Tobacco (Quota Plan) Crop Insurance Regulations; and Common Crop Insurance Regulations; Quota Tobacco Crop Insurance Provisions

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Federal Crop Insurance Corporation

7 CFR Parts 435 and 457

Tobacco (Quota Plan) Crop Insurance Regulations; and Common Crop

Insurance Regulations; Quota Tobacco Crop Insurance Provisions

AGENCY: Federal Crop Insurance Corporation, USDA.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC) proposes

specific crop provisions for the insurance of quota tobacco. The

provisions will be used in conjunction with the Common Crop Insurance

Policy Basic Provisions, which contain standard terms and conditions

common to most crops. The intended effect of this action is to provide

policy changes to better meet the needs of the insured, include the

current tobacco (quota plan) crop insurance regulations with the Common

Crop Insurance Policy for ease of use and consistency of terms, and to

restrict the effect of the current tobacco (quota plan) crop insurance

regulation to the 1997 and prior crop years.

EFFECTIVE DATES: Written comments and opinions on this proposed rule

will be accepted until close of business June 12, 1997 and will be

considered when the rule is to be made final.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments to

the Chief, Product Development Branch, Federal Crop Insurance

Corporation, United States Department of Agriculture, 9435 Holmes Road,

Kansas City, MO 64131.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gary Johnson, Insurance Management

Specialist, Research and Development Division, Product Development

Branch, FCIC, at the Kansas City, MO, address listed above, telephone

(816) 926-7730.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Executive Order No. 12866

The Office of Management and Budget has determined this rule to be

exempt for the purposes of Executive Order No. 12866 and, therefore,

this rule has not been reviewed by OMB.

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

The amendments set forth in this proposed rule do not contain

additional information collections that require clearance by OMB under

the provisions of 44 U.S.C. chapter 35.

The title of this information collection is ``Multiple Peril Crop

Insurance.'' The information to be collected includes a crop insurance

application and acreage report. Information collected from the

application and acreage report is electronically submitted to FCIC by

the reinsured companies. Potential respondents to this information

collection are producers of quota tobacco that are eligible for Federal

crop insurance.

The information requested is necessary for the reinsured companies

and FCIC to provide insurance and reinsurance, determine eligibility,

determine the correct parties to the agreement or contract, determine

and collect premiums or other monetary amounts, and pay benefits.

All information is reported annually. The reporting burden for this

collection of information is estimated to average 16.9 minutes per

response for each of the 3.6 responses from approximately 1,755,015

respondents. The total annual burden on the public for this information

collection is 2,676,932 hours.

FCIC is requesting comments on the following: (a) Whether the

proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper

performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the

information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the

agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of

information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of

the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of

the collection of information on respondents, including through the use

of automated collection techniques or other forms of information

gathering technology.

Comments regarding paperwork reduction should be submitted to the

Desk Officer for Agriculture, Office of Information and Regulatory

Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, Washington, D.C. 20503.

OMB is required to make a decision concerning the collections of

information contained in these proposed regulations between 30 and 60

days after submission to OMB. Therefore, a comment to OMB is best

assured of having full effect if OMB receives it within 30 days of

publication. This does not affect the deadline for the public to

comment on the proposed regulation.

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995

Title II of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA), Public

Law 104-4, establishes requirements for Federal agencies to assess the

effects of their regulatory actions on state, local, and tribal

governments and the private sector. This rule contains no Federal

mandates (under the regulatory provisions of title II of the UMRA) for

state, local, and tribal governments or the private sector. Thus, this

rule is not subject to the requirements of sections 202 and 205 of the

UMRA.

Executive Order No. 12612

It has been determined under section 6(a) of Executive Order No.

12612, Federalism, that this rule does not have sufficient federalism

implications to warrant the preparation of a Federalism Assessment. The

provisions contained in this rule will not have a substantial direct

effect on states or their political subdivisions, or on the

distribution of power and responsibilities among the various levels of

government.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

This regulation will not have a significant impact on a substantial

number of small entities. New provisions included in this rule will not

impact small entities to a greater extent than large entities. Under

the current regulations, a producer is required to complete an

application and acreage report. If the crop is damaged or destroyed,

the insured is required to give notice of loss and provide the

necessary information to complete a claim for indemnity. The insured

must also annually certify to the previous years production if adequate

records are available to support the certification. The producer must

maintain the

[[Page 26249]]

production records to support the certified information for at least

three years. This regulation does not alter those requirements. The

amount of work required of the insurance companies delivering and

servicing these policies will not increase significantly from the

amount of work currently required. This rule does not have any greater

or lesser impact on the producer. Therefore, this action is determined

to be exempt from the provisions of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5

U.S.C. 605), and no Regulatory Flexibility Analysis was prepared.

