Notice2022-09730
Notice of Funds Availability; Cotton and Wool Apparel Program
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Published
May 6, 2022
Issuing agencies
Agriculture DepartmentFarm Service Agency
Abstract
The Farm Service Agency (FSA) is announcing the availability of $50 million for the new Cotton and Wool Apparel Program (CAWA), which will support the domestic markets for wool and Pima cotton by assisting eligible apparel manufacturers of men's and boys' worsted wool suits, sport coats, pants, or Pima cotton dress shirts; Pima cotton spinners; and wool fabric manufacturers and wool spinners. The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically reduced the demand for these types of clothing, textiles, and threads, and in turn, the market for the raw commodities. CAWA will assist in the development and restoration of the market for domestically produced cotton and wool products and ultimately for the underlying commodities. To be eligible for CAWA, an applicant must have experienced a decrease of at least 15 percent in calendar year 2020 gross sales or consumption of eligible products described in this document compared to the applicant's gross sales or consumption in any selected calendar years 2017, 2018, or 2019. Payments to eligible entities will be based on their pre-pandemic market share relative to other similar applicants subject to payment limitations. The eligibility requirements, payment calculation, and application procedure for CAWA are included in this document.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 87 Issue 88 (Friday, May 6, 2022)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 88 (Friday, May 6, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 27083-27087]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-09730]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Farm Service Agency
[Docket ID FSA-2022-0005]
Notice of Funds Availability; Cotton and Wool Apparel Program
AGENCY: Commodity Credit Corporation, and Farm Service Agency;
Department of Agriculture (USDA).
ACTION: Notification of funding availability.
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SUMMARY: The Farm Service Agency (FSA) is announcing the availability
of $50 million for the new Cotton and Wool Apparel Program (CAWA),
which will support the domestic markets for wool and Pima cotton by
assisting eligible apparel manufacturers of men's and boys' worsted
wool suits, sport coats, pants, or Pima cotton dress shirts; Pima
cotton spinners; and wool fabric manufacturers and wool spinners. The
COVID-19 pandemic dramatically reduced the demand for these types of
clothing, textiles, and threads, and in turn, the market for the raw
commodities. CAWA will assist in the development and restoration of the
market for domestically produced cotton and wool products and
ultimately for the underlying commodities. To be eligible for CAWA, an
applicant must have experienced a decrease of at least 15 percent in
calendar year 2020 gross sales or consumption of eligible products
described in this document compared to the applicant's gross sales or
consumption in any selected calendar years 2017, 2018, or 2019.
Payments to eligible entities will be based on their pre-pandemic
market share relative to other similar applicants subject to payment
limitations. The eligibility requirements, payment calculation, and
application procedure for CAWA are included in this document.
DATES:
Funding Availability: Implementation will begin May 6, 2022.
Applications Start Date: We will accept applications for funding
starting on May 16, 2022.
Applications Due Date: We will accept applications for funding
through June 17, 2022.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kimberly Graham; telephone: (202) 720-
6825; email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#216a484c4344534d580f66534049404c61545245400f464e57"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="377c5e5a5552455b4e197045565f565a774244535619505841">[email protected]</span></a>. Persons with disabilities who
require alternative means for communication should contact the USDA
Target Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice) or (844) 433-2774 (toll-free
nationwide).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, millions of
Americans transitioned from working in offices to working from home.
Two years later, the pandemic has persisted, and many employees have
continued to work remotely. This transition toward remote work has led
to a dramatic decrease in consumer demand for worsted wool suits, sport
coats, dress pants, and Pima cotton dress shirts. Manufacturers of
these products, mainly small and medium-sized businesses, had to
temporarily shut down or reduce their hours of production through the
early months of the pandemic due to a dramatic decline in demand.
Although many of these manufacturers shifted to the production of
personal protective equipment (PPE), the industry has struggled to
recover from a persistent and significant reduction in sales and many
of these businesses are now struggling to avoid bankruptcy.
