Cranberries Grown in the States of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Oregon, Washington, and Long Island in the State of New York; Expenses and Assessment Rate

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Part 929

[Docket No. FV95-929-2IFR]

Cranberries Grown in the States of Massachusetts, Rhode Island,

Connecticut, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Oregon,

Washington, and Long Island in the State of New York; Expenses and

Assessment Rate

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Interim final rule with request for comments.

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SUMMARY: This interim final rule authorizes expenses and establishes an

assessment rate for the Cranberry Marketing Committee (Committee) under

Marketing Order No. 929 for the 1995-96 fiscal year. The Committee is

responsible for local administration of the marketing order which

regulates the handling of cranberries grown in 10 States. Authorization

of this budget enables the Committee to incur expenses that are

reasonable and necessary to administer the program.

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Funds to administer this program are derived from assessments on

handlers.

DATES: Effective beginning September 1, 1995, through August 31, 1996.

Comments received by September 11, 1995, will be considered prior to

issuance of a final rule.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments

concerning this interim final rule. Comments must be sent in triplicate

to the Docket Clerk, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, PO Box

96456, room 2523-S, Washington, DC 20090-6456, Fax # (202) 720-5698.

Comments should reference the docket number and the date and page

number of this issue of the Federal Register and will be available for

public inspection in the Office of the Docket Clerk during regular

business hours.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Patricia A. Petrella or Kathleen M.

Finn, Marketing Specialists, Marketing Order Administration Branch,

F&V, AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 96456, room 2522-S, Washington, DC 20090-6456;

telephone (202) 720-1509, Fax # (202) 720-5698.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This interim final rule is issued under

Marketing Order No. 929 (7 CFR part 929), as amended, regulating the

handling of cranberries grown in 10 States, hereinafter referred to as

the ``order.'' The order is effective under the Agricultural Marketing

Agreement Act of 1937, as amended (7 U.S.C. 601-674), hereinafter

referred to as the ``Act.''

The Department of Agriculture (Department) is issuing this rule in

conformance with Executive Order 12866.

This interim final rule has been reviewed under Executive Order

12778, Civil Justice Reform. Under the marketing order provisions now

in effect, cranberries grown in 10 States are subject to assessments.

It is intended that the assessment rate as issued herein will be

applicable to all assessable cranberries during the 1995-96 fiscal year

beginning September 1, 1995, through August 31, 1996. This interim

final rule will not preempt any State or local laws, regulations, or

policies, unless they present an irreconcilable conflict with this

rule.

The Act provides that administrative proceedings must be exhausted

before parties may file suit in court. Under section 608c(15)(A) of the

Act, any handler subject to an order may file with the Secretary a

petition stating that the order, any provision of the order, or any

obligation imposed in connection with the order is not in accordance

with law and request a modification of the order or to be exempted

therefrom. A handler is afforded the opportunity for a hearing on the

petition. After the hearing the Secretary would rule on the petition.

The Act provides that the district court of the United States in any

district in which the handler is an inhabitant, or has his or her

principal place of business, has jurisdiction in equity to review the

Secretary's ruling on the petition, provided a bill in equity is filed

not later than 20 days after date of the entry of the ruling.

Pursuant to requirements set forth in the Regulatory Flexibility

Act (RFA), the Administrator of the Agricultural Marketing Service

(AMS) has considered the economic impact of this rule on small

entities.

The purpose of the RFA is to fit regulatory actions to the scale of

business subject to such actions in order that small businesses will

not be unduly or disproportionately burdened. Marketing orders issued

pursuant to the Act, and rules issued thereunder, are unique in that

they are brought about through group action of essentially small

entities acting on their own behalf. Thus, both statutes have small

entity orientation and compatibility.

There are 30 handlers of cranberries who are subject to regulation

under the cranberry marketing order and 1,050 producers of cranberries

in the regulated area. Small agricultural producers have been defined

by the Small Business Administration (13 CFR 121.601) as those having

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

firms are defined as those whose annual receipts are less than

$5,000,000. The majority of cranberry producers and handlers may be

classified as small entities.

