This rule would revise USDA's generally applicable regulation in 7 CFR part 16 regarding the equal protection of faith-based organizations in the Department's programs and activities. These revisions are being undertaken to implement the provisions of Executive Order (EO)13559, "Fundamental Principles and Policymaking Criteria for Partnerships with Faith-Based and Other Neighborhood Organizations." Executive Order 13559 revised Executive Order 13279, which provides the legal basis for USDA's current faith-based rules, by changing terminology, clarifying existing principles, and prescribing additional beneficiary protections. Some of the changes that pertain to this rulemaking include restating "inherently religious activities" as "explicitly religious activities," clarifying the distinction between direct and indirect Federal financial assistance, and implementing the beneficiary protections specified in section 2(h) of Executive Order 13559.

USDA seeks to issue a Department-wide regulation to implement provisions of the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, as amended, and the Governmentwide age discrimination regulation promulgated by HHS to prohibit age discrimination in programs and activities receiving Federal financial assistance.

Adopts and implements OMB's final guidance on Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards. Implements 2 CFR Part 200 and puts in USDA-specific requirements into 2 CFR 415, 416, and 422. USDA will be removing five parts in title VII.

The U.S. dairy market has changed a great deal since the dairy import licensing regulation was promulgated in 1996. In intervening years, there have been significant advances in technology and telecommunications and certain processes; for example, issuing new or reallocated licenses can now be managed in less time. While the United States was a major net importer of cheese in 1996, as of 2011 the United States had become a net exporter of cheese. Given such large changes in the dairy market environment, we are requesting comments on various aspects of the program, such as how the fees are calculated and the basis upon which historical and lottery licenses are issued each year.

FAS is issuing a final rule with comment for the USDA Local and Regional Food Aid Procurement Program (USDA LRP Program), authorized in section 3207 of the Agricultural Act of 2014. The USDA LRP Program funds may be used to support development activities that strengthen the capacity of food-insecure developing countries, and build resilience and address the causes of chronic food insecurity and support USDA’s other food assistance programs, especially the McGovern Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program (McGovern-Dole).  In addition, funds may be used to fill food availability gaps generated by unexpected emergencies. USDA LRP Program funding used to complement ongoing activities under the McGovern-Dole Program will improve dietary diversity and nutrition, and support the graduation and sustainability of school-feeding programs as they transition to full host-government ownership.  LRP funding will enable FAS and its partners to build the capacity of host-governments to implement their own homegrown school feeding programs.  A final rule is needed for FAS to begin implementing the program in FY 2016 and will establish awardee obligations regarding financial management and performance standards specifying applicable Departmental regulations and incorporating statutory requirements. The promulgation of a rule to administer the USDA LRP program will require the assignment of a new CFR number.

The McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program (McGovern-Dole) helps support food security, child development, and education in low-income, food-deficient countries around the world. The program provides for the donation of U.S. agricultural commodities, as well as financial and technical assistance, to support school feeding and maternal and child health and nutrition projects.

FAS plans to publish a final rule with comments for the McGovern-Dole Program to: (1) clarify the types of entities eligible for awards and the applicability of the regulations to each type of eligible entity, (2) insert new definitions, (3) include a requirement to disclose the names and estimated costs of intended subrecipients at the proposal phase, (4) insert new terms for cash advances and reimbursements, (5) remove obsolete references to old systems and reporting requirements, (6) clarify and strengthen language requiring award recipients to report on commodity losses or damages and pursue claims, (7) insert a requirement for monetization plans for all programs involving sales of branding and labeling requirements and allow for the option of a waiver in exceptional circumstances, and (10) update other language as necessary to align the regulation with 2 CFR part 200, the new Office of Management and Budget (OMB) rule combining the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles and Audit Requirements for Federal awards.

The Food for Progress Program provides for the donation of U.S. agricultural commodities to developing countries committed to introducing and expanding free enterprise in the agricultural sector.  The commodities are monetized (sold on the local market), and the proceeds are used to support agricultural development activities. Food for Progress has two objectives: to improve agricultural productivity and expand trade in agricultural products.

FAS plans to publish a final rule with comments for the Food for Progress Program to: (1) clarify the types of entities eligible for awards and the applicability of the regulations to each type of eligible entity, (2) insert new definitions, (3) include a requirement to disclose the names and estimated costs of intended subrecipients at the proposal phase, (4) insert new terms for cash advances and reimbursements, (5) remove obsolete references to old systems and reporting requirements, (6) clarify and strengthen language requiring award recipients to report on commodity losses or damages and pursue claims, (7) insert a requirement for monetization plans for all programs involving sales of donated commodities, (8) incorporate new performance monitoring requirements, (9) strengthen branding and labeling requirements and allow for the option of a waiver in exceptional circumstances, and (10) update other language as necessary to align the regulations with 2 CFR part 200, the new Office of Management and Budget (OMB) rule combining the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles and Audit Requirements for Federal awards.

Under the provisions of the Agricultural Act of 2014, the final rule will incorporate updates to the Export Credit Guarantee Programs. The purpose is to repeal all references to the GSM-103 program and to incorporate improvements and changes to the implementation and operation of the GSM-102 program. Changes to the final rule incorporate program operational changes and information from press releases and notices to participants that have been implemented since the publication of the current rule, and include other administrative revisions to enhance clarity and program integrity. These changes should increase program availability to all participants and enhance access for smaller U.S. exporters and their sales. The final rule eliminates provisions for the Intermediate Export Credit Guarantee (GSM-103) Program, consistent with the removal of authority to operate this program in the 2008 Farm Bill.

FAS proposes to include the Agriculture Pima Cotton Trust rule as a CFR part that includes a part about the Agriculture Wool Trust regulation. The entry will provide the public with eligibility and reporting requirements for the program.

Agriculture Pima Cotton Trust: section 12314 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 (Act) established the Pima Agriculture Cotton Trust Fund with the purpose of reducing the economic injury to domestic manufacturers resulting from tariffs on cotton fabric that are higher than tariffs on certain apparel articles made of cotton fabric.  The Act allocates $16 million in Commodity Credit Corporation funds for each calendar years 2014 to 2018.

Agriculture Wool Trust: The Act authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to make payments for the programs the Agriculture Wool Trust Fund supports beginning in calendar years 2014 through 2019.  USDA will administer the Wool Grant program beginning in calendar year 2015 and the Wool Duty Refund program beginning in calendar year 2016. 

The Farm Service Agency (FSA) proposes to revise regulations on behalf of the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) to specify the requirements for a person to be considered actively engaged in farming for the purpose of payment eligibility for certain FSA and CCC programs.  Specifically, FSA proposes to revise and clarify the requirements for a significant contribution of active personnel management to a farming operation. These changes are required by the Agricultural Act of 2014 (the 2014 Farm Bill). The provisions of the proposed rule would not apply to persons or entities comprised solely of family members. The rule would not change the existing regulations as they relate to contributions of land, capital, equipment, labor or the special rules related to landowners with a risk in the crop or spouses.

This rule will provide the Farm Service Agency (FSA) with an environmental compliance regulation that updates, improves, and clarifies its requirements to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act; the National Historic Preservation Act; and numerous other environmental and cultural resource laws, regulations, and Executive orders. It will also make the regulation consistent for both FSA's Farm Loan Programs and Farm Programs. Also, it will remove outdated regulations used by FSA from chapter XVIII of the Code of Federal Regulations, formerly used by the predecessor to FSA, the Farmers Home Administration. The changes will promote predictability and reduce uncertainty for environmental compliance related to actions for FSA programs. The changes will coordinate, simplify, and harmonize the environmental compliance rules.

The interim rule implements mandatory changes to the conservation compliance regulations in 7 CFR part 12 as required by the Agricultural Act of 2014 (the 2014 Farm Bill). The current regulations require participants in most USDA programs to comply with conservation compliance measures on any land that is highly erodible or that is considered a wetland. The 2014 Farm Bill expands current conservation compliance requirements to apply to producers who obtain subsidized Federal crop insurance under the Federal Crop Insurance Act. It also slightly modifies the existing wetlands "Mitigation Banking" program to remove the requirement that USDA hold easements in the mitigation program.

The rule implements changes to CRP required by the 2014 Farm Bill. CRP assists producers to conserve and improve soil, water, and wildlife resources by converting highly erodible and other environmentally sensitive acreage to a long-term vegetative cover. The core scope of CRP will not change. The changes required by the 2014 Farm Bill include providing an "early out" for contract cancellations in 2015, removing the requirement for a payment reduction for emergency haying and grazing, and allowing non-cropland (grasslands) in CRP. CRP is a Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) program administered by the Farm Service Agency (FSA).

