This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains regulatory documents having general

applicability and legal effect, most of which

are keyed to and codified in the Code of

Federal Regulations, which is published under

50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.

The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by

the Superintendent of Documents. Prices of

new books are listed in the first FEDERAL

REGISTER issue of each week.

Rules and Regulations Federal Register

13671 

Vol. 72, No. 56 

Friday, March 23, 2007 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Food and Nutrition Service 

7 CFR Part 249 

[FNS–2006–0046] 

RIN 0584–AD35 

Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition 

Program Regulations; Announcement 

of Approval and Compliance Date, 

With Technical Amendment 

AGENCY: Food and Nutrition Service, 

USDA. 

ACTION: Final rule; announcement of 

approval and compliance date, with 

technical amendment. 

SUMMARY: The provisions of the final 

rule entitled Senior Farmers? Market 

Nutrition Program Regulations 

published on December 12, 2006, 

contained information collection 

requirements that required approval by 

the Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB). This document announces the 

approval date of the provisions 

contained in the final rule and amends 

the final rule to include the OMB 

Control Number assigned to the 

information collection burden. 

DATES: Effective date: The technical 

amendment to § 249.27 will become 

effective on March 23, 2007. 

Approval date: The information 

collection requirements of §§ 249.1 

through 249.26 of the rule published in 

the Federal Register on December 12, 

2006 (71 FR 74618), were approved by 

OMB on January 5, 2007. 

Compliance date: Compliance with 

the provisions of the SFMNP Final Rule, 

including the information collection 

requirements, is required as of January 

11, 2007. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Debra Whitford or Donna Hines, 

Supplemental Food Programs Division, 

Food and Nutrition Service, USDA, 

3101 Park Center Drive, Room 528, 

Alexandria, Virginia 22302, (703) 305– 

2746, OR 

Debbie.Whitford@fns.usda.gov, or 

Donna.Hines@fns.usda.gov. 

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 249 

Aging, Community supported 

agriculture programs, Elderly, Farmers, 

Farmers’ markets, Food assistance 

programs, Food donations, Grant 

programs, Nutrition education, Public 

assistance programs, Seniors, Social 

programs. 

■ Accordingly, 7 CFR part 249 is 

amended to read as follows: 

PART 249—SENIOR FARMERS’ 

MARKET NUTRITION PROGRAM 

■ 1. The authority citation for 7 CFR 

part 249 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 3007. 

■ 2. Section 249.27 is added to read as 

follows: 

§ 249.27 OMB Control Number. 

The information collection 

requirements for part 249 have been 

reviewed and approved by the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB). The 

OMB approval number is 0584–0541. 

Dated: March 16, 2007. 

George Braley, 

Acting Administrator, Food and Nutrition 

Service. 

[FR Doc. E7–5330 Filed 3–22–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–30–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Agricultural Marketing Service 

7 CFR Parts 916 and 917 

[Docket No. AMS–FV–06–0189; FV07–916/ 

917–1 FIR] 

Nectarines and Peaches Grown in 

California; Revision of Regulations on 

Production Districts, Committee 

Representation, and Nomination 

Procedures 

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, 

USDA. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: The Department of 

Agriculture (USDA) is adopting, as a 

final rule, without change, an interim 

final rule revising the administrative 

rules and regulations that define 

production districts, allocate committee 

membership, and specify nomination 

procedures for the Nectarine 

Administrative Committee (NAC) and 

the Peach Commodity Committee (PCC) 

(committees). The committees are 

responsible for local administration of 

the Federal marketing orders (orders) for 

fresh nectarines and peaches grown in 

California, respectively. This rule also 

continues in effect the revision to the 

committees’ mailing address. These 

revisions are necessary to bring the 

orders’ administrative rules and 

regulations into conformance with the 

recently amended order provisions. 

