Source: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2009/07/10/E9-16336/brucellosis-in-cattle-state-and-area-classifications-montana
Timestamp: 2016-09-26 12:23:44
Document Index: 563772661

Matched Legal Cases: ['§\u200978', '§\u200978', '§\u200978', 'art1', 'art 78', '§\u200978', 'art2']

:: Brucellosis in Cattle; State and Area Classifications; Montana
A Rule by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service on 07/10/2009
This interim rule is effective July 10, 2009. We will consider all comments that we receive on or before September 8, 2009.
74 FR 33139
33139-33140
E9-16336
https://www.federalregister.gov/d/E9-16336
Start Printed Page 33139
We are amending the brucellosis regulations concerning the interstate movement of cattle by changing the classification of Montana from Class A to Class Free. We have determined that Montana meets the standards for Class Free status. This action relieves certain restrictions on the interstate movement of cattle from Montana.
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/​fdmspublic/​component/​main?​main=​DocketDetail&​d=​APHIS-2009-0040 to submit or view comments and to view supporting and related materials available electronically.
Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Please send two copies of your comment to Docket No. APHIS-2009-0040, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238. Please state that your comment refers to Docket No. APHIS-2009-0040.
Dr. Debbi A. Donch, National Brucellosis Epidemiologist and Program Manager, Ruminant Health Programs Staff, National Center for Animal Health Programs, VS, APHIS, 4700 River Road, Unit 43, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231; (301) 734-5952.
Before the publication of this interim rule, Montana was classified as a Class A State.
The last brucellosis-affected cattle herd in Montana was detected in May 2008. The brucellosis reactor cattle in Montana were destroyed on May 27, 2008, and the affected herd was subsequently depopulated. Since then, no brucellosis-affected cattle herds have been detected in the State.
After reviewing the brucellosis program records for Montana, we have concluded that this State meets the standards for Class Free status. Therefore, we are removing Montana from the list of Class A States in § 78.41(b) and adding it to the list of Class Free States in § 78.41(a). This action relieves certain restrictions on moving cattle interstate from Montana.
Immediate action is warranted to remove unnecessary restrictions on the interstate movement of cattle from Montana. Under these circumstances, Start Printed Page 33140the Administrator has determined that prior notice and opportunity for public comment are contrary to the public interest and that there is good cause under 5 U.S.C. 553 for making this action effective less than 30 days after publication in the Federal Register.
Brucellosis is a contagious, costly disease of ruminant and other animals that can also affect humans. It is mainly a threat to cattle, bison, and swine. The disease causes decreased milk production, weight loss in animals, loss of young, infertility, and lameness. There is no known effective treatment. Depopulation of infected and exposed animals is the only effective means of disease containment and eradication.
The State of Montana has met all the requirements for obtaining Class Free status as outlined in the definition of “Class Free State or area” in § 78.1 of the regulations. This interim rule upgrades the brucellosis status of Montana from Class A to Class Free. Cattle and bison that are to be moved interstate from Class A States, except those moving directly to slaughter or to quarantined feedlots, must be tested before they are eligible for movement. Attaining Class Free status allows producers in Montana to forgo the cost of this testing.
Brucellosis testing, including veterinary fees and handling expenses, costs between $7.50 and $15 per test. The expenses eliminated as a result of this reclassification in status will not be significant for cattle owners in Montana. In 2007, there were 11,526 cattle and calf operations in Montana, with total sales of 1.84 million head of cattle.[1] The average per-head value in Montana was $1,050 in 2007.[2] Thus, the cost of testing would represent between 0.7 and 1.4 percent of the average value of the animal sold.
In 2001, 818,146 cattle moved interstate from Montana, excluding cattle moved directly to slaughter.[3] Assuming the current proportion of cattle moved interstate from Montana is similar to that in 2001, the overall annual cost for Montana cattle operations for brucellosis testing required under Class A classification is estimated to range between $6 million and $12 million.[4] These costs will not be borne with promulgation of this rule.
The Small Business Administration has established guidelines for determining whether an enterprise is considered small under the Regulatory Flexibility Act. An enterprise producing cattle and calves (North American Industry Classification System [NAICS] code 112111) is considered small if it has annual receipts of $750,000 or less. There were 11,526 farms with sales of cattle and calves in Montana in 2007. Over 98 percent of these farms had annual receipts not exceeding $750,000.[5] We expect that the majority of cattle and calves operations that will be affected by the interim rule are small entities. The interim rule will benefit producers that sell cattle and calves out of State for breeding and feeding purposes. However, the savings from the forgone testing will be very small, estimated to be between 0.7 percent and 1.4 percent of the value of the animals sold.
Start Amendment Part1. The authority citation for part 78 continues to read as follows:End Amendment Part
§ 78.41 [Amended]
Start Amendment Part2. Section 78.41 is amended as follows:End Amendment Part
Start Amendment Parta. In paragraph (a), by adding the word “Montana,” after the word “Missouri,”.End Amendment Part
Start Amendment Partb. In paragraph (b), by removing the word “Montana” and adding the word “None” in its place.End Amendment Part
Done in Washington, DC, this 6th day of July 2009.
USDA/National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), Cattle, released January 30, 2009.
USDA/NASS, Meat Animal Production, Disposition, and Income: 2007 Summary, April 2008.
Dennis A Shields and Kenneth H Mathews, Interstate Livestock Movements, USDA/Economic Research Service (ERS), LDP-M-108-01, June 2003 (http://www.ers.usda.gov/​publications/​ldp/​jun03/​ldpm10801/​ldpm10801.pdf), and http://www.ers.usda.gov/​Data/​InterstateLivestockMovements/​StateShipments.xls.
We base this estimate on Montana's 2007 cattle inventory. The total cattle inventories in 2001 and 2007 were 2,550,000 and 2,589,679, respectively. The calculated values were obtained as follows: (1) $6.2 million (= 818,146/2,550,000*2,589,679*$7.5=$6,231,575) and (2) $12.5 million (=818,146/2,550,000*2,589,679*$15=$12,463,150). Cattle numbers are from USDA/NASS, Cattle, released on February 1, 2002 (http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/​usda/​nass/​Catt/​2000s/​2002/​Catt-02-01-2002.pdf) and USDA/NASS, 2007 Census of Agriculture.
Based upon 2007 Census of Agriculture—State Data and the “Small Business Size Standards by NAICS Industry,” Code of Federal Regulations, Title 13, Chapter I.
[FR Doc. E9-16336 Filed 7-9-09; 8:45 am]