Without additional support, some of these companies will cease
operations or be unable to restore full production, negatively
impacting American workers, the supply chain, and ultimately the market
for domestic cotton growers and wool producers that rely on the
American apparel manufacturing industry to support the market for their
raw products. Like other industries, the supply chain between the
production of raw Pima cotton or wool to the ultimate consumer has
become globalized and does not track the origin of the raw material in
most cases. Many imported wool and Pima cotton fabrics contain
domestically produced raw materials and ultimately support the markets
for those domestic agricultural commodities. By excluding synthetic
fabrics and targeting specific apparel, CAWA further ensures assistance
to support and rebuild key domestic and global markets for the domestic
producers of raw Pima cotton and wool.
In accordance with 15 U.S.C. 714c, the Secretary is using $50
million of the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) funds that were
previously transferred for pandemic-related assistance to establish a
new program to indirectly support Pima cotton and wool producers by
providing assistance to wool and Pima cotton manufacturers and spinners
whose consumption and gross sales of raw Pima cotton and wool in 2020
were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and that filed an affidavit for
a payment in any year from calendar year 2017 to calendar year 2021 in
accordance with sections 12602 or 12603 of the Agriculture Improvement
Act of 2018 (2018 Farm Bill; Pub. L. 115-34), which authorizes the Wool
Apparel Manufacturers Trust Fund and the Pima Agriculture Cotton Trust
Fund, respectively. CAWA is using the eligibility for the trust funds
established in the 2018 Farm Bill because the entities that meet these
eligibility criteria encompass the known universe of domestic apparel
manufacturers of men's and boys' worsted wool suits, sport coats,
pants, or Pima cotton dress shirts; Pima cotton spinners; and wool
fabric manufacturers and wool spinners. This group of companies
represents one of the few markets for Pima cotton and wool materials in
the United States and an opportunity to indirectly support wool and
Pima cotton producers. While CAWA defines eligibility partially based
on eligibility for, and participation in, these trust funds, CAWA and
the trust fund programs are otherwise distinct and separate with regard
to purpose and authority. Since the entities targeted for payment in
both CAWA and the trust funds have been determined to be the same,
using the same base eligibility criteria, as previously demonstrated
[[Page 27084]]
through participation in the trust fund programs provides for a
streamlined delivery of CAWA. Since CAWA is a pandemic assistance
program focused on restoring and improving a distinct market, CAWA
participants must meet additional eligibility criteria to ensure
assistance through CAWA is tied to demonstrable pandemic-induced market
challenges.
CAWA will provide assistance to several subsets of the wool and
Pima cotton industries. There are no publicly available breakdowns of
the relative size or degree of need among the different segments;
therefore, USDA conducted research and leveraged appropriate industry
resources with specific knowledge of the Pima cotton and wool apparel
markets. USDA research and these industry resources provided the
information necessary for USDA to determine the level of pandemic-
related market challenges for each subset of the wool and Pima cotton
industries, along with the support needed to restore and increase these
markets for Pima cotton and wool in the United States. This information
was subsequently used to determine the funding levels for each industry
subset. As a result, USDA determined that approximately $35 million
will be available for eligible apparel manufacturers; approximately $5
million will be available for eligible Pima cotton spinners; and
approximately $10 million will be available for eligible wool fabric
manufacturers and yarn wool spinners. USDA also determined that a
minimum payment of $50,000 would be used to both ensure that each
recipient received sufficient assistance to provide a meaningful amount
to restore or help expand the domestic market and as a way to target
small businesses for a proportionately larger benefit than if market
share was used alone.
Funds available to CCC will be used as authorized by section 5(e)
of the CCC Charter Act (15 U.S.C. 714c(e)). As outlined above, the
assistance to these wool and Pima cotton domestic apparel and textile
industries will help increase and restore the domestic consumption of
agricultural commodities in the form of raw Pima cotton and wool by
aiding in the recovery of the domestic market for the use of Pima
cotton and wool products. Without this assistance, several companies
have indicated that they may cease operation or remain at lower
production levels for a substantially longer period of time, impairing
the demand for Pima cotton and wool materials from domestic markets.
