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

859 

Vol. 89, No. 5 

Monday, January 8, 2024 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Agricultural Marketing Service 

7 CFR Part 1207 

[Doc. No. AMS–SC–22–0041] 

Potato Research and Promotion Plan; 

Changes to Board Membership and 

Administrative Committee 

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, 

USDA. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: This rule implements 

recommendations from the National 

Potato Promotion Board (Board) to 

change its membership and organization 

by revising the formula used to 

determine the number of producer and 

importer seats on the Board, reducing 

the maximum number of importer seats 

on the Board, and indefinitely 

suspending the Administrative 

Committee. In addition to these Boardrecommended changes, the U.S. 

Department of Agriculture (USDA) 

makes several non-substantive changes 

to clarify the start of the term of office 

for Board members and modernize the 

Board’s procedures. The Board 

administers the Potato Research and 

Promotion Plan (Plan) with oversight by 

the Agricultural Marketing Service 

(AMS). 

DATES: Effective February 7, 2024. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Alexandra Caryl, Branch Chief, MidAtlantic Region Branch, Market 

Development Division, Specialty Crop 

Program, AMS, USDA, STOP 0244, 1400 

Independence Avenue SW, Room 1406– 

S, Washington, DC 20250–0244; 

Telephone: (202) 720–8085; or Email: 

Alexandra.Caryl@usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This rule 

affecting the Plan (7 CFR part 1207) is 

authorized under the Potato Research 

and Promotion Act of 1971 (Act) (7 

U.S.C. 2611–2627). 

Executive Orders 12866 and 13563 

USDA is issuing this rule in 

conformance with Executive Orders 

12866, 13563, and 14094. Executive 

Orders 12866 and 13563 direct agencies 

to assess all costs and benefits of 

available regulatory alternatives and, if 

regulation is necessary, to select 

regulatory approaches that maximize 

net benefits (including potential 

economic, environmental, public health 

and safety effects, distributive impacts, 

and equity). Executive Order 13563 

emphasizes the importance of 

quantifying both costs and benefits, 

reducing costs, harmonizing rules, and 

promoting flexibility. Executive Order 

14094 reaffirms, supplements, and 

updates Executive Order 12866 and 

further directs agencies to solicit and 

consider input from a wide range of 

affected and interested parties through a 

variety of means. This action falls 

within a category of regulatory actions 

that the Office of Management and 

Budget (OMB) exempted from Executive 

Order 12866 review. 

Executive Order 13175 

This rule was reviewed under 

Executive Order 13175, Consultation 

and Coordination with Indian Tribal 

Governments, which requires agencies 

to consider whether their rulemaking 

actions would have Tribal implications. 

AMS has determined this rule is 

unlikely to have substantial direct 

effects on one or more Indian Tribes, on 

the relationship between the Federal 

Government and Indian Tribes, or on 

the distribution of power and 

responsibilities between the Federal 

Government and Indian Tribes. 

Executive Order 12988 

This rule was reviewed under 

Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice 

Reform. It 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 311 of the Act (7 U.S.C. 2620), 

a person subject to the Plan may file a 

petition with USDA stating that the 

Plan, any provision of the Plan, or any 

obligation imposed in connection with 

the Plan, is not in accordance with law 

and requesting a modification of the 

Plan or to be exempted therefrom. Such 

person is afforded the opportunity for a 

hearing on the petition. Thereafter, 

USDA will issue a ruling on the 

petition. The Act provides that the 

district courts of the U.S. for any district 

in which the petitioner resides or 

conducts business shall have 

jurisdiction to review a final ruling on 

the petition if the petitioner files a 

complaint for that purpose not later 

than 20 days after the date of the entry 

of USDA’s final ruling. 

Background 

Under the Plan, which became 

effective on March 9, 1972, the Board 

administers a nationally coordinated 

program of research, development, 

advertising, and promotion designed to 

strengthen potatoes’ competitive 

position and expand domestic and 

foreign markets for potatoes and potato 

products. This program is financed by 

assessments on handlers and importers 

of potatoes and potato products. 

This rule modifies the membership of 

the Board by revising the formula to 

determine the number of producer and 

importer seats on the Board. This action 

increases the current threshold from one 

member seat per five million 

hundredweight pounds of potatoes 

produced or imported to one seat per 10 

million hundredweight for both 

producer and importer seats. This action 

further revises importer membership by 

reducing the maximum number of 

importer seats from five to two. 

