excess of the permitted acreage for the

crop shall be credited only for planted and considered planted credit

to the contributing participating program crops from which the

additional acreage was flexed.

(j) If, on January 1 of any calendar year, it is estimated by CCC

that the national average price of soybeans during the subsequent

soybean marketing year would be less than 105 percent of the

nonrecourse soybean loan level, if soybeans were permitted to be

planted on up to 25 percent of the program CAB, then the maximum

program CAB that may be planted to soybeans may not exceed 15 percent

of such acreage base.

(k) Producers of a program crop who are participating in the ARP

for that program crop shall be allowed to plant such program crop in

excess of the permitted acreage of the crop without losing loan,

purchase, and payment eligibility for the crop if:

(1) The acreage planted to the program crop on the farm in excess

of the permitted acreage does not exceed 25 percent of the CAB's on the

farm for other participating program crops; and

(2) The producer agrees to a reduction in the permitted acreage for

the other program crops produced on the farm by the quantity equal to

the overplanting.

(l) Producers of an original program crop, who plant for harvest on

the established acreage base of such original program crop, another

program crop, and who are not participating in an ARP for such other

program crop, shall be eligible for loans, purchases, or loan

deficiency payments for such other program crop on the same terms and

conditions as provided in a production adjustment program established

for such other program crop.

(m) Producers shall be eligible to receive loans, purchases, or

loan deficiency payments in the case of other crops for which CCC has

announced the availability of such benefits, if the producers:

(1) Plant such other program crop in an amount that does not exceed

25 percent of the CAB established for the original program crop; and

(2) Agree to a reduction in the permitted acreage for the original

program crop for the crop year.

Subpart H--Program Agreement and Enrollment Provisions

Sec. 1413.50 Requirements for program participation.

(a)(1) With respect to a crop for which an acreage reduction

program is announced, eligible producers may enter into a CCC-477,

Intention to Participate in the Price Support And Production Adjustment

Programs, with CCC by executing and submitting such CCC-477 to the

county ASCS office where the records for the farm are maintained not

later than a date specified in the announcement of the sign-up period

for the acreage reduction and paid land diversion program. Producers

may withdraw from a CCC-477 at any time up to the final reporting date

for the enrolled crop.

(2) For a farm with both corn and grain sorghum CAB's, if the

producer participates in the ARP for either corn or grain sorghum, such

participation will constitute participation in both crops.

(3) For a farm with either a corn CAB or a grain sorghum CAB, if

the producer participates in either corn or grain sorghum, such

participation will constitute participation in both crops.

(b)(1) The producer must be an individual, entity, or joint

operation that shares in the risk of producing the program crop

produced in the current year, or shares in the proceeds thereof. The

county committee shall determine who is an individual, entity, or joint

operation in accordance with parts 1497 and 1498 of this chapter.

(2) A minor will be eligible to participate in the program only if

one of the following conditions exists:

(i) The right of majority has been conferred upon the minor by

court proceedings;

(ii) A guardian has been appointed to manage the minor's property

and the applicable documents are signed by the guardian; or

(iii) A bond is furnished under which a surety guarantees to

protect CCC from any loss incurred for which the minor would be liable

had the minor been an adult.

(c) The signup period determined and announced in accordance with

paragraph (a) of this section may be extended for a producer or for all

producers within a designated area under the terms and conditions

announced by CCC in the event of the occurrence of a condition which is

beyond the control of producers, if CCC determines that such an

extension will not affect adversely the administration of the

respective program.

Sec. 1413.51 Successors in interest.

(a) A succession in interest may be permitted to a CCC-477 if there

has been a change in the operation of a farm, such as:

(1) A sale of the land;

(2) A change of operator or producer, including the change in a

partnership that is a producer, that increases or decreases the number

of partners;

(3) A foreclosure, bankruptcy, or involuntary loss of the farm

after an advance payment; or

(4) A change in producer shares to reflect changes in the shares of

the crop that were originally approved by the county committee on the

CCC-477.

(b) If a change in producers occurs on a farm enrolled in a program

in accordance with this part before the end of the ARP signup period,

such new producers shall be considered to be successors in interest, if

an advance payment has been made to the predecessor, unless such

advance payment is refunded to CCC.

(c) A succession in interest on the CCC-477 is not permitted if CCC

determines that the change results in a violation of the landlord-

tenant provisions set forth at Sec. 1413.107, or otherwise defeats the

purpose of the program.

(d) All producers whose shares of the crop as listed on the CCC-477

have changed from the original CCC-477 are required to sign a revised

CCC-477 by the earliest of:

(1) The date the crop is actually harvested;

(2) December 31 of the current crop year; or

(3) 15 days after the county committee was notified of the change

in share amounts.

(e) When any producer of the crop on the farm (the predecessor) is

succeeded by another producer (the successor), any payment which is due

and owing shall be divided between the predecessor and successor on

such basis as the predecessor, successor, and the county committee

agree is fair and equitable. '

(f) Advance payments issued to the predecessor will be attributed

to each successor based on:

(1) The successor's share of the crop; and

(2) The amount of advance payment issued to the predecessor for the

crop.

(g) The successor shall assume responsibility for refunding any

unearned payments issued to the predecessor, if such refunds are

required under the CCC-477.

(h) If the predecessor and successor fail to agree on a revised

CCC-477 and the predecessor:

(1) Has become unable to carry out the producer's responsibilities

under the CCC-477, CCC may terminate the CCC-477 with respect to the

predecessor and enter into a new CCC-477 with the successor;

(2) If the predecessor has not become unable to carry out the

producer's responsibilities under the CCC-477, the contract may be

terminated.

