Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 31 / Wednesday, February 15, 1995 / Proposed Rules 8579

TABLE IVb.—ACCEPTANCE NUMBERS FOR FRENCH STYLE FROZEN GREEN BEANS AND WAX BEANS—GRADE C

Sample Units ×

Sample unit Size.

................................. ................................. 1×200

×2.5

1.5×200

×2.5

3×200

×2.5

6×200

×2.5

13×200

×2.5

21×200

×2.5

29×200

×2.5

Grams of Product .... ................................. ................................. 1500 2750 1500 3000 6500 10500 14500

TOL AQL3 Quality Factors Acceptance Numbers

1.00 .......................... 0.733 ....................... Extraneous Vegetable Material (No.

of Pieces).

3 4 8 13 26 40 53

3.00 .......................... 2.50 ......................... Stems (No. of

stems).

8 12 21 39 78 122 165

3.75 .......................... 3.20 ......................... Major Blemishes

(Grams).

25 38 65 120 245 383 520

10.75 ........................ 9.80 ......................... Total Blemishes

[(Grams)Major +

Minor].

68 95 178 338 703 1113 1520

17.75 ........................ 16.60 ....................... Color Defectives

(Grams).

105 150 285 550 1158 1843 2523

N/A ........................... N/A .......................... Character—‘‘B’’

(Grams).

N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

N/A ........................... N/A .......................... Character—‘‘C’’

(Grams).

N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A

12.50 ........................ 11.50 ....................... Character—‘‘SStd’’

(Grams).

75 108 205 390 813 1293 1768

1For unofficial samples.

2For use with small container sizes only.

3AQL calculated from tolerance (TOL) at 2600.

§ 52.2329 Sample size.

The sample size used to determine

whether the requirements of these

standards are met shall be as specified

in the sampling plans and procedures in

the ‘‘Regulations Governing Inspection

and Certification of Processed Fruits

and Vegetables, Processed Products

Thereof, and Certain Other Processed

Food Products’’ (7 CFR 52.1 through

52.83).

§ 52.2330 Quality requirement criteria.

(a) Lot inspection. A lot of frozen

beans is considered as meeting the

requirements for quality if:

(1) The prerequisite requirements

specified in § 52.2326 and § 52.2328,

Table I, are met; and

(2) None of the allowances for the

individual quality factors specified in

Tables II, IIa, IIb, III, IIIa, IIIb, IV, IVa,

and IVb of § 52.2328, as applicable for

the style, are exceeded.

(b) Single sample unit. Each unofficial

sample unit submitted for quality

evaluation will be treated individually

and is considered as meeting the

requirements for quality if:

(1) The prerequisites requirements

specified in § 52.2326 and § 52.2328,

Table I, are met; and

(2) The Acceptable Quality Levels in

Tables II, IIa, IIb, III, IIIa, IIIb, IV, IVa,

and IVb of § 52.2328, as applicable for

the style, are not exceeded.

Dated: February 8, 1995.

Lon Hatamiya,

Administrator.

[FR Doc. 95–3784 Filed 2–14–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Part 1230

RIN 0581–AB36

[No. LS–94–010]

Pork Promotion, Research, and

Consumer Information Act of 1985—

Increase in Assessment Rate

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service,

USDA.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

SUMMARY: Pursuant to the Pork

Promotion, Research, and Consumer

Information Act of 1985 (Act) and the

Pork Promotion, Research, and

Consumer Information Order (Order)

thereunder, this proposed rule would

increase the rate of assessment of 0.35

percent of market value of porcine

animals to 0.45 percent; and adjust the

amount of assessment per pound due on

imported pork and pork products to

reflect the proposed 0.10 percent

increase in the assessment rate and the

decrease in the 1994 average price for

domestic barrows and gilts. The

proposed assessment increase and the

proposed adjustment in assessments on

imported pork and pork products would

increase annual funding of the

promotion, research, and consumer

information program by an estimated

$10 million to $12 million over a 12-

month period.

DATES: Written comments must be

received by March 17, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Send two copies of

comments to Ralph L. Tapp, Chief;

Marketing Programs Branch; Livestock

and Seed Division; Agricultural

Marketing Service (AMS), USDA; P.O.