The Farm Service Agency (FSA) will implement a new HFIL loan program to provide revolving loan funds to eligible intermediary lenders familiar with Indian lands, and those lenders will give loans to the qualified individuals, entities, and tribes to purchase HFIL, as specified in the section 5402 of the 2014 Farm Bill.  As ownership of Indian land descends from one generation to another, fractionation continues to be a worsening problem, and many tracts are held in undivided ownership by hundreds or thousands of people.  The ability of the owners to use land decreases as fractionation increases, sometimes to the point where it is nearly impossible to locate the owners or for the owners to coordinate. The new HFIL program is required by 2014 Farm Bill. This final rule provides a way for tribal members to be able to get loans to purchase the lands and consolidate the fractionated interests to qualified tribes, individuals and entities.

The Farm Service Agency (FSA) administers the CCC-approved Cotton Warehouse Program for CCC. FSA is amending the regulations that specify the requirements for CCC approved cotton warehouses. The amendment clarifies the definition of Bales Made Available for Shipment (BMAS). CCC-approved cotton warehouses are required to report BMAS, among other data, to CCC weekly. The amendment clarifies that bales made available, but not picked up (BNPU), cannot be "counted" as BMAS for longer than two weeks. A conforming change will be made to the CCC Cotton Storage Agreement.

The Agricultural Act of 2014 (the 2014 Farm Bill) extends and revises the Biomass Crop Assistance Program (BCAP) and authorizes funding through 2018. BCAP provides financial assistance to producers who establish and harvest biomass crops. The 2014 Farm Bill adds some new payment amounts and eligibility restrictions, but the core goals of BCAP are unchanged. The definition of eligible materials removes bagasse as an eligible material and requires that all woody biomass be harvested directly from the land. Materials used for research are added as an eligible material. The 2014 Farm Bill reduces the payment for collection, harvest, storage, and transportation matching payments from $45 per dry ton under the 2008 Farm Bill to $20 per dry ton. The regulation revises the previous specification that FSA prioritized project areas to now specify that, as required by the 2014 Farm Bill, at least 10 percent of payments will be matching payments.

The Agricultural Act of 2014 (the 2014 Farm Bill) reauthorizes Marketing Assistance Loans (MAL) and Loan Deficiency Payments (LDP) for all eligible commodities including cotton, honey, and sugar loans for the 2014 through 2018 crop years. The MAL and LDP programs allow producers to receive short-term loans against their crops, so that producers can market their crops at a time that is convenient for them, rather than being forced to sell immediately after harvest to pay the bills. The MAL and LDP programs are continued with no changes to the loan rates except for cotton, and there are no other changes to the basic structure of the programs. The rule removes the references to the program years that previously limited it to 2008-2012, and makes some minor discretionary changes to add clarity to the regulations. MALs, LDPs, and sugar loans are Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) programs administered by the Farm Service Agency (FSA).

The rule implements regulatory changes required by the Agricultural Act of 2014 (2014 Farm Bill) for certain program requirements in the Farm Loan Programs (FLP) regulations. The changes are: increase percent of guarantees on Conservation Loans (CL); reduce interest rates for direct Farm Ownership (FO) loans made under a joint financing arrangement; increase the loan limit for direct FO loans made under the Down Payment Program; remove the rural residency requirements for Youth Loan (YL) applicants; allow a borrower who had debt forgiveness on YL to receive future Federal loans under certain conditions; revise Microloans (ML) for beginning and veteran farms to exclude them from the existing direct Operating Loan (OL) term limitations; make a special ML interest rate available to beginning and veteran farmers; eliminate certain appraisal requirements; remove term limits on guaranteed OLs; and change the term from "median" to "average" in the definition of a beginning farmer.

The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC) proposes to revise the General and Administrative Regulation subpart X--Interpretations of Statutory and Regulatory Provisions, to incorporate interpretations of procedures previously issued and administered in accordance with Manager's Bulletin MGR-05-018 and to provide a mechanism for interpretations of policy provisions that are not codified in the Code of Federal Regulations. This action would provide requestors with information on how to request a final agency determination or an interpretation of FCIC procedures and unpublished policy provisions within one administrative regulation, bring consistency and clarity to the processes used, and to clarify existing provisions.

The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation replaces the General Administrative Regulation-subpart V--Submission of Policies, Provisions of Policies and Rates of Premium to incorporate legislative changes to the Federal Crop Insurance Act (Act) stemming from the Agricultural Act of 2014, to clarify existing regulations, lessen the burden of submitters of crop insurance policies, provisions of policies, or rates of premium under section 508(h) of the Act; provide guidance on the submission and payment for concept proposals under section 522 of the Act; and to incorporate changes that are consistent with those made in the Common Crop Insurance Policy Basic Provisions.

The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation amends the General Administrative Regulations--Ineligibility for Programs under the Federal Crop Insurance Act, the Catastrophic Risk Protection Endorsement, the Area Risk Protection Insurance Regulations, and the Common Crop Insurance Regulations, Basic Provisions, to revise those revisions affected by changes mandated by the Agricultural Act of 2014 (commonly referred to as the 2014 Farm Bill), enacted on February 7, 2014.

The rule amends the Common Crop Insurance Regulations, Macadamia Tree Crop Insurance Provisions, and the Macadamia Nut Crop Insurance Provisions to remove the provision requiring an optional unit to contain at least 80 acres. The action would provide policy changes to better meet the needs of producers. The changes will apply for the 2016 and succeeding crop years for macadamia trees and the 2017, and succeeding crop years for macadamia nuts.

The Agency published a proposed rule for the Business and Industry (B&I) Guaranteed Loan Program on September 15, 2014 (78 FR 22044), which, when finalized, would revise the 1996 B&I regulations.  While there have been some minor modifications to the B&I Guaranteed Loan Program regulations since 1996, this action is in response to the implement 2014 Farm Bill provisions and makes needed refinements to the regulation. These changes are designed to enhance the program, improve efficiency, correct minor inconsistencies, clarify the regulations, and ultimately reduce delinquencies. The Agency held several lender meetings throughout the country to see how changes to the program could benefit lenders who use the program. The proposed changes being considered may result in a lower the subsidy rate. The rule, when finalized, would increase lending activity, expand business opportunities, and create jobs in rural areas, particularly in areas that have historically experienced economic distress.

This regulation will combine the current Rural Business Enterprise Grant and the Rural Business Opportunity Grant into one regulation as required by the 2014 Farm Bill.

This interim rule implements section 6025, Strategic Economic and Community Development under the Agricultural Act of 2014 (2014 Farm Bill). Unless the Agency provides otherwise, the Agency will reserve up to 10 percent of the funds appropriated to certain Rural Development (RD) programs each fiscal year to fund projects that support the implementation of strategic economic and community development plans across multi-jurisdictional areas. The programs from which funds will be reserved are community facility programs, water and waste disposal programs, and rural business and cooperative development programs. To be eligible for the reserved funds, projects must be first eligible for funding under the programs from which the funds are reserved. In addition projects must be carried out solely in rural areas. Any reserved funding that is not obligated by June 30 of the fiscal year in which the funds were reserved will be returned to the programs regular funding accounts.

The Agency is proposing to publish a Final Rule with request for comments that will codify certain program measures and metrics for included Agency programs and establish the process by which the Agency will collect the data. Section 6209 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 (2014 Farm Bill) (P.L. 113-79) requires the Secretary of Agriculture to collect data regarding economic activities created through grants and loans, including any technical assistance provided as a component of the grant or loan program, and measure the short- and long-term viability of award recipients and any entities to whom those recipients provide assistance using award funds. The proposed action will not change the underlying provisions of the included programs (e.g., eligibility, applications, scoring, and servicing provisions).

The Agency published a proposed rule for the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) on April 12, 2013 (78 FR 22044).  The agency is authorized under section 9007 of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (as amended by the Agricultural Act of 2014) to provide grants for energy audits and renewable energy development assistance, and provide financial assistance for energy efficiency improvements and renewable energy systems. The 2014 Farm Bill directs that at least 20 percent of funds be used for grants of $20,000 or less, and up to 4 percent of mandatory funds for energy audits and Renewable Energy Development Assistance Grants. Eligible entities for energy audits and renewable energy development assistance include units of State, tribal, or local government; an instrumentality of a State, tribal, or local government; land grant or other institutions of higher education; rural electric cooperatives; RCID Councils or public power entities. Eligible entities for financial assistance for energy efficiency improvements and renewable energy systems include agricultural producers and rural small businesses. The agency identified REAP as one of the Department’s periodic retrospective review of regulations under Executive Order 13563, and has proposed a tiered application approach that reduces applicant burden for technical reports and streamlines the narrative portion of the application.