Additionally, the action indefinitely 

suspends the Administrative 

Committee. Finally, this rule clarifies 

the start date of the term of office for 

Board members and modernizes certain 

Board procedures relating to the 

submission of votes and ballots. 

The Board unanimously 

recommended the changes to its 

membership and the indefinite 

suspension of the Administrative 

Committee at a public meeting on 

March 9, 2022. Board members present 

for the vote represented domestic 

producers, importers, and the public, 

and the recommendations incorporated 

industry feedback collected by the 

Board over a three-year period. 

Changes to Membership Rules 

Section 1207.320(b) and (c) of the 

Plan provides the formula used to 

determine the number of producer and 

importer seats on the Board. Under the 

current formula, one seat is created for 

every five million hundredweight of 

potatoes produced or imported. 


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Therefore, as more potatoes are 

produced and imported, the Board has 

more seats. 

The Board has encountered 

significant challenges in filling Board 

member seats. First, since the Board’s 

inception, the potato industry has 

experienced both increased production 

and consolidation. Since the 1970s 

when the Board was created, production 

of potatoes in the U.S. as well as 

imports from Canada and other 

countries have increased substantially. 

At the same time, the number of 

commercial potato farmers and 

importers has decreased significantly. 

Accordingly, the number of seats on the 

Board has increased but there are fewer 

eligible producers and importers to fill 

them. Second, Board members are 

volunteers, nominated by peers to 

represent their State or importer sector. 

To be a member, domestic producers 

and importers use time otherwise spent 

with their businesses to travel to 

meetings and participate in committees 

and decision making. Board members 

are also expected to communicate the 

activities of the Board to their 

constituencies and recruit future Board 

members. While service as Board 

members is important, it is timeconsuming. 

As a result of these challenges, the 

Board in recent years has typically had 

approximately 125 total seats, of which 

only about 100 have been filled. 

Therefore, the Board has experienced 

roughly 25 vacancies each year. This 

rule increases the threshold from one 

member seat per five million 

hundredweight pounds of potatoes 

produced or imported to one seat per 10 

million hundredweight for both 

producer and importer seats. With these 

changes, the Board expects the number 

of member seats to reduce to 80. 

Section 308(b) of the Act (7 U.S.C. 

2617(b)) and §§ 1207.320(c) and 

1207.322(d) of the Plan currently allow 

for a maximum of five importer seats on 

the Board. Since importers started 

paying assessments in 1991, the Board 

has always included the maximum of 

five importer member seats. Like their 

domestic producer counterparts, 

however, potato importers have 

experienced industry consolidation. 

According to Customs and Border 

Protection data, in 2022 there were only 

10 importers with annual receipts above 

the Small Business Administration’s 

(SBA) threshold of $34 million. The 

Board has not filled all five positions in 

the last 10 years because of the small 

number of continuously active 

importers. Given members serve threeyear terms and cannot serve more than 

two consecutive terms, along with the 

small number of importers, it is 

reasonable to decrease the maximum 

number of importers from five to two. 

Additionally, the Board conducted 

extensive outreach to affected 

stakeholders regarding this issue and 

received their support, as evidenced by 

the unanimous vote for this change. 

The initial request for these changes 

came from domestic producers and 

importers. Since 2020, the Board has 

met with various State organizations 

across the country to discuss the 

changes. USDA and members of 

industry also participated in numerous 

public meetings conducted by the Board 

to discuss the chronic vacancies 

experienced by the Board as a result of 

its current size and structure. The 

solution developed by the Board reflects 

the input from these stakeholders. 

Suspending the Administrative 

Committee 

Section 1207.507 of the Plan 

establishes an Administrative 

Committee composed of 38 producer 

members, one importer member, and the 

public member, as provided for in the 

Board’s bylaws. The Administrative 

Committee is selected annually. The 

Administrative Committee acts for the 

Board in implementing marketing 

research, development, advertising, 

and/or promotion activities as directed 

by the Board and is charged with 

developing and submitting to USDA for 

approval specific programs or projects. 