Box 96456, Room 2624–S; Washington,

DC 20090–6456. Comments will be

available for public inspection during

regular business hours at the above

office in Room 2624 South Agricultural

Building, 14th and Independence

Avenue SW., Washington, DC.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Ralph L. Tapp, Chief, Marketing

Programs Branch, 202/720–1115.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory

Flexibility Act

The Department is issuing this rule in

conformance with Executive Order

12866.

This proposed rule has been reviewed

under Executive Order 12778, Civil

Justice Reform. This proposed rule is

not intended to have a retroactive effect.

The Act states that the statute is

intended to occupy the field of

promotion and consumer education

involving pork and pork products and of
8580 Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 31 / Wednesday, February 15, 1995 / Proposed Rules

obtaining funds thereof from pork

producers and that the regulation of

such activity (other than a regulation or

requirement relating to a matter of

public health or the provision of State

or local funds for such activity) that is

in addition to or different from the Act

may not be imposed by a State.

The Act provides that administrative

proceedings must be exhausted before

parties may file suit in court. Under

section 1625 of the Act, a person subject

to an order may file a petition with the

Secretary stating that such order, a

provision of such order or an 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 the

district in which the person resides or

does business has jurisdiction to review

the Secretary’s determination, if a

complaint is filed not later than 20 days

after the date such person receives

notice of such determination.

Information available to the

Department indicates that nearly all of

the estimated 278,000 pork producers

and many of the estimated 200

importers can be classified as small

entities. This proposed rule would

increase the rate of the assessment from

0.35 percent of the market value of

porcine animals to 0.45 percent, and

would increase the cents per pound and

per kilogram of assessments on

imported pork and pork products

subject to assessment. Adjusting the rate

of assessment from 0.35 to 0.45 percent

and increasing the assessment on

imported pork and pork products would

result in an estimated increase in

assessments of $10 million to $12

million over a 12-month period.

However, the gross market value of all

swine marketed in the United States

during 1993 exceeded $10.6 billion. The

economic impact of the proposed

assessments will not be a significant

part of the total market value of swine.

This proposed rule also would adjust

importer assessments to reflect the

increase in the assessment rate from

0.35 to 0.45 percent and to reflect a

decrease in the 1994 average market

price for domestic barrows and gilts.

The combined effect of the assessment

rate increase and the decrease in the

average market price would increase the

assessments on imported pork and pork

products subject to assessments by twoto four-hundredths of a cent per pound,

or as expressed in cents per kilogram,

four- to nine-hundredths of a cent per

kilogram. Adjusting the assessments on

imported pork and pork products would

result in an estimated increase in

assessments of $175,000 over a 12-

month period.

Accordingly, the Administrator of

AMS has determined that this action

will not have a significant economic

impact on a substantial number of small

entities.

The information collection

requirements contained in part 1230,

subparts A and B, have been previously

approved by the Office of Management

and Budget (OMB) and have been

assigned OMB Control Number 0851–

0151.

The Act (7 U.S.C. 4801–4819)

approved December 23, 1985,

authorized the establishment of a

national pork promotion, research, and

consumer information program. The

program is funded by an assessment rate

of 0.35 percent of the market value of all

porcine animals marketed in the United

States and an equivalent amount of

assessment on imported porcine

animals, pork, and pork products. The

final Order establishing a pork

promotion, research, and consumer

information program was published in

the September 5, 1986, issue of the

Federal Register (51 FR 31896; as

corrected, at 51 FR 26283, and amended

at 53 FR 1909, and 53 FR 30243).

Assessments began on December 1,

1986.

The Order requires that producers pay

to the Board an assessment of 0.35

percent of the market value of each

porcine animal upon sale. However, for

purposes of collecting and remitting

assessments, porcine animals are

divided into three separate categories (1)

feeder pigs, (2) slaughter hogs, and (3)

breeding stock. The Order specifies that

purchasers of feeder pigs, slaughter

hogs, and breeding stock shall collect an

assessment on these animals if

assessments are due. The Order further

provides that for the purpose of

collecting and remitting assessments

persons engaged as a commission

merchant, auction market or livestock

market in the business of receiving such

porcine animals for sale on commission

for or on behalf of a producer shall be

deemed to be a purchaser.

The Order requires importers of

porcine animals to pay the U.S. Customs

Service (USCS), upon importation, the

assessment of 0.35 percent of the

porcine animal’s declared value and

importers of pork and pork products to

pay USCS, upon importation, the

assessment of 0.35 percent of the market

value of the live porcine animals from

which such pork and pork products

were produced.

