This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains notices to the public of the proposed

issuance of rules and regulations. The

purpose of these notices is to give interested

persons an opportunity to participate in the

rule making prior to the adoption of the final

rules.

Proposed Rules Federal Register

31471 

Vol. 83, No. 130 

Friday, July 6, 2018 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Agricultural Marketing Service 

7 CFR Part 906 

[Doc. No. AMS–SC–17–0049; SC17–906–2 

PR] 

Oranges and Grapefruit Grown in 

Lower Rio Grande Valley in Texas; 

Changing of Container Requirements 

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, 

USDA. 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: This proposed rule invites 

comments on a recommendation to 

change the container requirements 

under the marketing order for oranges 

and grapefruit grown in the Lower Rio 

Grande Valley in Texas. This action 

would remove five containers from the 

list of authorized containers and add 

seven new containers to the list. This 

change would also modify the 

descriptions of two authorized 

containers. 

DATES: Comments must be received by 

August 6, 2018. 

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are 

invited to submit written comments 

concerning this proposed rule. 

Comments must be sent to the Docket 

Clerk, Marketing Order and Agreement 

Division, Specialty Crops Program, 

AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence 

Avenue SW, STOP 0237, Washington, 

DC 20250–0237; Fax: (202) 720–8938; or 

internet: http://www.regulations.gov. All 

comments should reference the 

document number and the date and 

page number of this issue of the Federal 

Register and will be made available for 

public inspection in the Office of the 

Docket Clerk during regular business 

hours, or can be viewed at: http://

www.regulations.gov. All comments 

submitted in response to this proposal 

will be included in the record and will 

be made available to the public. Please 

be advised that the identity of the 

individuals or entities submitting the 

comments will be made public on the 

internet at the address provided above. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Doris Jamieson, Marketing Specialist, or 

Christian D. Nissen, Regional Director, 

Southeast Marketing Field Office, 

Marketing Order and Agreement 

Division, Specialty Crops Program, 

AMS, USDA; Telephone: (863) 324– 

3375, Fax: (863) 291–8614, or Email: 

Doris.Jamieson@ams.usda.gov or 

Christian.Nissen@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, 

proposes amendments to regulations 

used to carry out a marketing order as 

defined in 7 CFR 900.2(j). This proposed 

rule is issued under Marketing 

Agreement and Order No. 906, as 

amended (7 CFR part 906), regulating 

the handling of oranges and grapefruit 

grown in the Lower Rio Grande Valley 

in Texas. Part 906 (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 

Texas Valley Citrus Committee 

(Committee) locally administers the 

Order and is comprised of growers and 

handlers of Texas citrus operating 

within the production area. 

The Department of Agriculture 

(USDA) is issuing this proposed 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 proposed 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 proposed rule has been reviewed 

under Executive Order 12988, Civil 

Justice Reform. This 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 proposed rule would remove five 

containers from the list of authorized 

containers under the Order and would 

add seven new containers to the list. 

This action would also modify the 

descriptions of two authorized 

containers. The Committee 

recommended these changes to align the 

Order’s container regulations with 

current industry practices. The 

Committee unanimously recommended 

the changes at a meeting on June 8, 

2017. 

Section 906.40(d) of the Order 

authorizes the issuance of regulations to 

fix the size, weight, capacity, 

dimensions, or pack of the container or 

containers which may be used in the 

packaging, transportation, sale, 

shipment, or other handling of fruit. 

Section 906.340 provides that no 

handler shall handle any variety of 

oranges or grapefruit grown in the 

production area unless such fruit is 

packed in one of the containers 

specified under the Order. This section 

also specifies a detailed list of the 

containers currently authorized under 

the Order. In addition, this section 

allows the Committee to approve the 

use of other types and sizes of 

containers for testing for research 

purposes. 

