80 FR 22361 - Honey Packers and Importers Research, Promotion, Consumer Education and Information Order; Assessment Rate Increase

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Marketing Service

Federal Register Volume 80, Issue 77 (April 22, 2015)

This rule amends the Honey Packers and Importers Research, Promotion, Consumer Education and Information Order (Order) to increase the assessment rate from $0.01 per pound to $0.015 per pound on honey and honey products, over a two-year period. The Order limits an increase in the assessment rate to no more than one-quarter cent per pound per year. Thus, the rate will increase to $0.0125 per pound for the period January 1 through December 31, 2015, and to $0.015 per pound on and after January 1, 2016. This increase was unanimously recommended by the Honey Packers and Importers Board (Board) which administers the Order with oversight by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). Under the program, assessments are collected from first handlers (packers) and importers and used for research and promotion projects designed to maintain and expand the market for honey and honey products in the United States and abroad. Additional funds will allow the Board to expand its production research activities and promotional efforts. The Board's production research focuses on maintaining the health of honey bee colonies. Increasing demand for honey and honey products will benefit the honey industry as a whole. This action also makes three additional changes to: Clarify that the assessment rate applies not only to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule numbers but to any other numbers used to identify honey; change the length of time that books and records are to be held; and change the exemption requirements.

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 77 (Wednesday, April 22, 2015)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 22361-22366]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2015-09292]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

7 CFR Part 1212

[Document Number AMS-FV-14-0045]


Honey Packers and Importers Research, Promotion, Consumer 
Education and Information Order; Assessment Rate Increase

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: This rule amends the Honey Packers and Importers Research, 
Promotion, Consumer Education and Information Order (Order) to increase 
the assessment rate from $0.01 per pound to $0.015 per pound on honey 
and honey products, over a two-year period. The Order limits an 
increase in the assessment rate to no more than one-quarter cent per 
pound per year. Thus, the rate will increase to $0.0125 per pound for 
the period January 1 through December 31, 2015, and to $0.015 per pound 
on and after January 1, 2016. This increase was unanimously recommended 
by the Honey Packers and Importers Board (Board) which administers the 
Order with oversight by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). 
Under the program, assessments are collected from first handlers 
(packers) and importers and used for research and promotion projects 
designed to maintain and expand the market for honey and honey products 
in the United States and abroad. Additional funds will allow the Board 
to expand its production research activities and promotional efforts. 
The

[[Page 22362]]

Board's production research focuses on maintaining the health of honey 
bee colonies. Increasing demand for honey and honey products will 
benefit the honey industry as a whole. This action also makes three 
additional changes to: Clarify that the assessment rate applies not 
only to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule numbers but to any other numbers 
used to identify honey; change the length of time that books and 
records are to be held; and change the exemption requirements.

DATES: Effective: May 22, 2015.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Patricia A. Petrella, Marketing 
Specialist, Promotion and Economics Division, Fruit and Vegetable 
Program, AMS, USDA, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., Room 1406-S, Stop 
0244, Washington, DC 20250-0244; telephone: (202) 720-9915; facsimile: 
(202) 205-2800; or electronic mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This rule is issued under the Order (7 CFR 
part 1212). The Order is authorized under the Commodity Promotion, 
Research, and Information Act of 1996 (1996 Act) (7 U.S.C. 7411-7425).

Executive Order 12866 and Executive 13563

    Executive Orders 12866 and 13563 direct agencies to assess all 
costs and benefits of available regulatory alternatives and, if 
regulation is necessary, to select regulatory approaches that maximize 
net benefits (including potential economic, environmental, public 
health and safety effects, distributive impacts and equity). Executive 
Order 13563 emphasizes the importance of quantifying both costs and 
benefits, reducing costs, harmonizing rules and promoting flexibility. 
This action has been designated as a ``non-significant regulatory 
action'' under section 3(f) of Executive Order 12866. Accordingly, the 
Office of Management and Budget has waived the review process.