The Agency is proposing a final rule in order to implement the final rule for the Value-Added Producer Grant (VAPG) program. This final rule modifies the interim rule for VAPG based on comments received on the interim rule, which was published on February 23, 2011 (76 FR 10122), on the Agricultural Act of 2014 (2014 Farm Bill; and on a listening session, held on April 25, 2014, on the VAPG provisions in the 2014 Farm Bill. This action addresses these modifications, as well as a number of program clarifications, including but not limited to allowing seafood producers to be able to apply under the locally produced value-added agricultural product methodology, and eligibility for tribal entities. Farm Bill provisions include providing priority for funding applicants that are Veteran Farmers and Ranchers. It further provides additional priority points for Agricultural Producer Groups, Farmer or Rancher Cooperatives, and Majority-Controlled Producer-Based Business Ventures whose projects best contribute to creating or increasing marketing opportunities for Beginning Farmers and Rancher, Veteran Farmers and Ranchers, Socially-Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers, and operators of Small- and Medium-sized Family Farms and Ranches. Program clarifications include guidance that was addressed in the annual Federal Register notices since publication of the interim rule.

The change will permit the Rural Business Service Administrator to use statutory authority that has been delegated to the Administrator but is currently not being used as it relates to certain programs administered by the Agency, specifically debt settlement of loans for the Intermediary Relending Program and Rural Microentrepreneur Assistance Program.

RD is proposing to revise program regulations within RBS, RUS, and RHS to update population-, income-, and unemployment-related data sources referenced in program regulations. These changes will have little to no impact on applicants. The only impact, which is marginal at most, is that there may be some change in the amount of funds a particular State may receive as a result of using Bureau of Labor Statistics in lieu of Census Bureau data previously reported in the decennial Census.

The Biorefinery Assistance Program was authorized under the 2008 Farm Bill. The 2014 Farm Bill continues the authority established by the 2008 Farm Bill but made changes to the program that require revisions to existing regulations. The 2014 Farm Bill changed the program's name to the Biorefinery, Renewable Chemical, and Biobased Product Manufacturing Assistance Program and mandated that the program provide loan guarantees for the development, construction, and retrofitting of commercial-scale biorefineries as well as biobased product manufacturing facilities. Increasing production of homegrown renewable fuels, chemicals, and biobased products has grown; so has the need to develop and produce them. Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBS) offers opportunities to producers to develop and manufacture such products through the Biorefinery, Renewable Chemical, and Biobased Product Manfacturing Assistance Program. RBS published the Biorefinery Assistance Program proposed rule in the Federal Register on April 18, 2010, (75 FR 20044) and an interim rule on February 14, 2011, both with 60-day comment periods. Comments were received from biofuel and bio-products producers, banking and investment institutions, attorneys, and research and development companies. In addition to the program changes required by the 2014 Farm Bill, RBS needs to address the comments received to the February 14, 2011, interim rule. The Biorefinery, Renewable Chemical, and Biobased Product Manufacturing Assistance Program focuses on accelerating the commercialization of production of advanced biofuels and renewable chemicals, as well as biobased product manufacturing.

The Agency will issue a proposed rule to incorporate the latest revisions to Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards Issued by GAO. Other changes include clarifying the management letter to provide better guidance on subsidiary reporting; expanding the definition of borrower to include broadband and wireless providers; adding new definitions pertaining to the peer review program administered by the American Institute of Certified Accountants; increasing the threshold for expenditures under OMB Circular A-133; clarifying the peer review requirements; and clarifying procedures for requesting a change in audit date.

7 USC 1926(d) authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to make grants to the State of Alaska for the benefit of rural or Native villages in Alaska to develop and construct water and wastewater systems that would improve the health and sanitation conditions in those villages. The Rural Utilities Service will remove the current administration of this program from 7 CFR 1780 and issue a new regulation, 7 CFR 1784, in order to provide specific policies and procedures governing the program.

In order to facilitate the programmatic interest of the Rural Electrification Act that loans made or guaranteed by the Agency are adequately secured, the Agency has established certain standardized forms for materials and equipment and the construction of electric and telecommunications systems. The use of standard forms, construction contracts, and procurement procedures helps to ensure that appropriate standards and specifications are maintained by the borrower, protects the Agency's loan security so it is not adversely affected, and ensures that the loan and loan guarantee funds are used effectively and for the intended purpose. The Rural Utilities Service is issuing a new equipment contract, RUS Form 395, for use by telecommunications program borrowers. The new contract will reflect present business and utilities practices, as well as changes in technology, services, and equipment.

The Rural Utilities Service is amending regulations for the Rural Broadband Access Loan and Loan Guarantee program to implement section 6104 of the Agriculture Act of 2014 (2014 Farm Bill).

In this proposed rule, the Rural Housing Service (RHS) proposes to a comprehensive civil rights regulation to provide detailed guidelines to improve compliance with applicable enacted civil rights laws. Mechanisms for monitoring compliance by USDA field offices and recipients of Federal financial assistance at all levels will decrease the Agency's vulnerability that exists due to compliance issues.

The Rural Housing Service published a proposed rule (68 FR 32872) on June 2, 2003, to streamline and consolidate 14 regulations into 7 CFR 3560, which sets forth requirements, policies, and procedures for originating, processing, and servicing Rural Development's Multi-Family Housing (MFH) direct loans and grants. The programs covered by this part are authorized by title V of the Housing Act of 1949. The Center for Immigration Studies and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security estimated in 2009 that the illegal population was 10.96 percent of the total population. The economic impact of implementation of this rule is a possible reduction of over $118 million in RA. An interim rule was published on November 26, 2004 (69 FR 69032-69176), to implement those changes with an effective date of February 24, 2005. The Agency published in the Federal Register on February 22, 2005, (70 FR 8503), to indefinitely delay the effective date of specific words in quotes in the following specific sections: Sections 3560.152(a)(1) "Be a United States citizen or qualified alien, and"; 3560.154(a)(7) ". . . and a certification that the applicant is a U.S. citizen or a qualified alien as defined in section 3560.11 . . ."; 3560.156(c)(12) ". . . their citizenship status, . . ."; and 3560.254(c)(3) "Whose head of the household is a U.S. citizen or a legal alien as defined in section 3560.11." The interim final rule contained requirements regarding citizenship eligibility about which the Agency received several comments. The comments suggested that Agency procedures unnecessarily imposed more requirements than those required under the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) procedures for similar programs. RHS plans to publish a proposed rule to implement the citizenship requirements and to harmonize RHS' requirements with those currently established by HUD.

The Agency will consolidate the applicable portions of the seven regulations used to service Community Facilities direct loans and grants into one streamlined regulation. The consolidation will improve the Agency's ability to service its portfolio and will ensure that the Government's investment is protected and maximized. The proposed action will have no financial impact on the public or the Agency and will be in the best interest of the Government and the public. The consolidation and update will provide an improved basis for servicing Community Facilities direct loans by providing servicing options that will enable facilities to recover from delinquent situations, and continue operating and providing essential services to the public. The Agency also expects this action to reduce the use of program loan cost expense funds to maintain inventory properties. Streamlining seven regulations into one regulation will provide a user-friendly document that will reduce the time burden on Agency staff, as well as provide an easy-to-understand reference for the public.

The Agency plans to consolidate and update three regulations, 7 CFR 1942-A, 1942-C, and 3570-B, into a new regulation, 7 CFR 3570-A. This new regulation will be used to administer the Community Facilities Direct Loan and Grant programs. It also will incorporate the Tribal College and Economic Impact Initiative grant programs. The existing regulations 7 CFR 1942-A, 7 CFR 1942-C, and 7 CFR 3570-B will be obsolete upon publication of the new 7 CFR 3570-A. The proposed action includes the following: remove references to the RUS water and waste disposal program, which was moved to 7 CFR 1780-A in 1997; update scoring priorities to reflect current needs in rural America. * Incorporate information from staff instructions and guidance that have been renewed and republished for many years. * Make pre-application optional for small (under $300,000) projects; clarify and coordinate applicant and project eligibility requirements among the Community Facilities Guarantee, Direct and Grant regulations; update the regulation to reflect recent legal opinions/determinations; update audit requirements in accordance with the latest OMB directives; and add "Exception Authority" to allow for the granting of exceptions by the Administrator to portions of regulations that are not statutory. The granting of exceptions is allowed in other Rural Development regulations under very defined and controlled circumstances.

The Rural Housing Service (RHS) published a proposed rule June 2, 2003 (68 FR 32872), to streamline and consolidate 14 regulations into 7 CFR 3560, which sets forth requirements, policies, and procedures for originating, processing, and servicing Rural Development's Multi-Family Housing (MFH) direct loans and grants. The programs covered by this part are authorized by title V of the Housing Act of 1949.  An interim rule was published November 26,2004 (69 FR 69032-69176) to implement those changes, with an effective date of February 24, 2005.  This proposed rule is to amend the interim rule  7 CFR 3560, regulations to change program requirements at the property level that will reduce operating costs for the project owner by changing financial reporting requirements. Rural Development (RD) is establishing a rule-based reporting threshold, similar to that of US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). RD’s Financial Reporting also aligns with HUD’s provisions by using a modified version of the HUD IG Audit Guide.”

