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.

Rules and Regulations Federal Register

28521 

Vol. 83, No. 119 

Wednesday, June 20, 2018 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Agricultural Marketing Service 

7 CFR Part 932 

[Doc. No. AMS–SC–18–0001; SC18–932–1 

FR] 

Olives Grown in California; Decreased 

Assessment Rate 

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, 

USDA. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: This rule implements a 

recommendation from the California 

Olive Committee (Committee) to 

decrease the assessment rate established 

for the 2018 fiscal period for olives 

grown in California. The assessment rate 

will remain in effect indefinitely unless 

modified, suspended, or terminated. 

DATES: Effective July 20, 2018. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Peter Sommers, Marketing Specialist, or 

Jeffrey Smutny, Regional Director, 

California Marketing Field Office, 

Marketing Order and Agreement 

Division, Specialty Crops Program, 

AMS, USDA; Telephone: (559) 487– 

5901, Fax: (559) 487–5906, or Email: 

PeterR.Sommers@ams.usda.gov or 

Jeffrey.Smutny@ams.usda.gov. 

Small businesses may request 

information on complying with this 

regulation by contacting Richard Lower, 

Marketing Order and Agreement 

Division, Specialty Crops Program, 

AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence 

Avenue SW, STOP 0237, Washington, 

DC 20250–0237; Telephone: (202) 720– 

2491, Fax: (202) 720–8938, or Email: 

Richard.Lower@ams.usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This 

action, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553, 

amends regulations issued to carry out 

a marketing order as defined in 7 CFR 

900.2(j). This rule is issued under 

Marketing Agreement and Order No. 

932, as amended (7 CFR part 932), 

regulating the handling of olives grown 

in California. Part 932 (referred to as the 

‘‘Order’’) is effective under the 

Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act 

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

hereinafter referred to as the ‘‘Act.’’ The 

Committee locally administers the 

Order and is comprised of producers 

and handlers of olives operating within 

the area of production. 

The Department of Agriculture 

(USDA) is issuing this rule in 

conformance with Executive Orders 

13563 and 13175. This action falls 

within a category of regulatory actions 

that the Office of Management and 

Budget (OMB) exempted from Executive 

Order 12866 review. Additionally, 

because this rule does not meet the 

definition of a significant regulatory 

action, it does not trigger the 

requirements contained in Executive 

Order 13771. See OMB’s Memorandum 

titled ‘‘Interim Guidance Implementing 

Section 2 of the Executive Order of 

January 30, 2017, titled ‘Reducing 

Regulation and Controlling Regulatory 

Costs’ ’’ (February 2, 2017). 

This rule has been reviewed under 

Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice 

Reform. Under the Order now in effect, 

California olive handlers are subject to 

assessments. Funds to administer the 

Order are derived from such 

assessments. It is intended that the 

assessment rate as established herein 

would be applicable to all assessable 

olives beginning on January 1, 2018, and 

continue until amended, suspended, or 

terminated. 

The Act provides that administrative 

proceedings must be exhausted before 

parties may file suit in court. Under 

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

handler subject to an order may file 

with USDA a petition stating that the 

order, any provision of the order, or any 

obligation imposed in connection with 

the order is not in accordance with law 

and request a modification of the order 

or to be exempted therefrom. Such 

handler is afforded the opportunity for 

a hearing on the petition. After the 

hearing, USDA would rule on the 

petition. The Act provides that the 

district court of the United States in any 

district in which the handler is an 

inhabitant, or has his or her principal 

place of business, has jurisdiction to 

review USDA’s ruling on the petition, 

provided an action is filed not later than 

20 days after the date of the entry of the 

ruling. 

This rule decreases the assessment 

rate established for the 2018 and 

subsequent fiscal periods from $26.00 to 

$24.00 per ton of assessed olives. 

The Order provides authority for the 

Committee, with the approval of USDA, 

to formulate an annual budget of 

expenses and collect assessments from 

handlers to administer the program. The 

members of the Committee are 

producers and handlers of olives in 

California. They are familiar with the 

Committee’s needs, with the costs for 

goods and services in their local area, 

and are therefore in a position to 

formulate an appropriate budget and 

assessment rate. The assessment rate is 

formulated in a public meeting where 

all directly affected persons have an 

opportunity to participate and provide 

input. 

For the 2015 and subsequent fiscal 

years, the Committee recommended, 

and USDA approved, an assessment rate 

of $26.00 per ton of assessed olives. 

That rate would continue in effect 

unless modified, suspended, or 

terminated by USDA upon 

recommendation and information 

submitted by the Committee or other 

information available to USDA. 