The specific CCC authority will be used to restore and ultimately
improve the viability of this key domestic market for Pima cotton and
wool materials beyond pre-pandemic levels.
FSA is implementing CAWA as a part of the Secretary's USDA Pandemic
Assistance for Producers initiative. While each applicant must meet the
minimum eligibility requirement of a 15 percent decline in gross sales
or consumption compared to pre-pandemic levels, the payments themselves
will be based on each applicant's pre-pandemic market share and are not
indemnities for past losses. Through CAWA, FSA will make payments to:
<bullet> Apparel manufacturers that have experienced at least a 15
percent decrease in calendar year 2020 in gross sales of eligible
products, when comparing calendar year 2020 gross sales to gross sales
in any one of calendar years 2017, 2018, or 2019; gross sales is used
in the case of apparel manufacturers because there is not a readily
available conversion to consumption of the raw materials.
<bullet> Pima cotton spinners that have experienced at least a 15
percent decrease in calendar year 2020 in:
[cir] Gross sales of eligible products when comparing calendar year
2020 gross sales to gross sales in any one of calendar years 2017,
2018, or 2019; or
[cir] Consumption of eligible products when comparing calendar year
2020 consumption to consumption in any one of calendar years 2017,
2018, or 2019; and
<bullet> Wool fabric manufacturers and wool spinners that
experienced at least a 15 percent decrease in calendar year 2020 in:
[cir] Gross sales for of eligible products when comparing calendar
year 2020 gross sales to gross sales in any one of calendar years 2017,
2018, or 2019; or
[cir] Consumption of eligible products, when comparing calendar
year 2020 consumption to consumption in any one of calendar years 2017,
2018, or 2019.
On behalf of the CCC, FSA is administering the direct payments
under the general supervision and direction of the FSA Administrator,
with assistance from the Foreign Agriculture Service (FAS) to ensure
applicants are eligible.
Definitions
The definitions in 7 CFR parts 718 and 1400 apply to CAWA, except
as otherwise provided in this document. The following definitions also
apply:
Apparel manufacturers means domestic manufacturers and producers
that use imported Pima cotton fabric (80s or higher count and 2-ply in
warp) to manufacture men's and boys' woven Pima cotton shirts or
domestic manufacturers and producers of men's and boys' worsted wool
suits, suit-type jackets, or trousers that use imported fabrics
containing 85 percent or more by weight of wool.
Consumption means for:
<bullet> Pima Cotton--the number of pounds of Pima cotton processed
for U.S. ring spun Pima cotton yarns measuring less than 83.33 decitex
(exceeding 120 metric number).
<bullet> Worsted Wool--the number of pounds of wool top spun into
worsted yarn and the number of pounds of wool yarn processed into
worsted woven wool fabric, converted into wool top.
Member of a controlled group means a subsidiary or otherwise
affiliated company of a parent or holding company that has a history of
participating in the wool and cotton trust fund programs. The applicant
would be the parent or holding company for the purposes of this
program.
Deputy Administrator means Deputy Administrator for Farm Programs,
Farm Service Agency, U.S. Department of Agriculture, or their designee.
Gross sales means the direct sale or wholesale of eligible products
only in dollars.
Pima cotton spinner means a spinner that produces domestic ring
spun Pima cotton yarns measuring less than 83.33 decitex (exceeding 120
metric number) in single and plied form.
Unique entity identifier (SAM UEI) means a number used to identify
a specific entity. A System for Award Management (SAM) UEI number
replaced the DUNS UEI number. The number can be obtained on <a href="http://SAM.gov">SAM.gov</a>,
and is used to make payments to entities receiving government payments.
Wool fabric manufacturers and wool spinners means domestic
manufacturers and producers of woven worsted wool fabrics containing 85
percent or more by weight of wool or processors of imported wool yarn,
fiber, and top that use such wool yarn, fiber, or top to manufacture in
the United States.
