This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains regulatory documents having general

applicability and legal effect, most of which

are keyed to and codified in the Code of

Federal Regulations, which is published under

50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.

The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by

the Superintendent of Documents.

Rules and Regulations Federal Register

53397 

Vol. 82, No. 220 

Thursday, November 16, 2017 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Agricultural Marketing Service 

7 CFR Part 905 

[Doc. No. AMS–SC–17–0064; SC17–905–2 

IR] 

Oranges, Grapefruit, Tangerines, and 

Pummelos Grown in Florida; Change 

in Size Requirements for Oranges 

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, 

USDA. 

ACTION: Interim rule with request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: This rule implements a 

recommendation from the Citrus 

Administrative Committee (Committee) 

to relax the minimum size requirements 

currently prescribed under the 

marketing Order for oranges, grapefruit, 

tangerines, and pummelos grown in 

Florida (Order). The Committee locally 

administers the order and is comprised 

of growers and handlers operating 

within the production area and one 

public member. This rule relaxes the 

minimum size requirements for oranges 

from 28⁄16 inches to 24⁄16 inches in 

diameter. This rule will maximize 

shipments by allowing more oranges to 

be shipped to the fresh market and help 

reduce the losses sustained by the citrus 

industry during the September 2017 

hurricane in Florida. This rule also 

contains a formatting change to subpart 

references to bring the Order language 

into conformance with Office of Federal 

Register’s guidelines. 

DATES: Effective November 17, 2017; 

comments received by January 16, 2018 

will be considered prior to issuance of 

a final rule. 

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are 

invited to submit written comments 

concerning this rule. Comments must be 

sent to the Docket Clerk, Marketing 

Order and Agreement Division, 

Specialty Crops Program, AMS, USDA, 

1400 Independence Avenue SW., STOP 

0237, Washington, DC 20250–0237; Fax: 

(202) 720–8938; or Internet: http://

www.regulations.gov. All comments 

should reference the document number 

and the date and page number of this 

issue of the Federal Register and will be 

made available for public inspection in 

the Office of the Docket Clerk during 

regular business hours, or can be viewed 

at: http://www.regulations.gov. All 

comments submitted in response to this 

rule will be included in the record and 

will be made available to the public. 

Please be advised that the identity of the 

individuals or entities submitting the 

comments will be made public on the 

Internet at the address provided above. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Abigail Campos, Marketing Specialist, 

or Christian D. Nissen, Regional 

Director, Southeast Marketing Field 

Office, Marketing Order and Agreement 

Division, Specialty Crops Program, 

AMS, USDA; Telephone: (863) 324– 

3375, Fax: (863) 291–8614, or Email: 

Abigail.Campos@ams.usda.gov or 

Christian.Nissen@ams.usda.gov. 

Small businesses may request 

information on complying with this 

regulation by contacting Richard Lower, 

Marketing Order and Agreement 

Division, Specialty Crops Program, 

AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence 

Avenue SW., STOP 0237, Washington, 

DC 20250–0237; Telephone: (202) 720– 

2491, Fax: (202) 720–8938, or Email: 

Richard.Lower@ams.usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This rule 

is issued under Marketing Order No. 

905, as amended (7 CFR part 905), 

regulating the handling of oranges, 

grapefruit, tangerines, and pummelos 

grown in Florida, 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 of Agriculture 

(USDA) is issuing this rule in 

conformance with Executive Orders 

13563 and 13175. This rule falls within 

a category of regulatory actions that the 

Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) exempted from Executive Order 

12866 review. Additionally, because 

this rule does not meet the definition of 

a significant regulatory action it does 

not trigger the requirements contained 

in Executive Order 13771. See OMB’s 

Memorandum titled ‘‘Interim Guidance 

Implementing Section 2 of the Executive 

Order of January 30, 2017, titled 

‘Reducing Regulation and Controlling 

Regulatory Costs’ ’’ (February 2, 2017). 

This rule has been reviewed under 

Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice 

Reform. This rule is not intended to 

have retroactive effect. 

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 USDA 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. A handler 

is afforded the opportunity for a hearing 

on the petition. After the hearing, USDA 

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 USDA’s ruling on 

the petition, provided an action is filed 

not later than 20 days after the date of 

the entry of the ruling. 

