12752 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 42 / Friday, March 2, 2012 / Proposed Rules 

The Board also considered differing 

levels of adjustments under the OSF 

when considering supply. The 

alternative adjustments were deemed to 

be either too small to address industry 

needs, or so large that members were 

concerned with creating an oversupply. 

Therefore, these alternatives were 

rejected. 

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 the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) and 

assigned OMB No. 0581–0177, Tart 

cherries Grown in the States of MI, NY, 

PA, OR, UT, WA, and WI. No changes 

in those requirements as a result of this 

action are necessary. Should any 

changes become necessary, they would 

be submitted to OMB for approval. 

This action would not impose any 

additional reporting or recordkeeping 

requirements on either small or large 

tart cherry 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 Board’s meeting was 

widely publicized throughout the tart 

cherry industry and all interested 

persons were invited to attend the 

meeting and participate in Board 

deliberations on all issues. Like all 

Board meetings, the September 15, 

2011, meeting was a public meeting and 

all entities, both large and small, were 

able to express views on this issue. 

Finally, interested persons are invited to 

submit comments on this proposed rule, 

including the regulatory and 

informational 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: www.ams.usda.gov/ 

MarketingOrdersSmallBusinessGuide. 

Any questions about the compliance 

guide should be sent to Laurel May 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. Thirty days is deemed 

appropriate because this rule would 

need to be in place as soon as possible 

since handlers are already shipping tart 

cherries from the 2011–12 crop. All 

written comments timely received will 

be considered before a final 

determination is made on this matter. 

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 930 

Marketing agreements, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements, Tart 

cherries. 

For the reasons set forth in the 

preamble, 7 CFR part 930 is proposed to 

be amended as follows: 

PART 930—TART CHERRIES GROWN 

IN THE STATES OF MICHIGAN, NEW 

YORK, PENNSYLVANIA, OREGON, 

UTAH, WASHINGTON, AND 

WISCONSIN 

1. The authority citation for 7 CFR 

part 930 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 601–674. 

2. Section 930.256 is added to read as 

follows: 

Note: This section will not appear in the 

annual Code of Federal Regulations. 

§ 930.256 Final free and restricted 

percentages for the 2011–12 crop year. 

The final percentages for tart cherries 

handled by handlers during the crop 

year beginning on July 1, 2011, which 

shall be free and restricted, respectively, 

are designated as follows: Free 

percentage, 88 percent and restricted 

percentage, 12 percent. 

Dated: February 28, 2012. 

Robert C. Keeney, 

Acting Administrator, Agricultural Marketing 

Service. 

[FR Doc. 2012–5171 Filed 3–1–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Agricultural Marketing Service 

7 CFR Part 1260 

[Doc. No. AMS–LS–11–0086] 

Beef Promotion and Research; 

Amendment to the Order 

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, 

USDA. 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: This proposed rule would 

expand the contracting authority as 

established under the Beef Promotion 

and Research (Order). The Beef 

Research and Information Act (Act) 

requires that the Beef Promotion 

Operating Committee (BPOC) enter into 

contracts with established national nonprofit industry-governed organizations 

including the Federation of State Beef 

Councils to implement programs of 

promotion, research, consumer 

information, and industry information. 

The Act does not define ‘‘national nonprofit industry governed organization,’’ 

however, the Order states that these 

organizations must be governed by a 

board of directors representing the cattle 

or beef industry on a national basis and 

that they were active and ongoing prior 

to enactment of the Act. This proposed 

rule would change the date requirement 

in the Order so that organizations 

otherwise qualified could be eligible to 

contract with the BPOC for the 

implementation and conduct of Beef 

Checkoff programs if they have been 

active and ongoing for at least two years. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

received by May 1, 2012. 

ADDRESSES: Comments must be posted 

online at www.regulations.gov or sent to 

Craig Shackelford, Agricultural 

Marketing Specialist, Marketing 

Programs Division, Livestock and Seed 

Program, Agricultural Marketing 

Service, USDA, Room 2628–S, STOP 

0251, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., 

Washington, DC 20250–0251; or fax to 

(202) 720–1125. All comments should 

reference the docket number, the date, 

and the page number of this issue of the 

Federal Register. Comments will be 

available for public inspection at the 

aforementioned address, as well as on 

the Internet at http:// 

www.regulations.gov/. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Craig Shackelford, Agricultural 

Marketing Specialist, Marketing 

Programs Division, on 202/720–1115, 

fax 202/720–1125, or by email at 

craig.shackelford@ams.usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Executive Order 12866 

The Office of Management and Budget 

has waived the review process required 

by Executive Order 12866 for this 

action. 

