Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 130 / Friday, July 5, 1996 / Rules and Regulations 35109

has waived its review process required

by Executive Order 12866.

This action removes seven entire

counties in Arizona and portions of six

counties in Arizona, New Mexico, and

Texas from the list of areas quarantined

because of Karnal bunt. This situation

makes compliance with section 603 and

timely compliance with section 604 of

the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C.

603 and 604) impracticable. This rule

may have a significant economic impact

on a substantial number of small

entities. If we determine this is so, then

we will discuss the issues raised by

section 604 of the Regulatory Flexibility

Act in our Final Regulatory Flexibility

Act Analysis.

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 required

intergovernmental consultation with

State and local officials. (See 7 CFR part

3015, subpart V.)

Executive Order 12778

This rule has been reviewed under

Executive Order 12778, 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

This rule contains no new

information collection or recordkeeping

requirements under the Paperwork

Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501

et seq.).

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 301

Agricultural commodities, Plant

diseases and pests, Quarantine,

Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements, Transportation.

Accordingly, 7 CFR part 301 is

amended as follows:

PART 301—DOMESTIC QUARANTINE

NOTICES

1. The authority citation for part 301

continues to read as follows:

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 150bb, 150dd, 150ee,

150ff, 161, 162, and 164–167; 7 CFR 2.22,

2.80, and 371.2(c).

2. In section 301.89–3, paragraph (e)

is amended by revising the entries for

Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas to read

as follows:

§ 301.89–3 Quarantined areas.

* * * * *

(e) * * *

Arizona

Cochise County. The entire county.

Graham County. The entire county.

LaPaz County. The entire county.

Maricopa County. The entire county.

Mohave County. Beginning at the

intersection of Arizona/Nevada State

line and State Route 68; then east along

State Route 68 to U.S. Highway 93; then

southeast along U.S. Highway 93 to

Interstate 40; then south along Interstate

40 to the Arizona/California State line;

then north along the State line to the

point of beginning.

Pima County. Beginning at the

intersection of the Pima County line, the

Pinal County line, and the Papago

Indian Reservation boundary; then east

along the Pima County line to its

easternmost point; then south along the

Pima County line to the Cochise and

Santa Cruz County lines; then west

along the Pima County line to the

United States/Mexico boundary; then

west along the United States/Mexico

boundary to the Papago Indian

Reservation boundary; then north along

the Papago Indian Reservation boundary

to the point of beginning.

Pinal County. The entire county.

Yuma County. The entire county.

* * * * *

New Mexico

Dona Ana County. The entire county.

Hidalgo County. Beginning at the

intersection of the Arizona/New Mexico

State line and Interstate 10; then east

along Interstate 10 to the Hidalgo/Grant

County line; then south and east along

the Hidalgo County line to the Luna

County line; then south along the

Hidalgo County line to its southernmost

point; then west and north along the

Hidalgo County line to point of

beginning.

Luna County. Beginning at the

intersection of the Grant/Luna County

line and Interstate 10; then east along

Interstate 10 to U.S. Highway 180; then

north along U.S. Highway 180 to State

Route 26; then north along State Route

26 to State Route 27; then northeast

along State Route 27 to the Luna/Sierra

County line; then east along the Luna

County line to the Dona County line;

then south along the Luna County line

to the United States/Mexico boundary;

then west along the United States/

Mexico boundary to the Hidalgo County

line; then north along the Luna County

line to the point of beginning.

Sierra County. Beginning at

intersection of the Luna/Sierra County

line and State Route 27; then north

along State Route 27 to State Route 152;

then east along State Route 152 to

Interstate 25; then north along Interstate

25 to State Route 52; then northwest

along State Route 52 to the Sierra/

Socorro County line; then east along the

Sierra County line to the Lincoln

County line; then south along the Sierra

County line to the Dona County line;

then west along the Sierra County line

to the point of beginning.

Texas

El Paso County. The entire county.

Hudspeth County. Beginning at the

intersection of the El Paso/Hudspeth

County line and U.S. Highway 62/U.S.

Highway 180; then east along U.S.

Highway 62/U.S. Highway 180 to

County Road 1111; then south along

County Road 1111 to its terminus; then

west along an imaginary line to the

United States/Mexico boundary; then

northwest along the United States/

Mexico boundary to the El Paso/

Hudspeth County line; then north along

the El Paso/Hudspeth County line to the

point of beginning.