The Rural Housing Service (RHS) published a proposed rule June 2, 2003, (68 FR 32872) to streamline and consolidate 14 regulations into 7 CFR 3560, which sets forth requirements, policies, and procedures for originating, processing, and servicing Rural Development’s Multi-Family Housing (MFH) direct loans and grants. The programs covered by this part are authorized by title V of the Housing Act of 1949. An interim rule was published November 26, 2004, (69 FR 6903269176) to implement those changes, with an effective date of February 24, 2005.

The Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015, requires up to a 12-month term on new Rental Assistance (RA) Agreements and prohibits the renewal of such Agreements within the original 12-month term. An amendment to 3560.258 will establish only one renewal in a 12-month period, with no interim renewal.

The Rural Housing Service has consolidated and streamlined the regulations pertaining to section 515, Rural Rental Housing, section 514, Farm Labor Housing Loans, section 516, Farm Labor Housing Grants, and section 521, Rental Assistance Payments. As in the interim final rule, 14 published regulations have been reduced to one regulation and handbooks for program administration. This will simplify loan origination and portfolio management for applicants, borrowers, and housing operators, as well as Rural Development field staff. This also provides flexibility for program modifications to reflect current and foreseeable changes. The consolidated regulations save time and simplify costs. Finally, the regulation is more customer-friendly and responsive to the needs of the public.

The Rural Development program is seeking to consolidate, simplify, and update all Agency environmental requirements into a common environmental regulation. This Rural Development regulation will replace 7 CFR 1794; the current utilities environmental regulation, 7 CFR 1940-G; the current housing/business environmental regulation, 7 CFR 1901-F; the current historic preservation regulation; and 7 CFR part 1940-J, the current intergovernmental review regulation. This consolidation effort will produce a single user-friendly tool to help the program constituents, rural communities, and Rural Development staff, as well as bring the environmental requirements of Agency actions in line with the environmental requirements of other Federal programs for similar actions. This rule consists of subparts A through O.

The Rural Housing Service (RHS) published a proposed rule (68 FR 32872) on June 2, 2003, to streamline and consolidate 14 regulations into 7 CFR 3560, which sets forth requirements, policies, and procedures for originating, processing, and servicing Rural Development's Multi-Family Housing (MFH) direct loans and grants. Title V of the Housing Act of 1949 authorizes the programs covered by this part. An interim rule (69 FR 69032-69176) was published November 28, 2004, to implement those changes, with an effective date of February 24, 2005. As part of the implementation of the interim rule, Civil Monetary Penalties were included as an enforcement provision in section 3560.641(b). RHS proposes to amend its regulations to create a new section for imposing civil monetary penalties under the authority of 42 U.S.C. 1490s (section 543 of the Housing Act of 1949, as amended (Act)) (Housing Act CMP). RHS also proposes to adopt the USDA civil monetary penalty provisions for the Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act of 1986 (PFCRA) in a revision to an existing section (PFCRA CMP). The new section will include an amended version of the existing Housing Act CMP provision together with additional language providing procedural guidance.

The Rural Development Voucher Program was created as a demonstration program by Congress to offer protection to eligible multifamily housing tenants in properties financed through Rural Development's section 515 Rural Rental Housing Program who may be subject to economic hardship through prepayment or foreclosure of the Rural Development mortgage. The Housing Act of 1949, as amended by the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2005 (Pub. L. 108-447) (the Act) states: "To such extent or in such amounts as are approved in appropriation Acts, the Secretary shall carry out a rural housing voucher program to assist very low-income families and persons to reside in rental housing in rural areas." The Rural Housing Service (RHS) published a proposed rule August 14, 2013 (78 FR 49374), that would add new permanent regulations to implement this program. This rule will provide procedural guidance for the Rural Development Voucher Program.

Through this action, the Rural Housing Service (RHS) proposes to amend its regulation at 7 CFR section 3560.306 to change the requirements of the Reserve Account for the section 515 Rural Rental Housing (RRH) program. The action would address reserve account requirements of requiring an Agency countersignature with the borrower when a section 538 guaranteed loan is involved and also clarifying that reserve account funds cannot be used to pay for fees associated with the section 538 guarantee loan program.

The Agency seeks to expand its lender indemnification authority for loss claims in the case of fraud, misrepresentation, or noncompliance with applicable loan origination requirements; amend special loan options to include principal reductions that lenders may use to mitigate losses while still maintaining the SFHGLP loan guarantee; amend refinance provisions to include a streamlined refinance option that was tested in a successful pilot; and add a section clarifying that any loan guaranteed by the Agency is a "qualified mortgage" under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of (Pub. L. 111-203).

Section 6006 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 (Act) requires the Agency to create a technical assistance and training grant program. The program will provide funding to public bodies, Indian tribes and nonprofit corporations with experience providing technical assistance to eligible community facilities applicants to carry out the following eligible purposes directly associated with developing or improving essential community facilities: help identify and plan community facility needs; identify public and private resources to finance community facility needs; prepare reports and surveys necessary to request financial assistance to develop community facilities; prepare applications for financial assistance; improve management, including financial management, related to the operation of community facilities; or help with other areas of need identified by Rural Development.

The Rural Housing Service, Rural Business-Cooperative Service and Rural Utilities Service are rewriting their regulations to conform to the requirements of the National Flood Insurance Reform Act of 1994 (NFIRA) Biggert Waters Act, Flood Insurance Reform Act etc.

The Guaranteed Single-Family Housing Loan Program interim final rule encourages new residential construction in rural areas. The new rule provides for a "construction-to-permanent financing" process. Lenders will be able to obtain a loan note guarantee when construction commences, in a "single close" transaction, rather than first obtaining short-term construction financing and then later obtaining the guaranteed loan. The new rule streamlines the financing of building new homes. The interim final rule also expands the types of lenders who are eligible to participate, increasing the reach of the program to small community banks in remote areas and to credit unions with memberships who are teachers as well as other groups. The rule change will allow participation by any lending entity supervised and regulated by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the National Credit Union Administration, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Reserve Banks, or the Federal Housing Finance Board. Currently, these entities may not be eligible lenders.

In the Single Family Housing (SFH) direct loan program, the current loan application packaging process is an informal arrangement; the packagers' level of program knowledge and expertise, as well as their level of service, is inconsistent. To address this, the Rural Housing Service (RHS) is proposing to amend its regulations for the SFH direct loan program to create a certified loan application packaging process. Certified packagers will promote the direct loan program in eligible communities, prescreen interested parties informally to determine their likelihood of qualifying for the program, and fully prepare and document the loan application package on behalf of the applicant for submission to the Agency. The certified loan application packaging process will include the requirements for eligible individuals to obtain the designation of an Agency-certified loan application packager and the requirements for qualified nonprofit organizations and public agencies that employ certified packagers. These requirements will cover experience, training, proficiency, and structure. The process may also include Agency-approved independent nonprofit organizations that serve as intermediaries and perform quality assurance reviews on packaged loan applications prior to submission to the Agency. In addition, RHS is proposing to set limitations on the loan application packaging fee. The fee may not exceed 2 percent of the average area loan limit nationwide; the Administrator periodically will set a maximum dollar amount for the fee within this limit. The amount will be published on the Agency's website as an attachment to HB-1-3550. Agency financing of the packaging fee will remain dependent on the borrower's repayment ability and the total secured indebtedness limitation outlined in 7 CFR 3550.63.

When the Agricultural Act of 2014 (2014 Farm Bill) (Pub. L. 113-79) was passed on February 7, 2014, section 6208 of the Farm Bill amended language to section 520 of the Housing Act of 1949 to include language that an area deemed rural as of October 1, 1990, and later determined not to be rural after the 1990, 2000 or 2010 census, or an area deemed rural anytime between January 1, 2000, and December 31, 2010, will retain eligibility until the receipt of the 2020 census data if the area has a population in excess of 25,000 but not in excess of 35,000, is rural in character, and has a serious lack of mortgage credit. To ensure that 7 CFR 3550 is in line with the new housing act provisions, RHS proposes to revise the regulation (7 CFR 3550) to include the new language of the Housing Act of 1949, as amended.

The Agricultural Act of 2014 (the 2014 Act) consolidated the Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP), the Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program (FRPP), and the Grassland Reserve Program (GRP) into a single Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP). The consolidated easement program has two components: an agricultural land easement component and a wetland reserve easement component. The agricultural land easement component is patterned after the former FRPP with GRP's land eligibility components merged into it. The wetland reserve easement component is patterned after WRP. Land previously enrolled in the three contributing programs is considered enrolled in the new ACEP.