The Committee met on December 13, 

2017, and unanimously recommended 

2018 expenditures of $1,940,477, and an 

assessment rate of $24.00 per ton of 

assessed olives. In comparison, last 

year’s budgeted expenditures were 

$1,752,366. The assessment rate of 

$24.00 is $2.00 lower than the rate 

currently in effect. Handlers received 

83,799 tons of assessable olives during 

the 2017 crop year, which is higher than 

the 63,000 tons of assessable olives 

received during the 2016 crop year. The 

2018 fiscal year assessment rate 

decrease is necessary to ensure the 

Committee has sufficient revenue to 

fund the recommended 2018 budgeted 

expenditures while ensuring the funds 

in the financial reserve would be kept 

within the maximum permitted by 

§ 932.40. 

The Order has a fiscal year and a crop 

year that are independent of each other. 

The crop year is a 12-month period that 

begins on August 1 of each year and 

ends on July 31 of the following year. 

The fiscal year is the 12-month period 

that begins on January 1 and ends on 

December 31 of each year. Olives are an 

alternate-bearing crop, with a small crop 

followed by a large crop. For the 


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28522 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 119 / Wednesday, June 20, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 

Committee’s assessment rate, the actual 

2017 crop year receipts are used to 

determine the assessment rate for the 

2018 fiscal year. 

The major expenditures 

recommended by the Committee for 

2018 includes $401,200 for program 

administration, $973,500 for marketing 

activities, and $297,777 for research. 

Budgeted expenses for these items 

during the 2017 fiscal year were 

$513,100 for program administration, 

$823,500 for marketing activities, and 

$317,766 for research. The assessment 

rate recommended by the Committee 

resulted from consideration of proposed 

fiscal year expenses, actual olive 

tonnage received by handlers during the 

2017 crop year, and the amount of funds 

in the Committee’s financial reserve. 

Income derived from handler 

assessments, along with interest income 

and funds from the Committee’s 

authorized reserve, will be adequate to 

cover budgeted expenses. Funds in the 

reserve will be kept within the 

maximum permitted by the Order of 

approximately one fiscal year’s 

expenses. 

The assessment rate established in 

this rule will continue in effect 

indefinitely unless modified, 

suspended, or terminated by USDA 

upon recommendation and information 

submitted by the Committee or other 

available information. 

Although this assessment rate will be 

effective for an indefinite period, the 

Committee will continue to meet prior 

to or during each fiscal period to 

recommend a budget of expenses and 

consider recommendations for 

modification of the assessment rate. The 

dates and times of Committee meetings 

are available from the Committee or 

USDA. Committee meetings are open to 

the public, and interested persons are 

encouraged to express their views at 

these meetings. USDA will evaluate 

Committee recommendations and other 

available information to determine 

whether modification of the assessment 

rate is needed. Further rulemaking will 

be undertaken as necessary. The 

Committee’s budget for fiscal year 2018 

and those for subsequent fiscal periods 

will be reviewed and, as appropriate, 

approved by USDA. 

Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis 

Pursuant to requirements set forth in 

the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) 

(5 U.S.C. 601–612), the Agricultural 

Marketing Service (AMS) has 

considered the economic impact of this 

rule on small entities. Accordingly, 

AMS has prepared this final regulatory 

flexibility analysis. 

The purpose of the RFA is to fit 

regulatory actions to the scale of 

businesses subject to such actions in 

order that small businesses will not be 

unduly or disproportionately burdened. 

Marketing orders issued pursuant to the 

Act, and the rules issued thereunder, are 

unique in that they are brought about 

through group action of essentially 

small entities acting on their own 

behalf. 

There are approximately 1,100 

producers of olives in the production 

area and two handlers subject to 

regulation under the Order. Small 

agricultural producers are defined by 

the Small Business Administration 

(SBA) as those having annual receipts 

less than $750,000, and small 

agricultural service firms are defined as 

those whose annual receipts are less 

than $7,500,000 (13 CFR 121.201). 

Based upon National Agricultural 

Statistics Service (NASS) information, 

the average price to producers for the 

2016 crop year was $865.00 per ton, and 

total assessable volume for the 2017 

crop year was 83,799 tons. Based on 

production, price paid to producer, and 

the total number of California olive 

producers, the average annual producer 

revenue is less than $750,000 ($865.00 

times 83,799 equals $72,486,135, 

divided by 1,100 producers equals an 

average annual producer revenue of 

$65,896). Thus, the majority of olive 

producers may be classified as small 

entities. Both of the handlers may be 

classified as large entities under the 

SBA’s definitions because their annual 

receipts are greater than $7,500,000. 

This rule decreases the assessment 

rate collected from handlers for the 2018 

and subsequent fiscal years from $26.00 

to $24.00 per ton of assessable olives. 