DATES: Effective Date: April 23, 2007. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Laurel May, Marketing Specialist, 

Marketing Order Administration 

Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Programs, 

AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence 

Avenue, SW., STOP 0237, Washington, 

DC 20250–0237; Telephone: (202) 720– 

2491, Fax: (202) 720–8938, or E-mail: 

Laurel.May@usda.gov; or Kurt Kimmel, 

Regional Manager, California Marketing 

Field Office, Marketing Order 

Administration Branch, Fruit and 

Vegetable Programs, AMS, USDA, 2202 

Monterey Street, Suite 102B, Fresno, 

California 93721; Telephone (559) 487– 

5901, Fax: (559) 487–5906, or E-mail: 

Kurt.Kimmel@usda.gov. 

Small businesses may request 

information on complying with this 

regulation by contacting Jay Guerber, 

Marketing Order Administration 

Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Programs, 

AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence 

Avenue, SW., STOP 0237, Washington, 

DC 20250–0237; Telephone: (202) 720– 

2491, Fax: (202) 720–8938, or E-mail: 

Jay.Guerber@usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This rule 

is issued under Marketing Order Nos. 

916 and 917, both as amended (7 CFR 

parts 916 and 917), regulating the 

handling of nectarines and peaches 

grown in California, respectively, 

hereinafter referred to as the ‘‘orders.’’ 

The orders are effective under the 

Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act 

of 1937, as amended (7 U.S.C. 601–674), 

hereinafter referred to as the ‘‘Act.’’ 

USDA is issuing this rule in 

conformance with Executive Order 

12866. 

This rule has been reviewed under 

Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice 

Reform. This rule is not intended to 


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13672 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 56 / Friday, March 23, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

have retroactive effect. This rule will 

not preempt any State or local laws, 

regulations, or policies, unless they 

present an irreconcilable conflict with 

this rule. 

The Act provides that administrative 

proceedings must be exhausted before 

parties may file suit in court. Under 

section 608c(15)(A) of the Act, any 

handler subject to an order may file 

with USDA a petition stating that the 

order, any provision of the order, or any 

obligation imposed in connection with 

the order is not in accordance with law 

and request a modification of the order 

or to be exempted therefrom. A handler 

is afforded the opportunity for a hearing 

on the petition. After the hearing, USDA 

would rule on the petition. The Act 

provides that the district court of the 

United States in any district in which 

the handler is an inhabitant, or has his 

or her principal place of business, has 

jurisdiction to review USDA’s ruling on 

the petition, provided an action is filed 

not later than 20 days after the date of 

the entry of the ruling. 

This rule continues in effect the 

action that removed or revised obsolete 

language in the orders’ administrative 

rules and regulations pertaining to the 

alignment of production districts; the 

allocation of committee membership; 

and the nomination processes for NAC, 

Shipper’s Advisory Committee, PCC, 

and Control Committee members. This 

rule also continues in effect to change 

the PCC’s business address by removing 

reference to the Control Committee in 

order to reflect current committee 

operations. These changes are needed to 

bring the orders’ administrative rules 

and regulations into conformity with 

amendments to the orders’ provisions 

recently approved by nectarine and 

peach growers. These changes were 

unanimously recommended by the 

committees at their meetings on August 

31, 2006. 

Production Districts and Committee 

Membership Allocation 

Nectarine Administrative Committee 

Section 916.12 of the nectarine order 

establishes the nectarine production 

districts into which the state of 

California has been divided. Section 

916.20 establishes the size of the NAC 

and the allocation of NAC membership 

to the districts defined in § 916.12. In 

addition, § 916.31 provides authority for 

the NAC to recommend changes to 

district boundaries and to reapportion 

committee representation to reflect 

shifts in production within the state as 

necessary. The changes to district 

boundaries and membership 

reapportionment recommended by the 

NAC were reflected in §§ 916.105 and 

916.107 of the order’s administrative 

rules and regulations. 

A final rule amending §§ 916.12 and 

916.20 of the nectarine order was 

published in the Federal Register on 

July 21, 2006 (71 FR 41345). The 

amendments, which became effective on 

January 1, 2007, redefined the nectarine 

production districts, increased the size 

of the NAC from eight to thirteen 

members, and reallocated committee 

membership among the new districts. 

