74 FR 74 pgs. 17945-17947 - Proposed Posting, Posting, and Deposting of Stockyards

Type: NOTICEVolume: 74Number: 74Pages: 17945 - 17947
FR document: [FR Doc. E9-9012 Filed 4-17-09; 8:45 am]
Agency: Agriculture Department
Sub Agency: Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration
Official PDF Version:  PDF Version

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration

Proposed Posting, Posting, and Deposting of Stockyards

AGENCY:

Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration, USDA.

ACTION:

Notice and request for comments.

SUMMARY:

The Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) is taking several actions to post and depost stockyards under the Packers and Stockyards Act (PS Act). Specifically, we are proposing that 23 stockyards now operating subject to the PS Act be posted. We are posting 12 stockyards that were identified previously as operating subject to the Act. Eleven other facilities, however, were not posted because they were found to be abandoned or no longer functioning as a stockyard and no longer operating subject to the PS Act. Finally, we are deposting 19 stockyards that can no longer be used as stockyards.

DATES:

For the proposed posting of stockyards, we will consider comments that we receive by May 5, 2009.

For the deposted stockyards, the deposting is effective on April 20, 2009.

ADDRESSES:

We invite you to submit comments on this notice. You may submit comments by any of the following methods:

E-Mail: comments.gipsa@usda.gov.

Mail: H. Tess Butler, GIPSA, USDA, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Room 1654-S, Washington, DC 20250-3604.

Fax: (202) 690-2755.

Hand Delivery or Courier: H. Tess Butler, GIPSA, USDA, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Room 1654-S, Washington, DC 20250-3604.

Internet: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) administers and enforces the PS Act of 1921 (7 U.S.C. 181 et seq. ). The PS Act prohibits unfair, deceptive, and fraudulent practices by livestock market agencies, dealers, stockyard owners, meat packers, swine contractors, and live poultry dealers in the livestock, poultry, and meatpacking industries.

Section 302 of the PS Act (7 U.S.C. 202) defines the term "stockyard" as follows: "* * * any place, establishment, or facility commonly known as stockyards, conducted, operated, or managed for profit or nonprofit as a public market for livestock producers, feeders, market agencies, and buyers, consisting of pens, or other enclosures, and their appurtenances, in which live cattle, sheep, swine, horses, mules, or goats are received, held, or kept for sale or shipment in commerce."

Section 302(b) of the PS Act requires the Secretary of Agriculture to determine which stockyards meet this definition, and to notify the owner of the stockyard and the public of that determination by posting a notice in each designated stockyard. Once the Secretary provides notice to the stockyard owner and the public, the stockyard is subject to the provisions of Title III of the PS Act (7 U.S.C. 201-203 and 205-217a) until the Secretary deposts the stockyard by public notice. To post a stockyard, we assign the stockyard a facility number, notify the stockyard owner, and send an official posting notice to the stockyard owner to display in a public area of the stockyard. This process is referred to as "posting." The date of posting is the date that the posting notices are physically displayed at the stockyard. A facility that does not meet the definition of a stockyard is not subject to the Act, and therefore cannot be posted. A posted stockyard can be deposted, which occurs when the facility is no longer used as a stockyard.

We are hereby notifying stockyard owners and the public that the following 23 stockyards meet the definition of a stockyard, and that we propose to designate these stockyards as posted stockyards.

Proposed facility no. Stockyard name and location
AL-197 Screamer 5L Auction, Abberville, Alabama.
AR-182 R. Tucker, LLC, dba Madison County Livestock Auction, Inc., Huntsville, Arkansas.
KS-209 Lyon County Livestock Sales Services, LLC, dba Admire Livestock Auction, Admire, Kansas.
KY-182 Cattlemen's Livestock Market, LLC, Rockfield, Kentucky.
KY-183 Mill's 31-E Auction Center, Scottsville, Kentucky.
KY-184 Blue Grass South Livestock Market, LLC, Stanford, Kentucky.
MI-151 Tom Moore Sales, Onsted, Michigan.
MI-152 United Producers, Inc., St. Louis, Michigan.
MI-153 United Producers, Inc., Manchester, Michigan.
MI-154 United Producers, Inc., Cass City, Michigan.
NC-178 Taylorsville Lions Club Alexander County Fair, Taylorsville, North Carolina.
NC-179 Edward Johnson Auctioneers, Inc., dba Johnson's Cattle Auction, Canton, North Carolina.
NM-124 Cow House Auction, Kirtland, New Mexico.
OH-153 Larue Horse Sale, LLC, LaRue, Ohio.
OK-215 Old Goat Enterprises, LLC, dba Countryside Auction, Chandler, Oklahoma.
TN-200 Longhorn Auction Company and Livestock Sales, Mountain City, Tennessee.
TN-201 James Linville, dba Scotts Hill Stockyard, Scotts Hill, Tennessee.
TN-202 Tennessee Livestock Producers, Inc., Columbia, Tennessee.
TX-351 Great Western Auctions, LLC, Magnolia, Texas.
TX-352 Texas Cattle Exchange, Inc., Eastland, Texas.
TX-353 Elkhart Horse Center, Elkhart, Texas.
TX-354 Marion County Stockyards, Jefferson, Texas.
VA-164 Victoria Livestock Market, Victoria, Virginia.

We are also notifying the public that the stockyards listed in the following table meet the PS Act's definition of a stockyard and that we have posted the stockyards. On March 26, 2008, we published a notice in the Federal Register (70 FR 15969-15970) of our proposal to post these 12 stockyards. Since we received no comments to our proposal, we have now assigned the stockyards a facility number, notified the owner of the stockyard facilities, and sent notices to the owner of the stockyard to be displayed in public areas of the stockyard. The table below reflects the date of posting for each stockyard.

