[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 7, Volume 6]
[Revised as of January 1, 2003]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 7CFR457.124]

[Page 181-185]
 
                          TITLE 7--AGRICULTURE
 
     CHAPTER IV--FEDERAL CROP INSURANCE CORPORATION, DEPARTMENT OF 
                               AGRICULTURE
 
PART 457--COMMON CROP INSURANCE REGULATIONS--Table of Contents
 
Sec. 457.124  Raisin crop insurance provisions.

    The raisin crop insurance provisions for the 1998 and succeeding 
crop years are as follows:
    FCIC Policies

                        Department of Agriculture

                   Federal Crop Insurance Corporation

                           Reinsured Policies

(Appropriate title for insurance provider)
    Both FCIC and Reinsured Policies

                         Raisin Crop Provisions

    If a conflict exists among the policy provisions, the order of 
priority is as follows: (1) The Catastrophic Risk Protection 
Endorsement, if applicable; (2) the Special Provisions; (3) these Crop 
Provisions; and (4) the Basic Provisions with (1) controlling (2), etc.

                             1. Definitions

    Crop year--In lieu of the definition of ``Crop year'' contained in 
section 1 of the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), the calendar year

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in which the raisins are placed on trays for drying.
    Delivered ton--A ton of raisins delivered to a packer, processor, 
buyer or a reconditioner, before any adjustment for U. S. Grade B and 
better maturity standards, and after adjustments for moisture over 16 
percent and substandard raisins over 5 percent.
    RAC--The Raisin Administrative Committee, which operates under an 
order of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).
    Raisins--The sun-dried fruit of varieties of grapes designated 
insurable by the actuarial documents. These grapes will be considered 
raisins for the purpose of this policy when laid on trays in the 
vineyard to dry.
    Reference maximum dollar amount--The value per ton established by 
FCIC and shown in the actuarial documents.
    Substandard--Raisins that fail to meet the requirements of U.S. 
Grade C, or layer (cluster) raisins with seeds that fail to meet the 
requirements of U.S. Grade B.
    Table grapes--Grapes grown for commercial sale as fresh fruit on 
acreage where appropriate cultural practices were followed.
    Ton--Two thousand (2,000) pounds avoirdupois.
    Tonnage report--A report used to annually report, by unit, all the 
tons of raisins produced in the county in which you have a share.

                            2. Unit Division

    (a) A basic unit, as defined in section 1 of the Basic Provisions, 
will be divided into additional basic units by grape variety.
    (b) Provisions in the Basic Provisions that allow optional units by 
section, section equivalent, or FSA farm serial number and by irrigated 
and non-irrigated practices are not applicable. Optional units may be 
established only if each optional unit is located on non-contiguous 
land, unless otherwise allowed by written agreement.

            3. Amounts of Insurance and Production Reporting

    In addition to the requirements of section 3 (Insurance Guarantees, 
Coverage Levels, and Prices for Determining Indemnities) of the Basic 
Provisions (Sec. 457.8):
    (a) You may select only one coverage level percentage for all the 
raisins in the county insured under this policy.
    (b) The amount of insurance for the unit will be determined by 
multiplying the insured tonnage by the reference maximum dollar amount, 
by the coverage level percentage you elect, and by your share.
    (c) Insured tonnage is determined as follows:
    (1) For units not damaged by rain--The delivered tons; or
    (2) For units damaged by rain--By adding the delivered tons to any 
verified loss of production due to rain damage. When production from a 
portion of the acreage within a unit is removed from the vineyard and 
production from the remaining acreage is lost in the vineyard, the 
amount of production lost in the vineyard will be determined based on 
the number of tons of raisins produced on the acreage from which 
production was removed. When no production has been removed from the 
vineyard, the amount of production lost in the vineyard will be 
determined based on an appraisal.
    (3) Insured tonnage will be adjusted as follows:
    (i) The insured tonnage will be reduced 0.12 percent for each 0.10 
percent of moisture in excess of 16.0 percent. For example, 10.0 tons of 
raisins containing 18.0 percent moisture will be reduced to 9.760 tons 
of raisins;
    (ii) Insured tonnage used for dry edible fruit will be reduced by 
0.10 percent for each 0.10 percent of substandard raisins in excess of 
5.0 percent; and
    (iii) When raisins contain moisture in excess of 24.3 percent at the 
time of delivery and are released for a use other than dry edible fruit 
(e.g. distillery material), they will be considered to contain 24.3 
percent moisture.
    (4) If any raisins are delivered, the moisture content will be 
determined at the time of delivery.
    (d) Section 3(c) of the Basic Provisions is not applicable to this 
crop.

                           4. Contract Changes

    In accordance with section 4 (Contract Changes) of the Basic 
Provisions (Sec. 457.8), the contract change date is April 30 preceding 
the cancellation date.

                  5. Cancellation and Termination Dates

    In accordance with section 2 (Life of Policy, Cancellation and 
Termination) of the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), the cancellation and 
termination dates are July 31.

