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

27315

Vol. 61, No. 106

Friday, May 31, 1996

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Federal Crop Insurance Corporation

7 CFR Part 457

RIN 0563–AB55

Common Crop Insurance Regulations;

Sugar Beet Crop Insurance Provisions

AGENCY: Federal Crop Insurance

Corporation.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

SUMMARY: The Federal Crop Insurance

Corporation (FCIC) proposes specific

crop provisions for the insurance of

sugar beets. The provisions will be used

in conjunction with the Common Crop

Insurance Policy Basic Provisions which

contains standard terms and conditions

common to most crops. The intended

effect of this action is to provide policy

changes to better meet the needs of the

insured and include the current sugar

beet endorsement with the Common

Crop Insurance Policy for ease of use

and consistency of policy terms.

DATES: Written comments, data, and

opinions on this proposed rule will be

accepted until close of business July 30,

1996 and will be considered when the

rule is to be made final. The comment

period for information collection under

the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

continues through July 29, 1996.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are

invited to submit written comments to

the Chief, Product Development Branch,

Federal Crop Insurance Corporation,

United States Department of

Agriculture, 9435 Holmes Road, Kansas

City, MO 64131. Written comments will

be available for public inspection and

copying in room 0324, South Building,

USDA, 14th and Independence Avenue,

S.W., Washington, D.C., 8:15 a.m.–4:45

p.m., EDT Monday through Friday.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Arden Routh, Program Analyst,

Research and Development Division,

Product Development Branch, FCIC, at

9435 Holmes Road, Kansas City, MO

64131, telephone (816) 926–6397.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Executive Order 12866 and

Departmental Regulation 1512–1

This action has been reviewed under

United States Department of Agriculture

(USDA) procedures established by

Executive Order 12866 and

Departmental Regulation 1512–1. This

action constitutes a review as to the

need, currency, clarity, and

effectiveness of these regulations under

those procedures. The sunset review

date established for these regulations is

February 1, 2000.

This rule has been determined to be

exempt for the purposes of Executive

Order 12866 and therefore has not been

reviewed by the Office of Management

and Budget (OMB).

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

The information collection

requirements contained in these

regulations were previously approved

by OMB pursuant to the Paperwork

Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C.

chapter 35) under OMB control number

0563–0003 through September 30, 1998.

The amendments sent forth in this

proposed rule do not contain additional

information collections that require

clearance by the OMB under the

provisions of 44 U.S.C. chapter 35.

The title of this information collection

is ‘‘Catastrophic Risk Protection Plan

and Related Requirements including,

Common Crop Insurance Regulations;

Sugar Beet Crop Insurance Provisions.’’

The information to be collected

includes: a crop insurance acreage

report, an insurance application and a

continuous contract. Information

collected from the acreage report and

application is electronically submitted

to FCIC by the reinsured companies.

Potential respondents to this

information collection are producers of

sugar beets that are eligible for Federal

crop insurance.

The information requested is

necessary for the insurance company

and FCIC to provide insurance, provide

reinsurance, determine eligibility,

determine and collect premiums or

other monetary amounts, and pay

benefits.

All information is reported annually.

The reporting burden for this collection

of information is estimated to average

16.9 minutes per response for each of

the 3.6 responses from approximately

1,755,015 respondents. The total annual

burden on the public for this

information collection is 2,676,932

hours.

The comment period for information

collections under the Paperwork

Reduction Act of 1995 continues

through July 29, 1996 for the following:

(a) whether the proposed collection of

information is necessary for the proper

performance of the functions of the

agency, including whether the

information shall have practical utility;

(b) the accuracy of the agency’s estimate

of the burden of the proposed collection

of information; (c) ways to enhance the

quality, utility, and clarity of the

information to be collected; and (d)

ways to minimize the burden of the

collection of information on

respondents, including through the use

of automated collection techniques or

other forms of information gathering

technology.

Comments should be submitted to the

Desk Officer for Agriculture, Office of

Information and Regulatory Affairs,

Office of Management and Budget,

Washington, D.C. 20503 and to Bonnie

Hart, Advisory and Corporate

Operations Staff, Regulatory Review

Group, Farm Service Agency, P.O. Box

2415, Ag Box 0570, U.S. Department of

Agriculture, Washington, D.C. 20013–

2415. Telephone (202) 690–2857. Copies

of the information collection may be

obtained from Bonnie Hart at the above

address.

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of

1995

Title II of the Unfunded Mandate

Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA), Pub. L.

104–4, establishes requirements for

Federal agencies to assess the effects of

their regulatory actions on State, local,

and tribal governments and the private

sector. Under section 202 of the UMRA,

FCIC generally must prepare a written

statement, including a cost-benefit

analysis, for proposed and final rules

with Federal mandates that may result

in expenditures to State, local, or tribal

governments, in the aggregate, or to the

private sector, of $100 million or more

in any 1 year. When such a statement

is needed for a rule, section 205 of the

UMRA generally requires FCIC to

identify and consider a reasonable

number of regulatory alternatives and

adopt the least costly, more costeffective or least burdensome alternative

that achieves the objectives of the rule.
27316 Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 106 / Friday, May 31, 1996 / Proposed Rules

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. Thus, this rule is not

subject to the requirements of sections

202 and 205 of the UMRA.

Executive Order 12612

It has been determined under section

6(a) of Executive Order 12612,

Federalism, that this rule does not have

sufficient federalism implication to

warrant the preparation of a Federalism

Assessment. The provisions contained

in this rule will not have a substantial

direct effect on States or their political

subdivisions, or on the distribution of

power and responsibilities among

various levels of government.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

This regulation will not have a

significant impact on a substantial

number of small entities. The amount of

work required of the insurance

companies delivering these policies and

the procedures therein will not increase

significantly from the amount of work

currently required to deliver previous

policies to which this regulation

applies. This rule does not have any

greater or lesser impact on the producer.