Federal Assistance Program

This program is listed in the Catalog of Federal Domestic

Assistance under No. 10.450.

Executive Order No. 12372

This program is not subject to the provisions of Executive Order

No. 12372, which require 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.

Executive Order No. 12988

This proposed rule has been reviewed in accordance with Executive

Order No. 12988. The provisions of this rule will not have a

retroactive effect prior to the effective date. The provisions of this

rule will preempt state and local laws to the extent such state and

local laws are inconsistent herewith. The administrative appeal

provisions published at 7 CFR part 11 must be exhausted before any

action for judicial review may be brought.

Environmental Evaluation

This action is not expected to have a significant impact on the

quality of the human environment, health, and safety. Therefore,

neither an Environmental Assessment nor an Environmental Impact

Statement is needed.

National Performance Review

This regulatory action is being taken as part of the National

Performance Review Initiative to eliminate unnecessary or duplicative

regulations and improve those that remain in force.

Background

FCIC proposes to add to the Common Crop Insurance Regulations (7

CFR part 457), a new section, 7 CFR 457.156, Quota Tobacco Crop

Insurance Provisions. The new provisions will be effective for the 1998

and succeeding crop years. These provisions will replace and supersede

the current provisions for insuring quota tobacco found at 7 CFR part

435 Tobacco (Quota Plan). FCIC also proposes to amend 7 CFR part 435 to

limit its effect to the 1997 and prior crop years. FCIC also proposes

to amend 7 CFR part 435 to limit its effect to the 1997 and prior crop

years.

This rule makes minor editorial and format changes to improve the

Tobacco (Quota Plan) Crop Insurance Regulation's compatibility with the

Common Crop Insurance Policy. In addition, FCIC is proposing

substantive changes in the provisions for insuring quota tobacco as

follows:

1. The Late Planting Agreement Option (LPAO) has been discontinued

because the final planting date is late enough to allow anyone with

tobacco plants to timely transplant them and the reduction in guarantee

under the LPAO is not sufficient to cover the increased risks of a

shorter growing season.

2. Section 1--Add definitions for terms ``adequate stand,''

``amount of insurance,'' ``approved yield,'' ``days,'' ``discount

variety,'' ``FSA,'' ``fair market value,'' ``final planting date,''

``good farming practices,'' ``insured poundage quota,'' ``irrigated

practice,'' ``planted acreage,'' ``pound,'' ``practical to replant,''

``production guarantee,'' ``replanting,'' ``tobacco bed,'' ``USDA,''

and ``written agreement'' for clarification. The definition of

``harvest'' was revised to remove the requirement that 20 percent of

the production guarantee per acre for the unit of the tobacco had to be

cut per acre from the unit in order for the unit to be considered

harvested. Since the harvest incentive of 35 percent of the guarantee

has been deleted, this provision is no longer necessary. Added the

definition of ``hydroponic plants'' to identify seedlings grown in a

liquid nutrient solution.

3. Section 3--Delete the six cents per pound warehouse charge

deduction for the purpose of determining the amount of insurance. This

provides the producer the full value of the tobacco sold without the

warehouse charge. It also allows the use of gross sales to establish

the value of production to count without the warehouse charge

deduction. Allow the use of actual production history to determine the

approved yield for insurance purposes. The most accurate determination

of the yield for the unit uses insured's records of production.

4. Section 4--Change the contract date from December 31 to November

30 in order to maintain an adequate time period between this date and

the earliest cancellation date.

5. Section 5--Change the cancellation and termination dates from

April 15 to March 15. This conforms to a statutory change that moved

spring planted crop sales closing dates 30 days earlier.

6. Section 6(a)--Clarify that insurance coverage will only apply to

the effective poundage marketing quota as defined in these regulations.

