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

10481

Vol. 62, No. 45

Friday, March 7, 1997

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Part 1240

[FV–96–704PR]

Honey Research, Promotion, and

Consumer Information Order;

Proposed Amendment

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service,

USDA.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

SUMMARY: This rule gives notice of a

proposed amendment to the Honey

Research, Promotion, and Consumer

Information Order (Order) and its rules

and regulations issued thereunder. The

amendment would require producers to

maintain, retain, and make available to

the Honey Board and the Secretary of

Agriculture such books and records

which are appropriate or necessary to

the administration or enforcement of the

Honey Research, Promotion, and

Consumer Information Act, as amended

(Act).

DATES: Comments must be received by

May 6, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are

invited to submit written comments

concerning this proposed rule to:

Research and Promotion Branch, Fruit

and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA,

P.O. Box 96456, Room 2535–S,

Washington, DC 20090–6456. Three

copies of all written materials should be

submitted, and they will be made

available for public inspection in the

Research and Promotion Branch during

regular working hours. All comments

should reference Docket Number FV–

96–704PR and the date and the page

number of this issue of the Federal

Register. Also, pursuant to the

Paperwork Reduction Act, send

comments regarding the accuracy of the

burden estimate, ways to minimize the

burden, or any other aspect of this

collection of information to the above

address.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Richard Schultz at the above address,

telephone (202) 720–5976 or (888) 720–

9917 (toll free), or fax (202) 205–2800.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This

proposed rule is issued under the Honey

Research, Promotion, and Consumer

Information Act, as amended [7 U.S.C.

4601 et seq.], hereinafter referred to as

the Act. This action would amend the

Honey Research, Promotion, and

Consumer Information Order (Order) [7

CFR Part 1240] to reflect an amendment

to the Act as specified in the Federal

Agriculture Improvement and Reform

Act of 1996 (FAIR) [Pub. L. 104–127,

April 4, 1996].

Executive Order 12988

This rule has been reviewed under

Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice

Reform. It is not intended to have

retroactive effect. This rule would 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 10 of the Act, a person subject

to an order may file a petition with the

Secretary of Agriculture (Secretary)

stating that such order, any provision of

such order, or any obligation imposed in

connection with such order is not in

accordance with law; and requesting a

modification of the order or an

exemption from the order. Such person

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 such person is an inhabitant, or

has a principal place of business, has

jurisdiction to review the Secretary’s

ruling on the petition, provided that a

complaint is filed within 20 days after

the date of entry of the ruling.

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory

Flexibility Act

This rule has been determined not

significant for purposes of Executive

Order 12866 and therefore has not been

reviewed by the Office of Management

and Budget (OMB).

In accordance with the Regulatory

Flexibility Act [5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.], the

Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is

required to examine the impact of the

proposed rule on small entities.

Congress recently amended the Act by

inserting the term ‘‘producer’’ into

Section 9(f). Under Section 9(f) of the

Act, handlers, importers, producerpackers, and now producers are

required to maintain and make available

to the Honey Board (Board) and the

Secretary such books and records which

are appropriate or necessary to the

administration or enforcement of the

Act or of any order or regulation issued

pursuant to the Act. The primary intent

of the amendment is to require

producers to maintain and make

available books and records to facilitate

enforcement of the Act. The estimated

cost to the 5,000 producers who would

be responsible for maintaining and

retaining such information would be

$25,000 or $5.00 per producer. There

are approximately 5,000 producers, 510

producer-packers, 350 importers, and

145 handlers who are currently subject

to the provisions of the Order.

The majority of these producers may

be classified as small agricultural

producers. Small agricultural producers

are defined by the Small Business

Administration [13 CFR 121.601] as

those having annual receipts of less than

$500,000. In 1995, there were an

estimated 4,960 producers who had

annual receipts of less that $500,000

and 40 producers who had annual

receipts of more than $500,000.

U.S. honey production in 1995 totaled

210.4 million pounds. California

produced 19 percent of the total,

followed by North Dakota (11 percent),

South Dakota (10 percent), Florida (9

percent), and Minnesota (6 percent).

