[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: 7CFR457.141]

[Page 238-241]
 
                          TITLE 7--AGRICULTURE
 
     CHAPTER IV--FEDERAL CROP INSURANCE CORPORATION, DEPARTMENT OF 
                               AGRICULTURE
 
PART 457--COMMON CROP INSURANCE REGULATIONS--Table of Contents
 
Sec. 457.141  Rice crop insurance provisions.

    The rice crop insurance provisions for the 2003 and succeeding crop 
years are as follows:
    FCIC Policies

                 United States Department of Agriculture

                   Federal Crop Insurance Corporation

                           Reinsured Policies

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

                          Rice 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

    Flood irrigation. An irrigated practice commonly used for rice 
production whereby the planted acreage is intentionally covered with 
water that is maintained at a uniform and shallow depth throughout the 
growing season.
    Harvest. Combining or threshing the rice for grain. A crop that is 
swathed prior to combining is not considered harvested.
    Local market price. The cash price per pound for the U.S. No. 3 
grade of rough rice offered by buyers in the area in which you normally 
market the rice. Factors not associated with grading under the United 
States Standards for Rice including, but not limited to, protein and oil 
content or milling quality will not be considered.
    Planted. The uniform placement of an adequate amount of rice seed 
into a prepared seedbed by one of the following methods:
    (a) Drill seeding--Using a grain drill to incorporate the seed to a 
proper soil depth;
    (b) Broadcast seeding--Distributing seed evenly onto the surface of 
an un-flooded seedbed followed by either timely mechanical incorporation 
of the seed to a proper soil depth in the seedbed or flushing the 
seedbed with water; or
    (c) Broadcast seeding into a controlled flood--Distributing the rice 
seed onto a prepared seedbed that has been intentionally covered to a 
proper depth by water. The water must be free of movement and be 
completely contained on the acreage by properly constructed levees and 
gates.
    Acreage seeded in any other manner will not be insurable unless 
otherwise provided by the Special Provisions or by written agreement.
    Saline water. Water that contains a concentration of salt sufficient 
to cause damage to the insured crop.
    Second crop rice. The regrowth of a stand of rice following harvest 
of the initially insured rice crop that can be harvested in the same 
crop year.
    Swathed. Severance of the stem and grain head from the ground 
without removal of the rice kernels from the plant and placing in a 
windrow.
    Total milling yield. Rice production consisting of heads, second 
heads, screenings, and brewer's rice as defined by the official United 
States Standards for Rice.

                            2. Unit Division

    Provisions in the Basic Provisions that allow optional units by 
irrigated and non-irrigated practices are not applicable.

  3. Insurance Guarantees, Coverage Levels, and Prices for Determining 
                               Indemnities

    In addition to the requirements of section 3 (Insurance Guarantees, 
Coverage Levels, and Prices for Determining Indemnities) of the Basic 
Provisions (Sec. 457.8), you may select only one price election for all 
the rice in the county insured under this policy unless the Special 
Provisions provide different price elections by type, in which case you 
may select one price election for each rice type designated in the 
Special Provisions. The price

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elections you choose for each type must have the same percentage 
relationship to the maximum price offered by us for each type. For 
example, if you choose 100 percent of the maximum price election for one 
type, you must also choose 100 percent of the maximum price election for 
all other types.

                           4. Contract Changes

    In accordance with section 4 (Contract Changes) of the Basic 
Provisions (Sec. 457.8), the contract change date is November 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:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                            Cancellation and termination
             State and county                           date
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jackson, Victoria, Goliad, Bee, Live Oak,  January 15.
 McMullen, La Salle, and Dimmit Counties,
 Texas; and all Texas counties south
 thereof.
Florida..................................  February 15.
All other Texas counties and all other     February 28.
 states.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

                             6. Insured Crop

    In accordance with section 8 (Insured Crop) of the Basic Provisions 
(Sec. 457.8), the crop insured will be all the rice in the county for 
which a premium rate is provided by the actuarial documents:
    (a) In which you have a share;
    (b) That is planted for harvest as grain;
    (c) That is flood irrigated; and
    (d) That is not wild rice.

                          7. Insurable Acreage

    In addition to the provisions of section 9 (Insurable Acreage) of 
the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8):
    (a) We will not insure any acreage planted to rice:
    (1) The preceding crop year unless allowed by the Special 
Provisions; or
    (2) That does not meet the rotation requirements shown in the 
Special Provisions; and
    (b) Any acreage of the insured crop damaged before the final 
planting date, to the extent that producers in the area would normally 
not further care for the crop, must be replanted unless we agree that it 
is not practical to replant.