7. Section 6(b)(c)--Require that a copy of any written lease

agreement between the landlord and tenant be provided to the insurance

provider. This will allow the farm's effective poundage marketing quota

to be distributed between two or more insureds based on a written lease

agreement between the landlord and the insured. This provision was

added because the present method of distributing the farm's effective

marketing quota between two or more insureds does not provide equitable

treatment for all insureds.

8. Section 8(d)--Clarify that any acreage damaged prior to the

final planting date must be replanted unless replanting is not

practical.

9. Section 10(c)(d)--Clarify that insects and plant disease are

insurable causes of loss, but they are not insurable causes of loss if

damage was due to insufficient or improper application of pest or

disease control measures.

10. Section 12(g)--Add a provision for a requirement that once the

insurance provider agrees that any current year's or carryover tobacco

has no market value, the insured must destroy it. This provision

eliminates the adjustment of next year's quota when the crop is still

saleable at the time of the loss. It also eliminates the opportunity to

falsely report carryover and current year's tobacco as of no value to

increase indemnity payments. This provision is consistent with FSA's

requirement that tobacco having no value must be destroyed.

11. Section 13--Add provisions for providing insurance coverage by

written agreement. FCIC has a long standing policy of permitting

certain modifications of the insurance contract by written agreement

for some policies. This amendment allows FCIC to tailor the policy to a

specific insured in certain instances. The new section will cover the

procedures for and duration of written agreements.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Parts 435 and 457

Crop insurance, Quota tobacco, Tobacco (quota plan) crop insurance

regulations. Proposed Rule

Accordingly, for reasons set forth in the preamble, the Federal

Crop Insurance Corporation hereby proposes to amend 7 CFR parts 435 and

457, as follows:

[[Page 26250]]

PART 435--TOBACCO (QUOTA PLAN) CROP INSURANCE REGULATIONS FOR THE

1985 AND SUBSEQUENT CONTRACT YEARS

1. The authority citation for 7 CFR part 435 continues to read as

follows:

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1506(1), 1506(p).

2. The part heading is revised to read as set forth above.

3. The subpart heading ``Subpart--Regulations for the 1985 through

1997 Crop Years'' is removed.

4. Section 435.7 is amended by revising the introductory text of

paragraph (d) to read as follows:

* * * * *

(d) The application for the 1985 and subsequent crop years is found

at subpart D of part 400--General Administrative Regulations (7 CFR

400.37, 400.38). The provisions of the Tobacco (Quota Plan) Insurance

Policy for the 1985 through 1997 crop years are as follows:

* * * * *

PART 457--COMMON CROP INSURANCE REGULATIONS; REGULATIONS FOR THE 1994

AND SUBSEQUENT CONTRACT YEARS

4. The authority citation for 7 CFR part 457 continues to read as

follows:

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1506(1), 1506(p).

5. Section 457.156 is added to read as follows:

Sec. 457.156 Quota tobacco crop insurance provisions.

The Quota Tobacco Crop Provisions for the 1998 and succeeding crop

years are as follows:

FCIC policies:

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Federal Crop Insurance Corporation

Reinsured policies:

(Appropriate title for insurance provider)

Both FCIC and reinsured policies:

Quota Tobacco Crop Provisions

If a conflict exists among the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8),

these Crop Provisions, and the Special Provisions; the Special

Provisions will control these Crop Provisions and the Basic

Provisions; and these Crop Provisions will control the Basic

Provisions.

1. Definitions

Amount of insurance. The dollar amount determined by multiplying

the insured poundage quota by the current year's support price.

Approved yield. The yield calculated in accordance with 7 CFR

part 400, subpart G.

Carryover tobacco. Any tobacco produced on the FSA Farm Serial

Number in previous years that remained unsold at the end of the most

recent marketing year.

County. In lieu of the provisions of section 1 (Definitions) of

the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), county is defined as the county

or other political subdivision of a state shown on your accepted

application including any land identified by an FSA Farm Serial

Number for such county but physically located in another county.

Days. Calendar days.

Discount variety. Tobacco defined as such under the provisions

of the United States Department of Agriculture tobacco price support

program.