Wool top means wool fiber used for worsted manufacturing. It has
undergone all major preprocessing steps and is ready for yarn spinning.
To convert wool yarn to wool top, applicants should use the following
conversion: 1 pound of wool yarn equates to 1.11 pounds of wool top.
United States means all 50 states of the United States, the
District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and any other
territory or possession of the United States.
[[Page 27085]]
Eligible Products
For apparel manufacturers, eligible products are:
<bullet> Men's and boys' worsted wool suits, sport coats, or pants;
or
<bullet> Men's and boys' Pima cotton dress shirts.
The products must have been cut and sewn in the United States at a
facility owned by the applicant or a member of its controlled group in
the United States.
For Pima cotton spinners, the eligible product is Pima cotton for
U.S. ring spun Pima cotton yarns measuring less than 83.33 decitex
(exceeding 120 metric number) in single and plied form.
For wool fabric manufacturers and wool spinners, eligible products
are:
<bullet> Yarn spun in the United States of a type used for worsted
woven wool fabric;
<bullet> Worsted wool fabric woven in the United States; or
<bullet> Wool top spun into worsted yarn in the United States.
Eligibility
To be eligible for a CAWA payment, an applicant must:
(1) Have filed an affidavit for a payment in any year from 2017 to
2021 from the trust funds authorized by sections 12602 and 12603 of the
2018 Farm Bill.
(2) At the time of application, be in operation or have plans to
restart domestic operations within a reasonable timeframe as an apparel
manufacturer, Pima cotton spinner, wool fabric manufacturer, or wool
spinner and submit a business plan showing the use of the assistance
determined acceptable by the Deputy Administrator.
(3) Have had at least a 15 percent decrease in calendar year 2020,
compared to calendar year 2017, 2018, or 2019, in:
(a) Gross sales; or
(b) Consumption of the eligible products, except for apparel
manufacturers.
(4) Be an active entity on <a href="https://SAM.gov">https://SAM.gov</a> and have a SAM UEI.
An eligible applicant is a legal entity with production and
facilities located in the United States.
Any entity that did not file an affidavit for a payment in any year
from 2017 to 2021 under sections 12602 and 12603 of the 2018 Farm Bill
is ineligible for CAWA.
An entity is considered eligible if it is manufacturing on the date
of application or has plans to restart domestic operations within a
reasonable timeframe and submits a business plan showing the use of the
assistance determined acceptable by the Deputy Administrator. An entity
remains eligible if it acquired a manufacturer or producer during any
year in which gross sales or consumption is reported on an application,
or if there is a change in ownership and the entity continues to
manufacture the same products as a predecessor manufacturer that
participated in a trust fund. In the case of an entity that continues
to manufacture the same products as a predecessor manufacturer, the
entity may use gross sales or consumption data of its predecessor in
its application at the discretion of the Deputy Administrator.
If an entity is under common control with another manufacturer or
producer during any year in which sales or consumption would be
reported on an application, any application must be submitted through
the parent or holding company unless otherwise permitted by the Deputy
Administrator.
Application Process
FSA will accept applications from May 16, 2022, through June 17,
2022. To apply for CAWA, eligible applicants must submit a completed
form CCC-917, Cotton and Wool Apparel Program (CAWA) Application.
Applications may be submitted to the FSA National Office by email to
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f6b5b7a1b7b683859297d8919980"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="2e6d6f796f6e5b5d4a4f00494158">[email protected]</span></a>. All applicants must be an active entity on <a href="https://SAM.gov">https://SAM.gov</a> and are required to enter their SAM UEI number on the
application form to receive payment.
The program requires the applicant to show a 15 percent or greater
reduction in calendar year 2020 when comparing calendar year 2017,
2018, or 2019 to calendar 2020, for:
<bullet> Apparel manufacturers, gross sales of eligible products.