Therefore, this action is determined to

be exempt from the provisions of the

Regulatory Flexibility Act ( 5 U.S.C.

§ 605), and no Regulatory Flexibility

Analysis was prepared.

Federal Assistance Program

This program is listed in the Catalog

of Federal Domestic Assistance under

No. 10.450.

Executive Order 12372

This program is not subject to the

provisions of Executive Order 12372,

which require 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.

Executive Order 12778

The Office of the General Counsel has

determined that these regulations meet

the applicable standards provided in

sections 2(a) and 2(b)(2) of Executive

Order 12778. The provisions of this rule

will not have retroactive effect prior to

the effective date. The provisions of this

rule will preempt State and local laws

to the extent such State and local laws

are inconsistent herewith. The

administrative appeal provisions in 7

CFR parts 11 and 780 must be exhausted

before action for judicial review may be

brought.

Environmental Evaluation

This action is not expected to have a

significant impact on the quality of the

human environment, health, and safety.

Therefore, neither an Environmental

Assessment nor an Environmental

Impact Statement is needed.

National Performance Review

This regulatory action is being taken

as part of the National Performance

Review Initiative to eliminate

unnecessary or duplicative regulations

and improve those that remain in force.

Background

FCIC proposes to add to the Common

Crop Insurance Regulations (7 CFR part

457), a new section, 7 CFR § 457.109,

Sugar Beet Crop Insurance Provisions.

The provisions will be effective for the

1998 and succeeding crop years. The

proposed Sugar Beet Crop Insurance

Provisions will replace the provisions

found at 7 CFR part 430 (Sugar Beet

Crop Insurance Regulations). Upon

publication of 7 CFR § 457.109 as a final

rule, the provisions for insuring sugar

beets contained herein will supersede

the current provisions contained in 7

CFR part 430. By separate rule, FCIC

will revise part 430 to restrict its effect

through the 1997 crop year and later

remove that part.

This rule makes minor editorial and

format changes to improve the Sugar

Beet Crop Insurance Regulations’

compatibility with the Common Crop

Insurance Policy. In addition, FCIC is

proposing substantive changes in the

provisions for insuring sugar beets as

follows:

1. Amend the definition of ‘‘county,’’

to that contained in the Basic Provisions

of (§ 457.8). The current definition

includes land identified by an FSA farm

serial number for the county that is

physically located in another county

where as the new definition does not.

This change is made require such land

to be insured using the actuarial

materials for the county where the land

is located.

2. Section 1—Add definitions for the

terms Days, FSA, Final planting date,

Good farming practices, Initially

planted, Interplanted, Irrigated practice,

Late planted, Late planting period, Local

market price, Planted acreage, Practical

to replant, Prevented planting,

Processor, Production guarantee (per

acre), Replanting, Standardized ton,

Sugar beet processor contract, Thinning,

Timely planted, Ton, and, Written

agreement, for clarification purposes.

3. Section 2—Unit division provisions

are expanded to include insured’s

reporting responsibilities to qualify for

optional units and the breakdown of

units by irrigated and non-irrigated

acreage. The definition of ‘‘unit’’ under

section 1(tt) of the Basic Provisions (part

457.8) provides for the division of units

in accordance with applicable crop

provisions. The current Sugar Beet Crop

Insurance Regulations, however, do not

provide guidelines for determining

optional units. Section 2 will provide

guidelines for optional unit division of

sugar beet basic units that are consistent

with other annual crop provisions.

Optional units may be divided on the

basis of section, section equivalent, or

Farm Service Agency (FSA) Farm Serial

Number, or on acreage including both

irrigated and non-irrigated practices, or

both. Consistent with the definition of

‘‘unit’’ in the Basic Provisions (§ 457.8),

section 12 of the Sugar Beet Crop

Provisions will provide that in settling

a claim, loss will be determined on a

unit basis and all optional units for

which acceptable production records

were not provided will be combined.

4. Section 3(a)—Provision added to

clarify that only 1 price election is

available for all sugar beets insured in

the county.

5. Section 4—The contract change

date is moved 30 days earlier in most

counties to maintain at least a 3 month

period between this date and earliest

cancellation date (see item 6 below).

6. Section 5—The cancellation and

termination dates have been changed

from April 15 to March 15 in all states

except California and Arizona. The

cancellation and termination dates for

the state of Arizona and Imperial

County, California remain unchanged at

August 31. The cancellation and

termination dates have been changed

from March 31 to February 28 for

Lassen, Modoc, Shasta and Siskiyou,

counties California. The cancellation

date has been changed from March 31

to July 15 for all remaining California

counties. The termination date for these

California counties has been changed to

November 30 immediately following the

last final planting date for the crop year.

The changes (except California counties

with a July 15 cancellation date) are

intended to minimize program

vulnerabilities that may exist under

current program dates by reducing the

chances that insureds may be able to

anticipate below normal yields. The

change to July 15 in the California

counties specified above is made to

allow FCIC to return to the use of a

single final planting date in counties

where sugar beets are planted year

round. Constant changes in these

counties made establishment of

multiple final planting dates extremely

difficult to administer.
Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 106 / Friday, May 31, 1996 / Proposed Rules 27317

7. Section 6(b)—Specify insurance

eligibility requirements for sugar beet

producers who are also the processing

company. These provisions are needed

to ensure that the same terms contained

in a traditional sugar beet processor

contract are in place.

8. Section 7(a)(2)—Stipulate that

acreage is uninsurable in any crop year

following the discovery of rhizomania

on the unit unless we agree in writing

to insure such acreage. Rhizomania

remains in the soil for several years and

normally creates an unacceptable

insurance risk.

9. Section 7(a)(3)—Stipulate that

acreage is uninsurable if it does not

meet rotation requirements shown in

the Special Provisions. This change

identifies the location of these

requirements.