Executive Order 13175

    This action has been reviewed in accordance with the requirements 
of Executive Order 13175, Consultation and Coordination with Indian 
Tribal Governments. The review reveals that this regulation will not 
have substantial and direct effects on Tribal governments and will not 
have significant Tribal implications.

Executive Order 12988

    This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988, Civil 
Justice Reform. Section 524 of the 1996 Act (7 U.S.C. 7423) provides 
that it shall not affect or preempt any other Federal or State law 
authorizing promotion or research relating to an agricultural 
commodity.
    Under the Order now in effect, honey first handlers and importers 
are subject to assessments. Funds to administer the Order are derived 
from such assessments. It is intended that the assessment rate of 
$0.0125 per pound will be applicable for all assessable honey for the 
period from January 1 through December 31, 2015, and that the rate of 
$0.015 per pound will be applicable to all assessable honey beginning 
on January 1, 2016, and continue until amended, suspended, or 
terminated.
    Under section 519 of the 1996 Act (7 U.S.C. 7418), a person subject 
to an order may file a written petition with USDA stating that an 
order, any provision of an order, or any obligation imposed in 
connection with an order, is not established in accordance with the 
law, and request a modification of an order or an exemption from an 
order. Any petition filed challenging an order, any provision of an 
order, or any obligation imposed in connection with an order, shall be 
filed within two years after the effective date of an order, provision, 
or obligation subject to challenge in the petition. The petitioner will 
have the opportunity for a hearing on the petition. Thereafter, USDA 
will issue a ruling on the petition. The 1996 Act provides that the 
district court of the United States for any district in which the 
petitioner resides or conducts business shall have the jurisdiction to 
review a final ruling on the petition, if the petitioner files a 
complaint for that purpose not later than 20 days after the date of the 
entry of USDA's final ruling.

Background

    This rule amends the Order to increase the assessment rate from 
$0.01 to $0.015 per pound on honey and honey products over a two-year 
period. The Order limits an increase in the assessment rate to no more 
than one-quarter cent per pound per year. Thus, the rate will increase 
to $0.0125 per pound for the period January 1 through December 31, 
2015, and to $0.015 per pound on and after January 1, 2016. The Order 
is administered by the Board with oversight by USDA. Under the program, 
assessments are collected from first handlers and importers and used 
for research and promotion projects designed to maintain and expand the 
market for honey and honey products in the United States and abroad. 
Additional funds will enable the Board to expand its production 
research activities and promotional efforts. The Board's production 
research focuses on maintaining the health of honey bee colonies. 
Promotional efforts focus on the innovative ways to market, promote, 
and utilize honey and honey products. Increasing demand for honey and 
honey products will benefit the honey industry as a whole. This action 
was unanimously recommended by the Board.
    The Order specifies that the funds to cover the Board's expenses 
shall be paid from assessments on first handlers and importers, 
donations from persons not subject to assessments, and from other funds 
available to the Board. First handlers are required to file reports and 
maintain records on the total quantity of honey and honey products 
acquired during the reporting period, the quantity of honey processed 
for sale from the handler's own production, and the quantity of honey 
purchased from a handler or importer responsible for paying the 
assessment due. Importers are required to report the total quantity of 
honey and honey products imported during each reporting period, and 
keep a record of each lot of honey and honey products imported during 
such period, including the quantity, date, country of origin, and port 
of entry. Importers are responsible for paying assessments to the Board 
on honey and honey products imported into the United States through the 
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (Customs). The Order also provides 
for two exemptions. First handlers who handle less than 250,000 pounds 
and importers who import less than 250,000 pounds of honey and honey 
products annually, and first handlers and importers of 100 percent 
organic honey and honey products are exempt from the payment of 
assessments.
    Section 1212.52 of the Order specifies that assessments shall be 
levied at a rate of $0.01 per pound on all honey and honey products. 
The Board may recommend to the Secretary an increase or decrease in the 
assessment as it deems appropriate by at least a two-thirds vote of 
members present at a meeting of the Board. The Board may not recommend 
an increase in the assessment of more than $0.02 per pound of honey or 
honey products and may not increase the assessment by more than $0.0025 
in any single fiscal year.
    The $0.01 per pound assessment rate has been in effect since the 
Order's inception in 2008. The Board's fiscal year runs from January 1 
through December 31. Board expenditures have ranged from $4,157,250 for 
its first full year in 2009 to $4,556,490 in 2013. Expenditures for 
research have ranged