The procedures for collection and

remittance of assessments are specified

in § 1230.71 of the Order.

Pursuant to section 1620 of the Act,

the assessment rate of 0.25 percent of

the market value of porcine animals,

pork, or pork products sold or imported

was established in the initial Order and

was changed to 0.35 percent on

December 1, 1991. Based on the

assessment rate of 0.35 percent, the total

annual assessments collected during

1994 were approximately $42 million.

Assessments on imported pork and pork

products accounted for about $1.5

million of the total.

The Act and § 1230.71 of the Order

contain provisions for increasing the

initial rate of assessment. Section

1620(b)(2) of the Act provides that the

rate of the assessment in the initial

Order may be increased by not more

than 0.1 percent per year upon

recommendation of the National Pork

Producers Delegate Body whose

producer and importer members are

appointed annually by the Secretary.

The Act further provides that the rate of

assessment may be increased by no

more than 0.1 percent annually not to

exceed 0.5 percent of the market value

unless the Delegate Body recommends a

greater increase and the increase is

approved in a referendum.

The 1994 Delegate Body, at its annual

meeting on March 3–5, 1994, in Denver,

Colorado, voted overwhelmingly to

recommend to the Secretary that the rate

of assessment of 0.35 percent be

increased to 0.45 percent. There were

170 Delegate Body members appointed

by the Secretary in 1994. At the Delegate

Body meeting 154 delegates were

present during voting and voted 37,226

valid share votes. States and importers

are allotted one share per $1,000 of the

aggregated amount of assessment

collected. There were 31,089 share votes

cast in favor of the 0.1 percent increase.

The following example will illustrate

the effect of the 0.1 percent increase on

a per head basis. Based on the 1994

annual average five market price of

$39.57 per hundredweight for barrows

and gilts with an average weight of 248

pounds as reported in the USDA’s

publication ‘‘Livestock, Meat, and Wool

Weekly Summary and Statistics’’

published in January 1995, the total

assessment per head at the assessment

rate of 0.45 percent would be 44 cents.

At the assessment rate of 0.35 percent,

the total per-head assessment would be

34 cents. Based on the Delegate Body’s

recommendation in accordance with

§ 1230.71(d) of the Order, it is proposed

that regulations be issued increasing the

rate of assessments from 0.35 to 0.45

percent.
Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 31 / Wednesday, February 15, 1995 / Proposed Rules 8581

This proposed rule also would

increase the amount of assessment on

all of the imported pork and pork

products subject to assessment as

published in the Federal Register as a

final rule September 8, 1994, and

effective on October 11, 1994 (59 FR

46323). This adjustment would reflect

the increase in the assessment rate to

0.45 percent and would be consistent

with the decrease in the annual average

price of domestic barrows and gilts for

calendar year 1994 as reported by

USDA, AMS, Livestock and Grain

Market News (LGMN) Branch. This

adjustment in assessments would make

the equivalent market value of the live

porcine animal from which the

imported pork and pork products were

derived reflect the recent decrease in the

market value of domestic porcine

animals, thereby promoting

comparability between the importer and

domestic assessments.

The methodology for determining the

per-pound amounts for imported pork

and pork products was described in the

supplementary information

accompanying the Order and published

in the September 5, 1986, Federal

Register at 51 FR 31901. The weight of

imported pork and pork products is

converted to a carcass weight equivalent

by utilizing conversion factors which

are published in the USDA Statistical

Bulletin No. 616 ‘‘Conversion Factors

and Weights and Measures.’’ These

conversion factors take into account the

removal of bone, weight lost in cooking

or other processing, and the nonpork

components of pork products. Secondly,

the carcass weight equivalent is

converted to a live animal equivalent

weight by dividing the carcass weight

equivalent by 70 percent, which is the

average dressing percentage of porcine

animals in the United States. Thirdly,

the equivalent value of the live porcine

animal is determined by multiplying the

live animal equivalent weight by an

annual average market price for barrows

and gilts as reported by the USDA,

AMS, LGMN Branch. The annual

average price, which was based on price

data from six major markets, is now

based on only five markets as one of the

six markets—St. Louis—closed in 1994.

