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

16236 

Vol. 79, No. 57 

Tuesday, March 25, 2014 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Agricultural Marketing Service 

7 CFR Part 1260 

[No. AMS–LPS–13–0079] 

Beef Promotion and Research; 

Reapportionment 

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, 

USDA. 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: This proposed rule would 

adjust representation on the Cattlemen’s 

Beef Promotion and Research Board 

(Board), established under the Beef 

Promotion and Research Act of 1985 

(Act), to reflect changes in cattle 

inventories as well as cattle and beef 

imports that have occurred since the 

most recent Board reapportionment rule 

became effective in July 2011. These 

adjustments are required by the Beef 

Promotion and Research Order (Order) 

and would result in a decrease in Board 

membership from 103 to 99, effective 

with the U.S. Department of 

Agriculture’s (USDA) appointments for 

terms beginning early in the year 2015. 

The proposed rule also would make 

technical amendments to update and 

correct information in the Order and 

regulations. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

received by April 24, 2014. 

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are 

invited to submit written comments on 

the Internet at www.regulations.gov or to 

Angie Snyder; Research and Promotion 

Division; Livestock, Poultry and Seed 

Program; Agricultural Marketing 

Service, USDA, Room 2092–S, STOP 

0249, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., 

Washington, DC 20250–0249; 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 and will be available 

for public inspection at the above office 

during regular business hours. 

Please be advised that all comments 

submitted in response to this proposed 

rule will be included in the record and 

will be made available to the public on 

the Internet at http://

www.regulations.gov. Also, the identity 

of the individuals or entities submitting 

the comments will be made public. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Angie Snyder, Research and Promotion 

Division, on 202/720–5705, fax 202/

720–1125, or by email at angie.snyder@

ams.usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Executive Order 12866 and Executive 

Order 13563 

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. This action has been 

designated as a ‘‘non-significant 

regulatory action’’ under § 3(f) of 

Executive Order 12866. Accordingly, 

the Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) has waived the review process. 

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. 

Executive Order 13175 

This proposed rule has been reviewed 

in accordance with the requirements of 

Executive Order 13175, Consultation 

and Coordination with Indian Tribal 

Governments. The review reveals that 

this proposed rule would not have 

substantial and direct effects on Tribal 

Governments and would not have 

significant tribal implications. 

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 Administrator of 

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 2013 publication of 

‘‘Farms, Land in Farms, and Livestock 

Operations,’’ USDA’s National 

Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) 

estimates that the number of operations 

in the United States with cattle in 2012 

totaled approximately 915,000, down 

from 950,000 in 2009. The majority of 

these operations that are subject to the 

Order may be classified as small 

entities. There are approximately 25 

importers who import beef or edible 

beef products into the United States and 

297 importers who import live cattle 

into the United States. It is estimated 

that the majority of these operations 

subject to the Order are considered 

small businesses under the criteria 

established by the Small Business 

Administration (SBA) [13 CFR 121.201]. 

SBA defines small agricultural service 

firms as those having annual receipts of 

$7.0 million or less, and small 

agricultural producers are defined as 

those having annual receipts of less than 

$750,000. 

The proposed rule imposes no new 

burden on the industry. It only adjusts 

representation on the Board to reflect 

changes in domestic cattle inventory, as 

well as cattle and beef imports. The 

adjustments are required by the Order 

and would result in a decrease in Board 

membership from 103 to 99. 

In accordance with the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 

Chapter 35), the information collection 

and recordkeeping requirements 

imposed under part 1260 were 

previously approved under OMB 

control number 0581–0093. 

Background and Proposed Action 

The Board was initially appointed 

August 4, 1986, pursuant to the 

provisions of the Act (7 U.S.C. 2901– 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 57 / Tuesday, March 25, 2014 / Proposed Rules 16237 

2911) and the Order issued thereunder. 

Domestic representation on the Board is 

based on cattle inventory numbers, and 

importer representation is based on the 

conversion of the volume of imported 

cattle, beef, or beef products into live 

animal equivalencies. 

