Rule2023-16295
Redefining Bona Fide Cotton Spot Markets
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
August 1, 2023
Effective
August 1, 2023
Issuing agencies
Agriculture DepartmentAgricultural Marketing Service
Abstract
This rule amends the regulation that defines two of the seven designated spot markets and changing the names of the affected markets. Specifically, market price data for cotton grown in Oklahoma and Kansas are reassigned from the East Texas/Oklahoma spot market to the West Texas spot market. This action also changes the names of these two markets to describe the markets more accurately.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 146 (Tuesday, August 1, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 146 (Tuesday, August 1, 2023)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 49993-49994]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-16295]
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Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
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having general applicability and legal effect, most of which are keyed
to and codified in the Code of Federal Regulations, which is published
under 50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.
The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by the Superintendent of Documents.
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Federal Register / Vol. 88 , No. 146 / Tuesday, August 1, 2023 /
Rules and Regulations
[[Page 49993]]
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Marketing Service
7 CFR Part 27
[Doc. No. AMS-CN-22-0061]
Redefining Bona Fide Cotton Spot Markets
AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.
ACTION: Final rule.
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SUMMARY: This rule amends the regulation that defines two of the seven
designated spot markets and changing the names of the affected markets.
Specifically, market price data for cotton grown in Oklahoma and Kansas
are reassigned from the East Texas/Oklahoma spot market to the West
Texas spot market. This action also changes the names of these two
markets to describe the markets more accurately.
DATES: Effective August 1, 2023.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Barbara Meredith, Division Director,
Cotton Market News, Cotton & Tobacco Program, AMS, USDA, 3275 Appling
Road, Room 10, Memphis, TN 38133. Telephone: (901) 384-3300, or Email:
Barbara.Meredith @usda.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Secretary of Agriculture is authorized under the United States
Cotton Futures Act (7 U.S.C. 15b) to designate at least five bona fide
spot markets from which cotton price information can be collected. A
spot market--also called the ``cash market'' or ``physical market''--is
a market where commodities are sold on the spot for cash at current
market prices and delivered immediately. Updated designations for these
bona fide spot markets and the determination of which counties and
states compose each of these spot markets were most recently published
in the Federal Register on April 30, 2013 (78 FR 25181). For each of
these bona fide spot markets, the Agricultural Marketing Service's
(AMS) Cotton and Tobacco Program collects market price information
under the United States Cotton Futures Act (7 U.S.C. 15b), the Cotton
Statistics and Estimates Act (7 U.S.C. 473b) and the Agricultural
Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1622(g)). This price information is
then used to calculate price differences for cotton futures contracts.
The Cotton and Tobacco Program (Program) received a request from
the American Cotton Shippers Association (ACSA) and the National Cotton
Council of America (NCC), to evaluate the structure of the cotton spot
markets in East and West Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas. The Program's
analysis of the East Texas/Oklahoma market determined that cotton grown
in Oklahoma and Kansas has similar quality characteristics and was
traded under the same terms and conditions as West Texas cotton.
Further, the analysis showed that there was not any significant
difference in the prices reported to Cotton and Tobacco Market News
when comparing Oklahoma and Kansas cotton to West Texas cotton. As a
result, ACSA and NCC requested that market price data for cotton grown
in Oklahoma and Kansas be reassigned from the East Texas/Oklahoma spot
market to the West Texas spot market by amending the definitions of
cotton spot markets in 7 CFR part 27. Revisions to the regulations
concerning bona fide spot market definitions are necessary to assure
consistency with the revised Cotton Research and Promotion Act and to
allow for published spot quotes to consider spot prices of cotton
marketed in Kansas and Oklahoma. Corresponding changes the names of
these two spot markets are made to describe the markets more
accurately.
Comment Summary and Analysis
A proposed rule concerning this action was published in the Federal
Register on March 27, 2023 (88 FR 18076). A copy of the proposed rule
was made available through the internet by USDA and the Office of the
Federal Register. A 60-day comment period ending May 26, 2023, was
provided for interested persons to respond to the proposal. AMS
received a total of seven comments. Six of the seven comments were
explicitly supportive of the proposed action and one expressed concern
about market concentration within the U.S. cotton industry, which is
not relevant to the proposed action. Accordingly, no changes were made
to the rule as proposed.
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 would not
have substantial and direct effects on Tribal governments and would not
have significant Tribal implications.
Executive Order 12866
This proposed rule has been determined to be non-significant for
purposes of Executive Order 12866; and, therefore has not been reviewed
by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).
Executive Order 12988
This rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12988, Civil
Justice Reform. It is not intended to have retroactive effect. There
are no administrative procedures that must be exhausted prior to any
judicial challenge to the provisions of this rule.
Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis
Pursuant to requirements set forth in the Regulatory Flexibility
Act (RFA) (5 U.S.C. 601-612), AMS has considered the economic impact of
this action on small entities and has determined that its
implementation will not have a significant economic impact on a
substantial number of small businesses.
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. There are an estimated 25,000 cotton
growers in the U.S. who voluntarily use the AMS cotton classing
services annually, and the majority of these cotton growers are small
businesses under the criteria established by the Small Business
Administration (13 CFR 121.201).
Changes in cotton spot market definitions as stated will not
significantly affect small businesses as defined in the RFA because:
(1) How spot prices are estimated are not expected to be impacted
by this action;
[[Page 49994]]
(2) Business practices of the U.S. cotton industry are not expected
to change as a result of this action;
(3) Costs associated with providing market news services will not
be significantly changed by this action;
(4) Market news services are paid for by appropriated funds;
therefore, users are not charged fees for the provision of the
services.
Paperwork Reduction Act
In compliance with OMB regulations (5 CFR part 1320), which
implement the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501), the
information collection requirements contained in the provisions amended
by this rule have been previously approved by OMB and were assigned OMB
control number 0581-0009, Cotton Classification and Market News
Service. No changes in these requirements will be necessary as a result
of this rule. Should any changes become necessary, they will be
submitted to OMB for approval.
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.
AMS has not identified any relevant Federal rules that duplicate,
overlap, or conflict with this rule.
List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 27
Commodity futures, Cotton.
For the reasons set forth in the preamble, the Agricultural
Marketing Service amends 7 CFR part 27 as follows:
PART 27--COTTON CLASSIFICATION UNDER COTTON FUTURES LEGISLATION
0
1. The authority citation for 7 CFR part 27 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 15b, 7 U.S.C. 473b, 7 U.S.C. 1622(g).
0
2. In Sec. 27.93, the definitions of the ``East Texas and Oklahoma,''
and ``West Texas'' markets are revised to read as follows:
Sec. 27.93 Bona fide spot markets.
* * * * *
East Texas and South Texas
Texas counties east of and including Montague, Wise, Parker, Erath,
Comanche, Mills, San Saba, Mason, Sutton, Edwards, Kinney, Maverick,
Webb, Zapata, Star and Hidalgo counties.
West Texas, Kansas, and Oklahoma
All counties in Kansas and Oklahoma, all Texas counties not
included in the East Texas, South Texas, and Desert Southwest Markets
and the New Mexico counties of Union, Quay, Curry, Roosevelt, and Lea.
* * * * *
0
3. In Sec. 27.94, paragraph (a) is revised to read as follows:
Sec. 27.94 Spot markets for contract settlement purposes.
* * * * *
(a) For cotton delivered in settlement of any No. 2 contract on the
Intercontinental Exchange (ICE); Southeastern, North and South Delta,
East Texas and South Texas, West Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Desert
Southwest.
* * * * *
Erin Morris,
Associate Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service.
[FR Doc. 2023-16295 Filed 7-31-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE P
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