This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains regulatory documents having general

applicability and legal effect, most of which

are keyed to and codified in the Code of

Federal Regulations, which is published under

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new books are listed in the first FEDERAL

REGISTER issue of each week.

Rules and Regulations Federal Register

76031 

Vol. 78, No. 241 

Monday, December 16, 2013 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Agricultural Marketing Service 

7 CFR Part 923 

[Doc. No. AMS–FV–13–0055; FV13–923–1 

FIR] 

Sweet Cherries Grown in Designated 

Counties in Washington; Decreased 

Assessment Rate 

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, 

USDA. 

ACTION: Affirmation of interim rule as 

final rule. 

SUMMARY: The Department of 

Agriculture is adopting, as a final rule, 

without change, an interim rule that 

decreased the assessment rate 

established for the Washington Cherry 

Marketing Committee (Committee) for 

the 2013–2014 and subsequent fiscal 

periods from $0.18 to $0.15 per ton of 

sweet cherries handled. The Committee 

locally administers the marketing order 

for sweet cherries grown in designated 

counties in Washington. The 

Committee’s fiscal period begins on 

April 1, and ends March 31. The interim 

rule was necessary to allow the 

Committee to reduce its monetary 

reserve while still providing adequate 

funding to meet program expenses. 

DATES: Effective December 17, 2013. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Teresa Hutchinson, Marketing 

Specialist, or Gary Olson, Regional 

Director, Northwest Marketing Field 

Office, Marketing Order and Agreement 

Division, Fruit and Vegetable Program, 

AMS, USDA; Telephone: (503) 326– 

2724, Fax: (503) 326–7440, or Email: 

Teresa.Hutchinson@ams.usda.gov or 

GaryD.Olson@ams.usda.gov. 

Small businesses may obtain 

information on complying with this and 

other marketing order regulations by 

viewing a guide at the following Web 

site: http://www.ams.usda.gov/

MarketingOrdersSmallBusinessGuide; 

or by contacting Jeffrey Smutny, 

Marketing Order and Agreement 

Division, Fruit and Vegetable Program, 

AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence 

Avenue SW., STOP 0237, Washington, 

DC 20250–0237; Telephone: (202) 720– 

2491, Fax: (202) 720–8938, or Email: 

Jeffrey.Smutny@ams.usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This rule 

is issued under Marketing Order No. 

923, as amended (7 CFR part 923), 

regulating the handling of sweet 

cherries grown in designated counties in 

Washington, 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 

(USDA) is issuing this rule in 

conformance with Executive Orders 

12866 and 13563. 

Under the order, Washington sweet 

cherry handlers are subject to 

assessments which provide funds to 

administer the order. Assessment rates 

issued under the order are intended to 

be applicable to all assessable 

Washington sweet cherries for the entire 

fiscal period, and continue indefinitely 

until amended, suspended, or 

terminated. The Committee’s fiscal 

period begins on April 1, and ends 

March 31. 

In an interim rule published in the 

Federal Register on August 8, 2013, and 

effective on August 9, 2013, (78 FR 

48283, Doc. No. AMS–FV–13–0055, 

FV13–923–1 IR), § 923.236 was 

amended by decreasing the assessment 

rate established for the Committee for 

the 2013–2014 and subsequent fiscal 

periods from $0.18 to $0.15 per ton of 

sweet cherries handled. The Committee 

recommended the lower assessment rate 

for the purpose of reducing its monetary 

reserve while still providing adequate 

funding to meet program expenses. 

Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis 

Pursuant to requirements set forth in 

the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) 

(5 U.S.C. 601–612), the Agricultural 

Marketing Service (AMS) has 

considered the economic impact of this 

rule on small entities. Accordingly, 

AMS has prepared this final regulatory 

flexibility analysis. 

The purpose of the RFA is to fit 

regulatory actions to the scale of 

businesses 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. 

There are 53 handlers of Washington 

sweet cherries subject to regulation 

under the order and approximately 

1,500 producers in the regulated 

production area. Small agricultural 

service firms are defined by the Small 

Business Administration (13 CFR 

121.201) as those having annual receipts 

of less than $7,000,000, and small 

agricultural producers are defined as 

those having annual receipts of less than 

$750,000. 