Executive Order 12988 

This proposed rule has been reviewed 

under Executive Order 12988, Civil 

Justice Reform. It is not intended to 

have retroactive effect. 

Section 11 of the Act provides that 

nothing in the Act may be construed to 

preempt or supersede any other program 

relating to beef promotion organized 

and operated under the laws of the 

United States or any State. There are no 

administrative proceedings that must be 

exhausted prior to any judicial 

challenge to the provisions of this rule. 

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Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 42 / Friday, March 2, 2012 / Proposed Rules 12753 

Regulatory Flexibility Act and 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

Pursuant to the requirements set forth 

in the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) 

(5 U.S.C. 601–612), the Agricultural 

Marketing Service (AMS) has 

considered the economic effect of this 

action on small entities and has 

determined that this proposed rule will 

not have a significant economic impact 

on a substantial number of small 

entities. The purpose of RFA is to fit 

regulatory actions to the scale of 

businesses subject to such actions in 

order that small businesses will not be 

unduly burdened. 

In the February 2011 publication of 

‘‘Farms, Land in Farms, and Livestock 

Operations,’’ the U.S. Department of 

Agriculture’s (USDA) National 

Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) 

estimates that in 2010 the number of 

operations in the United States with 

cattle totaled approximately 935,000. 

The majority of these operations that are 

subject to the Order may be classified as 

small entities. 

The proposed rule imposes no new 

burden on the industry. It merely 

expands the contracting authority 

within the Order to permit a greater 

number of organizations to perform 

work on behalf of the BPOC. These 

organizations in general represent the 

operations that are subject to the Order. 

Background and Proposed Action 

The Order is authorized by the Act of 

1985 [7 U.S.C. 2901–2918]. The Act was 

passed as part of the 1985 Farm Bill 

[Pub. L. 99–198]. The program became 

effective on July 18, 1986, when the 

Order was issued [51 FR 26132]. 

Assessments began on October 1, 1986. 

Section 5(6) of the Act provides that 

the BPOC, to insure coordination and 

efficient use of funds, shall enter into 

contracts or agreements for 

implementing any activities which it 

has approved to be carried out, with 

established national nonprofit industrygoverned organizations including the 

Federation of State Beef Councils. This 

language has the effect of requiring the 

BPOC to contract with organizations, 

which qualify as established national 

non-profit industry-governed 

organizations. The Act does not define 

‘‘national non-profit industry governed 

organization.’’ 

Currently, section 1260.113 of the 

Order defines ‘‘established national 

non-profit industry-governed 

organizations’’ as organizations which: 

(a) Are non-profit organizations 

pursuant to sections 501(c)(3), (5) or (6) 

of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. 

501(c)(3), (5), and (6)); (b) are governed 

by a board of directors representing the 

cattle or beef industry on a national 

basis; and (c) were active and ongoing 

before enactment of the Act. This 

proposed rule would amend section 

1260.113 of the Order by replacing the 

existing language under paragraph (c), 

‘‘were active and ongoing before the 

enactment of the Act’’ with ‘‘have been 

active and ongoing for at least two 

years.’’ 

The Act, enacted on December 23, 

1985, directed the Secretary of 

Agriculture (Secretary) to accept 

proposals from any certified 

organization or interested person. The 

Department published an invitation to 

submit proposals in the Federal 

Register on February 14, 1986 [51 FR 

5543]. USDA received an industry 

proposal that it published in a proposal 

rule on March 14, 1986 [51 FR 8980]. 

This proposed rule included a 

definition of ‘‘established national nonprofit industry governed organizations’’ 

that read: ‘‘‘Established National Nonprofit Industry Governed Organizations’ 

means any organization which: (a) are 

non-profit organizations pursuant to 

sections 501(c)(3), (5) or (6) of the 

Internal Revenue Code, 26 U.S.C. 

501(c)(3), (5) and (6); (b) are governed by 

a board of directors representing the 

cattle or beef industry on a national 

basis whose Board is composed of a 

majority of producers; and (c) was active 

and ongoing before enactment of the 

Act.’’ 

The final rule that issued the Order 

was published on July 18, 1986 [51 FR 

26132]. The definition for ‘‘established 

national non-profit industry governed 

organizations’’ was modified by deletion 

of the requirement that the board of 

directors of such organizations be 

composed of a majority of producers. 

