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FMMO final rule to be published Monday, referendum begins

UPDATE: The final rule was published as scheduled 12/2/24 in the Federal Register here.

USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service released its final rule to update the federal milk marketing orders two weeks ago, but farmers and cooperatives still can’t vote to accept or reject it.  That’s because the final rule must be published in the Federal Register before the farmer referendum can begin.

A spokesperson for the Agricultural Marketing Service tells Brownfield the final decision is scheduled to be on public display on Friday, November 29 2024, and scheduled for publication in the Federal Register on December 2nd, 2024.  The December 31, 2024, postmark deadline and January 15th, 2025, received-by deadline remain unchanged.

Producers or their cooperatives in all eleven federal orders whose milk was pooled in a federal order during January of 2024 are eligible to participate in the referendum and can vote to accept the amended order or no federal order at all.  AMS mailed ballots to eligible independent producers and qualified cooperative associations. The completed ballots must be signed and postmarked by December 31st, 2024, and returned by January 15th, 2025 to be counted.

More information about the referendum process is available at the USDA Federal Milk Marketing Order hearing website.