After January 1, 2007, §§ 916.105 and 

916.107 no longer reflected the district 

boundaries and committee membership 

allocation as defined in the amended 

order. Therefore, the NAC 

recommended removing the obsolete 

sections when the amendments became 

effective. This rule continues in effect 

the action that removed those sections. 

Any subsequent changes to the 

production districts and reallocation of 

committee membership among new 

districts will be accomplished by notice 

and comment rulemaking as 

appropriate. 

Peach Commodity Committee 

Section 917.14 of the peach marketing 

order establishes the peach production 

districts into which the State of 

California has been divided. Section 

917.20 establishes the size of the PCC 

and § 917.22 prescribes the allocation of 

PCC membership to the districts defined 

in § 917.14. Authority is provided in 

§ 917.35 for the PCC to recommend 

changes to district boundaries and to 

reapportion committee representation to 

reflect shifts in production within the 

state as necessary. The changes to 

district boundaries and membership 

reapportionment recommended by the 

PCC are reflected in § 917.120 of the 

order’s administrative rules and 

regulations. 

A final rule amending §§ 917.14 and 

917.22 of the peach order was published 

in the Federal Register on July 21, 2006 

(71 FR 41345). The amendments, which 

became effective on January 1, 2007, 

redefined the peach production districts 

and reallocated committee membership 

among the new districts. After January 

1, 2007, § 917.120 no longer reflected 

the district boundaries and committee 

membership allocation as defined in the 

amended order provisions. Therefore, 

the PCC recommended removing the 

obsolete section when the amendments 

became effective. This rule continues in 

effect the action that removed that 

section. Any subsequent changes to the 

production districts and reallocation of 

committee membership among new 

districts will be accomplished by notice 

and comment rulemaking as 

appropriate. 

Committee Nomination Processes 

Nectarine Administrative Committee 

Section 916.22 of the nectarine 

marketing order specifies nomination 

procedures for members and alternate 

members of the NAC. Authority is 

provided in § 916.30 for the NAC to 

recommend and adopt rules and 

regulations regarding the nominations 

procedures. Furthermore, § 916.37 

establishes the nectarine Shippers’

Advisory Committee and authorizes the 

NAC to prescribe nominations 

procedures for that committee. Section 

916.102 was added to the order’s 

administrative rules and regulations to 

provide specific details regarding the 

nomination meeting procedures for the 

NAC and the Shippers’ Advisory 

Committee. 

A final rule amending § 916.22 was 

published in the Federal Register on 

July 21, 2006. The amendment allows 

the NAC to conduct nominations 

through mail balloting. The final rule 

also removed § 916.37 regarding the 

Shippers’ Advisory Committee, which 

has not been active for over 30 years and 

is no longer a necessary component of 

the nectarine marketing program. These 

changes became effective on January 1, 

2007. 

After January 1, 2007, § 916.102 was 

no longer consistent with the amended 

NAC nomination process, and 

references to the Shippers’ Advisory 

Committee were obsolete. Therefore, the 

NAC recommended that the section be 

removed from the nectarine order’s 

administrative rules and regulations. 

This rule continues the action that 

removed § 916.102. 

Peach Commodity Committee 

Section 917.24 of the peach marketing 

order specifies the nomination 

procedures for members and alternate 

members of the PCC. Authority is 

provided in § 917.35 for the PCC to 

recommend and adopt rules and 

regulations regarding the nomination 

procedures. Section 917.119 was added 

to the order’s administrative rules and 

regulations to provide specific details 

regarding the nomination meeting 

procedures for the PCC and the Pear 

Commodity Committee. Order 

provisions pertaining to the Pear 

Commodity Committee have been 

suspended since 1994, and the Pear 

Commodity Committee is not currently 

active. 

A final rule published in the Federal 

Register on July 21, 2006, amended 

§ 917.24 to allow the PCC to conduct 


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nominations through mail balloting. The 

amendment became effective on January 

1, 2007. After that date, § 917.119, 

which contains language pertaining to 

the nomination processes for both the 

Peach and Pear Commodity Committees, 

is inconsistent with the amendments 

that allow the PCC to conduct 

nominations through mail balloting. 