10. Section 7(b)—Clarify that any

acreage damaged prior to the final

planting date must be replanted unless

replanting is not practical. This

provision applies to all counties with an

established final planting date (see item

11 for information regarding counties

that do not have a final planting date).

11. Section 7(c)—Stipulate that any

acreage damaged within 30 days of the

initial planting must be replanted unless

replanting is not practical. This

provision applies to all counties that do

not have an established final planting

date.

12. Section 8(b)—Change the end of

insurance period to the last day of the

12th month after the crop initially was

planted in all California counties except

Imperial, Lassen, Modoc, Shasta and

Siskiyou. This change is made to

accommodate planting that occurs

virtually all year in these counties.

13. Section 8(c)—Change the calendar

date for the end of the insurance period

to October 31 for Lassen, Modoc, Shasta

and Siskiyou Counties, California and

Klamath County, Oregon.

14. Section 8(e)—The end of

insurance period for New Mexico has

been changed from November 15 to

December 31. This change is being

proposed because the sugar beet

program in New Mexico at this time

consists of 1 county that has similar

planting and harvesting dates as the

adjacent sugar beet counties in Texas.

The end of the insurance period in these

Texas counties is December 31.

15. Section 9—Provisions are added

to clarify that insufficient or improper

application of pest or disease control

measures is not an insured cause of loss.

16. Section 10(b)—The maximum

amount of the replanting payment has

changed from one ton multiplied by the

price election multiplied by the share to

the lesser of 10 percent (10%) of the

final stage production guarantee or one

ton, multiplied by the price election

multiplied by the share. The 10 percent

(10%) factor has been added to prevent

insureds who elect a lower coverage

level from receiving a replant payment

that exceeds the original liability.

17. Section 10(c)—Reduce the liability

for a unit by the amount of any

replanting payment when sugar beets

are replanted using a practice that was

originally uninsurable. The current

sugar beet provisions are silent

regarding this issue. For example, if the

Actuarial Table requires a specific row

width and the crop is replanted to a

lesser row width, the dollar amount of

coverage would be reduced by the

amount of any replant payment. This

addition is consistent with the manner

in which other crops are treated.

18. Section 11(b)—Stipulate that a

copy of the sugar beet processor contract

or corporate resolution must be

provided in the event of a loss.

19. Section 13—Grant protection for

acreage planted within 25 days after the

final planting date, and for acreage that

cannot be planted due to any insurable

cause of loss. If the insured is prevented

from planting by the final planting date,

or intends to plant within the late

planting period and is prevented from

doing so, insurance protection is

provided at a specified percent of the

production guarantee for timely planted

acreage. Reductions are made to

recognize increasingly lower yield

potential as planting is delayed. Late

and prevented planting coverages are

not available in any California counties

except Imperial, Lassen, Modoc, Shasta

and Siskiyou. Year round planting in

these counties precludes the use of

current prevented planting provisions.

20. Section 14—Add provisions for

providing insurance coverage by written

agreement. FCIC has a long-standing

policy of permitting modification of

insurance contracts by written

agreement. This provision is not

documented in the current Sugar Beet

Crop Insurance Regulations. Section 14

will discuss application for, and

duration of, written agreements.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 457

Crop insurance, sugar beet.

Proposed Rule

Pursuant to the authority contained in

the Federal Crop Insurance Act, as

amended (7 U.S.C. § 1501 et seq.), the

Federal Crop Insurance Corporation

hereby proposes to amend the Common

Crop Insurance Regulations, (7 CFR part

457), effective for the 1998 and

succeeding crop years, to read as

follows:

PART 457—[AMENDED]

1. The authority citation for 7 CFR

part 457 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1506(1), and 1506(p).

2. 7 CFR part 457 is amended by

adding a new § 457.109 to read as

follows:

§ 457.109 Sugar beet crop insurance

provisions.

The Sugar Beet Crop Insurance

Provisions for the 1998 and succeeding

crop years are as follows:

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF

AGRICULTURE

Federal Crop Insurance Corporation

Sugar Beet Crop Provisions

If a conflict exists among the Basic

Provisions (§ 457.8), these crop provisions,

and the Special Provisions, the Special

Provisions will control these crop provisions

and the Basic Provisions; and these crop

provisions will control the Basic Provisions.

1. Definitions

Crop year—In Imperial, Lassen, Modoc,

Shasta and Siskiyou, counties California and

all other states, the period within which the

sugar beets are normally grown, which is

designated by the calendar year in which the

sugar beets are normally harvested. In all

California counties, except Imperial, Lassen,

Modoc, Shasta and Siskiyou counties, the

period from planting until the applicable

date for the end of the insurance period and

is designated by:

(a) The calendar year in which planted if

planted on or before July 15; or

(b) The following calendar year if planted

after July 15.

Days—Calendar days.

FSA—Farm Service Agency of the United

States Department of Agriculture or any

successor agency.

Final planting date—The date contained in

the Special Provisions for the insured crop by

which the crop must initially be planted in

order to be insured for the full production

guarantee.

Good farming practices—The cultural

practices generally in use in the county for

the crop to make normal progress toward

maturity and produce at least the yield used

to determine the production guarantee and

are those generally recognized by the

Cooperative Extension Service as compatible

with agronomic and weather conditions in

the county.

Harvest—Topping, lifting and removing

sugar beets from the field.

Initially planted—The first occurrence that

land is considered as planted acreage for the

crop year.

Interplanted—Acreage on which two or

more crops are planted in a manner that does

not permit separate agronomic maintenance

or harvest of the insured crop.

Irrigated practice—A method of producing

a crop by which water is artificially applied

during the growing season by appropriate

systems and at the proper times, with the

intention of providing the quantity of water
27318 Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 106 / Friday, May 31, 1996 / Proposed Rules

needed to produce at least the yield used to

establish the irrigated production guarantee

on the irrigated acreage planted to the

insured crop.

