Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 130 / Thursday, July 8, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 39135 

Section of OMB guidance 

Section in this 

part where 

supplemented 

What the supplementation clarifies 

(3) 2 CFR 182.500 ................... § 3186.500 Who in the IMLS is authorized to determine that a recipient other than an individual is in violation of the requirements of 2 CFR part 182, as implemented by this part. 

(4) 2 CFR 182.505 ................... § 3186.505 Who in the IMLS is authorized to determine that a recipient who is an individual is in violation of the requirements of 2 CFR part 182, as implemented by this part. 

(c) Sections of the OMB guidance that 

this part does not supplement. For any 

section of OMB guidance in Subparts A 

through F of 2 CFR part 182 that is not 

listed in paragraph (b) of this section, 

IMLS policies and procedures are the 

same as those in the OMB guidance. 

Subpart A—Purpose and Coverage 

[Reserved] 

Subpart B—Requirements for 

Recipients Other Than Individuals 

§ 3186.225 Whom in the IMLS does a 

recipient other than an individual notify 

about a criminal drug conviction? 

A recipient other than an individual 

that is required under 2 CFR 182.225(a) 

to notify Federal agencies about an 

employee’s conviction for a criminal 

drug offense must notify each IMLS 

office from which it currently has an 

award. 

Subpart C—Requirements for 

Recipients Who Are Individuals 

§ 3186.300 Whom in the IMLS does a 

recipient who is an individual notify about 

a criminal drug conviction? 

A recipient who is an individual and 

is required under 2 CFR 182.300(b) to 

notify Federal agencies about a 

conviction for a criminal drug offense 

must notify each IMLS office from 

which it currently has an award. 

Subpart D—Responsibilities of Agency 

Awarding Officials 

§ 3186.400 What method do I use as an 

agency awarding official to obtain a 

recipient’s agreement to comply with the 

OMB guidance? 

To obtain a recipient’s agreement to 

comply with applicable requirements in 

the OMB guidance at 2 CFR part 182, 

you must include the following term or 

condition in the award: 

Drug-free workplace. You as the 

recipient must comply with drug-free 

workplace requirements in Subpart B 

(or Subpart C, if the recipient is an 

individual) of 2 CFR part 3186, which 

adopts the Governmentwide 

implementation (2 CFR part 182) of sec. 

5152–5158 of the Drug-Free Workplace 

Act of 1988 (Pub. L. 100–690, Title V, 

Subtitle D; 41 U.S.C. 701–707). 

Subpart E—Violations of this Part and 

Consequences 

§ 3186.500 Who in the IMLS determines 

that a recipient other than an individual 

violated the requirements of this part? 

The IMLS Chief Financial Officer is 

the official authorized to make the 

determination under 2 CFR 182.500. 

§ 3186.505 Who in the IMLS determines 

that a recipient who is an individual violated 

the requirements of this part? 

The IMLS Chief Financial Officer is 

the official authorized to make the 

determination under 2 CFR 182.505. 

Title 45—Public Welfare 

Chapter XI—National Foundation on the 

Arts and the Humanities 

■ 2. Remove Part 1186. 

Calvin D. Trowbridge III, 

Deputy General Counsel. 

[FR Doc. 2010–15395 Filed 7–7–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 7036–01–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Commodity Credit Corporation 

7 CFR Part 1455 

RIN 0560–AH98 

Voluntary Public Access and Habitat 

Incentive Program 

AGENCY: Farm Service Agency and 

Commodity Credit Corporation, USDA. 

ACTION: Interim rule. 

SUMMARY: This rule establishes the 

Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) 

regulations for the Voluntary Public 

Access and Habitat Incentive Program 

(VPA–HIP). This is a new program 

authorized by the Food, Conservation, 

and Energy Act of 2008 (the 2008 Farm 

Bill). The purpose of VPA–HIP is to 

provide grants to State and tribal 

governments to encourage owners and 

operators of privately-held farm, ranch, 

and forest land to voluntarily make that 

land available for access by the public 

for wildlife-dependent recreation, 

including hunting, fishing, and other 

compatible recreation and to improve 

fish and wildlife habitat on their land, 

under programs administered by State 

or tribal governments. 

DATES: Effective Date: This interim rule 

is effective July 8, 2010. 

Comment Date: We will consider 

comments that we receive by September 

7, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: We invite you to submit 

comments on this interim rule. In your 

comment, include the volume, date, and 

page number of this issue of the Federal 

Register. You may submit comments by 

any of the following methods, however, 

we strongly encourage using the first 

address to submit your comment 

through http://www.regulations.gov: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

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

online instructions for submitting 

comments. 

• Mail: Director, Conservation and 

Environmental Programs Division 

(CEPD), U.S. Department of Agriculture 

(USDA) FSA CEPD, STOP 0513, 1400 

Independence Avenue, SW., 

Washington, DC 20250–0513. 

• Hand Delivery or Courier: Deliver 

comments to the above address. 

Comments may be inspected at the 

mail address listed above between 8 

a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through 

Friday, except holidays. A copy of this 

interim rule is available through the 

Farm Service Agency (FSA) home page 

at http://www.fsa.usda.gov/. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Robert Stephenson, Director, CEPD; 

telephone 202–720–6221; e-mail: 

cepdmail@wdc.usda.gov. Persons with 

disabilities who require alternative 

means for communication (Braille, large 

print, audiotape, etc.) should contact the 

USDA Target Center at 202–720–2600 

(voice and TDD). 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

Section 2606 (16 U.S.C. 3839bb–5) of 

the 2008 Farm Bill (Pub. L. 110–246) 

authorizes a new VPA–HIP. VPA–HIP 

provides a new opportunity for State 

and tribal governments to apply for 

grants to encourage owners and 

operators of privately-held farm, ranch, 

and forest land to voluntarily make that 

land available for access by the public 

for wildlife-dependent recreation, 

including hunting, fishing, and other 


srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with RULES
39136 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 130 / Thursday, July 8, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 

compatible recreation and to improve 

fish and wildlife habitat on their land 

under programs administered by State 

or tribal governments. 

Only State and tribal governments are 

eligible for VPA–HIP. Grants will be 

awarded through a competitive Request 

for Applications (RFA) process. State 

and tribal governments may propose to 

use VPA–HIP grant funding to expand 

existing public access programs or 

create new public access programs, or 

provide incentives to improve habitat 

on enrolled program lands. As specified 

in the 2008 Farm Bill, funding priority 

will be given to applications that will 

use the grant money in a public access 

program to address the following 

program objectives: 

(1) Maximize participation by 

landowners; 

(2) Ensure that land enrolled in the 

program has appropriate wildlife 

habitat; 

(3) Provide incentives to strengthen 

wildlife habitat improvement efforts on 

Conservation Reserve Enhancement 

Program (CREP) land; 

(4) Supplement funding and services 

from other Federal, State, tribal 

government, or private resources that is 

provided in the form of cash or in-kind 

services; and 

(5) Provide information to the public 

about the location of public access land. 

