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

9851 

Vol. 78, No. 29 

Tuesday, February 12, 2013 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

7 CFR Parts 319 and 361 

[Docket No. APHIS–2008–0071] 

RIN 0579–AD47 

Importation of Plants for Planting 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: We are proposing to amend 

the regulations on importing plants for 

planting to add Turkey to the list of 

countries from which the importation of 

restricted articles of Chrysanthemum 

spp., Leucanthemella serotina, and 

Nipponanthemum nipponicum into the 

United States is prohibited due to the 

presence of white rust of 

Chrysanthemum; to require permits for 

the importation of any seed that is 

coated, pelleted, or embedded in a 

substrate that obscures visibility; to 

provide for an alternate additional 

declaration on phytosanitary certificates 

that accompany articles imported from 

a country in which potato cyst 

nematodes are known to occur; to 

provide conditions for the importation 

of Prunus spp. articles from Canada that 

address the presence of plum pox 

potyvirus in that country; and to 

provide for the importation of Dianthus 

spp. (carnations) from the Netherlands. 

We are also proposing other changes to 

update and clarify the regulations and to 

improve their effectiveness. These 

changes are necessary to relieve 

restrictions that appear unnecessary, to 

update existing provisions, and to make 

the regulations easier to understand and 

implement. 

DATES: We will consider all comments 

that receive on or before April 15, 2013. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

by either of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov/ 

#!documentDetail;D=APHIS–2008- 

0071–0001. 

• Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: 

Send your comment to Docket No. 

APHIS–2008–0071, 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 http:// 

www.regulations.gov/ 

#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2008-0071 or 

in our reading room, which is located in 

room 1141 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. 

Arnold Tschanz, Senior Plant 

Pathologist, Plant Health Programs, 

PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 133, 

Riverdale, MD 20737–1236; (301) 851– 

2179. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The regulations in 7 CFR part 319 

prohibit or restrict the importation of 

certain plants and plant products into 

the United States to prevent the 

introduction of quarantine plant pests. 

The regulations contained in ‘‘Subpart— 

Plants for Planting,’’ §§ 319.37 through 

319.37–14 (referred to below as the 

regulations), restrict among other things, 

the importation of living plants, plant 

parts, and seeds for propagation or 

planting. 

We are proposing to make several 

amendments to the regulations. Our 

proposed amendments are discussed 

below. 

Prohibitions and Restrictions on 

Importation; Disposal of Articles 

Refused Importation (§ 319.37) 

Paragraph (b) of § 319.37 currently 

provides that, if a regulated article is 

denied entry into the United States for 

non-compliance with the regulations, 

the importer must destroy, ship to a 

point outside the United States, or apply 

treatments or other safeguards to the 

article in the manner and within the 

time period prescribed by an inspector, 

to prevent the introduction into the 

United States of quarantine pests. The 

paragraph further specifies that, in 

choosing which actions to order and in 

setting the time limit for the actions, the 

inspector shall consider the degree of 

pest risk presented by the quarantine 

pest associated with the article, whether 

the article is a host of the pest, the types 

of other host materials for the pest in or 

near the port, the climate or season at 

the port in relation to the pest’s survival 

range, and the availability of treatment 

facilities for the article. 

However, there are often other factors 

that an inspector considers in 

determining what remedial measures to 

order. For example, an inspector may 

consider whether the manifest 

accompanying the article is missing or 

incomplete, thus making it difficult to 

determine the origin or contents of the 

shipment, or whether the article is 

considered a high-risk pathway for the 

introduction of a quarantine pest into 

the United States. To clarify, we would 

amend the paragraph to specify that, in 

addition to the considerations already 

listed, an inspector may also consider 

any other factors pertaining to the risk 

that the article may present to plants, 

plant parts, or plant products within the 

United States that he or she considers 

necessary in order to choose an action 

and set a time limit. 

Definitions (§ 319.37–1) 

Currently, we define bulb in § 319.37– 

1 of the regulations as: ‘‘The portion of 

a plant commonly known as a bulb, 

bulbil, bulblet, corm, cormel, rhizome, 

tuber, or pip, and including fleshy roots 

or other underground fleshy growths, a 

unit of which produces an individual 

plant.’’ 

We have determined that this 

definition needs to be modified. 

Primarily, the current definition 

conflates two types of plant parts, bulbs 

and dormant herbaceous perennials, 

that are, in fact, distinct. Bulbs, which 

include bulbils, corms, and cormels, are 

the storage organ for a plant’s 

reproductive structure while the plant is 

in a state of dormancy. Within the 

context of our enforcement of the 

regulations, we consider a bulb to 

remain a bulb until such time as 

environmental conditions induce it to 

produce shoots. At that time, we no 

longer regulate it as a bulb, but instead 

regulate it as a plant. 

Dormant herbaceous perennials, 

which include rhizomes, tubers, 

tuberous roots, pips, fleshy roots, 


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divisions, and underground fleshy 

growths, are the parts of a herbaceous 

perennial plant that remain after the 

above-ground parts of the plant have 

died back to the earth at the end of a 

growing season, and while the perennial 

remains dormant. We consider a 

dormant herbaceous perennial to 

include all plant parts of this dormant 

plant, except the bulb. As we do for 

bulbs, we consider these plant parts to 

be dormant herbaceous perennials until 

such time as they start to sprout; at that 

point we consider them plants. 

To reflect this distinction, we would 

revise the definition of bulb to read as 

follows: ‘‘The storage organ of a plant 

that serves as the plant’s sexual 

structure during dormancy. Examples 

include bulbs, bulbils, bulblets, corms, 

and cormels. For purposes of this 

subpart, a bulb remains a bulb until 

such time as environmental conditions 

induce it to produce shoots. It is then 

considered a plant.’’ 

We would define dormant herbaceous 

perennial as: ‘‘Except for bulbs, the 

portions of an herbaceous perennial that 

remain after the above-ground parts of 

the plant have died back to the earth 

after the growing season and the plant 

remains dormant. Examples include 

rhizomes, tubers, tuberous roots, pips, 

fleshy roots, divisions, and underground 

fleshy growths. For purposes of this 

subpart, dormant herbaceous perennials 

remain dormant herbaceous perennials 

until such time as environmental 

conditions induce them to sprout. They 

are then considered plants.’’ 

Several of our proposed amendments 

to the regulations in this rule would 

draw a distinction between bulbs and 

dormant herbaceous perennials. Adding 

a definition of dormant herbaceous 

perennial to the regulations would 

clarify the nature of the distinction. 

Currently, the definition of from 

provides, as a general rule, that an 

article is ‘‘from’’ the country or locality 

in which it is grown. However, the 

definition does provide that an article 

that was not grown in Canada may be 

considered from Canada, subject to 

certain conditions. One of these 

conditions is that the article must never 

have been grown in a country from 

which it would be a prohibited article. 

This condition presupposes that there 

is only one category of articles, 

prohibited articles, whose importation 

into the United States is not authorized 

under the regulations. However, in a 

final rule published in the Federal 

Register on May 27, 2011 (76 FR 31172– 

31210, Docket No. APHIS–2006–0011), 

we established another category, articles 

whose importation into the United 

States is not authorized pending pest 

risk analysis. Accordingly, we would 

amend the definition of from to clarify 

that, for an article to be from Canada, it 

must never have been grown in a 

country from which it would be a 

prohibited article or an article whose 

importation into the United States is not 

authorized pending pest risk analysis. 

Additionally, we would revise the 

definition of phytosanitary certificate of 

inspection, to make it consistent with 

the definition provided in ‘‘Subpart— 

Fruits and Vegetables’’ (§§ 319.56–1 to 

319.56–58). That definition, found in 

§ 319.56–2, specifies that all 

phytosanitary certificates of inspection 

must be consistent with the model 

phytosanitary certificate provided by 

the International Plant Protection 

Committee, of which the United States 

is a contracting party, and more 

accurately describes the intent and 

content of phytosanitary certificates of 

inspection. 

We would, however, retain a 

provision in the current definition that 

all phytosanitary certificates of 

inspection for plants for planting must 

be issued not more than 15 days prior 

to shipment of restricted articles. This 

provision is necessary because the 

potential for infestation after 

phytosanitary inspection is, generally, 

greater for plants for planting than it is 

for fruits and vegetables, and often 

increases if the time period between 

inspection and shipment is pronounced. 

Finally, we would add a definition of 

Administrator. That term is used 

frequently throughout the regulations, 

but is not defined. Our proposed 

definition, ‘‘the Administrator of the 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service (APHIS), or any person 

authorized to act for the Administrator,’’ 

would be identical to the definition of 

Administrator found in other parts of 

Chapter III of 7 CFR, and is the 

definition most commonly associated 

with the term Administrator by 

regulated entities. 

Prohibited Articles (§ 319.37–2) 

The table in paragraph (a) of § 319.37– 

2 lists prohibited articles. We are 

proposing several changes to entries in 

the table. 

First, we would revise the entries for 

‘‘Chrysanthemum spp. 

(chrysanthemum, includes 

Dendranthema spp.),’’ ‘‘Leucanthemella 

serotina,’’ and ‘‘Nipponanthemum 

nipponicum,’’ which prohibit the 

importation of regulated articles of these 

genera from countries in which 

Chrysanthemum white rust (CWR), a 

pest of concern for Chrysanthemum 

spp., Leucanthemella serotina, and 

Nipponanthemum nipponicum, is 

known to exist. In order to facilitate 

regulatory compliance, we would 

amend the entries for Chrysanthemum 

spp., Leucanthemella serotina, and 

Nipponanthemum nipponicum to 

specify that articles of these species are 

prohibited from all countries, unless 

they meet the conditions of §§ 319.37– 

5 and 319.37–7. In §§ 319.37–5 and 

319.37–7, we would update the lists of 

regions of the world from which 

Chrysanthemum spp., Leucanthemella 

serotina, and Nipponanthemum 

nipponicum articles may not be 

imported to list continents, followed by 

countries, and to remove references to 

lines of longitude and latitude. 

In amending §§ 319.37–2, 319.37–5, 

and 319.37–7 in this manner, we would 

expand the current prohibitions to 

include all of Europe and Asia, 

including Turkey. Although the current 

regulations do not list Turkey as a 

country in which CWR is known to 

exist, in February and March 2007, there 

was a severe outbreak of the disease in 

the cut flower-producing regions of 

Turkey. Since the outbreak, we have 

considered Turkey to be a country in 

which CWR is known to occur, and 

have imposed restrictions on the 

importation of Chrysanthemum spp., 

Leucanthemella serotina, and 

Nipponanthemum nipponicum plants 

from Turkey in order to prevent the 

introduction of CWR into the United 

States. Adding Turkey to the list of 

countries where CWR is known to exist 

would codify those restrictions. 

We would amend the entries for 

‘‘Acer spp. (maple) (except Acer 

palmatum and Acer japonicum meeting 

the conditions for importation in 

§ 319.37–5(m)’’, ‘‘Chaenomeles 

(flowering quince) spp. not meeting the 

conditions for importation in § 319.37– 

5(b)’’, ‘‘Cydonia (quince) spp. not 

meeting the conditions for importation 

in § 319.37–5(b)’’, ‘‘Malus spp. (apple, 

crabapple) not meeting the conditions 

for importation in § 319.37–5(b)’’, and 

‘‘Vitis spp. (grape) not meeting the 

conditions for importation in § 319.37– 

5(b).’’ Conditions governing the 

importation of restricted articles of these 

species into the United States are found 

not only in § 319.37–5, but also in 

§ 319.37–7. (We would make parallel 

changes to §§ 319.37–5 and 319.37–7.) 

We would also make several changes 

to update the nomenclature of plant 

species listed in the table. First, there 

are currently entries for Berberis, 

Mahoberberis, and Mahonia spp. that, 

apart from the nomenclature used for 

the prohibited genera, are otherwise 

identical. However, the international 

taxonomic community currently does 

not consider Mahoberberis or Mahonia 


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to differ from Berberis. We would 

therefore remove each entry for 

‘‘Mahoberberis’’ or ‘‘Mahonia’’ and add 

‘‘(includes Mahoberberis and Mahonia 

spp.)’’ to the entries for ‘‘Berberis spp.’’ 

