Draft MFP NOFA

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Notices

Federal Register
Vol. 83, No. 169
Thursday, August 30, 2018

This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER
contains documents other than rules or
proposed rules that are applicable to the
public. Notices of hearings and investigations,
committee meetings, agency decisions and
rulings, delegations of authority, filing of
petitions and applications and agency
statements of organization and functions are
examples of documents appearing in this
section.

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Commodity Credit Corporation
Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA);
Market Facilitation Program (MFP)
Payments to Producers
Commodity Credit Corporation
and Farm Service Agency, USDA.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:

MFP provides payments to
producers with commodities that have
been significantly impacted by actions
of foreign governments resulting in the
loss of traditional exports. This NOFA
announces the availability of MFP funds
for eligible producers of the following

SUMMARY:

commodities for 2018: Soybeans,
sorghum, wheat, extra long staple (ELS)
cotton, upland cotton, corn, hogs, and
milk. On behalf of the Commodity
Credit Corporation (CCC), the Farm
Service Agency (FSA) will administer
MFP. MFP participants will receive an
MFP payment, calculated based on the
eligible production multiplied by the
participant’s share multiplied by the
MFP payment rate.
DATES:
Application period: September 4,
2018, through January 15, 2019.
Comment Dates: We will consider
comments on the Paperwork Reduction
Act that we receive by: October 29,
2018.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Bradley Karmen, Acting Deputy
Administrator for Farm Programs,
telephone: (202) 720–3175.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

the eligibility requirements, payment
calculations, and application
procedures for MFP. MFP provides
assistance to producers with
commodities that have been
significantly impacted by actions of
foreign governments resulting in the
loss of traditional exports. This NOFA
announces the availability of initial
MFP payments for 2018 for soybeans,
sorghum, wheat, ELS cotton, upland
cotton, corn, hogs, and milk.
Application Process
Each eligible producer applies for
MFP on an application form. A
producer applies for MFP once.
Payments will not be issued until a
producer certifies production, as
described below.
Payment Rates

Background
CCC published 7 CFR part 1409 in the
Rules and Regulations section of this
issue of the Federal Register specifying

The MFP payment rates will be as
determined by CCC.
The MFP payment rates and units of
measure that will be in effect beginning
September 4, 2018, are listed in the
following table.
Rate
($/unit)

Commodity

Unit

Soybeans ....................................................................................
Sorghum ......................................................................................
Wheat ..........................................................................................
Cotton (Upland and ELS) ...........................................................
Corn ............................................................................................
Hogs ............................................................................................
Milk ..............................................................................................

bushels .......................................................................................
bushels .......................................................................................
bushels .......................................................................................
pounds .......................................................................................
bushels .......................................................................................
head ...........................................................................................
hundredweight (cwt) ...................................................................

$1.65
0.86
0.14
0.06
0.01
8.00
0.12

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The units of measure are: bu = number of bushels; lb. = weight in pounds; head = number of head of hogs; and cwt = hundredweight.

The initial payment rate will apply to
the first 50 percent of the producer’s
total production of the selected
commodity. On or about December 3,
2018, CCC may announce a second
payment rate, if applicable, that will
apply to the remaining 50 percent of the
producer’s production for the selected
commodity.
MFP payment at either the initial
payment rate or at a second payment
rate will be made after a producer
harvests 100 percent of the crop and
certifies the amount of production.
The actual production used to
calculate an MFP payment under this
NOFA is for 2018 production in which
the applicant had an ownership share.
Specifically, required production
information is as follows:

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• For crops, harvested production for
the 2018 crop year;
• For hogs, the number of head of live
hogs owned as of August 1, 2018; and
• For milk, the historical production
reported for the Margin Protection
Program—Dairy (following the same
reporting rules as used for MPP—Dairy).
An ownership share for a crop will be
as reported to FSA on the acreage
report, form FSA–578, ‘‘Report of
Acreage.’’ With respect to cotton, the
ownership share applies only to cotton
harvested as lint cotton and with respect
to corn, sorghum, and wheat, the
ownership share applies only to such
commodities that are harvested as grain.
The ownership share for milk will be as
reported to FSA for MPP—Dairy for the
dairy operation that was in business as

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of June 1, 2018. Dairy operations that
are not in business as of June 1, 2018,
are ineligible for MFP. Ownership for
hogs will be reported to FSA on the
MFP application; if a person or legal
entity has a contract to grow the hogs,
but does not own the hogs as of August
1, 2018, the person or legal entity is
ineligible for MFP.
Production Evidence
On the application, the producer will
certify the amount of production and
note the source of production evidence.
If requested, the producer must also
provide supporting documentation as
determined by CCC for the amount of
production.
If supporting documentation is
required for the amount of actual

