[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 215 (Monday, November 6, 2000)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 66487-66489]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-28362]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

7 CFR Part 301

[Docket No. 00-076-1]


Imported Fire Ant; Addition to Quarantined Areas

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Interim rule and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: We are amending the imported fire ant regulations because 
infestations of imported fire ant have been discovered in additional 
areas in Tennessee. This action will quarantine two new counties and 
additional portions of four other counties. As a result of this action, 
the interstate movement of regulated articles from those areas will be 
restricted. This action is necessary to prevent the artificial spread 
of the imported fire ant to noninfested areas of the United States. We 
are also making nonsubstantive changes to the description of other 
quarantined areas in Tennessee to make them easier to understand.

DATES: This interim rule is effective November 6, 2000. We invite you 
to comment on this docket. We will consider all comments that we 
receive by January 5, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Please send four copies of your comment (an original and 
three copies) to: Docket No. 00-076-1, Regulatory Analysis and 
Development, PPD, APHIS, Suite 3C03, 4700 River Road, Unit 118, 
Riverdale, MD 20737-1238
    Please state that your comment refers to Docket No. 00-076-1.
    You may read any comments that we receive on this docket in our 
reading room. The reading room is located in room 1141 of the USDA 
South Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, 
DC. Normal reading room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, except holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you, 
please call (202) 690-2817 before coming.
    APHIS documents published in the Federal Register, and related 
information, including the names of organizations and individuals who 
have commented on APHIS dockets, are available on the Internet at 
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/webrepor.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Ronald Milberg, Operations 
Officer, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 36, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231; 
(301) 734-5255.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The imported fire ant regulations (contained in 7 CFR 301.81 
through 301.81-10 and referred to below as the regulations) quarantine 
infested States or infested areas within States and restrict the 
interstate movement of regulated articles to prevent the artificial 
spread of the imported fire ant.
    The imported fire ant, Solenpsis invicta Buren and Solenopsis 
richteri Forel, is an aggressive, stinging insect that, in large 
numbers, can seriously injure and even kill livestock, pets, and 
humans. The imported fire ant, which is not native to the United 
States, feeds on crops and builds large, hard mounds that damage farm 
and field machinery. The regulations are intended to prevent the 
imported fire ant from spreading throughout its ecological range within 
the country.
    The regulations in Sec. 301.81-3 provide that the Administrator of 
the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) will list as a 
quarantined area each State, or each portion of a State, that is 
infested with the imported fire ant. The Administrator will designate 
less than an entire State as a quarantined area only under the 
following conditions: (1) The State has adopted and is enforcing 
restrictions on the intrastate movement of the regulated articles 
listed in Sec. 301.81-2 that are equivalent to the interstate movement 
restrictions imposed by the regulations; and (2) designating less than 
the entire State will prevent the spread of the imported fire ant. The 
Administrator may include uninfested acreage within a quarantined area 
due to its proximity to an infestation or its inseparability from an 
infested locality for quarantine purposes.
    In Sec. 301.81-3, paragraph (e) lists quarantined areas. We are 
amending Sec. 301.81-3(e) by adding portions of Maury and Sequatchie 
Counties, TN, changing the status of Lewis County, TN, from partially 
to completely infested, and revising quarantine boundaries in Giles, 
Lincoln, and Monroe Counties, TN, to incorporate additional infested 
areas. We are taking this action because recent surveys conducted by 
APHIS and State and county agencies revealed that the imported fire ant 
has spread to these areas.
    We are also amending Sec. 301.81-3(e) by simplifying the 
descriptions of quarantined areas in Decatur, Franklin, Haywood, 
Henderson, Marshall, and Moore Counties, TN, to make them easier to 
understand and use. These changes are nonsubstantive and do not change 
the boundaries. See the rule portion of this document for specific 
descriptions of the new quarantined areas and the simplified boundary 
descriptions. Interested parties may also view a map showing the 
imported fire ant infested areas in the continental United States on 
the Internet at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppq/maps/fireant.jpg.

Emergency Action

    This rulemaking is necessary on an emergency basis to prevent the 
spread of imported fire ant into noninfested areas

[[Page 66488]]

of the United States. Under these circumstances, the Administrator has 
determined that prior notice and opportunity for public comment are 
contrary to the public interest and that there is good cause to under 5 
U.S.C. 553 for making this rule effective less than 30 days after 
publication in the Federal Register.
    We will consider comments that are received within 60 days of 
publication of this rule in the Federal Register. After the comment 
period closes, we will publish another document in the Federal 
Register. The document will include a discussion of any comments we 
receive and any amendments we are making to the rule as a result of the 
comments.