CCC will evaluate how applications 

enhance fish and wildlife habitat on 

lands and waters made available for 

public access and use additional 

evaluation criteria, as specified in this 

rule and in the RFA, to select the 

applications that best support these 

program goals. The 2008 Farm Bill 

authorizes $50 million for VPA–HIP 

through 2012. We anticipate that more 

applications will be received than 

available funding, so this will be a 

competitive grant program. 

Currently, 26 States have public 

access programs for hunting, fishing, 

and other related activities. These 

programs provide rental payments and 

other incentives, such as technical or 

conservation services to landowners 

who allow the public to hunt, fish or 

otherwise appropriately recreate on 

their land. An unknown number of 

tribal governments have similar public 

access programs. The majority of the 

existing programs have limited scope 

and budgets; most existing programs 

have an annual budget of under a 

million dollars per year. The goals of 

these existing programs include 

providing access for wildlife-associated 

recreation, wildlife management, 

helping local economies that depend on 

revenue from hunters, and encouraging 

conservation. The funding provided by 

VPA–HIP will help State and tribal 

governments address many issues that 

can greatly increase access and 

recreational experiences. Grant 

recipients will be able to use the 

funding to provide higher rental 

payments, provide technical and 

conservation services to landowners, 

and increase acreage enrolled for public 

access while fulfilling grant 

requirements under VPA–HIP. VPA–HIP 

will specifically give priority to 

applications that will use the funds to 

maximize landowner participation and 

public use, and make information about 

public access land widely available. 

Provisions requiring appropriate 

wildlife habitat will address concerns 

about limited wildlife population 

associated with poor or inadequate 

wildlife habitat. Nothing in VPA–HIP or 

regulation preempts liability laws that 

may apply to activities on any property 

related to grants made in this program. 

Terms Used in This Rule 

The 2008 Farm Bill uses the term 

‘‘farm, ranch, or forest land’’ and only 

provides that the grants allowed by 

VPA–HIP be directed at access to 

‘‘privately-held’’ lands. In implementing 

VPA–HIP, for consistency with other 

USDA programs, the ‘‘farmland’’ 

definition in this rule draws on the 

definition used in general for Farm 

Programs that is in 7 CFR 718.2 and 

which basically encompasses all land 

on any property that includes cropland 

including forest land used for the 

production of timber. There is no need 

for a separate definition for ‘‘ranch land’’ 

and hence the ‘‘ranch land’’ definition 

will simply refer back to the ‘‘farmland’’ 

definition. In this rule, the term ‘‘forest 

land’’ is given the same meaning that the 

USDA Forest Service uses in its Forest 

Inventory and Analysis Program. This 

definition is documented in the Forest 

Service General Technical Report WO– 

78, ‘‘Forest Resources of the United 

States, 2007.’’ We are adding the 

definition into 7 CFR 1455.2(b). These 

definitions should be broad enough to 

cover within them all properties that are 

within the intended scope of the 2008 

Farm Bill and of this rule. In turn, this 

rule defines ‘‘privately-held’’ land to 

mean land owned or operated by an 

individual or entity that is not a 

government or Tribe or subdivision or 

agency of a government or Tribe. For 

example, State and tribal governments 

cannot use funding from VPA–HIP to 

encourage public access on local 

government land, State-owned forest 

land, or land owned by a public 

university. 

The terms ‘‘State’’ and ‘‘State 

government’’ as used in this rule mean 

any State or local government, 

including, but not limited to State, city, 

town, or county government, State 

Universities, and other units of State 

government. This is consistent with the 

way the term ‘‘State government’’ is used 

in other CCC programs. 

The term ‘‘tribal government’’ refers to 

Federally-recognized tribes as defined 

in section 4(e) of the Indian SelfDetermination and Education 

Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b(e)). This 

definition is consistent with other CCC 

and FSA regulations. 

The term ‘‘wildlife-dependent 

recreation’’ refers to activities such as 

hunting, fishing, wildlife observation, 

photography, and environmental 

education and interpretation. 

Eligibility, Application Process 

Only State and tribal governments 

may apply for grants under VPA–HIP. 

On behalf of CCC, FSA will publish 

periodic VPA–HIP RFA’s via http:// 

www.grants.gov. Applications will be 

evaluated and selections made using the 

criteria specified in this rule and in the 

RFA. 

The result of a successful application 

will be a grant for up to 3 years, 

consistent with the time limits in the 

2008 Farm Bill and the terms of the 

grant. Successful applicants will be 

required to sign a grant agreement with 

CCC. The grant agreement will include 

reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements that are consistent with 

other FSA and CCC programs. Under the 

2008 Farm Bill CCC is, to the maximum 

extent practicable, to make $50 million 

of CCC funds available under VPA–HIP 

through the 2012 fiscal year (which 

ends in September 30, 2012). This is 

not, however, an entitlement program, 

and it is possible that not all of the 

funds will be expended should there not 

be sufficient desirable applications 

offered. All projects are subject to the 

approval of CCC and the regulation 

reserves CCC’s right to reject any and all 

projects for any reason deemed 

sufficient to the agency. 

Application Selection Criteria 

As discussed earlier, the 2008 Farm 

Bill requires that CCC give priority to 

applications that address five program 

objectives. These program objectives 

were used to develop the criteria that 

will be used to evaluate applications 

and select grant recipients. This section 

describes those evaluation criteria. 

The first program objective required 

by the 2008 Farm Bill is that CCC give 

priority to applications that ‘‘maximize 

participation by offering a program the 

terms of which are likely to meet with 

widespread acceptance among 


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landowners.’’ Maximizing voluntary 

participation and achieving widespread 

acceptance can include activities and 

performance goals which may include 

but are not limited to: 

• Increasing the number of acres 

made available for access by the public, 

• Increasing the number of acres of 

appropriate fish and wildlife habitat, 

• Increasing the number of 

landowners participating in the in the 

State and tribal government programs. 

Measuring or assessing impact of 

program delivery can be done by 

activities such as participation surveys, 

the number of acres enrolled, and the 

amount and nature of inquiry 

correspondence. A successful 

application should describe how the 

program will address maintaining and 

enhancing wildlife habitat, any foreseen 

enrollment barriers, as well as 

describing any financial incentives the 

program may provide to landowners. As 

discussed earlier, the landowners 

incentivized by this program must be 

private land owners. Incentives may 

include, but are not limited to 

compensation for public access to land, 

and technical and conservation services 

provided. 

A second program objective required 

by the 2008 Farm Bill that will be used 

as an evaluation criterion is ‘‘to ensure 

that the land enrolled under the State or 

tribal government program has 

appropriate wildlife habitat.’’ State and 

tribal governments with existing 

wildlife-dependent public access 

programs such as walk-in hunting, open 

fields, bird watching access, or similar 

programs must ensure that land enrolled 

in these programs have appropriate 

habitat for the wildlife. The application 

should describe how the grantee will 

ensure that the habitat for the wildlife 

on land already enrolled in the program 

will be maintained throughout the 

duration of the grant. State and tribal 

governments that are initiating new 

wildlife-dependent public access 

programs should demonstrate that they 

have the expertise to ensure that they 

can successfully carry out the objectives 

of VPA–HIP. 

