(a) A person or legal entity with the right to collect or harvest eligible material for the sale and delivery of such eligible material to a qualified biomass conversion facility, may be eligible for payment under the provisions of this subpart.

(b) [Reserved]

(a) To be considered a qualified biomass conversion facility, a biomass conversion facility must enter into an agreement with CCC and must:

(1) Meet all applicable regulatory and permitting requirements by applicable Federal, State, or local authorities;

(2) Agree in writing to:

(i) Maintain accurate records of all eligible material purchases and related documents regardless of whether matching payments will be sought by the seller; and

(ii) Make available at one place and at all reasonable times for examination by representatives of USDA, all books, papers, records, contracts, scale tickets, settlement sheets, invoices, written price quotations, or other documents related to BCAP for not less than 3 years after the date that eligible material was delivered to the qualified biomass conversion facility;

(iii) Clearly indicate the actual tonnage delivered on the scale ticket or equivalent to be provided to the eligible material owner;

(iv) Calculate a total dry ton weight equivalent of the actual tonnage delivered and provide that measurement to the eligible material owner;

(v) Use commercial weight scales that are certified for accuracy by applicable State or local authorities and accurate moisture measurement equipment to determine the dry ton weight equivalent of actual tonnage delivered. Woody material dry ton weight must be determined in accordance with applicable ASTM standards; and

(vi) Purchase eligible material at a fair market price that is consistent with similar products, regardless of whether or not the seller has applied for or receives a matching payment authorized by this subpart or if the seller and purchaser are related entities.

(b) For a qualified biomass conversion facility, CCC can:

(1) Periodically inform the public that payments may be available for deliveries of eligible material to such qualified biomass conversion facility;

(2) Maintain a listing of qualified biomass conversion facilities for general public access and distribution that may include general information about the facility and its eligible material needs; and

(3) Suspend, terminate, or take other actions as appropriate when CCC determines a qualified biomass conversion facility fails to comply with the agreement.

[75 FR 66234, Oct. 27, 2010, as amended at 80 FR 10573, Feb. 27, 2015]

(a) In order to be eligible for a payment under this subpart, a person or legal entity must:

(1) Be a producer of an eligible crop that is produced on contract acreage authorized by subpart C of this part; or

(2) Have the right to collect or harvest eligible material, regardless of whether the eligible material is produced on contract acreage authorized by subpart C of this part, and such person may only receive payment if the risk of loss for the material transferred to that person occurred prior to the time the payment is made that will be used to determine the matching payment that is requested under this subpart; and

(3) Certify that the eligible material for which a payment may be issued as specified in § 1450.106 has been harvested according to a conservation plan, forest stewardship plan, or equivalent plan, and, if woody eligible material collected or harvested on land other than contract acreage, the woody material is a by-product of preventative treatments that was removed to reduce hazardous fuels or to reduce or contain disease or insect infestation.

(b) A qualified biomass conversion facility that meets the requirements of paragraph (a) of this section may be considered an eligible material owner if it otherwise meets the definition in this part.

[75 FR 66234, Oct. 27, 2010, as amended at 76 FR 56951, Sept. 15, 2011; 80 FR 10573, Feb. 27, 2015]

(a) Except for the exclusions specified in paragraph (b) of this section, in order to qualify for matching payments, eligible material must meet the following requirements:

(1) Eligible material must be collected or harvested by the eligible material owner:

(i) Directly from:

(A) National Forest System land, Bureau of Land Management land;

(B) Non-Federal land; or

(C) Land belonging to an Indian or Indian tribe that is held in trust by the United States or subject to a restriction against alienation imposed by the United States;

(ii) Consistent with a conservation plan, forest stewardship plan, or plan that CCC determined to be an equivalent plan, that provides the following:

(A) The purpose of the harvest of the eligible material;

(B) The expected volume of the harvest;

(C) The total number of acres to be harvested;

(D) The name of the eligible material owner(s); and

(E) Any additional information, as determined by CCC; and

(iii) Consistent with Executive Order 13112, “Invasive Species. ”

(2) Woody eligible material produced on land other than contract acreage must be:

(i) By-products of preventative treatments that were removed to reduce hazardous fuels or to reduce or contain disease or insect infestation; and

(ii) If harvested from Federal lands then done so in accordance with the requirements for old-growth maintenance, restoration, and management direction provided by 16 U.S.C. 6512 for Federal lands; and

(3) Eligible material must be delivered to a qualified biomass conversion facility (as specified in § 1450.101 and other provisions of these regulations).