* * * * *

Done in Washington, DC, this 27th day of

June 1996.

Terry L. Medley,

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant

Health Inspection Service.

[FR Doc. 96–16998 Filed 7–3–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P

Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Part 946

[Docket No. FV96–946–2FIR]

Irish Potatoes Grown in Washington;

Assessment Rate

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service,

USDA.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Department of

Agriculture (Department) is adopting as

a final rule, without change, the

provisions of an interim final rule that

established an assessment rate of the

State of Washington Potato Committee

(Committee) under Marketing Order 946

for the 1996–97 and subsequent fiscal

periods. The Committee is responsible

for local administration of the marketing

order which regulates the handling of

Irish potatoes grown in Washington.

Authorization to assess potato handlers

enables the Committee to incur

expenses that are reasonable and

necessary to administer the program.

EFFECTIVE DATE: Effective on July 1,

1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Martha Sue Clark, Program Assistant,

Marketing Order Administration
35110 Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 130 / Friday, July 5, 1996 / Rules and Regulations

Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Division,

AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 96456, room

2523–S, Washington, DC 20090–6456,

telephone 202–720–9918, FAX 202–

720–5698, or Daniel L. West, Marketing

Specialist, Northwest Marketing Field

Office, Fruit and Vegetable Division,

AMS, USDA, Green-Wyatt Federal

Building, room 369, 1220 Southwest

Third Avenue, Portland, OR 97204,

telephone 503–326–2724, FAX 503–

326–7440.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This rule

is issued under Marketing Agreement

No. 113 and Order No. 946, both as

amended (7 CFR part 946) regulating the

handling of Irish potatoes grown in

Washington, hereinafter referred to as

the ‘‘order.’’ The order is effective under

the Agricultural Marketing Agreement

Act of 1937, as amended (7 U.S.C. 601–

674), hereinafter referred to as the

‘‘Act.’’

The Department is issuing this rule in

conformance with Executive Order

12866.

This rule has been reviewed under

Executive Order 12778, Civil Justice

Reform. Under the marketing order now

in effect, Washington potato handlers

are subject to assessments. Funds to

administer the order are derived from

such assessments. It is intended that the

assessment rate as issued herein will be

applicable to all assessable potatoes

beginning July 1, 1996, and continuing

until amended, or terminated. This rule

will not preempt any State or local laws,

regulations, or policies, unless they

present an irreconcilable conflict with

this rule.

The Act provides that administrative

proceedings must be exhausted before

parties may file suit in court. Under

section 608c(15)(A) of the Act, any

handler subject to an order may file

with the Secretary a petition stating that

the order, any provision of the order, or

any obligation imposed in connection

with the order is not in accordance with

law and request a modification of the

order or to be exempted therefrom. Such

handler 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 any

district in which the handler is an

inhabitant, or has his or her principal

place of business, has jurisdiction to

review the Secretary’s ruling on the

petition, provided an action is filed not

later than 20 days after the date of the

entry of the ruling.

Pursuant to requirements set forth in

the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), the

Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS)

has considered the economic impact of

this rule on small entities.

The purpose of the RFA is to fit

regulatory actions to the scale of

business subject to such actions in order

that small businesses will not be unduly

or disproportionately burdened.

Marketing orders issued pursuant to the

Act, and the rules issued thereunder, are

unique in that they are brought about

through group action of essentially

small entities acting on their own

behalf. Thus, both statutes have small

entity orientation and compatibility.

There are approximately 450

producers of Washington potatoes in the

production area and approximately 40

handlers subject to regulation under the

marketing order. Small agricultural

producers have been defined by the

Small Business Administration (13 CFR

121.601) as those having annual receipts

of less than $500,000, and small

agricultural service firms are defined as

those whose annual receipts are less

than $5,000,000. The majority of

Washington potato producers and

handlers may be classified as small

entities.

The Washington potato marketing

order provides authority for the

Committee, with the approval of the

Department, to formulate an annual

budget of expenses and collect

assessments from handlers to administer

the program. The members of the

Committee are producers and handlers

of Washington potatoes. They are

familiar with the Committee’s needs and

with the costs for goods and services in

their local area and are thus in a

position to formulate an appropriate

budget and assessment rate. The

assessment rate is formulated and

discussed in a public meeting. Thus, all

directly affected persons have an

opportunity to participate and provide

input.