Forty-four other States accounted for the

remaining 45 percent of domestic

production. The value in sales in 1995

was $135.5 million.

In 1995, exports of U.S. honey

packaged for retail sales totaled nearly

3.3 million pounds, with a value of $2.8

million. Bulk honey exports totaled over

6 million pounds, with a value of $4.9

million. Sizeable quantities of honey are

exported to a wide range of countries in

Europe, the Middle East, and the Far

East.

Also during this period, honey

imports into the United States totaled

about 88.6 million pounds. China,

Argentina, and Canada had about equal

shares and together accounted for about

92 percent of the honey imported into
10482 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 45 / Friday, March 7, 1997 / Proposed Rules

the United States. About 6 percent came

from Mexico, and the reminder came

from an assortment of countries around

the world. The value of imports was

about $47.1 million.

The impact of this proposed rule on

small entities would be minimal due to

its focus on recordkeeping. This

recordkeeping requirement is consistent

with prudent business practices and

should not impose any undue costs or

significant burdens on a vast majority of

the small entities affected. It is

anticipated that a significant number of

these small entities currently practice

such recordkeeping for commercial and/

or tax purposes.

While the AMS has performed this

initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis

regarding the impact of this proposed

rule on small entities, in order to have

additional data that may be helpful for

further analysis of the effects of this rule

on small entities, we are inviting

comments concerning potential effects.

In particular, we are interested in

determining the number and kind of

small entities that may incur benefits or

costs from implementation of this

proposed rule and information on the

expected benefits and costs.

Paperwork Reduction Act

In accordance with the OMB

regulation [5 CFR 1320] which

implements the Paperwork Reduction

Act of 1995 [44 U.S.C. Chapter 35], the

recordkeeping requirement contained in

this rule will be submitted to OMB for

approval.

Title: National Research, Promotion,

and Consumer Information Programs.

OMB Number: 0581–0093.

Expiration Date of Approval: October

31, 1997.

Type of Request: Revision of currently

approved information collection for

research and promotion programs.

Abstract: The recordkeeping

requirement in this request is essential

to carry out an amendment to the Act.

The Order currently imposes

recordkeeping requirements on

handlers, importers, and producerpackers. Such persons are required to

maintain and retain their books and

records for at least two years beyond the

marketing year of their applicability. In

conformance with the Act, as amended

in the FAIR, producers would also be

required to maintain and retain books

and records. It is anticipated that

producers currently maintain and retain

such books and records for commercial

and/or tax purposes. Therefore, this

recordkeeping requirement is consistent

with prudent business practices and

should not impose any undue costs or

significant burdens on a vast majority of

producers.

The estimated cost to the 5,000

producers who would be responsible for

maintaining and retaining their books

and records would be $25,000 or $5.00

per producer. This total has been

estimated by multiplying 2,500 (total

burden hours) by $10.00, a sum deemed

to be reasonable should the producers

be compensated for their time.

The recordkeeping requirement

contained in this rule is:

(1) A requirement to maintain books

and records to facilitate administration

or enforcement of the Order.

Estimate of Burden: Public

recordkeeping burden for keeping this

information is estimated to average .5

hours per recordkeeper maintaining

such records.

Respondents (Recordkeepers):

Producers.

Estimated Number of Respondents

(Recordkeepers): 5,000.

Estimated Number of Responses per

Respondent (Recordkeepers): 1.

Estimated Total Annual Burden on

Respondents (Recordkeepers): 2,500

hours.

Comments are invited on: (1) Whether

the proposed recordkeeping is necessary

for administration or enforcement of the

Act; (2) the accuracy of the AMS’s

estimate of the recordkeeping burden,

including the validity of the

methodology and assumption used; (3)

ways to enhance the quality, utility, and

clarity of the recordkeeping

requirement; and (4) ways to minimize

the burden of the recordkeeping

requirement on those who are affected,

including the use of appropriate

automated, electronic, mechanical, or

other technology collection techniques

or other forms of information

technology.

Comments should reference OMB No.

0581–0093, Docket Number FV–96–

704PR, and the date and page number

of this issue of the Federal Register.