This rule relaxes the minimum size 

requirements for oranges prescribed 

under the Order. This rule relaxes the 

minimum size requirements for oranges 

from 28⁄16 inches to 24⁄16 inches in 

diameter. This rule will maximize 

shipments by allowing more oranges to 

be shipped to the fresh market and help 

reduce the losses sustained by the 

orange industry during the September 

2017 hurricane in Florida. This change 

was unanimously recommended by the 

Committee at meetings held on June 29, 

2017, and September 28, 2017. 

Section 905.52 of the Order provides 

authority to establish minimum size 

requirements for Florida citrus. Section 

905.306 of the rules and regulation 

issued under the Order specifies, in 

part, the minimum size requirements for 

oranges. Requirements for domestic 

shipments are specified in § 905.306 in 

Table I of paragraph (a) and export 

shipments in Table II of paragraph (b). 

At its June 29, 2017, meeting, the 

Committee discussed the continuing 

decline in production as a result of 

losses from citrus greening, which is 

affecting the entire production area. The 

Committee also recognized that some 

consumers are now showing a 

preference for smaller-sized fruit. The 

Committee agreed the current minimum 


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53398 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 220 / Thursday, November 16, 2017 / Rules and Regulations 

size should be relaxed in order to make 

additional fruit available for shipment. 

The Committee met again on 

September 28, 2017, to discuss the 

additional damage Hurricane Irma 

caused to the current crop and revisited 

the discussion regarding the need to 

reduce the minimum size requirements. 

The major orange-growing regions in 

Florida suffered significant damage and 

fruit loss from the hurricane. The strong 

winds from the storm blew substantial 

volumes of fruit off the trees. The 

impact of the storm is also expected to 

produce a much higher than normal 

fruit drop. The extent of the loss is 

evident in the official USDA crop 

estimate for this season, which reflects 

a 21 percent decrease from last year’s 

estimate. Further, as the industry 

continues to assess the damage caused 

by the storm, fruit loss estimates may go 

even higher. Given the limited supply of 

fruit due to greening and the impact of 

Hurricane Irma, the Committee believes 

relaxing the size requirements for 

oranges is needed to make more fruit 

available for shipment. 

Committee members recognized that 

with the special circumstances 

surrounding this season, and with the 

ongoing impacts of citrus greening, 

some allowances should be made to 

assist growers and handlers and provide 

additional volume to the market. The 

Committee believes relaxing the size 

requirements will make more fruit 

available to meet market demand, help 

maximize fresh shipments, increase 

returns to growers and handlers, and 

help address the losses stemming from 

the hurricane. Consequently, the 

Committee recommended changing the 

minimum size requirements for oranges 

from 28⁄16 inches to 24⁄16 inches in 

diameter. 

The Committee also recommended a 

relaxation in the minimum size 

requirements for grapefruit covered 

under the Order. That change is being 

considered under a separate action. 

Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis 

Pursuant to requirements set forth in 

the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) (5 

U.S.C. 601–612), the Agricultural 

Marketing Service (AMS) has 

considered the economic impact of this 

action on small entities. Accordingly, 

AMS has prepared this initial regulatory 

flexibility analysis. 

The purpose of the RFA is to fit 

regulatory actions to the scale of 

businesses 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. 

There are approximately 20 handlers 

of Florida citrus who are subject to 

regulation under the Order and 

approximately 500 citrus producers in 

the regulated area. Small agricultural 

service firms are defined by the Small 

Business Administration (SBA) as those 

having annual receipts of less than 

$7,500,000, and small agricultural 

producers are defined as those having 

annual receipts of less than $750,000 

(13 CFR 121.201). 

According to data from the National 

Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), 

the industry, and the Committee, the 

average f.o.b. price for Florida oranges 

during the 2016–17 season was $31.90 

per box, and total fresh orange 

shipments were approximately 2.1 

million boxes. Using the average f.o.b. 

price and shipment data, the majority of 

Florida orange handlers could be 

considered small businesses under 

SBA’s definition ($31.90 times 2.1 

million boxes equals $66.99 million 

divided by 20 handlers equals 

$3,349,500 per handler). In addition, 

based on the NASS data, the average 

grower price for the 2016–2017 season 

was $17.51 per box. Based on grower 

price, shipment data, and the total 

number of Florida citrus growers, the 

average annual grower revenue is below 

$750,000 ($17.51 times 2.1 million 

boxes equals $36,771,000 divided by 

500 growers equals $73,542 per grower). 

