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

5903

Vol. 62, No. 27

Monday, February 10, 1997

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Federal Crop Insurance Corporation

7 CFR Parts 401 and 457

RIN 0563–AB54

General Crop Insurance Regulations;

Cranberry Endorsement and Common

Crop Insurance Regulations;

Cranberry Crop Insurance Provisions

AGENCY: Federal Crop Insurance

Corporation, USDA.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Federal Crop Insurance

Corporation (FCIC) finalizes specific

crop provisions for the insurance of

cranberries. The provisions will be used

in conjunction with the Common Crop

Insurance Policy Basic Provisions,

which contain standard terms and

conditions common to most crops. The

intended effect of this action is to

provide policy changes to better meet

the needs of the insured, include the

current cranberry endorsement under

the Common Crop Insurance Policy for

ease of use and consistency of terms,

and to restrict the effect of the current

cranberry endorsement to the 1997 and

prior crop years.

EFFECTIVE DATE: March 12, 1997.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Richard Brayton, Program Analyst,

Research and Development Division,

Product Development Branch, Federal

Crop Insurance Corporation, United

States Department of Agriculture, 9435

Holmes Road, Kansas City, MO 64131,

telephone (816) 926–7730.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

Executive Order No. 12866

The Office of Management and Budget

(OMB) has determined this rule to be

exempt for the purposes of Executive

Order No. 12866, and, therefore, this

rule has not been reviewed by OMB.

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

Following publication of the proposed

rule, the public was afforded 60 days to

submit written comments, data, and

opinions on information collection

requirements previously approved by

OMB under OMB control number 0563–

0003 through September 30, 1998. No

public comments were received.

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of

1995

Title II of the Unfunded Mandates

Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA), Public

Law 104–4, establishes requirements for

Federal agencies to assess the effects of

their regulatory actions on State, local,

and tribal governments and the private

sector. This rule contains no Federal

mandates (under the regulatory

provisions of title II of the UMRA) for

State, local, and tribal governments or

the private sector. Thus, this rule is not

subject to the requirements of sections

202 and 205 of the UMRA.

Executive Order No. 12612

It has been determined under section

6(a) of Executive Order No. 12612,

Federalism, that this rule does not have

sufficient federalism implications to

warrant the preparation of a Federalism

Assessment. The provisions contained

in this rule will not have a substantial

direct effect on States or their political

subdivisions, or on the distribution of

power and responsibilities among the

various levels of government.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

This regulation will not have a

significant impact on a substantial

number of small entities. New

provisions included in this rule will not

impact small entities to a greater extent

than large entities. Under the current

regulations, a producer is required to

complete an application and an acreage

report. If the crop is damaged or

destroyed, the insured is required to

give notice of loss and provide the

necessary information to complete a

claim for indemnity.

The insured must also annually

certify to the previous years production

if adequate records are available to

support the certification. The producer

must maintain the production records to

support the certified information for at

least 3 years. This regulation does not

alter those requirements. The amount of

work required of the insurance

companies delivering and servicing

these policies will not increase

significantly from the amount of work

currently required. This rule does not

have any greater or lesser impact on the

producer. Therefore, this action is

determined to be exempt from the

provisions of the Regulatory Flexibility

Act (5 U.S.C. 605), and no Regulatory

Flexibility Analysis was prepared.

Federal Assistance Program

This program is listed in the Catalog

of Federal Domestic Assistance under

No. 10.450.

Executive Order No. 12372

This program is not subject to the

provisions of Executive Order No.

12372, which require intergovernmental

consultation with State and local

officials. See the Notice related to 7 CFR

part 3015, subpart V, published at 48 FR

29115, June 24, 1983.

Executive Order No. 12778

The Office of the General Counsel has

determined that these regulations meet

the applicable standards provided in

sections 2(a) and 2(b)(2) of Executive

Order No. 12778. The provisions of this

rule will not have a retroactive effect

prior to the effective date. The

provisions of this rule will preempt

State and local laws to the extent such

State and local laws are inconsistent

herewith. The administrative appeal

provisions published at 7 CFR parts 11

and 780 must be exhausted before any

action for judicial review may be

brought.

Environmental Evaluation

This action is not expected to have a

significant impact on the quality of the

human environment, health, and safety.

Therefore, neither an Environmental

Assessment nor an Environmental

Impact Statement is needed.