For a similar reason, we would also 

remove the entries for 

‘‘Chrysalidocarpus spp. (butterfly 

palm)’’ and ‘‘Neodypsis spp. (palm),’’ 

and replace them with a single entry for 

‘‘Dypsis spp. (butterfly palm).’’ Finally, 

we would remove the entry for 

‘‘Arikuryoba spp. (arikury palm)’’, and 

replace it with an entry for ‘‘Syagrus 

schizophylla (Mart.) Glassman (arikury 

palm).’’ 

Additionally, we would update the 

entry for Salix spp. (willow). Currently, 

the entry prohibits the importation of 

Salix spp. plants from Belgium, 

Germany, Great Britain, Japan, and the 

Netherlands to prevent the introduction 

of Erwinia salicis (Day) Chester, or 

Watermark disease. However, Erwinia 

salicis (Day) Chester is now considered 

a synonym for Brenneria salicis (Day) 

Hauben et al. The updated entry would 

specify that Watermark disease is 

known both as Brenneria salicis (Day) 

Hauben et al. and as Erwinia salicis 

(Day) Chester. 

(Please note that these proposed 

changes would pertain only to 

nomenclature. We are not proposing to 

remove or otherwise alter the existing 

prohibitions on the importation of 

plants of these genera.) 

Permits (§ 319.37–3) 

Section 319.37–3 lists certain 

categories of restricted articles that may 

only be imported into the United States 

following issuance of a written permit 

by APHIS. It also contains the process 

for obtaining a permit, the conditions 

that will lead us to withdraw a permit 

that we have issued, and the 

circumstances under which we may 

issue an oral permit. We would make 

several additions, deletions, reorderings, and other amendments to 

paragraph (a); update paragraph (b); and 

make nonsubstantive changes to 

paragraph (d). 

Paragraph (a) lists restricted articles, 

currently found in subparagraphs (a)(1) 

through (a)(19), that may be imported 

into the United States only after 

issuance of a written permit. 

Currently, these subparagraphs are 

arranged according to when they were 

added to the regulations, and therefore 

are not in any particular order. Thus, 

one of the broadest categories, which 

requires permits for most small lots of 

seed imported into the United States, is 

subparagraph (a)(18), while one of the 

most limited, which applies only to 

articles of Corylus spp. that are from 

certain provinces in Canada and that are 

destined to Oregon or Washington, is 

subparagraph (a)(14). 

From time to time, this lack of order 

has led to inadvertent oversights by 

importers, who have sought importation 

of an article into the United States 

without the required permit solely 

because the category the article 

belonged to was not one of the more 

prominent subparagraphs. Therefore, we 

would reorder the subparagraphs to 

place the broadest categories first. 

We would redesignate current 

subparagraph (a)(5), which requires 

permits for the importation of lots of 13 

or more articles (other than seeds, bulbs, 

or sterile cultures of orchid plants) from 

any country or locality except Canada, 

as subparagraph (a)(1). (Current 

subparagraph (a)(1), which requires 

permits for articles subject to treatment 

and other requirements of § 319.37–6, 

would be redesignated as subparagraph 

(a)(6).) We would also amend current 

subparagraph (a)(5) to clarify that one of 

the exemptions within it applies both to 

bulbs and to dormant herbaceous 

perennials, provided that they have 

been precleared and belong to a plant 

taxon approved by APHIS for 

preclearance, and another of the 

exemptions applies only to seeds of 

herbaceous plants. 

The first amendment is necessary to 

codify a long-standing APHIS policy 

and operational practice. Bulbs and 

dormant herbaceous perennials that are 

precleared have been inspected by an 

inspector in the country from which 

they were exported in accordance with 

an APHIS-approved preclearance 

program and have been determined to 

meet the conditions for importation of 

the articles into the United States. 

Hence, prior to their arrival in the 

United States, they have already been 

determined not to present a risk of 

introducing or disseminating plant pests 

within the United States; requiring a 

permit to be issued in order for the 

articles to be imported would be 

unnecessary. However, bulbs and 

dormant herbaceous perennials that 

have not been precleared have not 

necessarily been produced under such 

conditions or subject to such 

inspections. Hence a risk basis exists for 

requiring such articles to be 

accompanied by permits, and, 

operationally, we have long done so. 

The latter amendment is necessary in 

order to distinguish this exemption from 

the provisions of current subparagraph 

(a)(6), discussed immediately below, 

which otherwise might appear in 

tension with the exemption. 

We would redesignate current 

subparagraph (a)(6), which requires 

permits for the importation of seeds of 

trees or shrubs from any country or 

locality except Canada, as paragraph 

(a)(2). To distinguish the provisions of 

this subparagraph from the exemption 

in current subparagraph (a)(5), we 

would also amend this subparagraph to 

clarify that it pertains to seeds of nonherbaceous plants, such as trees and 

shrubs. 

We would remove current 

subparagraph (a)(3), which requires 

permits for the importation of bulbs of 

Allium sativum (garlic), Crocosmia spp. 

(montebretia), Gladiolus spp. 

(gladiolus), and Watsonia spp. (bugle 

lily) from New Zealand. There have 

historically been no importations of lots 

of fewer than 13 bulbs of these species 

from New Zealand into the United 

States, and New Zealand does not have 

a preclearance program. Hence, 

practically speaking, we consider the 

restrictions of this subparagraph to 

duplicate those of proposed 

subparagraph (a)(1). 

In place of current subparagraph 

(a)(3), proposed subparagraph (a)(3) 

would list a new category of articles. 

Section 319.37–5 of the regulations lists 

certain categories of restricted articles 

that must be accompanied by a 

phytosanitary certificate of inspection 

containing an additional declaration 

that the articles are free of specified 

quarantine pests or have been produced 

in accordance with certain 

requirements. Operationally, we have 

long required that such articles be 

accompanied not only by a 

phytosanitary certificate, but also by a 

written permit. The permit makes it 

clear to inspectors at a port of first 

arrival that APHIS considers the 

phytosanitary certificate to provide 

adequate assurance that the article is 

free of quarantine pests and that, 

accordingly, APHIS authorizes the 

importation of the article into the 

United States. Proposed subparagraph 

(a)(3) would codify this operational 

practice. 

We would remove current 

subparagraph (a)(4), which requires 

permits for the importation of articles of 

Cocos nucifera (coconut) and articles 

(except seeds) of Dianthus spp. 

(carnation, sweet-william) from any 

country or locality except Canada. Only 

two countries, Jamaica and Costa Rica, 

are authorized to export coconuts to the 

United States under the regulations, and 

there are no documented importations 

of lots of fewer than 13 coconuts from 

either country into the United States. In 

addition, with very limited exceptions, 

importations of Dianthus spp. require 

postentry quarantine in accordance with 

§ 319.37–7. Hence this subparagraph 


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substantively duplicates the restrictions 

of proposed subparagraphs (a)(2) and 

(a)(4). 

We are proposing to add a new 

subparagraph (a)(7). This subparagraph 

would codify a long-standing APHIS 

policy and operational protocol by 

requiring permits for the importation of 

seed of herbaceous plants for planting 

that is coated, pelleted, or embedded in 

a substrate that obscures visibility. 

Visual identification and inspection of 

coated, pelleted, or embedded seed is 

often difficult or practically impossible. 

In the absence of an accompanying 

permit, it would therefore be reasonable 

for an inspector at a port of first arrival 

to consider the material to present an 

unknown risk to plants, plant parts, or 

plant products within the United States, 

and to prohibit or greatly restrict its 

importation. Hence, for the last several 

years, we have required permits to be 

issued for the importation of such seed 

so that the permit and its conditions 

may serve as the primary means of 

identifying the articles at the port of first 

arrival, and so that importers are 

provided with the specific importation 

requirements for such seed. 

(On a related matter, 7 CFR part 361 

contains regulations that APHIS has 

issued pursuant to the Federal Seed Act 

(7 U.S.C 1551–1661) regarding the 

importation of seed of certain fruits, 

vegetables, and herbs into the United 

States. Section 361.2 contains general 

restrictions on the importation of such 

seed. Paragraph (d) of § 361.2 provides 

that, except for Canadian-origin seed, if 

the seed is coated or pelleted, it must be 

accompanied by an officially drawn and 

sealed sample that was drawn before the 

seed was coated or pelleted. That 

paragraph, and the other buttressing 

paragraphs in that section, are written in 

a manner by which one could construe 

paragraph (d) of § 361.2 as providing the 

sole restrictions on the importation of 

coated or pelleted seed in 7 CFR. 

However, the importation of such seed 

has long been subject to the policy and 

operational protocol referenced in the 

preceding paragraph. Hence we would 

amend paragraph (d) of § 361.2 to clarify 

that it is meant to work in conjunction 

with proposed paragraph (a)(7) of 

§ 319.37–3. In so doing, we would also 

extend the scope of that paragraph to 

seed that is embedded in a substrate that 

obscures visibility.) 

In our proposed revision, 

subparagraphs (a)(8) through (a)(10) 

would pertain to certain types of articles 

from Canada for which permits are 

required. Current subparagraph (a)(7), 

which requires permits for the 

importation of articles (except seeds) of 

Malus spp. (apple, crabapple), Pyrus 

spp. (pear), Prunus spp. (almond, 

apricot, cherry, cherry laurel, English 

laurel, nectarine, peach, plum, prune), 

Cydonia spp. (quince), Chaenomeles 

spp. (flowering quince), and Rubus spp. 

(cloudberry, blackberry, boysenberry, 

dewberry, loganberry, raspberry) from 

Canada, would be redesignated as 

subparagraph (a)(8). We would also 

amend that subparagraph to include 

articles (except seeds) of Vitis spp. 

(grape). This amendment is necessary 

because the paragraph is meant to work 

in conjunction with paragraph (b)(1) of 

§ 319.37–5, which requires 

phytosanitary certificates for the 

importation of restricted articles of these 

species from Canada. However, while 

paragraph (b)(5) of § 319.37–5 currently 

requires restricted articles of Vitis spp. 

from Canada to be accompanied by a 

phytosanitary certificate, articles of Vitis 

spp. are not currently listed in 

subparagraph (a)(7) of § 319.37–3. 

In the current regulations, 

subparagraphs (a)(8) through (a)(14) and 

(a)(16) provide that permits must be 

issued prior to the importation of 

certain restricted articles into the United 

States only if those articles are destined 

to certain States. 

We developed these subparagraphs in 

coordination with State departments of 

agriculture. In order for a State to be 

listed in one of the subparagraphs, it 

had to have promulgated State 

quarantine regulations regarding the 

movement of the restricted article into 

the State in order to prevent the spread 

of a quarantine pest for which the article 

is a host, and had to state that 

notification regarding the importation of 

the article into the State was necessary 

for the purposes of enforcing these 

quarantine regulations. APHIS would 

then submit a copy of the permit to the 

State in order to provide such 

notification. 

Several of the States currently listed 

in these subparagraphs have rescinded 

the quarantine regulations that led them 

to request notification, or have stated to 

APHIS that notification is no longer 

necessary for purposes of enforcing their 

regulations. In addition, for those States 

that still request notification, we have 

long provided such notification through 

other means and methods. Hence we 

consider these subparagraphs to no 

longer be necessary, and are proposing 

to remove them from the regulations. 

Paragraph (b) of § 319.37–3 contains 

the process for obtaining a permit. It 

states that applications for permits 

should be submitted to the Permits, 

Registrations, Imports and Manuals 

branch of APHIS’ Plant Protection and 

Quarantine (PPQ) program. However, 

due to organizational restructuring, that 

branch no longer exists, and permitting 

of plants, plant parts, and plant 

products is no longer under the purview 

of only one branch within PPQ. Hence 

we would amend paragraph (b) to 

provide that applications should be 

addressed directly to PPQ. We would 

also amend a footnote in the paragraph 

to specify that applications may be 

obtained via the Internet at http:// 

www.aphis.usda.gov/plant_health/ 

permits/index.shtml. That Web site 

provides eAuthenticated persons with 

access to ePermits, APHIS’ secure site 

for online permit applications. 

We are proposing to make 

nonsubstantive editorial changes to 

paragraph (d) of the section. 