Thus, the majority of handlers and 

producers of oranges may be classified 

as small entities. 

This rule relaxes the minimum size 

requirements for oranges covered under 

the Order from 28⁄16 inches to 24⁄16

inches in diameter. This change is 

expected to maximize shipments by 

allowing more oranges to be shipped to 

the fresh market and will help reduce 

the losses sustained by the grapefruit 

industry as a result of citrus greening 

and the September 2017 hurricane in 

Florida. Authority for this change is 

provided in § 905.52. This rule amends 

§ 905.306. The Committee unanimously 

recommended this change at its June 29, 

2017, and September 28, 2017, 

meetings. 

This action is not expected to increase 

the costs associated with the Order’s 

requirements. Rather, it is anticipated 

this action will have a beneficial impact. 

Reducing the size requirements will 

make additional fruit available for 

shipment to the fresh market, provide 

an outlet for fruit that may otherwise go 

unharvested, and afford more 

opportunity to meet consumer demand. 

This change will provide additional 

fruit to fill the shortage caused by citrus 

greening and by Hurricane Irma. 

Further, by maximizing shipments, this 

action will help provide additional 

returns to growers and handlers as they 

work to recover from the losses 

stemming from the hurricane. 

This action may also help reduce 

harvesting costs. By reducing the 

minimum size, more fruit will be able 

to be harvested immediately. This may 

eliminate the need to leave fruit on the 

tree to increase in size, which requires 

follow-up picking later in the season. 

Given the amount of fruit loss, this 

could help reduce picking costs 

substantially. The benefits of this rule 

are expected to be equally available to 

all fresh orange growers and handlers, 

regardless of their size. 

An alternative to this action would be 

to maintain the current minimum 

requirements for domestic shipments of 

oranges. However, leaving the 

requirements unchanged would not 

make additional of fruit available for 

shipment. Following the significant 

damage experienced by the industry 

from the September 2017 hurricane, 

maximizing shipments will help 

provide additional returns to growers 

and handlers as they recover from the 

loss. Another alternative considered was 

to reduce the minimum maturity 

requirements. However, Committee 

members thought it was important to 

maintain the maturity requirements to 

ensure overall quality. Therefore, this 

alternative was rejected. 

In accordance with the Paperwork 

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

Chapter 35), the Order’s information 

collection requirements have been 

previously approved by OMB and 

assigned OMB No. 0581–0189, Generic 

Fruit Crops. No changes in those 

requirements as a result of this action 

are necessary. Should any changes 

become necessary, they would be 

submitted to OMB for approval. 

This rule will not impose any 

additional reporting or recordkeeping 

requirements on either small or large 

orange handlers. As with all Federal 

marketing order programs, reports and 

forms are periodically reviewed to 

reduce information requirements and 

duplication by industry and public 

sector agencies. 

AMS is committed to complying with 

the E-Government Act, to promote the 

use of the Internet and other 

information technologies to provide 

increased opportunities for citizen 

access to Government information and 

services, and for other purposes. 

In addition, USDA has not identified 

any relevant Federal rules that 


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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 220 / Thursday, November 16, 2017 / Rules and Regulations 53399 

duplicate, overlap or conflict with this 

rule. 

Further, the Committee’s meetings 

were widely publicized throughout the 

Florida citrus industry and all interested 

persons were invited to attend the 

meetings and participate in Committee 

deliberations. Like all Committee 

meetings, the June 29, 2017, and 

September 28, 2017, meetings were 

public meetings and all entities, both 

large and small, were able to express 

their views on this issue. Finally, 

interested persons are invited to submit 

comments on this interim rule, 

including the regulatory and 

informational impacts of this action on 

small businesses. 

A small business guide on complying 

with fruit, vegetable, and specialty crop 

marketing agreements and orders may 

be viewed at: http://www.ams.usda.gov/ 

rules-regulations/moa/small-businesses. 

Any questions about the compliance 

guide should be sent to Richard Lower 

at the previously mentioned address in 

the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT

section. 

This rule invites comments on the 

change to the size requirements for 

oranges currently prescribed under the 

Marketing Order for oranges, grapefruit, 

tangerines, and pummelos grown in 

Florida. Any comments received will be 

considered prior to finalization of this 

rule. 