The Administrative Committee also acts 

for the Board in authorizing contracts or 

agreements for the development and 

carrying out of such programs or 

projects and the payment of the costs 

thereof with funds collected pursuant to 

the Plan. Finally, the Administrative 

Committee acts for the Board in 

contracting with cooperating agencies 

for the collection of assessments 

pursuant to the Plan. 

Due to the changes to the Board’s 

membership made by this final rule, 

which reduces membership seats to 

approximately 80, the Administrative 

Committee is no longer needed. 

Previously, the Board used the 

Administrative Committee like a smaller 

Board that met twice a year, while the 

full Board only met once. It was easier 

and cheaper for the Administrative 

Committee to convene and conduct 

business because of its reduced size. 

While the Board, with the changes, will 

still be larger than the Administrative 

Committee, the reduced membership 

under the changes allows the full Board 

to meet in lieu of the Administrative 

Committee. Meeting more frequently 

addresses a major industry concern that 

only members of committees, which 

make up the Administrative Committee, 

have sufficient interaction with staff to 

fully understand the programs and 

activities the Board implements. 

Although meeting more frequently may 

require a greater time commitment from 

Board members, the Board believes the 

benefits of this change outweigh any 

additional burden on members. 

Furthermore, as explained in the next 

section, this final rule also amends the 

regulations to permit voting and 

balloting via electronic methods, which 

is expected to increase the efficiency of 

the Board’s operations and make it 

easier for members to participate. By 

reducing the Board size to a more 

reasonable number of members, the 

Board hopes to include all members on 

committees to promote Board member 

interaction and involvement. Therefore, 

this rule indefinitely suspends the 

Administrative Committee. 

USDA Changes 

Section 1207.321(a) states that the 

term of office of Board members starts 

on July 1, or such other date as may be 

specified in the regulations. In 1973, 

USDA added § 1207.504, which 

provided that the term of office would 

instead start on April 1. In 1984, 

§ 1207.504 was amended to require the 

term of office to start on March 1. Since 

then, each member’s term has started on 

March 1. This final rule changes the 

start date in § 1207.321(a) from July 1 to 

March 1 to match § 1207.504 and be 

consistent with the current practice of 

the Board. 

In § 1207.325(c), the Plan provides 

that Board members may vote on noncontroversial matters and matters of an 

emergency nature when there is not 

enough time to call an assembled 

meeting by mail, telegraph, or 

telephone. This final rule changes this 

language to remove the reference to 

telegraph as a means for voting and to 

allow for voting by mail, electronic 

mail, facsimile, or any other means of 

communication. In § 1207.503(a), (b), 

and (c), the Plan provides that 

producers and importers may nominate 

Board members at meetings or by mail 

ballots. This final rule changes this 

language to allow ballots to be 

submitted by mail, electronic mail, 

facsimile, or any other means of 

communication. These changes 

modernize the sections and increase 

accessibility to the voting and balloting 

processes by providing additional 

options. 

Regulatory Flexibility Analysis 

Pursuant to the requirements set forth 

in the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) 

(5 U.S.C. 601–612), AMS considered the 


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economic impact of this action on small 

entities. Accordingly, AMS 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 so 

that small businesses will not be unduly 

or disproportionately burdened. The 

RFA requires, where feasible, an 

estimate of the number of small 

businesses affected by the rule. This 

regulatory flexibility analysis estimates 

a proportion of small businesses where 

it is not feasible to estimate a number. 

The Small Business Administration 

(SBA) has established size standards 

that determine whether a business 

entity is a small business. The size 

standards are based on the entity’s 

economic activity, or industry, and 

generally use the North American 

Industry Classification System (NAICS). 

The size standards are expressed in 

annual receipts in millions of dollars or 

in number of employees, and indicate 

the maximum allowed for an entity to 

be considered a small business. 

The SBA defines small potato 

producers as those having annual 

receipts equal to or less than $4.25 

million (Potato Farming, NAICS code 

111211). Small agricultural service firms 

(handlers and importers) are defined as 

those having annual receipts equal to or 

less than $34 million (Postharvest Crop 

Activities, NAICS code 115114) (13 CFR 

121.201). These were the numbers in 

effect when this regulatory flexibility 

analysis was prepared in October 2023. 

