[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 117 (Monday, June 18, 2001)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 32713-32717]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-15320]



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Rules and Regulations
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Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 117 / Monday, June 18, 2001 / Rules 
and Regulations

[[Page 32713]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

7 CFR Part 301

[Docket No. 00-037-4]
RIN 0579-AB15


Citrus Canker; Payments for Recovery of Lost Production Income

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Final rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: We are amending our citrus canker regulations to establish 
provisions under which eligible owners of commercial citrus groves may, 
subject to the availability of appropriated funds, receive payments to 
recover production income lost as a result of the removal of commercial 
citrus trees to control citrus canker. These lost production payments 
are intended to help reduce the economic effects of the citrus canker 
quarantine on affected commercial citrus growers.

EFFECTIVE DATE: July 18, 2001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Stephen Poe, Operations Officer, 
Program Support Staff, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 134, Riverdale, 
MD 20737-1236; (301) 734-8247.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Citrus canker is a plant disease that affects plants and plant 
parts, including fresh fruit, of citrus and citrus relatives (Family 
Rutaceae). Citrus canker can cause defoliation and other serious damage 
to the leaves and twigs of susceptible plants. It can also cause 
lesions on the fruit of infected plants that render the fruit 
unmarketable, and can cause infected fruit to drop from the trees 
before reaching maturity. The aggressive A (Asiatic) strain of citrus 
canker can infect susceptible plants rapidly and lead to extensive 
economic losses in commercial citrus-producing areas.
    The regulations to prevent the interstate spread of citrus canker 
are contained in 7 CFR 301.75-1 through 301.75-15 (referred to below as 
the regulations). The regulations restrict the interstate movement of 
regulated articles from and through areas quarantined because of citrus 
canker and provide conditions under which regulated fruit may be moved 
into, through, and from quarantined areas for packing. The regulations 
currently list parts of Broward, Collier, Dade, Hendry, Hillsborough, 
and Manatee Counties, FL, as quarantined areas for citrus canker.
    On December 7, 2000, we published in the Federal Register (65 FR 
76582-76588, Docket No. 00-037-2) a proposed rule to amend the 
regulations to establish provisions under which eligible owners of 
commercial citrus groves could, subject to the availability of 
appropriated funds, receive payments to recover production income lost 
as a result of the removal of commercial citrus trees to control citrus 
canker.
    We solicited comments concerning our proposal for 30 days ending on 
January 8, 2001. We received a total of 30 comments by that date. They 
were from citrus growers, packers, and shippers, farm credit lenders, a 
grove care company, a nursery, and growers associations and 
cooperatives.
    Three commenters offered unqualified support for the proposed rule, 
while six others offered support but requested a specific change in the 
proposed rule's provisions. One commenter opposed the proposed rule 
based on the grounds that the proposed payments were calculated 
incorrectly. The remaining commenters suggested changes to the proposed 
rule or simply urged us to consider the most up-to-date information 
available to recalculate the payments presented in the proposed rule. 
The issues raised by those who opposed the rule or offered suggestions 
are discussed below, by topic.

Payment Recipients

    Several commenters recommended that any payments be made jointly 
payable to both the grower and lender. Some of these commenters 
suggested that APHIS conduct a lien search and make any lost production 
payments jointly payable to the grove owner and any lienholders of 
record. One commenter added that ``condemnation and insurance payments 
related to government takings or damage to improvements are routinely 
made payable jointly to the parties in interest.''
    Another commenter reported that in July 2000, more than 4,000 
containerized citrus trees had been seized from a Miami, FL, nursery by 
the State citrus canker eradication program. The commenter stated that 
as of January 2001, he had yet to receive any additional information 
from State or Federal authorities regarding the status of the seized 
trees or possibility of compensation being paid for the trees. The 
commenter urged APHIS to make compensation available to nursery owners 
who have suffered losses as a result of the State/Federal citrus canker 
eradication program.
    Still another commenter stated that the proposed rule should have 
provided for additional payments to be made to commercial lime growers 
who packed their limes in their own packinghouses or in affiliated 
packinghouses (i.e., ``vertically integrated'' growers/packers). This 
commenter stated that the removal of commercial lime trees has not only 
resulted in the production income losses addressed in the proposed 
rule, but has also destroyed the economic usefulness of these growers' 
packinghouse assets, which are specifically designed to handle limes. 
The commenter suggested, based on packinghouse cash data supplied with 
his comment, that additional payments of $6,054 per acre be made to 
commercial lime growers who own or are affiliated with a packinghouse.
    The funds we will use to make payments for the recovery of lost 
production income were made available by Sec. 203(e) of the 
Agricultural Risk Protection Act of 2000 (Public Law 106-224) and Sec. 
810 of the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug 
Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2001 (Public 
Law 106-387). Public Law 106-224 directs the Secretary of Agriculture 
to ``compensate commercial growers for losses due to Pierce's disease, 
plum pox, and citrus canker,'' and Public Law 106-387 states that 
``[t]he Secretary of Agriculture shall compensate Florida commercial 
citrus and lime growers for