Specifically, we would remove 

references to the Deputy Administrator 

of PPQ and replacing them with 

references to the Administrator of 

APHIS, and we would replace certain 

legal terms of art in the paragraph with 

more colloquial terms that express the 

same concept. 

Inspection, Treatment, and 

Phytosanitary Certificates of Inspection 

(§ 319.37–4) 

Paragraph (a) of § 319.37–4 requires 

that most restricted articles imported 

into the United States be accompanied 

by a phytosanitary certificate of 

inspection, and specifies certain types 

of general information required for such 

certificates. Subparagraphs (a)(1) 

through (a)(4) list categories of restricted 

articles that we allow to be imported 

into the United States without a 

phytosanitary certificate or with 

documentation in lieu of a 

phytosanitary certificate. 

Currently, paragraph (a) does not 

provide specific phytosanitary 

certificate requirements for plants that 

have been grafted, budded, or otherwise 

contain interpolated plant parts. 

However, as an operational policy, we 

have long asked that phytosanitary 

certificates for such plants list the 

identity of any parts of the plant (e.g., 

scion, rootstock, interstem) that belong 

to restricted taxa to the lowest regulated 

taxonomic classification; this is because 

all restricted taxa within the regulations 

are known to be a host of at least one 

quarantine pest and restricted taxa do 

not lose this host status by being grafted, 

budded, or interpolated. We would 

amend paragraph (a) to codify this 

policy. We would also make 

nonsubstantive editorial changes to the 

paragraph to make its relationship with 

the following paragraphs in the section 

clearer. 

Subparagraph (a)(4) of § 319.37–4 

exempts bulbs from the Netherlands 

from having to be accompanied by a 


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1For a discussion of the scope of subparagraph 

(a)(4), see the December 15, 2005, proposed rule to 

add the subparagraph to the regulations (70 FR 

74215–74235, Docket No. 03–002–1). 

phytosanitary certificate, provided that 

they are accompanied by a special 

certificate that lists a serial number, the 

scientific name of the bulb, the country 

of its origin, and the date on which the 

special certificate expires. This 

paragraph is intended to pertain only to 

a small subset of bulbs that are sold in 

small packages to international travelers 

visiting the Netherlands, and that 

cannot feasibly be precleared and 

inspected prior to export; commercial 

quantities of bulbs from the Netherlands 

are subject to the restrictions of 

paragraph (a) of § 319.37–5, which 

requires the bulbs to be precleared by 

the national plant protection 

organization (NPPO) of the Netherlands 

and accompanied by a phytosanitary 

certificate.1 We would make editorial 

changes to the paragraph to clarify its 

scope accordingly. 

Paragraph (b) of § 319.37–4 provides 

for inspection of restricted articles. The 

paragraph currently states that restricted 

articles imported into the United States 

may be sampled and inspected by an 

inspector at the port of first arrival, or 

alternatively, under preclearance 

agreement arrangements in the country 

where the article was grown. The 

language of this paragraph has 

occasionally proven problematic, 

insofar as it is silent regarding the 

responsibilities of the person importing 

the article, and can be construed to 

suggest that inspections are entirely 

random, and initiated solely at the 

request of the inspector. This is not the 

case; all restricted articles must be 

presented for inspection by the 

importer. The inspector then determines 

whether to sample and inspect the 

articles. We would amend paragraph (b) 

to clarify the responsibilities of the 

importing party. 

Special Foreign Inspection and 

Certification Requirements (§ 319.37–5) 

Section 319.37–5 lists restricted 

articles that may be imported into the 

United States only if the phytosanitary 

certificate required by § 319.37–4 of the 

regulations contains an additional 

declaration that the restricted articles 

are free of specified quarantine pests or 

have been produced in accordance with 

certain requirements. We are proposing 

a number of changes to this section. 

Importation of Restricted Articles from 

Countries in which Potato Cyst 

Nematode is Known to Exist 

Currently, paragraph (a) of the section 

lists countries in which potato cyst 

nematodes (Globodera rostochiensis 

(Woll.) Behrens and G. pallida (Stone) 

Behrens, PCN) are known to exist, and 

requires restricted articles from those 

countries to be accompanied by a 

phytosanitary certificate which contains 

an additional declaration that the article 

was grown on land which has been 

sampled and microscopically inspected 

by the NPPO of the country in which it 

was grown within 12 months preceding 

issuance of the certificate and found free 

from PCN. The paragraph currently 

exempts restricted seeds, unrooted 

cuttings, articles collected from the 

wild, and articles solely for food, 

analytical, or manufacturing purposes 

from these additional declaration 

requirements. 

We would remove the exemption for 

articles collected from the wild. Such 

articles may not only be infested with 

PCN, but also pose an unknown risk of 

being contaminated with other 

quarantine pests. 

In addition, we would add an 

alternate additional declaration option. 

Several countries in which PCN are 

known to exist have stated that the 

additional declaration required under 

paragraph (a) pertains only to restricted 

articles that are grown in soil or in 

contact with soil, and thus the 

paragraph effectively prohibits the 

importation of most restricted articles 

that are grown in media other than soil 

and in a protected environment that 

precludes contact with soil (e.g., a 

greenhouse with a concrete floor) within 

a country in which PCN are known to 

exist. Since PCN are soil-borne pests, 

however, these countries have stated 

that importation of articles grown in 

such conditions should be allowed. We 

agree. Therefore, we would allow 

restricted articles to be imported from 

the countries listed in paragraph (a) if 

they are accompanied by a 

phytosanitary certificate with the 

current additional declaration, or with 

an additional declaration that the 

articles have been grown within a 

secure environment in a production area 

that is free of PCN, in a soilless growing 

medium, or in vitro, within a secure 

environment, and have not been grown 

in soil nor come in contact with soil. 

We would also update the list of 

countries in which PCN are known to 

exist. Since we last updated the listed 

countries in a final rule published in the 

Federal Register on August 6, 2007 (72 

FR 43503–43524, Docket No. 03–002–3), 

PCN have been discovered in Albania, 

Falkland Islands, Indonesia, Libya, 

Liechtenstein, Madeira, Mallorca, 

Romania, Sierra Leone, Sri Lanka, and 

Turkey. In addition, while the 

regulations currently consider PCN to 

exist within Canada only in 

Newfoundland and a portion of the 

Municipality of Central Saanich in the 

Province of British Columbia, PCN were 

discovered in Quebec in 2006 and 

Alberta in 2007, at significant distances 

from all previous detections of PCN. 

Moreover, since the movement of soil 

within Canada has historically not been 

stringently regulated, there is a 

significant possibility of future 

detections of PCN in other areas of 

Canada. Hence, we would amend the 

list to consider PCN to exist in all areas 

of Canada that are regulated by the 

NPPO of Canada for PCN. (We would 

also make parallel changes to paragraph 

(b)(2) of § 319.37–8, which contains 

restrictions on the growing media that 

may accompany a restricted article 

imported from an area of Canada that is 

regulated for PCN.) 

Finally, we would restructure 

paragraph (a) so that it more closely 

resembles other paragraphs within 

§ 319.37–5 that contain an extensive list 

of countries, which would make that 

paragraph easier to read. 

Importation of Restricted Articles of the 

Genera Chaenomeles, Cydonia, 

Malus, Prunus, Pyrus, and Vitis 

The importation of all articles other 

than seed of the genera Chaenomeles, 

Cydonia, Malus, Prunus, Pyrus, and 

Vitis from anywhere in the world is 

prohibited in § 319.37–2 unless those 

articles are imported in accordance with 

paragraph (b) of § 319.37–5. In addition, 

the importation of seed of Prunus spp. 

seed from anywhere in the world is 

prohibited in § 319.37–2 unless the seed 

is imported in accordance with 

paragraph (j) of § 319.37–5. 

Paragraph (b)(1) of § 319.37–5 

currently authorizes the importation 

into the United States of restricted 

articles (except seeds) of Chaenomeles, 

Cydonia, Malus, Prunus, Pyrus, and 

Vitis spp. from Belgium, Canada, 

France, Germany, Great Britain, or the 

Netherlands, if they are accompanied by 

a phytosanitary certificate with an 

additional declaration that the articles 

were grown in a nursery and found by 

the NPPO of the country in which they 

were grown to be free of certain plant 

diseases, or alternatively, with an 

additional declaration that those plant 

diseases do not occur in that country. 

Paragraph (b)(3) of § 319.37–5 lists the 

relevant plant diseases. 

Paragraph (b)(2) of § 319.37–5 is 

meant to complement paragraph (b)(1), 

and contains what are intended to be 

conditions for the importation of 

budwood of certain Prunus species that 

are susceptible to plum pox potyvirus 

from Belgium, France, Germany, Great 


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9856 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 29 / Tuesday, February 12, 2013 / Proposed Rules 

2Paragraph (b)(1) of § 319.37–5 does currently 

regulate Prunus spp. for plum pox (=Sharka) 

potyvirus. However, as noted above, the restrictions 

of this current paragraph do not address the risk 

that plum pox potyvirus could follow the pathway 

of Prunus spp. budwood or seed that is imported 

into the United States. 

Britain, or the Netherlands. The 

restrictions in this paragraph are 

necessary because the restrictions of 

paragraph (b)(1), in themselves, do not 

adequately address the risk that plum 

pox potyvirus could follow the pathway 

of susceptible Prunus spp. budwood 

that is imported from these five 

countries. 

In a similar manner, paragraph (j)(1) 

of § 319.37–5 contains conditions for the 

importation of seed of Prunus spp. that 

are susceptible to plum pox potyvirus 

from Belgium, France, Germany, Great 

Britain, or the Netherlands. This 

paragraph is necessary because plum 

pox potyvirus can be transmitted by 

seed, and therefore could follow the 

pathway of Prunus spp. seed imported 

from these five countries. 

Paragraph (j)(2) complements 

paragraph (j)(1), and provides additional 

conditions for the importation of seed of 

these Prunus spp. from all other 

countries, unless plum pox potyvirus is 

known to exist in that country. 

We have determined that these 

paragraphs need to be both consolidated 

and revised. A number of considerations 

have led us to this conclusion. First, 

although paragraph (b)(2) is intended to 

apply solely to budwood of Prunus spp. 

susceptible to plum pox potyvirus, the 

regulations do not specify this 

restriction, but, rather, refer simply to 

species of Prunus. When we added the 

provisions in this paragraph to the 

regulations in 1980, the only article for 

which Belgium, France, Germany, Great 

Britain, or the Netherlands sought 

importation into the United States was 

budwood produced in pest-exclusionary 

nurseries that were operated by the 

NPPO of the respective country or that 

participated in a fruit tree certification 

program conducted by the NPPO of the 

country, and that had also been 

approved by APHIS. Thus, at that time, 

the scope of the paragraph was clear to 

the regulated entities to which it 

pertained. 

However, since 1980, production of 

Prunus spp. articles other than 

budwood within those countries and 

demand for such Prunus spp. articles 

within the United States have both 

increased significantly. 

Correspondingly, the original intent and 

limited scope of the paragraph has 

become more difficult to understand 

and apply. Hence, some importers have 

considered paragraphs (b)(1) and (b)(2) 

to provide alternative conditions for the 

importation of Prunus spp. articles from 

Belgium, France, Germany, Great 

Britain, or the Netherlands, while other 

importers have considered paragraphs 

(b)(2) and (j)(1) to provide alternative 

conditions for the importation of Prunus 

spp. seed from these same countries. 

Second, since paragraphs (b) and (j) 

were last updated, plum pox potyvirus 

has been detected in Canada. 

Accordingly, we need to amend the 

regulations to specify conditions 

regarding the importation of Prunus 

spp. from Canada that reflect the 

presence of this disease within Canada.2

In addition, the list in paragraph (j)(2) 

of regions and countries in which plum 

pox potyvirus is known to exist does not 

reflect the detection of plum pox 

potyvirus in Argentina, Chile, and 

Japan. 

Third, paragraph (b)(1) needs to be 

rewritten in a manner which makes it 

clear that the paragraph pertains only to 

species of Prunus that are not 

susceptible to plum pox potyvirus, and 

is not intended to address the risk 

associated with the importation of 

species that are susceptible to the 

disease. 