Reapportionment 

Section 1260.141(b) of the Order 

provides that the Board shall be 

composed of cattle producers and 

importers appointed by the Secretary of 

Agriculture from nominations submitted 

by certified producer and importer 

organizations. A producer may only be 

nominated to represent the State or unit 

in which that producer is a resident. 

Section 1260.141(c) of the Order 

provides that at least every 3 years and 

not more than every 2 years, the Board 

shall review the geographic distribution 

of cattle inventories throughout the 

United States and the volume of 

imported cattle, beef, and beef products 

and, if warranted, shall reapportion 

units and/or modify the number of 

Board members from units in order to 

reflect the geographic distribution of 

cattle production volume in the United 

States and the volume of cattle, beef, or 

beef products imported into the United 

States. 

Section 1260.141(d) of the Order 

authorizes the Board to recommend to 

the Department modifications to the 

number of cattle per unit necessary for 

representation on the Board. 

Section 1260.141(e)(1) provides that 

each geographic unit or State that 

includes a total cattle inventory equal to 

or greater than 500,000 head of cattle 

shall be entitled to one representative 

on the Board. Section 1260.141(e)(2) 

provides that States that do not have 

total cattle inventories equal to or 

greater than 500,000 head shall be 

grouped, to the extent practicable, into 

geographically-contiguous units, each of 

which have a combined total inventory 

of not less than 500,000 head. Such 

grouped units are entitled to at least one 

representative on the Board. Each unit 

that has an additional 1 million head of 

cattle within a unit qualifies for 

additional representation on the Board 

as provided in § 1260.141(e)(4). As 

provided in § 1260.141(e)(3), importers 

are represented by a single unit, with 

the number of Board members based on 

a conversion of the total volume of 

imported cattle, beef, or beef products 

into live animal equivalencies. 

The initial Board appointed in 1986 

was composed of 113 members. 

Reapportionment, based on a 3-year 

average of cattle inventory numbers and 

import data, reduced the Board to 111 

members in 1990 and 107 members in 

1993 before the Board was increased to 

111 members in 1996. The Board was 

decreased to 110 members in 1999, 108 

members in 2001, and 104 members in 

2005; increased to 106 members in 

2009; and decreased to 103 members in 

2011. This proposal would amend 

§ 1260.141(a) by decreasing the number 

of Board members from 103 to 99 with 

appointments for terms effective early in 

2015. 

The current Board representation by 

States or units was based on an average 

of the January 1, 2008, 2009, and 2010 

inventory of cattle in the various States 

as reported by NASS. Current importer 

representation was based on a combined 

total average of the 2007, 2008, and 

2009 live cattle imports as published by 

USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service 

and the average of the 2007, 2008, and 

2009 live animal equivalents for 

imported beef products. 

In considering reapportionment, the 

Board reviewed cattle inventories for 

the period of January 1, 2011, 2012, and 

2013 as well as cattle, beef, and beef 

product import data for the period of 

January 1, 2010, to January 1, 2012. The 

Board recommended that a 3-year 

average of cattle inventories and import 

numbers should be continued. The 

Board determined that an average of the 

January 1, 2011, 2012, and 2013 cattle 

inventory numbers would best reflect 

the number of cattle in each State or 

unit since publication of the last 

reapportionment rule published in 2011 

(76 FR 42012). The Board reviewed data 

published by the USDA’s Economic 

Research Service to determine proper 

importer representation. The Board 

recommended the use of a combined 

total of the average of the 2010, 2011, 

and 2012 cattle import data and the 

average of the 2010, 2011, and 2012 live 

animal equivalents for imported beef 

products. The method used to calculate 

the total number of live animal 

equivalents was the same as that used 

in the previous reapportionment of the 

Board. The live animal equivalent 

weight was changed in 2006 from 509 

pounds to 592 pounds (71 FR 47074). 

The Board’s recommended 

reapportionment plan would decrease 

the number of representatives on the 

Board from 103 to 99. From the Board’s 

analysis of USDA cattle inventories and 

import equivalencies, New Mexico 

would lose one Board seat and Texas 

would lose two Board seats. The 

importers would lose one Board seat. 