<bullet> Pima cotton spinners, either:
[cir] Gross sales of eligible products, or
[cir] Consumption of eligible products.
<bullet> Wool fabric manufacturers and/or spinner, either:
[cir] Gross sales of eligible products, or
[cir] Consumption of eligible products.
The applicant only needs to report the applicable percentage
decrease on the CCC-917 but should be prepared to provide actual
calculations and documentation upon request.
Eligible apparel manufacturers will report gross sales of eligible
products for the year of their choice during calendar years 2017, 2018,
or 2019 on form CCC-917. These data will be used to approximate each
company's pre-pandemic market share relative to other applicants in
order to calculate the proportionate share of funding within the
apparel manufacturer funding category after an initial flat-rate
payment is made to each eligible entity and subject to payment
limitations.
To estimate the pre-pandemic market share and calculate
proportionate payment shares within the other funding categories, Pima
cotton spinners, wool spinners, and wool fabric manufacturers must
report total consumption on form CCC-917 for calendar year 2017, 2018,
or 2019. When reporting consumption, a wool yarn spinner will report
the total number of wool top pounds processed, and a wool fabric
manufacturer will convert total pounds of wool yarn processed into wool
top and then report the total number of wool top pounds processed.
FSA will cross-check applicant information with the most recent
affidavits on file with FAS for the trust funds. If there is not a
match, applicants will be required to provide documentation to verify
they are authorized to represent the eligible entity, executed in
accordance with any State laws that designate what officers, members,
or managers are authorized signatories for signature authority on the
form CCC-917. Documentation may include, but is not limited to,
corporate charter, bylaws, articles of organization, partnership
papers, signed corporate minutes, or resolution of the corporation's
board of directors.
Gross sales and consumption are based on the applicant's
certification and are subject to spot check.
If requested by FSA, the applicant must provide supporting
documentation to verify the accuracy of information provided on the
application, including to substantiate the gross sales or consumption,
and documentation that demonstrates the application is not for an
entity that is under common control with another manufacturer or
producer during any year in which gross sales or consumption are
reported on an application. If any supporting documentation is
requested, the documentation must be submitted to FSA within 30 days
from the request or the application will be disapproved by FSA.
Supporting documentation should be maintained for a period of 3 years.
Payments
For all eligible applicants, the payment amount will be calculated
as follows:
<bullet> A payment of $50,000;
<bullet> Plus, a proportionate share of the remaining balance of
funds in the applicant's funding category based on each applicant's
pre-pandemic market share adjusted for payment limitations.
[[Page 27086]]
The funds available for eligible apparel manufacturers, Pima cotton
spinners, and wool fabric manufacturers and wool spinners are as
follows:
<bullet> Approximately $35 million will be available for eligible
apparel manufacturers. Eligible apparel manufacturers will receive a
minimum payment of $50,000 plus the proportionate share of the balance
of funds available based on pre-pandemic market share measured by gross
sales and adjusted for remaining applicants in the funding category as
entities reach the payment limit. Payments will be capped at $8 million
per applicant.
<bullet> Approximately $5 million will be available for eligible
Pima cotton spinners. Eligible Pima cotton spinners will receive a
minimum payment of $50,000 plus the proportionate share of the balance
of funds available based on pre-pandemic market share measured by
consumption and adjusted for remaining applicants in the funding
category as entities reach the payment limit. Payments will be capped
at $2.5 million per applicant.
<bullet> Approximately $10 million will be available for eligible
wool fabric manufacturers and wool spinners. Eligible wool fabric
manufacturers and wool spinners will receive a minimum payment of
$50,000 plus the proportionate share of the balance of funds available
based on pre-pandemic market share measured by consumption and adjusted
for remaining applicants in the funding category as entities reach the
payment limit. Payments will be capped at $5 million per applicant.
Within each funding category payments will be determined using the
same procedures. First, the $50,000 minimum payment will be allocated
to each eligible applicant, and then the remaining available funding
will be apportioned. For example, if there are 20 eligible apparel
manufacturer applicants, minimum payments would total $1 million.