National Performance Review

This regulatory action is being taken

as part of the National Performance

Review Initiative to eliminate

unnecessary or duplicative regulations

and improve those that remain in force.

Background

On Friday, September 13, 1996, FCIC

published a proposed rule in the

Federal Register at 61 FR 48420–48423

to add to the Common Crop Insurance

Regulations (7 CFR part 457), a new
5904 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 27 / Monday, February 10, 1997 / Rules and Regulations

section, 7 CFR 457.132, Cranberry Crop

Insurance Provisions. The new

provisions will be effective for the 1998

and succeeding crop years. These

provisions will replace and supersede

the current provisions for insuring

cranberries found at 7 CFR 401.127

(Cranberry Endorsement). This rule also

amends the Cranberry Endorsement

found at 7 CFR 401.127 to limit the

effect of the current provisions to the

1997 and prior crop years. FCIC will

later publish a regulation to remove and

reserve § 401.127.

Following publication of that

proposed rule, the public was afforded

60 days to submit written comments,

data, and opinions. A total of 20

comments were received from the crop

insurance industry and FCIC Regional

Service Offices (RSO). The comments

received, and FCIC’s responses, are as

follows:

Comment: One comment received

from an FCIC RSO recommended

changing the definition of ‘‘Harvest’’ in

section 1 to read, ‘‘Removal of the

cranberries from the bog.’’ Cranberries

can be picked from the vine but remain

in the bog, and be susceptible to an

insured peril which can cause cranberry

fruit damage or loss.

Response: To be consistent with other

crop policies, FCIC agrees with the

comment and has amended the

definition accordingly.

Comment: Three comments received

from the crop insurance industry

recommended changing the definition

of ‘‘Irrigated practice’’ in section 1 to

delete the references to overhead solid

set irrigation systems and frost

prevention. The commenters stated that

overhead solid irrigation systems are not

applicable to all areas and that frost

prevention is not a policy requirement.

Response: FCIC agrees with the

comment and has amended the

definition accordingly.

Comment: One comment received

from the crop insurance industry

recommended adding the words ‘‘and

quality’’ after the word ‘‘quantity’’ in the

definition of ‘‘Irrigated practice.’

Response: FCIC agrees that water

quality is an important issue. However,

there are no established criteria

regarding the quality of water necessary

to produce a crop. Such criteria would

be difficult to develop and administer

due to the complexity of the factors

included. Therefore, no change will be

made.

Comment: One comment received

from the crop insurance industry

recommended changing the definition

of ‘‘Non-contiguous land’’ in section 1

to clarify whether land ownership is a

factor in the determination.

Response: Land ownership is not a

factor to determine non-contiguous

land. Non-contiguous land is land on

which a producer has or will have an

insurable interest in the crop, and

whose boundaries do not touch at any

point. FCIC believes the provision is

clearly stated. Therefore, no change will

be made.

Comment: Two comments received

from the crop insurance industry

suggested the provisions contained in

section 2(d), which specify that ‘‘all

optional units must be identified on the

acreage report for each crop year,’’ be

changed. The commenters stated that as

written, the language appears to allow

optional units to be established at

acreage reporting time, when in fact,

optional units depend on acceptable

production reports being submitted by

the production reporting date, which is

often earlier than the acreage reporting

date.

Response: FCIC has clarified this

provision to indicate that only those

optional units ‘‘established for the crop

year’’ need to be identified on the

acreage report.

Comment: One comment received

from an RSO recommended that section

6(d) be changed to read, ‘‘that are grown

on vines that have completed four

growing seasons after set out, unless

otherwise provided by the actuarial

table or by written agreement.’’

Response: FCIC agrees with the

statement and has amended the

provisions accordingly.

Comment: One comment received

from the crop insurance industry stated

that the provision contained in the

current cranberry endorsement that

restricts insurance on vines that are

being renovated and are not likely to

produce a full crop for the current year

was omitted from section 3(b).

Response: The current provisions

have been replaced by the provisions

contained in section 3(b) that require

the insured to report any damage,

removal of vines, changes in practices,

or any other circumstance that may

reduce the expected yield below the

yield upon which the insurance

guarantee is based. The insurance

provider will inspect the bog to

determine the appropriate production

guarantee based on the effect of the

circumstances that actually exist. This

allows insurance for such acres based

on the actual expected yield, which will

increase the number of insurable acres

and provide yield protection for

producers. Therefore, no change will be

made.