Therefore, the PCC recommended 

revising the section to specify which 

language therein pertains to each 

commodity committee’s nomination 

procedures. This rule continues in effect 

the action that revises § 917.119 to 

include a new paragraph that specifies 

which procedures apply to both the 

Peach and Pear Commodity Committees, 

and which apply only to Pears. 

Committee Business Address 

The Control Committee, doing 

business as the California Tree Fruit 

Agreement (CTFA), has historically 

functioned as the joint administrative 

body for the commodity committees 

under Part 917. The Control Committee, 

or CTFA, has been the designated 

recipient of all the handlers’ reports and 

other business communications. Section 

917.110 provided the business address 

for the Control Committee. 

The final rule published in the 

Federal Register on July 21, 2006, 

mentioned above, included 

amendments to § 917.18 that allow the 

duties of the Control Committee to shift 

to the remaining commodity committee 

when order provisions pertaining to one 

commodity committee are terminated or 

suspended. The provisions pertaining to 

the Pear Commodity Committee have 

been suspended since 1994. Therefore, 

when the amendments became effective 

on January 1, 2007, the duties of the 

Control Committee shifted to the PCC, 

which will continue to conduct 

business as the CTFA. In order to 

conform to the amended order 

provisions, the PCC recommended 

revising the address listed in § 917.110 

by eliminating the name of the Control 

Committee from the CTFA’s business 

address. This rule continues in effect to 

make that conforming change. 

Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis 

Pursuant to requirements set forth in 

the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), the 

Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) 

has considered the economic impact of 

this action on small entities. 

Accordingly, AMS has prepared this 

final regulatory flexibility analysis. 

The purpose of the RFA is to fit 

regulatory actions to the scale of 

business subject to such actions in order 

that small businesses will not be unduly 

or disproportionately burdened. 

Marketing orders issued pursuant to the 

Act, and rules issued thereunder, are 

unique in that they are brought about 

through group action of essentially 

small entities acting on their own 

behalf. Thus, both statutes have small 

entity orientation and compatibility. 

There are approximately 150 

California nectarine and peach handlers 

subject to regulation under the orders 

and about 800 growers of these fruits in 

the regulated area. Small agricultural 

service firms, which include handlers, 

are defined by the Small Business 

Administration (13 CFR 121.201) as 

those having annual receipts of less than 

$6,500,000. Small agricultural growers 

are defined as those having annual 

receipts of less than $750,000. A 

majority of these handlers and growers 

may be classified as small entities. 

The committees’ staff has estimated 

that there are fewer than 26 handlers in 

the industry who could be defined as 

other than small entities. For the 2005 

season, the committees’ staff estimated 

that the average handler price received 

was $10.00 per container or container 

equivalent of nectarines or peaches. A 

handler would have to ship at least 

650,000 containers to have annual 

receipts of $6,500,000. Given data on 

shipments maintained by the 

committees’ staff and the average 

handler price received during the 2005 

season, the committees’ staff estimates 

that small handlers represent 

approximately 86 percent of all the 

handlers within the industry. 

The committees’ staff has also 

estimated that fewer than 10 percent of 

the growers in the industry could be 

defined as other than small entities. For 

the 2005 season, the committees’ staff 

estimated the average grower price 

received was $5.25 per container or 

container equivalent for nectarines and 

peaches. A grower would have to 

produce at least 142,858 containers of 

nectarines and peaches to have annual 

receipts of $750,000. Given data 

maintained by the committees’ staff and 

the average grower price received 

during the 2005 season, the committees’

staff estimates that small growers 

represent more than 90 percent of the 

growers within the industry. 

With an average grower price of $5.25 

per container or container equivalent, 

and a combined packout of nectarines 

and peaches of approximately 

38,776,500 containers, the value of the 

2005 packout is estimated to be 

$203,576,600. Dividing this total 

estimated grower revenue figure by the 

estimated number of growers (800) 

yields an average revenue per grower of 

about $254,471 from the sales of 

peaches and nectarines. 