Second, the remaining funding within each funding category will be
allocated proportionately based on each entity's pre-pandemic market
share. This is calculated based on either relative gross sales or
consumption, depending on funding category, reported in three pre-
pandemic years, 2017, 2018, or 2019. Applicants can choose the year of
gross sales or consumption reported for this market share calculation,
but the proportionate shares will be calculated without regard for
which of the three years is reported by each entity. In other words,
within each of the three categories, the total across all eligible
applicants will be a sum of the individual submissions and not broken
down by year. An entity's total payment will be capped by applicable
payment limitations. Once an entity reaches a payment limitation, that
entity's proportional share of funding above the payment limit will be
reallocated to any entities in that funding category that have not
reached the payment limitation based on their proportional pre-pandemic
market shares. Continuing the earlier example, there would be $34
million remaining in the apparel manufacturer category after the
minimum per entity payment of $50,000. Therefore, if an entity has a 30
percent pre-pandemic market share ($10.2 million), it would receive
$7,950,000 from the proportionate funding (in addition to the $50,000
that every eligible applicant receives) and the remaining $2,250,000 of
its share above the payment limitation would be reallocated based on
the proportional pre-pandemic market shares of any entities that have
not yet reached the payment limitation in the apparel manufacturer
funding category.
Provisions Requiring Refund to FSA
In the event that any application for a CAWA payment resulted in an
incorrect payment due to erroneous information reported by the
applicant, the payment will be recalculated, and the applicant must
refund any excess payment to FSA, including interest, to be calculated
from the date of the disbursement to the applicant. If, for any reason,
FSA determines that the applicant misrepresented the gross sales or
consumption difference, the application will be disapproved, and the
applicant must refund the full CAWA payment to FSA, with interest, from
the date of disbursement. Any required refunds must be resolved in
accordance with 7 CFR part 3.
Miscellaneous Provisions
All applicants must provide the name and address of the entity
along with their active SAM UEI. Provisions of 7 CFR 718.6, which
address ineligibility for benefits for offenses involving controlled
substances, apply to CAWA. Appeal regulations specified in 7 CFR parts
11 and 780, and equitable relief and finality provisions specified in 7
CFR part 718, subpart D, apply to determinations under CAWA. The
determination of matters of general applicability cannot be appealed if
they are not in response to, or result from, an individual set of facts
in an individual participant's application for payment. Such matters of
general applicability include, but are not limited to, the
determination of applicable time periods and the payment calculation
for CAWA.
Participants are required to retain documentation in support of
their application for 3 years after the date of approval. Participants
receiving CAWA payments or any other person furnishing such
documentation to USDA must permit authorized representatives of USDA or
the Government Accountability Office, during regular business hours, to
enter the participant's business and to inspect, to examine, and to
allow representatives to make copies of books, records, or other items
for the purpose of confirming the accuracy of the information provided
by the participant.
Applicants have a right to a decision in response to their
application. If an applicant files a late CAWA application, the
application is subject to the following conditions:
<bullet> A late CAWA application will be considered a request to
waive the deadline.
<bullet> Requests to waive or modify program provisions are at the
discretion of the Deputy Administrator. The Deputy Administrator has
the authority to waive or modify application deadlines and other
requirements or program provisions not specified in law in cases where
the Deputy Administrator determines it is (1) equitable to do so; and
(2) where the lateness or failure to meet other requirements or program
provisions do not adversely affect the operation of CAWA.
<bullet> Applicants who request to waive or modify CAWA program
provisions do not have a right to a decision on those requests.
<bullet> The Deputy Administrator's refusal to exercise discretion
on requests to waive or modify CAWA program provisions will not be
considered an adverse decision and is, by itself, not appealable.
The regulations governing offsets in 7 CFR part 3 apply to CAWA
payments.