[[Page 22363]]

from $465,579 in 2009 (11 percent of total expenses) to $231,234 in 
2013 (5 percent of total expenses). Board expenditures for health 
messaging and promotion activities have ranged from $2,311,370 in 2009 
(56 percent of total expenses) to $2,859,743 in 2013 (63 percent of 
total expenses). Pursuant to section 1212.50(h) of the Order, 
administrative expenditures have been less than 15 percent of the 
assessments and other income received by the Board annually.
    Board assessment income has ranged from $3,345,543 in 2009 
($2,085,204 in domestic assessments and $1,260,339 in import 
assessments) to $4,443,798 in 2013 ($1,122,390 in domestic assessments 
and $3,321,408 in import assessments). Additionally, pursuant to 
section 1212.54 of the Order, the Board maintains a monetary reserve 
with funds that do not exceed one fiscal period's budget.

Board 2014 Recommendation

    The Board held a teleconference on January 23, 2014, and 
unanimously recommended increasing its assessment rate from $0.01 to 
$0.015 per pound on honey and honey products over a two-year period. 
The Order limits an increase in the assessment rate to no more than 
one-quarter cent per pound per year. Thus, the rate will increase to 
$0.0125 per pound for the period January 1 through December 31, 2015, 
and to $0.015 per pound on and after January 1, 2016. Additional funds 
will enable the Board to expand its production research activities and 
promotional efforts. Since the program's inception, the Board has 
funded several production research projects focused on maintaining the 
health of honey bee colonies. The honey industry continues to 
experience considerable production challenges associated with the 
Colony Collapse Disorder. The honey industry has attempted to halt the 
long term decline in the numbers of honeybees (over 30 percent in the 
past twenty years) through treatment, colony development, maintenance, 
and replacement. The funds generated by an assessment increase will be 
spent on conducting research activities designed to address these 
critical issues. Per section 1212.50(a) of the Order, five percent (5 
percent) of the Board's anticipated revenue from assessments each 
fiscal period is to be allocated towards production research and 
research related to the production of honey. A possible one to two 
million dollar increase in assessment revenue would generate an 
additional $50,000 to $100,000 for production research.
    Furthermore, the Board also conducts research relating to various 
health and beauty issues, including alternative uses for honey. 
However, most of these preliminary findings have been done under 
laboratory conditions. Additional funds will allow the Board to 
incorporate specific areas of research into expanded clinical (human) 
trials. Clinical trials are important for the industry to be able to 
make health claims consistent with Federal Trade Commission and Food 
and Drug Administration requirements.
    The Board uses health information in its promotion messaging to 
help build demand for honey and honey products. Worldwide honey 
production has grown from 357 million pounds in 2009 to 487 million 
pounds in 2013. Increasing demand will help move the growing supply of 
honey, which in turn will assist the Board in reaching its goal to 
continually increase consumption among existing honey and honey product 
consumers and to attract new honey and honey product users.
    At the increased assessment rate on honey and honey products, with 
assessable pounds averaging 450 million per year, assessment income 
could reach $5.6 million in 2015 and $6.8 million in 2016. This 
increase could be used for research and promotion projects designed to 
maintain and expand the market for honey and honey products in the 
United States and abroad. As an example, if 5 percent of the budget was 
allocated to production research and 60 percent was allocated to 
promotion, funds available for production research could average 
approximately $340,000 annually, up from $231,234 in 2013, and funds 
available for health messaging and promotion could average $4.0 million 
annually, up from $2.8 million in 2013.
    In light of the need to allocate more funds towards production and 
health research activities and build demand for honey, the Board 
recommended increasing the assessment rate under the Order from $0.01 
to $0.015 per pound on honey and honey products over a two-year period. 
The Order limits an increase in the assessment rate to no more than 
one-quarter cent per year. Thus, the rate will increase to $0.0125 per 
pound for the period January 1 through December 31, 2015, and to $0.015 
per pound on and after January 1, 2016. Section 1212.52 of the Order is 
amended accordingly.
    Paragraph (e) of section 1212.52 is also revised to clarify that 
the assessment rate applies not only to the listed Harmonized Tariff 
Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) numbers, but also any other 
numbers that may be used to identify honey or honey products in the 
event the HTSUS numbers change; this change has no impact on the 
assessment rate.
    Section 1212.71 of the Order is also revised to change the length 
of time that books and records are to be held from two years to three 
years. This change conforms with the Board's compliance procedures, 
which provide that the Board conduct audit reviews every three years. 
Section 1212.53 of the Order is revised to state that exemptions from 
assessments for a calendar year are effective on the date approved by 
the Board. This change is being made to clarify exemption requirements. 
These changes pose no additional information collection burden on honey 
first handlers and importers.