Amendments to the orders were 

recently approved by nectarine and 

peach growers. The amendments were 

implemented in a final rule that was 

published in the Federal Register on 

July 21, 2006, and most became effective 

on January 1, 2007. 

This rule continues in effect the 

action that removed or revised certain 

sections of the orders’ administrative 

rules and regulations to conform to the 

amended order provisions. 

Sections 916.105 and 916.107 of the 

nectarine order, and 917.120 of the 

peach order, which specify production 

district boundaries and committee 

membership allocations, are no longer 

applicable because the orders’

provisions have been updated to 

include revised production districts and 

committee member apportionment. 

These obsolete sections have been 

removed. Any subsequent changes to 

the production districts and reallocation 

of committee membership among new 

districts will be accomplished by notice 

and comment rulemaking as 

appropriate. 

Section 916.102 of the nectarine 

marketing order, which specifies 

nomination meeting procedures for the 

NAC and the Shippers’ Advisory 

Committee, has been removed because 

the nectarine order has been amended to 

allow mail balloting for NAC 

membership, and because the Shippers’

Advisory Committee has been 

eliminated. Section 917.119 of the 

peach marketing order, which specifies 

nomination meeting procedures for the 

PCC and Pear Commodity Committee, 

has been revised because the order 

provisions pertaining to the PCC have 

been amended to allow mail balloting. 

A new paragraph was added to that 

section to clarify which procedures 

pertain to both the Peach and Pear 

Commodity Committees, and which 

pertain only to the Pear Commodity 

Committee. 

Finally, § 917.110 of the peach 

marketing order was revised by 

removing the Control Committee’s name 

from the address to which industry 

reports and business correspondence 

should be addressed to conform with 

recent amendments to the order. 

These changes are necessary to bring 

the orders’ rules and regulations into 

conformance with the amended order 

provisions. 

This rule will not impose any 

additional reporting or recordkeeping 

requirements on either small or large 

handlers. As with all Federal marketing 

order programs, reports and forms are 

periodically reviewed to reduce 

information requirements and 

duplication by industry and public 


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13674 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 56 / Friday, March 23, 2007 / Rules and Regulations 

sector agencies. In addition, as noted in 

the initial regulatory flexibility analysis, 

USDA has not identified any relevant 

Federal rules that duplicate, overlap, or 

conflict with this rule. 

Further, the committees’ meetings 

were widely publicized throughout the 

nectarine and peach industries and all 

interested persons were invited to 

attend the meetings and participate in 

committee deliberations. Like all 

committee meetings, the August 31, 

2006, meetings were public meetings 

and all entities, both large and small, 

were able to express their views on 

these issues. 

An interim final rule concerning this 

action was published in the Federal 

Register on December 28, 2006. The rule 

was posted on CTFA’s website. In 

addition, the rule was made available 

through the Internet by USDA and the 

Office of the Federal Register. That rule 

provided for a 60-day comment period, 

which ended on February 26, 2007. One 

comment supporting the actions was 

received. The commenter stated that the 

actions accurately reflected the 

industries’ desire to bring the orders’

rules and regulations into conformance 

with the amended order provisions. 

The AMS is committed to complying 

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. 

A small business guide on complying 

with fruit, vegetable, and specialty crop 

marketing agreements and orders may 

be viewed at the following Web site: 

http://www.ams.usda.gov/fv/moab.html. 

Any questions about the compliance 

guide should be sent to Jay Guerber at 

the previously mentioned address in the 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT

section. 

After consideration of all relevant 

matters presented, the information and 

recommendations submitted by the 

committees, and other information, it is 

found that finalizing the interim final 

rule, without change, as published in 

the Federal Register (71 FR 78038, 

December 28, 2006), will tend to 

effectuate the declared policy of the Act. 

List of Subjects 

7 CFR Part 916 

Marketing agreements, Nectarines, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

7 CFR Part 917 

Marketing agreements, Peaches, Pears, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

PART 916—NECTARINES GROWN IN 

CALIFORNIA 

PART 917—FRESH PEARS AND 

PEACHES GROWN IN CALIFORNIA 

■ Accordingly, the interim final rule 

amending 7 CFR parts 916 and 917, 

which was published at 71 FR 78038 on 

December 28, 2006, is adopted as a final 

rule without change. 