This modification was made based on 

comments to the proposed rule that said 

the previous definition was too 

restrictive. 

At the time of the passage of the Act 

and the promulgation of the Order, a 

limited number of industry-governed 

organizations existed with the requisite 

knowledge, skills, and experience 

related to the marketing of beef and beef 

products. The proponents of the Beef 

Checkoff wished to utilize and 

coordinate with those organizations 

already conducting activities similar to 

those envisioned under the Act and to 

enhance coordination and the efficient 

use of funds among beef promotion 

entities, and to enhance accountability 

to producers. 

This proposed rule would amend the 

definition of ‘‘Established National Nonprofit Industry Governed Organizations’’ 

to permit the BPOC to contract with a 

growing number of organizations 

possessing the requisite experience, 

skills and information related to the 

marketing of beef and beef products that 

exist today while still requiring a 

minimum level of organizational 

experience so as not to encourage the 

unnecessary proliferation of 

inexperienced organizations desiring to 

contract with the BPOC. USDA believes 

that a minimum level of experience 

within an organization is beneficial. To 

achieve both goals, this proposal would 

amend § 1260.113 ‘‘Established national 

non-profit industry-governed 

organizations’’ by replacing the existing 

language under paragraph (c) to read 

‘‘have been active or ongoing for at least 

two years.’’ 

In 2006, the National Cattlemen’s Beef 

Association (NCBA) and the American 

Farm Bureau initiated the IndustryWide Beef Checkoff Taskforce 

(Taskforce) to review, study, and 

recommend enhancements to the Beef 

Checkoff program for the purpose of 

strengthening the Beef Checkoff 

Program for the common good of the 

beef industry. The Taskforce included 

producer and industry representatives 

and representatives from national 

organizations, while USDA took on an 

advisory role during meetings. The 

Taskforce issued a report in September 

2006, which included a 

recommendation to eliminate section 

1260.113(c) in order to make the Beef 

Checkoff more inclusive. USDA believes 

that permitting a greater number of 

organizations to contract with the BPOC 

could bring new perspectives to the 

contracting process. 

In February 2008 at the Cattle 

Industry Annual Convention, leaders of 

the Cattlemen’s Beef Board (Board) 

asked AMS officials if the Board could 

conduct a program review. The industry 

officials believed that it would be in the 

best interest of the Beef Checkoff 

Program to conduct a review of the 

operations to determine if there are any 

changes that need to or could be made 

in program operations, the Act, or Order 

that would facilitate a more effective 

Beef Checkoff Program. Included in the 

Board’s subsequent January 2009 

recommendations to AMS was a 

recommendation for a statutory 

amendment intended to result in an 

expansion of the contracting authority 

to organizations created after the 1986 

enactment of the Act. 

Finally, a meeting was held in 

Minneapolis, Minnesota, on September 

27, 2011, attended by many industry 

stakeholders and co-hosted by the U.S. 

Cattlemen’s Association and the 

National Farmers Union as requested by 

the Secretary. The goal of the meeting 

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12754 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 42 / Friday, March 2, 2012 / Proposed Rules 

was to bring more broad-based producer 

support to the Beef Checkoff program 

through a discussion of issues regarding 

Beef Checkoff administration and to 

provide the Secretary with 

recommendations that would enhance 

support for the Beef Checkoff. Many 

major Beef Checkoff industry 

stakeholders attended, including the 

American National Cattlewomen, 

American Veal Association, Livestock 

Marketing Association, NCBA, National 

Livestock Producers Association, and 

Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund, 

United Stockgrowers of America (R– 

CALF). Representatives from the AMS 

also attended the meeting, as did the 

Chief Executive Officer and Producer 

Chairman of the Board. 

As a result of that meeting, the 

Secretary received a joint letter signed 

by most of the organizations in 

attendance. The letter requested that 

USDA amend Beef Checkoff regulations 

to expand the contracting authority as 

authorized under the Act and Order by 

permitting organizations that are active 

and ongoing for at least two years to 

contract with the BPOC. 