After consideration of all relevant 

material presented, including the 

Committee’s recommendation, and 

other information, it is found that this 

interim rule, as hereinafter set forth, 

will tend to effectuate the declared 

policy of the Act. 

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553, it is also 

found and determined upon good cause 

that it is impracticable, unnecessary, 

and contrary to the public interest to 

give preliminary notice prior to putting 

this rule into effect and that good cause 

exists for not postponing the effective 

date of this rule until 30 days after 

publication in the Federal Register. The 

Florida citrus industry has been dealing 

with the devastating effects of citrus 

greening for more than 10 years, 

resulting in ever smaller harvests, and 

escalating production costs. The 

September 2017 hurricane caused 

significant additional damage and crop 

loss to the industry, with losses running 

into the millions of dollars. This rule, in 

conjunction with a companion rule for 

grapefruit, will bring some muchneeded relief by providing additional 

fruit for shipment to the fresh market 

and to increase returns to growers and 

handlers. Based on the size frequency 

measurements provided by NASS as 

part of grapefruit and orange crop 

estimates, the recommended relaxation 

in size for both grapefruit and oranges 

could make an additional 20 to 25 

percent of the crop available for 

shipment to the fresh market. Based on 

estimates, this could mean an additional 

volume of about 700,000 boxes of citrus 

available for shipment. Using an average 

fresh price per box of around $30, this 

could provide the industry with an 

additional $20 million in returns for the 

2017–18 season. This rule relieves a 

restriction on the size of oranges that 

can be shipped to the fresh market. 

Therefore, good cause exists for this rule 

becoming effective one day after 

publication in the Federal Register. In 

addition, the Committee unanimously 

recommended these changes at public 

meetings, and interested parties had an 

opportunity to provide input. Further, 

this rule provides a 60-day comment 

period and any comments received will 

be considered prior to finalization of 

this rule. This rule also contains a 

formatting change to subpart references 

to bring the Order language into 

conformance with Office of Federal 

Register’s guidelines. 

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 905 

Grapefruit, Marketing agreements, 

Oranges, Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Tangelos, Tangerines. 

For the reasons set forth in the 

preamble, 7 CFR part 905 is amended as 

follows: 

PART 905—ORANGES, GRAPEFRUIT, 

TANGERINES, AND PUMMELOS 

GROWN IN FLORIDA 

■ 1. The authority citation for 7 CFR 

part 905 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 601–604. 

[Subpart Redesignated as Subpart A] 

■ 2. Redesignate ‘‘Subpart—Order 

Regulating Handling’’ as ‘‘Subpart A— 

Order Regulating Handling’’. 

[Subpart Redesignated as Subpart B 

and Amended] 

■ 3. Redesignate ‘‘Subpart—Rules and 

Regulations’’ as subpart B and revise the 

heading to read as follows: 

Subpart B—Administrative 

Requirements 

[Subpart Redesignated as Subpart C] 

■ 4. Redesignate ‘‘Subpart—Assessment 

Rates’’ as ‘‘Subpart C—Assessment 

Rate’’. 

[Subpart Redesignated as Subpart D] 

■ 5. Redesignate ‘‘Subpart—Grade and 

Size Requirements’’ as ‘‘Subpart D— 

Grade and Size Requirements’’. 

■ 6. In § 905.306, Table I in paragraph 

(a) and Table II in paragraph (b) are 

amended by revising the entries for 

‘‘Early and midseason,’’ ‘‘Navel,’’ 

‘‘Temple,’’ and ‘‘Valencia and other late 

type’’ under ‘‘Oranges,’’ to read as 

follows: 

§ 905.306 Orange, Grapefruit, Tangerine 

and Tangelo Regulation. 

(a) * * * 

TABLE I 

Variety Regulation period Minimum grade 

Minimum 

diameter 

(inches) 

(1) (2) (3) (4) 

Oranges 

Early and midseason ............................... 01/29/90–08/19/90 .................................. U.S. No. 1 Golden ................................... 24⁄16

On and after 08/20/90 ............................. U.S. No. 1 ............................................... 24⁄16

Navel ................................................. On and after 12/7/81 ............................... U.S. No. 1 ............................................... 24⁄16

Temple .............................................. On and after 12/7/81 ............................... U.S. No. 1 ............................................... 24⁄16

Valencia and other late type ............. September 1–May 14, May 15–June 14 U.S. No. 1 ...............................................

U.S. No. 1 Golden ...................................