According to the Board, in 2021 there 

were approximately 1,500 producers 

and 955 handlers of potatoes. Since data 

was not available on the number of 

producers that are small businesses 

according to the SBA standard, this 

analysis computes an estimate of the 

number of small farms using census 

data from the USDA’s National 

Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS). 

Producers that pay Board assessments 

have a minimum of five acres of 

potatoes. The 2017 Agricultural Census 

(the most recent census data available) 

reported 2,420 farms with five or more 

harvested acres of potatoes, which is 

reasonably close to the Board estimate 

of 1,500 producers that paid 

assessments in 2021. 

NASS reported a 2022 U.S. potato 

crop value of $5,069,511,000 and 

895,600 harvested acres (the most recent 

annual data available). The estimated 

average value per harvested acre is 

$5,660 (obtained by dividing the crop 

value of $5,069,511,000 by the number 

of acres, 895,600). Thus, on average, a 

farm would have to harvest 751 or fewer 

acres of potatoes to meet the SBA’s 

definition of a small business (obtained 

by dividing the SBA threshold of $4.25 

million by the estimated 2022 average 

value per acre, $5,660). 

According to the 2017 Agricultural 

Census, out of the 2,420 potato farms 

with five or more harvested acres, 2,030 

farms (84 percent) harvested 749 or 

fewer acres, very close to the 751 or 

fewer acres in the previous 

computation. Based on these 

computations, and assuming a normal 

distribution, a large majority of potato 

farms paying assessments to the Board 

are small businesses according to SBA 

criteria. 

As noted above, the SBA threshold 

size for a small agricultural service 

business is $34 million in annual sales. 

The Board estimate of the number of 

potato handlers in 2021 was 955. 

Dividing the $5.07 billion NASS crop 

revenue estimate by 955 yields an 

annual estimate of potato sales per 

handler of approximately $5.3 million 

(farm level value), which is well below 

$34 million, the SBA threshold size for 

a small agricultural service business. 

Potato handlers perform various 

procedures to get potatoes to market, 

including grading, sorting, packaging, 

and shipment. What handlers are paid 

can be estimated by obtaining an annual 

average shipping point price for 

potatoes from AMS Market News. AMS 

shipping point prices capture the prices 

received by shippers (handlers) after 

buying potatoes from growers, and then 

grading, sorting, packaging, and 

shipping. The 2022 average AMS 

shipping point price received for 

potatoes ($0.20 per pound) is 55 percent 

higher than the 2022 average annual 

NASS price of $0.129 per pound 

received by growers. Adding 55 percent 

to the $5.3 million potato sales per 

handler at the farm level yields an 

estimate of $8.2 million average annual 

sales at the handler level, which is also 

well below the SBA small business 

threshold size of $34 million or less in 

annual sales. Assuming a normal 

distribution, a majority of potato 

handlers are small agricultural service 

businesses, according to SBA criteria. 

Based on a review of 2022 potato 

import data from U.S. Customs and 

Border Protection, there were 

approximately 140 importers. Of those 

140 importers, 130 (93 percent) had 

potato imports valued at $34 million or 

less, the SBA size threshold for small 

agricultural service firms. Therefore, 

130 potato importers are small 

businesses in terms of potato import 

value, using SBA business size criteria. 

This rule amends §§ 1207.320, 

1207.321, 1207.322, 1207.325, and 

1207.503, and suspends § 1207.507. The 

changes modify the membership of the 

Board by revising the formula to 

determine the number of seats on the 

Board and reducing the maximum 

number of importer seats on the Board. 

The changes also indefinitely suspend 

the Administrative Committee, clarify 

the start date of the term of office of 

Board members, and modernize the 

Board’s voting and balloting procedures. 

This rule does not impose any new 

costs on producers, handlers, or 

importers. This rule also does not 

impose any additional reporting, 

recordkeeping, or information collection 

requirements on affected entities. The 

changes are administrative in nature 

and allow the Board to more effectively 

carry out the requirements of the Plan 

while reducing costs and increasing 

participation. With these changes, fewer 

individuals are required to attend 

meetings, reducing the time burden and 

costs associated with traveling and 

attending meetings. Further, 

modernizing the Board’s procedures to 

authorize additional methods for casting 

votes and ballots is expected to help 

increase participation. 