Conclusion 

A greater number of beef industry 

organizations exist now than did at the 

time the Order was issued. The Beef 

Checkoff Program could benefit from the 

perspectives and skills of some of these 

organizations that are ineligible solely 

because they were formed after the 

enactment of the Act. For several years, 

the beef industry has been 

recommending expanding the eligibility 

of organizations to contract with the 

BPOC in order to enhance the Beef 

Checkoff Program. Amending the Order 

would allow the BPOC to contract with 

organizations possessing the requisite 

experience, skills and information 

related to the marketing of beef and beef 

products, as is intended under the Act. 

A 60-day comment period is provided 

to allow interested persons to respond 

to this proposal. Sixty days is deemed 

appropriate to facilitate the orderly and 

thoughtful consideration of this 

proposal. 

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 1260 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Advertising, Agricultural 

research, Imports, Marketing agreement, 

Meat and meat products, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements. 

For the reasons set forth in the 

preamble, it is proposed that 7 CFR part 

1260 be amended as follows: 

PART 1260—BEEF PROMOTION AND 

RESEARCH 

1. The authority citation for 7 CFR 

part 1260 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 2901–2911 and 7 

U.S.C. 7401. 

2. In § 1260.113, paragraph (c) is 

revised to read as follows: 

§ 1260.113 Established national non-profit 

industry-governed organizations. 

* * * * * 

(c) Have been active and ongoing for 

at least two years. 

Dated: February 28, 2012. 

Robert C. Keeney, 

Acting Administrator, Agricultural Marketing 

Service. 

[FR Doc. 2012–5145 Filed 3–1–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

10 CFR Part 719 

48 Parts 931, 952 and 970 

RIN 1990–AA37 

Contractor Legal Management 

Requirements; Acquisition 

Regulations 

AGENCY: Office of General Counsel, 

Department of Energy. 

ACTION: Reopening of public comment 

period. 

SUMMARY: This document announces a 

reopening of the time period for 

submitting comments on the 

Department of Energy (DOE or 

Department) notice of proposed 

rulemaking (NOPR) to revise existing 

regulations covering contractor legal 

management requirements and make 

conforming amendments to the 

Department of Energy Acquisition 

Regulation (DEAR) (76 FR 81408). The 

comment period is reopened until 

March 16, 2012. 

DATES: The comment period for the 

request for information relating to the 

DOE notice of proposed rulemaking to 

revise existing regulations covering 

contractor legal management 

requirements and make conforming 

amendments to the DEAR is reopened 

until March 16, 2012. 

ADDRESSES: Any comments submitted 

must identify this NOPR on Contractor 

Legal Management Requirements, and 

provide regulatory information number 

(RIN) 1990–AA37. Comments may be 

submitted using any of the following 

methods: 

1. Federal eRulemaking Portal: 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

2. Email: 

DOE.719comments@hq.doe.gov. Include 

RIN 1990–AA37 in the subject line of 

the message. 

3. Mail: Lisa Pinder, Administrative 

Assistant, U.S. Department of Energy, 

Office of General Counsel, GC–60, 1000 

Independence Ave. SW., Washington, 

DC 20585. If possible, please submit all 

items on a compact disc (CD), in which 

case it is not necessary to include 

printed copies. 

4. Hand Delivery/Courier: Ms. Lisa 

Pinder, Administrative Assistant, U.S. 

Department of Energy, GC–60, 1000 

Independence Ave. SW., Washington, 

DC 20585. Telephone: (202) 586–5426. 

If possible, please submit all items on a 

CD, in which case it is not necessary to 

include printed copies. 

No faxes will be accepted. 

For further information on how to 

submit a public comment, review other 

public comments and the docket, 

contact Ms. Lisa Pinder (202) 586–5426 

or by Email: lisa.pinder@hq.doe.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

Eric Mulch, Attorney-Adviser, U.S. 

Department of Energy, Office of General 

Counsel, 1000 Independence Avenue 

SW., Washington, DC 20585–0121. 

Telephone: (202) 287–5746. Email: 

eric.mulch@hq.doe.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On 

December 28, 2011, The DOE published 

a NOPR in the Federal Register (76 FR 

81408) to revise existing regulations 

covering contractor legal management 

requirements and make conforming 

amendments to the DEAR. The NOPR 

requested public comment from 

interested parties regarding the 

proposed revisions by February 27, 

2012. DOE has determined that 

reopening the comment period to allow 

additional time for interested parties to 

submit comments is appropriate. 

Therefore, DOE is reopening the 

comment period until March 16, 2012 to 

provide interested parties additional 

time to prepare and submit comments. 

Accordingly, DOE will consider any 

comments received by March 16, 2012 

to be timely submitted. 

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