This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains notices to the public of the proposed

issuance of rules and regulations. The

purpose of these notices is to give interested

persons an opportunity to participate in the

rule making prior to the adoption of the final

rules.

Proposed Rules Federal Register

12293 

Vol. 86, No. 40 

Wednesday, March 3, 2021 

1To view the final rule and supporting 

documents, go to http://www.regulations.gov/ 

#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2006-0089. 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

9 CFR Part 149 

[Docket No. APHIS–2020–0065] 

RIN 0579–AE59 

Elimination of the Voluntary Trichinae 

Certification Program 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: We are proposing to eliminate 

the Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service (APHIS) Voluntary Trichinae 

Certification Program and remove the 

regulations associated with the program. 

This action would also notify the public 

that APHIS will no longer maintain any 

activity associated with the program, 

such as training for qualified accredited 

veterinarians, on-farm audits, or any 

other administrative process associated 

with program maintenance and support. 

We are proposing to eliminate the 

program because it generates little 

producer participation. This action 

would allow APHIS to direct APHIS 

resources to areas of greater need. 

DATES: We will consider all comments 

that we receive on or before May 3, 

2021. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

by either of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

www.regulations.gov. Enter APHIS– 

2020–0065 in the Search field. Select 

the Documents tab, then select the 

Comment button in the list of 

documents. 

• Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: 

Send your comment to Docket No. 

APHIS–2020–0065, Regulatory Analysis 

and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 

3A–03.8, 4700 River Road, Unit 118, 

Riverdale, MD 20737–1238. 

Supporting documents and any 

comments we receive on this docket 

may be viewed at regulations.gov or in 

our reading room, which is located in 

Room 1620 of the USDA South 

Building, 14th Street and Independence 

Avenue SW, Washington, DC. Normal 

reading room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 

p.m., Monday through Friday, except 

holidays. To be sure someone is there to 

help you, please call (202) 799–7039 

before coming. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Marı ́a Celia Antognoli, Swine Health 

Senior Staff Officer, Aquaculture, 

Swine, Equine and Poultry Health 

Center, Strategy and Policy, VS, APHIS, 

2150 Centre Ave., Bldg. B, Fort Collins, 

CO 80526–8117; (970) 494–7304; 

celia.antognoli@usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

Trichinella are parasitic nematodes 

(roundworms) that are found in many 

warm-blooded carnivores and 

omnivores, including swine. There are 

eight known species of Trichinella 

nematodes: Trichinella britovi, 

Trichinella murrelli, Trichinella nativa, 

Trichinella nelsoni, Trichinella papuae, 

Trichinella pseudospiralis, Trichinella 

spiralis, and Trichinella zimbabwensis. 

Trichinae is a generic term that refers to 

all species of Trichinella. 

In a final rule 1 published in the 

Federal Register on October 10, 2008 

(73 FR 60463–60488; Docket No. 

APHIS–2006–0089), we established 

regulations for the Voluntary Trichinae 

Certification Program by adding 9 CFR 

part 149. These regulations provide for 

the certification of pork production sites 

that follow certain prescribed 

management practices that reduce, 

eliminate, or avoid the risk of exposure 

of swine to Trichinella spp. 

Participation in the program is 

voluntary. As stated in § 149.2, a 

producer’s initial enrollment and 

continued participation in the Trichinae 

Certification Program requires that the 

producer adhere to all of the good 

production practices set out in the 

regulations, as confirmed by periodic 

site audits, and comply with other 

recordkeeping and program 

requirements provided in part 149. 

Producer participation in this 

voluntary program has decreased since 

the program began. Only two producers 

re-enrolled in the past 3 years. The lack 

of producer interest and involvement 

has become problematic for a number of 

reasons. Maintaining the program places 

demands on limited Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service (APHIS) 

funding and human resources that could 

be better directed elsewhere. In 

addition, the existence of a program that 

producers have little interest in has had 

trade implications. Trading partners 

have questioned our ability to certify 

freedom of trichinae in exported 

products, given that the vast majority of 

the products are not produced under the 

auspices of the Trichinae Certification 

Program. 