Comments should be sent to Richard

Schultz at the address listed above by

May 6, 1997. All comments received

will be available for public inspection

during regular business hours at the

same address. All responses to this

notice will be summarized in the

request for OMB approval and included

in the request for OMB approval.

Background

This proposed rule invites comments

on amending the Order and its rules and

regulations to reflect an amendment to

the Act requiring producers to maintain

and make available to the Board, the

administrative body appointed by the

Secretary to operate the Order, and the

Secretary such books and records which

are appropriate or necessary to the

administration or enforcement of the

Act [7 U.S.C. 4601 et seq.]. The Order

needs to be amended to reflect the

amendment to the Act. Therefore, this

rule would add to the Order and its

rules and regulations this requirement.

Pursuant to § 1240.52 of the Order, all

information obtained from these books

and records would be kept confidential.

This action would amend sections

1240.41 and 1240.51 of the Order and

sections 1240.120, 1240.121, and

1240.122 of the rules and regulations

under the Order. It would also correct

a paragraph reference in § 1240.41 of the

Order, remove and amend § 1240.106

and § 1240.116 of the rules and

regulations under the Order,

respectively.

Section 1240.41(h) of the Order

currently provides that should a first

handler or the Secretary fail to collect

an assessment from a producer, the

producer shall be responsible for the

payment of assessment to the Board.

The amended paragraph would add that

producers shall maintain records for

their honey produced.

Section 1240.41(j) of the Order

currently makes incorrect reference to

paragraph (h) rather than to paragraph

(i) of this section. The corrected

paragraph would change this reference

from paragraph (h) to paragraph (i).

Section 1240.51 of the Order currently

provides that handlers, importers,

producer-packers, or any persons who

receive an exemption from assessments

shall maintain and make available for

inspection by the Board or the Secretary

such books or records as are necessary

to carry out the provisions of the Order

and the regulations issued thereunder,

including such records as are necessary

to verify any required reports. It further

provides that such records shall be

maintained for two years beyond the

first period of their applicability. The

amended paragraph would add

producers to those covered by this

recordkeeping requirement. It would

also clarify that such records shall be

maintained for at least two years beyond

the marketing year of their applicability

rather than for two years beyond the

first period of their applicability.

Section 1240.106 of the rules and

regulations provides that

communications concerning the

program should be addressed to the

National Honey Board. Since the

address in the text of the section is

subject to change, it is preferable that it

be deleted to avoid confusion. The

correct address for the National Honey

Board is 390 Lashley Street, Longmont,

Colorado 80501. Therefore, the language
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 45 / Friday, March 7, 1997 / Proposed Rules 10483

in § 1240.106 is obsolete and would be

removed.

Section 1240.116(b) of the rules and

regulations provides that each first

handler and producer-packer shall pay

their required assessment to the Board

at the address referenced in Section

1240.106. Since § 1240.106 is obsolete

and would be removed, reference to the

Board’s address in § 1240.116(b) would

also be removed.

Section 1240.120 of the rules and

regulations currently provides that first

handlers, producer-packers, importers,

or any persons who receive an

exemption from assessments are

required to make reports pursuant to the

Order and shall maintain and retain

such reports for at least two years

beyond the marketing year of their

applicability. The amended section

would designate the existing text in this

section as paragraph (a) and add a new

paragraph (b). The new paragraph

would provide that producers shall

maintain and retain books and records

for at least two years beyond the

marketing year of their applicability.

Such books and records shall include,

but not be limited to, information on

annual sales and production.

Section 1240.121 of the rules and

regulations currently provides that first

handlers, producer-packers, importers,

or any persons who receive an

exemption from assessments and are

required to make reports pursuant to the

Order shall make available to the Board

or the Secretary such records as are

appropriate and necessary to verify

reports required under the Order. The

amended section would designate the

existing text in this section as paragraph

(a) and add a new paragraph (b). The

new paragraph would provide that

producers are required to maintain and

retain books and records pursuant to the

Order and shall make available to the

Board or the Secretary such records as

are appropriate and necessary to verify

the information in § 1240.120(b) of the

rules and regulations.