[[Page 32714]]

lost production, as determined by the Secretary of Agriculture, with 
respect to trees removed to control citrus canker.'' As neither of 
those acts makes reference to including the growers' mortgage- or 
lienholders, nurseries, or packinghouses in those payments, we believe 
that we are limited to making payments under this final rule to 
commercial citrus and lime growers.

Two-Tier Discount Rate

    Several commenters opposed the use of a two-tier discount rate in 
calculating the per-acre payments presented in the proposed rule, 
arguing that there was insufficient information available to support a 
two-tier discount rate. These commenters suggested that a single, 
appropriate discount rate--i.e., the lower of the two offered for each 
variety in the proposed rule--be applied throughout the model that is 
used to calculate payments.
    We had proposed to use two discount rates to account for the fact 
that a canker-infected grove would, over time, produce less and lower-
valued fruit, and thus would provide a lesser income stream than a 
canker-free grove. As we explained in the proposed rule, the 1-percent-
higher discount rates proposed for canker-infected groves were intended 
to reflect increased risk, i.e., the decreased revenue stream. In light 
of the concerns raised by the commenters, we have reevaluated our 
ability at this time to accurately account for that increased risk 
through the use of a two-tier discount rate. Given the present 
unavailability of adequate supporting data, we have eliminated the two-
tier discount rate from the payment calculation detailed in the 
proposed rule and will instead use a single discount rate throughout, 
i.e., 14 percent for grapefruit; 14.5 percent for tangelos and Valencia 
and navel oranges; and 13.5 percent for limes. The resulting payment 
adjustments are reflected in the per-acre payments listed in 
Sec. 310.75-16(b) at the end of this document. However, we do believe 
that it is appropriate to account for the reduced revenues from 
infested groves and will continue to explore methods to consider such 
reduced revenues in the development of future payment or compensation 
programs.
    The switch to the use of a single discount rate to calculate the 
per-acre payments provided for by this rule will increase the total 
estimated payments for commercial citrus trees destroyed or scheduled 
for destruction by March 9, 2001, by $6.34 million. Given that limited 
funding is available for the lost production payments in this rule and 
the tree replacement payments in Sec. 301.75-15, we considered the 
possibility of initially paying a substantial portion, but not all, of 
the lost production payment calculated for each eligible grower; once 
each grower had received that partial payment, we would then distribute 
the remaining funds among all the eligible growers on a prorated basis 
(assuming there would be insufficient funds to provide each grower with 
100 percent of the amount provided for in this rule). A two-part 
payment method such as this would ensure that all eligible commercial 
citrus growers would receive at least a percentage of the payments 
provided for by this rule. However, after considering the amount of 
remaining funds available for payments and assessing the situation in 
Florida with regard to the level of survey activity and the frequency 
of new citrus canker detections in commercial citrus groves, we have 
decided to not pursue the idea of partial payments at this time.
    One factor that played an important role in our decision is the 
temporal limitation on eligibility contained in Sec. 810 of the 
Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and 
Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2001 (Public Law 106-387). 
Specifically, Sec. 810(c) of that act states: ``To receive assistance 
under this section [i.e., tree replacement and lost production 
payments], a tree referred to in subsection (a) [which refers to tree 
replacement payments] or (b) [which refers to lost production payments] 
must have been removed after January 1, 1986, and before September 30, 
2001.'' This act is the source from which we derive the majority of the 
funds ($58 million) for the lost production payments provided for by 
this rule and the tree replacement payments under Sec. 301.75-15.\1\ We 
expect that sufficient funds will be available to sustain the tree 
replacement and lost production payment programs until at least the 
September 30, 2001, close of the eligibility period provided for by 
Public Law 106-387. At some point after September 30, 2001, we expect 
that all available funds provided by Congress for these payments will 
have been depleted. We also recognize that there is the possibility 
that those funds could be depleted prior to September 30, 2001, should 
citrus canker be detected in an unexpectedly large number of commercial 
citrus groves in the coming months. Therefore, because our ability to 
offer the tree replacement payments provided for by Sec. 301.75-15 and 
the lost production payments provided for by this rule (Sec. 301.75-16) 
is contingent upon the availability of appropriated funds, we must 
acknowledge that in the absence of additional funding, there is the 
possibility that we will be unable to continue paying claims filed by 
commercial citrus growers at some point before the close of this 
calendar year (2001).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ The two other sources of funding are the Consolidated 
Appropriations Act for FY 2000 [Public Law 106-113], which directs 
the Secretary of Agriculture to use not more than $9 million of 
Commodity Credit Corporation funds for a cooperative program with 
the State of Florida to replace commercial citrus trees removed to 
control citrus canker until the earlier of December 31, 1999, or the 
date crop insurance coverage is made available with respect to 
citrus canker, and Sec. 203(e) of the Agricultural Risk Protection 
[Public Law 106-224], which provides up to $25 million shall be used 
by the Secretary to compensate commercial growers for losses due to 
Pierce's disease, plum pox, and citrus canker.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Another factor in our decision to not pursue the idea of partial 
payments was our determination that doing so would further delay the 
issuance of the payments provided for by this rule. Given that the 
issue of partial payments was not raised in our December 2000 proposed 
rule, we believed the most appropriate and defensible action would have 
been to provide the public with an opportunity to submit comments on 
the subject through the publication of another proposed rule. The delay 
attendant to a new proposal is not, in our view, warranted by the facts 
of this case. While we are not pursuing the idea of partial payments at 
this time, we do welcome any thoughts that interested parties may have 
on the subject. A mailing address for the submission of such 
correspondence can be found at the beginning of this document under FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

