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

60121

Vol. 65, No. 196

Tuesday, October 10, 2000

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Parts 905 and 944

[Docket No. FV99–905–5 PR]

Oranges, Grapefruit, Tangerines, and

Tangelos Grown in Florida and

Imported Grapefruit; Clarification of

Inspection Requirements

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service,

USDA.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

SUMMARY: This rule would clarify

inspection requirements for shipments

of Florida citrus and imports of

grapefruit. The handling of citrus grown

in Florida is regulated under a

marketing order administered locally by

the Citrus Administrative Committee

(Committee). Grapefruit imports are

subject to an import regulation issued

under section 8e of the Agricultural

Marketing Agreement Act of 1937. This

change would specify in the regulations

undersize tolerances for Florida citrus

and imported grapefruit that are

currently applied by the inspection

service, and would clarify the

regulations. This change would also

renumber citations in the domestic and

import regulations to reflect revisions to

the numbering of the United States

Standards for Grades of Oranges,

Grapefruit, Tangerines, and Tangelos

Grown in Florida.

DATES: Comments must be received by

December 11, 2000.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are

invited to submit written comments

concerning this rule. Comments must be

sent to the Docket Clerk, Marketing

Order Administration Branch, Fruit and

Vegetable Programs, AMS, USDA, room

2525–S, P.O. Box 96456, Washington,

DC 20090–6456; Fax: (202) 720–5698; or

E-mail: moab.docketclerk@usda.gov. All

comments should reference the docket

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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

William G. Pimental, Marketing

Specialist, Southeast Marketing Field

Office, Marketing Order Administration

Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Programs,

AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 2276, Winter

Haven, Florida 33883–2276; telephone:

(863) 299–4770, Fax: (863) 299–5169; or

George Kelhart, Technical Advisor,

Marketing Order Administration

Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Programs,

AMS, USDA, room 2525–S, P.O. Box

96456, Washington, DC 20090–6456;

telephone: (202) 720–2491, Fax: (202)

720–5698.

Small businesses may request

information on complying with this

regulation by contacting Jay Guerber,

Marketing Order Administration

Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Programs,

AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 96456, room

2525–S, Washington, DC 20090–6456;

telephone (202) 720–2491, Fax: (202)

720–5698, or E-mail:

Jay.Guerber@usda.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This

proposed rule is issued under Marketing

Agreement No. 84 and Marketing Order

No. 905, both as amended (7 CFR part

905), regulating the handling of oranges,

grapefruit, tangerines, and tangelos

grown in Florida, hereinafter referred to

as the ‘‘order.’’ The marketing

agreement and order are effective under

the Agricultural Marketing Agreement

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

674), hereinafter referred to as the

‘‘Act.’’

This proposed rule is also issued

under section 8e of the Act, which

provides that whenever certain

specified commodities, including

grapefruit, are regulated under a Federal

marketing order, imports of these

commodities into the United States are

prohibited unless they meet the same or

comparable grade, size, quality, or

maturity requirements as those in effect

for the domestically produced

commodities.

The Department of Agriculture

(Department) is issuing this rule in

conformance with Executive Order

12866.

This proposed rule has been reviewed

under Executive Order 12988, Civil

Justice Reform. This rule is not intended

to have retroactive effect. This rule will

not preempt any State or local laws,

regulations, or policies, unless they

present an irreconcilable conflict with

this rule.

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 the Secretary 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 the Secretary 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 the Secretary’s ruling on the

petition, provided an action is filed not

later than 20 days after the date of the

entry of the ruling.

There are no administrative

procedures which must be exhausted

prior to any judicial challenge to the

provisions of import regulations issued

under section 8e of the Act.

The order for Florida citrus provides

for the establishment of minimum grade

and size requirements with the

concurrence of the Secretary. The

minimum grade and size requirements

are designed to provide fresh markets

with fruit of acceptable quality and size,

thereby maintaining consumer

confidence for fresh Florida citrus.

Maintaining confidence in the

commodity shipped contributes to

stable marketing conditions in the

interest of growers, handlers, and

consumers, and helps increase returns

to Florida citrus growers.

