This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains documents other than rules or

proposed rules that are applicable to the

public. Notices of hearings and investigations,

committee meetings, agency decisions and

rulings, delegations of authority, filing of

petitions and applications and agency

statements of organization and functions are

examples of documents appearing in this

section.

Notices Federal Register

2198 

Vol. 89, No. 9 

Friday, January 12, 2024 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Agricultural Marketing Service 

[Doc. No. AMS–TM–23–0066] 

Notice of Availability of the Final 

Programmatic Environmental 

Assessment and Finding of No 

Significant Impact for AMS Local Meat 

Capacity Grant Program 

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, 

USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of availability. 

SUMMARY: The Agricultural Marketing 

Service (AMS) announces the 

availability of the Final Programmatic 

Environmental Assessment (PEA) and 

Finding of No Significant Impact 

(FONSI) for the AMS Local Meat 

Capacity Grant Program. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Betsy Rakola, Associate Deputy 

Administrator, Transportation and 

Marketing Program; Telephone: (202) 

690–1300; Email: LocalMCap@usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The Final PEA and FONSI analyze 

and disclose the potential 

environmental impacts associated with 

the establishment of the Local Meat 

Capacity Grant Program (Local MCap). 

The United States Department of 

Agriculture (USDA) AMS has proposed 

to fund grants to support independently 

owned meat and poultry processing 

businesses. These grants will help them 

provide additional and more efficient 

processing options for local livestock 

producers by modernizing, increasing, 

diversifying, and decentralizing meat 

and poultry processing capacity, 

including support for rendering. 

This program will expand processing 

capacity for small and midsized meat 

and poultry processors, which are 

particularly vulnerable to disruption. It 

will also increase capacity and promote 

competition in the meat and poultry 

processing sector. Based on public 

input, USDA identified an urgent need 

to expand and diversify meat and 

poultry processing capacity. 

The Local MCap Program is 

authorized by section 1001 (b)(4) of the 

American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) (Pub. 

L. 117–2), which funds ‘‘loans and 

grants and other assistance to maintain 

and improve food and agricultural 

supply chain resiliency.’’ Recipients of 

funding from this proposed program 

would be allowed 36 months to 

complete work funded by the grant 

awards. 

The environmental impacts of 

funding projects to enhance existing 

meat and poultry processing facilities 

have been considered in a manner 

consistent with the provisions of the 

National Environmental Policy Act 

(NEPA) of 1969, Public Law 91–190, 42 

U.S.C. 4321–4347, as amended. 

A Final PEA and FONSI have been 

prepared, and based on this analysis, 

AMS has determined there will not be 

a significant impact to the human 

environment. As a result, an 

Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) 

has not been initiated (40 CFR 1501.6). 

AMS intends for this PEA to create 

efficiencies by establishing a framework 

that can be used for ‘‘tiering,’’ where 

appropriate, to project-specific actions 

that require additional analysis. As 

decisions on specific applications are 

made, to the extent additional NEPA 

analysis is required, environmental 

review will be conducted to supplement 

the analysis set forth in this PEA. 

The Final PEA and FONSI are 

available for review online at the 

program website: https://www.ams.

usda.gov/services/grants/localmcap. 

Comments 

AMS published a Draft PEA for public 

comment on October 31, 2023. The 

public comment period ended on 

November 30, 2023. One nonsubstantive comment was received and 

is therefore excluded from consideration 

in the Final PEA and FONSI. Consistent 

with 40 CFR 1503.4(b), all substantive 

comments would have received a 

response. AMS is not required to 

respond to non-substantive comments. 

Comments are carefully considered and 

reviewed; non-substantive comments do 

not receive a detailed response. A nonsubstantive comment is categorized as 

one of the following: 

• General comment, opinion, or 

position statement 

• Concern is outside the scope or 

irrelevant to the proposed action and 

decision 

• Means of addressing the concern are 

already decided by law, regulation, or 

policy 

• Concern can be better addressed 

through another decision process 

(e.g., project level analysis) 

• Concern requests action that has 

already been considered in an 

alternative 

Melissa Bailey, 

Associate Administrator, Agricultural 

Marketing Service. 

[FR Doc. 2024–00520 Filed 1–11–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P 

COMMISSION ON CIVIL RIGHTS 

Notice of Public Meeting of the 

Delaware Advisory Committee to the 

U.S. Commission on Civil Rights 

AGENCY: Commission on Civil Rights. 

ACTION: Announcement of public 

meeting. 

SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given, 

pursuant to the provisions of the rules 

and regulations of the U.S. Commission 

on Civil Rights (Commission) and the 

Federal Advisory Committee Act that 

the Delaware Advisory Committee 

(Committee) to the U.S. Commission on 

Civil Rights will convene a business 

meeting on Wednesday, January 24, 

2024, at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The 

purpose of the meeting is for the 

committee to discuss the progress of 

their report on the COVID–19 impact on 

people of color in Delaware. 

DATES: Wednesday, January 24, 2024; 

1:00 p.m. (ET) 

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held 

via Zoom. 

Registration Link (Audio/Visual): 

https://tinyurl.com/bdeax2vv; 

passcode: USCCR–DE 

Join by Phone (Audio Only): 1–833– 

435–1820 USA Toll-Free; Meeting ID: 

160 070 5129# 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ivy 

Davis, Designated Federal Official at 

idavis@usccr.gov or 202–381–8915. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This 

committee meeting is available to the 

public through the link above. Any 


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