This average price is published on a

yearly basis during the month of January

in the LGMN Branch’s publication

‘‘Livestock, Meat, and Wool Weekly

Summary and Statistics.’’ Finally, the

equivalent value is multiplied by the

applicable assessment rate of 0.45

percent due on imported pork and pork

products. The end result is expressed in

an amount per pound for each type of

pork or pork product. To determine the

amount per kilogram for pork and pork

products subject to assessment under

the Act and Order, the cent-per-pound

assessments are multiplied by a metric

conversion factor 2.2046 and carried to

the sixth decimal.

The formula in the preamble for the

Order at 51 FR 31901 contemplated that

it would be necessary to recalculate the

equivalent live animal value of

imported pork and pork products to

reflect increases in the rate of

assessments or changes in the annual

average price of domestic barrows and

gilts to maintain equity of assessments

between domestic and porcine animals

and imported pork and pork products.

Substituting the proposed assessment

rate of 0.45 in the formula and using the

1994 average annual five market price

for domestic barrows and gilts of $39.57

per hundredweight would result in an

increase in assessments for all the

Harmonized Tariff Systems (HTS)

numbers in the table in § 1230.110, 59

FR 46323; September 8, 1994, of an

amount equal to two- to fourhundredths of a cent per pound, or as

expressed in cents per kilogram, four- to

nine-hundredths of a cent per kilogram.

Based on Department of Commerce,

Bureau of Census, data on the volume

of imported pork and pork products

available for the period January 1, 1994,

through September 30, 1994, the

proposed increases in the assessment

amounts would result in an estimated

$175,000 increase in importer

assessments over a 12-month period.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 1230

Administrative practice and

procedure, Advertising, Agriculture

research, Marketing agreement, Meat

and meat products, Pork and pork

products.

For the reasons set forth in the

preamble, it is proposed that 7 CFR part

1230 be amended as set forth below:

PART 1230—PORK PROMOTION,

RESEARCH, AND CONSUMER

INFORMATION

1. The authority citation for 7 CFR

Part 1230 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 4801–4819.

Subpart—[Amended]

2. Subpart B—Rules and Regulations

is amended by revising § 1220.110 to

read as follows:

§ 1230.110 Assessments on Imported Pork

and Pork Products.

(a) The following HTS categories of

imported live porcine animals are

subject to assessment at the rate

specified.

Live porcine

animals Assessment

0103.10.0000 0.45 percent Customs Entered Value.

0103.91.0000 0.45 percent Customs Entered Value.

0103.92.0000 0.45 percent Customs Entered Value.

(b) The following HTS categories of

imported pork and pork products are

subject to assessment at the rates

specified. Assessment

Pork and pork

products

Assessment

Cents/lb Cents/kg

0203.11.0000 .... .25 .551150

0203.12.1010 .... .25 .551150

0203.12.1020 .... .25 .551150

0203.12.9010 .... .25 .551150

0203.12.9020 .... .25 .551150

0203.19.2010 .... .30 .661380

0203.19.2090 .... .30 .661380

0203.19.4010 .... .25 .551150

0203.19.4090 .... .25 .551150

0203.21.0000 .... .25 .551150

0203.22.1000 .... .25 .551150

0203.22.9000 .... .25 .551150

0203.29.2000 .... .30 .661380

0203.29.4000 .... .25 .551150

0206.30.0000 .... .25 .551150

0206.41.0000 .... .25 .551150

0206.49.0000 .... .25 .551150

0210.11.0010 .... .25 .551150

0210.11.0020 .... .25 .551150

0210.12.0020 .... .25 .551150

0210.12.0040 .... .25 .551150

0210.19.0010 .... .30 .661380

0210.19.0090 .... .30 .661380

1601.00.2010 .... .35 .771610

1601.00.2090 .... .35 .771610

1602.41.2020 .... .38 .837748

1602.41.2040 .... .38 .837748

1602.41.9000 .... .25 .551150

1602.42.2020 .... .38 .837748

1602.42.2040 .... .38 .837748

1602.42.4000 .... .25 .551150

1602.49.2000 .... .35 .771610

1602.49.4000 .... .30 .661380

3. Subpart B—Rules and Regulations

is amended by revising § 1230.1120 to

read as follows:

§ 1230.112 Rate of assessment.

In accordance with § 1230.71(d) the

rate of assessment shall be 0.45 percent

of market value.

Dated: February 9, 1995.

Lon Hatamiya,

Administrator.

[FR Doc. 95–3783 Filed 2–14–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P