The States and units affected by the 

reapportionment plan and the current 

and proposed member representation 

per unit are as follows: 

State/Unit Current representation 

Revised 

representation 

New Mexico ...... 2 1 

Texas ................ 14 12 

Importers ........... 7 6 

The Board reapportionment as 

proposed by this rulemaking would be 

effective, if adopted, with appointments 

that will be effective early in the year 

2015. 

Technical Amendments 

A number of technical amendments 

are being proposed to update or correct 

information contained in the provisions 

of the Order and regulations. These 

include: 

Section 1260.129 references the U.S. 

Customs Service of the U.S. Department 

of the Treasury. The language would be 

updated to reflect the updated agency 

and department. 

Section 1260.312(4)(c) would be 

amended to update an outdated address. 

Section 1260.316 would be updated to 

reflect the correct OMB paperwork 

reduction number. 

A 30-day comment period is provided 

to allow interested persons to respond 

to this proposal. Thirty days is deemed 

appropriate to facilitate the adjustment 

of the representation on the Board, 

which is required by the Order at least 

every 3 years, and not more than every 

2 years and to allow for the annual 

nomination and appointment process 

for the Board appointments that will be 

effective early in the year 2015. 

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 reasons set forth in the preamble, 

it is proposed that 7 CFR part 1260 be 

amended as follows: 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
16238 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 57 / Tuesday, March 25, 2014 / Proposed Rules 

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. Revise § 1260.129 to read as 

follows: 

§ 1260.129 Customs Service. 

Customs Service means the United 

States Customs and Border Protection of 

the United States Department of 

Homeland Security. 

■ 3. In § 1260.141, paragraph (a) is 

revised to read as follows: 

§ 1260.141 Membership of Board. 

(a) Beginning with the 2014 Board 

nominations and the associated 

appointments effective early in the year 

2015, the United States shall be divided 

into 37 geographical units and, 1 unit 

representing importers, for a total of 38 

units. The number of Board members 

from each unit shall be as follows: 

CATTLE AND CALVES 1

State/Unit (1,000 

Head) Directors 

1. Arizona ................. 897 1 

2. Arkansas ............... 1,663 2 

3. Colorado ............... 2,667 3 

4. Florida ................... 1,667 2 

5. Idaho ..................... 2,270 2 

6. Illinois .................... 1,097 1 

7. Indiana .................. 840 1 

8. Iowa ...................... 3,883 4 

9. Kansas .................. 6,083 6 

10. Kentucky ............. 2,193 2 

11. Louisiana ............ 787 1 

12. Michigan ............. 1,107 1 

13. Minnesota ........... 2,377 2 

14. Mississippi .......... 920 1 

15. Missouri .............. 3,833 4 

16. Montana .............. 2,533 3 

17. Nebraska ............ 6,317 6 

18. New Mexico ........ 1,423 1 

19. New York ............ 1,403 1 

20. North Carolina .... 810 1 

21. North Dakota ...... 1,727 2 

22. Ohio .................... 1,247 1 

23. Oklahoma ........... 4,600 5 

24. Oregon ................ 1,303 1 

25. Pennsylvania ...... 1,610 2 

26. South Dakota ...... 3,733 4 

27. Tennessee .......... 1,930 2 

28. Texas .................. 12,167 12 

29. Utah .................... 790 1 

30. Virginia ................ 1,547 2 

31. Wisconsin ........... 3,433 3 

32. Wyoming ............. 1,317 1 

33. Northwest: ................ 1 

Alaska ................... 13 ................

Hawaii ................... 138 ................

Washington ........... 1,117 ................

Total ................... 1,267 ................

34. Northeast ................ 1 

Connecticut ........... 49 ................

CATTLE AND CALVES 1—Continued 

State/Unit (1,000 

Head) Directors 

Delaware ............... 18 ................

Maine .................... 87 ................

Massachusetts ...... 40 ................

New Hampshire .... 34 ................

New Jersey ........... 31 ................

