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

38365

Vol. 63, No. 136

Thursday, July 16, 1998

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

[TM–98–00–5]

The National Organic Standards Board

Meeting: Correction

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service,

USDA.

ACTION: Notice; correction.

SUMMARY: The Agricultural Marketing

Service (AMS) published a document in

the Federal Register of July 10, 1998,

concerning NOSB meeting. The

document contained an incorrect time

for the Public Input session on July 21,

1998.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Keith Jones, Program Manager, Room

2510 South Building, U.S. Department

of Agriculture, AMS, Transportation

and Marketing, National Organic

Program Staff, P.O. Box 96456,

Washington, D.C. 20090–6456. Phone

(202) 720–3252.

Correction

In the Federal Register issue of July

10, 1998, in FR Doc. 98–18540; on page

37314, make the following corrections:

In the first column, under the DATES

caption the times for July 21, 1998,

should read 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

In the second column, under the

‘‘Type of Meeting’’ caption the second

sentence should read ‘‘NOSB has

scheduled time for public input on July

21, 1998, beginning at 9:00 a.m. and

continuing until 12:00 p.m.’’

Dated: July 13, 1998.

Eileen S. Stommes,

Deputy Administrator, Transportation and

Marketing.

[FR Doc. 98–19077 Filed 7–14–98; 12:30 pm]

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food and Nutrition Service

Food Distribution Program: Value of

Donated Foods From July 1, 1998 to

June 30, 1999

AGENCY: Food and Nutrition Service,

USDA.

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: This notice announces the

value of donated foods or, where

applicable, cash in lieu thereof to be

provided in the 1999 school year for

each lunch served by schools

participating in the National School

Lunch Program (NSLP) or by

commodity only schools and for each

lunch and supper served by institutions

participating in the Child and Adult

Care Food Program.

EFFECTIVE DATE: July 1, 1998.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Heddy Turpin, Acting Chief, Schools

and Institutions Branch, Food

Distribution Division, Food and

Nutrition Service, U.S. Department of

Agriculture, 3101 Park Center Drive,

Alexandria, Virginia 22302 or telephone

(703) 305–2644.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: These

programs are listed in the Catalog of

Federal Domestic Assistance under Nos.

10.550, 10.555, and 10.558 and are

subject to the provisions of Executive

Order 12372, which requires

intergovernmental consultation with

State and local officials. (See 7 CFR part

3015, subpart V, and final rule related

notice published at 48 FR 29114, June

24, 1983.)

This notice imposes no new reporting

or recordkeeping provisions that are

subject to Office of Management and

Budget review in accordance with the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44

U.S.C. 3507). This action is not a rule

as defined by the Regulatory Flexibility

Act (5 U.S.C. 601–612) and thus is

exempt from the provisions of that Act.

This notice has been determined to be

exempt under Executive Order 12866.

National Average Minimum Value of

Donated Foods for the Period July 1,

1998 through June 30, 1999

This notice implements mandatory

provisions of sections 6(e), 14(f) and

17(h)(1)(B) of the National School

Lunch Act (the Act) (42 U.S.C. 1755(e),

1762a(f), and 1766(h)(1)(B)). Section

6(e)(1)(A) of the Act establishes the

national average value of donated food

assistance to be given to States for each

lunch served in NSLP at 11.00 cents per

meal. Pursuant to section 6(e)(1)(B), this

amount is subject to annual adjustments

as of July 1 of each year to reflect

changes in a three-month average value

of the Price Index for Food Used in

Schools and Institutions for March,

April, and May each year. Section

17(h)(1)(B) of the Act provides that the

same value of donated foods (or cash in

lieu of donated foods) for school

lunches shall also be established for

lunches and suppers served in the Child

and Adult Care Food Program. Notice is

hereby given that the national average

minimum value of donated foods, or

cash in lieu thereof, per lunch under

NSLP (7 CFR Part 210) and per lunch

and supper under the Child and Adult

Care Food Program (7 CFR Part 226)

shall be 14.75 cents for the period July

1, 1998 through June 30, 1999.

The Price Index for Food Used in

Schools and Institutions (Price Index) is

computed using five major food

components in the Bureau of Labor

Statistics’ Producer Price Index (cereal

and bakery products; meats, poultry and

fish; dairy products; processed fruits

and vegetables; and fats and oils). Each

component is weighed using the same

relative weight as determined by the

Bureau of Labor Statistics. The value of

food assistance is adjusted each July 1

by the annual percentage change in a

three-month average value of the Price

Index for March, April and May each

year. The three-month average of the

Price Index decreased by 0.81 percent

from 130.18 for March, April and May

of 1997 to 129.12 for the same three

months in 1998. When computed on the

basis of unrounded data and rounded to

the nearest one-quarter cent, the

resulting national average for the period

July 1, 1998 through June 30, 1999 will

be 14.75 cents per meal. This is a

decrease of 0.25 cents from the school

year 1998 rate.

Section 14(f) of the Act provides that

commodity only schools shall be

eligible to receive donated foods equal

in value to the sum of the national

average value of donated foods

established under section 6(e) of the Act

and the national average payment

established under section 4 of the Act

(42 U.S.C. 1753). Such schools are

eligible to receive up to 5 cents per meal
38366 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 136 /Thursday, July 16, 1998 / Notices

of this value in cash for processing and

handling expenses related to the use of

such commodities.

Commodity only schools are defined

in section 12(d)(2) of the Act (42 U.S.C.

1760(d)(2)) as ‘‘schools that do not

participate in the school lunch program

under this Act, but which receive

commodities made available by the

Secretary for use by such schools in

nonprofit lunch programs.’’