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act

    This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12866. For this 
action the Office of Management and Budget has waived its review 
process required by Executive Order 12866.
    This interim rule is necessary because infestations of imported 
fire ant have been discovered in additional areas in Tennessee. This 
action will quarantine two new counties and additional portions of four 
other counties. As a result of this action, the interstate movement of 
regulated articles from those areas is restricted. This action is 
necessary to prevent the artificial spread of the imported fire ant 
into noninfested areas of the United States.
    The following analysis addresses the economic effect of this rule 
on small entities, as required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act.
    Affected entities in the quarantined areas include nurseries and 
greenhouses, farm equipment dealers, construction companies, and all 
those who sell, process, or move regulated articles from and through 
quarantined areas. It is now necessary to treat and certify all 
regulated articles before moving them from the newly quarantined areas.

Economic Analysis for Giles, Lewis, Lincoln, and Monroe Counties, 
TN

    In an interim rule published in the Federal Register and effective 
on May 11, 2000 (65 FR 30337-30341, Docket No. 00-007-1), we amended 
the regulations by adding all or part of 35 counties in Arkansas, North 
Carolina, and Tennessee to the list of quarantined areas. On August 24, 
2000 we published in the Federal Register (65 FR 51516-51517, Docket 
No. 00-007-2) a document that affirmed that interim rule as a final 
rule. In our August 24, 2000, affirmation, we included an analysis that 
considered the economic effects that were expected to result from the 
addition of the 35 partially or completely infested counties to the 
list of regulated areas. Among the partially infested counties 
considered in that analysis were Giles, Lewis, Lincoln, and Monroe 
Counties, TN. We are now changing the status of these four counties 
from partially to completely infested because recent surveys conducted 
by APHIS and State and county agencies revealed that the imported fire 
ant has spread throughout these counties. At this time, further 
economic analysis for these four counties is not necessary because the 
analysis contained in our August 24, 2000, affirmation provided 
information on affected entities for the entirety of each partially 
infested county. That analysis concluded that the May 11, 2000, interim 
rule would not have a significant economic impact on a substantial 
number of small entities in Giles, Lewis, Lincoln, and Monroe Counties, 
and that conclusion is appropriate for the purposes of this interim 
rule as well.

Economic Analysis for Maury and Sequatchie Counties, TN

    According to the 1997 Census of Agriculture, the market value of 
agricultural products produced in Maury and Sequatchie Counties was 
more than $32 million. Seventy percent of these sales are attributable 
to livestock sales and the remaining 30 percent to crop sales, which 
include nursery and greenhouse crops. Therefore, there is a large 
agricultural economy at risk due to the potential of the imported fire 
ant to damage crops and injure or even kill livestock.
    Specifically, in 1997, the value of sales from nursery and 
greenhouse crops produced in these two counties was $614,000. Nurseries 
and greenhouses, as well as farm equipment dealers, construction 
companies, and those who sell, process, or move regulated articles from 
and through quarantined areas, will be affected by this rule. The 
availability of various treatments, which, in most cases, permit the 
movement of regulated articles with minimal additional cost, can 
minimize the adverse effects on entities that move regulated articles 
outside of the regulated areas.
    According to the Small Business Administration's (SBA) Office of 
Advocacy, regulations create economic disparities when they have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. 
The SBA defines a small agricultural producer as one that generates 
less than $500,000 of annual sales. Additionally, to be considered 
small by the SBA's definition, an equipment dealer or agricultural 
service company must generate less than $5 million in annual sales.
    Maury and Sequatchie Counties include at least 569 entities that 
could be affected by the changes in regulations, and the majority of 
these entities are small according to the SBA's definition. Producers 
in Maury and Sequatchie Counties received $8,855,000 from crop, 
including greenhouse and nursery, sales in 1997.
    The estimated annual cost of imposing a quarantine on these 
counties is very small in comparison to the benefit gained through 
agricultural sales. For example, the value of a ``standard'' sized 
tractor-trailer load of nursery plants ranges from $10,000 to $250,000. 
The treatment cost for this ``standard'' shipment of plants is only 
around $200. An average treatment cost, then, is between 2 percent and 
0.8 percent per standard plant shipment. In contrast to the potential 
losses associated with an imported fire ant infestation, these 
treatment costs are not significant.
    Under these circumstances, the Administrator of the Animal and 
Plant Health Inspection Service has determined that this action will 
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities.

Executive Order 12372

    This program/activity is listed in the Catalog of Federal Domestic 
Assistance under No. 10.025 and is subject to Executive Order 12372, 
which requires intergovernmental consultation with State and local 
officials. (See 7 CFR part 3015, subpart V.)

Executive Order 12988

    This interim rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988, 
Civil Justice Reform. This rule: (1) Preempts all State and local laws 
and regulations that are inconsistent with this rule; (2) has no 
retroactive effect; and (3) does not require administrative proceedings 
before parties may file suit in court challenging this rule.