Late planted—Acreage planted to the

insured crop during the late planting period.

Late planting period—The period that

begins the day after the final planting date for

the insured crop and ends twenty-five (25)

days after the final planting date.

Local market price—The price per pound

for raw sugar offered by buyers in the area

in which you normally market the sugar

beets.

Planted acreage—Land in which seed has

been placed by a machine appropriate for the

insured crop and planting method, at the

correct depth, into a seedbed that has been

properly prepared for the planting method

and production practice. Sugar beets must

initially be planted in rows to be considered

planted. Acreage planted in any other

manner will not be insurable unless

otherwise provided by the Special Provisions

or by written agreement.

Practical to replant—In lieu of the

definition of ‘‘Practical to replant’’ contained

in section 1 of the Basic Provisions (§ 457.8),

practical to replant is defined as our

determination, after loss or damage to the

insured crop, based on factors, including but

not limited to moisture availability,

condition of the field, and time to crop

maturity, that replanting to the insured crop

will allow the crop to attain maturity prior

to the calendar date for the end of the

insurance period. It will not be considered

practical to replant after the end of the late

planting period in counties where a late

planting period is applicable, or 30 days after

initial planting for all counties where a late

planting period is not applicable, unless

replanting is generally occurring in the area.

Prevented planting—Inability to plant the

insured crop with proper equipment by the

final planting date designated in the Special

Provisions for the insured crop in the county

or the end of the late planting period. You

must have been unable to plant the insured

crop due to an insured cause of loss that has

prevented the majority of producers in the

surrounding area from planting the same

crop.

Processor—A corporation that possesses all

licenses and permits for marketing sugar

required by the state in which it is domiciled

or operates, and that possesses facilities, or

has contractual access to such facilities, with

enough equipment to accept and process the

sugar beets within a reasonable amount of

time after harvest.

Production guarantee (per acre):

(a) First stage production guarantee—The

final stage production guarantee multiplied

by 60 percent.

(b) Final stage production guarantee—The

number of tons determined by multiplying

the approved yield per acre by the coverage

level percentage you elect.

Replanting—Performing the cultural

practices necessary to replace the sugar beet

seed and then replacing the sugar beet seed

in the insured acreage with the expectation

of growing a successful crop.

Standardized ton—A ton of sugar beets

expressed on a basis of a stated percentage

of raw sugar content.

Sugar beet processor contract—A written

contract between the grower and the

processor, containing at a minimum:

(1) The grower’s commitment to plant and

grow sugar beets, and to deliver the sugar

beet production to the processor;

(2) The processor’s commitment to

purchase the production stated in the

contract; and

(3) A price or formula for a price based on

third party data, that will be paid to the

grower for the production stated in the

contract.

Thinning—The process of removing, either

by machine or hand, a portion of the sugar

beet plants to attain a desired plant

population.

Timely planted—Planted on or before the

final planting date designated in the Special

Provisions for the insured crop in the county.

Ton—Two thousand (2,000) pounds

avoirdupois.

Written agreement—A written document

that alters designated terms of a policy in

accordance with section 14.

2. Unit Division

Unless limited by the Special Provisions, a

unit as defined in section 1 (Definitions) of

the Basic Provisions (§ 457.8), (‘‘basic unit’’)

may be divided into optional units if, for

each optional unit you meet all the

conditions of this section or if a written

agreement to such division exists. Basic units

may not be divided into optional units on

any basis including, but not limited to,

production practice, type, variety, and

planting period other than as described in

this section. If you do not comply fully with

these provisions, we will combine all

optional units that are not in compliance

with these provisions into the basic unit from

which they were formed. We will combine

the optional units at any time we discover

that you have failed to comply with these

provisions. If failure to comply with these

provisions is determined to be inadvertent,

and the optional units are combined, that

portion of the premium paid for the purpose

of electing optional units will be refunded to

you pro rata for the units combined. All

optional units must be identified on the

acreage report for each crop year.

(a) The following requirements must be

met for each optional unit:

(1) You must have records, which can be

independently verified, of planted acreage

and production for each optional unit for at

least the last crop year used to determine

your production guarantee;

(2) You must plant the crop in a manner

that results in a clear and discernable break

in the planting pattern at the boundaries of

each optional unit; and

(3) You must have records of marketed

production or measurement of stored

production from each optional unit

maintained in such a manner that permits us

to verify the production from each optional

unit, or the production from each unit must

be kept separate until loss adjustment is

completed by us.

(b) Each optional unit must meet one or

more of the following criteria, as applicable:

(1) Optional Units by Section, Section

Equivalent, or FSA Farm Serial Number:

Optional units may be established if each

optional unit is located in a separate legally

identified Section. In the absence of Sections,

we may consider parcels of land legally

identified by other methods of measure

including, but not limited to Spanish grants,

railroad surveys, leagues, labors, or Virginia

Military Lands, as the equivalent of Sections

for unit purposes. In areas that have not been

surveyed using the systems identified above,

or another system approved by us, or in areas

where such systems exist but boundaries are

not readily discernable, each optional unit

must be located in a separate farm identified

by a single FSA Farm Serial Number.