The Committee unanimously 

recommended 2018 expenditures of 

$1,940,477 and an assessment rate of 

$24.00 per ton of assessable olives. The 

recommended assessment rate of $24.00 

is $2.00 lower than the 2017 rate. The 

quantity of assessable olives for the 

2017 crop year is 83,799 tons, which 

should provide $2,011,176 in 

assessment income. The lower 

assessment rate is possible because 

annual receipts for the 2017 crop year 

are 83,799 tons compared to 63,000 tons 

for the 2016 crop year. Olives are an 

alternate-bearing crop, with a small crop 

followed by a large crop. Income 

derived from the $24.00 per ton 

assessment rate, along with funds from 

the authorized reserve and interest 

income, should be adequate to meet this 

fiscal year’s expenses. 

The major expenditures 

recommended by the Committee for the 

2018 fiscal year include $401,200 for 

program administration, $973,500 for 

marketing activities, and $297,777 for 

research. Budgeted expenses for these 

items during the 2017 fiscal year were 

$513,100 for program administration, 

$823,500 for marketing activities, and 

$317,766 for research. 

Prior to arriving at this budget and 

assessment rate, the Committee 

considered information from various 

sources including the Committee’s 

Executive, Marketing, Inspection, and 

Research Subcommittees. Alternate 

expenditure levels were discussed by 

these groups, based upon the relative 

value of various projects to the olive 

industry and the increased olive 

production. The assessment rate of 

$24.00 per ton of assessable olives was 

derived by considering anticipated 

expenses, the volume of assessable 

olives, and additional pertinent factors. 

A review of NASS information 

indicates that the average producer 

price for the 2016 crop year was $865.00 

per ton. Therefore, utilizing the 

assessment rate of $24.00 per ton, the 

assessment revenue for the 2018 fiscal 

year as a percentage of total producer 

revenue would be approximately 2.77 

percent. 

This action decreases the assessment 

obligation imposed on handlers. 

Assessments are applied uniformly on 

all handlers, and some of the costs may 

be passed on to producers. However, 

decreasing the assessment rate reduces 

the burden on handlers, and may reduce 

the burden on producers. 

In addition, the Committee’s meeting 

was widely publicized throughout the 

production area. The olive industry and 

all interested persons were invited to 

attend the meeting and encouraged to 

participate in Committee deliberations 

on all issues. Like all Committee 

meetings, the December 13, 2017, 

meeting was a public meeting and all 

entities, both large and small, were able 

to express views on this issue. 

In accordance with the Paperwork 

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

Chapter 35), the Order’s information 

collection requirements have been 

previously approved by OMB and 

assigned OMB No. 0581–0189, Fruit 

Crops. No changes in those 

requirements are necessary as a result of 

this action. Should any changes become 

necessary, they would be submitted to 

OMB for approval. 

This rule imposes no additional 

reporting or recordkeeping requirements 

on either small or large California olive 

handlers. As with all Federal marketing 

order programs, reports and forms are 

periodically reviewed to reduce 

information requirements and 

duplication by industry and public 


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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 119 / Wednesday, June 20, 2018 / Rules and Regulations 28523 

sector agencies. As mentioned in the 

initial regulatory flexibility analysis, 

USDA has not identified any relevant 

Federal rules that duplicate, overlap, or 

conflict with this final rule. 

AMS is committed to complying with 

the E-Government Act, to promote the 

use of the internet and other 

information technologies to provide 

increased opportunities for citizen 

access to Government information and 

services, and for other purposes. 

USDA has not identified any relevant 

Federal rules that duplicate, overlap, or 

conflict with this action. 

A proposed rule concerning this 

action was published in the Federal 

Register on April 4, 2018 (83 FR 14379). 

A copy of the proposed rule was 

provided to the handlers by the 

Committee. Finally, the proposal was 

made available through the internet by 

USDA and the Office of the Federal 

Register. A 30-day comment period 

ending May 4, 2018, was provided for 

interested persons to respond to the 

proposal. No comments were received. 

The proposal also contained 

administrative revisions to the Order’s 

subpart headings to bring the language 

into conformance with the Office of 

Federal Register requirements. Those 

revisions are not included in this rule as 

they were included in a technical 

amendment final rule published in the 

Federal Register on April 6, 2018 (83 FR 

14736). 

A small business guide on complying 

with fruit, vegetable, and specialty crop 

marketing agreements and orders may 

be viewed at: http://www.ams.usda.gov/ 

rules-regulations/moa/small-businesses. 

Any questions about the compliance 

guide should be sent to Richard Lower 

at the previously-mentioned address in 

the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT

section. 