Final Regulatory Flexibility Act Analysis

    In accordance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) (5 U.S.C. 
601-612), AMS is required to examine the impact of this rule on small 
entities. Accordingly, AMS has considered the economic impact of this 
action on such entities.
    The purpose of the RFA is to fit regulatory actions to the scale of 
businesses subject to such actions so that small businesses will not be 
disproportionately burdened. The Small Business Administration defines, 
in 13 CFR part 121, small agricultural producers as those having annual 
receipts of no more than $750,000 and small agricultural service firms 
(first handlers and importers) as those having annual receipts of no 
more than $7.0 million.
    There are 661 importers and 42 first handlers of honey and honey 
products covered under the program. Seventeen out of the 42 first 
handlers (40 percent) and 21 out of the 661 importers (3 percent) 
accounted for 90 percent of the assessments in their respective 
categories. Total assessments for 2013 were $4.44 million, of which 
$1.12 million (25 percent) came from first handlers and $3.32 million 
(75 percent) was paid by importers. This data can be used to compute an 
estimate of average annual revenue from honey sales from each of these 
categories, which in turn helps to estimate the number of large and 
small first handlers and importers. As mentioned above, 17 first 
handlers account for 90 percent of the domestic assessments. 
Multiplying first handler assessments in 2013 of $1,122,390 by 0.9 and 
then dividing by 17 yields an average annual assessment of $59,421 for 
the first handlers in this category. Dividing the assessment rate of 
one cent per pound yields an average quantity

[[Page 22364]]