NRCS promulgated the current EQIP regulation on January 15, 2009, through an interim rule. The interim rule incorporated programmatic changes authorized by the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (the 2008 Act). NRCS published a correction to the interim rule on March 12, 2009, and an amendment to the interim rule on May 29, 2009. NRCS has implemented EQIP in FY 2009 through FY 2013 under the current regulation. The Agricultural Act of 2014 (2014 Act) amended chapter 4 of subtitle D of title XII of the Food Security Act of 1985 by making the following changes to EQIP program requirements: 1) eliminates requirement that contract must remain in place for a minimum of one year after last practice implemented, but keeps requirement that the contract term is not to exceed 10 years; 2) consolidates elements of Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP) and repeals WHIP authority; 3) replaces rolling six-year payment limitation with payment limitation for FY 2014-FY 2018; 4) requires Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) reporting no later than December 31, 2014, and every two years thereafter; 4) establishes payment limitation at $450,000 and eliminates waiver authority; 5) modifies the special rule for foregone income payments for certain associated management practices and resource concern priorities; 6) makes advance payments available up to 50 percent for eligible historically underserved participants to purchase material or contract services instead of the previous 30 percent; 7) provides flexibility for repayment of advance payment if not expended within 90 days; and 8) requires that for each fiscal year from of the FY 2014 to FY 2018, at least 5 percent of available EQIP funds shall be targeted for wildlife related conservation practices. The 2014 Act further identifies EQIP as a contributing program authorized to accomplish the purposes of the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) (subtitle I of title XII of the Food Security Act of 1985, as amended). RCPP replaces the Agricultural Water Enhancement Program (AWEP), Chesapeake Bay Watershed Program (CBWP), Cooperative Conservation Partnership Initiative (CCPI), and the Great Lakes Basin Program for soil erosion and sediment control. Like the programs it replaces, RCPP will operate through regulations in place for contributing programs. The other contributing programs include the Conservation Stewardship Program, the Healthy Forests Reserve Program, and the new Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP). NRCS seeks to publish an interim rule to incorporate the 2014 Act changes to EQIP program administration. This regulation action is pursuant to Section 1246 of the Food Security Act of 1985, as amended by section 2608 of the 2014 Act, which requires regulations necessary to implement title II of the 2014 Act be promulgated through the interim rule process.  

NRCS seeks to publish an interim rule to incorporate the Agriculture Act of 2014 (the 2014 Act)  changes to Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP) program administration. This regulation action is pursuant to section 1246 of the Food Security Act of 1985 (1985 Act), as amended by the 2014 Act, which requires regulations necessary to implement title II of the 2014 Act through an interim rule with request for comments.

Background: The Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 Act (2008 Act) amended the 1985 Act to establish CSP and authorize the program in fiscal years 2009 through 2013. The 2014 Act re-authorizes and revises CSP. The purpose of CSP is to encourage producers to address priority resource concerns and improve and conserve the quality and condition of the natural resources in a comprehensive manner by (1) undertaking additional conservation activities, and (2) improving, maintaining, and managing existing conservation activities. The Secretary of Agriculture delegated authority to the Chief, Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), to administer CSP. Through CSP, NRCS provides financial and technical assistance to eligible producers to conserve and enhance soil, water, air, and related natural resources on their land. Eligible lands include private or tribal cropland, grassland, pastureland, rangeland, non-industrial private forest lands, and other land in agricultural areas (including cropped woodland, marshes, and agricultural land or capable of being used for the production of livestock) on which resource concerns related to agricultural production could be addressed. Participation in the program is voluntary. CSP encourages land stewards to improve their conservation performance by installing and adopting additional activities, and improving, maintaining, and managing existing activities on eligible land. NRCS makes funding for CSP available nationwide on a continuous application basis.

The Agricultural Act of 2014 (the 2014 Act) made mandatory changes to several conservation programs, including: 1) requiring review of the operating procedures for the State Technical Committee (7 CFR part 610, subpart C); 2) authorizing the Secretary to use the authorities of the Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Act (watershed operations), except for Watershed Rehabilitation Program, in the implementation of the new Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) (7 CFR part 622); 3) expanding the definition of "acreage owned by Indian tribes" under the Healthy Forests Reserve Program (HFRP) (7 CFR part 625); and 4) replacing minimum aggregate State allocation amounts of $15 million with a 0.6 percent of aggregate program funding allocation amount under Regional Equity (7 CFR part 662) Additionally, NRCS was delegated authority for implementation of the Voluntary Public Access and Habitat Incentive Program (VPA-HIP) (7 CFR part 1455). Internal NRCS administrative changes warrant updating the appropriate delegated official in the Technical Service Provider provisions (7 CFR part 652). Finally, NRCS administers the Agricultural Management Assistance (AMA) (7 CFR part 1465) program consistent with the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) administrative requirements. Though the 2014 Act did not make any changes to the AMA program, minor adjustments to the AMA program regulation are needed to maintain its consistency with EQIP.

This rulemaking would amend the scrapie regulations by changing the risk groups and categories established for individual animals and for flocks. It would simplify, reduce, or remove certain recordkeeping requirements. This action would provide designated scrapie epidemiologists with more alternatives and flexibility when testing animals in order to determine flock designations under the regulations. It would also make the identification and recordkeeping requirements for goat owners consistent with those for sheep owners. These changes would affect sheep and goat producers and State governments.

We are proposing to revise our regulations regarding the movement of plant pests. We are proposing criteria regarding the movement and environmental release of biological control organisms, and are proposing to establish regulations to allow the importation and movement in interstate commerce of certain types of plant pests without restriction by granting exceptions from permitting requirements for those pests. We are also proposing to revise our regulations regarding the movement of soil. This proposed rule replaces a previously published proposed rule, which we are withdrawing as part of this document. This proposal would clarify the factors that would be considered when assessing the risks associated with the movement of certain organisms and facilitate the movement of regulated organisms and articles in a manner that also protects U.S. agriculture.   

This rulemaking would amend the bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) and scrapie regulations regarding the importation of live sheep, goats, and wild ruminants and their embryos, semen, products, and byproducts. The proposed scrapie revisions regarding the importation of sheep, goats, and susceptible wild ruminants for other than immediate slaughter are similar to those recommended by the World Organization for Animal Health in restricting the importation of such animals to those from scrapie-free regions or certified scrapie-free flocks.

This rulemaking would consolidate the regulations governing bovine tuberculosis (TB), currently found in 9 CFR part 77, and those governing brucellosis, currently found in 9 CFR part 78. As part of this consolidation, we are proposing to transition the TB and brucellosis programs away from a State status system based on disease prevalence. Instead, States and tribes would implement an animal health plan that identifies sources of the diseases within the State or tribe and specifies mitigations to address the risk posed by these sources. The consolidated regulations also would set forth standards for surveillance, epidemiological investigations, and affected herd management that must be incorporated into each animal health plan, with certain limited exceptions; conditions for the interstate movement of cattle, bison, and captive cervids; and conditions for APHIS approval of tests for bovine TB or brucellosis. Finally, the rulemaking would revise the import requirements for cattle and bison to make these requirements clearer and ensure that they more effectively mitigate the risk of introduction of the diseases into the United States.

In the 2014 Farm Bill, Congress amended the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) to provide the Secretary of Agriculture with the authority to determine what facilities and activities involving AWA regulated animals are de minimis and therefore exempt from licensure and oversight. We are proposing to amend the AWA regulations to enact this new provision. This change would provide APHIS with the flexibility to exempt from licensing those dealers and exhibitors who provide adequate levels of humane care to their animals, allowing us to target our enforcement resources where they are most needed. Dealers and exhibitors operating at or below the threshold would be exempted from APHIS licensing and oversight under the AWA. Thresholds would be based primarily on business size. Our experience indicates that animal facilities operating at or below certain thresholds are generally capable of providing humane care to their animals. Animals posing a danger to public safety or security would have no de minimis exemption from licensing and regulation.

This rulemaking will amend the regulations for the importation of unmanufactured wood articles to remove the exemption that allows wood packaging material from Canada to enter the United States without first meeting the treatment and marking requirements of the regulations that apply to wood packaging material from all other countries. This action is necessary in order to prevent the dissemination and spread of pests via wood packaging material from Canada.

This rulemaking will amend the regulations governing the importation of certain animals, meat, and other animal products by allowing, under certain conditions, the importation of fresh (chilled or frozen) beef from a region in Brazil (the States of Bahia, Distrito Federal, Espirito Santo, Goias, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Parana, Rio Grande do Sul, Rio de Janeiro, Rondonia, Sao Paulo, Sergipe, and Tocantis). Based on the evidence in a recent risk assessment, we have determined that fresh (chilled or frozen) beef can be safely imported from those Brazilian States, provided certain conditions are met. This action will provide for the importation of beef from the designated region in Brazil into the United States while continuing to protect the United States against the introduction of foot-and-mouth disease.

This rulemaking will amend the regulations to require firewood of all species imported from Canada, including treated lumber (furniture scraps) sold as kindling, and all spruce logs imported from Nova Scotia to be heat-treated and to be accompanied by either a certificate of treatment or an attached commercial treatment label. This action is necessary on an immediate basis to prevent the artificial spread of pests, including emerald ash borer, Asian longhorned beetle, gypsy moth, European spruce bark beetle, and brown spruce longhorn beetle to noninfested areas of the United States, and to prevent further introduction of these pests into the United States.

