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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Farm Service Agency

NOTICE: NOTICES

ACTION: Meetings:

DOCUMENT ACTION: Notice of public meetings.

SUBJECT CATEGORY: Public Meetings of Advisory Committee on Beginning Farmers and Ranchers

DATES: The public meetings will be held July 9-10, 2008. The first meeting, on July 9, 2008, will begin at 8 a.m. and end by 5:30 p.m. The second meeting, on July 10, 2008, will begin at 8 a.m. and end by 4 p.m. All times noted are Eastern Standard Time (EST). See SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for oral presentation submission date.

DOCUMENT SUMMARY: We are issuing this notice to advise the public that meetings of the Advisory Committee on Beginning Farmers and Ranchers (Committee) will be held to discuss various beginning farmer and rancher issues.

SUMMARY: Advisory Committee on Beginning Farmers and Ranchers,

SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION

Section 5 of the Agricultural Credit Improvement Act of 1992 (Pub. L. 102554) required the Secretary of Agriculture (the Secretary) to establish the Committee for the purpose of advising the Secretary on the following:
(1) The development of a program of coordinated financial assistance to qualified beginning farmers and ranchers, required by section 309(i) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1929) (under the program, Federal and State beginning farmer programs provide financial assistance to beginning farmers and ranchers);
(2) Methods of maximizing the number of new farming and ranching opportunities created through the program;
(3) Methods of encouraging States to participate in the program; (4) The administration of the program; and
(5) Other methods of creating new farming or ranching

opportunities.

The Committee meets annually and all meetings are open to the public. The duration of the Committee is indefinite. Earlier meetings of the Committee, beginning in 1999, provided an opportunity for members to exchange ideas on ways to increase opportunities for beginning farmers and ranchers. Members discussed various issues and drafted numerous recommendations, which were provided to the Secretary.

Agenda items for the July 2008 meetings include: (1) Discussions concerning provisions of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (Pub. L. 110234, May 22, 2008) (also referred to commonly as the 2008 Farm Bill);
(2) USDA's response to the recommendations made in the September 2007 Government Accountability Office report entitled: ``BEGINNING

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT Mark Falcone at (202) 720-1632.