State and Tribal, as applicable, 

Wildlife Action Plans may help States 

and Tribes to identify likely 

opportunities. Congress charged each 

State with developing a Statewide 

wildlife action plan to make the best use 

of the Federal funds provided through 

certain Federal programs. These plans 

should provide vital information to help 

conserve wildlife and vital natural areas 

before they become more rare and more 

costly to protect. State fish and wildlife 

agencies developed these strategic 

action plans by working with a broad 

array of partners, including scientists, 

sportsmen, conservationists and 

members of the community. 

The wildlife action plans were 

required to assess the condition of each 

State’s wildlife and habitats, identify the 

problems they face, and outline the 

actions that are needed to be conserve 

them over the long term. The wildlife 

action plans identify a variety of actions 

aimed at preventing wildlife from 

declining to the point of becoming 

endangered. By focusing on conserving 

the natural lands and clean waters that 

provide habitat for wildlife, the plans 

have important benefits for wildlife and 

people. 

In addition to specific conservation 

projects and actions, the plans describe 

many ways we can educate the public 

and private landowners about effective 

conservation practices. Finally, the 

plans also identify the information 

needed to improve knowledge about 

what kinds of wildlife are in trouble so 

we can decide what action to take. 

A third program objective required by 

the 2008 Farm Bill that will be used as 

an evaluation criteria is ‘‘to strengthen 

wildlife habitat improvement efforts’’ on 

land enrolled in CREP. CREP is a CCC 

program that supports the Conservation 

Reserve Program (CRP) in some States 

with additional funding for specific 

environmental activities. Under CREP, 

CCC enters into an agreement with State 

officials who commit financial and 

other resources to target areas of 

important environmental need. 

Currently, 31 States have CREP 

agreements with CCC. VPA–HIP 

applications that explain in detail how 

their application will strengthen 

wildlife habitat improvement efforts on 

land enrolled according to a CREP 

agreement will, all else being equal, 

receive priority over applications that 

do not provide such detailed 

explanation where CREP agreements are 

in place. States and Tribes without 

CREP agreements will not be able to 

address this objective, but will still be 

eligible to apply for and receive grants 

based on other applicable evaluation 

criteria. 

State and tribal governments that 

choose to integrate CREP with public 

access should describe how increased 

public access for the purposes of 

wildlife dependent recreation will 

benefit both VPA–HIP and CREP. 

Integrations of conservation activities 

with hunting, fishing, and wildlife 

viewing may allow for land 

management that balances game species 

population growth and fosters a higher 

quality of habitat conditions. State and 

tribal governments should cite the 

specific activities and conservation 

practices that they intend to target, such 

as increasing and improving CREP 

wildlife food plots, nesting areas, 

shallow water areas for wildlife, and 

wildlife habitat corridors. 

Activities and practices described in 

the application should provide support 

for the healthy development and 

maintenance of appropriate wildlife 

habitat. State or tribal governments must 

ensure that their VPA–HIP application 

is consistent with the purposes and 

provisions of CRP and CREP when the 

enrolled acres coincide. State or tribal 

governments that consider using VPA– 

HIP funding as a ‘‘cost-share’’ as opposed 

to an incentive or other form of 

payment, need to be aware that the CRP 

legislative authority and the 

implementing regulations in 7 CFR 

1410.40 require that a CRP participant 

refund USDA’s CRP or CREP cost-share 

assistance if it receives any other 

Federal cost-share assistance. Funding 

provided through VPA–HIP as a costshare would, for the purposes of 7 CFR 

1410.40, be considered to be such other 

Federal cost-share assistance. 

A fourth program objective required 

by the 2008 Farm Bill that will be used 

as an evaluation criterion is the extent 

to which the proposed program will 

‘‘use additional Federal, State, tribal 

government, or private resources in 

carrying out the program.’’ The 

application should specify how those 

resources will be used for various 

activities and planning that strengthen 

the feasibility of program success and 

help achieve intended benefits. Many 

programs have similar goals and 

intended benefits that complement the 

VPA–HIP goals. Applications that 

include combining VPA–HIP funds with 

other program resources that have 

similar goals, such as State public 

access programs, Natural Resource 

Conservation Service’s Wildlife Habitat 

Incentive Program, wildlife and 

conservation non-government 

organizations, will, all else being equal, 

be given a priority over applications that 

do not. 

These other program resources may be 

either monetary or in-kind services. Inkind services can aid program delivery 

and planning and must be quantified in 

units such as hours of staff time (labor 

value), office space (rental value), 

technical or conservation services 

(service value), equipment (product 

value), or the like. 

For State and tribal governments that 

choose to include additional State or 

local funds in their application, 

commitments must be documented by 

an appropriate authority that will be 

supplying those resources. 


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39138 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 130 / Thursday, July 8, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 

The fifth program objective required 

by the 2008 Farm Bill that will be used 

as an evaluation criterion is ‘‘to make 

available to the public the location of 

land enrolled.’’ A common barrier to 

participation in existing State public 

access programs is a lack of detailed 

information on where such land is and 

how to legally access it. For State and 

Tribal VPA–HIP programs, public 

disclosure of private lands enrolled in 

VPA–HIP may be conveyed through a 

variety of media including, but not 

limited to, Web site listings, printed 

listings or map books, online access 

maps, and recorded telephone 

information. 

Process for Evaluation of Applications 

and Award of Grants 

After State and tribal governments 

submit applications, FSA, on behalf of 

CCC, will conduct an initial screening of 

all applications to determine whether 

the applicant is eligible and whether the 

application is complete and sufficiently 

responsive to the requirements specified 

in the RFA so as to allow for an 

informed review. Incomplete 

applications will not be evaluated 

further. CCC will notify applicants of 

the status of their initial screening, if 

time allows. Applicants may revise their 

applications and re-submit them prior to 

the published deadline if there is 

sufficient time to do so. FSA will 

appoint an inter-agency review panel to 

evaluate the applications. State and 

tribal government applications will be 

considered using the same selection 

criteria. 

If the amount requested in the 

applications exceeds the available 

funding, FSA may use additional 

criteria for selection which could 

include, but not be limited to: 

• The distribution of funds between 

State and tribal governments; 

• The distribution of funds between 

new programs and existing programs; 

and 

• The need to target funding to 

address specific types of wildlife 

dependent recreation and public access. 

We expect interest in VPA–HIP to 

exceed the available funding. Through 

VPA–HIP, grants to any individual State 

or Tribe will be no more than $2 million 

per year and no less than $75,000 per 

year. 

We considered allocating the funding 

equally across all eligible applicants, or 

providing funding only to applicants 

that already have public access 

programs, but decided that it would be 

more effective to have a fully 

competitive RFA process. Since the 

2008 Farm Bill requires that we give 

‘‘priority’’ to applicants that address 

certain VPA–HIP goals, we decided that 

providing funding on a competitive 

basis to applicants that best meet those 

objectives would be appropriate. 

The evaluation criteria will be 

carefully constructed to fairly consider 

expected benefits from both existing and 

new programs so as not to favor existing 

programs over applications for new 

programs. For example, an existing 

program might score high on a 

feasibility criterion and have specific 

methods in place to demonstrate 

wildlife habitat monitoring, but a new 

program might be able to demonstrate 

greater expected benefits, since that 

program would be starting from a 

baseline of zero benefits. 

