Reply to Public Comment - Jean Public

U nited States Department of Agriculture

National Agricultural Statistics Service

Dear Ms. Jean Public,

The mission of the National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) is to provide timely, reliable, and accurate agricultural information to private industry, the public, and governmental sectors.  NASS regularly reviews and evaluates programs based on industry and data user input. We carefully examine questionnaires and published reports to make sure they provide the data users with useful information to help them make informed decisions.

NASS is a non-regulatory agency within the USDA. We collect and publish unbiased data that is used in making objective decisions. Our questionnaires are designed to collect both chemical data and integrated pest management data. This provides data users with a complete picture on the different production practices that are used for this industry. The potential for labeling of nursery and floriculture plant materials to list the chemicals they are treated with is outside the scope of our authority or responsibility.

The two supplemental questionnaires that are being used for Oregon are conducted under a cooperative agreement between the Oregon State Government and NASS.

I trust this response helps address your concerns.

Best regards,

David Hancock

NASS OMB Clearance Officer

USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.