§ 2.72 Chairman, World Agricultural Outlook Board.

(a) Delegations. Pursuant to § 2.29 (a)(3) through (a)(7), the following delegations of authority are made by the Chief Economist to the Chairman, World Agricultural Outlook Board: (1) Related to food and agriculture outlook and situation. (i) Coordinate and review all crop and commodity data used to develop outlook and situation material within the Department. (ii) Oversee and clear for consistency analytical assumptions and results of all estimates and analyses which significantly relate to international and domestic commodity supply and demand, including such estimates and analyses prepared for public distribution by the Foreign Agricultural Service, the Economic Research Service, or by any other agency or office of the Department. (2) Related to weather and climate. (i) Advise the Secretary on climate and weather activities, and coordinate the development of policy options on weather and climate. (ii) Coordinate all weather and climate information and monitoring activities within the Department and provide a focal point in the Department for weather and climate information and impact assessment. (iii) Arrange for appropriate representation to attend all meetings, hearings, and task forces held outside the Department which require such representation. (iv) Designate the Executive Secretary of the USDA Weather and Climate Program Coordinating Committee. (v) Coordinate with the Director of the National Drought Mitigation Center and the Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to enhance the collection of data to improve the accuracy of the United States Drought Monitor (7 U.S.C. 5856). (3) Related to interagency commodity estimates committees. (i) Establish Interagency Commodity Estimates Committees for Commodity Credit Corporation price-supported commodities, for major products thereof, and for commodities where a need for such a committee has been identified, in order to bring together estimates and supporting analyses from participating agencies, and to develop official estimates of supply, utilization, and prices for commodities, including the effects of new program proposals on acreage, yield, production, imports, domestic utilization, price, income, support programs, carryover, exports, and availabilities for export. (ii) Designate the Chairman, who shall also act as Secretary, for all Interagency Commodity Estimates Committees. (iii) Assure that all committee members have the basic assumptions, background data and other relevant data regarding the overall economy and market prospects for specific commodities. (iv) Review for consistency of analytical assumptions and results all proposed decisions made by Commodity Estimates Committees prior to any release outside the Department. (4) [Reserved] (5) Related to long-range commodity and agricultural-sector projections. Establish committees of the agencies of the Department to coordinate the development of a set of analytical assumptions and long-range agricultural-sector projections (2 years and beyond) based on commodity projections consistent with these assumptions and coordinated through the Interagency Commodity Estimates Committees. (b) Reservation. The following authority is reserved to the Chief Economist: Review all proposed decisions having substantial economic policy implications.