Fourth, paragraph (b)(1) is currently 

silent with regard to grafted articles, or 

articles in which plant parts from one 

plant are inserted into those of another 

plant for purposes of propagation. This 

has led several importers to assume that 

grafted articles need only be 

accompanied by a permit addressing the 

relevant diseases of the rootstock (the 

plant part selected for its roots), the 

scion (the plant part selected for 

propagation), or interstem (an 

intermediate plant part grafted between 

the rootstock and the scion). However, 

it has long been PPQ’s policy that the 

quarantine pest risk for a grafted article 

includes both pests of the rootstock and 

those of the scion and any interstem 

inserted between the rootstock and 

scion; this is because plant parts remain 

hosts of plant pests particular to their 

species even after these parts are 

grafted. 

Finally, the list of plant diseases 

found in paragraph (b)(3) of the section 

uses outdated taxonomy and does not 

include several new quarantine pests of 

Malus spp., one quarantine pest of 

Malus, Prunus, and Pyrus spp., and one 

quarantine pest of Prunus spp. that have 

been discovered in recent years. 

Accordingly, we would amend 

paragraph (b)(3) by adding entries for 

apple fruit crinkle apscaviroid, apple 

dimple fruit apscaviroid, apple scar skin 

apscaviroid, Monilinia polystroma, and 

apricot pseudo-chlorotic leaf spot 

trichovirus. 

Similarly, we would update the 

entries for apple proliferation agent, 

pear blister canker virus, apple green 

crinkle virus, apple chat fruit virus, 

plum pox (=Sharka) virus, cherry leaf 

roll virus, cherry rusty mottle 

(European) agent, apricot chlorotic leaf 

roll agent, plum bark split virus, arabis 

mosaic virus, raspberry ringspot virus, 

tomato blackring virus, strawberry latent 

ringspot virus, quince yellow blotch 

agent, apple ringspot virus, grapevine 

leaf roll agent, flavescence-doree agent, 

and black wood agent (bois-noir) to 

reflect the current nomenclature for the 

pathogens used by the U.S. taxonomic 

community. For reasons specified 

below, we would also redesignate the 

paragraph as paragraph (b)(5). 

We would amend paragraph (b)(1) to 

reflect this redesignation, to clarify that 

it provides mitigations only for articles 

of Prunus species that are not 

susceptible to plum pox potyvirus, and 

to provide that, if the scion, interstem, 

rootstock, or any other plant part of the 

finished plant that is offered for 

importation belongs to a regulated 

taxon, the additional declaration in the 

phytosanitary certificate that 

accompanies the article must both list 

these plant parts and address the 

quarantine pests and related restrictions 

associated with that taxon. 

We would amend paragraph (b)(2) to 

specify that it pertains only to budwood 

of Prunus spp. susceptible to plum pox 

potyvirus and grown in Belgium, 

France, Germany, Great Britain, or the 

Netherlands under pest-exclusionary 

conditions within an APHIS-approved 

facility that is part of a nuclear stock 

certification program. We would also 

make nonsubstantive editorial changes 

to improve the paragraph’s clarity. 

In our proposed revision, paragraph 

(b)(3) of § 319.37–5 would establish 

conditions for importation from Canada 

of restricted articles, except seed, of 

Prunus spp. that are susceptible to plum 

pox potyvirus. The conditions for 

importation of the species would be 

those for the importation of Prunus spp. 

that are not susceptible to plum pox 

potyvirus—the species covered by our 

proposed revisions to paragraph (b)(1) of 

§ 319.37–5—and one additional 

condition: We would require that the 

article be grown in an area that has been 

surveyed and found free of plum pox 

potyvirus according to a surveying 

protocol mutually agreed upon by 

APHIS and the NPPO of Canada. 

Finally, because it is common for plants 

for planting to be produced in countries 

other than Canada and shipped to 

Canada for export to the United States, 


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paragraph (b)(3) would specify that if 

any plant part of an article of Prunus 

spp. susceptible to plum pox potyvirus 

is not from Canada, but rather a third 

country, that article would have to meet 

the entry requirements of the subpart as 

if the article had been directly imported 

into the United States from that third 

country. 

We recognize that these conditions 

would be somewhat less restrictive than 

the conditions for the importation of 

budwood that are contained in 

paragraph (b)(2) of § 319.37–5. However, 

we consider less restrictive conditions 

to be warranted because, while plum 

pox potyvirus is known to be widely 

prevalent in Belgium, France, Germany, 

Great Britain, and the Netherlands, in 

Canada, plum pox potyvirus is only 

known to exist in a relatively small area 

within the Province of Ontario. 

We would redesignate current 

paragraph (j)(1) as paragraph (b)(4)(i). 

We would specify that the paragraph 

applies to Canada, as well as Belgium, 

France, Germany, Great Britain, and the 

Netherlands. We would also make 

nonsubstantive editorial changes to the 

paragraph to make its relation to 

paragraphs (b)(1) and (b)(2) clearer. 

In a similar manner, we would 

redesignate paragraph (j)(2) as paragraph 

(b)(4)(ii), would add Argentina, Canada, 

Chile, and Japan to the list of areas in 

which plum pox potyvirus is known to 

exist, and would make nonsubstantive 

editorial changes to the paragraph to 

improve its clarity. 

(We would amend the definition of 

the term from in § 319.37–1 to reflect 

the provisions of proposed paragraph 

(b)(3) and these proposed 

redesignations.) 

Finally, we are proposing to amend 

the entries for Prunus spp. located in 

the table found within paragraph (a) of 

§ 319.37–2 and to the entries for 

Chaenomeles, Cydonia, Malus, Prunus, 

Pyrus, and Vitis spp. within the table in 

paragraph (a) of § 319.37–7 to reflect 

these revisions to paragraphs (b) and (j) 

of § 319.37–5. 

Dianthus spp. from the Netherlands 

Restricted articles (except seed) of 

Dianthus spp. (carnation, sweetwilliam) from Great Britain that are 

imported into the United States must be 

grown under postentry quarantine 

conditions in accordance with § 319.37– 

7 of the regulations, unless they are 

imported in accordance with paragraph 

(d) of § 319.37–5. Paragraph (d) 

authorizes the importation of restricted 

articles (except seeds) of Dianthus spp. 

from Great Britain, provided that the 

articles are accompanied by a 

phytosanitary certificate with an 

additional declaration that the article 

was grown in a greenhouse nursery in 

Great Britain and found by the NPPO of 

Great Britain to be free from injurious 

plant diseases caused by Phialophora 

cinerescens (Wr.) van Beyma, 

(=Verticillium cinerescens Wr.), 

carnation etched ring virus, carnation 

‘‘streak’’ virus, and carnation ‘‘fleck’’ 

virus, based on visual examination of 

the parent stock, of the articles for 

importation, and of the greenhouse 

nursery in which the articles for 

importation and the parent stock are 

grown, once a month for 4 consecutive 

months immediately prior to 

importation, and based on indexing of 

the parent stock. 

The NPPO of the Netherlands 

requested that we authorize importation 

of Dianthus spp. from that country 

under the same conditions provided for 

Great Britain. In support of this request, 

the NPPO subsequently presented 

APHIS with information regarding the 

diseases of Dianthus known to exist in 

the Netherlands, the protocol under 

which they would certify greenhouse 

nurseries, and the manner in which 

Dianthus spp. articles within those 

nurseries would be visually examined 

and indexed for diseases of Dianthus. 

Based on the information provided, 

APHIS has determined that the 

quarantine pests of Dianthus known to 

exist in the Netherlands are carnation 

etched ring virus, carnation ‘‘streak’’ 

virus, and carnation ‘‘fleck’’ virus, that 

the certification protocol provides 

oversight of greenhouses that is 

adequate to ensure their ongoing 

freedom from these pests, and that the 

procedures that the NPPO of the 

Netherlands employs to examine and 

index articles are consistent with or 

exceed those used by the NPPO of Great 

Britain. Accordingly, we have 

concluded that the certification 

protocols and procedures set forth by 

the NPPO of the Netherlands meet the 

provisions of § 319.37–5(d) and would 

mitigate the pest risk presented by 

Dianthus spp. from the Netherlands. In 

accordance with this conclusion, we 

would amend paragraph (d) so that it 

applies both to Great Britain and to the 

Netherlands. 

In a related matter, § 319.37–7(a) 

currently exempts Dianthus spp. 

imported from Great Britain under the 

conditions of § 319.37–5(d) from 

postentry quarantine requirements that 

otherwise apply to all Dianthus spp. 

articles that are imported from countries 

other than Canada. We would amend 

§ 319.37–7(a) so that this exemption 

would extend to Dianthus spp. from the 

Netherlands imported under the 

conditions of § 319.37–5(d), as well. 

Paragraph (k) of § 319.37–5 contains 

requirements for the importation of 

restricted articles of Feijoa (feijoa, 

pineapple guava) from New Zealand. 

The term ‘‘Feijoa’’ is considered archaic 

by the international taxonomic 

community. Therefore, to reflect current 

usage, we would remove the term from 

the regulations, and add ‘‘Acca 

sellowiana (O. Berg) Burret’’ in its place. 

Finally, we would amend paragraph 

(v) of § 319.37–5, which provides 

conditions for the importation of plants 

from Israel, to make it clear that packing 

material used for such plants must not 

introduce pests of concern either to the 

plants or in general. 

Specific Treatment and Other 

Requirements (§ 319.37–6) 

Section 319.37–6 lists treatment and 

other requirements under which seeds, 

bulbs, and dormant herbaceous 

perennials of certain genera and species 

may be imported into the United States 

from countries and localities in which a 

quarantine pest is known to be present. 

Currently, the section does not specify 

that any articles of Dioscorea spp. (yam) 

must be treated for quarantine pests. 

However, if articles of Dioscorea spp. 

(including, but not limited to, dormant 

herbaceous perennials, minisetts, and 

yam-setts) are not treated at the time of 

their importation into the United States, 

they may present a pathway for the 

dissemination of Aspiditosis hartii (yam 

scale), Palaeopus costicollis (yam 

weevil), and several other external and 

internal feeders that are quarantine 

pests. 

Because of these pest risks, we have 

long required Dioscorea spp. plants for 

planting to be treated according to 

methyl bromide treatment schedule 

T202–d, found in the PPQ Treatment 

Manual at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ 

import_export/plants/manuals/ports/ 

treatment.shtml, in accordance with 7 

CFR part 305. 

Accordingly, we would amend 

§ 319.37–6 to specify that Dioscorea 

spp. (yam) plants for planting, 

including, but not limited to, dormant 

herbaceous perennials, minisetts, and 

yam-setts from any country present a 

risk of disseminating internal and 

external feeders, including but not 

limited to Aspiditosis hartii (yam scale) 

and Palaeopus costicollis (yam weevil), 

into the United States, and to state that 

such articles may be imported into the 

United States only if they have been 

treated in accordance with 7 CFR part 

305. 

The PPQ Treatment Manual currently 

lists three exceptions to this 

requirement; we would codify these 


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exceptions in § 319.37–6. The 

exceptions are: 

• Dormant herbaceous perennials, 

minisetts, and yam-setts of Dioscorea 

spp. that are imported from Japan. Pests 

of yams that are of quarantine 

significance are not known to exist in 

Japan. 

• Dormant herbaceous perennials, 

minisetts, and yam-setts of Dioscorea 

spp. that are imported from the 

Dominican Republic into Puerto Rico. 

Pests of yams that are of quarantine 

significance and are known to exist in 

the Dominican Republic are also known 

to exist in Puerto Rico. 

• Dormant herbaceous perennials, 

minisetts, and yam-setts of Dioscorea 

spp. (yam) that are imported from the 

West Indies into the U.S. Virgin Islands. 

Pests of yams that are of quarantine 

significance and are known to exist in 

the West Indies are also known to exist 

in the U.S. Virgin Islands. 

We would specify that all yam 

dormant herbaceous perennials, 

minisets, and yam-setts imported into 

the United States, including those that 

would be exempted from methyl 

bromide treatment, would nonetheless 

be subject to inspection at the port of 

first arrival. 

Postentry Quarantine (§ 319.37–7) 

As we mentioned earlier in this 

document, § 319.37–7 contains our 

regulations governing postentry 

quarantine of certain restricted articles. 