Section 1240.122 of the rules and

regulations currently provides that all

information obtained from the books,

records, and reports of handlers,

producer-packers, or any persons who

receive an exemption from assessments

shall be kept confidential and all

information with respect to refunds of

assessments made to individual

producers and importers shall be kept

confidential. The paragraph would be

amended to indicate that information

obtained from producers would be

covered by this confidentiality

provision. Reference to all information

with respect to refunds of assessments

made to individual producers and

importers would be removed from the

paragraph. In 1991, following

amendment of the Act, producers and

importers voted to terminate the

authority for producers and importers to

obtain a refund of assessments.

Therefore, such language is now

obsolete and would be removed.

All written comments received in

response to this proposed rule by the

date specified herein will be considered

prior to the issuance of any final rule on

this action.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 1240

Advertising, Agricultural research,

Honey, Imports, Reporting and

recordkeeping requirements.

For the reasons set forth in the

preamble, 7 CFR Part 1240 is proposed

to be amended as follows:

PART 1240—HONEY RESEARCH,

PROMOTION, AND CONSUMER

INFORMATION ORDER

1. The authority citation for 7 CFR

Part 1240 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 4601–4612.

2. In § 1240.41, paragraph (h) is

revised to read as follows:

§ 1240.41 Assessments.

* * * * *

(h) Should a first handler or the

Secretary fail to collect an assessment

from a producer, the producer shall be

responsible for the payment of the

assessment to the Board. The producer

shall maintain records for the honey

produced by said producer.

* * * * *

§ 1240.41 [Amended]

3. In § 1240.41, paragraph (j) is

amended by removing the words

‘‘paragraph (h)’’ and adding in their

place the words ‘‘paragraph (i)’’.

§ 1240.51 [Amended]

4. In § 1240.51, the word ‘‘producer,’’

is added following the word ‘‘importer’’

and the words ‘‘two years beyond the

first period’’ are removed and the words

‘‘at least two years beyond the

marketing year’’ are added in their

place.

§ 1240.106 [Removed and reserved.]

5. Section 1240.106 is removed and

reserved.

§ 1240.116 [Amended]

6. In § 1240.116, paragraph (b), the

words ‘‘at the address referenced in

§ 1240.106,’’ are removed.

§ 1240.120 [Amended]

7. In § 1240.120, the existing

undesignated text is designated as

paragraph (a) and a new paragraph (b)

is added to read as follows:

§ 1240.120 Retention period for records.

* * * * *

(b) Each producer required to

maintain books and records pursuant to

this subpart shall maintain and retain

books and records for at least two years

beyond the marketing year of their

applicability. Such books and records

shall include, but not be limited to,

information on annual production and

sales. Information on annual sales shall

include such information as the name

and address of each handler, the

quantity sold to the handler, and the

date of sale.

8. In § 1240.121 the existing

undesignated text is designated as

paragraph (a) and a new paragraph (b)

is added to read as follows:

§ 1240.121 Availability of records.

* * * * *

(b) Each producer who is required to

maintain books and records pursuant to

this subpart shall make available for

inspection by authorized employees of

the Board or the Secretary during

regular business hours such books and

records as are appropriate and necessary

to verify the information in

§ 1240.120(b) of this subpart.

§ 1240.122 [Amended]

9. In § 1240.122, the word

‘‘producers,’’ is added following the

word ‘‘importers’’ and the words ‘‘and

all information with respect to refunds

of assessments made to individual

producers and importers’’ are removed.

Dated: February 28, 1997.

Kenneth C. Clayton,

Acting Administrator.

[FR Doc. 97–5590 Filed 3–6–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P

Rural Telephone Bank

7 CFR Part 1610

Rural Utilities Service

7 CFR Parts 1735, 1737, 1739, and 1746

Rural Telephone Bank and

Telecommunications Program Loan

Policies, Types of Loans, Loan

Requirements

AGENCY: Rural Utilities Service and

Rural Telephone Bank, USDA.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

SUMMARY: The Rural Utilities Service

(RUS) proposes to amend its regulations

to incorporate changes to the

telecommunications loan program