We are therefore proposing to 

eliminate the program by removing part 

149 from the regulations. Eliminating 

this program should benefit the swine 

industry by reducing possible confusion 

about the trichinae-free status of 

exported products. APHIS would also 

no longer incur the costs associated 

with program administration and 

payments to auditors. 

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory 

Flexibility Act 

This proposed rule has been 

determined to be not significant for the 

purposes of Executive Order 12866 and, 

therefore, has not been reviewed by the 

Office of Management and Budget. 

In accordance with the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act, we have analyzed the 

potential economic effects of this action 

on small entities. The analysis is 

summarized below. Copies of the full 

analysis are available by contacting the 

person listed under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT or on the 

Regulations.gov website (see ADDRESSES

above for instructions for accessing 

Regulations.gov). 

APHIS is proposing to eliminate the 

Voluntary Trichinae Certification 

Program and remove its associated 

regulations from title 9 of the Code of 

Federal Regulations. 

Producer participation in the 

Voluntary Trichinae Certification 

program has decreased significantly 

since this voluntary program began in 

2007. Only two producers with 23 audit 

sites re-enrolled in the past 3 years. 

Continuation of the voluntary program, 

given the lack of producer participation, 

is difficult to justify. Furthermore, a 

voluntary certification program that 

does not attract producer participation 

could negatively affect APHIS’ and the 

pork industry’s credibility, especially 


jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS
12294 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 40 / Wednesday, March 3, 2021 / Proposed Rules 

during trade negotiations. Minimal 

program participation can lead trading 

partners to question APHIS’ ability to 

certify exported products as trichinaefree, even though certification is not a 

requirement for U.S. pork exportation. 

Preserving APHIS’ credibility is 

crucial in supporting the U.S. pork 

industry and its exports, which have 

increased substantially in recent years. 

Since 2007, U.S. pork exports have more 

than doubled in value (110 percent 

increase) and in quantity (109 percent 

increase). 

The Small Business Administration 

(SBA) small business size standard for 

hog and pig farming is annual revenue 

of not more than $1 million. According 

to the 2017 Agricultural Census, 64,871 

hog and pig farms sold over 235 million 

hogs and pigs with total sales of $26.3 

billion in 2017. Average annual sales 

per farm was 3,267 head valued at 

$404,907, well below the SBA smallentity standard. 

When the census data are divided into 

two categories—the largest producers, 

with 5,000 or more hogs and pigs sold, 

and the remaining farms—the 

prevalence of small-scale producers 

becomes clear. Farms with fewer than 

5,000 hogs and pigs sold accounted for 

57,084 farms (88 percent of the total). 

However, the number and value of hogs 

and pigs sold by these farms, 15,157,702 

head valued at $2.4 billion, represent 

only 6 percent and 9 percent, 

respectively, of total sales. The average 

number and value of hogs and pigs sold 

per farm in 2017 by these smaller farms 

was 266 head valued at $42,078. 

Clearly, hog and pig farms are 

predominantly small. 

Because the Voluntary Trichinae 

Certification Program did not progress 

beyond the pilot stage, the participating 

producers have not borne program costs. 

Under these circumstances, the 

Administrator of the Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service has 

determined that this action would not 

have a significant economic impact on 

a substantial number of small entities. 

Executive Order 12372 

This program/activity is listed in the 

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 

under No. 10.025 and is subject to 

Executive Order 12372, which requires 

intergovernmental consultation with 

State and local officials. (See 2 CFR 

chapter IV.) 

