Expenses and Assessment Rate for Marketing Order Covering Olives Grown in California

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Part 932

[Docket No. FV96-932-1IFR]

Expenses and Assessment Rate for Marketing Order Covering Olives

Grown in California

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 California Olive Committee (Committee) under

Marketing Order No. 932 for the 1996 fiscal year. The Committee is

responsible for local administration of the marketing order which

regulates the handling of California olives. Authorization of this

budget enables the Committee to incur expenses that are reasonable and

necessary to administer the program. Funds to administer this program

are derived from assessments on handlers.

DATES: Effective beginning January 1, 1996, through December 31, 1996.

Comments received by March 21, 1996, 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, P.O. 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: Terry Vawter, California Marketing

Field Office, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, 2202 Monterey

Street, suite 102B, Fresno, California 93721, telephone 209-487-5901;

or Caroline C. Thorpe, Marketing Order Administration Branch, F&V, AMS,

USDA, P.O. Box 96456, room 2523-S, Washington, DC 20090-6456; telephone

202-720-5127.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This interim final rule is issued under

Marketing Order No. 932 (7 CFR part 932), as amended, regulating the

handling of olives grown in California, 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, olives grown in California are subject to assessments. It is

intended that the assessment rate as issued herein will be applicable

to all assessable olives during the 1996 fiscal year, beginning January

1, 1996, through December 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 5 handlers of olives grown in California who are subject

to regulation under the order and approximately 1,350 producers of

olives 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. None of the olive handlers may be classified as small

entities, while the majority of olive producers may be classified as

small entities.

The order, administered by the Department, requires that the

assessment rate for a particular fiscal year apply to all assessable

olives handled during the appropriate crop year, which for this season

is August 1, 1995, through July 31, 1996. The budget of expenses for

the 1996 fiscal year was prepared by the Committee and submitted to the

Department for approval. The Committee consists of handlers and

producers. 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 actual receipts of olives by handlers

during the crop year. Because that rate is applied to actual receipts,

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 is usually acted upon

by the Committee after the crop year begins and before the fiscal year

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 met on December 14, 1995, and recommended 1996

marketing order expenditures of $2,600,785 for its budget. This is

$280,865 less in expenses than the previous year. The major budget

categories for the 1996 fiscal year include administration ($388,350),

research ($213,000), and market development ($1,999,435).

The Committee also recommended an assessment rate of $28.26 per ton

[[Page 6307]]

covering olives from the appropriate crop year. This is $1.78 less than

last year's assessment rate of $30.04. The assessment rate, when

applied to actual handler receipts of 62,182 tons from the 1995 olive

crop year, would yield $1,757,726 in assessment income. This along with

approximately $829,000 from the Committee's authorized reserves will be

adequate to cover estimated expenses. Reserve funds for the 1996 fiscal

year are estimated at $210,000 which is within the maximum permitted by

the order of one fiscal year's expenses.

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 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 1996 fiscal

year began on January 1, 1996, and the marketing order requires that

the rate of assessment for the fiscal year apply to all assessable

olives handled during the fiscal year; (3) handlers are aware of this

rule which was recommended by the Committee at a public meeting; and

(4) 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 932

Marketing agreements, Olives, Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements.

For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 7 CFR part 932 is

amended as follows:

PART 932--OLIVES GROWN IN CALIFORNIA

1. The authority citation for 7 CFR part 932 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. 932.229 is added to read as follows:

Sec. 932.229 Expenses and assessment rate.

Expenses of $2,600,785 for the California Olive Committee are

authorized, and an assessment rate of $28.26 per ton of assessable

olives is established for the 1996 fiscal year ending on December 31,

1996. Unexpended funds may be carried over as a reserve.

Dated: February 12, 1996.

Sharon Bomer Lauritsen,

Deputy Director, Fruit and Vegetable Division.

[FR Doc. 96-3608 Filed 2-16-96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410-02-P