24⁄16

24⁄16

June 15–August 31 ................................. U.S. No. 2, External/U.S. No. 1, Internal 24⁄16


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53400 Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 220 / Thursday, November 16, 2017 / Rules and Regulations 

TABLE I—Continued 

Variety Regulation period Minimum grade 

Minimum 

diameter 

(inches) 

(1) (2) (3) (4) 

*******

(b) * * * 

TABLE II 

Variety Regulation period Minimum grade 

Minimum 

diameter 

(inches) 

(1) (2) (3) (4) 

Oranges 

Early and midseason ............................... 01/29/90–08/19/90 .................................. U.S. No. 1 Golden ................................... 24⁄16

On and after 08/20/90 ............................. U.S. No. 1 ............................................... 24⁄16

Navel ................................................. On and after 11/24/89 ............................. U.S. No. 1 Golden ................................... 24⁄16

Temple .............................................. On and after 11/24/89 ............................. U.S. No. 1 ............................................... 24⁄16

Valencia and other late type ............. March 23, 1992–9/27/92 ......................... U.S. No. 1 ............................................... 24⁄16

On and after 9/28/92 ............................... U.S. No. 1 ............................................... 24⁄16

* * * * * * * 

* * * * * 

[Subpart Redesignated as Subpart E 

and Amended] 

■ 7. Redesignate ‘‘Subpart—Interpretive 

Rule’’ as subpart E and revise the 

heading to read as follows: 

Subpart E—Interpretations 

Dated: November 9, 2017. 

Bruce Summers, 

Acting Administrator, Agricultural Marketing 

Service. 

[FR Doc. 2017–24701 Filed 11–15–17; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 33 

[Docket No. FAA–2017–0537; Notice No. 33– 

17–02–SC] 

Special Conditions: General Electric 

Company, GE9X Engine Models; 

Endurance Test Special Conditions 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Final special conditions. 

SUMMARY: These special conditions are 

issued for the General Electric Company 

turbofan engine models GE9X–105B1A, 

–105B1A1, –105B1A2, –105B1A3, 

–102B1A, –102B1A1, –102B1A2, 

–102B1A3, and –93B1A. In these special 

conditions, the engine models will be 

referred to as ‘‘GE9X.’’ The engines will 

have novel or unusual design features 

associated with the engine design. The 

applicable airworthiness regulations do 

not contain adequate or appropriate 

safety standards for these design 

features. These special conditions 

contain the additional safety standards 

that the Administrator considers 

necessary to establish a level of safety 

equivalent to that established by the 

existing airworthiness standards. 

DATES: Effective December 18, 2017. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Diane Cook, AIR–6A1, Engine and 

Propeller Standards Branch, Aircraft 

Certification Service, 1200 District 

Avenue, Burlington, Massachusetts 

01803–5213; telephone (781) 238–7111; 

facsimile (781) 238–7199; email 

diane.cook@faa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

On January 29, 2016, General Electric 

Company (GE) applied for a type 

certificate for their new GE9X turbofan 

engine models. The GE9X engine 

models are high-bypass-ratio engines 

that incorporate novel or unusual design 

features. The GE9X engine models 

incorporate new technologies such that 

the company cannot run the endurance 

test conditions prescribed in § 33.87 

without significant modifications 

making the test vehicle nonrepresentative of the type design. 

Discussion 

An alternative endurance test cycle 

has been developed that provides a level 

of safety equivalent with that intended 

by § 33.87. The alternate endurance test 

provides the test conditions that allow 

the engine to be run in type design 

configuration and demonstrate engine 

operability and durability as well as 

systems functionality to a level intended 

by the current § 33.87 rule. 

These special conditions provide the 

necessary conditions for verification of 

engine-level and component-level 

effects as intended by the current 

§ 33.87 Endurance test. The test is run 

in engine type design configuration, 

with only limited test enabling 

modifications as needed. The special 

conditions include a demonstration for 

the oil, fuel, air bleed, and accessory 

drive systems as required in the current 

§ 33.87 Endurance test. 

The equivalent level of severity 

intended by the § 33.87 Endurance test 

is provided by an engine test 

demonstration at the gas path limiting 

temperature and at shaft speed redlines 

and at the most extreme shaft speeds as 

determined through a critical point 

analysis (CPA). In addition, times on 

condition and cycle counts were 

developed to allow additional 

challenges to the novel or unusual 


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