22098 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 85 / Wednesday, May 2, 2001 / Rules and Regulations

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Commodity Credit Corporation

7 CFR Part 1410

RIN 0560–AG38

Conservation Reserve Program—

Farmable Wetlands Pilot Program

AGENCY: Commodity Credit Corporation,

USDA.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: This final rule amends the

Conservation Reserve Program (CRP)

regulations to implement provisions of

Title XI of the Agriculture, Rural

Development, Food and Drug

Administration, and Related Agencies

Appropriations Act, 2001 (the 2001

Act), that provide for enrollment, in the

States of Iowa, Minnesota, Montana,

Nebraska, North Dakota, and South

Dakota, of certain wetlands and buffer

acreage on a pilot basis into the CRP

under the Farmable Wetlands Pilot

Program.

DATES: This regulation is effective April

30, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Beverly Preston, Conservation and

Environmental Programs Division,

USDA/FSA/CEPD/STOP 0513, 1400

Independence Avenue, SW.,

Washington, DC 20250–0513,

Telephone (202) 720–9563.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Notice and Comment

Section 1105 of the Agriculture, Rural

Development, Food and Drug

Administration, and Related Agencies

Appropriations Act, 2001 (Public Law

106–387) requires that the regulations

necessary to implement these provisions

be issued as soon as practicable. It also

provides that the regulations be

promulgated and administered without

regard to the notice and comment

provisions of 5 U.S.C. 553 or the

Statement of Policy of the Secretary of

Agriculture (the Secretary) effective July

24, 1971 (36 FR 13804) relating to

notices of proposed rulemaking and

public participation in rulemaking.

These provisions are thus issued as final

and are effective immediately.

Executive Order 12866

This final rule is issued in

conformance with Executive Order

12866 and has been determined to be

significant and, therefore, was reviewed

by the Office of Management and

Budget (OMB).

Regulatory Flexibility Act

It has been determined that the

Regulatory Flexibility Act is not

applicable to this rule since the

Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) is

not required by 5 U.S.C. 553 or any

other provision of law to publish a

notice of proposed rulemaking with

respect to the subject matter of this rule.

Environmental Evaluation

It has been determined by an

environmental evaluation that this

action will have no significant impact

on the quality of the human

environment. Therefore, neither an

environmental impact assessment nor

an Environmental Impact Statement is

needed.

Executive Order 12988

This final rule has been reviewed in

accordance with Executive Order 12988.

This final rule is not retroactive and

does not pre-empt State laws. Before

any judicial action may be taken with

respect to the provisions of the final

rule, administrative remedies at 7 CFR

parts 11 and 780 must be exhausted.

Executive Order 12372

This program is not subject to the

provisions of Executive Order 12372,

which requires intergovernmental

consultation with State and local

officials. See the notice related to 7 CFR

part 3015, subpart V, published at 48 FR

29115 (June 24, 1983).

Unfunded Mandates

Title II of the Unfunded Mandate

Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA), Public

Law 104–4, establishes requirements for

Federal agencies to assess the effects of

their regulatory actions that impose

‘‘Federal mandates’’ that may result in

expenditures to State, local, or tribal

governments, in the aggregate, or the

private sector, of $100 million or more

in any 1 year. This rule contains no

Federal mandates (under the regulatory

provisions of Title II of the UMRA) for

State, local, and tribal governments or

the private sector. Therefore, this rule is

not subject to the requirements of

sections 202 and 205 of the UMRA.

Federal Domestic Assistance Program

The title and number of the Federal

Domestic Assistance Program, as found

in the Catalog of Federal Domestic

Assistance, to which this rule applies,

are: Conservation Reserve Program—

10.069.

Paperwork Reduction Act

Section 1105 of Public Law 106–78

requires that the regulations

implementing these provisions be

promulgated and administered without

regard to the Paperwork Reduction Act.

This means that the normal 60-day

public comment period and OMB

approval of the information collections

required by this rule are not required.

Background

The purpose of the Conservation

Reserve Program (CRP) is to costeffectively assist owners and operators

in conserving and improving soil, water,

and wildlife resources by converting

highly erodible and other

environmentally sensitive acreage

normally devoted to the production of

agricultural commodities to a long-term

vegetative cover. CRP participants enter

into contracts for 10 to 15 years in

exchange for annual rental payments

and cost-share assistance for installing

certain conservation practices. In

determining the amount of annual rental

payments to be paid, CCC considers,

among other things, the amount

necessary to encourage owners or

operators of eligible cropland to

participate in the CRP. Offers are

submitted in such a manner as the

Secretary prescribes. The maximum

rental payments CCC will pay reflect

site-based soil productivity, prevailing

local cash equivalent rental rates, and

maintenance costs. Offers by producers

who request rental payments greater

than the amount CCC is willing to pay

for their soil type are automatically

rejected by CCC. Except for the

continuous signup process, remaining

offers are evaluated for possible

acceptance based on a comparison of

environmental benefits indicators with

the rental payment cost. The continuous

signup process does not include an

evaluation based on environmental

benefits indicators because only those

practices designed to obtain high

environmental benefits are eligible to be

offered during the continuous signup.

Acreage determined eligible and

suitable to be devoted to continuous

signup practices by the Secretary is

automatically accepted into the CRP

provided all other eligibility

requirements are met.

