Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance
The following comments to Docket No. AMS-FV-08-0057; FV-08-379 IFR, Notice of
Request for Approval of a New Information Collection, are submitted on behalf of the
Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance (SCFBA). The SCFBA is a diverse group of specialty
crop producer organizations representing more than 120 crops in all 50 states. Members
of the SCFBA were active in the legislative effort to create the block grant program for
specialty crops fruit and the SCFBA was instrumental in obtaining expanded funding for
this program during the 2008 Farm Bill debate. The effective administration of this
program is of great importance to the SCFBA since the projects funded through these
grants can provide critical support for state and local specialty crop producers.
The members of the SCFBA thank the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) for the
sustained effort required by the agency staff to implement the SCBGP-FB by September
30, 2008.
We also thank AMS for considering our comments under the subject docket in which the
agency is proposing to require states who wish to participate in the SCBGP-FB to submit,
among other documents, a state plan to demonstrate how the grant funds will be used to
enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops.
Under the AMS proposed requirements for the collection of new information, the state
plan must:
• Document whether outreach to specialty crop was performed to specialty crop producers;
• Provide a description of the affirmative steps taken to perform the outreach;
• Describe the methods used to identify specialty crop producers and the methods used for outreach; and
• Document whether a competitive process was used to solicit and evaluate grant proposals from all interested parties.