Responsibilities of Participants 

Successful applicants will be required 

to sign an agreement with CCC and 

provide detailed budget and schedule 

information. The agreement will require 

periodic financial and program 

achievement reports. 

The agreement will also require 

compliance with other USDA 

regulations that apply to grants, 

including civil rights, restrictions on 

lobbying, and drug-free workplace. 

Grantees will be required to comply 

with audit requirements in 7 CFR part 

3052. 

During the term of the grant, the 

grantee will be required to obtain prior 

approval for any changes to the scope, 

objectives, or funding allocation of the 

approved agreement. Failure to obtain 

prior approval of such changes may be 

considered a violation and in such case 

the grantee may be required to return all 

grant funds. Funds cannot be used to 

pay for buildings or fixed equipment. 

The list of prohibited grant funding uses 

is specified in the rule and will be 

specified in the agreement. 

Reductions for Inconsistent Migratory 

Bird Hunting Opening Dates 

The 2008 Farm Bill requires that, 

before a grant may be awarded, FSA 

examine migratory bird hunting season 

dates for an applicant who is a State 

government. If a State government has 

different opening dates for migratory 

bird hunting for residents versus nonresidents, the grant amount will be 

reduced by 25 percent. Inconsistent 

migratory bird hunting opening dates 

will not be an evaluation factor in 

selecting applications; it will be taken 

into account only after applications are 

selected. This reduction will not be 

applied to applications made by tribal 

governments, as specified in the 2008 

Farm Bill. 

This reduction will apply to all 

applications by State governments, even 

for applications when the purpose of the 

grant is not related to migratory bird 

hunting in a State. Opening dates must 

remain consistent throughout the term 

of the grant. If opening dates for 

migratory bird hunting are changed by 

a State during the term of the grant such 

that the dates are inconsistent for 

residents and non-residents, 25 percent 

of the grant funding must be refunded. 

Relationship to Other Laws 

The 2008 Farm Bill provides that 

VPA–HIP does not preempt a State or 

tribal government law including any 

State or tribal liability law. 

The government-wide debarment and 

suspension (non procurement) 

provisions of the Federal Acquisition 

Regulations (FAR), as adopted in 7 CFR 

3017, will apply only to contractors and 

subcontractors. If a grantee chooses to 

use grant awards to contract or subcontract with a person or company, then 

that person or company must not have 

been suspended or debarred under the 

FAR prior to or during contracting. 

Miscellaneous 

The appeals provisions in 7 CFR parts 

11 and 780 will apply to VPA–HIP. 

Highly erodible land and wetland 

conservation provisions in 7 CFR part 

12 will apply to VPA–HIP. Any State or 

tribal government that violates highly 

erodible land and wetland conservation 

provisions will be ineligible for program 

benefits; if it is determined after a 

payment is issued for VPA–HIP that a 

violation occurred, then repayment of 

the benefit plus interest would be 

required. 

Outreach to Tribal Governments 

As part of implementing VPA–HIP, 

FSA will conduct outreach efforts to 

inform the Tribal Governments of 

federally-recognized tribes about VPA– 

HIP. Two primary mechanisms for 

initiating the outreach efforts will 

include the National Congress of 

American Indians (NCAI) and the 

contact lists of federally recognized 

tribes. 

Notice and Comment 

CCC is not required by 5 U.S.C. 553 

or any other provision of law to publish 

a notice of proposed rulemaking with 

respect to the subject matter of this rule. 

CCC is authorized by section 2904 of the 

2008 Farm Bill to issue an interim rule 

effective on publication with an 

opportunity for comment. 

Executive Order 12866 

This rule has been determined to be 

significant and was reviewed by the 

Office of Management and Budget 


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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 130 / Thursday, July 8, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 39139 

(OMB) under Executive Order 12866. 

The cost benefit analysis is summarized 

below and is available from the contact 

information listed above. 

Summary of Economic Impacts 

The 2008 Farm Bill provides CCC 

funds through VPA–HIP for fiscal years 

2009 through 2012; total available 

funding is $50 million. Based on the 

current number of States (at least 15) 

that could meet all five evaluation 

criteria with existing public access 

programs, we expect to receive 

applications for more than the full 

amount of available funding. 

The benefits from a public access 

program stem from the value placed on 

hunting, fishing, and other outdoor 

recreation activities are a function of the 

number of times these activities are 

undertaken and the satisfaction from 

these opportunities. The benefits will be 

where landowners permit access. VPA– 

HIP benefits are the sum of: 

• Value from increased access to 

hunting, fishing, and outdoor recreation 

opportunities; 

• Savings from reduced transaction 

costs between landowners and outdoor 

recreationists; 

• Enhanced wildlife populations from 

expanded and improved wildlife 

habitat; and 

• Expanded economic activity such 

as equipment sales, and increased 

restaurant and motel expenditures. 

VPA–HIP is expected to provide $50 

million, the total authorized funding, to 

States and tribal governments. The 

expected benefits to hunters and other 

users of public access land due to the 

resulting expansions and improvements 

to State and tribal government public 

access programs are expected to exceed 

$51 million. 

Regulatory Flexibility Act 

This rule is not subject to the 

Regulatory Flexibility Act since CCC is 

not required to publish a notice of 

proposed rulemaking for this rule. CCC 

is authorized by section 2904 of the 

2008 Farm Bill to issue an interim rule 

effective on publication with an 

opportunity for comment. 

Environmental Review 

The State or Tribal government 

applying for VPA–HIP funds will be 

required to prepare a Programmatic 

Environmental Assessment (PEA) in a 

manner consistent with the provisions 

of the National Environmental Policy 

Act (NEPA, 42 U.S.C. 4321–4347), the 

regulations of the Council on 

Environmental Quality (40 CFR parts 

1500–1508), and FSA regulations for 

compliance with NEPA (7 CFR part 

799). The PEA must assess the current 

public access program, if one exists, and 

the proposed alternative policies for 

implementation of the current or 

proposed public access program if 

funding is received from FSA. The 

purpose of the PEA is to evaluate the 

impacts of expanding public access, 

including but not limited to, those 

associated with general ranch 

maintenance, conservation efforts, weed 

control, fire protection, roads, fences, 

and parking area maintenance. 

Consistent with 40 CFR 1501.4(c), the 

PEA will be used to determine if the 

receipt of Federal funds will constitute 

a major Federal action significantly 

affecting the quality of the human 

environment and if an Environmental 

Impact Statement needs to be prepared. 

Executive Order 12372 

This program is not subject to 

Executive Order 12372, which requires 

consultation with State and local 

officials. See the notice related to 7 CFR 

part 3015, subpart V, published in the 

Federal Register on June 24, 1983 (48 

FR 29115). 

Executive Order 12988 

This interim rule has been reviewed 

under Executive Order 12988, Civil 

Justice Reform. This rule does not 

preempt State and or local laws, and 

regulations, or policies unless they 

present an irreconcilable conflict with 

this rule. Before any judicial action may 

be brought concerning the provisions of 

this rule, appeal provisions of 7 CFR 

parts 11 and 780 must be exhausted. As 

specified in the 2008 Farm Bill, this 

interim rule does not preempt a State or 

tribal government law, including any 

State or tribal government liability law. 