Section 905.52 of the order, in part,

authorizes the Committee to recommend

minimum grade and size requirements

to the Secretary. Section 905.306

specifies minimum grade and size

requirements for different varieties of

fresh Florida citrus. Such regulations

may be modified, suspended, or

terminated under § 905.52. Section

905.53 specifies that whenever the

handling of a variety of a type of fruit

is regulated pursuant to § 905.52, each

handler who handles any such type of

fruit shall, prior to such handling of any

lot of such variety, cause the lot to be

inspected by the Federal-State

Inspection Service and certified as

60122 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 196 / Tuesday, October 10, 2000 / Proposed Rules

meeting all applicable requirements of

that regulation.

This proposed rule would clarify

inspection requirements for oranges,

grapefruit, tangerines, and tangelos

grown in Florida and imported

grapefruit. Current inspection

procedures allow undersize tolerances

for domestic shipments of Florida citrus

failing to meet minimum size

regulations under the order. These

procedures also allow undersize

tolerances for imported grapefruit

failing to meet minimum size

requirements established under the

grapefruit import regulation.

Specifically, these procedures allow for

a 10 percent tolerance for undersize

fruit in each lot and a 15 percent

tolerance for undersize fruit in any

individual sample. Undersize tolerances

allow for variations to proper sizing and

reduce handler packing costs. This

change would specify these inspection

procedures in the order’s rules and

regulations and in the grapefruit import

regulation. The Committee unanimously

recommended specifying the undersize

tolerances for Florida citrus in the

regulations at a meeting on April 6,

1999.

Paragraph (c) of § 905.306 currently

references sections of the United States

Standards for Grades of Oranges,

Grapefruit, Tangerines, and Tangelos

Grown in Florida with the intention of

providing tolerances for undersized

fruit. However, the sections specified

reference grade defects, not size

tolerances. Therefore, specific undersize

tolerances for Florida grown oranges,

grapefruit, tangerines, and tangelos

would be added to the text of the

regulations.

Paragraph (c) of § 905.306 would be

revised to allow for a 10 percent

tolerance for undersized fruit in each lot

and a 15 percent tolerance for

undersized fruit in any individual

sample. Additionally, paragraph (c) of

§ 944.106 of the grapefruit import

regulation would also be revised to

reference the undersize tolerances

specified in paragraph (c) of § 905.306 to

recognize current inspection

procedures.

This rule would also renumber

citations in the order to reflect the

revised United States Standards for

Grades of Oranges, Grapefruit,

Tangerines, and Tangelos Grown in

Florida. Effective August 1, 1996, the

various grade standards for Florida

citrus were amended. Some sections of

the amended standards were

renumbered. This action would

renumber some section references to the

U.S. grade standards in §§ 905.146 and

905.306 to bring them into conformity

with the renumbered sections in the

amended standards.

Similar changes also would be made

in paragraph (c) of § 944.106 of the

grapefruit import regulation issued

under section 8e of the Act. That section

provides that when certain domestically

produced commodities, including

grapefruit, are regulated under a Federal

marketing order, imports of that

commodity must meet the same or

comparable grade, size, quality, and

maturity requirements. The grapefruit

import regulation is based on the

requirements issued under the

marketing order for Florida citrus.

Accordingly, a corresponding change to

the grapefruit import regulation would

be necessary.

Pursuant to requirements set forth in

the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), the

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

business 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. Thus, both statutes have small

entity orientation and compatibility.

Import regulations issued under the Act

are based on those established under

Federal marketing orders.

There are approximately 100 Florida

citrus handlers subject to regulation

under the marketing order, about 11,000

Florida citrus producers in the regulated

area, and about 25 grapefruit importers.

Small agricultural service firms, which

include handlers and importers, have

been defined by the Small Business

Administration (13 CFR 121.201) as

those whose annual receipts are less

than $5,000,000, and small agricultural

producers are defined as those whose

annual receipts are less than $500,000.

