INFORMATIONAL MEMORANDUM: R&D-96-078

TO:      All Reinsured Companies
         All Risk Management Agency Field Offices
         FSA Headquarters, Program Delivery & Field Operations
     
FROM:    Tim B. Witt       /s/ ROBERTA E. WAGGONER (for) 12/03/96
         Acting Deputy Administrator
     
SUBJECT: Issuance of the New Program Development Handbook (FCIC-23010)
     
BACKGROUND:   
     
The New Crop Program Development Handbook (FCIC-23010) has been updated
to incorporate the following major changes effective immediately.
     
1.  The handbook title has been revised to "New Program Development
     Handbook."
     
2.  Organizational titles have been revised to be consistent with the
     Risk Management Agency's (RMA) organizational structure.
     
3.  RMA's expansion mission has been added in a new section titled 
     "Expansion Mission."  Background information on Federal Crop
     Insurance Act language regarding expansion has been included in
     this new section.
     
4.  Information has been added to address the following components of
     the new program development process.
     
     A.  New Program Development Team
     B.  New Program Package
     C.  New Program Review Council
     D.  Program Models
     E.  Project Managers
     F.  Project Proposals
     G.  Research and Evaluation Division Liaison
5.  The economic thresholds in Section 5 are now identified as expansion
     prioritization considerations rather than mandatory levels for
     expansion consideration.
     
6.  The "Implementation" section has been renamed "Implementation
     Parameters, Goals, and Activities," and includes a subsection
     identifying new program implementation activities.
     
7.  A new section titled "Maintenance of the Pilot Program" has been
     added to identify the activities involved in maintaining pilot
     programs.
     
8.  A new section titled "New Program Review Council" has been added to
     identify the New Program Review Council's purpose and membership and
     to describe the New Program Packages which are submitted to the
     Council.
     
9.  An exhibit has been added to describe Project Proposals that are
     submitted to FCIC Board of Directors for approval.
     
10. Information has been added in Section 3 regarding the research
     reports and executive summaries for new and specialty crops, as well
     as access to them through the RMA's Internet home page at the Web
     site location http://www.act.fcic.usda.gov.
     
11. The data requirements in Sections 6 through 9 have been rearranged
     somewhat to avoid duplication and facilitate their use.  The Summary
     of New Program Development Data Requirements (FCIC-23020) is
     referred to in Section 3J.
     
12. A Task Worksheet and Project Timeline (Exhibits 1 and 2) have
     replaced the previous Project Management Framework.
     
13. Expansion criteria for existing pilot programs have been included as
     Exhibit 3.
     
14. The previous Section 10, "Analysis and Results," is now Exhibit 4,
      "Objective Measurement of Risk."
     
15. The County Loss Simulation examples and Regional Service Office
     points of contact have been removed from the handbook.  As a result,
     the electronic document is now approximately one-eighth the size of
     the previous document.  
ACTION:
       
Replace the New Crop Program Development Handbook (FCIC-23010) dated
September 8, 1994, with the attached New Program Development Handbook
(FCIC-23010), dated November 21, 1996.  This handbook and the Summary of
New Program Development Data Requirements are available through the
Research and Evaluation Division's Internet home page at the Web Site
location http://www.act.fcic.usda.gov/research.  If you have any
questions about either of these directives, please contact the Research
and Evaluation Division at (816) 926-6343.
     
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