[Federal Register: September 16, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 180)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 53355-53356]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr16se08-1]
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Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
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[[Page 53355]]
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Office of the Secretary
7 CFR Part 6
RIN 0551-AA7O
The Dairy Import Licensing Program
AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, USDA.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: This final rule amends the historical license reduction
provisions of the dairy tariff-rate import quota licensing program by
suspending the provisions with respect to the reduction of historical
licenses based on surrenders of unused quantities until 2011.
DATES: This rule is effective October 16, 2008.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ron Lord, Branch Chief, Sugar and
Dairy Branch, Import and Trade Support Programs Division, Foreign
Agricultural Service, Stop 1021, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW.,
Washington, DC 20250, telephone (202) 720-6939, or e-mail at
ronald.lord@fas.usda.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Executive Order 12866
The final rule has been determined to be non-significant under E.O.
12866 and has not been reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget.
Regulatory Flexibility Act
The Regulatory Flexibility Act ensures that regulatory and
information requirements are tailored to the size and nature of small
businesses, small organizations, and small governmental jurisdictions.
This final rule will not have a significant economic impact on small
businesses participating in the program.
Executive Order 12988
This final rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988. The
provisions of this final rule would not have a preemptive effect with
respect to any State or local laws, regulations, or policies which
conflict with such provision or which otherwise impede their full
implementation. The final rule would not have a retroactive effect.
Before any judicial action may be brought forward regarding this final
rule, all administrative remedies must be exhausted.
National Environmental Policy Act
The Administrator has determined that this action will not have a
significant effect on the quality of the human environment. Therefore,
neither an Environmental Assessment nor an Environmental Impact
Statement is necessary for this final rule.
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (Pub. L. 104-4)
Public Law 104-4 requires consultation with State and local
officials and Indian tribal governments. This final rule does not
impose an unfunded mandate or any other requirement on State, local, or
tribal governments. Accordingly, these programs are not subject to the
provisions of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act.
Executive Order 12630
This Order requires careful evaluation of governmental actions that
interfere with constitutionally protected property rights. This final
rule would not interfere with any property rights and, therefore, does
not need to be evaluated on the basis of the criteria outlined in
Executive Order 12630.
Government Paperwork Elimination Act
FAS is committed to compliance with the Government Paperwork
Elimination Act, which requires Government agencies, in general, to
provide the public the option of submitting information or transacting
business electronically to the maximum extent possible.
Background
The Foreign Agricultural Service administers the Dairy Tariff-Rate
Import Quota Licensing program, 7 CFR 6,20-6.37, that provides the
issuance of licenses to import certain dairy articles under tariff-rate
quotas (TRQs) system, as set forth in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of
the United States. These dairy products may only be imported into the
United States at the in-quota rate, by or for the account of a person
or firm to whom such licenses have been issued, and only in accordance
with the terms and conditions of the 6.25(b)(1)(i) provides that if a
licensee has surrendered more than 50 percent of a historical license
in each of the 3 prior years, that license will be permanently reduced
to the average amount entered during those 3 years. Section
6.25(b)(1)(ii) provides that if a licensee surrenders more that 50
percent of a historical license in at least 3 out of the 5 prior years,
that license will be permanently reduced to the average amount entered
during those 5 years. Any amounts permanently reduced are transferred
to the non-historical quota, which is allocated by a lottery.
The current regulation permitted the Secretary of Agriculture to
suspend the historical license reduction provisions on a one-time
basis, ``in light of market conditions,'' prior to 1999. In 1998, the
Secretary published a notice in the Federal Register suspending these
provisions for 5 years, thereby delaying their implementation until
2004.
From 2004 through 2007, historical licenses were reduced from
77,010,604 kilograms to 72,394,927 kilograms, as quota-filled rates
decreased, especially for certain types of cheeses from the European
Union (EU). EU milk production has been constrained by quotas while EU
domestic consumption has reduced the availability of exportable cheese
supplies. In addition, U.S. cheese prices are now competitive on global
markets, and the price differentials that made the U.S. cheese market
attractive to EU exporters have diminished significantly.
The proposed rule, published on October 4, 2007 (72 FR 56677-78),
proposed suspending the provisions of 7 CFR 6.25 with respect to the
reduction of historical licenses based on unused amounts, delaying
further reductions under the 3-years-in-a-row provision until 2011, and
the at-least-3-out-of-5-years provision until 2014.
Summary of public comments: The Department requested public
comments on the proposed rule published on October 4, 2007. Public
comments were
[[Page 53356]]
submitted by 30 entities during the comment period from October 4,
2007, to November 5, 2007. The comments were submitted by 25 importers,
3 associations, 1 transport company, and 1 foreign government entity.
Most of the comments from importers favored a 5 year suspension, citing
market conditions as the primary reason for the suspension. Other
importers opposed the suspension, or favored a 1 year suspension of the
provisions. Arguments against the proposed 5 year suspension included
that market conditions over the next 5 years could not be predicted
and, therefore, should not be used as a justification for the
suspension.
Two associations favored the proposed suspension, while a third
association opposed it. The transport company supported the proposed 5
year suspension. The foreign government entity recommended combining
different quotas for specific types of cheeses to maximize quota filled
rates for the more popular types of cheeses.
Conclusion: Quota-filled rates for Swiss, Gruyere and low fat type
cheeses have remained low even after transfer to the lottery, although
this fact by itself does not provide justification for a suspension of
the historical license reduction provisions. Market conditions are
always subject to fluctuation and change, and it is incumbent upon all
license holders to adjust to these changing conditions. Nonetheless, to
allow additional time to adjust to changes in EU's supply and demand,
due to its long-term dairy policy changes, the Department will
temporarily suspend the historical license reduction provisions for a
period of 2 years, commencing in 2009. Historical license reductions
will again be implemented beginning 2011, rather than in 2012 or 2014,
as in the proposed rule. In 2011, historical license reductions will be
based on import data from years 2006 through 2010. Because there will
already be 5 years of historical import data, the 3-years-in-a-row
provision is unnecessary, which was not the case when the regulation
was originally promulgated in 1996, and is therefore being eliminated.
List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 6
Agricultural commodities, Cheese, Dairy products, and Imports.
0
For the reasons described in the conclusion, The Department of
Agriculture amends 7 CFR part 6 as follows:
PART 6--IMPORT QUOTAS AND FEES
0
1. The authority citation for part 6 continues to read as follows:
Authority: Additional U.S. Notes 6, 7, 8, 12, 14, 16-23, and 25
to Chapter 4 and General Note 15 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule
of the United States (19 U.S.C. 1202), Pub. L. 97 258, 96 Stat.
1051, as amended (31 U.S.C. 9701), and sections 103 and 404, Pub. L.
103-465, 108 Stat. 4819 (19 U.S.C. 3513 and 3601).
0
2. In Sec. 6.25 revise paragraph (b) to read as follows:
Sec. 6.25 Allocation of Licenses.
* * * * *
(b) Historical licenses for the 2009 and subsequent quota years
(Appendix 1). (1) A person issued a historical license for the 2008
quota year will be issued a historical license in the same amount for
the same article from the same country for the 2009 quota year and for
each subsequent quota year except that:
(i) Beginning with the 2011 quota year, a person who has
surrendered more than 50 percent of such historical license in at least
three of the prior five quota years will thereafter be issued a license
in an amount equal to the average annual quantity entered during those
five quota years.
(ii) [Reserved]
* * * * *
Issued at Washington, DC the 21st day of August 2008.
Ronald Lord,
Licensing Authority.
[FR Doc. E8-21467 Filed 9-15-08; 8:45 am]
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