Comment: One comment received

from the crop insurance industry

questioned why the requirement for a 90

percent stand for insurability was

removed. The commenter stated that

insurability of bogs with less than 90

percent stand of bearing vines should be

subject to inspection and provided by

written agreement.

Response: As stated above, such

acreage will now be insurable at yields

commensurate with the production

capabilities of the acreage. Therefore, no

change will be made.

Comment: One comment received

from an RSO recommended that section

6(d) ‘‘Insured Crop’’ be change to read,

‘‘that are grown in a bog with at least a

90 percent stand of bearing vines based

on the original planting density unless

otherwise provided by the actuarial

table or by written agreement.’’

Response: FCIC disagrees with the

comment. No change will be made for

the reasons stated above.

Comment: Two comments received,

one from an RSO and one from the crop

insurance industry, recommended

adding a subparagraph to section 8

‘‘Causes of Loss’’ to read, ‘‘failure or

breakdown of irrigation equipment or

facilities due to direct damage to it from

an insurable cause of loss if the

cranberry crop is damaged by freezing

temperatures within 72 hours of such

failure or breakdown and repair or

replacement was not possible before

damage occurred.’’

Response: FCIC agrees with the

comment and has amended the

provisions accordingly.

Comment: One comment received

from an RSO recommended that section

10(c)(1)(i)(D) ‘‘Settlement of Claim’’, be

revised by adding ‘‘destroyed or put to

another use without our consent’’ as in

other crop provisions.

Response: FCIC agrees with the

comment and has amended the

provisions accordingly.

Comment: One comment was received

from the crop insurance industry stating

that section 10(c)(1)(iv) ‘‘Settlement of

Claim’’ should not allow the insured to

defer settlement and wait for a later,

generally lower, appraisal on insured

acreage the producer intends to abandon

or no longer care for.

Response: A later appraisal will only

be necessary if the insurance provider

agrees that such an appraisal would

result in a more accurate determination

and if the producer continues to care for

the crop. If the producer does not care

for the crop, the original appraisal will

be used. No change will be made to

these provisions.

Comment: One comment received

from an RSO recommended changing

the proposed quality adjustment

requirements which state, ‘‘due to

insurable causes, does not meet, or
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 27 / Monday, February 10, 1997 / Rules and Regulations 5905

would not if properly handled meet, the

United States Standards for Fresh

Cranberries for Processing’’ in section

10(c)(3) ‘‘Settlement of Claim.’’ The RSO

recommended that the quality

adjustment provisions contained in the

current cranberry endorsement should

be used.

Response: FCIC agrees with the

comment for those areas where the U.S.

Standards for Fresh Cranberries for

processing may not be available. The

provisions have been amended

accordingly.

Comment: Three comments received

from the crop insurance industry

recommended in section 11(d) ‘‘Written

Agreements,’’ that the requirement for a

written agreement to be renewed each

year should be removed. Terms of the

agreement should be stated in the

agreement to fit the particular situation

for the policy, or if no substantive

changes occur from one year to the next,

allow the written agreement to be

continuous.

Response: Written agreements by

design are temporary and intended to

address unusual situations. If the

condition for which written agreement

is needed continue year to year, they

should be incorporated into the policy

or Special Provisions. Therefore, no

change will be made.

In addition to the changes described

above, FCIC has made editorial changes

for clarification on the following

changes to the Cranberry Crop

Provisions:

1. Section 1—Added the term ‘‘market

price’’ to the definitions for

clarification.

2. Section 3—Clarified that the

insurance provider will adjust yields in

response to removal of vines, damage,

other changes in practices, or any other

circumstance that will affect the yield.

3. Section 7(a)(1)—Clarified that an

application will not be accepted after

the November 21 sales closing date. For

applications submitted within 10 days

of the sales closing date, coverage will

not attach until 10 days after the date of

application.

4. Section 7(b)(2)(iii)—Added a

requirement to clarify that the transferee

must be eligible for crop insurance to be

consistent with other crop provisions.

5. Section 9(b)—Clarify that damaged

production must not be sold or disposed

of until the earlier of 15 days from the

date of notice of loss or when the

insurer gives consent to do so.