Such articles may be imported into the 

United States only if they are destined 

for a State that has completed a 

postentry quarantine agreement with 

APHIS, if a postentry quarantine 

growing agreement, signed by the 

importer, has been completed and 

submitted to PPQ, and if PPQ has 

determined both that the growing 

agreement fulfills relevant requirements 

of § 319.37–7 and that State inspectors 

are available to monitor and enforce the 

postentry quarantine. In addition to the 

changes to § 319.37–7 discussed in the 

sections above, we would make several 

other changes to § 319.37–7. 

Throughout the section, there are 

multiple references to PPQ’s Postentry 

Quarantine Unit. That unit no longer 

exists, and the functions it performed 

are now carried out by PPQ’s National 

Postentry Quarantine Coordinator. We 

would amend the section to reflect this 

change. 

Paragraph (c)(1)(i) of § 319.37–7 lists 

the States that have entered into a 

postentry quarantine agreement with 

APHIS. Currently, the paragraph states 

that all U.S. States and Territories have 

entered into such an agreement, except 

the District of Columbia, Guam, Hawaii, 

Kansas, and the Northern Mariana 

Islands. However, all States and 

Territories have in fact entered into 

such an agreement. We would amend 

the paragraph accordingly. 

Paragraph (d) sets forth requirements 

for postentry quarantine growing 

agreements. Among other requirements, 

the agreement must certify to APHIS 

and to the State in which the articles 

were grown that the signer of the 

agreement will move, propagate, or 

allow propagation of the article while it 

is under postentry quarantine only after 

having obtained written permission 

from PPQ to do so. However, the 

address for PPQ provided in the section 

is out of date. Therefore, we would 

amend the paragraph to list the current 

address. 

In addition, within the paragraph, 

subparagraph (d)(7) is currently written 

in a manner that suggests that the signer 

of the agreement may move the articles 

without written permission from PPQ 

once the time period for postentry 

quarantine specified within the section 

has elapsed. This is not the case; the 

articles must remain under postentry 

quarantine conditions until the National 

Postentry Quarantine Coordinator issues 

a written release for the article. We 

would therefore amend the paragraph 

by adding a new subparagraph, (d)(8), 

specifying that each agreement must 

certify that the person signing the 

agreement will keep the article under 

postentry quarantine until the 

coordinator issues such a release. 

Marking and Identity (§ 319.37–10) 

Section 319.37–10 provides marking 

and identity requirements for restricted 

articles. Paragraph (c) of the section 

requires restricted articles, other than 

those imported by mail, to be 

accompanied by an invoice or packing 

list indicating the contents of the 

shipment at the time of importation or 

offer for importation into the United 

States. 

We have discovered that term 

‘‘contents of the shipment’’ is somewhat 

nebulous, and, as a result, invoices and 

packing lists do not always provide the 

information needed to readily identify 

the articles or route the shipment for 

inspection. Therefore, we would amend 

paragraph (c) so that the invoice or 

packing list would have to indicate the 

scientific names of the articles, at least 

to the level of genus, and the quantity 

of plants for planting in the shipment. 

The quantity would have to be 

expressed in the number of plant units, 

or in the case of seeds, by weight in 

grams or kilograms. Finally, when the 

regulations place restrictions on 

individual species or cultivars within a 

genus, the invoice or packing list would 

also have to identify the species or 

cultivar of the articles. 

Arrival Notification (§ 319.37–11) 

Section 319.37–11 provides that, 

promptly upon arrival of any restricted 

article at a port of entry, the importer 

must notify PPQ of the arrival by such 

means as a manifest, Customs entry 

document, commercial invoice, waybill, 

a broker’s document, or a notice form 

provided for that purpose. However, in 

2002, most of inspection services at 

ports of entry were transferred from 

APHIS to United States Customs and 

Border Protection of the Department of 

Homeland Security. Since this transfer, 

only certain restricted articles—those 

that must be accompanied by a permit 

and that would be listed in redesignated 

subparagraphs (a)(1) through (a)(11) of 

§ 319.37–3—have been inspected by 

PPQ at ports of entry. Therefore, we 

would amend § 319.37–11 to clarify that 

notification of arrival is necessary only 

for those restricted articles. 

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory 

Flexibility Act 

This proposed rule has been reviewed 

under Executive Order 12866. The 

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 5 U.S.C. 603, we 

have performed an initial regulatory 

flexibility analysis, which is 

summarized below, regarding the 

economic effects of this proposed rule 

on small entities. Copies of the full 

analysis are available by contacting the 

person listed under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT or on the 

Regulations.gov Web site (see 

ADDRESSES above for instructions for 

accessing Regulations.gov). 

Based on the information we have, 

there is no reason to conclude that 

adoption of this proposed rule would 

result in any significant economic effect 

on a substantial number of small 

entities. However, we do not currently 

have all of the data necessary for a 

comprehensive analysis of the effects of 

this proposed rule on small entities. 

Therefore, we are inviting comments on 

potential effects. In particular, we are 

interested in determining the number 

and kind of small entities that may 

incur benefits or costs from the 

implementation of this proposed rule. 

In accordance with the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act, we have analyzed the 

potential economic effects of this action 

on small entities. The analysis identifies 

importers and wholesale merchants of 


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flowers, nursery stock, and florists’ 

supplies, as well as wholesale 

merchants of fresh fruits and vegetables, 

as the small entities most likely to be 

affected by this action. The analysis 

considers the losses that may occur due 

to relaxing restrictions on the 

importation of certain plants for 

planting into the United States, while 

strengthening or expanding the scope of 

certain other restrictions. The analysis 

expects such losses to be relatively 

minor and anticipates that they would 

not substantively adversely impact 

small entities. 

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 12988 

This rule has been reviewed under 

Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice 

Reform. This rule: (1) Preempts all State 

and local laws and regulations that are 

inconsistent with this rule; (2) has no 

retroactive effect; and (3) does not 

require administrative proceedings 

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.). The information collection or 

recordkeeping requirements included in 

the regulations that would be amended 

by this proposed rule have been 

approved by the Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) under OMB control 

number 0579–0049. 

E-Government Act Compliance 

The Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service is committed to 

compliance with the E-Government Act 

to promote the use of the Internet and 

other information technologies, to 

provide increased opportunities for 

citizen access to Government 

information and services, and for other 

purposes. For information pertinent to 

E-Government Act compliance related 

to this rule, please contact Mrs. Celeste 

Sickles, APHIS’ Information Collection 

Coordinator, at (301) 851–2908. 

List of Subjects 

7 CFR Part 319 

Coffee, Cotton, Fruits, Imports, Logs, 

Nursery stock, Plant diseases and pests, 

Quarantine, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements, Rice, 

Vegetables. 

7 CFR Part 361 

Agricultural commodities, Imports, 

Labeling, Quarantine, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements, Seeds, 

Vegetables, Weeds. 

Accordingly, we propose to amend 7 

CFR parts 319 and 361 as follows: 

PART 319—FOREIGN QUARANTINE 

NOTICES 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 319 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 450, 7701–7772, and 

7781–7786; 21 U.S.C. 136 and 136a; 7 CFR 

2.22, 2.80, and 371.3. 

§ 319.37 [Amended] 

■ 2. In § 319.37, in paragraph (b), the 

final sentence is amended by removing 

the words ‘‘and the availability of 

treatment facilities for the article’’ and 

adding the words ‘‘the availability of 

treatment facilities for the article, and 

any other factors pertaining to the risk 

that the article may present to plants, 

plant parts, or plant products within the 

United States that he or she considers 

necessary.’’ 

■ 3. Section 319.37–1 is amended as 

follows: 

■ a. In the definition of from, in 

paragraph (b), by adding the words ‘‘or 

an article whose importation into the 

United States is not authorized pending 

pest risk analysis’’ after the words 

‘‘prohibited article’’, and by removing 

the words ‘‘(c), (d), (e), (f), (g), (h), (i), 

(j), (k)’’ and adding the words ‘‘(b)(3), 

(b)(4), (c), (d), (e), (f), (g), (h), (i), (k)’’ in 

their place; 

■ b. By revising the definitions of bulb 

and phytosanitary certificate of 

inspection; and 

■ c. By adding, in alphabetical order, 

new definitions of Administrator and 

dormant herbaceous perennial. 

The revisions and additions read as 

follows: 

§ 319.37–1 Definitions. 

* * * * * 

Administrator. The Administrator of 

the Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service (APHIS), or any person 

authorized to act for the Administrator. 

Bulb. The storage organ of a plant that 

serves as the plant’s sexual structure 

during dormancy. Examples include 

bulbs, bulbils, bulblets, corms, and 

cormels. For purposes of this subpart, a 

bulb remains a bulb until such time as 

environmental conditions induce it to 

produce shoots. It is then considered a 

plant. 

* * * * * 

Dormant herbaceous perennial. 

Except for bulbs, the portions of an 

herbaceous perennial that remain after 

the above-ground parts of the plant have 

died back to the earth after the growing 

season and the plant remains dormant. 

Examples include rhizomes, tubers, 

tuberous roots, pips, fleshy roots, 

divisions, and underground fleshy 

growths. For purposes of this subpart, 

dormant herbaceous perennials remain 

dormant herbaceous perennials until 

such time as environmental conditions 

induce them to sprout. They are then 

considered plants. 

* * * * * 

Phytosanitary certificate of 

inspection. A document, including 

electronic versions, that is related to a 

restricted article and is issued not more 

than 15 days prior to shipment of the 

restricted article from the country in 

which it was grown and that: 

(1) Is patterned after the model 

certificate of the International Plant 

Protection Convention, a multilateral 

convention on plant protection under 

the authority of the Food and 

Agriculture Organization of the United 

States (FAO); 

(2) Is issued by an official of a foreign 

national plant protection organization in 

one of the five official languages of the 

FAO; 

(3) Is addressed to the national plant 

protection organization of the United 

States (Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service); 

(4) Describes the shipment; 

(5) Certifies the place of origin for all 

contents of the shipment; 

(6) Certifies that the shipment has 

been inspected and/or tested according 

to appropriate official procedures and is 

considered free from quarantine pests of 

the United States; 

(7) Contains any additional 

declarations required by this subpart; 

and 

(8) Certifies that the shipment 

conforms with the phytosanitary 

requirements of the United States and is 

considered eligible for importation 

pursuant to the laws and regulations of 

the United States. 

* * * * * 

■ 4. In § 319.37–2, in paragraph (a), the 

table is amended as follows: 

■ a. By removing the entries for 

‘‘Arikuryoba spp. (arikury palm)’’, 

‘‘Chrysalidocarpus spp. (butterfly 

palm)’’, ‘‘Mahoberberis spp. (plants of 

all species and horticultural varieties 

not designated as resistant to black stem 

rust in accordance with § 301.38–1 of 

this chapter)’’, ‘‘Mahoberberis spp. 

destined to an eradication State listed in 

§ 301.38–2(a) of this chapter (plants of 

all species and horticultural varieties 

designated as resistant to black stem 

rust in accordance with § 301.38–1 of 


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this chapter)’’, ‘‘Mahoberberis spp. 

seed’’, ‘‘Mahonia spp. (mahonia) (plants 

of all species and horticultural varieties 

not designated as resistant to black stem 

rust in accordance with § 301.38–1 of 

this chapter)’’, ‘‘Mahonia spp. 

(mahonia) destined to an eradication 

State listed in § 301.38–2(a) of this 

chapter (plants of all species and 

horticultural varieties designated as 

resistant to black stem rust in 

accordance with § 301.38–1 of this 

chapter)’’, ‘‘Mahonia spp. seed’’, and 

‘‘Neodypsis spp. (palm)’’; 

■ b. In the entry for ‘‘Acer spp. (maple) 

(except Acer palmatum and Acer 

japonicum meeting the conditions for 

importation in § 319.37–5(m)’’, by 

removing the words ‘‘in § 319.375(m)’’ 

and adding the words ‘‘in §§ 319.37–5 

or 319.37–7’’ in their place; 

■ c. In the entry for ‘‘Berberis spp. 