The cranberry marketing order, administered by the Department,

requires that the assessment rate for a particular fiscal year apply to

all assessable cranberries handled from the beginning of such year. The

budget of expenses for the 1995-96 fiscal year was prepared by the

Committee and submitted to the Department for approval. The Committee

consists of producers and a non-industry member. They are familiar with

the Committee's needs and with the costs for goods, services, and

personnel in their local area and are thus in a position to formulate

an appropriate budget. The budget was formulated and discussed in

public meetings. Thus, all directly affected persons have an

opportunity to participate and provide input.

The assessment rate recommended by the Committee was derived by

dividing anticipated expenses by expected shipments of cranberries.

Because that rate is applied to actual shipments, it must be

established at a rate which will produce sufficient income to pay the

Committee's expected expenses. The recommended budget and rate of

assessment are usually acted upon by the Committee shortly before a

season starts, and expenses are incurred on a continuous basis.

Therefore, the budget and assessment rate approval must be expedited so

that the Committee will have funds to pay its expenses.

The Committee conducted a mail vote and recommended 1995-96

marketing order expenditures of $201,336 and an assessment rate of

$0.03 cents per 100-pound barrel of cranberries. In comparison, 1994-95

marketing year budgeted expenditures were $164,690. The 1995-96

marketing year budgeted expenditures of $210,336 are $36,646 more than

the previous fiscal year. The increase is due to the funding of two new

research projects for the 1995-96 season. The assessment rate will

remain unchanged from the previous fiscal year.

Assessment income for 1995-96 is estimated to total $136,320 based

on anticipated domestic shipments of 4,544,000 barrels of cranberries.

The assessment income, plus $4,375 in interest income and a withdrawal

of $60,641 from the Committee's authorized reserve fund will be

adequate to cover budgeted expenses. Funds in the reserve at the end of

the 1994-95 fiscal year are estimated to be $150,000. The reserve fund

will be within the maximum permitted by the order of one fiscal year's

expenses.

Major expense categories for the 1995-96 fiscal year include

$71,345 for operating expenses, $41,000 for travel expenses, and

$35,788 for research projects.

While this action will impose some additional costs on handlers,

the costs are in the form of uniform assessments on all handlers. Some

of the additional costs may be passed on to producers. However, these

costs will be offset by the benefits derived from the operation of the

marketing order. Therefore, the Administrator of the AMS has determined

that this action will not have a significant economic impact on a

substantial number of small entities.

After consideration of all relevant material presented, including

the Committee's recommendation, and other available information, it is

found that this interim final rule, as hereinafter set forth, will tend

to effectuate the declared policy of the Act.

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553, it is also found and determined upon good

cause that it is impracticable, unnecessary, and contrary to the public

interest to give preliminary notice prior to putting

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this rule into effect and that good cause exists for not postponing the

effective date of this rule until 30 days after publication in the

Federal Register because: (1) The Committee needs to have sufficient

funds to pay its expenses which are incurred on a continuous basis; (2)

the 1995-96 fiscal year begins on September 1, 1995, and the marketing

order requires that the rate of assessment for the fiscal year apply to

all assessable cranberries handled during the fiscal year; and (3) this

interim final rule provides a 30-day comment period, and all comments

timely received will be considered prior to finalization of this rule.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 929

Cranberries, Marketing agreements, Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements.

For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 7 CFR part 929 is

amended as follows:

PART 929--CRANBERRIES GROWN IN THE STATES OF MASSACHUSETTS, RHODE

ISLAND, CONNECTICUT, NEW JERSEY, WISCONSIN, MICHIGAN, MINNESOTA,

OREGON, WASHINGTON, AND LONG ISLAND IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK

1. The authority citation for 7 CFR part 929 continues to read as

follows:

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 601-674.

Note: This section will not appear in the Code of Federal

Regulations.

2. A new Sec. 929.235 is added to read as follows:

Sec. 929.235 Expenses and assessment rate.

Expenses of $201,336 by the Cranberry Administrative Committee are

authorized, and an assessment rate of $0.03 per 100-pound barrel

assessable cranberries is established for the 1995-96 fiscal year

ending on August 31, 1996. Unexpended funds may be carried over as a

reserve.

Dated: August 4, 1995.

Sharon Bomer Lauritsen,

Deputy Director, Fruit and Vegetable Division.

[FR Doc. 95-19745 Filed 8-9-95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410-02-P