Lime Prices

    Several commenters supported the use of more up-to-date price 
information in the calculation used to arrive at the per-acre payment 
presented in the proposed rule for limes. Most of these commenters 
indicated that they believed the proposed per-acre payment for limes 
was too low and supported the use of data provided by one of the 
commenters.
    In the proposed rule, we explained that we calculated the per-acre 
net income for each variety of fruit using information obtained from 
the Florida Agricultural Statistics Service (FASS) and the University 
of Florida's Institute of Food and Agricultural Services (IFAS). As the 
data offered by one of the commenters was not reflected in the 
information we obtained from FASS and IFAS, we were unable to use those 
data in our calculations. Based on the information provided by that 
commenter--specifically, a per-box

[[Page 32715]]

price for limes of $9.68 rather than the price of $9.11 used in the 
proposed rule--we have recalculated the per-acre payment for limes in 
this final rule. The adjusted payment is reflected in the per-acre 
payment for limes listed in Sec. 310.75-16(b) at the end of this 
document.

Early and Midseason Oranges

    On October 16, 2000, we published an interim rule (65 FR 61077-
61080, Docket No. 00-037-1) that established Sec. 301.75-15 in the 
regulations to provide for the payment of tree replacement funds to 
eligible owners of commercial citrus groves. One of the categories of 
citrus for which payments were provided in that interim rule was titled 
``Orange, early/midseason/navel.'' In the proposed rule, however, we 
changed the title of that category to ``Orange, navel'' and explained 
that we were doing so to conform with the language used in Sec. 810 of 
Public Law 106-387 (i.e., the Department's fiscal year 2001 
appropriation, which made $58 million available for payments to 
commercial citrus and lime producers in Florida). One commenter noted 
the difference in the titles and asked that we make it clear that the 
early and midseason oranges are still included in the ``Orange, navel'' 
category and that the payments discussed in the proposed rule will be 
made for early and midseason varieties in addition to navel oranges.
    We do, as the commenter surmised, intend to include payments for 
early and midseason orange varieties in the ``Orange, navel'' category. 
To make that clear, we have amended the ``Orange, navel'' entry in the 
table in Sec. 301.75-16(b)(1) at the end of this document to read 
``Orange, navel (includes early and midseason oranges).''