6. Section 9(c)—Clarify that the

failure to meet the requirements of this

section result in the insurance providers

inability to inspect the damaged

production, for all such production to

be considered undamaged and included

as production to count.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Parts 401 and

457

Cranberry, Cranberry endorsement,

Crop insurance.

Final Rule

Accordingly, as set forth in the

preamble, the Federal Crop Insurance

Corporation hereby amends 7 CFR parts

401 and 457 effective for the 1998 and

succeeding crop years, as follows:

PART 401—GENERAL CROP

INSURANCE REGULATIONS—

REGULATIONS FOR THE 1998 AND

SUBSEQUENT CONTRACT YEARS

1. The authority citation for 7 CFR

part 401 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1506(1), 1506(p).

2. The introductory text of § 401.127

is amended to read as follows:

§ 401.127 Cranberry endorsement.

The provisions of the Cranberry Crop

Insurance Endorsement for the 1990

through the 1997 crop years are as

follows:

* * * * *

PART 457—COMMON CROP

INSURANCE REGULATIONS:

REGULATIONS FOR THE 1994 AND

SUBSEQUENT CONTRACT YEARS

3. The authority citation for 7 CFR

part 457 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1506(1), 1506(p).

4. Section 457.132 is added to read as

follows:

§ 457.132 Cranberry crop insurance

provisions.

The Cranberry Crop Insurance

Provisions for the 1998 and succeeding

crop years are as follows:

FCIC policies:

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Federal Crop Insurance Corporation

Reinsured policies:

(Appropriate title for insurance provider)

Both FCIC and reinsured policies:

CRANBERRY CROP PROVISIONS

If a conflict exists among the Basic

Provisions (§ 457.8), these crop provisions,

and the Special Provisions; the Special

Provisions will control these crop provisions

and the Basic Provisions; and these crop

provisions will control the Basic Provisions.

1. Definitions

Barrel—100 pounds of cranberries.

Days—Calendar days.

Good farming practices—The cultural

practices generally in use in the county for

the crop to make normal progress toward

maturity and produce at least the yield used

to determine the production guarantee and

are those recognized by the Cooperative State

Research, Education, and Extension Service

as compatible with agronomic and weather

conditions in the county.

Harvest—Removal of the cranberries from

the bog.

Irrigated practice—A method of producing

a crop by which water is artificially applied

during the growing season by appropriate

systems and at the proper times, with the

intention of providing the quantity of water

needed to produce at least the yield used to

establish the irrigated production guarantee

on the irrigated acreage planted to the

insured crop.

Market price—The cash price per barrel of

cranberries offered by buyers in the area in

which you normally market the cranberries.

Non-contiguous land—Any two or more

tracts of land whose boundaries do not touch

at any point, except that land separated only

by a public or private right-of-way, waterway,

or an irrigation canal will be considered as

contiguous.

Production guarantee (per acre)—The

number of barrels determined by multiplying

the approved actual production history

(APH) yield per acre by the coverage level

percentage you elect.

Written agreement—A written document

that alters designated terms of this policy in

accordance with section 11.

2. Unit Division

(a) Unless limited by the Special

Provisions, a unit as defined in section 1

(Definitions) of the Basic Provisions (§ 457.8),

(basic unit) may be divided into optional

units if, for each optional unit you meet all

the conditions of this section or if a written

agreement to such division exists.

(b) Basic units may not be divided into

optional units on any basis including, but not

limited to, production practice, type, and

variety, other than as described in this

section.

(c) If you do not comply fully with these

provisions, we will combine all optional

units that are not in compliance with these

provisions into the basic unit from which

they were formed. We will combine the

optional units at any time we discover that

you have failed to comply with these

provisions. If failure to comply with these

provisions is determined to be inadvertent,

and the optional units are combined into a

basic unit, that portion of the premium paid

for the purpose of electing optional units will

be refunded to you for the units combined.

(d) All optional units established for the

crop year must be identified on the acreage

report for that crop year.

(e) The following requirements must be

met for each optional unit:

(1) You must have records, which can be

independently verified, of planted acreage

and production for each optional unit for at

least the last crop year used to determine

your production guarantee;

(2) You must have records of marketed

production or measurement of stored

production from each optional unit

maintained in such a manner that permits us

to verify the production from each optional

unit, or the production from each unit must
5906 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 27 / Monday, February 10, 1997 / Rules and Regulations

be kept separate until loss adjustment is

completed by us; and

(3) Each optional unit must be located on

non-contiguous land.

