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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 220 / Thursday, November 18, 2021 / Rules and Regulations
hundredweight assessment rate. The Committee anticipates other income of approximately $5,000. Total income of $69,000, combined with $6,250 from the financial reserve, will provide enough funds to cover 202021 crop year budgeted expenditures. Reserve funds remaining at the end of the 202021
crop year are expected to be $28,750.
The Committees budget for the 2020
21 crop year is estimated to be $75,250.
The Committees expenses include $47,000 for management, $19,250 for office administration, and $9,000 for the financial audit. In comparison, the previous crop years total budget was $74,200, and the administrative expenses were $43,000, $21,200, and $10,000, respectively.
The assessment rate recommended by the Committee was derived by considering anticipated expenses, the expected volume of dates handled, and the amount of funds available in the operating reserve. Income derived from handler assessments of $64,000 320,000
hundredweight assessed at a rate of $0.20 per hundredweight will be adequate to cover most of the Committees budgeted expenses of $75,250, with the balance covered from $5,000 in other income and $6,250 from reserve funds. After expending $6,250, the ending 202021 crop year balance in the financial reserve is expected to be $28,750, which would be less than the average of the annual expenses of the preceding five years as mandated by 987.72d.
The assessment rate established by this rule will continue in effect indefinitely unless modified, suspended, or terminated by USDA
upon recommendation and information submitted by the Committee or other available information.
Although this assessment rate will be in effect for an indefinite period, the Committee will continue to meet prior to or during each crop year to recommend a budget of expenses and consider recommendations for modification of the assessment rate. The dates and times of Committee meetings are available from the Committee or USDA. Meetings are public and held virtually or in a hybrid style with participants having a choice whether to attend in person or virtually. All interested persons may express their views at these meetings. USDA will evaluate Committee recommendations and other available information to determine whether modification of the assessment rate is needed. Further rulemaking will be undertaken as necessary. The Committees budget for subsequent crop years will be reviewed and, as appropriate, approved by USDA.

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Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis Pursuant to requirements set forth in the Regulatory Flexibility Act RFA 5
U.S.C. 601612, AMS has considered the economic impact of this rule on small entities. Accordingly, AMS has prepared this final regulatory flexibility analysis.
The purpose of the RFA is to fit regulatory actions to the scale of businesses subject to such actions in order that small businesses will not be unduly or disproportionately burdened.
Marketing orders issued pursuant to the Act, and the rules issued thereunder, are unique in that they are brought about through group action of essentially small entities acting on their own behalf.
There are approximately 70 date producers in the production area and 11
date handlers subject to regulation under the Order. The Small Business Administration defines small agricultural producers as those having annual receipts of less than $1,000,000, and small agricultural service firms as those whose annual receipts are less than $30,000,000. 13 CFR 121.201
According to the National Agricultural Statistics Service NASS, data for the most-recently completed crop year 2019 shows that the producer price for fresh market California dates was $4,130 per ton.
With the estimated 16,000-ton crop, the total farm gate value for California date producers was approximately $66,080,000 16,000 times $4,130.
Therefore, the average fresh market date revenue for the 70 producers within the production area is approximately $944,000 $66,080,000 divided by 70.
Thus, assuming a normal bell-curve distribution of receipts among producers, AMS estimates the majority of producers would qualify as small businesses under the SBA definition.
Furthermore, USDA Market News reported an average terminal market price of $50.88 per 11-pound carton for the 201920 crop year. With approximately 32,000,000 pounds handled, the industry would have shipped an estimated 2,909,091 11pound cartons 32,000,000 divided by 11 of packaged dates for a total value of $148,014,550 2,909,091 times $50.88. With 11 date handlers within the production area, the average revenue per handler is estimated to be $13,455,868 for the 201920 crop year $148,014,550 divided by 11. Thus, most California date handlers would be considered small businesses under the SBA definition.
This final rule increases the assessment rate collected from handlers
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for the 202021 and subsequent crop years from $0.15 to $0.20 per hundredweight of dates handled. The Committee unanimously recommended 202021 crop year expenditures of $75,250 and an assessment rate of $0.20
per hundredweight of dates, which is $0.05 higher than the rate currently in effect. The quantity of assessable dates for the 202021 crop year is estimated to be 32,000,000 pounds 320,000
hundredweight. The $0.20 per hundredweight assessment rate is expected to provide $64,000 in assessment income. Income derived from handlers assessments, plus $5,000
of other income and $6,250 from the Committees authorized reserve, will be adequate to cover the Committees budgeted expenses for the 202021 crop year.
The total budget recommended by the Committee for the 202021 crop year is $75,250, compared to $74,200 for the 201920 crop year. The Committee recommended the higher assessment rate to fully fund ongoing program expenses without depleting its operating reserve.
The income generated from the higher assessment rate, combined with other income and a small amount from the financial reserve, will be sufficient to cover anticipated 202021 expenses and to maintain a financial reserve within the limit specified by the Order.
Section 987.72d states that the Committee may maintain an operating monetary reserve not to exceed the average of one years expenses incurred during the most recent five preceding crop years, except that an established reserve need not be reduced to conform to any recomputed average. The Committee estimated that funds in its reserve were approximately $35,000 at the beginning of the 202021 crop year.
It expects to utilize $6,250 of the reserve during the year, leaving a reserve of approximately $28,750 to start the 202122 crop year, which would be within the limit specified in the Order.
The Committee reviewed and unanimously recommended 202021
crop year expenditures of $75,250. The Committee considered several factors before making its recommendation, including the size of the anticipated 202021 crop, the Committees estimated 202021 reserve carry-in, other sources of income, and its anticipated expenses. Further, the Committee considered several alternative expenditure levels and assessment rates, including not changing the assessment rate or adjusting expenses. Ultimately, the Committee recommended the $0.20 per hundredweight assessment rate to fund
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