Executive Order 13132 

The policies contained in this rule do 

not have any substantial direct effect on 

States, on the relationship between the 

national government and the States, or 

on the distribution of power and 

responsibilities among the various 

levels of government. Nor does this rule 

impose substantial direct compliance 

costs on State and local governments. 

Therefore, consultation with the States 

is not required. 

Executive Order 13175 

The policies contained in this rule do 

not impose substantial unreimbursed 

direct compliance costs on Indian tribal 

governments or have tribal implications 

that preempt tribal law. 

USDA will undertake, within 6 

months after this rule becomes effective, 

a series of at least six regulation Tribal 

consultation sessions to gain input by 

Tribal officials concerning the impact of 

VPA–HIP on Tribal governments, 

communities, and individuals. These 

sessions will establish a baseline of 

consultation for future actions, should 

any become necessary, regarding the 

VPA–HIP regulations. Reports from 

these sessions for consultation will be 

made part of the USDA annual reporting 

on Tribal Consultation and 

Collaboration. USDA will respond in a 

timely and meaningful manner to all 

Tribal government requests for 

consultation concerning the VPA–HIP 

regulation and will provide additional 

venues, such as webinars and 

teleconferences, to periodically host 

collaborative conversations with Tribal 

leaders and their representatives 

concerning ways to improve VPA–HIP 

in Indian country. 

Tribal governments will be notified of 

VPA–HIP by direct notification of the 

Tribal elected official via regular mail; 

by e-mail notification to the Tribal 

elected official; and by notifying the 

National Congress of American Indians 

and other intertribal organizations 

relevant to VPA–HIP. Additional 

notification will be given to key 

intertribal organizations working with 

individual Indian farmers and through 

outreach to nonprofit and community 

based organizations known to work the 

Tribal producers. FSA will also ensure 

that review panel membership 

described in this rule has appropriate 

representation reflecting Tribal 

governments and intertribal 

organizations knowledgeable of 

recreational use on Tribally-owned 

lands. 

Unfunded Mandates 

This rule contains no Federal 

mandates under the regulatory 

provisions of Title II of the Unfunded 

Mandate Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA, 

Pub. L. 104–4). In addition, CCC is not 

required to publish a notice of proposed 

rulemaking for this rule. Therefore, this 

rule is not subject to the requirements 

of sections 202 and 205 of UMRA. 

Federal Assistance Program 

The title and number of the Federal 

assistance program in the Catalog of 

Federal Domestic Assistance, to which 

this rule applies, is the Voluntary Public 

Access and Wildlife Habitat Incentive 

Program—10.093. 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

The regulations in this rule are 

exempt from the requirements of the 

Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 

chapter 35), as specified in section 2904 

of the 2008 Farm Bill, which provides 

that these regulations be promulgated 


srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with RULES
39140 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 130 / Thursday, July 8, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 

and the programs administered without 

regard to the Paperwork Reduction Act. 

E-Government Act Compliance 

CCC 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. 

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 1455 

Agriculture, Animals, Environmental 

protection, Fishing, Forests and forest 

products, Grant programs, Hunting, 

Indians, Indians-lands, Natural 

resources, Recreation and recreation 

areas, Rural areas, State and local 

governments, Wildlife. 

■ For the reasons discussed above, this 

rule adds 7 CFR part 1455 as follows: 

PART 1455—VOLUNTARY PUBLIC 

ACCESS AND HABITAT INCENTIVE 

PROGRAM 

§ 1455.1 Purpose and administration. 

§ 1455.2 Definitions. 

§ 1455.10 Eligible grant applicants. 

§ 1455.11 Application procedure. 

§ 1455.20 Criteria for grant selection. 

§ 1455.21 Responsibilities of grantee. 

§ 1455.30 Reporting requirements. 

§§ 1455.31 Miscellaneous. 

Authority: 15 U.S.C. 714b and 714c; 16 

U.S.C. 3839. 

§ 1455.1 Purpose and administration. 

(a) The purpose of this part is to 

specify requirements and definitions for 

the Voluntary Public Access and Habitat 

Incentive Program (VPA–HIP). 

(b) VPA–HIP provides, within funding 

limits, grants to State and tribal 

governments to encourage owners and 

operators of privately-held farm, ranch, 

and forest land to voluntarily make that 

land available for access by the public 

for wildlife-dependent recreation, 

including hunting and fishing under 

programs administered by State and 

tribal governments. VPA–HIP is not an 

entitlement program and no grant will 

be made unless the application is 

acceptable to the Commodity Credit 

Corporation (CCC). CCC may reject a 

application for any reason deemed 

sufficient by CCC. 

(c) The regulations in this part are 

administered under the general 

supervision and direction of the 

Executive Vice President, CCC, or a 

designee, or the Deputy Administrator, 

Farm Programs (Deputy Administrator), 

Farm Service Agency (FSA). 

§ 1455.2 Definitions. 

(a) The definitions in part 718 of this 

chapter apply to this part and all 

documents issued in accordance with 

this part, except as otherwise provided 

in this section. 

(b) The following definitions apply to 

this part: 

Appropriate wildlife habitat means 

habitat that is suitable or proper, as 

determined by the applicable State or 

tribal government, to support fish and 

wildlife populations in the area. 

Farm land means the land that meets 

definition of ‘‘farmland’’ in § 718.2 of 

this title. 

Forest land means land at least 120 

feet wide and 1 acre in size with at least 

10 percent cover (or equivalent 

stocking) by live trees of any size, 

including land that formerly had such 

tree cover and that will be naturally or 

artificially regenerated. Forest land 

includes transition zones, such as areas 

between forest and nonforest lands that 

have at least 10 percent cover (or 

equivalent stocking) with live trees and 

forest areas adjacent to urban and builtup lands. Roadside, streamside, and 

shelterbelt strips of trees must have a 

crown width of at least 120 feet and 

continuous length of at least 363 feet to 

qualify as forest land. Unimproved 

roads and trails, streams, and clearings 

in forest areas are classified as forest if 

they are less than 120 feet wide or an 

acre in size. Tree-covered areas in 

agricultural production settings, such as 

fruit orchards, or tree-covered areas in 

urban settings, such as city parks, are 

not considered forest land. 

Privately-held land means farm, 

ranch, or forest land that is owned or 

operated by an individual or entity that 

is not an entity of any government unit 

or Tribe. 

Ranch land means land that meets the 

definition of ‘‘farmland.’’ 

State or State government means any 

State or local government, including 

State, city, town, or county government. 

Tribal government means any 

Federally-recognized Indian tribe, band, 

nation, or other organized group, or 

community, including pueblos, 

rancherias, colonies and any Alaska 

Native Village, or regional or village 

corporation as defined in or established 

pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims 

Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601–1629h), 

which is recognized as eligible for the 

special programs and services provided 

by the United States to Indians because 

of their status as Indians. 

Wildlife-dependent recreation means 

a land use involving hunting, fishing, 

wildlife-observation, photography, 

environmental education and 

interpretation, or other activities as 

determined by CCC. 

§ 1455.10 Eligible grant applicants. 

