Vidalia Onions Grown in Georgia; Expenses and Assessment Rate

SUMMARY: The Department of Agriculture (Department) is adopting as a

final rule, without change, the provisions of an interim final rule

that authorized expenses and established an assessment rate that

generated funds to pay those expenses under Marketing Order No. 955 for

the 1995-96 fiscal period. Authorization of this budget enables the

Vidalia Onion Committee (Committee) to incur expenses that are

reasonable and necessary to administer the program. Funds to administer

this program are derived from assessments on handlers.

EFFECTIVE DATE: September 16, 1995, through September 15, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Martha Sue Clark, Marketing Order

Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, P.O.

Box 96456, room 2523-S, Washington, DC 20090-6456, telephone 202-720-

9918, or Aleck J. Jonas, Southeast Marketing Field Office, Fruit and

Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 2276, Winter Haven, FL 33883-

2276, telephone 941-299-4770.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This rule is issued under Marketing

Agreement and Order No. 955 (7 CFR part 955), regulating the handling

of Vidalia onions grown in Georgia, hereinafter referred to as the

``order.'' The marketing agreement and order are effective under the

Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, as amended (7 U.S.C. 601-

674), hereinafter referred to as the ``Act.''

The Department is issuing this rule in conformance with Executive

Order 12866.

This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12778, Civil

Justice Reform. Under the provisions of the marketing order now in

effect, Vidalia onions are subject to assessments. It is intended that

the assessment rate as issued herein will be applicable to all

assessable onions handled during the 1995-96 fiscal period, which began

September 16, 1995, and ends September 15, 1996. This 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 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. Such handler is afforded the opportunity for a

hearing 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 the date of the entry of the ruling.

Pursuant to the requirements set forth in the Regulatory

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

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

entities.

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

business subject to such actions in order that small businesses will

not be unduly or disproportionately burdened. Marketing orders issued

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

that they are brought about through group action of essentially small

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

entity orientation and compatibility.

There are approximately 240 producers of Georgia Vidalia onions

under this marketing order, and approximately 145 handlers. Since the

interim final rule was issued, information regarding a reduction in the

number of producers from approximately 250 to 240 was received. 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

Vidalia onion producers and handlers may be classified as small

entities.

The budget of expenses for the 1995-96 fiscal period was prepared

by the Vidalia Onion Committee, the agency responsible for local

administration of the marketing order, and submitted to the Department

of Agriculture for approval. The members of the Committee are producers

and handlers of Vidalia onions. They are familiar with the Committee's

needs and with the costs of goods and services in their local area and

are thus in a position to formulate an appropriate budget. The budget

was formulated and discussed in a public meeting. Thus, all directly

affected persons have had an opportunity to participate and provide

input.

The assessment rate recommended by the Committee was derived by

dividing anticipated expenses by expected shipments of Vidalia onions.

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

established at a rate that will provide sufficient income to pay the

Committee's expenses.

The Committee met July 20, 1995, and unanimously recommended a

1995-96 budget of $343,000, $11,000 more than the previous year. Budget

items for 1995-96 which have increased compared to those budgeted for

1994-95 (in parentheses) are: Dues and subscriptions, $2,500 ($2,000),

equipment maintenance, $1,600 ($750), office overhead, $6,000 ($3,000),

office supplies, $3,500 ($3,000), telephone, $5,000 ($4,000), printing,

$2,200 ($2,000), postage and courier, $6,000 ($5,000), employee

salaries, $65,000 ($60,000), miscellaneous general and administrative,

$1,700 ($1,000), marketing, $146,500 ($132,000), $6,500 for retirement,

which was included in the employee benefits category last year, and

$25,400 for a newly created compliance category. Items which have

decreased compared to those budgeted

[[Page 63610]]

for 1994-95 (in parentheses) are: Equipment purchases, $2,000 ($3,000),

FICA employer, $3,100 ($4,250), employee benefits (health and dental),

$7,000 ($13,500), research, $48,500 ($80,000), and ($8,000) for

contract outside labor, for which no funding was recommended this year.

The Committee also unanimously recommended an assessment rate of

$0.10 per 50-pound bag or equivalent of Vidalia onions, the same as

last year. This rate, when applied to anticipated shipments of

3,017,500 50-pound bags or equivalents of Vidalia onions, would yield

$301,750. The Committee also anticipates shipments of 50,000 50-pound

bags of previously unassessed Vidalia onions which have been in

storage, which will yield an additional $5,000 in assessment income.

This, along with $4,250 in interest income and $32,000 from the

Committee's authorized reserve, will be adequate to cover budgeted

expenses. Funds in the Committee's authorized reserve as of September

15, 1995, amounted to over $173,000 and were within the maximum

permitted by the order of three fiscal periods' expenses. However, at

its September 21, 1995, meeting the Committee voted to refund $100,000

of this amount pro rata to handlers who paid assessments during the

1992-93, 1993-94, and 1994-95 fiscal periods. To determine each

handler's proportionate share, the Committee plans to total the excess

funds for each of these fiscal periods, divide this excess by the total

assessments levied on all handlers during this period, and apply the

resulting percentage to the assessments paid by each individual handler

during the three-year period. Funds remaining in the reserve will be

adequate for administrative operating expenses, if needed.

An interim final rule was published in the Federal Register on

September 19, 1995 (60 FR 48361). That interim final rule added

Sec. 955.208 to authorize expenses and establish an assessment rate for

the Committee. That rule provided that interested persons could file

comments through October 19, 1995. No comments were received.

While this rule will impose some additional costs on handlers, the

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

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

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

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

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

substantial number of small entities.

After consideration of all relevant matter presented, including the

information and recommendations submitted by the Committee and other

available information, it is hereby found that this rule, as

hereinafter set forth, will tend to effectuate the declared policy of

the Act.

It is further found that good cause exists for not postponing the

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

Federal Register (5 U.S.C. 553) because the Committee needs to have

sufficient funds to pay its expenses which are incurred on a continuous

basis. The 1995-96 fiscal period began on September 16, 1995. The

marketing order requires that the rate of assessment for the fiscal

period apply to all assessable onions handled during the fiscal period.

In addition, handlers are aware of this action which was unanimously

recommended by the Committee at a public meeting and published in the

Federal Register as an interim final rule.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 955

Marketing agreements, Onions, Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements.

For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 7 CFR part 955 is

amended as follows:

PART 955--VIDALIA ONIONS GROWN IN GEORGIA

Accordingly, the interim final rule amending 7 CFR part 955 which

was published at 60 FR 48361 on September 19, 1995, is adopted as a

final rule without change.

Dated: December 6, 1995.

Sharon Bomer Lauritsen,

Deputy Director, Fruit and Vegetable Division.

[FR Doc. 95-30234 Filed 12-11-95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410-02-P