[Federal Register: April 27, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 81)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 24806-24808]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr27ap06-2]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
9 CFR Part 93
[Docket No. APHIS-2006-0020]
States Approved To Receive Stallions and Mares From CEM-Affected
Regions; Indiana
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Direct final rule.
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SUMMARY: We are amending the animal importation regulations by adding
Indiana to the lists of States approved to receive certain stallions
and mares imported into the United States from regions affected with
contagious equine metritis (CEM). We are taking this action because
Indiana has entered into an agreement with the Administrator of the
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service to enforce its State laws
and regulations to control CEM and to require inspection, treatment,
and testing of horses, as required by Federal regulations, to further
ensure the horses' freedom from CEM. This action relieves unnecessary
restrictions on the importation of mares and stallions from regions
where CEM exists.
DATES: This rule will be effective on June 26, 2006, unless we receive
written adverse comments or written notice of intent to submit adverse
comments on or before May 30, 2006. If we receive written adverse
comments or written notice of intent to submit adverse comments, we
will publish a document in the Federal Register withdrawing this rule
before the effective date.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov
and, in the lower ``Search Regulations and Federal
Actions'' box, select ``Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service''
from the agency drop-down menu, then click on ``Submit.'' In the Docket
ID column, select APHIS-2006-0020 to submit or view public comments and
to view supporting and related materials available electronically.
Information on using Regulations.gov, including instructions for
accessing documents, submitting comments, and viewing the docket after
the close of the comment period, is available through the site's ``User
Tips'' link.
Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Please send four copies
of your comment (an original and three copies) to Docket No. APHIS-
2006-0020,
[[Page 24807]]
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-2006-0020.
Reading Room: You may read any comments that we receive on this
docket in our reading room. The reading room is located in room 1141 of
the USDA South Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue, SW.,
Washington, DC. Normal reading room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.,
Monday through Friday, except holidays. To be sure someone is there to
help you, please call (202) 690-2817 before coming.
Other Information: Additional information about APHIS and its
programs is available on the Internet at http://www.aphis.usda.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Freeda E. Isaac, Senior Staff
Veterinarian, National Center for Import and Export, VS, APHIS, 4700
River Road Unit 39, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231; (301) 734-8364.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The animal importation regulations in 9 CFR part 93 (referred to
below as the regulations), among other things, prohibit or restrict the
importation of certain animals, including horses, into the United
States to protect U.S. livestock from communicable diseases.
In Sec. 93.301, paragraph (c)(1) prohibits the importation of
horses into the United States from certain regions where contagious
equine metritis (CEM) exists. Paragraph (c)(2) lists categories of
horses that are excepted from this prohibition, including, in Sec.
93.301(c)(2)(vi), horses over 731 days of age imported for permanent
entry if the horses meet the requirements of Sec. 93.301(e).
One of the requirements in Sec. 93.301(e) is that mares and
stallions over 731 days old imported for permanent entry from regions
where CEM exists must be consigned to States listed in Sec.
93.301(h)(6), for stallions, or in Sec. 93.301(h)(7), for mares. The
Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)
has approved these States to receive stallions or mares over 731 days
of age from regions where CEM exists because each State has entered
into a written agreement with the Administrator to enforce State laws
and regulations to control CEM, and each State has agreed to
quarantine, test, and treat stallions and mares over 731 days of age
from any region where CEM exists in accordance with Sec. 93.301(e).
Indiana has entered into a written agreement with the Administrator
of APHIS and has agreed to comply with all of the requirements in Sec.
93.301(e) for importing stallions and mares over 731 days old from
regions where CEM exists. Therefore, this direct final rule will add
Indiana to the lists of States in Sec. 93.301(h)(6) and (h)(7)
approved to receive certain stallions and mares imported into the
United States from regions where CEM exists.
Dates
We are publishing this rule without a prior proposal because we
view this action as noncontroversial and anticipate no adverse public
comments. This rule will be effective, as published in this document,
on June 26, 2006, unless we receive written adverse comments or written
notice of intent to submit adverse comments by May 30, 2006.
Adverse comments are comments that suggest the rule should not be
adopted or that suggest the rule should be changed.
If we receive written adverse comments or written notice of intent
to submit adverse comments, we will publish a document in the Federal
Register withdrawing this rule before the effective date. We will then
publish a proposed rule for public comment.
As discussed above, if we receive no written adverse comments or
written notice of intent to submit adverse comments within 30 days of
publication of this direct final rule, this direct final rule will
become effective 60 days following its publication. We will publish a
document in the Federal Register before the effective date of this
direct final rule, confirming that it is effective on the date
indicated in this document.
Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act
This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12866. For this
action, the Office of Management and Budget has waived its review under
Executive Order 12866.
We are amending the animal importation regulations by adding
Indiana to the lists of States approved to receive certain stallions
and mares imported into the United States from regions affected with
CEM. We are taking this action because Indiana has entered into an
agreement with the Administrator of APHIS to enforce its State laws and
regulations to control CEM and to require inspection, treatment, and
testing of horses, as required by Federal regulations, to further
ensure the horses' freedom from CEM. This action relieves unnecessary
restrictions on the importation of mares and stallions from regions
where CEM exists.
The United States imported a total of 41,065 horses in 2004. Nearly
82 percent of horses imported were from Canada (76 percent) and Mexico
(6 percent). Of the total imports, 35,372 were from non-CEM countries
and the remaining 5,693 were from CEM countries. The proportion of
pure-bred horses was much smaller than other horses. Of the above
total, 2,297 were purebred breeding horses. Only 265 purebred breeding
horses were imported from CEM-affected countries. However, horses
supplied by CEM-affected countries are generally highly valued. In
2004, for example, the average value of a purebred breeding horse
imported from a CEM-affected region was $42,600, whereas the average
value of a purebred breeding horse imported from non-CEM countries was
$4,720.
The rule will allow Indiana horse operations to import stallions
and mares directly from CEM-affected regions, whereas at present they
must be imported and undergo post-entry testing and treatment in
another, currently approved State. There are now 21 States approved to
receive stallions and mares from CEM-affected regions. Thus, Indiana
would join those 21 States as a potential destination for purebred
breeding horses imported from CEM-affected regions. This rule would
affect operations raising horses and other equines (North American
Industry Classification System (NAICS) code 112920) and operations
owning racehorses (NAICS code 711219). The main effect would be on
those entities importing horses from CEM-affected regions. It is not
known how many such firms there may be, but it is reasonable to assume
that at least some of them may be small entities. The Small Business
Administration classifies operations engaged in raising horses and
other equines as small entities if their annual receipts are not more
than $750,000. Operations owning race horses are considered small if
annual gross receipts are less than $6.5 million. According to the 2002
Census of Agriculture, there were 14,500 horse farms in Indiana that
year, 3,492 of which sold 12,397 horses that had a total value of $34
million. About 5 percent are owners of racehorses. These data imply an
average income per farm from horse sales of about $2,750. Over 99
percent of operations raising horses and owning racehorses are
considered to be small. Entities that may be affected by the rule are
principally small
[[Page 24808]]
businesses, but the impact will not be significant.
This rule is expected to benefit small and large horse entities in
Indiana through trade opportunities already provided to States
currently approved to receive horses from CEM-affected regions. Horses
from CEM-affected regions will be allowed to be moved directly into
Indiana, thereby benefitting Indiana importers through lower transport
costs and reduced paperwork burdens. Mainly, breeding horse importers
in Indiana would benefit from this rule. Because the pool of imported
horses is a very small fraction of the domestic total and Indiana
importers are expected to compete with importers in 21 other States,
any net beneficial impact would be very small, especially when compared
to the value of the imported horses.
Under these circumstances, the Administrator of the Animal and
Plant Health Inspection Service has determined that this action will
not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small
entities.
Executive Order 12988
This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988, 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 9 CFR Part 93
Animal diseases, Imports, Livestock, Poultry and poultry products,
Quarantine, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
0
Accordingly, 9 CFR part 93 is amended as follows:
PART 93--IMPORTATION OF CERTAIN ANIMALS, BIRDS, AND POULTRY, AND
CERTAIN ANIMAL, BIRD, AND POULTRY PRODUCTS; REQUIREMENTS FOR MEANS
OF CONVEYANCE AND SHIPPING CONTAINERS
0
1. The authority citation for part 93 continues to read as follows:
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1622 and 8301-8317; 21 U.S.C. 136 and 136a;
31 U.S.C. 9701; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.4.
Sec. 93.301 [Amended]
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2. Section 93.301 is amended as follows:
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a. In paragraph (h)(6), by adding, in alphabetical order, ``The State
of Indiana''.
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b. In paragraph (h)(7), by adding, in alphabetical order, ``The State
of Indiana''.
Done in Washington, DC, this 21st day of April 2006.
Kevin Shea,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 06-3985 Filed 4-26-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P