This rulemaking will amend the Virus-Serum-Toxin Act regulations to replace the current label format, which reflects any of four different levels of effectiveness, with a single, uniform label format. It also will require biologics licensees to provide a standardized summary, with confidential business information removed, of the efficacy and safety data submitted to the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service in support of the issuance of a full product license or conditional license. A single label format, along with publicly available safety and efficacy data, will help biologics producers to more clearly communicate product performance to their customers.

This rulemaking would amend our regulations governing the importations of fruits and vegetables by broadening our existing performance standard to provide for consideration of all new fruits and vegetables for importation into the United States using a notice-based process. Rather than authorizing new imports through proposed and final rules and specifying import conditions in the regulations, the notice-based process uses Federal Register notices to make risk analyses available to the public for review and comment, with authorized commodities and their conditions of entry subsequently being listed on the Internet. It also would remove the region- or commodity-specific phytosanitary requirements currently found in these regulations. Likewise, we are proposing an equivalent revision of the performance standard in our regulations governing the interstate movements of fruits and vegetables from Hawaii and the U.S. territories (Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands) and the removal of commodity-specific phytosanitary requirements from those regulations. This proposal would allow for the consideration of requests to authorize the importation or interstate movement of new fruits and vegetables in a manner that enables a more flexible and responsive regulatory approach to evolving pest situations in both the United States and exporting countries. It would not, however, alter the science-based process in which the risk associated with importation or interstate movement of a given fruit or vegetable is evaluated or the manner in which risks associated with the importation or interstate movement of a fruit or vegetable are mitigated.

This rulemaking will amend the user fee regulations by adding new fee categories and adjusting current fees charged for certain agricultural quarantine and inspection services that are provided in connection with certain commercial vessels, commercial trucks, commercial railroad cars, commercial aircraft, and international passengers arriving at ports in the customs territory of the United States. It also will adjust the fee caps associated with commercial vessels, commercial trucks, and commercial railcars. Based on the conclusions of a third party assessment of the user fee program and on other considerations, we have determined that revised user fee categories and revised user fees are necessary to recover the costs of the current level of activity, to account for actual and projected increases in the cost of doing business, and to more accurately align fees with the costs associated with each fee service.

This rulemaking will amend the regulations governing the importation of certain animals, meat, and other animal products to allow, under certain conditions, the importation of fresh (chilled or frozen) beef from a region in Argentina located north of Patagonia South and Patagonia North B, referred to as Northern Argentina. Based on the evidence in a recent risk analysis, we have determined that fresh (chilled or frozen) beef can be safely imported from Northern Argentina, subject to certain conditions. This action provides for the importation of beef from Northern Argentina into the United States, while continuing to protect the United States against the introduction of foot-and-mouth disease.

We are withdrawing a proposed rule that would have amended the regulations regarding the introduction (importation, interstate movement, and environmental release (field testing)) of certain genetically engineered organisms. We are doing this because of the experience we have gained over the past 28 years, continuing advances in biotechnology, and comments we received on the rule. We will begin a fresh stakeholder engagement to explore alternative policy approaches. This engagement will begin with a series of webinars that will provide the stakeholder community an opportunity to provide initial feedback. Information on these webinars will be announced in the coming month.

In a final rule published in the Federal Register on December 1, 2014, and effective on that date, we adopted, with changes, an interim rule that amended the regulations concerning the importation of live birds and poultry (including hatching eggs) and bird and poultry products from regions where any subtype of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) is considered to exist. As part of this action, we intended to clarify that table eggs from regions considered to have HPAI may only be imported under APHIS permit for scientific, educational, or research purposes to approved establishments, and only if the Administrator has determined that the importation can be made under conditions that will prevent the introduction of HPAI into the United States. However, we did not add references to HPAI to one of the table egg provisions of the final rule as we intended. This document corrects that oversight.  

We are amending the regulations on importing plants for planting to add Turkey to the list of countries from which the importation of restricted articles of Chrysanthemum spp., Leucanthemella serotina, and Nipponanthemum nipponicum into the United States is prohibited due to the presence of white rust of Chrysanthemum; to require permits for the importation of any seed that is coated, pelleted, or embedded in a substrate that obscures visibility; to provide for an alternate additional declaration on phytosanitary certificates that accompany articles imported from a country in which potato cyst nematodes are known to occur; to provide conditions for the importation of Prunus spp. articles from Canada that address the presence of plum pox potyvirus in that country; and to provide for the importation of Dianthus spp. (carnations) from the Netherlands. We are also making other changes to update and clarify the regulations and to improve their effectiveness. These changes are necessary to relieve restrictions that appear unnecessary, to update existing provisions, and to make the regulations easier to understand and implement.  

This rulemaking amends the fruits and vegetables regulations to allow the importation of litchi and longan fruit from Vietnam into the continental United States. As a condition of entry, litchi and longan fruit from Vietnam will be subject to a systems approach that includes requirements for treatment and inspection and restrictions on the distribution of the fruit. This action allows for the importation of litchi and longan fruit from Vietnam into the United States while continuing to provide protection against the introduction of quarantine pests.

This rulemaking amends the regulations concerning the importation of fruits and vegetables to allow the importation of mangoes from Jamaica into the continental United States. As a condition of entry, the mangoes must be produced in accordance with a systems approach employing a combination of mitigation measures for certain fruit flies, soft scale insects, and diseases; must be inspected prior to exportation from Jamaica; and must be found free of these pests and diseases. The mangoes must be imported in commercial consignments only and be treated to mitigate the risk of fruit flies. The mangoes must also be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate. This action allows for the importation of mangoes from Jamaica while continuing to protect against the introduction of plant pests into the United States.

This rulemaking amends the regulations concerning the importation of fruits and vegetables to allow the importation of fresh blueberries from Morocco into the continental United States. As a condition of entry, the blueberries must be produced under a systems approach employing a combination of mitigation measures for two quarantine pests (Ceratitis capitata and Monilinia fructigena), and must be inspected prior to exportation from Morocco and found free of these pests. The blueberries may be imported in commercial consignments only and must be treated with one of two approved postharvest treatments to mitigate C. capitata. The blueberries will have to be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate with an additional declaration stating that the conditions for importation have been met. This action allows for the importation of blueberries from Morocco while continuing to protect against the introduction of plant pests into the United States.

This rulemaking amends the regulations concerning the importation of fruits and vegetables to allow the importation of fresh bananas from the Philippines into Guam, Hawaii, and the Northern Mariana Islands. As a condition of entry, the bananas will have to be produced in accordance with a systems approach that includes requirements for importation of commercial consignments, monitoring of fruit flies to establish low-prevalence places of production, harvesting only of hard green bananas, and inspecting for quarantine pests by the national plant protection organization of the Philippines. The bananas also will have to be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate with an additional declaration stating that they were grown, packed, and inspected and found to be free of quarantine pests in accordance with the proposed requirements. This action allows for the importation of bananas from the Philippines into Guam, Hawaii, and the Northern Mariana Islands while continuing to protect against the introduction of plant pests.

This rulemaking amends the list of designated pest-free areas for mango seed weevil and mango pulp weevil within the Philippines. It also amends the Plant Protection and Quarantine Treatment Manual to establish a specific approved dose of irradiation as an authorized treatment for mango pulp weevil. These actions are necessary because surveys have determined that additional areas within the Philippines are free of mango seed weevil and mango pulp weevil. Additionally, we have determined that the mango pulp weevil can be neutralized with a lower dose of irradiation than the current generic dose for most plant pests of the class Insecta.

This rulemaking amends the regulations concerning the importation of citrus fruit to remove certain restrictions on the importation of Unshu oranges from Japan. Specifically, it removes requirements for the fruit to be grown in specified canker-free export areas with buffer zones and for joint inspection in the groves and packinghouses by the Government of Japan and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. It also clarifies that surface sterilization of the fruit must be conducted in accordance with our regulations. Finally, it requires that each shipment be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate containing an additional declaration stating that the fruit was given the required surface sterilization. These changes make the regulations concerning the importation of Unshu oranges from Japan consistent with our domestic regulations concerning the interstate movement of citrus fruit from areas quarantined because of citrus canker.

This rulemaking amends the veterinary biological product regulations by defining the terms used for reporting the results of tests performed on veterinary biological products. Licensees and permittees of veterinary biological products must conduct these tests and report the results to the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service so that the Agency can determine if the products are eligible for release. Defining these terms will clarify the circumstances under which the results of a prescribed test can be reported as satisfactory, unsatisfactory, inconclusive, or a "no test." It also removes several obsolete testing standard requirements from the regulations. These changes update our regulations and improve communication between regulators and product licensees and permittees with respect to reporting test results. 