3. Insurance Guarantees, Coverage Levels,

and Prices for Determining Indemnities

In addition to the requirements of section

3 (Insurance Guarantees, Coverage Levels,

and Prices for Determining Indemnities) of

the Basic Provisions (§ 457.8):

(a) You may select only one price election

for all the cranberries in the county insured

under this policy.

(b) You must report, by the production

reporting date designated in section 3

(Insurance Guarantees, Coverage Levels, and

Prices for Determining Indemnities) of the

Basic Provisions (§ 457.8):

(1) Any damage, removal of vines, change

in practices, or any other circumstance that

may reduce the expected yield below the

yield upon which the insurance guarantee is

based, and the number of affected acres;

(2) The age of the vines; and

(3) Any other information that we request

in order to establish your approved yield.

We will adjust the yield used to establish

your production guarantee as necessary,

based on our estimate of the effect of the

removal of vines, damage, change in

practices, and any other circumstance that

may affect the yield potential of the insured

crop. If you fail to notify us of any

circumstance that may affect your yields

from previous levels, we will adjust your

production guarantee as necessary at any

time we become aware of the circumstance.

4. Contract Changes

In accordance with section 4 (Contract

Changes) of the Basic Provisions (§ 457.8),

the contract change date is August 31

preceding the cancellation date.

5. Cancellation and Termination Dates

In accordance with section 2 (Life of

Policy, Cancellation, and Termination) of the

Basic Provisions (§ 457.8), the cancellation

and termination dates are November 20.

6. Insured Crop

In accordance with section 8 (Insured

Crop) of the Basic Provisions (§ 457.8), the

crop insured will be all the cranberries in the

county for which a premium rate is provided

by the actuarial table:

(a) In which you have a share;

(b) That are grown for harvest as

cranberries;

(c) That are grown in a bog that, if

inspected, is considered acceptable by us;

and

(d) That are grown on vines that have

completed four growing seasons after the

vines were set out, unless otherwise provided

by the actuarial table or by written

agreement.

7. Insurance Period

(a) In accordance with the provisions of

section 11 (Insurance Period) of the Basic

Provisions (§ 457.8):

(1) Coverage begins on November 21 of

each crop year, except that for the year of

application, if your application is received

after November 11, but prior to November 21,

insurance will attach on the 10th day after

your properly completed application is

received in our local office, unless we inspect

the acreage during the 10 day period and

determine that it does not meet insurability

requirements. You must provide any

information that we require for the crop or

to determine the condition of the bog.

(2) The calendar date for the end of the

insurance period for each crop year is

November 20.

(b) In addition to the provisions of section

11 (Insurance Period) of the Basic Provisions

(§ 457.8):

(1) If you acquire an insurable share in any

insurable acreage after coverage begins but on

or before the acreage reporting date for the

crop year, and after an inspection we

consider the acreage acceptable, insurance

will be considered to have attached to such

acreage on the calendar date for the

beginning of the insurance period.

(2) If you relinquish your insurable share

on any insurable acreage of cranberries on or

before the acreage reporting date for the crop

year, insurance will not be considered to

have attached to, and no premium or

indemnity will be due for, such acreage for

that crop year unless:

(i) A transfer of coverage and right to an

indemnity, or a similar form approved by us,

is completed by all affected parties;

(ii) We are notified by you or the transferee

in writing of such transfer on or before the

acreage reporting date; and

(iii) The transferee is eligible for crop

insurance.

8. Causes of Loss

(a) In accordance with the provisions of

section 12 (Causes of Loss) of the Basic

Provisions (§ 457.8), insurance is provided

only against the following causes of loss that

occur during the insurance period:

(1) Adverse weather conditions;

(2) Fire, unless weeds and other forms of

undergrowth have not been controlled or

pruning debris has not been removed from

the bog;

(3) Wildlife;

(4) Earthquake;

(5) Volcanic eruption;

(6) Failure of irrigation water supply, if

caused by an insured peril that occurs during

the insurance period; or

(7) Failure or breakdown of irrigation

equipment or facilities due to direct damage

to the irrigation equipment or facilities from

an insurable cause of loss if the cranberry

crop is damaged by freezing temperatures

within 72 hours of such failure or breakdown

and repair or replacement was not possible

before damage occurred.