                  6. Acreage Report and Tonnage Report

    In lieu of the provisions contained in section 6 of the Basic 
Provisions (Sec. 457.8):
    (a) You must report by unit, and on our form, the acreage on which 
you intend to produce raisins for the crop year. This acreage report 
must be submitted to us on or before the sales closing date, and contain 
the following information:
    (1) All acreage of the crop (insurable and not insurable) in which 
you will have a share;
    (2) Your anticipated share at the time coverage will begin;
    (3) The variety; and
    (4) The location of each vineyard.

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    (b) Acreage of the crop acquired after the acreage was reported, may 
be included on the acreage report if we agree to accept the additional 
acreage. Such additional acreage will not be added to the acreage report 
after you first place raisins from the additional acreage on trays for 
drying. Failure to report any acreage in which you have a share will 
result in denial of liability. If you elect not to produce raisins on 
any part of the acreage included on your acreage report, you must notify 
us in writing on or before September 21, and provide any records we may 
require to verify that raisins were not produced on that acreage.
    (c) If you fail to file an acreage report in a timely manner, or if 
the information reported is incorrect, we may deny liability on any 
unit.
    (d) In addition to the acreage report, you must annually submit a 
tonnage report, on our form, which includes by unit the number of 
delivered tons of raisins, and, if damage has occurred, the amount of 
any tonnage we determined was lost due to rain damage in the vineyard 
for each unit designated in the acreage report.
    (e) The tonnage report must be submitted to us as soon as the 
information is available, but not later than March 1 of the year 
following the crop year. Indemnities may be determined on the basis of 
information you submitted on this report. If you do not submit this 
report by the reporting date, we may, at our option, either determine 
the insured tonnage and share by unit or we may deny liability on any 
unit. This report may be revised only upon our approval. Errors in 
reporting units may be corrected by us at any time we discover the 
error.

                            7. Annual Premium

    In lieu of the premium computation method contained in section 7 
(Annual Premium) of the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), the annual 
premium amount is determined by multiplying the amount of insurance for 
the unit at the time insurance attaches by the premium rate and then 
multiplying that result by any applicable premium adjustment factors 
that may apply.

                             8. Insured Crop

    (a) In accordance with section 8 (Insured Crop) of the Basic 
Provisions (Sec. 457.8), the crop insured will be all the raisins in the 
county of grape varieties for which a premium rate is provided by the 
actuarial documents and in which you have a share.
    (b) In addition to the raisins not insurable under section 8 
(Insured Crop) of the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), we do not insure 
any raisins:
    (1) Laid on trays after September 8 in vineyards with north-south 
rows in Merced or Stanislaus Counties, or after September 20 in all 
other counties;
    (2) From table grape strippings; or
    (3) From vines that received manual, mechanical, or chemical 
treatment to produce table grape sizing.

                           9. Insurance Period

    In lieu of the provisions of section 11 (Insurance Period) of the 
Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), insurance attaches on each unit at the 
time the raisins are placed on trays for drying and ends the earlier of:
    (a) October 20;
    (b) The date the raisins are removed from the trays;
    (c) The date the raisins are removed from the vineyard;
    (d) Total destruction of all raisins on a unit;
    (e) Final adjustment of a loss on a unit; or
    (f) Abandonment of the raisins.

                           10. Causes of Loss

    (a) In accordance with the provisions of section 12 (Causes of Loss) 
of the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), insurance is provided only against 
unavoidable loss of production resulting from rain that occurs during 
the insurance period and while the raisins are on trays or in rolls in 
the vineyard for drying.
    (b) In addition to the causes of loss excluded in section 12 (Causes 
of Loss) of the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), we will not insure 
against damage or loss of production due to inability to market the 
raisins for any reason other than actual physical damage from an 
insurable cause specified in this section. For example, we will not pay 
you an indemnity if you are unable to market due to quarantine, boycott, 
or refusal of a person to accept production.

               11. Reconditioning Requirements and Payment

    (a) We may require you to recondition a representative sample of not 
more than 10 tons of damaged raisins to determine if they meet standards 
established by the RAC once reconditioned. If such standards are met, we 
may require you to recondition all the damaged production. If we 
determine that it is possible to recondition any damaged production and, 
if you do not do so, we will value the damaged production at the 
reference maximum dollar amount, except if your damaged production 
undergoes a USDA inspection and is stored by your packer with other 
producer's production to be reconditioned at a later date. If we agree, 
in writing, that it is not practical to recondition the damaged 
production, we will determine the number of tons meeting RAC standards 
that could be obtained if the production were reconditioned.