(i) In any case in which the amount of any payment due any

successor producer has been paid previously to another producer, such

payment shall not be paid to the successor unless it is recovered from

the predecessor or payment to the successor has been authorized by the

Deputy Administrator. If the predecessor refunds an advance program

payment, such producer shall not be assessed interest in accordance

with part 1403 of this chapter.

(j)(1) If payments are reduced on a farm for a predecessor in

accordance with part 1497 of this chapter, such payments shall not

increase because of a succession in interest.

(2) A succession in interest cannot increase the liability of CCC.

(k) The total amount of payments that a successor may be entitled

to receive under one or more of the annual programs established under

the Agricultural Act of 1949, as amended, for wheat, feed grains,

upland and ELS cotton, rice and oilseeds may not exceed $50,000 for

deficiency and land diversion payments, and $75,000 for marketing loan

gains (except honey), loan deficiency payments (except honey), and

emergency compensation (increased deficiency) payments, except as

provided in paragraph (k) of this section.

Sec. 1413.52 Misrepresentation and scheme or device.

(a) A producer who is determined by the county committee or the

State committee to have erroneously represented any fact affecting a

program determination made in accordance with this part shall:

(1) Not be entitled to payments under the crop program with respect

to which the representation was made,

(2) Refund to CCC all payments received by such producer with

respect to such farm and such crop program, and

(3) Be liable for liquidated damages in accordance with the terms

of the CCC-477.

(b) With respect to programs conducted in accordance with this

part, a producer who is determined by the State committee, or the

county committee with the approval of the State committee, to have

knowingly:

(1) Adopted any scheme or device which tends to defeat the purpose

of the program,

(2) Made any fraudulent representation, or

(3) Misrepresented any fact affecting a program determination shall

refund to CCC all payments received by such producer with respect to

all farms and shall be liable for liquidated damages in accordance with

the CCC-477. Such producer also shall be ineligible to receive program

payments for the year in which the scheme or device was adopted. If

such action also is determined by CCC to be a scheme or device, a

fraudulent representation or a misrepresentation of fact affecting a

determination made in accordance with part 1497 of this title, the

producer shall also be ineligible for program payments in the

succeeding year.

Sec. 1413.53 Required acreage reduction.

(a)(1) The Secretary will announce:

(i) Whether an ARP is in effect for a crop year for a specific

crop;

(ii) The percentage reduction to be applied to the CAB to determine

the amount of required reduction; and

(iii) Other requirements of the program for the year.

(2) For wheat, feed grains, upland cotton and rice, the operator

and each producer agree to devote to approved conservation uses an

acreage of eligible land equal to the product of the acreage reduction

factor announced by the Secretary, times the CAB.

(3) For ELS cotton, the acreage of eligible land devoted to

conservation uses shall be determined by multiplying the product

obtained by dividing the number of acres required to be withdrawn from

the production of ELS cotton, by the number of acres authorized to be

planted to ELS cotton under the limitation established by the

Secretary, times the number of acres planted to such commodity.

(b) Producers of the applicable crop or crops shall:

(1) Not knowingly exceed the permitted acreage, which is the

acreage base established for the crop minus the sum of the acreage

required to be devoted to ACR in accordance with an ARP and any acreage

which is required to be devoted to ACR in accordance with a land

diversion program, plus any acreage planted in accordance with program

provisions specified in Sec. 1413.43;

(2) Devote to conservation uses, as prescribed in Secs. 1413.60

through 1413.75, an acreage equal to the acreage determined in

paragraphs (a)(2) and (3); and

(3) Otherwise comply with all program requirements.

Sec. 1413.54 Acreage reduction program provisions.

(a) The acreage reduction factor for the wheat, feed grains, upland

and ELS cotton and rice programs are:

(1)(i) 1991 wheat, 15 percent;

(ii) 1992 wheat, 5 percent;

(iii) 1993 wheat, 0 percent; and

(iv) 1994 wheat, 0 percent.

(2)(i) For the 1991 crop:

(A) Corn, grain sorghum, and barley, 7.5 percent; and

(B) Oats, 0 percent;

(ii) For the 1992 crop:

(A) Corn, grain sorghum, and barley, 5.0 percent, and

(B) Oats, 0 percent; and

(iii) For the 1993 crop:

(A) Corn, 10 percent;

(B) Grain sorghum, 5 percent,

(C) Barley and oats, 0 percent; and

(iv) For the 1994 crop: corn, grain sorghum, barley, and oats, 0

percent.

(3)(i) 1991 upland cotton, 5 percent;

(ii) 1992 upland cotton, 10 percent;

(iii) 1993 upland cotton, 7.5 percent; and

(iv) 1994 upland cotton, 11.0 percent.

(4)(i) 1991 rice, 5 percent;

(ii) 1992 rice, 10 percent;

(iii) 1993 rice, 5 percent;

(iv) 1994 rice, 0 percent.

(5)(i) 1991 ELS cotton, 5 percent;

(ii) 1992 ELS cotton, 5 percent;

(iii) 1993 ELS cotton, 20 percent; and

(iv) 1994 ELS cotton, 15 percent.

(b) Targeted option payments shall not be available with respect to

the 1991, 1992, and 1993 crops of wheat, feed grains, upland cotton,

and rice.

(c)(1) Acreage designated as ACR under the 1991, 1992, and 1993

wheat, feed grain, upland cotton, and rice programs may not be devoted

to oilseeds, industrial or experiment

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