Based on the Florida Agricultural

Statistics Service and Committee data

for the 1998–99 season, the average

annual f.o.b. price for fresh Florida

citrus during the 1998–99 season was

$8.66 per 4⁄5 bushel carton for all

shipments, and the total shipments for

the 1998–99 season were 63.6 million

cartons of citrus. Using information

provided by the Committee, about 60

percent of citrus handlers could be

considered small businesses under the

SBA definition, and the Department

believes that the majority of Florida

citrus producers and grapefruit

importers may be classified as small

entities.

Section 905.52 of the order, in part,

authorizes the Committee to recommend

minimum grade and size requirements

to the Secretary. Section 905.306

specifies minimum grade and size

requirements for different varieties of

fresh Florida citrus. Section 905.53

specifies that whenever the handling of

a variety of a type of fruit is regulated

pursuant to § 905.52, each handler who

handles any such type of fruit shall,

prior to such handling of any lot of such

variety, cause the lot to be inspected by

the Federal-State Inspection Service and

certified as meeting all applicable

requirements of that regulation.

This proposed rule would clarify

inspection requirements for oranges,

grapefruit, tangerines, and tangelos

grown in Florida and imported

grapefruit. Current inspection

procedures allow for a 10 percent

tolerance for undersize fruit in each lot

and a 15 percent tolerance for undersize

fruit in any individual sample for both

domestic and import shipments. This

action would add to undersize

tolerances to the order’s rules and

regulations and in the import regulation

for grapefruit. This change would also

renumber citations in the order to reflect

revisions in the United States Standards

for Grades of Oranges, Grapefruit,

Tangerines, and Tangelos Grown in

Florida made in August 1996. Similar

changes would also be made to the

grapefruit import regulation issued

under section 8e of the Act.

This rule would have a positive

impact on affected entities. This action

would enhance the understandability of

the text of the regulations. The

undersize tolerances allow for variations

to proper sizing and reduce handler

packing costs. Without such tolerances,

more fruit would fail to meet minimum

size requirements without

reconditioning, and handler packing

costs would increase accordingly. Thus,

the tolerances help facilitate shipments

of Florida citrus. The Committee

unanimously recommended specifying

the undersize tolerances for Florida

citrus in the regulations at a meeting on

April 6, 1999.

During the period January 1, 1999,

through December 31, 1999, imports of

grapefruit totaled 19,400,000 pounds

(approximately 456,470 cartons). Recent

yearly data indicate that imports from

May through November are typically

negligible. Future imports should not

vary significantly from the 19,400,000

pounds. The Bahamas were the

principal source of imported grapefruit,

accounting for 93 percent of the total.

Israel, Mexico, and Turkey supplied

Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 196 / Tuesday, October 10, 2000 / Proposed Rules 60123

remaining imports. Most imported

grapefruit enters the United States from

November through May.

With regard to alternatives, this action

offers the best alternative to achieve the

intended purpose of clarifying the

inspection requirements.

This rule would not impose any

additional reporting or recordkeeping

requirements on either small or large

Florida citrus handlers and importers.

As with all Federal marketing order

programs, reports and forms are

periodically reviewed to reduce

information requirements and

duplication by industry and public

sectors. In addition, the Department has

not identified any relevant Federal rules

that duplicate, overlap or conflict with

this rule. However, Florida citrus must

meet the requirements specified in the

U.S. standards for the various types of

citrus grown in Florida issued under the

Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 (7

U.S.C. 1621 through 1627).

Further, the Committee’s meeting was

widely publicized throughout the

Florida citrus industry and all interested

persons were invited to attend the

meeting and participate in Committee

deliberations. Like all Committee

meetings, the April 6, 1999, 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 information on the regulatory

and informational impacts of this action

on small businesses.

A small business guide on complying

with fruit, vegetable, and speciality crop

marketing agreements and orders may

be viewed at the following website:

http://www.ams.usda.gov/fv/

moab.html. Any questions about the

compliance guide should be sent to Jay

Guerber at the previously mentioned

address in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

CONTACT section.

In accordance with section 8e of the

Act, the United States Trade

Representative has concurred with the

issuance of this proposed rule.

A 60-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

7 CFR Part 905

Grapefruit, Marketing agreements,

Oranges, Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements, Tangelos, Tangerines.