[[Page 184]]

    (b) If the representative sample of raisins that we require you to 
recondition does not meet RAC standards for marketable raisins after 
reconditioning, the reconditioning payment will be the actual cost you 
incur to recondition the sample, not to exceed an amount that is 
reasonable and customary for such reconditioning, regardless of the 
coverage level selected.
    (c) A reconditioning payment, based on the actual (unadjusted) 
weight of the raisins, will be made if:
    (1) Insured raisin production:
    (i) Is damaged by rain within the insurance period;
    (ii) Is reconditioned by washing with water and then drying;
    (iii) Is insured at a coverage level greater than that applicable to 
the catastrophic risk protection plan of insurance; and either
    (2) The damaged production undergoes an inspection by USDA and is 
found to contain mold, embedded sand, or other rain-caused contamination 
determined by micro-analysis in excess of standards established by the 
RAC, or is found to contain moisture in excess of 18 percent; or
    (3) We give you consent to recondition the damaged production.
    (d) Your request for consent to any wash-and-dry reconditioning must 
identify the acreage on which the production to be reconditioned was 
damaged in order to be eligible for a reconditioning payment.
    (e) The reconditioning payment for raisins that meet RAC standards 
for marketable raisins after reconditioning will be the lesser of your 
actual cost for reconditioning or the amount determined by:
    (1) Multiplying the greater of $125.00 or the reconditioning dollar 
amount per ton contained in the Special Provisions by your coverage 
level;
    (2) Multiplying the result of section 11(e)(1) by the actual number 
of tons of raisins (unadjusted weight) that are wash-and-dry 
reconditioned; and
    (3) Multiplying the result of section 11(e)(2) by your share.
    (f) Only one reconditioning payment will be made for any lot of 
raisins damaged during the crop year. Multiple reconditioning payments 
for the same production will not be made.

                12. Duties In The Event of Damage or Loss

    (a) In addition to the requirements of section 14 (Duties in the 
Event of Damage or Loss) of the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), the 
following will apply:
    (1) If you intend to claim an indemnity on any unit, you must give 
us notice within 72 hours of the time the rain fell on the raisins. We 
may reject any claim for indemnity if such notice is later. You must 
provide us the following information when you give us this notice:
    (i) The grape variety;
    (ii) The location of the vineyard and number of acres; and
    (iii) The number of vines from which the raisins were harvested.
    (2) We will not pay any indemnity unless you:
    (i) Authorize us in writing to obtain all relevant records from any 
raisin packer, raisin reconditioner, the RAC, or any other person who 
may have such records. If you fail to meet the requirements of this 
subsection, all insured production will be considered undamaged and 
valued at the reference maximum dollar value.
    (ii) Upon our request, provide us with records of previous years'' 
production and acreage. This information may be used to establish the 
amount of insured tonnage when insurable damage results in discarded 
production.
    (b) In lieu of the provisions in section 14 (Duties in the Event of 
Damage or Loss) of the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8) that require you to 
submit a claim for indemnity not later than 60 days after the end of the 
insurance period, any claim for indemnity must be submitted to us not 
later than March 31 following the date for the end of the insurance 
period.

                         13. Settlement of Claim

    (a) We will determine your loss on a unit basis. In the event you 
are unable to provide separate acceptable production records:
    (1) For any optional unit, we will combine all optional units for 
which such production records were not provided; or
    (2) For any basic unit, we will allocate any commingled production 
to such units in proportion to our liability on the acreage from which 
raisins were removed for each unit.
    (b) In the event of loss or damage covered by this policy, we will 
settle your claim by:
    (1) Multiplying the insured tonnage of raisins by the reference 
maximum dollar amount and your coverage level percentage;
    (2) Subtracting from the total in section 13(b)(1) the total value 
of all insured damaged and undamaged raisins; and
    (3) Multiplying the result of section 13(b)(2) by your share.
    (c) For the purpose of determining the amount of indemnity, your 
share will not exceed the lesser of your share at the time insurance 
attaches or at the time of loss.
    (d) Undamaged raisins or raisins damaged solely by uninsured causes 
will be valued at the reference maximum dollar amount.
    (e) Raisins damaged partially by rain and partially by uninsured 
causes will be valued at the highest prices obtainable, adjusted for any 
reduction in value due to uninsured causes.

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    (f) Raisins that are damaged by rain, but that are reconditioned and 
meet RAC standards for raisins, will be valued at the reference maximum 
dollar amount.
    (g) The value to count for any raisins produced on the unit that are 
damaged by rain and not removed from the vineyard will be the larger of 
the appraised salvage value or $35.00 per ton, except that any raisins 
that are damaged and discarded from trays or are lost from trays 
scattered in the vineyard as part of normal handling will not be 
considered to have any value. You must box and deliver any raisins that 
can be removed from the vineyard.
    (h) At our sole option, we may acquire all the rights and title to 
your share of any raisins damaged by rain. In such event, the raisins 
will be valued at zero in determining the amount of loss and we will 
have the right of ingress and egress to the extent necessary to take 
possession, care for, and remove such raisins.
    (i) Raisins destroyed, put to another use without our consent, or 
abandoned will be valued at the reference maximum dollar amount.

                     14. Late and Prevented Planting

    The late and prevented planting provisions of the Basic Provisions 
are not applicable.

[62 FR 12070, Mar. 14, 1997, as amended at 62 FR 65170, Dec. 10, 1997]