[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 7, Volume 7, Parts 700 to 899]
[Revised as of January 1, 2001]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 7CFR800.70]

[Page 531-532]
 
                          TITLE 7--AGRICULTURE
 
  CHAPTER VIII--GRAIN INSPECTION, PACKERS AND STOCKYARD ADMINISTRATION 
      (FEDERAL GRAIN INSPECTION SERVICE), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
 
PART 800--GENERAL REGULATIONS--Table of Contents
 
Sec. 800.70  Fees for official services performed by agencies.

    (a) Assessment and use of fees. (1) Fees assessed by an agency for 
official inspection and Class X or Class Y weighing services or testing 
of inspection equipment shall be reasonable and nondiscriminatory.
    (2) In the case of a State or local governmental agency, fees shall 
not be used for any purpose other than to finance the cost of the 
official inspection and Class X or Class Y weighing service and 
inspection equipment testing service performed by the agency or the cost 
of other closely related programs administered by the agency.
    (b) Approval required. (1) Restriction. Only fees that meet the 
requirements stated in this section and are approved by the Service as 
reasonable and nondiscriminatory may be charged by an agency.

[[Page 532]]

    (2) Exceptions. For good cause shown by an agency, the Administrator 
may grant case-by-case exceptions to the requirements in this section, 
provided that a determination is made that the agency fees would be 
reasonable and nondiscriminatory.
    (c) Reasonable fees. In determining if an agency's fees are 
reasonable, the Service will consider whether the fees: (1) Cover the 
estimated total cost to the agency of (i) official inspection services, 
(ii) Class X or Class Y weighing services, (iii) inspection equipment 
testing services, and (iv) related supervision and monitoring activities 
performed by the agency; (2) Are reasonably consistent with fees 
assessed by adjacent agencies for similar services; (3) Are assessed on 
the basis of the average cost of performing the same or similar services 
at all locations served by the agency; and (4) Are supported by 
sufficient information which shows how the fees were developed.
    (d) Nondiscriminatory fees. In determining if fees are 
nondiscriminatory, the Service will consider whether the fees are 
collected from all applicants for official service in accordance with 
the approved fee schedule. Charges for time and travel incurred in 
providing service at a location away from a specified service point 
shall be assessed in accordance with the approved fee schedule.
    (e) Schedule of fees to be established. (1) Each agency shall 
establish a schedule of fees for official services which the agency is 
delegated or designated the authority to perform. The schedule shall be 
in a standard format in accordance with the instructions. Such schedules 
may include fees for nonofficial services provided by the agency, but 
they shall be clearly identified and will not be subject to approval by 
the Service.
    (2) The schedule shall be published and made available by the agency 
to all users of its services.
    (f) Request for approval of fees. (1) Time requirement. A request 
for approval of a new or revised fee shall be submitted to the Service 
not less than 60 days in advance of the proposed effective date for the 
fee. Failure to submit a request within the prescribed time period may 
be considered grounds for postponment or denial of the request.
    (2) Contents of request. Each request shall show (i) the present 
fee, if any, and the proposed fee, together with data showing in detail 
how the fee was developed, and (ii) the proposed effective date.
    (g) Review of request. (1) Approval action. If upon review the 
Service finds that the request and supporting data justify the new or 
revised fee, the request will be marked ``approved'' and returned to the 
agency.
    (2) Denial action. If the Service finds that the request and 
supporting data do not justify the new or revised fee, approval of the 
request will be withheld pending receipt of any additional supporting 
data which the agency has to offer. If the data are not submitted within 
a reasonable period, the request shall be denied. In the case of a 
denial of a request, the agency shall be notified of the reason for 
denial.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control numbers 
0580-0003 and 0580-0012)

[45 FR 15810, Mar. 11, 1980; 45 FR 55119, Aug. 18, 1980, as amended at 
48 FR 44453, Sept. 29, 1983; 50 FR 30131, July 24, 1985]