The Board considered several options 

when evaluating the best course of 

action. Adopting a set number of seats 

per region with several at-large seats 

was considered. The industry preferred 

to continue using an annual volume 

calculation instead of setting a finite 

number of seats. The Board also 

considered taking no action and 

continuing to experience significant 

membership vacancies. The Board 

decided against this option because 

vacancies have become pervasive. 

Therefore, these alternatives were 

rejected. 

Regarding outreach efforts, all the 

Board’s meetings, including the March 

9, 2022, meeting during which the 

Board recommendations relevant to this 

action were discussed, are open to the 

public and interested persons are 

invited to participate and express their 

views. No concerns were raised in these 

meetings about the changes proposed in 

this document. 

As with all Federal promotion 

programs, reports and forms are 

periodically reviewed to reduce 

information requirements and 

duplication by industry and public 

sector agencies. USDA has not 

identified any relevant Federal rules 

that duplicate, overlap, or conflict with 

this 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. 


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A proposed rule concerning this 

action was published in the Federal 

Register on September 5, 2023 (88 FR 

60599). Copies of the proposed rule 

were sent via email to all potato 

producers, importers, and handlers. A 

copy of the proposed rule was also 

made available through the internet by 

AMS via https://www.regulations.gov. A 

30-day comment period ending October 

5, 2023, was provided for interested 

persons to respond to the proposal. 

Comment Analysis 

During the proposed rule’s 30-day 

comment period, AMS received 13 

comments and one ex parte 

communication, which may be viewed 

on the internet at https://

www.regulations.gov. Twelve comments 

and the ex parte communication were in 

support of the changes, and one 

opposed the changes. Nine comments 

and the ex parte communication were 

from the potato industry and three were 

from the public. 

Of the comments supporting the 

changes, several noted the changes 

would increase participation at the 

meetings. More specifically, one 

comment believed having each person 

serving the function of what is now the 

Administrative Committee will allow 

members to better understand the 

Board’s strategy and vision. Another 

comment pointed to increased 

accountability and access to make 

programmatic decisions that represent 

all potato growers. Some comments 

mentioned that the changes would 

increase the efficiency of the Board, 

fostering more robust debate and 

making the decision-making more 

transparent. Other comments 

acknowledged the difficulty in 

recruiting members seats and remarked 

having fewer of them would make them 

easier to fill. 

One of the commenters who 

ultimately supported the amendments 

expressed two concerns. The 

commenter questioned whether a 

smaller Board could adequately 

represent the interests of the public. In 

addition, the commenter suggested that 

the reduced size of the Board could lead 

to less dissent, fewer creative solutions 

to challenges, and fewer members with 

technical expertise. 

This final rule does not reduce the 

public’s representation nor access to the 

Board. First, this final rule does not 

change the number of public members 

on the Board. Pursuant to the 

regulations, the Board includes one 

public member in addition to its 

producer and importer members. 

Significantly too, all Board meetings are 

open to the public and interested 

persons are invited to participate and 

express their views. Additionally, the 

reduction in Board member seats is not 

expected to negatively impact the 

quality of the Board’s work. Instead, it 

is expected that the reduced size of the 

Board will foster greater participation 

and engagement among members. 

One comment did not support the 

changes as proposed. First, the 

commenter expressed concern that the 

amendments would create an imbalance 

between producers and importers on the 

Board by increasing the number of 

importer seats and decreasing the 

number of producer seats. The 

commenter suggested that the number of 

importer seats should be proportional to 

their contribution to assessment revenue 

and that the number of producer seats 

should not be reduced. Second, the 

commenter stated that the amendments 

would reduce diversity and inclusion 

and cause some states to be 

overrepresented or underrepresented on 

the Board. The commenter suggested 

that producer seats should be allocated 

to States based on equitable criteria and 

that the Board should encourage more 

participation from underrepresented 

farmers, including women and 

minorities. Third, the commenter 

opposed the indefinite suspension of 

the Administrative Committee. Fourth, 

unrelated to the changes implemented 

in this final rule, the commentor raised 

water consumption and pollution issues 

associated with potato production. 

Regarding changing the number of 

importer and producer seats, the rule 

amends the formula that is applied to 

both producer and importer 

membership and reduces, not increases, 

the maximum number of importers that 

can serve on the Board. Specifically, the 

rule reduces the maximum number of 

importer seats from five to two. Since 

the Board’s inception, the global potato 

industry has experienced both increased 

production and consolidation. 