For the 1999 school year, commodity

only schools shall be eligible to receive

donated food assistance valued at 32.75

cents for each paid lunch served, and

33.50 cents for each free and reduced

price lunch served. This amount is

based on the sum of the section 6(e)

level of assistance announced in this

notice and the adjusted section 4

minimum national average payment

factor for school year 1999. The section

4 factor for commodity only schools

does not include the two cents per

lunch increase for schools where 60

percent of the lunches served in the

school lunch program in the second

preceding school year were served free

or at reduced prices, because that

increase is applicable only to schools

participating in the NSLP.

Authority: Sections 6(e)(1)(A) and (B), 14(f)

and 17(h)(1)(B) of the National School Lunch

Act, as amended (42 U.S.C. 1755(e)(1)(A) and

(B), 1762a(f), and 1766(h)(1)(B)).

Dated: July 10, 1998.

George A. Braley,

Acting Administrator.

[FR Doc. 98–18974 Filed 7–15–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–30–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service

Squaw/Pole II Timber Sale, Boise

National Forest, Gem County, ID

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare

Environmental Impact Statement.

SUMMARY: The Boise National Forest

will prepare an Environmental Impact

Statement (EIS) to document the

analysis and disclose the environmental

impacts of a proposed timber sale in the

Second and Third Fork drainages on the

Emmett Ranger District. The proposed

timber sale lies within the Snowbank

Inventoried Roadless Area (IRA).

Under this proposal, 313 acres of

suitable timber land would be

harvested, producing about 4.3 million

board feet (MMBF) of sawtimber. A total

of 188 acres would be harvested through

shelterwood methods; 55 acres would

be commercially thinned; 36 acres

would be harvested through seed-tree

methods; 20 acres would be harvested

through sanitation salvage methods; and

14 acres would be clearcut. A total of

178 acres would be helicopter yarded;

125 acres would be tractor skidded; and

10 acres would be skyline yarded. A

total of 188 acres would be planted. To

facilitate natural regeneration and

planting success, 120 acres would be

underburned, and 20 acres would be

mechanically scarified.

Stands to be treated would be

accessed by existing roads. Included are

two short road segments of 0.37 and

0.22 mile, respectively, constructed in

the Snowbank IRA in the fall of 1997.

This month (July 1998), these road

segments will be treated to block vehicle

access at the IRA boundary, using a

combination of gates and earth barriers.

The road surface will also be disked for

about 100 feet behind the gate.

Consequently, the proposed action

would include removal of the earth

barriers, and blading of the disked

surface, to facilitate access for harvest

activities.

DATES: Written comments concerning

the scope of the analysis described in

this notice should be received by

August 17, 1998, to ensure timely

consideration. No scoping meetings are

planned at this time.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to

Morris Huffman, Emmett District

Ranger, Boise National Forest, 1805

Highway 16, Emmett, ID 83716.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Questions concerning the proposed

action and EIS should be directed to

Morris Huffman at 208–365–7000.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In August

1995, Deputy Forest Supervisor Cathy

Barbouletos made a decision to

implement the Squaw/Pole timber sale

in an area that encompassed about 5,500

acres on the Emmett Ranger District.

The environmental assessment for the

Squaw/Pole timber sale stated that no

activities were planned for the

Snowbank IRA as part of this project.

In the fall of 1997, it was discovered

that incorrect maps had been used in

the original analysis regarding the

location of the IRA boundary, and that

313 acres of ground-based and

helicopter harvest units had been

located within the IRA, and 0.59 mile of

new road had been constructed within

the IRA. Because the roads within the

IRA have already been constructed, they

are considered part of the existing

condition and will be analyzed as such;

however, the no-action alternative will

include obliteration of the road

segments.

Based on this new information, the

Boise National Forest determined the

proposal may have a significant effect

on the roadless resource and decided to

prepare an EIS. The proposal may result

in the reduction of approximately 885

acres of the Snowbank IRA from the

National Forest System. The IRA

currently encompasses 35,541 acres.

Proposals that may substantially alter

the undeveloped character of an IRA

require the preparation of an EIS.

Initial analysis has identified one

preliminary issue; namely, the effect of

the proposal on the undeveloped

character and wilderness attributes of

the Snowbank IRA. Other potential

issues may be identified during the

current scoping period.

The Forest Service is seeking

information and comments from

Federal, State, and local agencies, as

well as individuals and organizations

who may be interested in, or affected by,

the proposed action. The Forest Service

invites written comments and

suggestions on the issues related to the

proposal and the area being analyzed.

Information received will be used in

preparation of the draft EIS and final

EIS. For the most effective use,

comments should be submitted to the

Forest Service within 30 days from the

date of publication of this notice in the

Federal Register.

The Responsible Official is David D.

Rittenhouse, Forest Supervisor, Boise

National Forest, Boise, Idaho. The

decision to be made is whether to

harvest and replant timber stands in the

project area and, if so, how should these

activities be carried out. The draft EIS

is expected to be available for public

review in November 1998, with a final

EIS estimated to be completed in March

1999. The comment period on the draft

EIS will be 45 days from the date the

Environmental Protection Agency

publishes the notice of availability in

the Federal Register.

The Forest Service believes, at this

early stage, it is important to give

reviewers notice of several court rulings

related to public participation in the

environmental review process. First,

reviewers of draft EIS’s must structure

their participation in the environmental

review of the proposal so that it is

meaningful and alerts an agency to the

reviewer’s position and contention

(Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Corp.

v. NRDC, 435 U.S. 519, 553 (1978)).

Also, environmental objections that

could be raised at the draft EIS stage but

that are not raised until after completion

of the final EIS may be waived or

dismissed by the courts (City of Angoon

v. Hodel, 803 F.2d 1016, 1022 (9th Cir.

1986), and Wisconsin Heritages, Inc. v.