Dated: March 19, 2007. 

Lloyd C. Day, 

Administrator, Agricultural Marketing 

Service. 

[FR Doc. E7–5311 Filed 3–22–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Agricultural Marketing Service 

7 CFR Part 930 

[Docket No. AMS–FV–06–0187; FV07–930–

1 FR] 

Tart Cherries Grown in the States of 

Michigan, et al.; Final Free and 

Restricted Percentages for the 2006–

2007 Crop Year for Tart Cherries 

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, 

USDA. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: This rule establishes final free 

and restricted percentages for the 2006–

2007 crop year. The percentages are 55 

percent free and 45 percent restricted 

and will establish the proportion of 

cherries from the 2006 crop which may 

be handled in commercial outlets. The 

percentages are intended to stabilize 

supplies and prices, and strengthen 

market conditions. The percentages 

were recommended by the Cherry 

Industry Administrative Board (Board), 

the body that locally administers the 

marketing order. The marketing order 

regulates the handling of tart cherries 

grown in the States of Michigan, New 

York, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Utah, 

Washington, and Wisconsin. 

DATES: Effective Date: March 26, 2007. 

This final rule applies to all 2006–2007 

crop year restricted cherries until they 

are properly disposed of in accordance 

with marketing order requirements. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Patricia A. Petrella or Kenneth G. 

Johnson, Marketing Order 

Administration Branch, Fruit and 

Vegetable Programs, AMS, USDA, Unit 

155, 4700 River Road, Riverdale, MD 

20737; Telephone: (301) 734–5243, or 

Fax: (301) 734–5275, or E-mail at 

Patricia.Petrella@usda.gov or 

Kenneth.Johnson@usda.gov. 

Small businesses may request 

information on complying with this 

regulation, or obtain a guide on 

complying with fruit, vegetable, and 

specialty crop marketing agreements 

and orders by contacting Jay Guerber, 

Marketing Order Administration 

Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Programs, 

AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence 

Avenue, SW., STOP 0237, Washington, 

DC 20250–0237; Telephone: (202) 720–

2491, Fax: (202) 720–8938, or E-mail: 

Jay.Guerber@usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This final 

rule is issued under Marketing 

Agreement and Order No. 930 (7 CFR 

part 930), regulating the handling of tart 

cherries produced in the States of 

Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, 

Oregon, Utah, Washington, and 

Wisconsin, hereinafter referred to as the 

‘‘order.’’ The order is effective under the 

Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act 

of 1937, as amended (7 U.S.C. 601–674), 

hereinafter referred to as the ‘‘Act.’’

The Department of Agriculture 

(Department) is issuing this rule in 

conformance with Executive Order 

12866. 

This final rule has been reviewed 

under Executive Order 12988, Civil 

Justice Reform. Under the marketing 

order provisions now in effect, final free 

and restricted percentages may be 

established for tart cherries handled by 

handlers during the crop year. This rule 

establishes final free and restricted 

percentages for tart cherries for the 

2006–2007 crop year, beginning July 1, 

2006, through June 30, 2007. This rule 

will not preempt any State or local laws, 

regulations, or policies, unless they 

present an irreconcilable conflict with 

this rule. 

The Act provides that administrative 

proceedings must be exhausted before 

parties may file suit in court. Under 

section 608c(15)(A) of the Act, any 

handler subject to an order may file 

with the Secretary a petition stating that 

the order, any provision of the order, or 

any obligation imposed in connection 

with the order is not in accordance with 

law and request a modification of the 

order or to be exempt therefrom. Such 

handler is afforded the opportunity for 

a hearing on the petition. After the 

hearing, the Secretary would rule on the 

petition. The Act provides that the 

district court of the United States in any 

district in which the handler is an 

inhabitant, or has his or her principal 

place of business, has jurisdiction in 

equity to review the Secretary’s ruling 

on the petition, provided an action is 

filed not later than 20 days after the date 

of the entry of the ruling. 


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