The National Agricultural Statistics 

Service has prepared a preliminary 

report for the 2012 shipping season 

showing that prices for the 210,000 tons 

of sweet cherries that entered the fresh 

market averaged $2,140 per ton. Based 

on the number of producers in the 

production area (1,500), the average 

producer revenue from the sale of sweet 

cherries in 2012 can therefore be 

estimated at approximately $299,600 

per year. In addition, the Committee 

reports that most of the industry’s 53 

handlers reported gross receipts of less 

than $7,000,000 from the sale of fresh 

sweet cherries last season. Thus, the 

majority of producers and handlers of 

Washington sweet cherries may be 

classified as small entities. 

This rule continues in effect the 

action that decreased the assessment 

rate established for the Committee for 

the 2013–2014 and subsequent fiscal 

periods from $0.18 to $0.15 per ton of 

sweet cherries. The Committee also 

unanimously recommended 2013–2014 

fiscal period expenditures of $65,900. 

The quantity of assessable sweet 

cherries for the 2013–2014 fiscal period 

is estimated by the Committee to be 

160,000 tons. Thus, the $0.15 per ton 

rate should provide $24,000 in 

assessment income. Income derived 

from handler assessments, along with 

funds from the Committee’s authorized 

reserve, should be adequate to cover 

budgeted expenses. The Committee 

recommended the assessment rate 

decrease to reduce its monetary reserve 

to a level that is less than approximately 


pmangrum on DSK3VPTVN1PROD with RULES
76032 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 241 / Monday, December 16, 2013 / Rules and Regulations 

1See 2 U.S.C. 441a(a)(1)(A); 11 CFR 110.1(b)(1), 

110.2(b)(1). 

2Because the date of a special primary election 

for an independent or minor-party candidate is 

governed by different regulatory criteria, see 11 CFR 

100.2(c)(4), this Notice encompasses only 

nominations by a major political party, which is a 

party whose candidate for President received at 

least 25 percent of the popular vote in the preceding 

presidential election. 26 U.S.C. 9002(6). 

one fiscal period’s operating expenses, 

the maximum permitted by the order. 

This rule continues in effect the 

action that decreased the assessment 

obligation imposed on handlers. 

Assessments are applied uniformly on 

all handlers, and some of the costs may 

be passed on to producers. However, 

decreasing the assessment rate reduces 

the burden on handlers, and may reduce 

the burden on producers. 

In addition, the Committee’s meeting 

was widely publicized throughout the 

Washington sweet cherry industry. All 

interested persons were invited to 

attend the meeting and participate in 

Committee deliberations. Like all 

Committee meetings, the May 21, 2013, 

meeting was a public meeting and all 

entities, both large and small, were able 

to express their views on this issue. 

In accordance with the Paperwork 

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

Chapter 35), the order’s information 

collection requirements have been 

previously approved by the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) and 

assigned OMB No. 0581–0189, Generic 

Fruit Crops. No changes in those 

requirements as a result of this action 

are anticipated. Should any changes 

become necessary, they would be 

submitted to OMB for approval. 

This action imposes no additional 

reporting or recordkeeping requirements 

on either small or large Washington 

sweet cherry handlers. As with all 

Federal marketing order programs, 

reports and forms are periodically 

reviewed to reduce information 

requirements and duplication by 

industry and public sector agencies. 

USDA has not identified any relevant 

Federal rules that duplicate, overlap, or 

conflict with this rule. 

Comments on the interim rule were 

required to be received on or before 

October 7, 2013. No comments were 

received. Therefore, for reasons given in 

the interim rule, we are adopting the 

interim rule as a final rule, without 

change. 

To view the interim rule, go to: 

http://www.regulations.gov/

#!documentDetail;D=AMS-FV-13-0055- 

0001. 

This action also affirms information 

contained in the interim rule concerning 

Executive Orders 12866, 12988, and 

13563; the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 

U.S.C. Chapter 35); and the E-Gov Act 

(44 U.S.C. 101). 