Accordingly, the number of member 

seats has increased but there are fewer 

eligible producers and importers to fill 

them. In response to these industry 

shifts, the Board considered the current 

number of members, the challenges in 

recruitment, and how a reduction might 

change representation on the Board. 

Recognizing assessments contributed by 

both importers and producers, the Board 

proposed to increase the current 

threshold from one member seat per five 

million hundredweight pounds of 

potatoes produced or imported to one 

seat per 10 million hundredweight for 

both producer and importer seats. 

As for using equitable criteria to 

allocate producer seats, § 1207.320(b) of 

the Plan provides the formula to 

determine the membership of the Board. 

This formula applies to all States 

equally and allocates member seats to 

States based on the volume of potatoes 

they produce. The amended formula in 

this rule also applies to all States 

equally, decreasing the number of 

members from each State 

proportionately. Regarding encouraging 

more participation from 

underrepresented farmers, the Board 

goes to great lengths to recruit 

underrepresented producers and 

importers to serve. During the 

nomination process, the Board conducts 

extensive outreach, including traveling 

to speak at local industry meetings and 

relevant agriculture-related associations. 

Additionally, AMS policy is that 

diversity of the boards, councils and 

committees it oversees should reflect 

the diversity of their industries in terms 

of the experience of members, methods 

of production and distribution, 

marketing strategies and other 

distinguishing factors, including but not 

limited to individuals from historically 

underserved communities, that will 

bring different perspectives and ideas to 

the table. 

Regarding the Administrative 

Committee, it is comprised of 40 

members and can act for the Board in 

implementing programs, projects, and 

authorizing contracts. When considering 

changes to the Plan, the Board initially 

modeled the projected membership to 

resemble the Administrative Committee 

because of its success in getting 

members involved and providing 

interaction with program staff. The 

Board further discussed the 

Administrative Committee’s role with 

the reduced membership and 

considered keeping or amending it. 

However, considering industry’s 

feedback, the Board believed the 

Administrative Committee was no 

longer needed. With this change, the 

opportunities for members to discuss 

and debate important issues related to 

the budget, contracts, audits, and 

reports of the Board will not be reduced. 

On the contrary, it is expected that the 

reduced size of the Board will increase 

participation and debate among Board 

members. 

Concerning potato production’s water 

consumption and pollution issues, 

§ 1207.335(b) of the Plan provides that 

the Board can establish and carry on 

research and development projects and 

studies to the end that the marketing 

and utilization of potatoes may be 

encouraged, expanded, improved, or 

made more efficient. The Board uses 

this authority to support the industry’s 

leading sustainability initiatives and 

funds several research projects. More 


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specifically, they fund research 

developing new potato varieties that 

will perform in hot and humid 

environments. 

During the comment period, AMS 

received an ex parte communication 

responding to a posted comment. The 

commenter remarked the rule decreases 

the number of importer seats, not 

increases them. The commenter went on 

to mention the Board’s diversity and 

inclusion efforts, stating the reduction 

of membership will not degrade 

diversity and inclusion efforts. Lastly, 

the commenter elaborated how the 

Board is increasing diversity by 

including all members on operating 

committees and commented that the 

Administrative Committee is no longer 

needed. 

After consideration of all relevant 

material presented, including the 

information and recommendations 

submitted by the Board, comments 

submitted, and other available 

information, AMS determined this rule 

tends to effectuate the declared policy of 

the Act. Accordingly, no changes will be 

made to the rule as proposed based on 

the comments received. 

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 1207 

Advertising, Agricultural research, 

Potatoes, Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements. 

For the reasons stated in the 

preamble, the Agricultural Marketing 

Service amends 7 CFR part 1207 as 

follows: 

PART 1207—POTATO RESEARCH 

AND PROMOTION PLAN 

■ 1. The authority citation for 7 CFR 

part 1207 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 2611–2627; 7 U.S.C. 

7401. 

■ 2. Amend § 1207.320 by revising 

paragraphs (b) and (c) to read as follows: 

§ 1207.320 Establishment and 

membership. 