Effective poundage marketing quota. The farm marketing quota as

established and recorded by the FSA office for the county plus any

additional poundage you intend to produce for each unit in that crop

year, minus the amount of any carryover tobacco.

FSA. The Farm Service Agency, an agency of the United States

Department of Agriculture, or a successor agency.

Fair market value. The current year's tobacco growing season

average price for the applicable type of tobacco obtained from the

sale of the tobacco through market other than an auction warehouse.

Farm yield. The yield per acre used by FSA to establish the

effective poundage marketing quota for a FSA Farm Serial Number,

unless we have established a yield for that FSA Farm Serial Number

in the actuarial table.

Final planting date. The date contained in the Special

Provisions for the insured crop by which the crop must initially be

planted in order to be insured for the full production guarantee.

Good farming practices. The cultural practices generally in use

in the county for the crop to make normal progress toward maturity

and produce at least the yield used to determine the amount of

insurance, and are those recognized by the Cooperative State

Research, Education, and Extension Service as compatible with

agronomic and weather conditions in the county.

Harvest. Cutting and removing all insured tobacco from the field

in which it was grown.

Hydroponic plants. Seedlings grown in liquid nutrient solutions.

Insured poundage quota. The lesser of:

(1) the product (in pounds) obtained by multiplying the

effective poundage marketing quota for the FSA Farm Serial Number by

your selected coverage level; or

(2) the farm yield or approved yield, as applicable multiplied

by the insured acres and by your selected coverage level.

Market price. The previous years' season average price published

by National Agricultural Statistics Service for the applicable type

of tobacco in the area.

Marketing year. The marketing year published by National

Agricultural Statistics Service for the applicable type of tobacco

in the area.

Planted acreage. Land in which tobacco seedlings, including

hydroponic plants, have been transplanted by hand or machine from

the tobacco bed to the field.

Pound. Sixteen ounces avoirdupois.

Practical to replant. In lieu of the definition of ``Practical

to replant'' contained in section 1 of the Basic Provisions

(Sec. 457.8), practical to replant is defined as our determination,

after loss or damage to the insured crop, based on factors,

including but not limited to moisture availability, condition of the

field, time to crop maturity, and marketing window, that replanting

the insured crop will allow the crop to attain maturity prior to the

calendar date for the end of the insurance period. It will not be

considered practical to replant after the final planting date.

Replanting. Performing the cultural practices necessary to

replace the tobacco plant, and then replacing the tobacco plant in

the insured acreage with the expectation of growing a successful

crop.

Support price. The average price per pound for the type of

tobacco as announced by the USDA under its tobacco price support

program.

Tobacco bed. An area protected from adverse weather, in which

tobacco seeds are sown and seedlings are grown until transplanted

into the tobacco field by hand or machine.

Unit. In lien of the provision of section 1 (Definition) of the

Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), a unit is all insurable acreage of an

insurable type of tobacco in the county in which you have an insured

share on the date of planting for the crop year and which is

identified by a single FSA Farm Serial Number at the time insurance

first attaches under these provisions for the crop year.

USDA. United States Department of Agriculture.

Written agreement. A written document that alters designated

terms of this policy in accordance with section 13.

2. Unit Division

A unit will be determined in accordance with the definition of

unit contained in section 1 of these Crop Provisions and may not be

subdivided on any basis, unless specified by the Special Provisions.

3. Insurance Guarantees, Coverage Levels, and Prices for Determining

Indemnities

In lieu of section 3(c) (Insurance Guarantees, Coverage Levels,

and Prices for Determining Indemnities) of the Basic Provisions

(Sec. 457.8), you will only be required to file an annual production

report to us if required by the Special Provisions to establish an

approved yield in lieu of the farm yield or yield shown by us on the

actuarial table. If required by the Special Provisions, you must

file an annual production report in accordance with section 3(c)

(Insurance Guarantees, Coverage Levels, and Prices for Determining

Indemnities) of the Common Crop Insurance Policy (Sec. 457.8).

4. Contract Changes.

In accordance with section 4 (Contract Changes) in the Basic

Provisions (Sec. 457.8), the contract change date is November 30

preceding the cancellation date.

5. Cancellation and Termination Dates

In accordance with section 2 (Life of Policy, Cancellation, and

Termination) of the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), the cancellation

and termination dates are March 15.