The Committee reviewed the 

containers listed in § 906.340 and 

compared them to the containers being 

utilized throughout the industry. This 

process included surveying handlers to 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with PROPOSALS
31472 Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 130 / Friday, July 6, 2018 / Proposed Rules 

determine which containers were being 

used. As a result, the Committee 

determined five of the authorized 

containers were no longer being used to 

pack Texas oranges or grapefruit. 

The Committee also reviewed the list 

of experimental containers that had 

been approved for testing purposes. 

Seven of the experimental containers 

have been widely accepted throughout 

the Texas citrus industry and are being 

used to pack and ship Texas citrus. As 

a result of the review, the Committee 

voted to remove the five containers that 

were no longer being used from the list 

of authorized containers and add the 

seven experimental containers to 

§ 906.340. 

The Committee also discussed that 

while the description in 

§ 906.340(a)(1)(ii) of the closed fully 

telescopic fiberboard carton with 

approximate inside dimensions of 161⁄2

by 103⁄4 by 91⁄2 inches is correct, this 

container is commonly known 

throughout the Texas citrus industry as 

a standard carton. Consequently, for 

clarification purposes, the Committee 

voted to add the words ‘‘Standard 

Carton’’ to this container description. 

Further, the Committee noted that in 

§ 906.340(a)(1)(iv) poly or mesh bags 

can be used to pack oranges and 

grapefruit to a capacity of 5, 8, 10, or 18 

pounds of fruit, but that only oranges 

can be packed in the 4-pound bags. 

During the discussion, Committee 

members agreed handlers should also be 

allowed to ship grapefruit in 4-pound 

bags. Thus, the Committee voted to 

update the description to allow for the 

packing of both oranges and grapefruit 

in poly or mesh bags having a capacity 

of 4 pounds. 

The Committee believes these 

proposed changes would reflect the 

containers being utilized throughout the 

industry and would align the 

regulations with current industry 

practices. 

Section 8e of the Act provides that 

when certain domestically produced 

commodities, including oranges, are 

regulated under a Federal marketing 

order, imports of that commodity must 

meet the same or comparable grade, 

size, quality, and maturity requirements. 

As this rule changes the container 

requirements under the domestic 

handling regulations, no corresponding 

change to the import regulations is 

required. 

Initial 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 

action on small entities. Accordingly, 

AMS has prepared this initial 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 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 170 

producers of oranges and grapefruit in 

the production area and 13 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 on National Agricultural 

Statistics Service (NASS) and 

Committee data, the average price for 

Texas citrus during the 2016–17 season 

was approximately $16 per carton, and 

total shipments were 7.6 million 

cartons. Using the average price and 

shipment information, the number of 

handlers (13), and assuming a normal 

distribution, the majority of handlers 

would have average annual receipts of 

9.4 million, which is greater than 

$7,500,000. ($16 per carton times 7.6 

million cartons equals $121.6 million, 

divided by 13 equals 9.4 million per 

handler.) Thus, the majority of Texas 

citrus handlers may be classified as 

large business entities. 

In addition, based on NASS 

information, the weighted grower price 

for Texas citrus during the 2016–17 

season was approximately $9.35 per 

carton. Using the weighted average price 

and shipment information, the number 

of producers (170) and assuming a 

normal distribution, the majority of 

producers would have annual receipts 

of $418,000, which is less than 

$750,000. ($9.35 per carton times 7.6 

million cartons equals $71.06 million, 

divided by 170 equals $418,000 per 

producer.) Thus, the majority of Texas 

citrus producers may be classified as 

small entities. 

This proposed rule would revise the 

container requirements established 

under the Order. This rule would 

remove five containers from the list of 

authorized containers and add seven 

new containers to the list. This action 

would also update one container to 

allow handlers to use it to pack oranges 

and grapefruit, and would modify the 

description of another container to 

indicate it is the standard container 

used by the industry. These changes 

would align the list of authorized 

containers with current industry needs 

and practices. This rule would revise 

§ 906.340. Authority for these changes is 

provided in § 906.40. 

It is not anticipated that this proposed 

rule would impose additional costs on 

handlers or growers, regardless of size. 