per first handler of 5.942 million pounds. Multiplying 5.942 million 
pounds by the average 2013 U.S. domestic price \1\ of $2.12 per pound 
yields an average, annual honey revenue per packer of $12.60 million, 
which is well above the SBA threshold of $7.0 million. It should be 
noted that this revenue estimate is based on the average price at the 
producer level, and the $12.6 million is an estimate of the total value 
at which the average size packer acquired the honey from producers. 
Therefore most of the 17 first handlers that pay 90 percent of the 
domestic assessments are likely to be large firms according to the SBA 
definition.
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    \1\ Honey, March 2014, USDA, National Agricultural Statistics 
Service, p. 3
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    An equivalent computation can be made for the 21 importers who paid 
90 percent of the $3,321,408 in assessments in 2013. Of the 21 
importers, the average assessment per importer was $142,346. Dividing 
the average assessment per importer by the assessment rate of $0.01 per 
pound yield an average quantity per importer estimate of 14.235 million 
pounds.
    For honey imports, the equivalent of the season average price for 
domestic honey is referred to as a ``unit value.'' The unit value of 
$1.42 per pound is computed by dividing annual imported honey value of 
$480.25 million by average quantity of 337.05 million pounds (import 
data from the U.S. Census Bureau). Multiplying the $1.42 unit value by 
the average quantity of 14.235 million pounds yields average annual 
honey revenue per importer figure of $20.21 million, nearly three times 
the SBA threshold figure of $7.0 million for a large firm. Therefore 
the majority of the 21 importers that pay 90 percent of the assessments 
are large firms, according to the SBA definition.
    Comparable computations can be made to determine the average 2013 
honey revenue for the 25 first handlers and 640 importers that paid 10 
percent of the assessments in the first handler and importer 
categories. The first handler and importer average annual honey revenue 
figures are approximately $950,000 and $75,000, respectively, 
indicating that the vast majority are small businesses (in terms of 
honey sales), under the SBA large business threshold of $7.0 million in 
annual sales.
    Based on the foregoing, the majority of first handlers and 
importers may be classified as small entities.
    This final rule amends section 1212.52 of the Order to increase the 
assessment rate from $0.01 to $0.015 per pound (an increase of $0.0025 
per pound per year over a two-year period). The Order is administered 
by the Board with oversight by USDA. Under the program, assessments are 
collected from first handlers and importers and used for research and 
promotion projects designed to maintain and expand the market for honey 
and honey products in the United States and abroad. Additional funds 
will enable the Board to expand its production research activities and 
promotional efforts. The Board uses its health information in its 
promotion messaging to help build demand. Increasing demand will help 
move the growing supply of honey and honey products, which will benefit 
producers, importers, first handlers, and consumers. Authority for this 
action is provided in section 1212.52(f) of the Order and section 517 
of the 1996 Act.
    Two additional sections of the Order are also revised. Section 
1212.71 of the Order is revised to change the length of time that books 
and records are to be held from two years to three years. This change 
conforms to the Board's compliance procedures, which instructs the 
Board to conduct audit reviews every three years. Section 1212.53 of 
the Order is revised to state that exemptions from assessments for a 
calendar year are effective on the date approved by the Board. This 
change is being made to clarify exemption requirements. These changes 
pose no additional information collection burden on honey first 
handlers and importers.
    Regarding the economic impact of the final rule on affected 
entities, this action increases the assessment obligation on first 
handlers and importers. While assessments impose additional costs on 
first handlers and importers, the costs are minimal and uniform on all. 
The costs will also be offset by the benefits derived from the 
operation of the program. It is estimated that 42 first handlers and 
661 importers pay assessments under the program.
    There has been one economic study conducted since the Order's 
inception that evaluated the effectiveness of the Board's promotion 
program. The study was conducted by Dr. Ronald M. Ward at the 
University of Florida in 2014 and titled ``Honey Demand and the Impact 
of the National Honey Board's Generic Promotion Program.'' This study 
may be obtained from http://www.ams.usda.gov/. The 2014 study included 
data from 1987 through 2012, and evaluated the effectiveness of the 
former Honey Research, Promotion, and Consumer Information Order, and 
the current honey marketing program. The earlier honey program operated 
from 1986 through 2008, as a producer program. The earlier program was 
replaced in 2008 with the current packer and importer program; 
producers are no longer directly subject to the mandatory assessment. 
Otherwise, the two programs are similar, including the administrative 
and operational oversight.
    The purpose of the economic study was twofold: (1) To determine the 
market implications of the Board's promotion program and (2) to 
determine a return-on-investment (rate of return) for the promotion 
activities conducted by the Board.
    To evaluate the effectiveness of the Board's domestic promotion 
activities, econometric models were developed for each of two distinct 
honey market segments: manufacturing (honey used as an ingredient) and 
non-manufacturing (table honey). The models measured the impact of the 
Board's annual promotion expenditures while taking into account the 
impact of other factors that influence demand.
    For the non-manufacturing model, the other factors were domestic 
supplies of honey, personal income, and the historical support price 
for honey. For the manufacturing model, the other factors were the 
quantity of sugar used in food manufacturing (as a proxy measure of the 
overall demand for sweeteners, including honey), and a variable which 
captured the structural change in the honey market that began in 2007, 
when the market share of honey imports began to increase significantly. 
The manufacturing model using Board expenditure lagged one year because 
Board promotion expenditure in the prior year was found to have the 
most significant impact on honey manufacturing demand in the current 
year.
    Due to differences in data availability, the manufacturing model 
covered the time period of 1965 through 2012 and the non-manufacturing 
model spanned 1987 through 2012.
    The econometric models used statistical methods to analyze annual 
data over these time periods and measure how strongly the various honey 
demand factors affect (a) the quantity of honey as an ingredient 
(manufacturing model) and (b) the price for table honey (non-
manufacturing model). In both models, Board program expenditures were 
found to have a positive and statistically significant impact on 
demand. The models had reasonably strong explanatory power, with 80 
percent of the variation in quantity demanded explained by the 
independent variables in the manufacturing model, and 89 percent of the 
variation in price explained by the non-manufacturing model variables.