(barberry) (plants of all species and 

horticultural varieties not designated as 

resistant to black stem rust in 

accordance with § 301.38–1 of this 

chapter)’’, by removing the word 

‘‘(barberry)’’ and adding the words 

‘‘(barberry, includes Mahoberberis and 

Mahonia spp.)’’ in its place; 

■ d. In the entry for ‘‘Berberis spp. 

(barberry) destined to an eradication 

State listed in § 301.38–2a of this 

chapter (plants of all species and 

horticultural varieties designated as 

resistant to black stem rust in 

accordance with § 301.38–1 of this 

chapter),’’ by removing the word 

‘‘(barberry)’’ and adding the words 

‘‘(barberry, includes Mahoberberis and 

Mahonia spp.)’’ in its place; 

■ e. In the entry for ‘‘Berberis spp. 

(barberry) seed’’, by removing the word 

‘‘(barberry)’’ and adding the words 

‘‘(barberry, includes Mahoberberis and 

Mahonia spp.)’’ in its place; 

■ f. By revising the entry for 

‘‘Chaenomeles spp. (flowering quince) 

not meeting the conditions for 

importation in § 319.37–5(b)’’; 

■ g. By revising the entry for 

‘‘Chrysanthemum, spp. 

(chrysanthemum, includes 

Dendranthema spp.)’’; 

■ h. In the entry for ‘‘Cydonia spp. 

(quince) not meeting the conditions for 

importation in § 319.37–5(b)’’ by 

removing the words ‘‘in § 319.37–5(b)’’ 

and adding the words ‘‘in §§ 319.37– 

5(b) and 319.37–7’’ in their place; 

■ i. By adding an entry for ‘‘Dypsis spp. 

(butterfly palm)’’; 

■ j. By revising the entry for 

‘‘Leucanthemella serotina’’; 

■ k. In the entry for ‘‘Malus spp. (apple, 

crabapple) not meeting the conditions 

for importation in § 319.37–5(b)’’, by 

removing the words ‘‘in § 319.37–5(b)’’ 

and adding the words ‘‘in §§ 319.37– 

5(b) and 319.37–7’’ in their place; 

■ l. By revising the entry for 

‘‘Nipponanthemum nipponicum’’; 

■ m. By removing the entry for ‘‘Prunus 

spp. (almond, apricot, cherry, cherry 

laurel, English laurel, nectarine, peach, 

plum, prune) not meeting the conditions 

for importation in § 319.37–5(b)’’ and 

adding a new entry for ‘‘Prunus spp. not 

meeting the conditions for importation 

in § 319.37–5(b)’’ in its place; 

■ n. By removing the entry for ‘‘Prunus 

spp. seed only (almond, apricot, 

nectarine, peach, plum, and prune, but 

not species in subgenus Cerasus) not 

meeting the conditions for importation 

in § 319.37–5(j)’’ and adding a new 

entry for ‘‘Prunus spp. seed only not 

meeting the conditions for importation 

in § 319.37–5(b)’’ in its place; 

■ o. In the entry for ‘‘Salix spp. 

(willow)’’, by removing the words 

‘‘Erwinia salicis (Day) Chester’’ and 

adding the words ‘‘Brenneria salicis 

(Day) Hauben et al., syn. Erwinia salicis 

(Day) Chester’’ in their place. 

■ p. By adding an entry for ‘‘Syagrus 

schizophylla (Mart.) Glassman (arikury 

palm)’’; and 

■ q. In the entry for ‘‘Vitis spp. (grape) 

not meeting the conditions for 

importation in § 319.37–5(b),’’ by 

removing the words ‘‘in § 319.37–5(b)’’ 

and adding the words ‘‘in §§ 319.37– 

5(b) and 319.37–7’’ in their place. 

The additions and revisions read as 

follows: 

§ 319.37–2 Prohibited articles. 

(a) * * * 

Prohibited article (includes seeds only if specifically mentioned) Foreign places from which prohibited 

Quarantine pests existing in the places named 

and capable of being transported with the prohibited article 

*******

Chaenomeles spp. (flowering quince) not 

meeting the conditions for importation in 

§§ 319.37–5(b) and 319.37–7.

All A diversity of diseases including but not limited to those listed for Chaenomeles in 

§ 319.37–5(b)(3). 

Chrysanthemum spp. (chrysanthemum, includes Dendranthema spp.) not meeting the 

conditions for importation in §§ 319.37–5(c) 

and 319.37–7.

All Puccinia horiana P. Henn. (white rust of chrysanthemum). 

*******

Dypsis spp. (butterfly palm) .............................. All A diversity of diseases including but not limited to: Lethal yellowing disease; Cadangcadang disease. 

*******

Leucanthemella serotina not meeting the conditions for importation in §§ 319.37–5(c) and 

319.37–7.

All Puccinia horiana P. Henn. (white rust of chrysanthemum). 

*******

Nipponanthemum nipponicum not meeting the 

conditions for importation in §§ 319.37–5(c) 

and 319.37–7.

All Puccinia horiana P. Henn. (white rust of chrysanthemum). 

*******

Prunus spp. not meeting the conditions for importation in § 319.37–5(b).All A diversity of diseases including but not limited to those listed for Prunus in § 319.37– 

5(b). 


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4Application forms are available without charge 

from the Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service, Plant Protection and Quarantine, 4700 

River Road Unit 136, Riverdale, MD 20737–1236, or 

from local offices, which are listed in telephone 

directories. Application forms are also available 

online at the following Web site: http:// 

www.aphis.usda.gov/plant_health/permits/http:// 

www.aphis.usda.gov/plant_health/permits/ 

index.shtml. Please note that this Internet site 

requires persons to establish an eAuthentication 

account prior to use. 

Prohibited article (includes seeds only if specifically mentioned) Foreign places from which prohibited 

Quarantine pests existing in the places named 

and capable of being transported with the prohibited article 

Prunus spp. seed only not meeting the conditions for importation in § 319.37–5(b).All Plum pox (=Sharka) potyvirus. 

* * * * * * * 

Syagrus schizophylla (Mart.) Glassman 

(arikury palm).

All A diversity of diseases including but not limited to: Lethal yellowing disease; Cadangcadang disease. 

* * * * * * * 

* * * * * 

■ 5. In § 319.37–3, paragraphs (a), (b), 

and (d) are revised to read as follows: 

§ 319.37–3 Permits. 

(a) * * * 

(1) Lots of 13 or more articles (other 

than seeds of herbaceous plants, 

precleared bulbs or dormant herbaceous 

perennials of a taxon approved by 

APHIS for preclearance, or sterile 

cultures of orchid plants) from any 

country or locality except Canada; 

(2) Seeds of non-herbaceous plants, 

such as trees and shrubs, from any 

country or locality except Canada; 

(3) Articles subject to the 

requirements of § 319.37–5; 

(4) Articles subject to the postentry 

quarantine conditions of § 319.37–7; 

(5) Small lots of seed imported in 

accordance with § 319.37–4(d) of this 

subpart; 

(6) Articles subject to treatment and 

other requirements of § 319.37–6; 

(7) Seed of herbaceous plants for 

planting that is coated, pelleted, or 

embedded in a substrate that obscures 

visibility; 

(8) Articles (except seeds) of Malus 

spp. (apple, crabapple), Pyrus spp. 

(pear), Prunus spp., Cydonia spp. 

(quince), Chaenomeles spp. (flowering 

quince), Rubus spp. (cloudberry, 

blackberry, boysenberry, dewberry, 

loganberry, raspberry), and Vitis spp. 

(grape) from Canada; 

(9) Articles (except seeds) of Fraxinus 

spp. (ash) from counties or municipal 

regional counties in Canada that are not 

regulated for emerald ash borer (EAB) 

but that are within an EAB-regulated 

Province or Territory and are not 

prohibited under § 317.37–2; 

(10) Articles (except seeds) of Pinus 

spp. from Canada; and 

(11) Solanum tuberosum true seed 

from New Zealand and the X region of 

Chile (that area of Chile between 39° 

and 44° South latitude—see § 317.37– 

5(o)); 

(b) An application for a written permit 

should be submitted to the Plant 

Protection and Quarantine Programs 

(Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service, Plant Protection and 

Quarantine, 4700 River Road Unit 136, 

Riverdale, MD 20737–1236) at least 30 

days prior to the arrival of the article at 

the port of entry. The completed 

application must contain the following 

information: 4

(1) Name, address, and telephone 

number of the importer; 

(2) Approximate quantity and kinds 

(botanical designations) of articles 

intended to be imported; 

(3) Country(ies) or locality(ies) where 

grown; 

(4) Intended United States port of 

entry; 

(5) Means of transportation, e.g., mail, 

airmail, express, air express, freight, 

airfreight, or baggage; and 

(6) Expected date of arrival. 

* * * * * 

(d) Any permit which has been issued 

may be withdrawn by an inspector or 

the Administrator if he or she 

determines that the holder of the permit 

has not complied with any condition for 

the use of the document. The reasons for 

the withdrawal will be confirmed in 

writing as promptly as circumstances 

permit. Any person whose permit has 

been withdrawn may appeal the 

decision in writing to the Administrator 

within 10 days after receiving the 

written notification of the withdrawal. 

The appeal must state all of the facts 

and reasons on which the person relies 

to show that the permit was wrongfully 

withdrawn. The Administrator will 

grant or deny the appeal, in writing, 

stating the reasons for the decision as 

promptly as circumstances permit. If 

there is a conflict as to any material fact, 

a hearing shall be held to resolve the 

conflict. 

* * * * * 

6. Section 319.37–4 is amended as 

follows: 

a. By revising paragraph (a) 

introductory text; 

b. In paragraph (a)(4), by removing the 

word ‘‘Bulbs’’ and adding the words 

‘‘Small packages of bulbs offered to 

travelers returning’’ in its place, and by 

adding the word ‘‘within’’ before the 

words ‘‘6 weeks after the issuance’’; and 

c. In paragraph (b), by removing the 

words ‘‘may be sampled and inspected’’ 

and adding the words ‘‘must be 

presented for inspection’’ in their place. 

The revision reads as follows: 

§ 319.37–4 Inspection, treatment, and 

phytosanitary certificates of inspection. 

(a) Phytosanitary certificates of 

inspection. Any restricted article offered 

for importation into the United States 

must be accompanied by a 

phytosanitary certificate, unless the 

article is explicitly exempted from this 

requirement in the paragraphs below. 

The phytosanitary certificate must 

identify the genus of the article it 

accompanies. When the regulations in 

this subpart place restrictions on 

individual species or cultivars within a 

genus, the phytosanitary certificate must 

also identify the species or cultivar of 

the article it accompanies. If the plant 

is grafted, budded, or otherwise 

contains interpolated plant parts, the 

phytosanitary certificate must list the 

identity of any plant parts (e.g., scion, 

rootstock, or interstem) that belong to 

restricted taxa to the lowest regulated 

taxon, e.g., genus, species, or cultivar. 

Otherwise, identification of the species 

is strongly preferred, but not required. 

Intergeneric and interspecific hybrids 

must be designated by placing the 

multiplication sign ‘‘×’’ between the 

names of the parent taxa. If the hybrid 

is named, the multiplication sign may 

instead be placed before the name of an 

intergeneric hybrid or before the epithet 

in the name of an interspecific hybrid. 

Phytosanitary certificates are not 


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required to accompany the following 

restricted articles: 

* * * * * 

■ 7. Section 319.37–5 is amended as 

follows: 

■ a. By revising paragraphs (a), (b), and 

(c); 

■ b. In paragraph (d), by adding the 

words ‘‘or the Netherlands’’ after the 

words ‘‘Great Britain’’ each time they 

occur; 

■ c. By removing and reserving 

paragraph (j); 

■ d. In paragraph (k), by removing the 

word ‘‘Feijoa’’ and adding the words 

‘‘Acca sellowiana (O. Berg) Burret’’ in 

its place; 

■ e. In paragraph (m), by adding the 

words ‘‘, and unless the article is subject 

to the postentry quarantine 

requirements of § 319.37–7(a)’’ at the 

end of the sentence; and 

■ f. In paragraph (v)(4)(iv), by removing 

the words ‘‘to the plants’’. 

The revisions read as follows: 

§ 319.37–5 Special foreign inspection and 

certification requirements. 