Tangerines

    Two commenters noted that the proposed rule did not provide for 
payments for losses in production income associated with the removal of 
tangerine trees to control citrus canker and urged APHIS to establish a 
category for tangerines. Both commenters stated that it would be 
inappropriate to include tangerines in the proposed rule's ``other or 
mixed citrus'' category, given that the costs and revenues associated 
with tangerine production result in a per-acre net present value (NPV) 
for tangerine groves that exceeds the per-acre NPV calculated for the 
``other or mixed citrus'' category. One of the commenters offered data 
to support the establishment of a tangerine category and suggested 
that, if tangerines were not afforded their own category, they should 
be considered in the Valencia orange category, which would provide for 
an NPV more reflective of market conditions.
    Given that commercial tangerine trees have been removed as part of 
the citrus canker eradication program, we agree with the commenter that 
it is appropriate to provide for payments for lost production income to 
be made to the owners of commercial tangerine groves. Therefore, 
consistent with the suggestion offered by one of the commenters, we 
have amended the Valencia orange category in the table in Sec. 301.75-
16(b)(1) of this final rule to include tangerines.

Payment Amounts

    One commenter disputed the validity of many of the data and 
assumptions used in the calculations that resulted in the per-acre 
payments presented in the proposed rule for each citrus variety. This 
commenter stated that the proposed payments were too high for groves 
with average or below-average production capacities and too low for 
other groves with above-average production capacity. This commenter 
suggested alternative data and methods related to planting densities, 
age of trees, yield per acre, and value per box for use in the model 
used to calculate payments, and requested that a measure of flexibility 
be incorporated into the rule to provide for the consideration of 
higher payments for growers who could demonstrate above-average returns 
from their groves.
    While we acknowledge that some groves may outproduce others for any 
of several reasons, we believe that the approach and data we used to 
calculate per-acre payments in the proposed rule and in this final rule 
are valid and appropriate. In calculating the per-acre payments, we 
applied an accepted valuation model for determining NPV and used, as 
noted above, citrus industry economic and production information 
supplied by FASS and IFAS in that model. While a more precise valuation 
of individual groves might be obtained using the approach suggested by 
the commenter, we believe that it is necessary to retain the 
transparency and consistency afforded by the methodology we employed to 
calculate the per-acre payments presented in this final rule.

Late Claims

    As noted previously, we published an interim rule on October 16, 
2000, that established regulations in Subpart--Citrus Canker to provide 
for the payment of tree replacement funds to eligible owners of 
commercial citrus groves. That interim rule required, among other 
things, that claims for payments for destroyed trees must be received 
within 60 days after their destruction or, in the case of trees 
destroyed on or before the effective date of the interim rule, within 
60 days after the interim rule's effective date. A similar provision 
was included in the proposed rule that preceded this final rule. We 
were subsequently informed by State officials that they had been unable 
to inform some grove owners in a timely manner of their eligibility to 
present claims, in most cases due to the fact that the person had sold 
the property and/or had moved out of State, thus delaying the 
notification that the State had provided to other grove owners. In 
order to provide us with the flexibility needed to address this 
situation, we intend to amend, in a separate document, the regulations 
in Sec. 310.75-15(c) regarding the submission of tree replacement 
claims to provide that the Administrator may, on a case-by-case basis, 
approve the consideration of late claims when the circumstances appear, 
in the opinion of the Administrator, to warrant such consideration. 
Because the claim submission procedures established by this final rule 
are substantively the same as those in Sec. 310.75-15(c), we have also 
amended Sec. 310.75-16(c) in this final rule to provide for the 
consideration of late claims for up to 1 year after the effective date 
of this rule, in the case of trees destroyed on or before that 
effective date, or up to 1 year after the destruction of the trees in 
the case of trees destroyed after the effective date of this rule.

Other Comments

    Other commenters questioned the efficacy of the approach and 
methods used by State and Federal officials in conducting the current 
citrus canker eradication program in Florida. Those comments did not 
relate to the regulatory provisions discussed in the proposed rule and 
are, thus, outside of the scope of this rulemaking.
    Therefore, for the reasons given in the proposed rule and in this 
document, we are adopting the proposed rule as a final rule, with the 
changes discussed in this document.

