[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 21 (Tuesday, February 2, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5057-5059]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-2448]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[FRL-6228-8]
Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB
Review; Comment Request; StarTrack Program
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501
et seq.), this document announces that the following Information
Collection Request (ICR) has been forwarded to the Office of Management
and Budget (OMB) for review and approval: StarTrack Program, EPA ICR
Number 1825.01. The ICR describes the nature of the information
collection and its expected burden and cost; where appropriate, it
includes the actual data collection instrument.
DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before March 4, 1999.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Contact Sandy Farmer at EPA by phone
at (202) 260-2740, by email at [email protected], or
download off the Internet at http://www.epa.gov/icr and refer to EPA
ICR No. 1825.01.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
[[Page 5058]]
Title: StarTrack Program, EPA ICR No. 1825.01. This is a new
collection.
Abstract: U.S. EPA's New England Region office (Boston, MA), in
conjunction with participating states and, in some cases, local
agencies, is developing a third-party certification system for
environmental performance as part of its StarTrack Program.
Participants in StarTrack will develop, demonstrate, and/or test
compliance tools and principles associated with third-party
certification of environmental performance. The goal of the program is
to expand the use of compliance and environmental management systems to
improve protection of the environment, increase the public's
understanding of a company's environmental performance, and further
promote efficient use of public and private resources.
StarTrack is one of many reinvention initiatives within EPA. EPA's
reinvention philosophy is focused on improving environmental results
while allowing flexibility in how the improved results are achieved;
sharing information and decision-making with all stakeholders; creating
marketplace incentives for compliance with environmental requirements;
and lessening the red-tape and paperwork burden of complying with
environmental requirements.
Reinventing environmental protection means addressing the everyday
inefficiencies and limitations associated with environmental
regulations and managing for better environmental results. It includes
designing and testing fundamentally new systems, such as those
encouraged in StarTrack, and considering alternative approaches to
address environmental challenges.
In each year of participation in StarTrack, a company agrees to
audit its environmental compliance and management system and to prepare
and publish a comprehensive environmental performance report. During
every third year of participation, the company will have its compliance
and management system audit results reviewed and certified by an
independent third party. Follow-up certification may be required on a
more frequent basis for facilities not meeting full certification
requirements.
To participate, a company must have an established compliance
auditing program and a demonstrated commitment to compliance, pollution
prevention, and continuous improvement of environmental performance.
Applicants to the program must submit information addressing the
selection factors (commitment to compliance, continuous improvement,
and pollution prevention), using examples, quantitative data, and
existing documentation, where applicable. An applicant may submit
information such as a compliance audit protocol, auditors'
qualifications, and a sample of previous audit findings and corrective
action plans to support a claim to an established compliance auditing
program. The facility should have an acceptable compliance history
including no open or recent major enforcement actions.
Upon acceptance to the program, the participant will sign a Letter
of Commitment with the EPA Region, participating state regulatory
agencies, and participating local regulatory agencies. Facilities
renewing their status as a StarTrack company after their first year
will not need to re-apply to the program, but will need to sign a
Letter of Commitment for the new year of participation. The participant
will be required to submit several reports documenting required
StarTrack activities throughout the 12-month period of participation.
It is ultimately the responsibility of the StarTrack facility to ensure
that the following required documents are submitted to EPA in a timely
fashion: audit workplans, reports and corrective action plans for all
compliance and EMS audits; third party certifier reports and
certifications; the facility improvement plan (in response to the
certification report); and an annual environmental performance report.
Application to StarTrack is voluntary. Information submitted as
part of the requirements for ongoing participation in the program
(e.g., EMS and compliance audits, status reports, etc.) is mandatory to
maintain StarTrack participatory status and to obtain the Program
benefits.
EPA shall treat information claimed as confidential business
information (CBI) in accordance with the requirements of 40 CFR part 2.
If the participant fails to claim the information as confidential upon
submission, it may be made available to the public without further
notice. EPA cannot guarantee that information submitted pursuant to
this agreement and claimed as confidential will be immune from
disclosure to a requester under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
Participating state agencies will maintain CBI confidentiality to the
extent allowed by relevant state law. Note that some state laws provide
for a greater degree of access to and narrower protections for
information considered confidential under federal law.
An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required
to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a
currently valid OMB control number. The OMB control numbers for EPA's
regulations are listed in 40 CFR part 9 and 48 CFR Chapter 15.
The Federal Register document required under 5 CFR 1320.8(d),
soliciting comments on this collection of information was published on
September 11, 1998 (63 FR 48725); no comments were received.
Burden Statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping
burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 36
hours per response for application to the program; 156 hours per
response for program participation; and 67 hours per response for
third-party auditor activities. Burden means the total time, effort, or
financial resources expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain,
or disclose or provide information to or for a Federal agency. This
includes the time needed to review instructions; develop, acquire,
install, and utilize technology and systems for the purposes of
collecting, validating, and verifying information, processing and
maintaining information, and disclosing and providing information;
adjust the existing ways to comply with any previously applicable
instructions and requirements; train personnel to be able to respond to
a collection of information; search data sources; complete and review
the collection of information; and transmit or otherwise disclose the
information.
Respondents/Affected Entities: Businesses, State Governments.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 68.
Frequency of Response: Annually
Estimated Total Annual Hour Burden: 11,391 hours.
Estimated Total Annualized Cost Burden: $0.
Send comments on the Agency's need for this information, the
accuracy of the provided burden estimates, and any suggested methods
for minimizing respondent burden, including through the use of
automated collection techniques to the following addresses. Please
refer to the EPA ICR number in any correspondence.
Ms. Sandy Farmer, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, OP Regulatory
Information Division (2137), 401 M Street, SW, Washington, DC 20460;
and
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and
Budget, Attention: Desk Officer for
[[Page 5059]]
EPA, 725 17th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20503.
Dated: January 26, 1999.
Joseph Retzer,
Director, Regulatory Information Division.
[FR Doc. 99-2448 Filed 2-1-99; 8:45 am]
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