* * * * * 

(b) Producer membership upon the 

Board shall be determined on the basis 

of the potato production reported in the 

latest Crop Production Annual 

Summary Report issued by the National 

Agricultural Statistics Service of the 

U.S. Department of Agriculture. If a 

State’s potato production data is not 

provided by the National Agricultural 

Statistics Service, the Board may use an 

alternative data source that reliably 

reflects potato production in the United 

States. Unless the Secretary, upon 

recommendation of the Board, 

determines an alternate basis, for each 

10 million hundredweight of such 

production, or major fraction thereof, 

produced within each State, such State 

shall be entitled to one member. 

However, each State shall initially be 

entitled to at least one member. 

(c) The number of importer member 

positions on the Board shall be based on 

the hundredweights of potatoes, potato 

products equivalent to fresh potatoes, 

and seed potatoes imported into the 

United States but shall not exceed two 

importer members. Unless the Secretary, 

upon recommendation of the Board, 

determines an alternate basis, there 

shall be one importer member position 

for each 10 million hundredweight, or 

major fraction thereof, of potatoes, 

potato product equivalents, and seed 

potatoes imported into the United 

States. 

* * * * * 

■ 3. Amend § 1207.321 by revising 

paragraph (a) to read as follows: 

§ 1207.321 Term of office. 

(a) The term of office of Board 

members shall be 3 years, beginning 

March 1, or such other beginning date 

as may be approved pursuant to 

regulations. 

* * * * * 

■ 4. Amend § 1207.322 by revising 

paragraph (d) to read as follows: 

§ 1207.322 Nominations and appointment. 

* * * * * 

(d) The importer members shall be 

nominated by importers of potatoes, 

potato products and/or seed potatoes. 

The number of importer members on the 

Board shall be announced by the 

Secretary and shall not exceed two 

members. The Board may call upon 

organizations of potato, potato products 

and/or seed potato importers to assist in 

nominating importers for membership 

on the Board. If such organizations fail 

to submit nominees or are determined 

by the Board to not adequately represent 

importers, then the Board may conduct 

meetings of importers to nominate 

eligible importers for Board member 

positions. In determining if importer 

organizations adequately represent 

importers, the Board shall consider: 

(1) How many importers belong to the 

association; 

(2) What percentage of the total 

number of importers is represented by 

the association; 

(3) Is the association representative of 

the potato, potato product, and seed 

potato import industry; 

(4) Does the association speak for 

potato, potato product, and seed potato 

importers; and 

(5) Other relevant information as may 

be warranted. 

* * * * * 

■ 5. Amend § 1207.325 by revising 

paragraph (c) to read as follows: 

§ 1207.325 Procedure. 

* * * * * 

(c) For routine and noncontroversial 

matters which do not require 

deliberation and the exchange of views, 

and for matters of an emergency nature 

when there is not enough time to call an 

assembled meeting, the Board may act 

upon a majority of concurring votes of 

its members cast by mail, telephone, 

electronic mail, facsimile, or any other 

means of communication. Any vote cast 

by telephone shall be confirmed 

promptly in writing. 

■ 6. Amend § 1207.503 by revising 

paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) to read as 

follows: 

§ 1207.503 Nominations. 

(a) Pursuant to § 1207.322 of the plan, 

the Board shall assist producers in 

producing sections or States each year 

to nominate producer members for the 

Board. Such nominations may be 

conducted at meetings or with ballots 

submitted by mail, electronic mail, 

facsimile, or any other means of 

communication. One individual shall be 

nominated for each position to become 

vacant. A list of nominees shall be 

submitted to the Secretary for 

consideration by November 1 of each 

year. 

(b) Pursuant to § 1207.322 of the plan, 

the Board shall assist importers each 

year to nominate importer members for 

the Board. Such nominations may be 

conducted at meetings or with ballots 

submitted by mail, electronic mail, 

facsimile, or any other means of 

communication. 

(c) Nomination meetings or balloting 

by mail, electronic mail, facsimile, or 

any other means of communication 

shall be well publicized with notice 

given to producers, importers, and the 

Secretary at least 10 days prior to each 

meeting or distribution of ballots. 

* * * * * 

§ 1207.507 [Stayed] 

■ 7. Stay § 1207.507 indefinitely. 

Erin Morris, 

Associate Administrator, Agricultural 

Marketing Service. 

[FR Doc. 2024–00089 Filed 1–5–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE P 


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