7 CFR Part 944

Avocados, Food grades and standards,

Grapefruit, Grapes, Imports, Kiwifruit,

Limes, Olives, Oranges.

For the reasons set forth above, 7 CFR

Parts 905 and 944 are proposed to be

amended as follows:

PART 905—ORANGES, GRAPEFRUIT,

TANGERINES, AND TANGELOS

GROWN IN FLORIDA

1. The authority citation for 7 CFR

Parts 905 and 944 continues to read as

follows:

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 601–674.

2. In § 905.146, paragraph (c)(1) is

revised to read as follows:

§ 905.146 Special purpose shipments.

* * * * *

(c) * * *

(1) Such fruit meets the requirements

of U. S. No. 2 Russet grade and those

requirements of U. S. No. 1 grade

relating to shape (form), as such

requirements are set forth in the revised

U. S. Standards for Grades of Florida

Oranges and Tangelos (7 CFR 51.1140

through 51.1179), the revised Standards

for Florida Tangerines (7 CFR 51.1810

through 51.1837), or the revised U. S.

Standards for Grades of Florida

Grapefruit (7 CFR 51.750 through

51.784). Such fruit also meets applicable

minimum size requirements in effect for

domestic shipments of citrus fruits.

* * * * *

4. In § 905.306, paragraphs (c) and (d)

are revised to read as follows:

§ 905.306 Orange, Grapefruit, Tangerine

and Tangelo Regulation.

* * * * *

(c) Size tolerances. To allow for

variations incident to proper sizing in

the determination of minimum

diameters as prescribed in Tables I and

II, not more than 10 percent, by count,

of the fruit in any lot of containers may

fail to meet the minimum diameter size

requirements, and not more than 15

percent, by count, in any individual

sample may fail to meet the minimum

diameter size requirements specified:

Provided, That such tolerances for other

than Navel and Temple oranges shall be

based only on the oranges in the lot

measuring 2-14/16 inches or smaller in

diameter.

(d) Terms used in the marketing order

including Improved No. 2 grade for

grapefruit, when used herein, mean the

same as is given to the terms in the

order; Florida No. 1 grade for Honey

tangerines means the same as provided

in Rule No. 20–35.03 of the Regulations

of the Florida Department of Citrus, and

terms relating to grade, except Improved

No. 2 grade for grapefruit and diameter,

shall mean the same as is given to the

terms in the revised U.S. Standards for

Grades of Florida Oranges and Tangelos

(7 CFR 51.1140–51.1179), the revised

U.S. Standards for Florida Tangerines (7

CFR 51.1810–51.1837), or the revised

U.S. Standards for Grades of Florida

Grapefruit (7 CFR 51.750–51.784).

PART 944—FRUITS; IMPORT

REGULATIONS

5. In § 944.106, paragraph (c) is

revised to read as follows:

§ 944.106 Grapefruit import regulation.

* * * * *

(c) Terms and tolerances pertaining to

grade and size requirements, which are

defined in the United States. Standards

for Grades of Florida Grapefruit (7 CFR

51.750–51.784), and in Marketing Order

No. 905 (7 CFR 905.18 and 905.306),

shall be applicable herein.

* * * * *

Dated: October 3, 2000.

Robert C. Keeney,

Deputy Administrator, Fruit and Vegetable

Programs.

[FR Doc. 00–25946 Filed 10–6–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Office of Thrift Supervision

12 CFR Parts 563b and 575

[No. 2000–57]

RIN 1550–AB24

Mutual Savings Associations, Mutual

Holding Company Reorganizations,

Conversions From Mutual to Stock

Form

AGENCY: Office of Thrift Supervision,

Treasury.

ACTION: Proposed rule; extension of

comment period.

SUMMARY: The Office of Thrift

Supervision (OTS) is extending the

comment period until November 9, 2000

for its proposed rule regarding mutual

savings associations, mutual holding

company reorganizations, and

conversions from mutual to stock form

published on July 12, 2000.

DATES: Comments must be received by

November 9, 2000.

ADDRESSES:

Mail: Send comments to Manager,

Dissemination Branch, Information

Management and Services Division,