After consideration of all relevant 

material presented, including the 

information and recommendation 

submitted by the Committee and other 

available information, it is hereby found 

that this rule will tend to effectuate the 

declared policy of the Act. 

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 932 

Marketing agreements, Olives, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

For the reasons set forth in the 

preamble, 7 CFR part 932 is amended as 

follows: 

PART 932—OLIVES GROWN IN 

CALIFORNIA 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 932 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 601–674. 

■ 2. Section 932.230 is revised to read 

as follows: 

§ 932.230 Assessment rate. 

On and after January 1, 2018, an 

assessment rate of $24.00 per ton is 

established for California olives. 

Dated: June 15, 2018. 

Bruce Summers, 

Administrator, Agricultural Marketing 

Service. 

[FR Doc. 2018–13271 Filed 6–19–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Agricultural Marketing Service 

7 CFR Part 981 

[Doc. No. AMS–SC–17–0084; SC18–981–1 

FR] 

Almonds Grown in California; Revision 

to the Adjusted Kernel Weight 

Computation 

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, 

USDA. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: This final rule implements a 

recommendation from the Almond 

Board of California (Board) to revise the 

adjusted kernel weight computation 

currently prescribed under the 

Marketing Order for almonds grown in 

California. In addition, this action 

allows adjustments to the calculated 

percentages for foreign material, excess 

moisture, or inedible kernels so that the 

sum of the percentages for the specified 

measurements equals 100 percent. 

DATES: Effective July 20, 2018. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Andrea Ricci, Marketing Specialist, or 

Jeffrey Smutny, Regional Director, 

California Marketing Field Office, 

Marketing Order and Agreement 

Division, Specialty Crops Program, 

AMS, USDA; Telephone: (559) 487– 

5901, Fax: (559) 487–5906, or Email: 

Andrea.Ricci@ams.usda.gov or 

Jeffrey.Smutny@ams.usda.gov. 

Small businesses may request 

information on complying with this 

regulation by contacting Richard Lower, 

Marketing Order and Agreement 

Division, Specialty Crops Program, 

AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence 

Avenue SW, STOP 0237, Washington, 

DC 20250–0237; Telephone: (202) 720– 

2491, Fax: (202) 720–8938, or Email: 

Richard.Lower@ams.usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This final 

rule, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553, amends 

regulations issued to carry out a 

marketing order as defined in 7 CFR 

900.2(j). This final rule is issued under 

Marketing Order No. 981, as amended (7 

CFR part 981), regulating the handling 

of almonds grown in California. Part 981 

(referred to as the ‘‘Order’’) is effective 

under the Agricultural Marketing 

Agreement Act of 1937, as amended (7 

U.S.C. 601–674), hereinafter referred to 

as the ‘‘Act.’’ The Board locally 

administers the Order and is comprised 

of growers and handlers operating 

within California. 

The Department of Agriculture 

(USDA) is issuing this final rule in 

conformance with Executive Orders 

13563 and 13175. This action falls 

within a category of regulatory actions 

that the Office of Management and 

Budget (OMB) exempted from Executive 

Order 12866 review. Additionally, 

because this final rule does not meet the 

definition of a significant regulatory 

action, it does not trigger the 

requirements contained in Executive 

Order 13771. See OMB’s Memorandum 

titled ‘‘Interim Guidance Implementing 

Section 2 of the Executive Order of 

January 30, 2017, titled ‘Reducing 

Regulation and Controlling Regulatory 

Costs’ ’’ (February 2, 2017). 

This final rule has been reviewed 

under Executive Order 12988, Civil 

Justice Reform. This final rule is not 

intended to have retroactive effect. 

The Act provides that administrative 

proceedings must be exhausted before 

parties may file suit in court. Under 

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

handler subject to an order may file 

with USDA a petition stating that the 

order, any provision of the order, or any 

obligation imposed in connection with 

the order is not in accordance with law 

and request a modification of the order 

or to be exempted therefrom. A handler 

is afforded the opportunity for a hearing 

on the petition. After the hearing, USDA 

would rule on the petition. The Act 

provides that the district court of the 

United States in any district in which 

the handler is an inhabitant, or has his 

or her principal place of business, has 

jurisdiction to review USDA’s ruling on 

the petition, provided an action is filed 

not later than 20 days after the date of 

the entry of the ruling. 

This final rule changes the way 

adjusted kernel weight is expressed by 

requiring calculation of percentages for 

specified measurements to round the 

decimal to the nearest thousandth rather 

than the current hundredth. In addition, 

this final rule allows adjustments to the 

calculated percentages for foreign 

material, excess moisture, or inedible 

kernels so that the sum of the 

percentages for the specified 

measurements equals 100 percent. The 

Board unanimously recommended these 


sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with RULES