This rulemaking amends the regulations concerning the importation of citrus fruit to allow the importation of commercial consignments of two Unshu orange hybrids from the Republic of Korea into the continental United States. These hybrids will be eligible for importation into the continental United States subject to the existing conditions for the importation of Unshu oranges from the Republic of Korea. It also makes one minor change to the existing regulations by adding an explicit statement that only commercial consignments of Unshu oranges will be eligible for importation into the continental United States. These changes will remove the prohibition on the importation of Unshu orange hybrids that can safely enter the United States, provided that certain conditions are met, and will codify an existing requirement. 

As directed by Congress in section 731, division A, of the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015, GIPSA is rescinding sections 201.2(o), 201.215(a), and 201.3(a) from the regulations issued under the Packers and Stockyards (P&S) Act, 1921.

The current regulations provide two tracks for replacing dairy animals which are tied to how dairy farmers transition to organic production. Farmers who transition an entire distinct herd must thereafter replace dairy animals with livestock that has been under organic management from the last third of gestation. Farmers who do not transition an entire distinct herd may perpetually obtain replacement animals that have been managed organically for 12 months prior to marketing milk or milk products as organic. The proposed action would eliminate the two-track system and require that upon transition, all existing and replacement dairy animals from which milk or milk products are intended to be sold, labeled, or represented as organic must be managed organically from the last third of gestation.

The National Organic Program (NOP) is establishing national standards governing the marketing of organically produced agricultural products. In 2004, the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) initiated the development of organic pet food standards, which had not been incorporated into the NOP regulations, by forming a task force which included pet food manufacturers, organic consultants, etc. Collectively, these experts drafted organic pet food standards consistent with the Organic Foods Production Act of 1990, Food and Drug Administration requirements, and the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) Model Regulations for Pet and Specialty Pet Food. The AAFCO regulations are scientifically based regulations for voluntary adoption by State jurisdictions to ensure the safety, quality, and effectiveness of feed. In November 2008, the NOSB approved a final recommendation for organic pet food standards incorporating the provisions drafted by the pet food task force.

This action proposes to amend the USDA organic regulations to reflect an October 2010 recommendation submitted to the Secretary by the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) concerning the production of organic apicultural (or beekeeping) products. Instead of continuing to allow certifying agents to certify apiculture to the organic livestock standards, this action would establish certification standards specifically for organic bees and bee products. 

This action proposes to establish standards for organic production and certification of farmed aquatic animals and their products in the USDA organic regulations. This action would also add aquatic animals as a scope of certification and accreditation under the National Organic Program. This action is necessary to establish standards for organic farmed aquatic animals and their products which would allow U.S. producers to compete in the organic seafood market. This action is also necessary to address multiple recommendations provided by USDA by the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB). In 2007 through 2009, the NOSB made five recommendations to establish standards for the certification of organic farmed aquatic animals and their products. Finally, the U.S. currently has organic standards equivalence arrangements with Canada and the European Union (EU). Both Canada and the EU have recently established standards for organic aquaculture products. Because the U.S. does not have organic aquaculture standards, the U.S. is unable to include aquaculture in the scope of these arrangements. Establishing U.S. organic aquaculture may provide a basis for expanding those trade partnerships.

As a result of this action, certified "organic" commodities (those comprising at least 95 percent organic components) would no longer be subject to assessment for promotion activities conducted under marketing order or research and promotion programs. In addition, certified organic commodities that are produced, handled, marketed, or imported by operations that also deal in conventional products would be eligible for exemptions. Currently, only products that are certified "100 percent organic" and that are produced and handled by entities that deal exclusively with organic products are exempt from assessments. This action is expected to reduce the assessment obligation for organic industry operators by as much as $13.7 million. Conversely, the impact on the marketing programs will be a loss of approximately $13.7 million in funds for generic commodity promotions.

FSIS is proposing to amend the Federal meat and poultry products inspection regulations to define the conditions under which it will permit the voluntary claim "natural" to be used in the labeling of meat and poultry products. FSIS also is proposing that label approval requests for labels that contain "natural" claims include documentation to demonstrate that the products meet the criteria to bear a "natural" claim. FSIS is proposing to require that meat or poultry products meet these conditions to qualify for a "natural" claim to make the claim more meaningful to consumers.

FSIS is proposing to amend its meat products inspection regulations to add Namibia to the list of countries eligible to export meat products to the United States (9 CFR 327.2). Namibia is not currently listed as eligible to export such products to the United States. If this proposed rule is adopted, any meat and meat products exported to the United States from Namibia will be subject to reinspection at the ports-of-entry for transportation damage, labeling, proper certification, general condition, and accurate box count. FSIS will also conduct other types of inspection, including examination of products for defects and sampling and laboratory analysis of products' chemical residues, or for microbiological contamination. Products that pass reinspection will be stamped with the official United States mark of inspection, and allowed to enter United States commerce. If they do not meet United States requirements, they will be refused entry and must be re-exported, destroyed, or converted to animal food.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is proposing to amend its regulations to require that all establishments that slaughter cattle (including calves) develop implement and maintain written procedures to prevent contamination of carcasses and parts by enteric pathogens (e.g. Salmonella and Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC)) and fecal material throughout the entire slaughter and dressing operation and that they incorporate their procedures into their Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point plans or sanitation standard operating procedures (sanitation SOPs) or other pre-requisite programs (also referred to collectively as the HACCP system).

FSIS is also proposing to remove the current regulatory Salmonella performance standards for beef carcasses and ground beef from the regulations and the generic Escherichia coli (E. coli) testing requirements for cattle.

FSIS is affirming, with changes, the interim final rule "Control of Listeria monocytogenes in Ready-to-Eat Meat and Poultry Products," which was published in the Federal Register on June 6, 2003, (68 FR 34208). The interim final rule requires establishments that produce certain ready-to-eat (RTE) meat and poultry products that are exposed to the processing environment after undergoing treatments lethal to Listeria monocytogenes (Lm) to have in their hazard analysis and critical control point (HACCP) plans, or in their sanitation standard operating procedures (Sanitation SOPs), or other prerequisite programs, controls that prevent product adulteration by Lm. Establishments must share with FSIS data and information relevant to their controls for Lm. Establishments also must furnish FSIS with information on the production volume of products affected by the regulations. Establishments may make claims on the labels of their RTE products regarding the processes they use to eliminate or reduce Lm, or suppress, or limit its growth in the products. FSIS is proposing to make minor changes to regulatory provisions in response to comments that the Agency received and on the basis of experience in implementing the interim final rule. Specific Lm references would be removed from hold-and-test provisions to clarify that establishments may not release product that has been in contact with Lm-contaminated surfaces without reprocessing. In addition, FSIS would reduce the reporting frequency for establishments that maintain essentially the same processing methods, Listeria controls, and production volumes from year to year. FSIS will request comments on these minor changes.

FSIS is proposing to amend the ante-mortem inspection regulations to remove a provision that permits establishments to set apart and hold for treatment veal calves that are unable to rise from a recumbent position and walk because they are tired or cold (9 CFR 309.13(b)). The regulations permit such calves to proceed to slaughter if they are able to rise and walk after being warmed or rested. FSIS is proposing to require that non-ambulatory disabled (NAD) veal calves that are offered for slaughter be condemned and promptly euthanized. The existing regulations require that NAD mature cattle be condemned on ante-mortem inspection and that they be promptly euthanized (9 CFR 309.3(e)). FSIS believes that prohibiting the slaughter of all NAD veal calves would improve compliance with the Humane Methods of Slaughter Act of 1978 (HMSA), and the humane slaughter implementing regulations. It also would improve the Agency's inspection efficiency by eliinating the time that FSIS inspection program personnel (IPP) spend assessing and supervising the treatment of NAD veal calves.

Consistent with the recent changes that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposed, the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is proposing to amend the Federal meat and poultry products inspection regulations to update and revise the nutrition labeling requirements for meat and poultry products to reflect recent scientific research and dietary recommendations and to improve the presentation of nutrition information to assist consumers in maintaining healthy dietary practices. FSIS is proposing to (1) update the list of nutrients that are required or permitted to be declared; (2) provide updated Daily Reference Values (DRV) and Reference Daily Intake (RDI) values that are based on current dietary recommendations from consensus reports; and (3) amend the requirements for foods represented or purported to be specifically for children under the age of four years and pregnant and lactating women and establish nutrient reference values specifically for these population subgroups. FSIS is also proposing to revise the format and appearance of the Nutrition Facts Panel; amend the definition of a single-serving container; require dual-column labeling for certain containers; and update and modify several reference amounts customarily consumed (RACCs or reference amounts). FSIS also is proposing to consolidate the nutrition labeling regulations for meat and poultry products into a new Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) part.