Substantive Changes

Section 1102 of the 2001 Act

amended section 1231 of the Food

Security Act of 1985 (16 U.S.C. 3831),

which provides statutory authority for

the CRP, to provide a Farmable

Wetlands Pilot Program for the

enrollment, in the States of Iowa,

Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North

Dakota, and South Dakota, of certain

wetlands and buffer acreage on a pilot

basis into the CRP. Accordingly, as

specified in the new statute, the

Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 85 / Wednesday, May 2, 2001 / Rules and Regulations 22099

substantive CRP regulations are changed

by this notice to create a new section,

7 CFR 1410.12, that provides that

eligible owners and operators in the

States of Iowa, Minnesota, Montana,

Nebraska, North Dakota, and South

Dakota may enroll certain wetland and

buffer acreage into a new Farmable

Wetland Pilot Program. Enrollment

under this pilot may not exceed 500,000

acres for all States, and 150,000 acres in

any one State. The maximum

enrollment for both the wetland and

buffer acreage, of an owner or operator,

must not exceed 40 acres per tract.

Wetlands also must not exceed 5 acres

in size to be eligible for enrollment.

Acreage enrolled must be cropland that

has a cropping history in at least 3 of the

most recent 10 years. These limitations

are statutory. General CRP criteria that

currently requires cropland to be

physically and legally capable of being

cropped will apply to this pilot program

as will other requirements not

inconsistent with the new law.

Acreage offered under this pilot

program will be offered using the CRP’s

continuous signup procedures.

Incentives that apply to certain

continuous signup practices will be

authorized for acreage enrolled under

the Farmable Wetlands Pilot Program.

Although the signup will be continuous,

acreage enrolled through the Farmable

Wetlands Pilot Program will not accrue

to diminish previous continuous signup

acreage goals. However, the 25 percent

cropland limitation that applies to the

amount of a county’s cropland that may

be enrolled in the CRP will apply to

pilot enrollments.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 1410

Administrative practices and

procedures, agriculture, conservation

plan, grazing lands, and natural

resources.

Accordingly, 7 CFR part 1410 is

amended as follows:

PART 1410—CONSERVATION

RESERVE PROGRAM

1. The authority citation for 7 CFR

part 1410 continues to reads as follows:

Authority: 15 U.S.C. 714b and 714c; 16

U.S.C. 3801–3847.

2. A new section, § 1410.12, is added

to read as follows:

§ 1410.12 Farmable Wetlands Pilot

Program.

* * * * *

(a) In addition to other allowable

enrollments, land may be enrolled in

this program through the Farmable

Wetlands Pilot provided for in this

section, except that:

(b)(1) This pilot program is authorized

only in the States of Iowa, Minnesota,

Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, and

South Dakota;

(2) As determined by the Deputy

Administrator, owners and operators in

each of the States in paragraph (b)(1) of

this section may enroll cropland that

has been annually planted or considered

planted to an agricultural commodity in

3 of the 10 most recent crop years, that:

(i) Is a wetland, including a converted

wetland, as determined by NRCS or

other technical authority, that does not

exceed the size limitations of this

section; and

(ii) Subject to other provisions of this

section, is buffer acreage that provides

protection for and is contiguous to the

wetlands.

(3) An owner or operator may not

enroll in this pilot program any

wetland, or land in a flood plain, that:

(i) Is located adjacent to a perennial

riverine system wetland as identified on

the final national wetland inventory

map of the Department of the Interior;

or

(ii) Is located adjacent to a perennial

stream identified on a 1–24,000 scale

map of the United States Geological

Service, when the area is not delineated

on a final national wetland inventory

map.

(4) Enrollment in the CRP under this

pilot program must not exceed:

(i) 500,000 acres in all eligible States;

and

(ii) 150,000 acres in any one State.

(5) The maximum size of any wetland

described in paragraph (b)(2)(i) of this

section shall be five contiguous acres.

(6) The maximum size of any buffer

acreage described in paragraph (b)(2)(ii)

of this section shall be the greater of:

(i) Three times the size of the wetland

described in paragraph (b)(2)(i) of this

section, or

(ii) 150 feet on either side of the

wetland.

(7) The maximum total acreage

enrolled in the CRP under this section,

including any wetland and buffer

acreage described in paragraph (b)(2)(ii)

of this section, in a tract, as determined

by the Deputy Administrator, of an

owner or operator, is 40 acres.

(8) All participants subject to a CRP

contract under this section must agree to

restore the hydrology of the wetland

described in paragraph (b)(2)(i) of this

section to the maximum extent possible,

as determined by the Deputy

Administrator, in accordance with the

FOTG.

(9) Offers for contracts under this

section shall be submitted under

continuous signup provisions as

authorized in § 1410.30 of this part.

(10) Except as otherwise determined

by the Deputy Administrator, all other

requirements of this part shall apply to

enrollments under this section and the

Deputy Administrator by contract or

otherwise may add such other

requirements or conditions as are

deemed needed or appropriate. Such

additional limitations as apply include

but are not limited to payment

limitations and limitations on the

amount of acreage that can be enrolled

in any one county.

Signed at Washington, DC, on April 27,

2001.

James R. Little,

Acting Executive Vice President, Commodity

Credit Corporation.

[FR Doc. 01–11069 Filed 4–30–01; 4:49pm]

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