(a) A participating dairy operation must provide all information required by FSA to establish the production history of the participating dairy operation for purposes of participating in MPP-Dairy. Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section relating to new dairy operations, FSA will establish the production history for a dairy operation for margin protection as the highest annual milk marketings of the participating dairy operation during any one of the 2011, 2012, or 2013 calendar years.
(1) All producers in the participating dairy operation are required to provide adequate proof of the dairy operation's quantity of milk commercially marketed, to establish the production history for the dairy operation.
(2) All information provided is subject to verification, spot check and audit by FSA. If the dairy operation does not provide to the satisfaction of FSA documentation requested to substantiate the production history of the highest annual milk marketings for the participating dairy operation, then, the registration will not be approved.
(b) A participating dairy operation that did not produce and commercially market milk at least 12 full months as of February 7, 2014, will be considered a new dairy operation. To establish the production history for such a new dairy operation the new dairy operation is required to elect one of the following methods:
(1) The volume of the actual milk marketings for the months the dairy operation has been in operation, extrapolated to a yearly amount based on a national seasonally adjusted index, as determined by the Deputy Administrator, to account for differences in milk production during the year; or
(2) An estimate of the actual milk marketings of the dairy operation based on the herd size of the dairy operation relative to the national rolling herd average data published by the Secretary.
(c) If FSA determines that the new enterprise was formed for the purpose of circumventing MPP-Dairy provisions, including, but not limited to, reconstituting a dairy operation to receive additional benefits, or establishing new production history, that enterprise will not be considered a new dairy operation for the purpose of establishing production history.
(d) Once the production history of a participating dairy operation is established under paragraphs (a) or (b) of this section, the production history will be adjusted upward by FSA only to reflect any increase in the national average milk production, as determined by the Deputy Administrator.
(e) The production history may be transferred from one dairy facility to another:
(1) Producers of a dairy operation may relocate the dairy operation to another location and the production history of the original operation may be transferred to the new location and may be added to production history at the new location that has not been transferred;
(2) Producers of a dairy operation may transfer ownership of a dairy operation with its associated production history, but if the producers start a new operation such new operation may only be eligible for new production history if the new operation is otherwise not affiliated with participants in MPP-Dairy as described in Sec. 1430.103(e); or
(3) Producers of more than one dairy operation that separately participate in MPP-Dairy may transfer the production histories of these dairy operations into a previously unregistered dairy operation.
(f) If CCC waives the obligation, under MPP-Dairy of a participating dairy operation due to death or retirement of the producer or of the permanent dissolution of the dairy operation or under other circumstances as determined by the Deputy Administrator, FSA may reestablish the production history provided that the production history has not been transferred.