The 2008 Farm Bill (Pub. L. 110-246, sec. 11016), amended the Federal Meat Inspection Act (FMIA) to make "catfish" a species amenable to the FMIA and, therefore, subject to FSIS inspection. In addition, the 2008 Farm Bill gave FSIS the authority to define the term "catfish." On February 24, 2011, FSIS published a proposed rule that outlined a mandatory catfish inspection program and presented two options for defining "catfish." The 2014 Farm Bill (Pub. L. 113-79, sec. 12106), amended the FMIA to remove the term "catfish" and to make "all fish of the order Siluriformes" subject to FSIS jurisdiction and inspection. As a result, FSIS inspection of Siluriformes is mandated by law and non-discretionary.

FSIS is developing final regulations to amend the meat, poultry, and egg product inspection regulations to provide for an electronic export application and certification system. The electronic export application and certification system will be a component of the Agency's Public Health Information System (PHIS). The export component of PHIS will be available as an alternative to the paper-based application and certification process. FSIS intends to charge users for the use of the system. FSIS is establishing a formula for calculating the fee. FSIS also is providing establishments that export meat, poultry, and egg products with flexibility in the official export inspection marks, devices, and certificates. In addition, FSIS is amending the egg product export regulations to parallel the meat and poultry export regulations.

FSIS is finalizing regulations to require the use of the descriptive designation "mechanically tenderized" on the labels of raw or partially cooked needle- or blade-tenderized beef products, including beef products injected with marinade or solution, unless such products are destined to be fully cooked at an official establishment. Beef products that have been needle- or blade-tenderized are referred to as "mechanically tenderized" products. This rule would require that the product name for such beef products include the descriptive designation "mechanically tenderized," and an accurate description of the beef component. The rule would also require that the print for all words in the descriptive designation and the product name appear in a single, easy-to-read type style and color and on a single-color contrasting background. The print may appear in upper and lowercase letters with the lowercase letters not smaller than one-third (1/3) the size of the largest letter. In addition, this rule would require that labels of raw and partially-cooked needle- or blade-tenderized beef products destined for household consumers, hotels, restaurants, or similar institutions include validated cooking instructions stating that these products need to be cooked to a specified minimum internal temperature, and whether they need to be held at that minimum internal temperature for a specified time before consumption (in other words, dwell time or rest time) to ensure that they are thoroughly cooked.

FSIS proposed to amend its recordkeeping regulations to specify that all official establishments and retail stores that grind raw beef products for sale in commerce must keep records that disclose the identity of the supplier of all source materials that they use in the preparation of each lot of raw ground product, and identify the names of those source materials.

FSIS is proposing to add Lithuania to the list of countries eligible to export meat and meat products to the United States. Under this proposal, meat from cattle, sheep, swine, and goats slaughtered in Lithuania, or parts or other products thereof, processed in certified Lithuanian establishments, would be eligible for export to the United States. All such products would be subject to reinspection at United States ports-of-entry by FSIS inspectors.

FSIS amended its regulations to require the use of a descriptive designation as part of the product name on the labels of raw meat and poultry products that contain added solutions and that do not meet a standard of identity. The descriptive designation must include the percentage of added solution, and the individual ingredients or multi- ingredient components in the solution listed in descending order of predominance by weight. The print for all words in the product name, including the descriptive designation, must appear in a single easy-to-read type style and color and on a single-color contrasting background. The print may appear in upper and lower case letters, with the lower case letters no smaller than one-third (1/3) the size of the largest letter. The percent solution must appear as a number (e.g., 15, 20, 30) with the percentage sign (%) and may be declared with the word ‘‘containing’’ or ‘‘contains.’’ Under this final rule, the word ‘‘enhanced’’ is not allowed in the product name. The Agency also removed the standard of identity regulation for ‘‘ready-to-cook poultry products to which solutions are added’’ (9 CFR 381.169).

The Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (FNA) provides authority for the Secretary of Agriculture to establish temporary emergency standards of eligibility for the duration of an emergency for households who are victims of a disaster that disrupts commercial channels of food distribution. FNS plans to publish a Proposed Rule for D-SNAP that will codify longstanding policies disseminated through previous guidance.

This rulemaking will propose to implement sections 4113 (Split Issuance), 4114 (Accrual of Benefits), and part of 4115 (Interchange Fees) of the 2008 Farm Bill, which pertain to Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefit issuance and redemption. The provisions of section 4115 to de-obligate coupons and make Electronic Benefit Transfer cards the sole method of benefit delivery will be addressed in a separate rulemaking.

This final rule will implement section 221 of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 (Pub. L. 111-296; the Act). It requires USDA to review and update, no less frequently than once every 10 years, requirements for meals served under the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) to ensure those meals are consistent with the most recent Dietary Guidelines for Americans and relevant nutrition science.

This rulemaking will address the criteria used to authorize redemption of SNAP benefits (especially by restaurant-type operations).

This rule proposes to amend National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program regulations to implement section 207 of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 (Pub. L. 111-296). Section 207 of the Act requires the Secretary to establish a unified system of reviews to ensure local school food authorities participating in the lunch and breakfast programs comply with program requirements. This rule will propose to amend existing regulations found at 7 CFR parts 210 and 220 to revise, update, and streamline the administrative review requirements consistent with the provisions of section 207 of the Act.

The Agricultural Act of 2014 (Pub. L. 113-79, the Farm Bill) amended the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (the FNA) to include new requirements regarding the acceptance and processing of SNAP client benefits by all non-exempt retailers participating in SNAP. Statutory changes will modernize EBT systems and ensure greater program integrity. The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) also plans to revise certain SNAP regulations for which multiple State agencies have sought and received approval of waivers. The revisions will streamline program administration, offer greater flexibility to State agencies, and improve customer service. 

FNS proposes to implement provisions of the Agricultural Act of 2014 (Pub. L. 113-79, the Farm Bill) with regard to the processing of donated foods, and to amend current regulations further to provide more efficient and effective service to State distributing and recipient agencies, including School Food Authorities (SFA).

This rule will align program regulations with changes made by section 4002 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 (Pub. L. 113-79, the Farm Bill), which introduces new technical requirements for point-of-sale (POS) devices in the Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) system in section 7(h)(2)(C) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (the FNA). The Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) will propose to revise existing regulations both to codify these statutory requirements as well as to provide for their effective implementation and enforcement through the clarification of the technical specifications and capabilities required of this equipment and by addressing methods for ensuring compliance. In addition, the Department will define what constitutes an area that has significantly limited access to food to determine who is exempt from this requirement.

This rule proposes to revise program regulations to implement changes made by section 4003 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 (Pub. L. 113-79, the Farm Bill), which amends the definition of retail food store in section 3(o) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (the FNA) to include governmental or private nonprofit food purchasing and delivery services (P&D Services) that purchase and deliver food to individuals who are unable to shop if they are 60 years of age or older or physically or mentally handicapped or otherwise disabled.  The Farm Bill requires that the participating household be notified, at the time of the food order, of any fee associated with the P&D Service and that the fee cannot be paid with SNAP benefits.  The Farm Bill requires the Secretary to issue regulations establishing criteria to identify P&D Services that may qualify as a retail food store in SNAP.

The proposed action will address sections 4007, 4008, 4009 and 4015 of the Agricultural Act of 2014. Section 4007, Eligibility Disqualifications, will address student eligibility for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. Section 4008, Eligibility Disqualifications for Certain Convicted Felons, will address SNAP eligibility of certain convicted felons who are not in compliance with the terms of their sentence. Section 4009, Lottery and Gambling Winners, will address ineligibility for SNAP beneficiaries with substantial gambling or lottery winnings. Section 4015, Mandating State Immigration Verification, will address the procedures States must have in place to verify immigration status.

This proposed regulation will implement the final guidance Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards published by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on December 26, 2013. USDA implementation of the guidance will occur in December 2014 with the OMB joint interim final rule. This FNS rule will update references to the OMB final guidance throughout the FNS rules.

The proposed action would implement section 4006, Standard Utility Allowances Based on the Receipt of Energy Assistance Payments, of the Agricultural Act of 2014.  Under section 4006, the Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) is instructed to promulgate regulations establishing that those States electing to use a heating or cooling standard utility allowance (HCSUA) in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) eligibility determinations must make the HCSUA available to households that receive a Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) or other similar energy assistance program payment greater than $20 annually in the current month or in the immediately preceding 12 months.

This rule proposes to implement section 4018 of the Agricultural Act of 2014. This section created new limitations on the use of Federal funds authorized in the Food and Nutrition Act for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) promotion and outreach activities.  These changes will affect the type of outreach activities eligible for 50 percent Federal reimbursement conducted by State agencies and their community partners.  This regulation will codify section 4018 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 which establishes new parameters regarding how funds authorized by the Food and Nutrition Act may be spent to promote SNAP. The Agricultural Act of 2014 makes these changes by amending sections 16(a)(4) and 18 of the Food and Nutrition Act.

Under section 7(h)(9) of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 (the Act), as amended [7 U.S.C. 2016(h)(9)], States have the option to require that SNAP Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card contain a photo of one or more household members.  This rule would incorporate into regulation and provide additional clarity on the FNS guidance developed for State agencies wishing to implement the photo EBT card option.