6. Report of Acreage

In addition to the requirements of section 6 (Report of Acreage)

of the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8):

[[Page 26251]]

(a) You must report the effective poundage marketing quota, any

additional poundage that you intend to produce for each unit in the

crop year, and the quantity of carryover tobacco on hand at the time

the acreage report is submitted. Once submitted, you may not revise

the acreage report.

(b) You must provide a copy of any written lease agreement

between you and any landlord or tenant showing the amount of the

effective poundage marketing quota allocated to you. The total

amount of the effective poundage marketing quota allocated to all

persons holding a share may not differ from the effective poundage

marketing quota designation made to FSA. The written lease agreement

must:

(1) Identify all other persons sharing in the effective poundage

marketing quota; and

(2) Be submitted to your local office by the acreage reporting

date.

(c) In the event of a loss, if the written lease agreement has

been submitted timely, we will distribute the effective poundage

marketing quota in accordance with the terms of the written lease

agreement. If the written lease agreement is not submitted timely,

we will prorate the effective poundage marketing quota across the

FSA Farm Serial Number to all insured and uninsured persons based on

planted acres within the FSA Farm Serial Number.

7. Insured Crop

(a) In accordance with section 8 (Insured Crop) of the Basic

Provisions (Sec. 457.8), the crop insured will be one or more of

tobacco types designated in the Special Provisions, in which you

have a share, that you elect to insure, and for which a premium rate

is provided by the actuarial table.

(b) The effective poundage marketing quota may not include any

tobacco that would be subject to a marketing quota penalty under

USDA Tobacco Marketing Quota Regulations.

(c) Unless otherwise provided by the actuarial table, for any

crop year in which USDA does not promulgate Tobacco Marketing Quota

Regulations, the effective poundage marketing quota will be the

pounds obtained by multiplying the applicable approved yield per

acre by the lower of the reported or insured acreage on the unit.

8. Insurable Acreage

In addition to the provisions of section 9 (Insurable Acreage)

of the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), we will not insure any

acreage:

(a) Planted to a discount variety;

(b) Planted to a tobacco type for which no premium rate is

provided by the actuarial table;

(c) Planted in any manner other than as provided in the

definition of ``planted acreage'' in section 1 of these Crop

Provisions (Such acreage is not insurable unless otherwise provided

by the Special Provisions or by written agreement); or

(d) Damaged before the final planting date to the extent that

the majority of producers in the area would normally not further

care for the crop, unless such crop is replanted or we agree that

replanting is not practical.

9. Insurance Period

In accordance with the provisions of section 11 (Insurance

Period) of the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), insurance ceases the

earliest of:

(a) Destruction of the tobacco;

(b) Weighing-in at the tobacco warehouse;

(c) Removal of the tobacco from the field where grown except for

curing, grading, packing, or immediate delivery to the tobacco

warehouse; or

(d) The February 28 immediately following the normal harvest

period.

10. Causes of Loss

In accordance with the provisions of section 12 (Causes of Loss)

of the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), insurance is provided only

against the following causes of loss that occur during the insurance

period:

(a) Adverse weather conditions;

(b) Fire;

(c) Insects, but not damage due to insufficient or improper

application of pest control measures;

(d) Plant disease, but not damage due to insufficient or

improper application of disease control measures;

(e) Wildlife;

(f) Earthquake;

(g) Volcanic eruption; or

(h) Failure of the irrigation water supply, if caused by an

insured peril that occurs during the insurance period.

11. Duties In The Event of Damage or Loss

In accordance with the requirements of section 14 (Duties In The

Event of Damage or Loss) of the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), any

representative samples we may require of each unharvested tobacco

type must be at least 5 feet wide and extend the entire length of

each field in the unit. The samples must not be harvested or

destroyed until the earlier of our inspection or 15 days after

harvest of the balance of the unit is completed.

12. Settlement of Claim

(a) We will determine your loss on a unit basis. In the event

you are unable to provide separate acceptable production records, we

will allocate any commingled production to such units in proportion

to our liability on the harvested acreage for each unit.