(b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a) of this section, payments under this subpart are not authorized for:

(1) Any eligible material delivered before May 28, 2015;

(2) Any eligible material for which payment from a biomass conversion facility was received before the application for payment under this subpart is received and approved by the FSA county office, as specified in § 1450.104;

(3) Material that is whole grain from any crop that is eligible to receive payments under title I of the Agricultural Act of 2014 or an amendment made by that title, including, but not limited to, barley, corn, grain sorghum, oats, rice, or wheat; honey; mohair; certain oilseeds such as canola, crambe, flaxseed, mustard seed, rapeseed, safflower seed, soybeans, sesame seed, and sunflower seeds; peanuts; pulse; chickpeas, lentils, and dry peas; dairy products; sugar; and wool and cotton boll fiber;

(4) Animal waste and by-products of animal waste including fats, oil, grease, and manure;

(5) Food waste and yard waste;

(6) Algae;

(7) Woody eligible material that is not a by-product of a preventative treatment to reduce hazardous fuel or to reduce or contain disease or insect infestation;

(8) Any woody eligible material collected or harvested outside contract acreage that would otherwise be used for higher-value products;

(9) Any otherwise eligible material collected or harvested outside contract acreage that, after delivery to a biomass conversion facility, its campus, or its affiliated facilities, must be separated from an eligible material used for a higher-value market product in order to be used for heat, power, biobased products, research, or advanced biofuels; or

(10) Bagasse.

(c) For eligible woody material harvested or collected from public lands, a person having the right to harvest or collect eligible material pursuant to a contract or permit with the U.S. Forest Service or other appropriate Federal agency will not be eligible for additional haul costs unless the facility is a further distance than specified in the contract requirement or the material was not a mandatory removal item from Federal lands.

[75 FR 66234, Oct. 27, 2010, as amended at 80 FR 10573, Feb. 27, 2015]

(a) Applications for participation and requests for payments under this subpart will be accepted as specified in the FSA announcement(s) in a given fiscal year through the end of the announced sign up period on a continuous basis, subject to the availability of funds.

(b) An eligible material owner must apply to participate in the matching payments component of BCAP before delivery is made to a qualified biomass conversion facility and before payment for the eligible material is received from the qualified biomass conversion facility. The application must be submitted to the FSA county office servicing the tracts of land where the collection and harvest will occur and must be approved by CCC, before any delivery is made to or payment is made by the qualified biomass conversion facility for the eligible material.

(c) Applications must include the following:

(1) Based on information obtained from contracts, agreements, or binding letters of intent:

(i) An estimate of the total dry tons of eligible material expected to be sold to the qualified biomass conversion facility;

(ii) The type(s) of eligible material that is expected to be sold;

(iii) The name of the qualified biomass conversion facility that will purchase the eligible material;

(iv) The expected, fair market, per dry ton payment rate the owner plans to receive for the delivery of the eligible material; and

(v) The date or dates the eligible material is expected to be delivered to the qualified biomass conversion facility.

(2) A new or amended conservation plan, forest stewardship plan, or equivalent plan, as specified in § 1450.103.

(d) Eligible material owners who deliver eligible material to more than one qualified biomass conversion facility must submit separate applications for each facility to which eligible material will be delivered.

(e) After delivery, eligible material owners must notify CCC and request the payment. Payments will be disbursed only after delivery is verified by CCC.

(f) Information that must be submitted to CCC in order to request payments includes settlement, summary, or other acceptable data that provide:

(1) Total actual tonnage delivered and a total dry weight tonnage equivalent amount determined by the qualified biomass conversion facility using standard moisture determinations applicable to the eligible material (Woody material dry ton weight is determined in accordance with applicable ASTM standards);

(2) Total payment received, including the per dry-ton payment rate(s) matched with actual and dry weight tonnage delivered; and

(3) The qualified biomass conversion facility's certification as to the authenticity of the information.

[75 FR 66234, Oct. 27, 2010, as amended at 80 FR 10573, Feb. 27, 2015]

(a) All participants whose payment application was approved must agree to:

(1) Carry out and certify compliance with the terms and conditions of the payment application including adherence to a conservation plan, forest stewardship plan, or equivalent plan, as appropriate; and

(2) Be jointly and severally responsible, if the participant has a share of the payment greater than zero, with other contract participants for compliance with the provisions of such contract and the provisions of this part, and for any refunds or payment adjustments that may be required for violations of any of the terms and conditions of the BCAP contract and this part.

(b) [Reserved]

(a) Payments under this subpart will be made for a term not to exceed 2 years, commencing on the date that CCC issues the first payment under this subpart to the participant. The 2-year eligibility period for each participant runs from the date that the participant is first issued any matching payment from CCC, regardless of payment for subsequent deliveries to any other biomass conversion facility. The eligibility period will not include any BCAP matching payments received prior to May 28, 2015.

(b) Payments under this subpart will be paid at a rate of $1 for each $1 per dry ton provided by the qualified biomass conversion facility for the market-based sale of eligible material in an amount up to $20 per dry ton.

[75 FR 66234, Oct. 27, 2010, as amended at 80 FR 10574, Feb. 27, 2015]