The containers that would be removed 

from the list of authorized containers 

are no longer being used by the 

industry. This rule would provide an 

additional container for packing 

grapefruit, clarify the description for 

one container, and adjust the container 

regulations to better reflect current 

industry practices. The benefits of this 

rule are expected to be equally available 

to all fresh orange and grapefruit 

growers and handlers, regardless of size. 

The Committee considered 

alternatives to this action, including 

making no changes to the list of 

authorized containers. However, it was 

determined that making the 

recommended changes would provide 

an up-to-date list of containers currently 

being used by the Texas citrus industry. 

Therefore, the Committee rejected this 

alternative. 

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, Generic 

Fruit Crops. No changes in those 

requirements would be necessary as a 

result of this action. Should any changes 

become necessary, they would be 

submitted to OMB for approval. 

This proposed rule would not impose 

any additional reporting or 

recordkeeping requirements on either 

small or large Texas orange and 

grapefruit handlers. As with all Federal 

marketing order programs, reports and 

forms are periodically reviewed to 

reduce information requirements and 

duplication by industry and public 

sector agencies. 

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 proposed rule. 

In addition, the Committee’s meeting 

was widely publicized throughout the 

Texas citrus industry, and all interested 

persons were invited to attend the 

meeting and participate in Committee 

deliberations on all issues. Like all 


daltland on DSKBBV9HB2PROD with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 130 / Friday, July 6, 2018 / Proposed Rules 31473 

Committee meetings, the June 8, 2017, 

meeting was a public meeting, and all 

entities, both large and small, were able 

to express their views on this issue. 

Finally, interested persons are invited to 

submit comments on this proposed rule, 

including the regulatory and 

information collection impacts of this 

action on small businesses. 

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. 

A 30-day comment period is provided 

to allow interested persons to respond 

to this proposal. All written comments 

timely received will be considered 

before a final determination is made on 

this matter. 

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 906 

Grapefruit, Marketing agreements, 

Oranges, Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

For the reasons set forth in the 

preamble, 7 CFR part 906 is proposed to 

be amended as follows: 

PART 906—ORANGES AND 

GRAPEFRUIT GROWN IN LOWER RIO 

GRANDE VALLEY IN TEXAS 

■ 1. The authority citation for 7 CFR 

part 906 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 601–674. 

■ 2. Revise § 906.340(a)(1) to read as 

follows: 

§ 906.340 Container, pack, and container 

marking regulations. 

(a) * * * 

(1) Containers. (i) Closed fiberboard 

carton with approximate inside 

dimensions of 131⁄4 x 101⁄2 x 71⁄4 inches: 

Provided, That the container has a 

Mullen or Cady test of at least 200 

pounds; 

(ii) Closed fully telescopic fiberboard 

carton with approximate inside 

dimensions of 161⁄2 x 103⁄4 x 91⁄2 inches 

(Standard carton); 

(iii) Poly or mesh bags having a 

capacity of 4, 5, 8, 10, or 18 pounds of 

fruit; 

(iv) Rectangular or octagonal bulk 

fiberboard crib with approximate 

dimensions of 46 to 471⁄2 inches in 

length, 37 to 38 inches in width, and 36 

inches in height: Provided, That the 

container has a Mullen or Cady test of 

at least 1,300 pounds, and that it is used 

only once for the shipment of citrus 

fruit: And Provided further, That the 

container may be used to pack any poly 

or mesh bags authorized in this section, 

or bulk fruit; 

(v) Rectangular or octagonal 2⁄3

fiberboard crib with approximate 

dimensions of 46 to 471⁄2 inches in 

length, 37 to 38 inches in width, and 24 

inches in height: Provided, That the crib 

has a Mullen or Cady test of at least 

1,300 pounds, and that it is used only 

once for the shipment of citrus fruit: 

And Provided further, That the 

container may be used to pack any poly 

or mesh bags authorized in this section, 

or bulk fruit; 