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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 169 / Thursday, August 30, 2018 / Notices

production and for ownership share, it
needs to be verifiable records that
substantiate the reported amounts. The
participant’s production for the
commodity is based on verifiable or
reliable production records. Examples of
reliable production records include
evidence provided by the participant
that is used to substantiate the amount
of production reported when verifiable
records are not available, including
copies of receipts, ledgers of income,
income statements of deposit slips,
register tapes, invoices for custom
harvesting, and records to verify
production costs, contemporaneous
measurements, truck scale tickets, or
contemporaneous diaries that are
determined acceptable by the county
committee.
Reliable record means any
nonverifiable record available that
reasonably supports the eligible
production, as determined acceptable by
the FSA county committee.
Verifiable record means a document
provided by the producer that can be
verified by the FSA county committee
through an independent source and is
used to substantiate the eligible
production.
Payment Limitation
For MFP payments, there will be a
single combined $125,000 per person or
legal entity payment limitation for the
five crops announced in this NOFA and
a separate combined per person or legal
entity $125,000 payment limitation for
hogs and milk.
Eligible Crops
To be eligible to receive an MFP
payment for a crop, the amount of
mechanically harvested production for
soybeans, sorghum, wheat, ELS cotton,
upland cotton, and corn will be the
amount based on the crop types,
intended uses, and status that are
consistent with the Agriculture Risk
Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage
(PLC) program regulations in 7 CFR part
1412, except grazing is not an eligible
intended use for MFP.

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Paperwork Reduction Act
Requirements
In accordance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C.
chapter 35), FSA is requesting
comments from interested individuals
and organizations on the information
collection activities related to MFP.
After the 60-day period ends, the
information collection request will be
submitted to OMB for the 3-year
approval to cover MFP information
collection.

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To start the MFP information
collection approval, FSA received
emergency approval from OMB for 6
months. The emergency approval covers
this NOFA and any other MFP
information collection activities.
Title: Marketing Facilitation Program
(MFP).
OMB Control Number: 0560—New.
Type of Request: New Collection.
Abstract: This information collection
is required to support all MFP
information collection activities (NOFA
and the regulation in 7 CFR part 1409)
to provide eligible producers payments
with respect to commodities that have
been significantly impacted by actions
of foreign governments resulting in the
loss of traditional exports. The
information collection is necessary to
evaluate the application and other
required paperwork for determining the
producer’s eligibilities and assist in
producer’s payment calculations.
For the following estimated total
annual burden on respondents, the
formula used to calculate the total
burden hour is the estimated average
time per response multiplied by the
estimated total annual responses.
Public reporting burden for this
information collection is estimated to
include the time for reviewing
instructions, searching existing data
sources, gathering and maintaining the
data needed and completing and
reviewing the collections of
information.
Type of Respondents: Producers or
farmers.
Estimated Annual Number of
Respondents: 784,439.
Estimated Number of Reponses per
Respondent: 1.
Estimated Total Annual Responses:
784,439.
Estimated Average Time per
Response: 0.6983 hours.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on
Respondents: 863,297.
FSA is requesting comments on all
aspects of this information collection to
help us to:
(1) Evaluate whether the collection of
information is necessary for the proper
performance of the functions of the
FSA, including whether the information
will have practical utility;
(2) Evaluate the accuracy of the FSA’s
estimate of burden including the
validity of the methodology and
assumptions used;
(3) Enhance the quality, utility and
clarity of the information to be
collected;
(4) Minimize the burden of the
collection of information on those who
are to respond, including through the
use of appropriate automated,

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electronic, mechanical, or other
technological collection techniques or
other forms of information technology.
All comments received in response to
this notice, including names and
addresses when provided, will be a
matter of public record. Comments will
be summarized and included in the
submission for Office of Management
and Budget approval.
Environmental Review
The environmental impacts for MFP
have been considered in a manner
consistent with the provisions of the
National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA, 42 U.S.C. 4321–4347), the
regulations of the Council on
Environmental Quality (40 CFR parts
1500–1508), and the FSA regulation for
compliance with NEPA (7 CFR part
799).
As stated in the MFP final rule, the
implementation of MFP and the
participation in MFP do not constitute
major Federal actions that would
significantly affect the quality of the
human environment, individually or
cumulatively. The final rule served as
documentation of the programmatic
environmental compliance decision for
this federal program; therefore, CCC will
not prepare additional environmental
compliance documentation for this
NOFA.
Federal Assistance Programs
The title and number of the Federal
assistance programs, as found in the
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance,
to which this NOFA applies is:
10.123 Market Facilitation Program.
Richard Fordyce,
Administrator, Farm Service Agency.
Robert Stephenson,
Executive Vice President, Commodity Credit
Corporation.
[FR Doc. 2018–18819 Filed 8–28–18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410–05–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food and Nutrition Service
Agency Information Collection
Activities: Proposed Collection;
Comment Request—Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program—
Disaster Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance Program (D–SNAP)
Food and Nutrition Service,
USDA.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:

In accordance with the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this
notice invites the general public and

SUMMARY:

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