(a) A State or Tribal government may 

apply for a VPA–HIP grant. 

(b) Any applications received by an 

individual or entity that is not a State 

or tribal government will not be 

considered. 

§ 1455.11 Application procedure. 

(a) Request for applications (RFA). 

CCC will issue periodic RFAs for VPA– 

HIP on www.grants.gov, subject to 

available funding. Unless otherwise 

specified in the applicable RFA, 

applicants must file an original and one 

hard copy of the required forms and an 

application. 

(b) Single application. A State or 

tribal government must include all 

proposed activity under a single 

application per RFA review period. 

Multiple applications from an applicant 

during a single RFA period will not be 

considered. The applicant is the 

individual State or Tribe; any 

application from any unit of the State or 

tribal government must be coordinated 

for a single submission of one 

application from the State or Tribe. 

(c) Incomplete applications. 

Incomplete applications will not be 

considered for funding. However, 

incomplete applications may be 

returned, and may be resubmitted, if 

time permits. 

(d) Providing data. Data furnished by 

grant applicants will be used to 

determine eligibility for the VPA–HIP 

benefits. Furnishing the data is 

voluntary; however, the failure to 

provide data could result in program 

benefits being withheld or denied. 

(e) Required forms. The following 

forms must be completed, signed, and 

submitted as part of the application; 

other forms may be required, as 

specified in the applicable RFA: 

(1) Application for Federal 

Assistance; 

(2) Budget Information—NonConstruction Programs; and 

(3) Assurances—Non-Construction 

Programs. 

(f) Application. Each application must 

contain the following elements; 

additional required elements may be 

specified in the applicable RFA: 

(1) Title page; 

(2) Table of contents; 

(3) Executive summary, which 

includes; 

(i) Activities. Provide a summary of 

the application that briefly describes 

activities proposed to be funded under 

the grant. 

(ii) Objectives, funding, performance, 

and other resources. Include objectives 

and tasks to be accomplished, the 

amount of funding requested, how the 


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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 130 / Thursday, July 8, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 39141 

work will be performed, whether 

organizational staff, consultants or 

contractors will be used, and whether 

other resources will be used; 

(4) Eligibility certification that 

certifies that the applicant is a State or 

tribal government and the individual 

submitting the application is acting in a 

representative capacity on behalf of the 

State or tribal government; 

(5) Application narrative that must 

include, but is not limited to, the 

following: 

(i) Project Title. The title of the 

proposed project must be brief (not to 

exceed 75 characters) yet describe the 

essentials of the project. 

(ii) Information sheet. A separate onepage information sheet listing each of 

the evaluation criteria referenced in the 

RFA, followed by the page numbers of 

all relevant material and documentation 

contained in the application that 

address or support the criteria. 

(iii) Objectives of the project. This 

section must include the following: 

(A) A description of how the VPA– 

HIP funding will be used to encourage 

public access to private farm, ranch, and 

forest land for hunting, fishing, and 

other recreational purposes; 

(B) A description of the methods that 

will be used to achieve the provisions 

of paragraph (f)(5)(iii)(A) of this section; 

(C) A description of how and to what 

extent the proposed program will meet 

with widespread acceptance among 

landowners; 

(D) A detailed description of how and 

to what extent the land enrolled will 

have appropriate wildlife habitat and 

how program funds may be used to 

improve those habitats; 

(E) A detailed description of how and 

to what extent public hunting and other 

recreational access will be increased on 

land enrolled under a Conservation 

Reserve Enhancement Program as 

specified under § 1410.50 of this 

chapter, or if Conservation Reserve 

Enhancement Program land is not 

available, specify that there is no 

impact; 

(F) A detailed description of how any 

additional Federal, State, tribal 

government, or private resources will be 

used to carry out grant activities; and 

(G) A detailed description of how the 

public will be made aware of the 

location of the land enrolled. 

(iv) Work plan. Applications must 

discuss the specific tasks to be 

completed using grant and matching 

funds. The work plan should show how 

customers will be identified, key 

personnel to be involved with 

administration of the grant, and the 

evaluation methods to be used to 

determine the success of specific tasks 

and overall objectives of a VPA–HIP 

grant. The budget must present a 

breakdown of the estimated costs 

associated with VPA–HIP activities and 

allocate these costs to each of the tasks 

to be undertaken. Additional funds from 

Federal, State, tribal government, or 

private resources as well as grant funds 

and resources provided in kind must be 

accounted for in the budget. 

(v) Performance evaluation criteria. 

Applications should discuss how the 

State or tribal government will evaluate 

whether the program for which the grant 

is being sought will meet the stated 

goals for the State or tribal program, 

including but not limited to landowner 

and recreationist participation, 

outreach, and cost-effectiveness. 

(vii) Other similar efforts. The 

applicant must describe its previous 

accomplishments and outcomes in 

public access activities, if any. 

(viii) Qualifications of personnel. 

Applicants must describe the 

qualifications of personnel expected to 

perform key tasks, and whether these 

personnel are to be full- or part-time 

employees or contract personnel. 

§ 1455.20 Criteria for grant selection. 

(a) Incomplete or non-responsive 

applications will not be evaluated. 

Applicants may revise their applications 

and re-submit them prior to the 

published deadline if there is sufficient 

time to do so. 

(b) After all applications have been 

evaluated using the evaluation criteria 

and scored in accordance with the point 

allocation specified in the RFA, a list of 

all applications in ranked order, 

together with funding level 

recommendations, will be submitted to 

the Deputy Administrator, FSA. 

(c) Unless supplemented in a RFA, 

applications for grants for VPA–HIP will 

be evaluated using the criteria listed in 

this section. The distribution of points 

to be awarded per criterion will be 

identified in the RFA. 

(1) Benefits. The application will be 

evaluated to determine whether and to 

what extent the project’s anticipated 

outcomes promote improvement of 

public access for wildlife-dependent 

recreation and intended environmental 

benefits. 

(2) Project description and feasibility. 

The application will be evaluated on the 

extent and quality to which the 

applicant demonstrates a reasonable 

approach to the project, sufficient 

resources to complete the project, and a 

capability to complete the project in a 

timely manner. 

(3) Widespread acceptance and 

maximizing participation of 

landowners. The application will be 

evaluated based on the applicant’s plan 

for encouraging the participation of 

owners and operators of privately-held 

farm, ranch, and forest land, and for 

engaging the public users. Additionally, 

the extent to which the applicant has 

identified and established relationships 

with the partners necessary to achieve 

the project’s goals will be evaluated. 

(4) Appropriate wildlife habitat. The 

application will be evaluated to 

determine whether the applicant 

demonstrates expertise in providing 

technical assistance with respect to 

establishing and maintaining 

appropriate wildlife habitat on public 

access land. 

(5) Strengthening wildlife habitat for 

lands under the Conservation Reserve 

Enhancement Program (CREP). The 

application will be evaluated to 

determine whether the project proposes 

to provide incentives to increase public 

hunting and other recreational access on 

land enrolled under CREP as authorized 

by § 1410.50. 

(6) Additional private, Federal, State, 

or tribal government resources. The 

application will be evaluated to 

determine the extent to which the 

support letters provided by other 

organizations involved with the project 

demonstrate specific and quantified 

commitments to the project. 