(a) Any restricted article (except 

seeds, unrooted cuttings, and articles 

declared solely for food, analytical, or 

manufacturing purposes) from Albania, 

Algeria, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, 

Austria, Azerbaijan, Azores, Belarus, 

Belgium, Bolivia, Bulgaria, Canada (all 

areas regulated by the national plant 

protection organization of Canada for 

potato cyst nematodes), Channel 

Islands, Chile, Columbia, Costa Rica, 

Crete, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, 

Denmark (including Faeroe Islands), 

Ecuador, Egypt, Estonia, Falkland 

Islands, Finland, France, Georgia, 

Germany, Great Britain, Greece, 

Guernsey, Hungary, Iceland, India, 

Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Jersey, 

Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, 

Lebanon, Libya, Liechtenstein, 

Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, 

Republic of Moldova, Morocco, the 

Netherlands, New Zealand, Northern 

Ireland, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, 

Peru, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal 

(including Madeira), Romania, Russian 

Federation, Serbia and Montenegro, 

Sierra Leone, Slovakia, Slovenia, South 

Africa, Spain (including Canary Islands 

and Mallorca), Sri Lanka, Sweden, 

Switzerland, Tajikistan, Tunisia, 

Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, 

Uzbekistan, and Venezuela must be 

accompanied by a phytosanitary 

certificate of inspection with an 

additional declaration either: 

(1) That the article was grown on land 

or in a substrate which has been 

microscopically inspected by the 

national plant protection organization of 

the country in which it was grown 

within 12 months preceding issuance of 

the certificate and found free from 

potato cyst nematodes, Globodera 

rostochiensis (Woll.) Behrens and G. 

pallida (Stone) Behrens; or 

(2) That the article has been grown 

within a secure environment in a 

production area that is free of potato 

cyst nematodes, in a soilless growing 

medium, or in vitro, and has never been 

grown in soil nor come in contact with 

soil. 

(b)(1) Any of the following restricted 

articles (except seeds) at the time of 

arrival at the port of first arrival in the 

United States must be accompanied by 

a phytosanitary certificate that contains 

an additional declaration that the article 

was grown in a nursery in Belgium, 

Canada, France, Germany, Great Britain, 

or the Netherlands and that the article 

was found by the national plant 

protection organization of the country in 

which the article was grown to be free 

of the following injurious plant 

pathogens listed in paragraph (b)(5) of 

this section: For Chaenomeles spp. 

(flowering quince) and Cydonia spp. 

(quince), pathogens (i), (ii), (iv), (xviii), 

(xix), (xx), and (xxi); for Malus spp. 

(apple, crabapple), pathogens (i), (ii), 

(iii), (vi), (vii), (viii), (viii), (xxii), (xxiii), 

(xliv), (xlv), (xlvi), and (xlvii); for 

Prunus spp. not susceptible to plum pox 

(=Sharka) potyvirus (P. avium, P. 

cerasus, P. effusa, P. laurocerasus, P. 

mahaleb, P. padus, P. sargentii, P. 

serotina, P. serrula, P. serrulata, P. 

subhirtella, P. yedoensis, and P. 

virginiana), pathogens (i), (x) through 

(xvii), (xxii), and (xlvii); for Pyrus spp. 

(pear), pathogens (i), (ii), (iv), (v), (xviii), 

(xix), (xx), (xlvii), and (xlviii); and for 

Vitis spp. (grape) from Canada, 

pathogens (xiv) through (xvii) and (xxiv) 

through (xliii). The determination by the 

national plant protection organization 

that the article is free of these pathogens 

will be based on visual examination and 

indexing of the parent stock of the 

article and inspection of the nursery 

where the restricted article is grown to 

determine that the nursery is free of the 

specified pathogens. An additional 

declaration on the phytosanitary 

certificate of inspection by the national 

plant protection organization that a 

pathogen does not occur in the country 

in which the article is grown may be 

used in lieu of visual examination and 

indexing of the parent stock for that 

pathogen and inspection of the nursery. 

Finally, for articles containing more 

than one plant part (e.g., grafted or 

budded plants), if the scion, interstem, 

rootstock, or any other plant part of the 

finished plant that is offered for 

importation belongs to a taxon listed 

within this paragraph as a regulated 

taxon, the additional declaration must 

address the quarantine pests and related 

restrictions associated with that taxon. 

The additional declaration must list all 

plant parts of regulated taxa that have 

been incorporated into the finished 

plant. 

(2) Budwood of Prunus spp. 

susceptible to plum pox (=Sharka) 

potyvirus (species other than P. avium, 

P. cerasus, P. effusa, P. laurocerasus, P. 

mahaleb, P. padus, P. sargentii, P. 

serotina, P. serrula, P. serrulata, P. 

subhirtella, P. yedoensis, and P. 

virginiana) and grown in Belgium, 

France, Germany, Great Britain, or the 

Netherlands may be imported into the 

United States only if is accompanied by 

a phytosanitary certificate with an 

additional declaration that the original 

parent stock (nuclear stock) has been 

indexed and found free of pathogens (i), 

(ix) through (xvii), (xxii), (xlvii), and 

(xlviii) of paragraph (b)(5) of this section 

by the appropriate national fruit tree 

certification program, and only if the 

original parent stock from which the 

budwood is taken is produced within a 

secure, enclosed, APHIS-approved pestexclusionary facility within a national 

plan protection organization-operated or 

-approved nuclear stock program where 

the parent stock is maintained in a 

pathogen-free state. 

(3) Restricted articles, except seed, of 

Prunus spp. susceptible to plum pox 

(=Sharka) potyvirus (species other than 

P. avium, P. cerasus, P. effusa, P. 

laurocerasus, P. mahaleb, P. padus, P. 

sargentii, P. serotina, P. serrula, P. 

serrulata, P. subhirtella, P. yedoensis, 

and P. virginiana) from Canada must be 

accompanied by a phytosanitary 

certificate that contains an additional 

declaration that the article was grown in 

a nursery in Canada, that the article was 

found by the national plant protection 

organization of Canada to be free of the 

following injurious plant pathogens 

listed in paragraph (b)(5) of this section: 

(i), (ix) through (xvii), (xxii), (xlvii), and 

(xlviii), and that the article was grown 

in an area that has been surveyed and 

found free of plum pox (=Sharka) 

potyvirus according to a surveying 

protocol mutually agreed upon by 

APHIS and the national plant protection 

organization of Canada. The 

determination by the national plant 

protection organization of Canada that 

the article is free of these pathogens will 

be based on visual examination and 

indexing of the parent stock of the 

article and inspection of the nursery 

where the restricted article is grown to 

determine that the nursery is free of the 

specified pathogens. An additional 

declaration on the phytosanitary 

certificate of inspection by the national 


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plant protection organization of Canada 

that a pathogen does not occur in 

Canada may be used in lieu of visual 

examination and indexing of the parent 

stock for that pathogen and inspection 

of the nursery. Finally, if any part of the 

article is not from Canada, but rather 

from a third country, that article must 

meet the entry requirements of this 

subpart as if the article had been 

directly imported into the United States 

from that third country. 

(4)(i) Seeds of Prunus spp. susceptible 

to plum pox (=Sharka) potyvirus 

(species other than P. avium, P. cerasus, 

P. effusa, P. laurocerasus, P. mahaleb, P. 

padus, P. sargentii, P. serotina, P. 

serrula, P. serrulata, P. subhirtella, P. 

yedoensis, and P. virginiana) from 

Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, 

Great Britain, or the Netherlands shall, 

at the time of arrival at the port of first 

arrival at the United States, be 

accompanied by a phytosanitary 

certificate of inspection containing 

accurate additional declarations that: 

(A) The seeds are from parent stock 

grown in a nursery in Belgium, Canada, 

France, Germany, Great Britain, or the 

Netherlands that is free of plum pox 

(=Sharka) potyvirus; and 

(B) The seeds have been found by the 

national plant protection organization of 

the country in which they are produced 

to be free of plum pox (=Sharka) 

potyvirus based on the testing of parent 

stock by visual examination and 

indexing. 

(ii) Seeds of Prunus spp. susceptible 

to plum pox (=Sharka) potyvirus 

(species other than P. avium, P. cerasus, 

P. effusa, P. laurocerasus, P. mahaleb, P. 

padus, P. sargentii, P. serotina, P. 

serrula, P. serrulata, P. subhirtella, P. 

yedoensis, and P. virginiana) from all 

countries except those in Europe, 

Argentina, Canada, Chile, Cyprus, 

Japan, Syria, and Turkey shall, at the 

time of arrival at the port of first arrival, 

be accompanied by a phytosanitary 

certificate of inspection, containing an 

accurate additional declaration that 

plum pox (=Sharka) potyvirus does not 

occur in the country in which the seeds 

were produced. 

(5) List of pathogens. 

(i) Monilinia fructigena (Aderh. & 

Ruhl.) Honey (Brown rot of fruit). 

(ii) Guignardia piricola (Nose) 

Yamomoto (Leaf, branch, and fruit 

disease). 

(iii) Apple proliferation phytoplasma. 

(iv) Pear blister canker apscaviroid. 

(v) Pear bud drop virus. 

(vi) Diaporthe mali Bres. (Leaf, 

branch, and fruit fungus). 

(vii) Apple green crinkle agent (Apple 

false sting virus). 

(viii) Apple chat fruit agent (Apple 

small fruit). 

(ix) Plum pox (=Sharka) potyvirus and 

its strains. 

(x) Cherry leaf roll nepovirus (Elm 

mosaic virus, golden elderberry virus). 

(xi) European cherry rusty mottle 

virus. 

(xii) European stone fruit yellows 

phytoplasma (Apricot chlorotic leaf roll 

agent). 

(xiii) Plum bark split trichovirus. 

(xiv) Arabis mosaic nepovirus and its 

strains. 

(xv) Raspberry ringspot nepovirus 

(European cherry rasp leaf) and its 

strains. 

(xvi) Tomato blackring nepovirus 

(Myrobalan latent ringspot, peach shoot 

stunting) and its strains. 

(xvii) Strawberry latent ringspot 

sadwavirus (Peach willow leaf rosette, 

Court noue) and its strains. 

(xviii) Quince sooty ringspot agent. 

(xix) Quince yellow blotch agent (Pear 

yellow blotch agent, Apple rubbery 

wood phytoplasma). 

(xx) Quince stunt agent. 

(xxi) Gymnosporangium asiaticum 

Miyabe ex. Yamada (Rust). 

(xxii) Valsa mali Miyabe and Yamada 

ex. Miura (Branch canker fungus). 

(xxiii) Apple ringspot agent (Apple 

thumb mark, Thumb mark, Apple 

Henderson spot agent). 

(xxiv) The following nematode 

transmitted viruses: Artichoke Italian 

latent virus, Grapevine Bulgarian latent 

virus, Grapevine fanleaf virus and its 

strains, and Hungarian chrome mosaic 

virus. 

(xxv) Grapevine asteroid mosaic 

agent. 

(xxvi) Grapevine Bratislava mosaic 

virus. 

(xxvii) Grapevine chasselas latent 

agent. 

(xxviii) Grapevine corky bark ‘‘Legno 

riccio’’ agent. 

(xxix) Grapevine leaf roll viruses. 

(xxx) Grapevine little leaf agent. 

(xxxi) Grapevine stem pitting agent. 

(xxxii) Grapevine vein mosaic agent. 

(xxxiii) Grapevine vein necrosis agent. 

(xxxiv) Flavescence-doree 

phytoplasma. 

(xxxv) Black wood phytoplasma (boisnoir). 

(xxxvi) Grapevine infectious necrosis 

bacterium. 

(xxxvii) Grapevine yellows disease 

bacterium. 

(xxxviii) Xanthomonas ampelina 

Panagopoulas. 

(xxxix) Peyronellaea glomerata 

Ciferri. 

(xl) Pseudopeziza tracheiphila 

Muller-Thur-gau. 

(xli) Rhacodiella vitis Sterenberg. 

(xlii) Rosellinia necatrix Prill. 

(xliii) Septoria melanosa (Vialla and 

Ravav) Elenk. 

(xliv) Apple fruit crinkle apscaviroid. 

(xlv) Apple dimple fruit apscaviroid. 