                           8. Insurance Period

    In accordance with the provisions of section 11 (Insurance Period) 
of the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), the calendar date for the end of 
the insurance period is October 31 immediately following planting.

                            9. 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 
the following causes of loss that occur during the insurance period:
    (1) Adverse weather conditions (except drought);
    (2) Fire;
    (3) Insects, but not damage due to insufficient or improper 
application of pest control measures;
    (4) Plant disease, but not damage due to insufficient or improper 
application of disease control measures;
    (5) Wildlife;
    (6) Earthquake;
    (7) Volcanic eruption; or
    (8) Failure of the irrigation water supply if caused by an insured 
cause of loss specified in sections 9(a)(1) through (7), drought, or the 
intrusion of saline water.
    (b) In addition to the causes of loss not insured against in section 
12 of the Basic Provisions, we will not insure against any loss of 
production due to the application of saline water, except as specified 
in section 9(a)(8) of these crop provisions.

                         10. Replanting Payment

    (a) A replanting payment for rice is allowed as follows:
    (1) You must comply with all requirements regarding replanting 
payments contained under section 13 (Replanting Payment) of the Basic 
Provisions (Sec. 457.8);
    (2) The rice must be damaged by an insurable cause of loss to the 
extent that the remaining stand will not produce at least 90 percent of 
the production guarantee for the acreage; and
    (3) The replanted rice must be seeded at a rate that is normal for 
initially planted rice (if new seed is planted at a reduced seeding rate 
into a partially damaged stand of rice, the acreage will not be eligible 
for a replanting payment).
    (b) In accordance with the provisions of section 13 (Replanting 
Payment) of the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), the maximum amount of the 
replanting payment per acre will be the lesser of 20 percent of the 
production guarantee or 400 pounds, multiplied by your price election, 
multiplied by your insured share.
    (c) When rice is replanted using a practice that is uninsurable for 
an original planting, the liability for the unit will be reduced by the 
amount of the replanting payment. The premium amount will not be 
reduced.

                11. Duties in the Event of Damage or Loss

    In accordance with the requirements of section 14 (Duties in the 
Event of Damage or Loss) of the Basic Provisions (Sec. 457.8), the 
representative samples of the unharvested crop must be at least 10 feet 
wide and extend

[[Page 240]]

the entire length of each field in the unit. The samples must not be 
harvested or destroyed until the earlier of our inspection or 15 days 
after harvest of the balance of the unit is completed.

                         12. 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 units, we will combine all optional units for 
which such production records were not provided; or
    (2) For any basic units, we will allocate any commingled production 
to such units in proportion to our liability on the harvested acreage 
for the units.
    (b) In the event of loss or damage covered by this policy, we will 
settle your claim on any unit by:
    (1) Multiplying the insured acreage by its respective production 
guarantee by type, if applicable;
    (2) Multiplying each result in section 12(b)(1) by the respective 
price election by type, if applicable;
    (3) Totaling the results of section 12(b)(2);
    (4) Multiplying the total production to be counted by type, if 
applicable, (see section 12(c) through (e)) by the respective price 
election;
    (5) Totaling the results of section 12(b)(4);
    (6) Subtracting the result of section 12(b)(5) from the result of 
section 12(b)(3); and
    (7) Multiplying the result of section 12(b)(6) by your share.
    (c) The total production to count (in pounds) from all insurable 
acreage on the unit will include:
    (1) All appraised production as follows:
    (i) Not less than the production guarantee for acreage:
    (A) That is abandoned;
    (B) Put to another use without our consent;
    (C) That is damaged solely by uninsured causes; or
    (D) For which you fail to provide acceptable production records;
    (ii) Production lost due to uninsured causes;
    (iii) Unharvested production (mature unharvested production may be 
adjusted for quality deficiencies and excess moisture in accordance with 
section 12(d));
    (iv) Potential production on insured acreage that you intend to put 
to another use or abandon, if you and we agree on the appraised amount 
of production. Upon such agreement, the insurance period for that 
acreage will end when you put the acreage to another use or abandon the 
crop. If agreement on the appraised amount of production is not reached:
    (A) If you do not elect to continue to care for the crop, we may 
give you consent to put the acreage to another use if you agree to leave 
intact, and provide sufficient care for, representative samples of the 
crop in locations acceptable to us (The amount of production to count 
for such acreage will be based on the harvested production or appraisals 
from the samples at the time harvest should have occurred. If you do not 
leave the required samples intact, or you fail to provide sufficient 
care for the samples, our appraisal made prior to giving you consent to 
put the acreage to another use will be used to determine the amount of 
production to count); or
    (B) If you elect to continue to care for the crop, the amount of 
production to count for the acreage will be the harvested production, or 
our reappraisal if additional damage occurs and the crop is not 
harvested; and
    (2) All harvested production from the insurable acreage, including 
any production from a second rice crop harvested in the same crop year.
    (d) Mature rough rice may be adjusted for excess moisture and 
quality deficiencies. If moisture adjustment is applicable, it will be 
made prior to any adjustment for quality.
    (1) Production will be reduced by 0.12 percent for each 0.1 
percentage point of moisture in excess of 12 percent. We may obtain 
samples of the production to determine the moisture content.
    (2) Production will be eligible for quality adjustment if:
    (i) Deficiencies in quality, in accordance with the Official United 
States Standards for Rice, result in rice not meeting the grade 
requirements for U.S. No. 3 (grades U.S. No. 4 or worse) because of red 
rice, chalky kernels or damaged kernels;
    (ii) The rice has a total milling yield of less than 68 pounds per 
hundredweight;
    (iii) The whole kernel weight is less than 55 pounds per 
hundredweight of milled rice for medium and short grain varieties;
    (iv) The whole kernel weight is less than 48 pounds per 
hundredweight of milled rice for long grain varieties; or
    (v) Substances or conditions are present that are identified by the 
Food and Drug Administration or other public health organizations of the 
United States as being injurious to human or animal health.
    (3) Quality will be a factor in determining your loss only if:
    (i) The deficiencies, substances, or conditions specified in section 
12(d)(2) resulted from a cause of loss against which insurance is 
provided under these crop provisions and which occurs within the 
insurance period;
    (ii) The deficiencies, substances, or conditions specified in 
section 12(d)(2) result in a net price for the damaged production that 
is less than the local market price;
    (iii) All determinations of these deficiencies, substances, or 
conditions specified in section 12(d)(2) are made using samples of