(2) Optional Units on Acreage Including

Both Irrigated and Non-Irrigated Practices: In

addition to, or instead of, establishing

optional units by Section, section equivalent,

or FSA Farm Serial Number, optional units

may be based on irrigated acreage or nonirrigated acreage if both are located in the

same Section, section equivalent, or FSA

Farm Serial Number. To qualify as separate

irrigated and non-irrigated optional units, the

non-irrigated acreage may not continue into

the irrigated acreage in the same rows or

planting pattern. The irrigated acreage may

not extend beyond the point at which the

irrigation system can deliver the quantity of

water needed to produce the yield on which

the guarantee is based. However, the corners

of a field in which a center-pivot irrigation

system is used will be considered as irrigated

acreage if separate acceptable records of

production from the corners are not

provided. If the corners of a field in which

a center-pivot irrigation system is used do

not qualify as a separate non-irrigated

optional unit, they will be a part of the unit

containing the irrigated acreage. However,

non-irrigated acreage that is not a part of a

field in which a center-pivot irrigation

system is used may qualify as a separate

optional unit provided that all requirements

of this section are met.

3. Insurance Guarantees, Coverage Levels,

and Prices for Determining Indemnities

(a) In addition to the requirements of

section 3 (Insurance Guarantees, Coverage

Levels, and Prices for Determining

Indemnities) of the Basic Provisions (§ 457.8),

you may select only one price election for all

the sugar beets in the county insured under

this policy.

(b) The production guarantees are

progressive by stages, and increase at

specified intervals to the final stage. The

stages are:

(1) First stage, with a guarantee of 60

percent (60%), extends from planting until:

(i) July 1 in Lassen, Modoc, Shasta and

Siskiyou counties of California and all other

states; and

(ii) The earlier of thinning or 90 days after

planting in all California counties except

Lassen, Modoc, Shasta and Siskiyou.

(2) Final stage, with a guarantee equal to

100 percent (100%) of the production

guarantee, applies to all insured sugar beets

that complete the first stage.

(c) The production guarantee will be

expressed in standardized tons.

(d) Any acreage of sugar beets damaged in

the first stage to the extent that growers in the

area would not normally further care for the

sugar beets will be deemed to have been
Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 106 / Friday, May 31, 1996 / Proposed Rules 27319

destroyed, even though you may continue to

care for it. The production guarantee for such

acreage will not exceed the first stage

production guarantee.

4. Contract Changes

The contract change date is April 30

preceding the cancellation date for counties

with a July 15 or August 31 cancellation date

and November 30 preceding the cancellation

date for all other counties (see the provisions

of section 4 (Contract Changes) of the Basic

Provisions (§ 457.8)).

5. Cancellation and Termination Dates

In accordance with section 2 (Life of

Policy, Cancellation, and Termination) of the

Basic Provisions (§ 457.8), the cancellation

and termination dates are:

State and county Cancellation

date

Termination

date

Arizona; and Imperial County, California ........................................................................................................... August 31 ......... August 31.

All California counties, except Imperial, Lassen, Modoc, Shasta and Siskiyou ................................................ July 15 .............. November 30.

All Other States, and Lassen, Modoc, Shasta and Siskiyou Counties, California ............................................ February 28 ...... February 28.

6. Insured Crop

(a) In accordance with section 8 (Insured

Crop) of the Basic Provisions (§ 457.8), the

crop insured will be all the sugar beets in the

county for which a premium rate is provided

by the actuarial table:

(1) In which you have a share;

(2) That are planted for harvest as sugar

beets;

(3) That are grown under a sugar beet

processor contract executed with a processor

before the acreage reporting date; and

(4) That are not (unless allowed by the

Special Provisions or by written agreement):

(i) Interplanted with another crop;

(ii) Planted into an established grass or

legume; or

(iii) Planted prior to submitting a properly

completed application.

(b) Sugar beet growers who are also the

processor may be able to establish an

insurable interest if they meet the following

requirements:

(1) The processor must be a corporation

and have a valid insurable interest in the

crop;

(2) The Board of Directors of the processor

must have approved a corporate resolution

that sets forth essentially the same terms that

a traditional sugar beet processor contract

would contain. Such corporate resolution

will be considered a sugar beet processing

contract under the terms of the sugar beet

crop insurance policy;

(3) Sales records of sugar beet production

for the previous year must be supplied to us

to confirm the processor has produced and

sold sugar in the past; and

(4) Our inspection of the processing

facilities determines that they conform to the

definition of processor contained in section

1 of these crop provisions.

7. Insurable Acreage

In addition to the provisions of section 9

(Insurable Acreage) of the Basic Provisions

(§ 457.8):

(a) We will not insure any acreage planted

to sugar beets:

(1) The preceding crop year;

(2) In any crop year following the

discovery of rhizomania on the acreage

unless a written agreement allows otherwise;

or

(3) That does not meet the rotation

requirements shown in the Special

Provisions;

(b) Any acreage of the insured crop

damaged before the final planting date, to the

extent that growers in the area would

normally not further care for the crop, must

be replanted unless we agree that replanting

is not practical. This paragraph does not

apply to California counties except Imperial,

Lassen, Modoc, Shasta and Siskiyou; and

(c) Any acreage of the insured crop in

California counties other than Imperial,

Lassen, Modoc, Shasta and Siskiyou that is

damaged within 30 days of initial planting to

the extent growers in the area would

normally not further care for the crop, must

be replanted unless we agree replanting is

not practical.

8. Insurance Period

In accordance with the provisions of

section 11 (Insurance Period) of the Basic

Provisions (§ 457.8), the calendar date for the

end of the insurance period is:

(a) July 15 in Arizona and in Imperial

County, California;

(b) The last day of the 12th month after the

insured crop was initially planted in all

California counties except Imperial, Lassen,

Modoc, Shasta and Siskiyou;

(c) October 31 in Lassen, Modoc, Shasta

and Siskiyou Counties, California, and in

Klamath County, Oregon;

(d) November 25 in Ohio;

(e) December 31 in New Mexico and Texas;

and

(f) November 15 in all other states.