Executive Order 12988 

This proposed rule has been reviewed 

under Executive Order 12988, Civil 

Justice Reform. If this proposed rule is 

adopted: (1) State and local laws and 

regulations will not be preempted; (2) 

no retroactive effect will be given to this 

rule; and (3) administrative proceedings 

will not be required before parties may 

file suit in court challenging this rule. 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

This proposed rule contains no new 

information collection or recordkeeping 

requirements under the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 

et seq.) and will reduce those currently 

approved by the Office of Management 

and Budget under control number 0579– 

0323. 

List of Subjects in 9 CFR Part 149 

Animal diseases, Laboratories, Meat 

and meat products, Meat inspection, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Swine. 

Accordingly, for the reasons stated in 

the preamble, and under the authority of 

7 U.S.C. 8301 et seq., the Animal and 

Plant Health Inspection Service is 

proposing to amend 9 CFR chapter I by 

removing part 149. 

Done in Washington, DC, this 18th day of 

February, 2021. 

Michael Watson, 

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service. 

[FR Doc. 2021–03772 Filed 3–2–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. FAA–2021–0126; Project 

Identifier MCAI–2020–00266–R] 

RIN 2120–AA64 

Airworthiness Directives; Airbus 

Helicopters Deutschland GmbH (AHD) 

Helicopters 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking 

(NPRM). 

SUMMARY: The FAA proposes to adopt a 

new airworthiness directive (AD) for 

Airbus Helicopters Deutschland GmbH 

(AHD) Model MBB–BK 117 D–2 

helicopters. This proposed AD was 

prompted by a report of a broken 

Titanium (Ti) bolt. This proposed AD 

would require removing certain Ti-bolts 

from service and prohibit installing 

these Ti-bolts in a critical area. The FAA 

is proposing this AD to address the 

unsafe condition on these products. 

DATES: The FAA must receive comments 

on this proposed AD by April 19, 2021. 

ADDRESSES: You may send comments, 

using the procedures found in 14 CFR 

11.43 and 11.45, by any of the following 

methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Fax: (202) 493–2251. 

• Mail: U.S. Department of 

Transportation, Docket Operations, 

M–30, West Building Ground Floor, 

Room W12–140, 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590– 

0001. 

• Hand Delivery: Deliver to Mail 

address between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., 

Monday through Friday, except Federal 

holidays. 

For service information identified in 

this NPRM, contact Airbus Helicopters, 

2701 N Forum Drive, Grand Prairie, TX 

75052; telephone (972) 641–0000 or 

(800) 232–0323; fax (972) 641–3775; or 

at https://www.airbus.com/helicopters/ 

services/technical-support.html. You 

may view the referenced service 

information at the FAA, Office of the 

Regional Counsel, Southwest Region, 

10101 Hillwood Pkwy., Room 6N–321, 

Fort Worth, TX 76177. For information 

on the availability of this material at the 

FAA, call (817) 222–5110. 

Examining the AD Docket 

You may examine the AD docket at 

https://www.regulations.gov by 

searching for and locating Docket No. 

FAA–2021–0126; or in person at Docket 

Operations between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., 

Monday through Friday, except Federal 

holidays. The AD docket contains this 

NPRM, the European Union Aviation 

Safety Agency (EASA) AD, any 

comments received, and other 

information. The street address for 

Docket Operations is listed above. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Matt 

Fuller, AD Program Manager, General 

Aviation & Rotorcraft Unit, 

Airworthiness Products Section, 

Operational Safety Branch, FAA, 10101 

Hillwood Pkwy., Fort Worth, TX 76177; 

telephone (817) 222–5110; email 

matthew.fuller@faa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Comments Invited 

The FAA invites you to send any 

written relevant data, views, or 

arguments about this proposal. Send 

your comments to an address listed 

under ADDRESSES. Include ‘‘Docket No. 

FAA–2021–0126; Project Identifier 

MCAI–2020–00266–R’’ at the beginning 

of your comments. The most helpful 

comments reference a specific portion of 

the proposal, explain the reason for any 

recommended change, and include 


jbell on DSKJLSW7X2PROD with PROPOSALS