[[Page 22365]]

    The return on investment (ROI) for honey promotion was obtained by 
dividing the increased value of honey sales (for the two market 
segments combined) by Board program expenditures. The ROI for Board 
programs for the period 1987 to 2012 was 14.12, meaning $14.12 in 
returns (increased honey value) for every $1 spent on promotion. The 
results were similar for 2008 through 2012, the period covered by the 
new program funded by honey first handlers and importers.
    An additional step in assessing promotional program effectiveness 
was to analyze the potential impact of alternative honey promotion 
spending levels. The two demand models were used to simulate gains for 
various percentages of actual 2012 promotional expenditures. The 
results show a range of increased honey demand impacts from increased 
spending, depending on alternative assumptions about the level of honey 
price and honey quantity. The simulation results suggest that a 50 
percent increase in Board promotional expenditure would yield an 
additional $29 million in honey sales, if quantity demanded increased, 
but prices stayed the same. Alternatively, crop value would increase 
$44 million if prices went up, but quantity stayed the same. Returns on 
investment were 14 to 1 or higher over this range of alternative 
assumptions about market conditions. These results were similar to the 
ROI cited earlier. Focusing on 2012 illustrates the effectiveness of 
the program under the funding mechanism that began in 2008.
    In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 
Chapter 35), the information collection and recordkeeping requirements 
that are imposed by the Order have been approved previously under OMB 
control number 0581-0093. This final rule does not change the 
information collection and recordkeeping requirements previously 
approved and imposes no additional reporting and recordkeeping burden 
on honey first handlers and importers.
    As with all Federal promotion programs, reports and forms are 
periodically reviewed to reduce information requirements and 
duplication by industry and public sector agencies. Finally, USDA has 
not identified any relevant Federal rules that duplicate, overlap, or 
conflict with this final rule.
    AMS is committed to complying with the E-Government Act, to promote 
the use of the Internet and other information technologies to provide 
increased opportunities for citizen access to Government information 
and services, and for other purposes.
    The Board has been considering an increase in the assessment rate 
since 2011. The Board explored the need and justification for an 
increase as well as obtained feedback from the Board's stakeholders. 
Additionally, beginning in 2011, the Board has done extensive outreach 
to include presentations, handouts, and industry meeting attendance. As 
an alternative to an assessment rate increase, the Board considered 
cutting programs. The Board reduced honey research in order to maintain 
marketing programs and considered cutting additional marketing 
programs. However, after further analysis, it was determined that 
additional cuts would hurt the program. In late 2013, the Board 
presented the proposed assessment increase to the various honey 
associations. Ultimately, at its January 2014 meeting, the Board 
unanimously recommended increasing the assessment rate to $0.0125 per 
pound for the first year (January 1 through December 31, 2015) and to 
$0.015 per pound for the second year and beyond (on and after January 
1, 2016).
    A proposed rule concerning this action was published in the Federal 
Register on November 18, 2014 (79 FR 68636). The Board included 
notifications about the proposed rule in its newsletters and also 
mailed related information to honey packers and importers. Finally, the 
proposal was made available through the Internet by USDA and the Office 
of the Federal Register. A 30-day comment period ending December 18, 
2014, was provided to allow interested persons to submit comments.