Applications that demonstrate 

additional resources will receive more 

points, all else being equal, than those 

that do not. 

(7) Making available the location of 

enrolled land. The application will be 

evaluated to determine how the project 

proposes to make available to the public 

the location of the land enrolled. 

(8) Performance evaluation criteria. 

The application will be evaluated to 

determine whether the applicant has 

included outcome-based performance 

measures. 

(9) Administrative capabilities. The 

application will be evaluated to 

determine whether the grant applicant 

has a track record of administering the 

project or, in the absence of a track 

record, the capacity to administer the 

project. Applicants that have 

demonstrated capable financial systems 

and audit controls, personnel and 

program administration performance 

measures, and clear rules of governance 

will receive more points than those not 

evidencing this capacity. 

(10) Delivery. The application will be 

evaluated to determine whether the 

applicant has a track record in 

implementing public access or similar 

programs or, in the absence of an actual 

track record, the capacity to implement 

a public access program. The applicant’s 

potential for delivering an effective 


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39142 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 130 / Thursday, July 8, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 

public access program and the expected 

effects of that program will also be 

assessed. 

(11) Work plan and budget. The work 

plan will be reviewed for detailed 

actions and an accompanying timetable 

for implementing the components of the 

application. Clear, logical, realistic, and 

efficient plans will result in a higher 

score. Budgets will be reviewed for 

completeness and whether and to what 

extent additional resources were 

committed by Federal, State, or tribal 

government, and private resources. 

(12) Qualifications of those 

performing the tasks. The application 

will be reviewed to determine if key 

personnel have appropriate knowledge, 

skills, and abilities with respect to 

wildlife-dependent recreation including 

hunting or fishing on privately-held 

farm, ranch, and forest land, funds 

control, grants management, 

performance monitoring and evaluation, 

or other activities relevant to the success 

of the proposed public access program. 

§ 1455.21 Additional Responsibilities of 

Grantee. 

(a) Before receiving grant funding, the 

grantee will be required to sign an 

agreement similar in form and substance 

to the form of agreement published 

within or as an appendix to the RFA. 

The agreement will require the grantee 

to commit to do all of the following: 

(1) Take all practicable steps to 

develop continuing sources of financial 

support from other Federal, State, tribal 

government, or private resources; 

(2) Make arrangements for the 

monitoring and evaluation of the 

activities related to implementation of 

the public access program of the owners 

or operators that enroll farm, ranch, and 

forest land; and 

(3) Provide an accounting for the 

money received by the grantee under 

this subpart. 

(b) Grantees will be required to 

monitor funds or services as specified in 

paragraph (c) of this section, and must 

agree to that monitoring before grant 

funds are awarded. 

(c) The grantee must certify that the 

grant funds and services will not be 

used for ineligible purposes. 

Specifically, grant funds and services 

may not be used to: 

(1) Duplicate or replace current 

services; however, grant funds may be 

used to expand the level of effort or 

service beyond what is currently being 

provided; 

(2) Pay costs of preparing the 

application for funding under VPA–HIP; 

(3) Pay costs of the project incurred 

prior to the date of grant approval; 

(4) Fund political activities; 

(5) Pay any judgment or debt owed to 

the United States; 

(6) Pay for the design, repair, 

rehabilitation, acquisition, or 

construction of a building or facility 

(including a processing facility); 

(7) Purchase, rent or pay for the 

installation of fixed equipment, other 

than property identification signs; 

(8) Pay for the repair of privately 

owned vehicles; or 

(9) Pay for research and development 

not directly related to quantifying the 

performance of VPA–HIP lands enrolled 

with funding from VPA–HIP. 

(d) Grant agreements under this part 

will be for a term of up to 3 years. 

(e) Grantees that are States will have 

the grant amount reduced by 25 percent 

if opening dates for migratory bird 

hunting in the State are not consistent 

for residents and non-residents. This 

paragraph does not apply to grantees 

that are Tribal governments. 

(f) Failure of the grantee to execute a 

grant agreement in a timely fashion, as 

determined by the CCC, will be 

construed to be a withdrawal from 

VPA–HIP. 

§ 1455.30 Reporting requirements. 

(a) Grantees must provide the 

following to FSA: 

(1) A ‘‘Financial Status Report’’ listing 

expenditures according to agreed upon 

budget categories, on a periodic basis as 

specified in the grant document. 

(2) Annual performance reports that 

compare accomplishments to the 

objectives stated in the application, and 

that also: 

(i) Identify all tasks completed to date 

and provide documentation supporting 

the reported results; 

(ii) If the original schedule provided 

in the work plan is not being met, the 

report must discuss the problems or 

delays that may affect completion of the 

project; 

(iii) List objectives for the next 

reporting period; and 

(iv) Discuss compliance with any 

special conditions on the use of award 

funds. Reports are due as provided in 

paragraph (a)(1) of this section. 

(3) Final project performance reports, 

inclusive of supporting documentation. 

The final performance report is due 

within 90 days of the completion of the 

project. 

(b) All reports submitted to the 

Agency will be held in confidence to the 

extent permitted by law. 

§ 1455.31 Miscellaneous. 

(a) Inspection. Grantees must permit 

periodic inspection of the program 

operations by a CCC representative, as 

determined by CCC. 

(b) Performance evaluation. CCC will 

incorporate performance criteria in 

grant award documentation and will 

regularly evaluate the progress and 

performance of grant awardees. 

(c) Suspend, terminate, or require 

refund. CCC may elect to suspend or 

terminate a grant in all or part, or 

funding of a particular workplan 

activity, and require refund of part or all 

of the grant, with interest, where CCC 

has determined: 

(1) That the grantee or subrecipient of 

grant funds has demonstrated 

insufficient progress in complying with 

the terms of the grant agreement; 

(2) The opening dates for migratory 

bird hunting in a State have been 

changed so as to be not consistent for 

residents and non-residents during the 

term of the grant; 

(3) There is reasonable evidence that 

shows joint funding has not been or will 

not be forthcoming on a timely basis; or 

(4) Such other cause as CCC identifies 

in writing to the grantee based on 

reasonable evidence (including but not 

limited to the use of Federal grant funds 

for ineligible purposes). 

(d) Advance or reimbursement. 

Grantees must use the request for 

advance or reimbursement form, which 

will be provided by CCC, to request 

advances or reimbursements; 

(e) Appeals. Appeals will be handled 

according to 7 CFR parts 11 and 780. 

(f) Environmental review. All grants 

made under this subpart are subject to 

the requirements of 7 CFR part 799. 

Applicants for grant funds must 

consider and document within their 

plans the important environmental 

factors within the planning area and the 

potential environmental impacts of the 

plan on the planning area, as well as the 

alternative planning strategies that were 

reviewed. 

(g) Civil rights. CCC prohibits 

discrimination in all its programs and 

activities on the basis of race, color, 

national origin, age, disability, and 

where applicable, sex, marital status, 

familial status, parental status, religion, 

sexual orientation, genetic information, 

political beliefs, reprisal, or because all 

or a part of an individual’s income is 

derived from any public assistance 

program. VPA–HIP will also be 

administered in accordance with all 

other applicable civil rights law. 