Rhode Island ......... 5 ................

Vermont ................. 267 ................

Total ................... 531 ................

35. Mid-Atlantic: ................ 1 

Maryland ............... 196 ................

West Virginia ......... 390 ................

Total ................... 586 ................

36. Southeast: ................ 3 

Alabama ................ 1,220 ................

Georgia ................. 1,023 ................

South Carolina ...... 370 ................

Total ................... 2,613 ................

37. Southwest: ................ 6 

California ............... 5,283 ................

Nevada .................. 463 ................

Total ................... 5,747 ................

38. Importer 2 ............ 5,927 6 

1 2011, 2012, and 2013 average of January 

1 cattle inventory data. 2 2010, 2011, and 2012 average of annual 

import data. 

* * * * * 

■ 4. In § 1260.312, paragraph (c) is 

revised to read as follows: 

§ 1260.312 Remittance to the Cattlemen’s 

Board or Qualified State Beef Council. 

* * * * * 

(c) Remittances. The remitting person 

shall remit all assessments to the 

qualified State beef council or its 

designee, or, if there is no qualified 

State beef council, to the Cattlemen’s 

Board at P.O. Box 803834, Kansas City, 

MO 64180–3834, with the report 

required in paragraph (a) of this section 

not later than the 15th day of the 

following month. All remittances sent to 

a qualified State beef council or the 

Cattlemen’s Board by the remitting 

persons shall be by check or money 

order payable to the order of the 

qualified State beef council or the 

Cattlemen’s Board. All remittances shall 

be received subject to collection and 

payment at par. 

■ 5. Section 1260.316 is revised to read 

as follows: 

§ 1260.316 Paperwork Reduction Act 

assigned number. 

The information collection and 

recordkeeping requirements contained 

in this part have been approved by the 

Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) under the provisions of 44 U.S.C. 

Chapter 35 and have been assigned 

OMB control number 0581–0093. 

Dated: March 6, 2014. 

Rex A. Barnes, 

Associate Administrator, Agricultural 

Marketing Service. 

[FR Doc. 2014–06174 Filed 3–24–14; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY 

10 CFR Part 810 

RIN 1994–AA02 

Assistance to Foreign Atomic Energy 

Activities 

AGENCY: National Nuclear Security 

Administration (NNSA), Department of 

Energy (DOE). 

ACTION: Notice of re-opening of the 

comment period. 

SUMMARY: On August 2, 2013, DOE 

published a supplemental notice of 

proposed rulemaking (SNOPR) 

concerning its regulations governing 

Assistance to Foreign Atomic Energy 

Activities. The comment period on the 

SNOPR was originally to close on 

October 31, 2013, but was extended 

until November 30, 2013. By this notice, 

DOE is re-opening the comment period 

on the SNOPR. The comment period 

will close on April 2, 2014. The reopening of the comment period will 

provide for additional time for the 

public to review and comment on the 

proposed regulation and other 

comments received. The Department 

looks forward to hearing feedback from 

the public on the proposed regulations. 

DATES: The supplemental notice of 

proposed rulemaking published August 

2, 2013 (78 FR 46829), is reopened. DOE 

will accept written comments submitted 

electronically or postmarked on or 

before April 2, 2014. 

ADDRESSES: Interested persons may 

submit comments on the SNOPR, 

identified by RIN 1994–AA02, by any of 

the following methods: 

1. Federal Rulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov/

#!docketDetail;D=DOE-HQ-2011-0035 . 

Follow the instructions for submitting 

comments. 

2. Email: Part810.SNOPR@hq.doe.gov. 

Include RIN 1994–AA02 in the subject 

line of the message. 

3. Mail: Richard Goorevich, Senior 

Policy Advisor, Office of 

Nonproliferation and International 

Security, NA–24, National Nuclear 

Security Administration, Department of 

Energy, 1000 Independence Avenue 

SW., Washington, DC 20585. 

Due to potential delays in DOE’s 

receipt and processing of mail sent 

through the U.S. Postal Service, DOE 


tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS