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6136 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 28 / Tuesday, February 11, 1997 / Proposed Rulesall other requirements for insurabilityhave been met, the crop should makethe approved yield.9. Section 7—Allow insurance forplums interplanted with anotherperennial crop in order to makeinsurance available on more acreage andreduce the reliance on the noninsuredcrop disaster assistance program (NAP)for protection against crop losses.10. Section 8(a)(1)—Specify that theinsurance period begins on February 1of each crop year, except for the year ofapplication, if the application isreceived after January 22 but prior toFebruary 1, insurance will attach on the10th day after the application isreceived in the insurance provider’slocal office unless the acreage isinspected during the 10 day period anddoes not meet insurability requirements.This provision is consistent with otherperennial crops to prevent producersfrom obtaining insurance only whenthey know a loss is likely.11. Section 8(b)—Add provisions toclarify the procedures when aninsurable share is acquired orrelinquished on or before the acreagereporting date.12. Section 9(a)(2)—Add pitburn andsunburn as insured causes of loss sincethey are common causes of loss.13. Section 9(c)(1)—Clarify thatdisease and insect infestation areexcluded causes of loss unless adverseweather prevents the proper applicationof control measures, causes controlmeasures to be ineffective whenproperly applied, or causes disease orinsect infestation for which no effectivecontrol mechanism is available.14. Section 10(a)—Specify the noticerequirements if the orchard has suffereda loss, and the crop will not beharvested, in order to permit timelyappraisal of any loss.15. Section 10(b)—Require theproducer to give notice at least 15 daysprior to harvest so a preharvestinspection can be made if the insuredintends to engage in direct marketing toconsumers. This is necessary to permitan accurate appraisal of production tocount because it is difficult to verifyproduction that is directly marketed toconsumers.16. Section 10(c)—Require theproducer to give at least 15 days noticeprior to the beginning of harvest orimmediately if damage is discoveredduring harvest to permit the insuranceprovider to make a timely inspection.17. Section 10(d)—Prohibit theinsured from selling or otherwisedisposing of any damaged productionuntil consent is given by the insuranceprovider.18. Section 11(c)(2)(i)—Change thequality specifications for determiningproduction to count from U.S. Number1 standards to the California MarketingOrder grade requirements in effect forthe crop year, since such grade orderrequirements better correspond with thequality specifications used by the plumindustry.19. Sections 11(c)(2)(ii)—Specify theadjustment of the production to countfor harvested production that is packedand sold as fresh fruit but does not meetCalifornia Marketing Order graderequirements.20. Sections 11(c)(2)(iii)—Specify theadjustment of the production to countfor harvested production that is or couldbe marketed for any use other than freshpacked plums.21. Section 12—Add provisions forproviding insurance covered by writtenagreement. FCC has a long standingpolicy of permitting certainmodifications of the insurance contractsby written agreement for some policies.This amendment allows FCC to tailorthe policy to a specific insured incertain instances. The new section willcover the application for and duration ofwritten agreements.List of Subjects in 7 CFR Parts 401 and457Crop insurance, Fresh plumsendorsement, Plums.Proposed RuleAccordingly, for the reasons set forthin the preamble, the Federal CropInsurance Corporation hereby proposesto amend 7 CFR parts 401 and 457 asfollows:PART 401—GENERAL CROPINSURANCE REGULATIONS—REGULATIONS FOR THE 1988 ANDSUBSEQUENT CONTRACT YEARS1. The authority citation for 7 CFRpart 401 continues to read as follows:Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1506(l), 1506(p).2. The introductory text of § 401.146is revised to read as follows:§ 401.146 Fresh plum endorsement.The provisions of the Fresh PlumCrop Insurance Endorsement for the1990 through the 1997 crop years are asfollows:* * * * *PART 457–COMMON CROPINSURANCE REGULATIONS;REGULATIONS FOR THE 1994 ANDSUBSEQUENT CONTRACT YEARS3. The authority citation for 7 CFRpart 457 continues to read as follows:Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1506(l), 1506(p).4. 7 CFR part 457 is amended byadding a new § 457.157 to read asfollows:§ 457.157 Plum Crop InsuranceProvisions.The Plum Crop Insurance Provisionsfor the 1998 and succeeding crop yearsare as follows:FCIC policies:Department of AgricultureFederal Crop Insurance CorporationReinsured policies:(Appropriate title for insurance provider)Both FCIC and reinsured policies:Plum Crop ProvisionsIf a conflict exists among the BasicProvisions (§ 457.8), these crop provisions,and the Special Provisions; the SpecialProvisions will control these crop provisionsand the Basic Provisions; and these cropprovisions will control the Basic Provisions.1. Definitions.Days—Calendar days.Direct marketing—Sale of the insured cropdirectly to consumers without theintervention of an intermediary such as awholesaler, retailer, packer, processor,shipper, or buyer. Examples of directmarketing include selling through an on-farmor roadside stand, farmer’s market, andpermitting the general public to enter thefield for the purpose of picking all or aportion of the crop.Good farming practices—The culturalpractices generally in use in the county forthe crop to make normal progress towardmaturity and produce at least the yield usedto determine the production guarantee, andare those recognized by the Cooperative StateResearch, Education, and Extension Serviceas compatible with agronomic and weatherconditions in the county.Harvest—The picking of mature plumsfrom the trees either by hand or machine.Interplanted—Acreage on which two ormore crops are planted in any form ofalternating or mixed pattern.Irrigated practice—A method of producinga crop by which water is artificially appliedduring the growing season by appropriatesystems and at the proper times, with theintention of providing the quantity of waterneeded to produce at least the yield used toestablish the irrigated production guaranteeon the irrigated acreage planted to theinsured crop.Lug—Twenty-eight (28) pounds of theinsured crop.Non-contiguous—Any two or more tractsof land whose boundaries do not touch at anypoint, except that land separated only by apublic or private right-of-way, waterway, oran irrigation canal will be considered ascontiguous.Pitburn and sunburn—Damage to freshfruit as a result of excessive heat.Production guarantee (per acre)—Thenumber of lugs of plums determined bymultiplying the approved APH yield per acreby the coverage level percentage you elect.