(h) Other USDA regulations. The grant 

program under this part is subject to the 

provisions of the following regulations, 

as applicable: 

(1) 7 CFR part 3015, Uniform Federal 

Assistance Regulations; 

(2) 7 CFR part 3016, Uniform 

Administrative Requirements for Grants 


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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 130 / Thursday, July 8, 2010 / Rules and Regulations 39143 

and Cooperative Agreements to State 

and Local Governments; 

(3) 7 CFR part 3017, Governmentwide 

Debarment and Suspension 

(nonprocurement) and Governmentwide 

Requirements for Drug-Free Workplace 

(Grants); 

(4) 7 CFR part 3018, New Restrictions 

on Lobbying; 

(5) 7 CFR part 3019, Uniform 

Administrative Requirements for Grants 

and Agreements with Institutions of 

Higher Education, Hospitals and Other 

Non-profit Organizations; and 

(6) 7 CFR part 3052, Audits of States, 

Local Governments and Non-profit 

Organizations. 

(i) Audit. Grantees must comply with 

the audit requirements of 7 CFR part 

3052. The audit requirements apply to 

the years in which grant funds are 

received and years in which work is 

accomplished using grant funds. 

(j) Change in scope or objectives. The 

Grantee must obtain prior approval from 

FSA for any change to the scope or 

objectives of the approved project. 

Failure to obtain prior approval of 

changes to the scope of work or budget 

may result in suspension, termination, 

or recovery of grant funds. 

(k) Exceptions. CCC may, in 

individual cases, make an exception to 

any requirement or provision of this 

part, provided that any such exception 

is not inconsistent with any applicable 

law or opinion of the Comptroller 

General, and provided further, that CCC 

determines that the application of the 

requirement or provision would 

adversely affect the Federal 

Government’s interest. 

(l) Enforcement and refunds; liens 

and schemes or devices. Grantees must 

comply with all conditions of the grant 

and any monies not spent or improperly 

spent must be returned immediately 

with interest to run at the normal rate 

for CCC obligations. Interest charges 

will be computed from the date of the 

CCC disbursement. Grantees must 

insure that parties that receive funds 

from the grantee comply with the 

grantee’s application and return funds 

made available by the grantee where 

there is no such compliance. Any 

scheme or device to avoid any limits of 

this part will be considered to be a 

program violation with respect to any 

grant to which that scheme or device is 

related. Grant funds will be made 

available to the States or Tribes that are 

grantees under this part without regard 

to the claims of others, unless CCC 

determines otherwise. 

Signed at Washington, DC, on June 30, 

2010. 

Jonathan W. Coppess, 

Executive Vice President, Commodity Credit 

Corporation, and Administrator, Farm 

Service Agency. 

[FR Doc. 2010–16656 Filed 7–7–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–05–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. FAA–2010–0565; Directorate 

Identifier 2010–SW–034–AD; Amendment 

39–16357; AD 2010–14–12] 

RIN 2120–AA64 

Airworthiness Directives; Arrow 

Falcon Exporters, Inc. (previously Utah 

State University); AST, Inc. (previously 

Firefly Aviation Helicopter Services, 

and Erickson Air-Crane); Rotorcraft 

Development Corporation (previously 

Garlick Helicopters, Inc.); Global 

Helicopter Technology, Inc.; Hagglund 

Helicopters, LLC (previously Western 

International Aviation, Inc.); 

International Helicopters, Inc.; 

Northwest Rotorcraft, LLC (previously 

Precision Helicopters, LLC); Robinson 

Air Crane, Inc.; San Joaquin 

Helicopters (previously Hawkins & 

Powers Aviation); S.M. &T. Aircraft 

(previously US Helicopter Inc., UNC 

Helicopters, Inc., Southern Aero 

Corporation, and Wilco Aviation); 

Smith Helicopters; Southern 

Helicopter, Inc.; Southwest Florida 

Aviation International, Inc. (previously 

Mr. Jamie R. Hill and Southwest 

Florida Aviation, Inc.); Tamarack 

Helicopters, Inc. (previously Ranger 

Helicopter Services, Inc.); US 

Helicopter, Inc. (previously Williams 

Helicopter Tech., Southern Aero Corp., 

Oregon Helicopters and Lenair Corp); 

West Coast Fabrications; and 

Overseas Aircraft Support Inc. 

(previously Williams Helicopter 

Corporation, Scott Paper Company 

and Offshores Construction) Model 

AH–1G, AH–1S, HH–1K, TH–1F, TH–1L, 

UH–1A, UH–1B, UH–1E, UH–1F, UH– 

1H, UH–1L, and UH–1P Helicopters; 

and Southwest Florida Aviation Model 

UH–1B (SW204 and SW204HP) and 

UH–1H (SW205) Helicopters 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration, DOT. 

ACTION: Final rule; request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: This amendment adopts a 

new airworthiness directive (AD) for the 

Aeronautical Accessories, Inc. (AAI) 

Low Skid Landing Gear Forward 

Crosstube (crosstube) installed on the 

specified helicopters. This action 

requires replacing certain AAI serialnumbered crosstubes installed on these 

model helicopters. This amendment is 

prompted by the discovery of a defect in 

the raw material used in manufacturing 

certain crosstubes. The actions specified 

in this AD are intended to prevent 

failure of a crosstube and subsequent 

collapse of the landing gear. 

DATES: Effective July 23, 2010. 

Comments for inclusion in the Rules 

Docket must be received on or before 

September 7, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: Use one of the following 

addresses to submit comments on this 

AD: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

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

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Fax: 202–493–2251. 

• Mail: U.S. Department of 

Transportation, Docket Operations, M– 

30, West Building Ground Floor, Room 

W12–140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., 

Washington, DC 20590. 

• Hand Delivery: U.S. Department of 

Transportation, Docket Operations, M– 

30, West Building Ground Floor, Room 

W12–140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., 

Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. 

and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 

except Federal holidays. 

You may get the service information 

identified in this AD from Aeronautical 

Accessories, Inc., P. O. Box 3689, 

Bristol, Tennessee 37625–3689, 

telephone (423) 538–5151 or 1–800– 

251–7094, fax (423) 538–8469. 

Examining the Docket: You may 

examine the docket that contains the 

AD, any comments, and other 

information on the Internet at http:// 

www.regulations.gov, or in person at the 

Docket Operations office between 9 a.m. 

and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 

except Federal holidays. The Docket 

Operations office (telephone (800) 647– 

5527) is located in Room W12–140 on 

the ground floor of the West Building at 

the street address stated in the 

ADDRESSES section. Comments will be 

available in the AD docket shortly after 

receipt. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

DOT/FAA Southwest Region, Martin R. 

Crane, ASW–170, Aviation Safety 

Engineer, Rotorcraft Directorate, 

Rotorcraft Certification Office, 2601 

Meacham Blvd., Fort Worth, Texas 

76137, telephone (817) 222–5170, fax 

(817) 222–5783. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This 

amendment adopts a new AD for the 

specified AAI crosstubes installed on 


srobinson on DSKHWCL6B1PROD with RULES