National Environmental Policy Act

    An environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact 
have been prepared for this program. The assessment provides a basis 
for the conclusion that the methods employed to regulate the imported 
fire ant will not have a significant impact on the quality of the human 
environment. Based on the finding of no significant impact, the 
Administrator of the Animal and Plant

[[Page 66489]]

Health Inspection Service has determined that an environmental impact 
statement need not be prepared.
    The environmental assessment and finding of no significant impact 
were prepared in accordance with: (1) The National Environmental Policy 
Act of 1969 (NEPA), as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), (2) 
regulations of the Council on Environmental Quality for implementing 
the procedural provisions of NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500-1508), (3) USDA 
regulations implementing NEPA (7 CFR part 1b), and (4) APHIS' NEPA 
Implementing Procedures (7 CFR part 372).
    Copies of the environmental assessment and finding of no 
significant impact are available for public inspection at USDA, room 
1141, South Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue, SW., 
Washington, DC, between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except holidays. Persons wishing to inspect copies are requested to 
call ahead on (202) 690-2817 to facilitate entry into the reading room. 
In addition, copies may be obtained by writing to the individual listed 
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    This final rule contains no information collection or recordkeeping 
requirements under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 
et seq.).

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 301

    Agricultural commodities, Plant diseases and pests, Quarantine, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements, Transportation.

    Accordingly, we are amending 7 CFR part 301 as follows:

PART 301--DOMESTIC QUARANTINE NOTICES

    1. The authority citation for part 301 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: Title IV, Pub. L. 106-224, 114 Stat. 438, 7 U.S.C. 
7701-7772; 7 U.S.C. 166; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.3.

    Section 301.75-15 also issued under Sec. 204, Title II, Pub. L. 
106-113, 113 Stat. 1501A-293, and Sec. 203, Title II, Pub. L. 106-
224, 114 Stat. 400, 7 U.S.C. 1421 note.


    2. In Sec. 301.81-3, paragraph (e), under TENNESSEE, the list of 
quarantined areas is amended by adding, in alphabetical order, entries 
for Maury and Sequatchie Counties and by revising the entries for 
Decatur, Franklin, Giles, Haywood, Henderson, Lewis, Lincoln, Marshall, 
Monroe, and Moore Counties to read as follows:


Sec. 301.81-3  Quarantined areas.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *
TENNESSEE
* * * * *
    Decatur County. That portion of the county lying south of 
Interstate Highway 40.
* * * * *
    Franklin County. That portion of the county lying south and east of 
a line beginning at the intersection of State Highway 50 and the Moore/
Franklin County line; then east along State Highway 50 to U.S. Highway 
Alt. 41; then north and east along U.S. Highway Alt. 41 to the 
Franklin/Grundy/Marion County line.
    Giles County. That portion of the county lying south of a line 
beginning at the intersection of State Highway 129 and the Giles/
Marshall County line; then west along State Highway 129 to U.S. Highway 
31; then west along an imaginary line to the Lawrence/Giles County 
line.
* * * * *
    Haywood County. That portion of the county lying south of 
Interstate Highway 40.
    Henderson County. That portion of the county lying south of 
Interstate Highway 40.
* * * * *
    Lewis County. The entire county.
    Lincoln County. The entire county.
* * * * *
    Marshall County. That portion of the county lying south of a line 
beginning at the intersection of State Highway 129 and the Giles/
Marshall County line; then east along State Highway 129 to U.S. Highway 
Alt. 31; then north along U.S. Highway Alt. 31 to State Highway 50; 
then southeast along State Highway 50 to the Marshall/Lincoln County 
line.
    Maury County. That portion of the county lying south and west of a 
line beginning at the intersection of the Lewis/Maury County line and 
Mount Joy Road; then east along Mount Joy Road to State Highway 243; 
then northeast along State Highway 243 to Dry Creek Road; then south 
along Dry Creek Road to the Maury/Lawrence County line.
* * * * *
    Monroe County. That portion of the county lying south of a line 
beginning at the intersection of the Loudon/Monroe County line and 
State Highway 68; then southeast along State Highway 68 to U.S. Highway 
411; then northeast along U.S. Highway 411 to the Monroe/Loudon County 
line; also the entire cities of Sweetwater, Madisonville, and Vonore, 
TN.
    Moore County. That portion of the county lying south of State 
Highway 50.
* * * * *
    Sequatchie County. That portion of the county lying south of a line 
beginning at the intersection of the Grundy/Sequatchie County line and 
State Highway 399; then northeast along State Highway 399 to State 
Highway 8/111; then northeast along an imaginary line to the 
Sequatchie/Bledsoe County line.
* * * * *

    Done in Washington, DC, this 1st day of November 2000.
Bobby R. Acord,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 00-28362 Filed 11-3-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-U