After consideration of all relevant 

material presented, it is found that 

finalizing the interim rule, without 

change, as published in the Federal 

Register (78 FR 48283, August 8, 2013) 

will tend to effectuate the declared 

policy of the Act. 

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 923 

Cherries, Marketing agreements, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

PART 923—SWEET CHERRIES 

GROWN IN DESIGNATED COUNTIES 

IN WASHINGTON 

Accordingly, the interim rule 

amending 7 CFR part 923, which was 

published at 78 FR 48283 on August 8, 

2013, is adopted as a final rule, without 

change. 

Dated: December 9, 2013. 

Rex A. Barnes, 

Associate Administrator, Agricultural 

Marketing Service. 

[FR Doc. 2013–29674 Filed 12–13–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE P 

FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION 

11 CFR Part 100 

[Notice 2013–16] 

Date of Political Party Nominations of 

Candidates for Special Primary 

Elections in New York 

AGENCY: Federal Election Commission. 

ACTION: Notice of interpretive rule. 

SUMMARY: The Federal Election 

Commission is clarifying its 

interpretation of its rules for 

determining the date of a special 

primary election as those rules apply to 

nominations conducted under New 

York statutes that provide for a 

candidate to be nominated for a special 

election by a vote of a state or county 

party committee. 

DATES: December 16, 2013. 

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert 

M. Knop, Assistant General Counsel, or 

Cheryl A.F. Hemsley, Attorney, 999 E 

Street NW., Washington, DC 20463, 

(202) 694–1650 or (800) 424–9530. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This 

Notice clarifies that, for purposes of the 

Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, 

as amended (the ‘‘Act’’), and 

Commission regulations, the date of a 

special primary election under New 

York law is the date on which the 

political party committee votes to 

nominate the party’s candidate for the 

special general election, not the date on 

which the certification of that vote is 

filed. Because the Act and Commission 

regulations provide for separate 

contribution limits for each ‘‘election,’’ 1

the Commission issues this clarification 

to assist candidates and their authorized 

committees in distinguishing 

contributions for special primary 

elections in New York from 

contributions for special general 

elections. 

The Act provides that an ‘‘election’’ 

includes ‘‘a general, special, primary, or 

runoff election . . . [or] a convention or 

caucus of a political party which has 

authority to nominate a candidate.’’ 2 

U.S.C. 431(1)(A), (B). Commission 

regulations define a ‘‘primary election’’ 

as an ‘‘election which is held prior to a 

general election, as a direct result of 

which candidates are nominated, in 

accordance with applicable State law, 

for election to Federal office in a 

subsequent election.’’ 11 CFR 

100.2(c)(1).2 A ‘‘special election’’ is an 

election to fill a vacancy in a Federal 

office and may be a primary, general, or 

runoff election. 11 CFR 100.2(f). Under 

the Act and Commission regulations, 

therefore, a special primary election is 

an election, convention, or caucus with 

the authority to nominate candidates in 

accordance with applicable state law for 

a subsequent general election that is 

held to fill a vacancy in a Federal office. 

New York election law generally 

provides that ‘‘[p]arty nominations for 

an office to be filled at a special election 

shall be made in the manner prescribed 

by the rules of the party.’’ N.Y. Elec. 

Law 6–114. New York Democratic and 

Republican State party committee rules 

provide that the county committees 

within a vacant congressional district 

nominate candidates for a special 

election to the U.S. House of 

Representatives; and that the state 

committees nominate candidates for a 

special election to the U.S. Senate. See 

Party Rules New York State Democratic 

Committee, Art. VI, Sec. 2 (2012); and 

Rules of the New York Republican State 

Committee, Art. VII, Rule 1 (June 9, 

2011). Similarly, when a vacancy in an 

elected office occurs too late for 

candidates to participate in a regularly 

scheduled primary, New York election 

law requires a party to nominate its 

candidate by a vote of the appropriate 

state or county party committee. See 

N.Y. Elec. Law 6–116. After a party 

committee votes to nominate a 

candidate, a ‘‘certificate of nomination 

shall be filed’’ with the appropriate 

election board certifying the 

committee’s vote. Id.; see also id. 6–144, 


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