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act

    This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12866. The rule 
has been determined to be significant for the purposes of Executive 
Order 12866 and, therefore, has been reviewed by the Office of 
Management and Budget.
    The following economic analysis provides a cost-benefit analysis as

[[Page 32716]]

required by Executive Order 12866 and an analysis of the potential 
economic effects on small entities as required by the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act.
    This rule amends the citrus canker regulations to establish 
provisions under which eligible owners of commercial citrus groves may, 
subject to the availability of appropriated funds, receive payments to 
recover production income lost as a result of the removal of commercial 
citrus trees to control citrus canker. These lost production payments 
are intended to help to reduce the economic effects of the citrus 
canker quarantine on affected commercial citrus growers.
    As shown in the table below, the United States produced 
approximately 12,870 tons of oranges, grapefruit, limes, tangerines, 
and tangelos worth $2.29 billion in 1999, with Florida producing more 
than 80 percent of that total.

 
                                                                         [1999]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                                            Value of
                                                                     U.S. production   Value of U.S.       Florida          Florida       Florida share
                               Fruit                                      (tons)         production       production       production     of production
                                                                                         (millions)         (tons)         (millions)          (%)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oranges............................................................            9,886         $1,807.4          8,113.1         $1,483.3            82.07
Tangerines.........................................................              327            118.7            218.7             79.4            66.89
Grapefruit.........................................................            2,520            338.9          1,931.0            259.7            76.63
Limes..............................................................               22              8.2             22.0              8.2           100.00
Tangelos...........................................................              115             18.4            115.0             18.4           100.00
                                                                    --------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total..........................................................           12,870          2,291.6         10,399.9          1,849.0  ...............
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Source: USDA, National Agricultural Statistics Service, Agricultural Statistics 2000.

    Removing the infected and exposed trees protects a substantial 
investment in other citrus groves. While the entire value of citrus 
produced is not at risk immediately from citrus canker, the disease 
would, if left unchecked, continue to spread. In time, the entire 
industry would be at risk.
    According to the data provided to APHIS by the State of Florida, 
approximately 8,550 acres of commercial citrus trees have been 
destroyed or scheduled to be destroyed to control citrus canker by 
March 9, 2001. This figure includes an estimated 7,946 acres of 
commercial citrus that have been destroyed since the current citrus 
canker outbreak was detected in September 1995, as well as 
approximately 604 acres of grapefruit trees from 5 groves in Manatee 
and Highlands Counties that were destroyed between 1986 and 1990 to 
control citrus canker during a limited outbreak of the disease during 
that period.
    As shown in the following table, which was prepared using the 
acreage estimates provided by the State of Florida and the per-acre 
payments contained in this rule, lost production payments for 
commercial citrus trees destroyed or scheduled for destruction by March 
9, 2001, are expected to total about $46.05 million.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                              Estimated
                                   Acreage      Per-acre        lost
            Variety               destroyed      payment     production
                                  by 3/9/01                    claims
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Grapefruit....................         2,671        $3,342    $8,926,482
Orange, Valencia, and                  1,503         6,446     9,688,338
 tangerine....................
Orange, navel (includes early          1,874         6,384    11,963,616
 and midseason oranges).......
Tangelos......................            56         1,989       111,384
Limes.........................         2,273         6,503    14,781,319
Other or mixed citrus.........           173         3,342       578,166
                               -----------------------------------------
    Total.....................         8,550  ............    46,049,305
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Effects on Small Entities

    This rule establishes provisions under which eligible owners of 
commercial citrus groves may, subject to the availability of 
appropriated funds, receive payments to recover production income lost 
as a result of the removal of commercial citrus trees to control citrus 
canker. Therefore, the entities who will be affected by this rule are 
citrus growers. The Regulatory Flexibility Act requires that the Agency 
specifically consider the economic effects of its rules on small 
entities. The Small Business Administration (SBA) defines a firm 
engaged in agriculture as ``small'' if it has less than $500,000 in 
annual receipts. While the majority of citrus growers in Florida would 
be considered small entities under those SBA guidelines, those growers 
who would not be classified as small entities account for the majority 
of the citrus-growing acreage in the State. Based on available 
information, it appears that most of the citrus canker-related losses 
in Florida have been incurred by those larger citrus producers. 
Regardless of the size of the entities affected, we expect that this 
rule will benefit those commercial citrus growers who are eligible for 
lost production payments by helping to defray some of the losses and 
expenses that they have incurred as a result of the ongoing State and 
Federal efforts to eradicate citrus canker in Florida.
    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

[[Page 32717]]

State and local officials. (See 7 CFR part 3015, subpart V.)