Facility No. Stockyard name and location Date of posting
AL-196 Clay County Goat Poultry Auction, Goodwater, Alabama July 11, 2008.
AR-172 G.P. Rivers, dba Rivers Horse Center, Lewisville, Arkansas July 21, 2008.
AR-180 King Livestock Goat and Sheep Auction, North Lonoke, Arkansas July 16, 2008.
CO-156 Western Slope Cattlemen's Livestock Auction, LLC, Loma, Colorado July 11, 2008.
GA-231 Thomas County Stockyards, Inc., Thomasville, Georgia July 7, 2008.
MS-176 Cuevas Auction, Picayune, Mississippi July 10, 2008.
NY-176 Howard W. Visscher, Hilltop Dairy Auction, Savannah, New York July 16, 2008.
SC-162 Claxton's Auction Co., LLC, Ruffin, South Carolina July 16, 2008.
TN-197 Jimmy Brown, dba JB Livestock Auction, Gleason, Tennessee July 16, 2008.
TN-198 Wallace P. Mitchell, dba Mitchell's Trade Center Auctions, Inc., Castalian Springs, Tennessee July 21, 2008.
TX-350 Hereford Livestock Exchange, Hereford, Texas July 11, 2008.
VA-148 Blythe Livestock, LLC, Courtland, Virginia July 15, 2008.

We are further notifying the public that the following facilities, which met the definition of a stockyard previously, were not posted. We published notices proposing to post these 11 stockyards in the Federal Register on July 25, 2005, (70 FR 42532-42533); April 5, 2006 (71 FR 17071-17072); and March 26, 2008, (73 FR 15969-15970) respectively, however, the facilities were not posted because they no longer meet the definition of a stockyard. The facilities were either abandoned or underwent a change such that they no longer function as stockyards.

Proposed facility No. Facility name and location
AL-195 RS Auctions, Clayton, Alabama.
AR-178 B-B Livestock Auction Sales, Inc., Beebe, Arkansas.
FL-138 Col. Jerry Colvin, dba C.J. Auctions, Lamont, Florida.
IN-167 Northern Indiana Collection Point, LLC, Shipshewana, Indiana.
KY-180 Southern Kentucky Livestock Market, Inc., Rockfield, Kentucky.
KY-181 Wigwam Livestock Market, Inc., Horse Cave, Kentucky.
MO-288 CRS Sales, LLC, Highlandville, Missouri.
TN-196 Country Horse Sales, LLC, Westmoreland, Tennessee.
TN-199 Middle Tennessee Sheep and Goat Sale, LLC, Dickson, Tennessee.
WI-150 Turenne Livestock Market, Thorp, Wisconsin.
WV-120 Meadow View Farm, Thornton, West, Virginia.

Finally, we are notifying the public that the following 19 stockyards no longer meet the definition of a stockyard and they are being deposted. We depost stockyards when the facility can no longer be used as a stockyard. The reasons a facility can no longer be used as a stockyard may include the following: (1) The market agency has moved and the posted facility is abandoned; (2) the facility has been torn down or otherwise destroyed, such as by fire; (3) the facility is dilapidated beyond repair; or (4) the facility has been converted and its function has changed.

Facility No. Stockyard name and location Date posted
AR-105 B-B Livestock Sales, Incorporated February 16, 1959.
AR-131 Morrilton Livestock Auction, Morrilton, Arkansas September 30, 1959.
AZ-116 Arizona Livestock Auction, Inc., Phoenix, Arizona May 13, 1997.
CO-152 Garfield Livestock Market, Inc., Silt, Colorado February 25, 1986.
ID-114 Custer County Livestock Marketing Association, Inc., MacKay, Idaho August 22, 1961.
KS-108 Cedar Vale Sale Barn, Inc., Cedar Vale, Kansas May 26, 1959.
KS-113 Coldwater Livestock Sales Co., Inc., Coldwater, Kansas April 12, 1950.
KS-137 Great Bend Livestock Sales, Inc., Great Bend, Kansas April 18, 1950.
KS-145 Hutchinson Livestock Commission Co., Inc., Hutchinson, Kansas April 10, 1950.
KS-169 Onaga Livestock Auction, Inc., Wheaton, Kansas May 27, 1959.
KS-172 Franklin County Livestock Commission Co., Ottawa, Kansas February 12, 1963.
KS-186 Smith Center Livestock Auction, Smith Center, Kansas October 23, 1957.
MO-100 South Central Stockyards, LLC, Alton, Missouri April 21, 1960.
MO-152 Licking Livestock Auction, Licking, Missouri May 15, 1959.
TX-280 Weatherford Stockyards Company, Mineral Wells, Texas August 12, 1960.
UT-112 Spanish Fork Livestock Auction, Co., Spanish Fork, Utah October 24, 1959.
VA-133 Smithfield Livestock, Inc., Smithfield, Virginia March 9, 1959.
VA-144 Abingdon Stockyard Exchange, Inc., dba Wytheville Stockyard, Wytheville, Virginia March 4, 1959.
VA-149 Central Virginia Livestock Market, Inc., Amherst, Virginia April 13, 1976.

Effective Date

These depostings are effective upon publication in the Federal Register because they relieve a restriction and, therefore, may be made effective in less than 30 days after publication in the Federal Register without prior notice or other public procedure.

Authority:

7 U.S.C. 202.

Alan R. Christian,

Acting Administrator, Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration.

[FR Doc. E9-9012 Filed 4-17-09; 8:45 am]

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