(vi) Octagonal fiberboard crib with 

approximate dimensions of 46 to 471⁄2

inches in width, 37 to 38 inches in 

depth, and 26 to 261⁄2 inches in height: 

Provided, That the crib has a Mullen or 

Cady test of at least 1,300 pounds, and 

that it is used only once for the 

shipment of citrus fruit: And Provided 

further, That the crib may be used to 

pack any poly or mesh bags authorized 

in this section, or bulk fruit; 

(vii) Fiberboard box holding two 

layers of fruit, with approximate 

dimensions of 23 inches in length, 151⁄2

inches in width, and 7 inches in depth; 

(viii) Reusable collapsible plastic 

container with approximate dimensions 

of 23 inches in length, 15 inches in 

width, and 7 to 11 inches in depth; 

(ix) Reusable collapsible plastic bin 

with approximate dimensions of 363⁄4 x 

443⁄4 x 27 inches; 

(x) Octagonal bulk triple wall 

fiberboard crib with approximate 

dimensions of 373⁄4 inches in length, 25 

inches in width, and 25 inches in 

height: Provided, That the container has 

a Mullen or Cady test of at least 1,100 

pounds: And Provided further, That the 

container may be used to pack any poly 

or mesh bags authorized in this section, 

or bulk fruit; 

(xi) Bag having the capacity of 15 

pounds of fruit, either in a combination 

1⁄2 poly and 1⁄2 mesh bag or mesh bag; 

(xii) Reusable collapsible plastic mini 

bin with approximate dimensions of 

391⁄2 inches in length, 24 inches in 

width, and 301⁄2 inches in height: 

Provided, That the container may be 

used to pack any poly or mesh bags 

authorized in this section, or bulk fruit; 

(xiii) Bag having the capacity of three 

pounds of fruit; 

(xiv) Standard carton with 

approximate inside dimensions of 

16.375 x 10.6875 x 10.25 inches; 

(xv) 8⁄5 Body master carton with 

approximate inside dimensions of 

19.5385 x 13.125 x 11.625 inches, one 

piece; 

(xvi) Euro 8⁄5 (5 Down) with 

approximate inside dimensions of 

22.813 x 14.688 x 7.0 up to 7.936 

inches; 

(xvii) Fiberboard one piece display 

container with approximate inside 

dimensions of 23 inches x 15 inches x 

91⁄2 up to 101⁄2 inches in depth; 

(xviii) Such types and sizes of 

containers as may be approved by the 

committee for testing in connection 

with a research project conducted by or 

in cooperation with the committee: 

Provided, That the handling of each lot 

of fruit in such test containers shall be 

subject to prior approval and under the 

supervision of the committee. 

* * * * * 

Dated: July 2, 2018. 

Bruce Summers, 

Administrator, Agricultural Marketing 

Service. 

[FR Doc. 2018–14511 Filed 7–5–18; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Agricultural Marketing Service 

7 CFR Part 981 

[AMS–SC–18–0018; SC18–981–3] 

Handling of Almonds Grown in 

California 

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, 

USDA. 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: This proposed rule invites 

comments on proposed amendments to 

Marketing Order No. 981, which 

regulates the handling of almonds 

grown in California. The proposed 

amendments would change the dates 

associated with the process to nominate 

members to the Almond Board of 

California (Board) as well as the start of 

the term of office of members of the 

Board. The proposed amendments 

would also add authority to allow future 

revisions of the nomination methods 

and term of office start date through the 

development of regulations using 

informal rulemaking. 

DATES: Comments must be received by 

September 4, 2018. 

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are 

invited to submit written comments 

concerning this proposed rule. 

Comments must be sent to the Docket 

Clerk, Marketing Order and Agreement 

Division, Specialty Crops Program, 

AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence 

Avenue SW, STOP 0237, Washington, 

DC 20250–0237; Fax: (202) 720–8938; or 

internet: http://www.regulations.gov. All 

comments should reference the 

document number and the date and 


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