(b) In the event of loss or damage covered by this policy, we

will settle your claim by:

(1) Multiplying the insured poundage quota by the current year's

support price;

(2) Subtracting the value of the total production to be counted

in (see section 12(c)) from the amount of insurance in section

12(b)(1); and

(3) Multiplying the result in section 12(b)(2) by your share;

(c) The value of the total production to count (pounds of

production that is appraised or harvested multiplied by the

applicable price) for all insurable acreage on the unit will

include:

(1) All appraised production as follows:

(i) Not less than the amount of insurance per insured acre for

the unit for any acreage:

(A) That is abandoned;

(B) Put to another use without our consent;

(C) That is damaged solely by uninsured causes; or

(D) For which you fail to provide acceptable production records;

(ii) Production lost due to uninsured causes;

(iii) Potential production on unharvested insured acreage that

you intend to put to another use with our consent, if you and we

agree on the appraised amount of production multiplied by the

current year's support price. Upon such agreement, the insurance

period for that acreage will end when you put the acreage to another

use or abandon the crop. If agreement on the appraised amount of

production is not reached:

(A) If you do not elect to continue to care for the crop, we may

consent to allow you to put the acreage to another use if you agree

to leave intact, and provide sufficient care for, representative

samples of the crop in locations acceptable to us (The amount of

production to count for such acreage will be based on the harvested

production or appraisals multiplied by the current year's support

price from the samples at the time harvest should have occurred. If

you do not leave the required samples intact, or you fail to provide

sufficient care for the samples, our appraisal made prior to giving

you consent to put the acreage to another use will be used to

determine the amount of production to count multiplied by the

current year's support price); or

(B) If you elect to continue to care for the crop, the amount of

production to count for the acreage will be the harvested

production, or our reappraisal multiplied by the current year's

support price if additional damage occurs and the crop is not

harvested;

(iv) If a current year's support price is not in effect,

appraised production will be valued at the market price;

(2) All harvested production from insurable acreage multiplied

by:

(i) Gross sale receipts for the tobacco sold on a warehouse

floor;

(ii) Fair market value for tobacco sold other than on the

warehouse floor; and

(iii) Fair market value for tobacco not sold.

(d) Mature tobacco production that is damaged by insurable

causes will be adjusted for quality, based on the USDA Official

Standard Grades, Burley Tobacco, U.S. Type 31, and will receive a

price based on the following:

(1) Gross sale receipts for the tobacco sold on a warehouse

floor;

(2) Fair market value for tobacco sold other than on the

warehouse floor; and

(3) Fair market value for tobacco not sold.

(e) Production that is damaged by uninsurable causes will not be

adjusted for quality, but will receive a price based on the current

year's support price.

(f) To enable us to determine the fair market value of tobacco

not sold through auction warehouses, you must give us the

opportunity to inspect such tobacco before it is sold, contracted to

be sold, or otherwise disposed; failure to provide us the

opportunity to inspect such tobacco may result in rejection of any

claim for indemnity.

(g) If we consider the best offer you receive for such tobacco

to be inadequate, we may obtain additional offers on your behalf.

(h) Once we agree that any carryover or current year's tobacco

has no market value due to insured causes, you must destroy it. If

you refuse to destroy the tobacco with no value, we will determine

the value and count it as production to count.

[[Page 26252]]

13. Written Agreements

Terms of this policy which are specifically designated for the

use of written agreements may be altered by written agreement in

accordance with the following:

(a) You must apply in writing for each written agreement no

later than the sales closing date, except as provided in section

13(e);

(b) The application for a written agreement must contain all

variable terms of the contract between you and us that will be in

effect if the written agreement is not approved;

(c) If approved, the written agreement will include all variable

terms of the contract, including, but not limited to, crop type or

variety, the guarantee, premium rate, and price election;

(d) Each written agreement will only be valid for one year (if

the written agreement is not specifically renewed the following

year, insurance coverage for subsequent crop years will be in

accordance with the printed policy); and

(e) An application for a written agreement submitted after the

sales closing date may be approved if, after a physical inspection

of the acreage, it is determined that no loss has occurred and the

crop is insurable in accordance with the policy and written

agreement provisions.

Signed in Washington, D.C., on May 7, 1997.

Kenneth D. Ackerman,

Manager, Federal Crop Insurance Corporation.

[FR Doc. 97-12436 Filed 5-12-97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410-08-P