9. Causes of Loss

In accordance with the provisions of

section 12 (Causes of Loss) of the Basic

Provisions (§ 457.8), insurance is provided

only against the following causes of loss that

occur within the insurance period:

(a) Adverse weather conditions;

(b) Fire;

(c) Insects, but not damage due to

insufficient or improper application of pest

control measures;

(d) Plant disease, but not damage due to

insufficient or improper application of

disease control measures;

(e) Wildlife;

(f) Earthquake;

(g) Volcanic eruption; or

(h) Failure of the irrigation water supply,

if caused by an insured peril that occurs

during the insurance period.

10. Replanting Payments

(a) In accordance with section 13

(Replanting Payment) of the Basic Provisions

(§ 457.8), a replanting payment is allowed if

the crop is damaged by an insurable cause of

loss to the extent that the remaining stand

will not produce at least 90 percent (90%) of

the final stage production guarantee for the

acreage and it is practical to replant.

(b) The maximum amount of the replanting

payment per acre will be the lesser of 10

percent (10%) of the production guarantee or

1 ton, multiplied by your price election,

multiplied by your insured share.

(c) When sugar beets are replanted using a

practice that is uninsurable as an original

planting, our liability on the unit will be

reduced by the amount of the replanting

payment. The premium amount will not be

reduced.

11. Duties In The Event of Damage or Loss

In accordance with the requirements of

section 14 (Duties in the Event of Damage or

Loss) of the Basic Provisions (§ 457.8):

(a) Representative samples of the

unharvested crop must be at least 10 feet

wide and extend the entire length of each

field in the unit. The samples must not be

harvested or destroyed until the earlier of our

inspection or 15 days after harvest of the

balance of the unit is completed; and

(b) You must provide a copy of your sugar

beet processor contract, or corporate

resolution if you are the processor.

12. Settlement of Claim

(a) We will determine your loss on a unit

basis. In the event you are unable to provide

production records:

(1) For any optional unit, we will combine

all optional units for which acceptable

production records were not provided; or

(2) For any basic unit, we will allocate any

commingled production to such units in

proportion to our liability on the harvested

acreage for each unit.

(b) In the event of loss or damage covered

by this policy, we will settle your claim on

any unit by:

(1) Multiplying the insured acreage by the

production guarantee;

(2) Subtracting from this the total

production to count;

(3) Multiplying the remainder by your

price election; and

(4) Multiplying this result by your share.

(c) The total production to count (in

standardized tons) from all insurable acreage

on the unit will include:

(1) All appraised production as follows:

(i) Not less than the production guarantee

for acreage:

(A) That is abandoned;

(B) Put to another use without our consent;
27320 Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 106 / Friday, May 31, 1996 / Proposed Rules

(C) Damaged solely by uninsured causes; or

(D) For which you fail to provide

production records that are acceptable to us;

(ii) Production lost due to uninsured

causes;

(iii) Unharvested production (unharvested

production will not be adjusted for quality);

(iv) Only appraised production in excess of

the difference between the first and final

stage production guarantee for acreage that

does not qualify for the final stage guarantee

will be counted, provided that all production

from acreage subject to section 12(c)(1)(i) and

(ii) will be counted; and

(v) Potential production on insured acreage

that you intend to put to another use or

abandon, if you and we agree on the

appraised amount of production. Upon such

agreement, the insurance period for that

acreage will end if you put the acreage to

another use or abandon the crop. If

agreement on the appraised amount of

production is not reached:

(A) If you do not elect to continue to care

for the crop, we may give you consent to put

the acreage to another use if you agree to

leave intact, and provide sufficient care for,

representative samples of the crop in

locations acceptable to us, (The amount of

production to count for such acreage will be

based on the harvested production or

appraisals from the samples at the time

harvest should have occurred. If you do not

leave the required samples intact, or you fail

to provide sufficient care for the samples, our

appraisal made prior to giving you consent to

put the acreage to another use will be used

to determine the amount of production to

count); or

(B) If you elect to continue to care for the

crop, the amount of production to count for

the acreage will be the harvested production,

or our reappraisal if additional damage

occurs and the crop is not harvested; and

(2) All harvested production from the

insurable acreage.

(d) Production that meets the minimum

acceptable standards contained in the sugar

beet processor contract or corporate

resolution will be converted to standardized

tons by:

(1) Dividing the average percentage of

sugar in such sugar beets by the sugar content

percentage shown in the Special Provisions;

and

(2) Multiplying the result (rounded to three

places) by the number of tons of such sugar

beets.

The average percentage of sugar will be

determined by the processor from tests

performed on each load at the time of

delivery. If individual tests of sugar content

are not made at the time of delivery, the

average percent of sugar shall equal the sugar

content percent shown in the Special

Provisions.

(e) Production that does not meet the

minimum acceptable standards contained in

the sugar beet processor contract or corporate

resolution will be converted to standardized

tons by:

(1) Dividing the gross dollar value of all of

the damaged sugar beets on the unit

(including the value of cooperative stock,

patronage refunds, etc.) by the local market

price per pound on the earlier of the date

such production is sold or the date of final

inspection for the unit;

(2) Dividing that result by 2,000; and

(3) Dividing that result by the county

average sugar percentage factor contained in

the Special Provisions for this purpose.

For example, assume that the total dollar

value of the damaged sugar beets is

$6,000.00; the local market price is $0.10;

and the county average sugar percentage

factor is 0.15. The amount of production to

count would be calculated as follows:

(($6,000.00÷$0.10)÷2,000)÷0.15 = 200 tons.

13. Late and Prevented Planting.

(a) In lieu of provisions contained in the

Basic Provisions (§ 457.8) regarding acreage

initially planted after the final planting date

and the applicability of a Late Planting

Agreement Option, insurance will be

provided for acreage planted to the insured

crop during the late planting period (see

section 13(c)), and acreage you were

prevented from planting (see section 13(d)).