[[Page 241]]

the production obtained by us or by a disinterested third party approved 
by us;
    (iv) With regard to deficiencies in quality (except test weight, 
which may be determined by our loss adjuster), the samples are analyzed 
by:
    (A) A grader licensed under the United States Agricultural Marketing 
Act or the United States Warehouse Act;
    (B) A grader licensed under State law and employed by a warehouse 
operator who has a storage agreement with the Commodity Credit 
Corporation; or
    (C) A grader not licensed under State law, but who is employed by a 
warehouse operator who has a commodity storage agreement with the 
Commodity Credit Corporation and is in compliance with State law 
regarding warehouses; and
    (v) With regard to substances or conditions injurious to human or 
animal health, the samples are analyzed by a laboratory approved by us.
    (4) Rice production that is eligible for quality adjustment, as 
specified in sections 12(d) (2) and (3), will be reduced as follows:
    (i) In accordance with quality adjustment factors contained in the 
Special Provisions; or
    (ii) If quality adjustment factors are not contained in the Special 
Provisions, as follows:
    (A) The market price of the qualifying damaged production and the 
local market price will be determined on the earlier of the date such 
quality adjusted production is sold or the date of final inspection for 
the unit. The price for the qualifying damaged production will be the 
market price for the local area to the extent feasible. Discounts used 
to establish the net price of the damaged production will be limited to 
those that are usual, customary, and reasonable. The price will not be 
reduced for:
    (1) Moisture content;
    (2) Damage due to uninsured causes; or
    (3) Drying, handling, processing, or any other costs associated with 
normal harvesting, handling, and marketing of the rice; except, if the 
price of the damaged production can be increased by conditioning, we may 
reduce the price of the production after it has been conditioned by the 
cost of conditioning but not lower than the value of the production 
before conditioning,
    (We may obtain prices from any buyer of our choice. If we obtain 
prices from one or more buyers located outside your local market area, 
we will reduce such prices by the additional costs required to deliver 
the rice to those buyers.);
    (B) The value of the damaged or conditioned production will be 
divided by the local market price to determine the quality adjustment 
factor; and
    (C) The number of pounds remaining after any reduction due to 
excessive moisture (the moisture-adjusted gross pounds (if appropriate)) 
of the damaged or conditioned production will then be multiplied by the 
quality adjustment factor to determine the net production to count.
    (e) Any production harvested from plants growing in the insured crop 
may be counted as production of the insured crop on a weight basis.

                         13. Prevented Planting

    Your prevented planting coverage will be 45 percent of your 
production guarantee for timely planted acreage. If you have limited or 
additional levels of coverage, as specified in 7 CFR part 400, subpart 
T, and pay an additional premium, you may increase your prevented 
planting coverage to a level specified in the actuarial documents.

[62 FR 28310, May 23, 1997, as amended at 62 FR 65174, Dec. 10, 1997; 65 
FR 56774, Sept. 20, 2000; 67 FR 55691, Aug. 30, 2002]