(b) In addition to the causes of loss

excluded in section 12 (Cause of Loss) of the

Basic Provisions (§ 457.8), we will not insure

against damage or loss of production due to:

(1) Disease or insect infestation, unless

adverse weather:

(i) Prevents the proper application of

control measures or causes properly applied

control measures to be ineffective; or

(ii) Causes disease or insect infestation for

which no effective control mechanism is

available; or

(2) Inability to market the cranberries for

any reason other than actual physical damage

from an insurable cause of loss specified in

this section. For example, we will not pay

you an indemnity if you are unable to market

due to quarantine, boycott, or refusal of any

person to accept production.

9. Duties in the Event of Damage or Loss

In addition to the requirements of section

14 (Duties in the Event of Damage or Loss)

of the Basic Provisions (§ 457.8):

(a) If you discover damage, or if you intend

to claim an indemnity on any insured unit,

you must give us notice of probable loss:

(1) At least 15 days before the beginning of

any harvesting, or

(2) Immediately if probable loss is

discovered after harvesting has begun.

(b) You must not sell or dispose of any

damaged production until the earlier of 15

days from the date of notice of loss or when

we give you written consent to do so.

(c) If you fail to meet the requirements of

this section, and such failure results in our

inability to inspect the damaged production,

all such production will be considered

undamaged and included as production to

count.

10. Settlement of Claim

(a) We will determine your loss on a unit

basis. In the event you are unable to provide

separate acceptable production records:

(1) For any optional unit, we will combine

all optional units for which such production

records were not provided; or

(2) For any basic unit, we will allocate any

commingled production to such units in

proportion to our liability on the harvested

acreage for each unit.

(b) In the event of loss or damage covered

by this policy, we will settle your claim by:

(1) Multiplying the insured acreage by its

respective production guarantee;

(2) Multiplying the result of section

10(b)(1) by the price election;

(3) Multiplying the total production to be

counted, (see section 10(c)) by the price

election;

(4) Subtracting the total in section 10(b)(3)

from the total in section 10(b)(2); and

(5) Multiplying the result in section

10(b)(4) by your share.

(c) The total production to count (in

barrels) from all insurable acreage on the unit

will include:

(1) All appraised production as follows:

(i) Not less than the production guarantee

per acre for acreage:

(A) That is abandoned;

(B) Damaged solely by uninsured causes;

(C) For which you fail to provide

acceptable production records; or

(D) Destroyed or put to another use without

our consent;

(ii) Production lost due to uninsured

causes;

(iii) Unharvested production; and

(iv) Potential production on insured

acreage that you intend to abandon or no

longer care for, if you and we agree on the

appraised amount of production. Upon such

agreement, the insurance period for that

acreage will end. If you do not agree with our

appraisal, we will use the appraised amount

of production or defer the claim if you agree

to continue to care for the crop. We will then

make another appraisal when you notify us

of further damage or that harvest is general
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 27 / Monday, February 10, 1997 / Rules and Regulations 5907

to the area unless you harvested the crop, in

which case we will use the harvested

production. If you do not continue to care for

the crop, our appraisal made prior to

deferring the claim will be used to determine

the production to count; and

(2) All harvested production from the

insurable acreage.

(3) Harvested production which, due to

insurable causes, is determined not to meet

the United States Standards for Fresh

Cranberries if available, or would not meet

those standards if properly handled, or does

not meet the quality requirements of the

receiving handler if the United States

Standards for Fresh Cranberries, if not

available, and such harvested production has

a value less than 75 percent of the market

price for cranberries meeting the minimum

requirements will be adjusted by:

(i) Dividing the value per barrel of such

cranberries by the market price per barrel for

cranberries meeting the minimum

requirements; and

(ii) Multiplying the result by the number of

barrels of such cranberries.