Executive Order 12988

    This 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.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 
3501 et seq.), the information collection or recordkeeping requirements 
included in this rule have been approved by the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) under OMB control number 0579-0168.

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 is revised to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 166, 7711, 7712, 7714, 7731, 7735, 7751, 
7752, 7753, and 7754; 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; sections 301.75-15 and 301.75-16 also 
issued under Sec. 203, Title II, Pub. L. 106-224, 114 Stat. 400 (7 
U.S.C. 1421 note).


    2. Section 301.75-1 is amended by adding a definition of ACC 
coverage to read as follows:


Sec. 301.75-1  Definitions.

    ACC coverage. The crop insurance coverage against Asiatic citrus 
canker (ACC) provided under the Florida Fruit Tree Pilot Crop Insurance 
Program authorized by the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation.
* * * * *

    3. In Subpart--Citrus Canker, a new Sec. 301.75-16 is added to read 
as follows:


Sec. 301.75-16  Payments for the recovery of lost production income.

    Subject to the availability of appropriated funds, the owner of a 
commercial citrus grove may be eligible to receive payments in 
accordance with the provisions of this section to recover income from 
production that was lost as the result of the removal of commercial 
citrus trees to control citrus canker.
    (a) Eligibility. The owner of a commercial citrus grove may be 
eligible to receive payments to recover income from production that was 
lost as the result of the removal of commercial citrus trees to control 
citrus canker if the trees were removed pursuant to a public order 
between 1986 and 1990 or on or after September 28, 1995.
    (b) Calculation of payments. (1) The owner of a commercial citrus 
grove who is eligible under paragraph (a) of this section to receive 
payments to recover lost production income will, upon approval of an 
application submitted in accordance with paragraph (c) of this section, 
receive a payment calculated using the following rates:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               Payment
                       Citrus variety                         (per acre)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Grapefruit.................................................       $3,342
Orange, Valencia, and tangerine............................        6,446
Orange, navel (includes early and midseason oranges).......        6,384
Tangelo....................................................        1,989
Lime.......................................................        6,503
Other or mixed citrus......................................        3,342
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (2) Payment adjustments. (i) In cases where the owner of a 
commercial citrus grove had obtained ACC coverage for trees in his or 
her grove and received crop insurance payments following the 
destruction of the insured trees, the payment provided for under 
paragraph (b)(1) of this section will be reduced by the total amount of 
the crop insurance payments received by the commercial citrus grove's 
owner for the insured trees.
    (ii) In cases where ACC coverage was available for trees in a 
commercial citrus grove but the owner of the grove had not obtained ACC 
coverage for his or her insurable trees, the per-acre payment provided 
for under paragraph (b)(1) of this section will be reduced by 5 
percent.
    (c) How to apply for lost production payments. The form necessary 
to apply for lost production payments may be obtained from any local 
citrus canker eradication program office in Florida, or from the USDA 
Citrus Canker Project, 6901 West Sunrise Boulevard, Plantation, FL 
33313. The completed application should be accompanied by a copy of the 
public order directing the destruction of the trees and its 
accompanying inventory that describes the acreage, number, and the 
variety of trees removed. Your completed application must be sent to 
the USDA Citrus Canker Eradication Project, Attn: Lost Production 
Payments Program, c/o Division of Plant Industry, 3027 Lake Alfred 
Road, Winter Haven, FL 33881. Claims for losses attributable to the 
destruction of trees on or before the effective date of this rule must 
be received on or before August 17, 2001. Claims for losses 
attributable to the destruction of trees after the effective date of 
this rule must be received within 60 days after the destruction of the 
trees. The Administrator may, on a case-by-case basis, approve the 
consideration of late claims when the circumstances appear, in the 
opinion of the Administrator, to warrant such consideration. However, 
any request for consideration of a late claim must be submitted to the 
Administrator on or before July 18, 2002 for trees destroyed on or 
before July 18, 2001, and within 1 year after the destruction of the 
trees for trees destroyed after July 18, 2001.

    Done in Washington, DC, this 12th day of June 2001.
Bill Hawks,
Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs.
[FR Doc. 01-15320 Filed 6-15-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-U