(xlvi) Apple scar skin apscaviroid. 

(xlvii) Monilinia polystroma. 

(xlviii) Apricot pseudo-chlorotic leaf 

spot trichovirus. 

(c) Any restricted article (except 

seeds) of Chrysanthemum spp. 

(chrysanthemum, includes 

Dendranthema spp.), Leucanthemella 

serotina, or Nipponathemum 

nipponicum, from a foreign place except 

Asia, Europe, South America, Australia, 

Mexico, New Zealand, Oceania 

(Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia), 

Republic of South Africa, and Tunisia 

shall, at the time of arrival at the port 

of first arrival in the United States, be 

accompanied by a phytosanitary 

certificate of inspection. The 

phytosanitary certificate of inspection 

must contain a declaration that the 

article was grown in a greenhouse 

nursery and found by the national plant 

protection organization of the country in 

which the article was grown to be free 

of white rust of chrysanthemum (caused 

by the by the rust fungus Puccinia 

horiana P. Henn.) based on visual 

examination of parent stock, the articles 

for importation, and the greenhouse 

nursery in which the articles for 

importation and the parent stock were 

grown, once a month for 4 consecutive 

months immediately prior to 

importation. Such articles are also 

subject to the postentry quarantine 

requirements of § 319.37–7. 

* * * * * 

■ 8. Section 319.37–6 is amended as 

follows: 

■ a. In paragraph (a), in the table, by 

adding an entry for ‘‘Dioscorea spp. 

(yam) plants for planting, including, but 

not limited to, dormant herbaceous 

perennials, minisetts, and yam-setts’’; 

and 

■ b. By adding a new paragraph (e). 

The additions read as follows: 

§ 319.37–6 Specific treatment and other 

requirements. 

(a) * * * 


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9864 Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 29 / Tuesday, February 12, 2013 / Proposed Rules 

Seed/Bulb Country/Locality Pest(s) for which treatment is required 

*******

Dioscorea spp. (yam) plants for planting, including, but not limited to, dormant herbaceous perennials, minisetts, and yam-setts.All countries, except as provided in paragraphs (e)(1) through (e)(3) of this section.A diversity of internal and external feeders, including but not limited to: Aspiditosis hartii 

(yam scale) and Palaeopus costicollis (yam 

weevil). 

* * * * * * * 

* * * * * 

(e) Dioscorea spp. (yam) plants for 

planting, including, but not limited to, 

dormant herbaceous perennials, 

minisetts, and yam-setts, may be 

imported into the United States without 

being treated in accordance with part 

305 of this chapter if: 

(1) They are imported from Japan. 

(2) They are imported from the 

Dominican Republic into Puerto Rico. 

(3) They are imported from the West 

Indies into the U.S. Virgin Islands. 

■ 9. Section 319.37–7 is amended as 

follows: 

■ a. By removing the words ‘‘Postentry 

Quarantine Unit’’ wherever they occur 

and adding the words ‘‘National 

Postentry Quarantine Coordinator’’ in 

their place; 

■ b. In paragraph (a)(3), in the table, by 

revising the entries for ‘‘Acer spp. 

(maple)’’, ‘‘Chaenomeles spp. (flowering 

quince) meeting the conditions for 

importation in § 319.37–5(b)’’, 

‘‘Chrysanthemum spp. 

(chrysanthemum, includes 

Dendranthema spp.), meeting the 

conditions in § 319.37–5(c)’’, ‘‘Cydonia 

spp. (quince) meeting the conditions for 

importation in § 319.37–5(b)’’, 

‘‘Leucanthemella serotina’’, ‘‘Malus spp. 

(apple, crabapple) meeting the 

conditions for importation in § 319.37– 

5(b)’’, ‘‘Nipponanthemum nipponicum’’, 

‘‘Prunus spp. (almond, apricot, cherry, 

cherry laurel, English laurel, nectarine, 

peach, plum, prune) meeting the 

conditions for importation in § 319.37– 

5(b)’’, and ‘‘Pyrus spp. (pear) meeting 

the conditions for importation in 

§ 319.37–5(b)’’; 

■ c. In paragraph (a)(3), in the table, in 

the entry for ‘‘Dianthus spp. (carnation, 

sweet-william)’’, by adding the words 

‘‘and the Netherlands’’ after the words 

‘‘Great Britain’’; 

■ d. In paragraph (c)(1)(i), by removing 

the words ‘‘, except the District of 

Columbia, Guam, Hawaii, Kansas, and 

the Northern Mariana Islands’’; 

■ e. In paragraph (d)(1), by removing the 

words ‘‘Building 580, BARC-East, 

Beltsville, MD 20705’’ and adding the 

words ‘‘4700 River Road, Unit 133 

Riverdale, MD 20737–1236’’ in their 

place; and 

■ f. By adding a new paragraph (d)(8). 

The revisions and additions read as 

follows: 

§ 319.37–7 Postentry quarantine. 

(a) * * * 

(3) * * * 

Restricted Article (excluding seeds) Foreign Country(ies) or Locality(ies) from which imported 

*******

Acer spp. (maple) ..................................................................................... All except Canada, Europe (except the Netherlands in accordance with 

§ 319.37–5(m)), and Japan. 

* * * * * * * 

Chaenomeles spp. (flowering quince) meeting the conditions for importation in § 319.37–5(b).All countries listed in § 319.37–5(b). 

Chrysanthemum spp. (chrysanthemum), includes Dendranthema spp.), 

meeting the conditions for importation in § 319.37–5.

All except Asia, Europe, South America, Australia, Mexico, New Zealand, Oceania (Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia), Republic of 

South Africa, and Tunisia. 

* * * * * * * 

Cydonia spp. (quince) meeting the conditions for importation in 

§ 319.37–5(b).

All countries listed in § 319.37–5(b). 

* * * * * * * 

Leucanthemella serotina meeting the conditions for importation in 

§ 319.37–5.

All except Asia, Europe, South America, Australia, Mexico, New Zealand, Oceania (Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia), Republic of 

South Africa, and Tunisia. 

* * * * * * * 

Malus spp. (apple, crabapple) meeting the conditions for importation in 

§ 319.37–5(b).

All countries listed in § 319.37–5(b). 

* * * * * * * 

Nipponathemum nipponicum meeting the conditions for importation in 

§ 319.37–5.

All except Asia, Europe, South America, Australia, Mexico, New Zealand, Oceania (Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia), Republic of 

South Africa, and Tunisia. 

* * * * * * * 

Prunus spp. meeting the conditions for importation in § 319.37–5(b) ..... All countries listed in § 319.37–5(b). 


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Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 29 / Tuesday, February 12, 2013 / Proposed Rules 9865 

Restricted Article (excluding seeds) Foreign Country(ies) or Locality(ies) from which imported 

*******

Pyrus spp. (pear) meeting the conditions for importation in § 319.37– 

5(b).

All countries listed in § 319.37–5(b). 

* * * * * 

(d) * * * 

(8) To keep the article under postentry 

quarantine conditions until the National 

Postentry Quarantine Coordinator issues 

a written release for the article. 

* * * * * 

§ 319.37–8 [Amended] 

■ 10. In § 319.37–8, paragraph (b)(2) is 

amended by removing the words 

‘‘Newfoundland or from that portion of 

the Municipality of Central Saanich in 

the Province of British Columbia east of 

the West Saanich Road’’ and adding the 

words ‘‘all areas of Canada regulated by 

the national plant protection 

organization of Canada for potato cyst 

nematode’’ in their place. 

■ 11. In § 319.37–10, paragraph (c) is 

revised to read as set forth below. 

§ 319.37–10 Marking and identity. 

* * * * * 

(c) Any restricted article for 

importation (by mail or otherwise), at 

the time of importation or offer for 

importation into the United States shall 

be accompanied by an invoice or 

packing list indicating the scientific 

names of the articles, at least to the level 

of genus, and the quantity of plants for 

planting in the shipment. Quantity must 

be expressed in the number of plant 

units, or in the case of seeds, by weight 

in grams or kilograms. Finally, when the 

regulations in this subpart place 

restrictions on individual species or 

cultivars within a genus, the invoice or 

packing list must also identify the 

species or cultivar of the articles. 

* * * * * 

§ 319.37–11 [Amended] 

■ 12. Section 319.37–11 is amended by 

adding the words ‘‘that must be 

accompanied by a permit in accordance 

with paragraphs (a)(1) through (a)(11) of 

§ 319.37–3’’ after the words ‘‘restricted 

article’’. 

PART 361—IMPORTATION OF SEED 

AND SCREENINGS UNDER THE 

FEDERAL SEED ACT 

■ 13. The authority citation for part 361 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1581–1610; 7 CFR 2.22, 

2.80, and 371.3. 

§ 361.2 [Amended] 

■ 14. In § 361.2, paragraph (d) is 

amended by adding the words ‘‘and in 

addition to the restrictions of § 319.37– 

3(a)(7),’’ before the words ‘‘coated or 

pelleted seed’’, and by adding the words 

‘‘, or seed that is embedded in a 

substrate that obscures visibility’’ after 

the words ‘‘coated or pelleted seed’’. 

Done in Washington, DC, this 6th day of 

February 2013. 

Kevin Shea, 

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service. 

[FR Doc. 2013–03058 Filed 2–11–13; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Parts 121 and 135 

[Docket No. FAA–2011–1136; Notice No. 12– 

07] 

RIN 2120–AJ33 

Air Carrier Contract Maintenance 

Requirements; Extension of Comment 

Period 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking 

(NPRM); extension of comment period. 

SUMMARY: This action extends the 

comment period for an NPRM that was 

published November 13, 2012. In that 

rulemaking, the FAA proposed to 

amend the maintenance regulations for 

domestic, flag, and supplemental 

operations, and commuter and ondemand operations for aircraft type 

certificated with a passenger seating 

configuration of 10 seats or more 

(excluding any pilot seat). It would 

require these operators to develop 

policies, procedures, methods, and 

instructions for performing contract 

maintenance that are acceptable to the 

FAA and to include them in their 

maintenance manuals. It would also 

require the operators to provide a list to 

the FAA of all persons with whom they 

contract their maintenance. At the 

behest of several of their FAAcertificated air carrier members, 

Regional Air Cargo Carriers Association 

(RACCA) requested that the FAA extend 

the comment period closing date to 

allow time to adequately analyze the 

NPRM and prepare comments. 

DATES: The comment period for the 

NPRM published on November 13, 2012 

(77 FR 67584), was scheduled to close 

on February 11, 2013, and is extended 

until March 13, 2013. 

ADDRESSES: You may send comments 

identified by docket number FAA– 

2011–1136 using any of the following 

methods: 

1. Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov and follow 

the online instructions for sending your 

comments electronically. 

2. Mail: Send comments to Docket 

Operations, M–30; U.S. Department of 

Transportation (DOT), 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE., Room W12–140, West 

Building Ground Floor, Washington, DC 

20590–0001. 

3. Hand Delivery or Courier: Take 

comments to Docket Operations in 

Room W12–140 of the West Building 

Ground Floor at 1200 New Jersey 

Avenue SE., Washington, DC, between 9 

a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through 

Friday, except Federal holidays. 

4. Fax: Fax comments to Docket 

Operations at 202–493–2251. 

Privacy: The FAA will post all 

comments it receives, without change, 

to http://www.regulations.gov, including 

any personal information the 

commenter provides. Using the search 

function of the docket Web site, anyone 

can find and read the electronic form of 

all comments received into any FAA 

docket, including the name of the 

individual sending the comment (or 

signing the comment for an association, 

business, labor union, etc.). DOT’s 

complete Privacy Act Statement can be 

found in the Federal Register published 

on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477–19478), 

as well as at http://DocketsInfo.dot.gov. 

Docket: Background documents or 

comments received may be read at 

http://www.regulations.gov at any time. 

Follow the online instructions for 

accessing the docket or Docket 

Operations in Room W12–140 of the 

West Building Ground Floor at 1200 

New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, 

DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday 

through Friday, except Federal holidays. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Ralen Gao, Office of Rulemaking, 

Federal Aviation Administration, 800 

Independence Avenue SW., 

Washington, DC 20591, telephone (202) 

267–3168; email ralen.gao@faa.gov. 


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