Analysis of Comments

    Three comments were received in response to the proposed rule; two 
supported the increase, and one opposed the action. The two comments 
which supported increasing the assessment rate stated that the 
additional funds would allow the Board to expand its programs to 
promote the benefits of honey and honey products and develop new 
products that contain honey as a key ingredient. A commenter further 
stated that honey and honey bees are important to agriculture and the 
environment.
    The commenter in opposition to the proposal did not see the need to 
increase the assessment rate by 50 percent. The commenter stated that 
honey assessments have increased over the years because honey 
consumption has increased. The commenter opined that any increase in 
the honey budget should come from increased honey sales rather than 
increasing the assessment rate. USDA concurs that an increase in honey 
sales and consumption will increase Board income. However, maintaining 
the current $0.01 per pound assessment rate will not generate the 
amount of funds necessary to fund additional production research, human 
clinical trials, and conduct promotion activities needed to continue to 
build demand to move the growing supply of honey and honey products. 
Thus, no changes have been made to the rule based on this comment.
    After consideration of all relevant matters presented, including 
the information and recommendation submitted by the Board and other 
available information, it is hereby found that this rule, as 
hereinafter set forth, is consistent with and will effectuate the 
purposes of the 1996 Act.

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 1212

    Administrative practice and procedure, Advertising, Consumer 
information, Honey Packer and importer promotion, Marketing agreements, 
Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, part 1212, Chapter XI of 
Title 7 is amended as follows:

PART 1212--HONEY PACKERS AND IMPORTERS RESEARCH, PROMOTION, 
CONSUMER EDUCATION AND INDUSTRY INFORMATION ORDER

0
1. The authority citation for 7 CFR part 1212 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 7411-7425; 7 U.S.C. 7401.

0
2. In Sec.  1212.52, paragraphs (a), (b), (c), (d), and (e) are revised 
to read as follows:


Sec.  1212.52  Assessments.

    (a) The Board will cover its expenses by levying in a manner 
prescribed by the Secretary an assessment on first handlers and 
importers. For the period January 1 through December 31, 2015, the 
assessment rate shall be $0.0125 per pound of assessable honey and 
honey products. On and after January 1, 2016, the assessment rate shall 
be $0.015 per pound of assessable honey and honey products.
    (b) Each first handler shall pay the assessment to the Board on all 
domestically produced honey or honey products the first handler 
handles. A producer shall pay the Board the assessment on all honey or 
honey products for which the producer is the first handler.

[[Page 22366]]

    (c) Each first handler responsible for remitting assessments shall 
remit the amounts due to the Board's office on a monthly basis no later 
than the fifteenth day of the month following the month in which the 
honey or honey products were marketed.
    (d) Each importer shall pay an assessment to the Board on all honey 
or honey products the importer imports into the United States. An 
importer shall pay the assessment to the Board through the United 
States Customs and Border Protection (Customs) when the honey or honey 
products being assessed enters the United States. If Customs does not 
collect an assessment from an importer, the importer is responsible for 
paying the assessment to the Board.
    (e) The import assessment recommended by the Board and approved by 
the Secretary shall be uniformly applied to imported honey or honey 
products that are identified as HTS heading numbers 0409.00.00 and 
2106.90.9988 by the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States or 
any other numbers used to identify honey or honey products.
* * * * *

0
3. In Sec.  1212.53, paragraph (d) is revised to read as follows:


Sec.  1212.53  Exemption from assessment.

* * * * *
    (d) Upon receipt of an application, the Board shall determine 
whether an exemption may be granted. The Board will then issue, if 
deemed appropriate, a certificate of exemption to each person who is 
eligible to receive one. The exemption is effective when approved by 
the Board. It is the responsibility of these persons to retain a copy 
of the certificate of exemption.
* * * * *

0
4. Section 1212.71 is revised to read as follows:


Sec.  1212.71  Book and records.

    Each first handler and importer, including those who are exempt 
under this subpart, must maintain any books and records necessary to 
carry out the provisions of this part, and any regulations issued under 
this part, including the books and records necessary to verify any 
required reports. Books and records must be made available during 
normal business hours for inspection by the Board's or Secretary's 
employees or agents. A first handler or importer must maintain the 
books and records for three years beyond the fiscal period to which 
they apply.

    Dated: April 16, 2015.
Rex A. Barnes,
Associate Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2015-09292 Filed 4-21-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3410-02P