The Committee met on February 15,

1996, and unanimously recommended

1996–97 expenditures of $42,500 and an

assessment rate of $0.003 per

hundredweight of potatoes. In

comparison, last year’s budgeted

expenditures were $42,300. The

assessment rate of $0.003 is the same as

last year’s established rate. Major

expenditures recommended by the

Committee for the 1996–97 year include

$17,400 for an agreement with the

Washington State Potato Commission to

provide miscellaneous services to the

Committee and $6,000 for compliance

audits, the same as the budgeted

amounts for these items in 1995–96.

The assessment rate recommended by

the committee was derived by dividing

anticipated expenses by expected

shipments of Washington potatoes.

Potato shipments for the year are

estimated at 9,000,000 hundredweight

which should provide $27,000 in

assessment income. Income derived

from handler assessments, along with

funds from the Committee’s authorized

reserve, will be adequate to cover

budgeted expenses. Funds in the reserve

will be kept within the maximum

permitted by the order.

An interim final rule regarding this

action was published in the May 6,

1996, issue of the Federal Register (61

FR 20119). That interim final rule added

§ 946.248 to establish an assessment rate

for the Committee. That rule provided

that interested persons could file

comments through June 5, 1996. No

comments were received.

While this rule will impose some

additional costs on handlers, the costs

are in the form of uniform assessments

on all handlers. Some of the additional

costs may be passed on to producers.

However, these costs will be offset by

the benefits derived by the operation of

the marketing order. Therefore, the AMS

has determined that this rule will not

have a significant economic impact on

a substantial number of small entities.

The assessment rate established in

this rule will continue in effect

indefinitely unless modified,

suspended, or terminated by the

Secretary upon recommendation and

information submitted by the

Committee or other available

information.

Although this assessment rate is

effective for an indefinite period, the

Committee will continue to meet prior

to or during each fiscal period to

recommend a budget of expenses and

consider recommendations for

modification of the assessment rate. The

dates and times of Committee meetings

are available from the Committee or the

Department. Committee meetings are

open to the public and interested

persons may express their views at these

meetings. The Department will evaluate

Committee recommendations and other

available information to determine

whether modification of the assessment

rate is needed. Further rulemaking will

be undertaken as necessary. The

Committee’s 1996–97 budget and those

for subsequent fiscal periods will be

reviewed and, as appropriate, approved

by the Department.

After consideration of all relevant

material presented, including the

information and recommendation

submitted by the Committee and other

available information, it is hereby found

that this rule, as hereinafter set forth,

will tend to effectuate the declared

policy of the Act.

This final rule also corrects an error

in the interim final rule published May

6, 1996, (61 FR 20119). The note
Federal Register / Vol. 61, No. 130 / Friday, July 5, 1996 / Rules and Regulations 35111

appearing before the amendatory

instruction 2 incorrectly states that

§ 946.248 will not appear in the Code of

Federal Regulations. Pursuant to 5

U.S.C. 553, it is also found and

determined that good cause exists for

not postponing the effective date of this

rule until 30 days after publication in

the Federal Register because: (1) The

Committee needs to have sufficient

funds to pay its expenses which are

incurred on a continuous basis; (2) the

1996–97 fiscal period begins on July 1,

1996, and the marketing order requires

that the rate of assessment for each

fiscal period apply to all assessable

potatoes handled during such fiscal

period; (3) handlers are aware of this

action which was unanimously

recommended by the Committee at a

public meeting and is similar to other

assessment rate actions issued in past

years; and (4) an interim final rule was

published on this action and provided

for a 30-day comment period, and no

comments were received.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 946

Marketing agreements, Potatoes,

Reporting and recordkeeping

requirements.

PART 946—IRISH POTATOES GROWN

IN WASHINGTON

Accordingly, the interim final rule

amending 7 CFR part 946 which was

published at 61 FR 20119 on May 6,

1996, is adopted with the following

correction to the note immediately

following amendatory instruction 2. The

note should read:

Note: This section will appear in the

annual Code of Federal Regulations.

Dated: June 26, 1996.

Robert C. Keeney,

Director, Fruit and Vegetable Division.

[FR Doc. 96–16852 Filed 7–3–96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–02–M

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

Immigration and Naturalization Service

8 CFR Part 301

[INS No. 1736–95]

RIN 1115–AE19

Acquisition of Citizenship; Equal

Treatment of Women in Conferring

Citizenship on Children Born Abroad

AGENCY: Immigration and Naturalization

Service, Justice.