11. Written Agreements

Designated terms of this policy may be

altered by written agreement in accordance

with the following:

(a) You must apply in writing for each

written agreement no later than the sales

closing date, except as provided in section

11(e);

(b) The application for a written agreement

must contain all variable terms of the

contract between you and us that will be in

effect if the written agreement is not

approved;

(c) If approved, the written agreement will

include all variable terms of the contract,

including, but not limited to, crop type or

variety, the guarantee, premium rate, and

price election;

(d) Each written agreement will only be

valid for one year (If the written agreement

is not specifically renewed the following

year, insurance coverage for subsequent crop

years will be in accordance with the printed

policy); and

(e) An application for a written agreement

submitted after the sales closing date may be

approved if, after a physical inspection of the

acreage, it is determined that no loss has

occurred and the crop is insurable in

accordance with the policy and written

agreement provisions.

Signed in Washington, DC, on January 31,

1997.

Kenneth D. Ackerman,

Manager, Federal Crop Insurance

Corporation.

[FR Doc. 97–3130 Filed 2–7–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–FA–P

Animal and Plant Health Inspection

Service

9 CFR Part 78

[Docket No. 96–045–2]

Brucellosis in Cattle; State and Area

Classifications; New Mexico

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health

Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Affirmation of interim rule as

final rule.

SUMMARY: We are adopting as a final

rule, without change, an interim rule

that amended the brucellosis regulations

concerning the interstate movement of

cattle by changing the classification of

New Mexico from Class A to Class Free.

We have determined that New Mexico

meets the standards for Class Free

status. The interim rule was necessary

to relieve certain restrictions on the

interstate movement of cattle from New

Mexico.

EFFECTIVE DATE: The interim rule was

effective on November 18, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr.

Michael J. Gilsdorf, Senior Staff

Veterinarian, Brucellosis Eradication

Staff, VS, APHIS, suite 3B08, 4700 River

Road Unit 36, Riverdale, MD 20737–

1231, (301) 734–7708.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

In an interim rule effective and

published in the Federal Register on

November 18, 1996 (61 FR 58625–

58626, Docket No. 96–045–1), we

amended the brucellosis regulations in

9 CFR part 78 by removing New Mexico

from the list of Class A States in

§ 78.41(b) and adding it to the list of

Class Free States in § 78.41(a).

Comments on the interim rule were

required to be received on or before

January 17, 1997. We did not receive

any comments. The facts presented in

the interim rule still provide a basis for

the rule.

This action also affirms the

information contained in the interim

rule concerning Executive Order 12866

and the Regulatory Flexibility Act,

Executive Orders 12372 and 12988, and

the Paperwork Reduction Act.

Further, for this action, the Office of

Management and Budget has waived the

review process required by Executive

Order 12866.

List of Subjects in 9 CFR Part 78

Animal diseases, Bison, Cattle, Hogs,

Quarantine, Reporting and

recordkeeping requirements,

Transportation.

PART 78—BRUCELLOSIS

Accordingly, we are adopting as a

final rule, without change, the interim

rule that amended 9 CFR 78 and that

was published at 61 FR 58625–58626 on

November 18, 1996.

Authority: 21 U.S.C. 111–114a–1, 114g,

115, 117, 120, 121, 123–126, 134b, and 134f;

7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.2(d).

Done in Washington, DC, this 4th day of

February 1997.

Terry L. Medley,

Administrator, Animal and Plant Health

Inspection Service.

[FR Doc. 97–3216 Filed 2–7–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P

NUCLEAR REGULATORY

COMMISSION

10 CFR Part 71

RIN 3150–AF58

Fissile Material Shipments and

Exemptions

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory

Commission.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Nuclear Regulatory

Commission (NRC) is amending its

regulations regarding the shipment of

exempt quantities of fissile material and

the shipment of fissile material under a

general license. This emergency final

rule restricts the use of beryllium and

other special moderating materials (i.e.,

graphite and deuterium) in the

shipment of fissile materials and

consigns quantity limits on fissile

exempt shipments. These amendments

are necessary to correct a recently

discovered defect in the current

regulations which could permit, in

special circumstances, nuclear

criticality to occur in shipments of

fissile materials which are permitted to

take place without specific Commission

approval. The regulatory defect is not

indicative of unsafe fissile material

shipments in the past. Rather, it was

identified by Babcock & Wilcox (B&W)

during preparation for shipment of an

unprecedented type of fissile material

that could result in nuclear criticality

under current requirements. This

unique material is produced as a waste

product from processing of strategic

material resulting from operations to

commercially downblend weaponsusable fissile material from the former

Soviet Union. Although this rule is

being issued as an immediately effective

final rule, the Commission is requesting

public comment and will revise the rule

if necessary.