In either applying for or participating in CAWA, or both, the
applicant is subject to laws against perjury (including but not limited
to 18 U.S.C. 1621). If the applicant willfully makes and represents as
true any verbal or written declaration, certification, statement, or
verification that the applicant knows or believes not to be true, in
the course of either applying for or participating in CAWA, or both,
then the applicant may be found to be guilty of perjury. Except as
otherwise provided by law, if guilty of perjury the applicant may be
fined, imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both, regardless of
whether the applicant makes a verbal or written declaration,
certification,
[[Page 27087]]
statement, or verification within or outside the United States.
Paperwork Reduction Act Requirements
In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, the information
collection request that supports CAWA was submitted to OMB for
emergency approval. OMB approved the 6-month emergency information
collection under OMB control number 0560-0308. The CAWA Program will be
available for up to 6 months for making the payments to the eligible
apparel manufacturers, Pima cotton spinners, and wool fabric
manufacturers and wool spinners that have experienced a decrease of at
least 15 percent in gross sales or consumption in calendar year 2020,
compared to any one of calendar years 2017, 2018, or 2019.
Environmental Review
The environmental impacts 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 previously stated, CAWA will provide payment to the eligible
apparel manufacturers, Pima cotton spinners, and wool fabric
manufacturers and wool spinners that experienced a decrease of at least
15 percent in gross sales or consumption in calendar year 2020,
compared to any one of calendar years 2017, 2018, or 2019. The limited
discretionary aspects of CAWA do not have the potential to impact the
human environment as they are administrative. Accordingly, these
discretionary aspects are covered by the FSA Categorical Exclusion
specified in 7 CFR 799.31(b)(6)(vi) that applies to safety net
programs.
No Extraordinary Circumstances (Sec. 799.33) exist. As such, the
implementation of CAWA and the participation in CAWA do not constitute
major Federal actions that would significantly affect the quality of
the human environment, individually or cumulatively. Therefore, FSA
will not prepare an environmental assessment or environmental impact
statement for this action and this document serves as documentation of
the programmatic environmental compliance decision for this Federal
action.
Federal Assistance Programs
The title and number of the Federal assistance programs, as found
in the Assistance Listing,\1\ to which this document applies is 10.149,
Cotton and Wool Apparel Program (CAWA).
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\1\ See <a href="https://sam.gov/content/assistance-listings">https://sam.gov/content/assistance-listings</a>.
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USDA Non-Discrimination Policy
In accordance with Federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of
Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, USDA, its
Agencies, offices, and employees, and institutions participating in or
administering USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on
race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity (including
gender expression), sexual orientation, disability, age, marital
status, family or parental status, income derived from a public
assistance program, political beliefs, or reprisal or retaliation for
prior civil rights activity, in any program or activity conducted or
funded by USDA (not all bases apply to all programs). Remedies and
complaint filing deadlines vary by program or incident.
Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of
communication for program information (for example, braille, large
print, audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.) should contact the
responsible Agency or USDA TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 or (844)
433-2774 (toll-free nationwide). Additionally, program information may
be made available in languages other than English.
To file a program discrimination complaint, complete the USDA
Program Discrimination Complaint Form, AD-3027, found online at <a href="https://www.usda.gov/oascr/how-to-file-a-program-discrimination-complaint">https://www.usda.gov/oascr/how-to-file-a-program-discrimination-complaint</a> and
at any USDA office or write a letter addressed to USDA and provide in
the letter all the information requested in the form. To request a copy
of the complaint form, call (866) 632-9992. Submit your completed form
or letter to USDA by mail to: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of
the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue SW,
Washington, DC 20250-9410 or email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#da959b999aafa9bebbf4bdb5ac"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="6d222c2e2d181e090c430a021b">[email protected]</span></a>.
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.
Zach Ducheneaux,
Administrator, Farm Service Agency.
[FR Doc. 2022-09730 Filed 5-5-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-05-P
</pre><script data-cfasync="false" src="/cdn-cgi/scripts/5c5dd728/cloudflare-static/email-decode.min.js"></script></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on May 6, 2022.
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