These coverages provide reduced production

guarantees and are applicable in all counties

except California counties with a July 15

cancellation date. The premium amount for

late planted acreage and eligible prevented

planting acreage will be the same as that for

timely planted acreage. If the amount of

premium you are required to pay (gross

premium less our subsidy) for late planted

acreage or prevented planting acreage

exceeds the liability on such acreage:

coverage for those acres will not be provided;

no premium will be due; and no indemnity

will be paid for such acreage.

(b) You must provide written notice to us

not later than the acreage reporting date if

you were prevented from planting.

(c) Late Planting

(1) For sugar beet acreage planted during

the late planting period, the production

guarantee for each acre will be reduced for

each day planted after the final planting date

by:

(i) One percent (1%) for the 1st through the

10th day; and

(ii) Two percent (2%) for the 11th through

the 25th day.

(2) In addition to the requirements of

section 6 (Report of Acreage) of the Basic

Provisions (§ 457.8), you must report the

dates the acreage is planted within the late

planting period.

(3) If planting of sugar beets continues after

the final planting date, or you are prevented

from planting during the late planting period,

the acreage reporting date will be the later of:

(i) The acreage reporting date contained in

the Special Provisions for the insured crop;

or

(ii) Five (5) days after the end of the late

planting period.

(d) Prevented Planting (Including Planting

After the Late Planting Period)

(1) If you were prevented from timely

planting sugar beets, you may elect:

(i) To plant sugar beets during the late

planting period. The production guarantee

for such acreage will be determined in

accordance with section 13(c)(1);

(ii) Not to plant this acreage to any crop

except a cover crop not for harvest. You may

also elect to plant the insured crop after the

late planting period. In either case, the

production guarantee for such acreage will be

35 percent (35%) of the production guarantee

for timely planted acres. For example, if your

production guarantee for timely planted

acreage is 20.0 tons per acre, your prevented

planting production guarantee would be 7.0

tons per acre (20.0 tons multiplied by 0.35).

If you elect to plant the insured crop after the

late planting period, production to count for

such acreage will be determined in

accordance with section 12; or

(iii) Not to plant the intended crop but

plant a substitute crop for harvest, in which

case:

(A) No prevented planting production

guarantee will be provided for such acreage

if the substitute crop is planted on or before

the 10th day following the final planting date

for the insured crop; or

(B) A production guarantee equal to 17.5

percent (17.5%) of the production guarantee

for timely planted acres will be provided for

such acreage, if the substitute crop is planted

after the 10th day following the final planting

date for the insured crop. If you elected the

Catastrophic Risk Protection Endorsement or

excluded this coverage, and plant a substitute

crop, no prevented planting coverage will be

provided. For example, if your production

guarantee for timely planted acreage is 20.0

tons per acre, your prevented planting

production guarantee would be 3.5 tons per

acre (20.0 ton multiplied by 0.175). You may

elect to exclude prevented planting coverage

when a substitute crop is planted for harvest

and receive a reduction in the applicable

premium rate. If you wish to exclude this

coverage, you must so indicate, on or before

the sales closing date, on your application or

on a form approved by us. Your election to

exclude this coverage will remain in effect

from year to year unless you notify us in

writing on our form by the applicable sales

closing date for the crop year for which you

wish to include this coverage. All acreage of

the crop insured under this policy will be

subject to this exclusion.

(2) Production guarantees for timely, late,

and prevented planting acreage within a unit

will be combined to determine the

production guarantee for the unit. For

example, assume you insure 1 unit in which

you have a 100 percent (100%) share. The

unit consists of 150 acres, of which 50 acres

were planted timely, 50 acres were planted

7 days after the final planting date (late

planted), and 50 acres were not planted but

are eligible for a prevented planting

production guarantee. The production

guarantee for the unit will be computed as

follows:

(i) For the timely planted acreage, multiply

the per acre production guarantee for timely

planted acreage by the 50 acres planted

timely;

(ii) For the late planted acreage, multiply

the per acre production guarantee for timely

planted acreage by 93 percent (93%) and

multiply the result by the 50 acres planted

late; and

(iii) For prevented planting acreage,

multiply the per acre production guarantee

for timely planted acreage by:

(A) Thirty-five percent (35%) and multiply

the result by the 50 acres you were prevented

from planting, if the acreage is eligible for
Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 106 / Friday, May 31, 1996 / Proposed Rules 27321

prevented planting coverage, and if the

acreage is left idle for the crop year, or if a

cover crop is planted not for harvest.

Prevented planting compensation hereunder

will not be denied because the cover crop is

hayed or grazed; or

(B) Seventeen and five tenths percent

(17.5%) and multiply the result by the 50

acres you were prevented from planting, if

the acreage is eligible for prevented planting

coverage, and if you elect to plant a

substitute crop for harvest after the 10th day

following the final planting date for the

insured crop. (This subparagraph (B) is not

applicable, and prevented planting coverage

is not available hereunder, if you elected the

Catastrophic Risk Protection Endorsement or

you elected to exclude prevented planting

coverage when a substitute crop is planted

(see section 13(d)(1)(iii)).)

Your premium will be based on the result

of multiplying the per acre production

guarantee for timely planted acreage by the

150 acres in the unit.

(3) Proof may be required that you had the

inputs available to plant and produce the

intended crop with the expectation of at least

producing the production guarantee.

(4) In addition to the provisions of section

11 (Insurance Period) of the Basic Provisions

(§ 457.8), the insurance period for prevented

planting coverage begins:

(i) On the sales closing date contained in

the Special Provisions for the insured crop in

the county for the crop year the application

for insurance is accepted; or

(ii) For any subsequent crop year, on the

sales closing date for the insured crop in the

county for the previous crop year, provided

continuous coverage has been in effect since

that date. For example: If you make

application and purchase insurance for sugar

beets for the 1998 crop year, prevented

planting coverage will begin on the 1998

sales closing date for sugar beets in the

county. If the sugar beet coverage remains in

effect for the 1999 crop year (is not

terminated or canceled during or after the

1998 crop year, except the policy may have

been canceled to transfer the policy to a

different insurance provider, if there is no

lapse in coverage), prevented planting

coverage for the 1999 crop year began on the

1998 sales closing date.

