MASC Generic Memo Justification Request

OMB Control Number: 0503-0028.

Exp. Date: October 2027.

Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of Solution for Funding Opportunity Announcement”

TITLE: Marketing Assistance for Specialty Crops (MASC).

USDA Agency: Farm Service Agency (FSA).

Alignment with Information Collection Package: (Check one)

[ ] One-Time Pilot Program.

[X] One-Time Funding Announcement of New Program.

Purpose: (Briefly describe the program. Explain the information to be collected to clearly describe to OMB the requirements and burden on the respondents. For example, if the table below shows 150 burden hours for project summary, provide additional detail elaborating on what the respondents are required to provide to meet that requirement.)

FSA is implementing MASC to provide specialty crop producers with financial assistance that will help them engage in activities that aid in expanding domestic specialty crop markets or in developing new markets for their crops. For most producers, payments will be based on their actual 2023 or 2024 total sales of specialty crops. New producers who did not have a complete year of sales for 2023 or 2024 will have the option to use an estimate of their expected 2025 specialty crop sales. FSA will use CCC funding to provide assistance to producers of specialty crops.

To apply for MASC, applicants will submit FSA-1140, Marketing Assistance for Specialty Crops (MASC) Application to their local FSA office by the application deadline. The application will collect the producer’s selection for the applicable year (2023 actual sales, 2024 actual sales, or 2025 expected sales) and their total sales of specialty crops for that selection. Producers will complete a single application certifying their total specialty crop sales for all counties nationwide. FSA may request supporting documentation to substantiate a producer’s certification.

New producers who select the option to submit their 2025 expected sales must also submit FSA-1141, Marketing Assistance for Specialty Crops (MASC) New Producer Expected Sales Worksheet, and supporting documentation to substantiate their reported expected sales. The worksheet collects the crops, acres, yields, production or inventory, and prices used by the producer to calculate their expected 2025 sales certified on FSA-1140.

Producers must also submit the following forms that are necessary to obtain producer information and determine eligibility, if not already on file with FSA due to participation in previous programs:

• AD-1026, Highly Erodible Land Conservation (HELC) and Wetland Conservation Certification (exempt from PRA 16 U.S.C. 3846), for producers and affiliates as required by 7 CFR part 12;

• AD-2047, Customer Data Worksheet, for new producers and existing customers who need to update their information;

• CCC-901, Member Information for Legal Entities, if applicable;

• CCC-902E, Farm Operating Plan for an Entity, if applicable;

• CCC-902I, Farm Operating Plan for an Individual, if applicable;

• CCC-941, Averaged Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) and Consent to Disclosure of Tax Information;

• CCC-942, Certification of Income from Farming, Ranching and Forestry Operations (applicable only for producers who exceed the $900,000 average AGI limitation but at least 75 percent of their average AGI is average adjusted gross farm income).

Announcement Dates: FSA intends to accept MASC applications during a 30-day application period from late November through late December 2024. The specific dates will be dependent on the publication date of the NOFA.

Type of Collection: (Check one)

[ ] Grant.

[ ] Cooperative agreement.

[X] Other: Notice of Funding Availability.

How will information collected be submitted to the agency?
[ ] Grants.gov

[X] Other: The application form and other required forms will be available electronically through a public website and in local FSA Service Centers. The producers will submit the required forms and documentation to their local FSA office.

Does the agency need to collect information, such as progress reports, beyond the expiration of this generic ICR (October 2027)? If so, will the agency be submitting a regular ICR package?

[ ] Yes. [X] No.

Announcement:

[ ] Notice of Funding of Opportunity (NOFO)

[ ] Grants.gov Announcement

[ ] Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA)

[ ] Request for Application (RFA)

[X] Notice of Funding of Announcement (NOFA) (Announced in the Federal Register)

[ ] Notice of Solicitation of Application (NOSA)

[ ] Notice of Awards

[ ] Other Funding Announcement Types: __________________________________

Is the agency asking any questions of a sensitive nature? If yes, provide additional justification for any questions of a sensitive nature, such as sexual behavior and attitudes, religious beliefs, and other matters that are commonly considered private. Include the reasons justifying why the agency considers the questions necessary, the specific uses to be made of the information, the explanation to be given to persons from whom the information is requested, and any steps to be taken to obtain their consent.

[ ] Yes. [X] No.

If yes, additional info:

Certification:

I certify this grant or cooperative agreement to be true:

[X] Yes. [ ] No.

Burden Hours, Formats, and Reporting

Brief description of information being collected (project summary, NOA, etc.)	Forms number	Number of Respondents	Number of Responses per respondent	Total Annual Responses	Burden hours per responses
Marketing Assistance for Specialty Crops (MASC) Application	FSA-1140	50,000	1	50,000	50,000
Marketing Assistance for Specialty Crops (MASC) New Producer Expected Sales Worksheet	FSA-1141	2,500	1	2,500	2,500
Customer Data Worksheet	AD-2047	2,500	1	2,500	125
Member Information for Legal Entities	CCC-901	2,500	1	2,500	1,250
Farm Operating Plan for an Entity	CCC-902E	6,250	1	6,250	3,125
Farm Operating Plan for an Individual	CCC-902I	6,250	1	6,250	3,125
Averaged Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) and Consent to Disclosure of Tax Information	CCC-941	50,000	1	50,000	25,000
Certification of Income from Farming, Ranching and Forestry Operations	CCC-942	2,500	1	2,500	1,250
TOTAL		122,500		122,500	86,375

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