ACTION: Interim rule with request for

comments.

SUMMARY: This interim rule amends the

Immigration and Naturalization Service

(Service) regulations by establishing

procedures for certain United States

citizen women to confer citizenship on

their children born outside of the

United States before noon (Eastern

Standard Time) May 24, 1934. The

purpose of this rule is to ensure that all

women receive equal treatment under

laws relating to nationality.

Implementation of the rule would allow

for the issuance of certificates of

citizenship to certain foreign-born

children previously ineligible to acquire

citizenship from their United States

citizen mothers.

DATES: This interim rule is effective July

5, 1996. Written comments must be

submitted on or before September 3,

1996.

ADDRESSES: Please submit written

comments, in triplicate, to the Director,

Policy Directives and Instructions

Branch, Immigration and Naturalization

Service, 425 I Street, NW., Room 5307,

Washington, DC 20536. To ensure

proper handling, please reference INS

number 1736–95 on your

correspondence. Comments are

available for public inspection at the

above address by calling (202) 514–3048

to arrange for an appointment.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Jane B. Barker, Adjudications Officer,

Adjudications Branch, Immigration and

Naturalization Service, 425 I Street,

NW., Room 3214, Washington, DC

20536, telephone (202) 514–5014.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Prior to the enactment of the

Immigration and Nationality Technical

Corrections Act of 1994 (INTCA), Public

Law 103–416, dated October 25, 1994, a

child born abroad before noon (Eastern

Standard Time (EST) May 24, 1934, to

an alien father and United States citizen

mother could not acquire United States

citizenship through his or her mother.

If, however, the mother was the alien

and the father was the United States

citizen, the child could become a citizen

through his or her father, pursuant to

Section 1993 of Revised Statutes,

February 10, 1855, 10 Stat. 604.

On May 24, 1934, Congress amended

Section 1993 of the Revised Statutes so

that children born abroad to parents,

only one of whom was a United States

citizen, would become citizens

regardless of whether the citizen was

the father or the mother. The 1934

amendment, however, was not

retroactive. Subsection 101(a)(2) of

INTCA amended the Immigration and

Nationality Act (the Act) by adding a

new subsection 301(h) to provide for the

acquisition of United States citizenship

from either parent for persons born

abroad before noon (EST) May 24, 1934,

to parents, only one of whom is a

United States citizen.

Section 301(h)

Under section 301(h) of the Act, a

person born abroad before noon (EST)

May 24, 1934, to a United States citizen

mother and an alien father, may now

acquire United States citizenship if his

or her mother resided in the United

States prior to the person’s birth. A

person who qualifies for United States

citizenship under section 301(h) of the

Act shall not be subject to any

provisions of law that provided for loss

of citizenship or nationality (including

section 301(b) of the Act (as in effect

before October 10, 1978) and the

provisos of section 201(g) of the

Nationality Act of 1940) if the person

failed to come to, reside, or be

physically present in the United States.

For purposes of transmission of

citizenship, section 301(h) shall have no

effect on the residence and retention

requirements for those persons born

abroad to a citizen parent and an alien

parent between May 24, 1934, and

October 10, 1978. Section 301(h) also

shall have no effect on the validity of

the citizenship of anyone who obtained

United States citizenship under section

1993 of the Revised Statutes (as in effect

before the enactment of the Act of May

24, 1934, 49 Stat. 797). Further, section

301(h) shall not confer citizenship on,

nor have any effect on, the validity of

any denaturalization, deportation, or

exclusion action against any person who

is or was excludable from the United

States for participation in Nazi

persecution or genocide, or who was

excluded from, or who would not have

been eligible for admission to the

United States under the Displaced

Persons Act of 1948 or under section 14

of the Refugee Relief Act of 1953.

Procedures for Acquiring United States

Citizenship Under Section 301(h)

A person who is eligible for benefits

under section 301(h) may make his or

her citizenship claim in the United

States with the Attorney General or

abroad with the Secretary of State. A

person who currently resides in the

United States may file Form N–600,

Application for Certificate of

Citizenship, accompanied by the fee

specified in 8 CFR 103.7(b)(1), with the

Service office having jurisdiction over

the applicant’s place of residence, or

with such other Service office as the

Commissioner may designate. The

application shall be supported by