(5) The acreage to which prevented

planting coverage applies will not exceed the

total eligible acreage on all FSA Farm Serial

Numbers in which you have a share, adjusted

for any reconstitution that may have occurred

on or before the sales closing date. Eligible

acreage for each FSA Farm Serial Number is

determined as follows:

(i) If you participate in any program

administered by the United States

Department of Agriculture that limits the

number of acres that may be planted for the

crop year, the acreage eligible for prevented

planting coverage will not exceed the total

acreage permitted to be planted to the

insured crop.

(ii) If you do not participate in any program

administered by the United States

Department of Agriculture that limits the

number of acres that may be planted, and

unless we agree in writing on or before the

sales closing date, eligible acreage will not

exceed the greater of:

(A) The FSA base acreage for the insured

crop, including acres that could be flexed

from another crop, if applicable;

(B) The number of acres planted to sugar

beets on the FSA Farm Serial Number during

the previous crop year; or

(C) One-hundred percent (100%) of the

simple average of the number of acres

planted to sugar beets during the crop years

that you certified to determine your yield.

(iii) Acreage intended to be planted under

an irrigated practice will be limited to the

number of acres for which you had adequate

irrigation facilities prior to the insured cause

of loss which prevented you from planting.

(iv) A prevented planting production

guarantee will not be provided for any

acreage:

(A) That does not constitute at least 20

acres or 20 percent (20%) of the acreage in

the unit, whichever is less (Acreage that is

less than 20 acres or 20 percent (20%) of the

acreage in the unit will be presumed to have

been intended to be planted to the insured

crop planted in the unit, unless you can

show that you had the inputs available before

the final planting date to plant and produce

another insured crop on the acreage);

(B) For which the actuarial table does not

designate a premium rate unless a written

agreement designates such premium rate;

(C) Used for conservation purposes or

intended to be left unplanted under any

program administered by the United States

Department of Agriculture;

(D) On which another crop is prevented

from being planted, if you have already

received a prevented planting indemnity,

guarantee or amount of insurance for the

same acreage in the same crop year, unless

you provide adequate records of acreage and

production showing that the acreage has a

history of double-cropping in each of the last

4 years;

(E) On which the insured crop is prevented

from being planted, if any other crop is

planted and fails, or is planted and

harvested, hayed or grazed on the same

acreage in the same crop year, (other than a

cover crop as specified in paragraph

(d)(2)(iii)(A) of this section, or a substitute

crop allowed in paragraph (d)(2)(iii)(B) of

this section), unless you provide adequate

records of acreage and production showing

that the acreage has a history of doublecropping in each of the last 4 years;

(F) When coverage is provided under the

Catastrophic Risk Protection Endorsement if

you plant another crop for harvest on any

acreage you were prevented from planting in

the same crop year, even if you have a history

of double-cropping. If you have a

Catastrophic Risk Protection Endorsement

and receive a prevented planting indemnity,

guarantee, or amount of insurance for a crop

and are prevented from planting another crop

on the same acreage, you may only receive

the prevented planting indemnity, guarantee,

or amount of insurance for the crop on which

the prevented planting indemnity, guarantee,

or amount of insurance is received; or

(G) For which planting history or

conservation plans indicate that the acreage

would have remained fallow for crop rotation

purposes.

(v) For the purpose of determining eligible

acreage for prevented planting coverage,

acreage for all units will be combined and be

reduced by the number of sugar beet acres

timely planted and late planted. For example,

assume you have 100 acres eligible for

prevented planting coverage in which you

have a 100 percent (100%) share. The acreage

is located in a single FSA Farm Serial

Number which you insure as two separate

optional units consisting of 50 acres each. If

you planted 60 acres of sugar beets on one

optional unit and 40 acres of sugar beets on

the second optional unit, your prevented

planting eligible acreage would be reduced to

zero (i.e., 100 acres eligible for prevented

planting coverage minus 100 acres planted

equals zero).

(6) In accordance with the provisions of

section 6 (Report of Acreage) of the Basic

Provisions (§ 457.8), you must report by unit

any insurable acreage that you were

prevented from planting. This report must be

submitted on or before the acreage reporting

date. For the purpose of determining acreage

eligible for a prevented planting production

guarantee, the total amount of prevented

planting and planted acres cannot exceed the

maximum number of acres eligible for

prevented planting coverage. Any acreage

you report in excess of the number of acres

eligible for prevented planting coverage, or

that exceeds the number of eligible acres

physically located in a unit, will be deleted

from your acreage report.

14. Written Agreements

Designated terms of this policy may be

altered by written agreement. The following

conditions will apply:

(a) You must apply in writing for each

written agreement no later than the sales

closing date, except as provided in section

14(e).

(b) The application for written agreement

must contain all terms of the contract

between you and us that will be in effect if

the written agreement is not approved.

(c) If approved, the written agreement will

include all variable terms of the contract,

including, but not limited to, crop type or

variety, the guarantee, premium rate, and

price election.

(d) Each written agreement will only be

valid for 1 year. If the written agreement is

not specifically renewed the following year,

insurance coverage for subsequent crop years

will be in accordance with the printed

policy.

(e) An application for written agreement

submitted after the sales closing date may be

approved if, after a physical inspection of the

acreage, it is determined that no loss has

occurred and the crop is insurable in

accordance with the policy and written

agreement provisions.

Signed in Washington, D.C., on May 23,

1996.

Kenneth D. Ackerman,

Manager, Federal Crop Insurance

Corporation.

[FR Doc. 96–13589 Filed 5–30–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–FA–P