[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 25 (Monday, February 7, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5850-5852]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-2619]


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 Notices
                                                 Federal Register
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 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules 
 or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings 
 and investigations, committee meetings, agency decisions and rulings, 
 delegations of authority, filing of petitions and applications and agency 
 statements of organization and functions are examples of documents 
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  Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 25 / Monday, February 7, 2000 / 
Notices  

[[Page 5850]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

February 1, 2000.
    The Department of Agriculture has submitted the following 
information collection requirement(s) to OMB for review and clearance 
under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13. Comments 
regarding (a) whether the collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including 
whether the information will have practical utility; (b) the accuracy 
of the agency's estimate of burden including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used; (c) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility and clarity of the information to be collected; (d) ways to 
minimize the burden of the collection through the use of appropriate 
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological technology 
should be addressed to: Desk Officer for Agriculture, Office of 
Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB), Washington, DC 20503 and to Departmental Clearance Office, USDA, 
OCIO, Mail Stop 7602, Washington, DC 20250-6502. Comments regarding 
these information collections are best assured of having their full 
effect if received within 30 days of this notification. Copies of the 
submission(s) may be obtained by calling (202) 720-6746.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information 
unless the collection of information displays a currently valid OMB 
control number and the agency informs potential persons who are to 
respond to the collection of information that such persons are not 
required to respond to the collection of information unless it displays 
a currently valid OMB control number.

Rural Utility Service

    Title: 7 CFR 1773, Policy on Audits of RUS Borrowers.
    OMB Control Number: 0572-0095.
    Summary of Collection: Under the authority of the Rural 
Electrification Act of 1936 (ACT), as amended 7 U.S.C. 901 et seq., the 
Administrator is authorized and empowered to make loans under certain 
specified circumstances. As a requirement for these loans the Rural 
Utility Service (RUS) mortgage in Article 2, Section 12, requires each 
Mortgagor to prepare and furnish financial statements to RUS at least 
annually. RUS, in representing the Federal Government as Mortgagee and 
in furthering the objectives of the Act, relies on the information 
provided by the borrowers in their financial statements to make lending 
decisions as to borrowers credit worthiness and to assure that loan 
funds are approved, advanced and disbursed for proper Act purposes.
    Need and Use of the Information: RUS will collect information to 
evaluate borrowers' financial performance, determine whether current 
loans are at financial risk, and determine the credit worthiness of 
future losses. If information is not collected, it would delay RUS' 
analysis of the borrowers' financial strength, thereby adversely 
impacting current lending decisions.
    Description of Respondents: Not-for-profit institutions; Business 
or other for-profit.
    Number of Respondents: 1,800.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: On occasion.
    Total Burden Hours: 20,374.

Rural Utility Service

    Title: 7 CFR 1792, Subpart C--Seismic Safety of New Building 
Construction.
    OMB Control Number: 0572-0099.
    Summary of Collection: Seismic hazards present a serious threat to 
people and their surroundings. These hazards exist in most of the 
United States, not just on the West Coast. Unlike hurricanes, the time 
and location of earthquakes cannot be predicted; most earthquakes 
strike without warning and, if of substantial strength, strike with 
great destructive forces. To reduce risks to life and property from 
earthquakes, Congress enacted the Earthquake Hazards Reduction Act of 
1977 (Public Law 95-124, 42 U.S.C. 7701 et seq.) and directed the 
establishment and maintenance of an effective earthquake reduction 
program. As a result, the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program 
(NEHRP) was established. The objectives of the NEHRP include the 
development of technologically and economically feasible design and 
construction methods to make both new and existing structures 
earthquake resistant, and the development and promotion of model 
building codes. 7 CFR part 1792, subpart C, identifies acceptable 
seismic standards which must be employed in new building construction 
funded by loans, grants, or guarantees made by the Rural Utility 
Service (RUS) or the Rural Telephone Bank (RTB) or through lien 
accommodations or subordination's approved by RUS or RTB.
    Need and Use of the Information: RUS will collect information on 
the project designation and owners name; name of the architectural/
engineering firm; name and registration number (for the State in which 
the building project is located) of the certifying architect or 
engineer; purpose and location of the facility; seismic factor for the 
building location; the code identity and date of the model code used 
for the design and construction of the building project(s); total 
square footage of the building project; total cost of the building 
project; and estimated cost of the structural systems affected by the 
requirements of 7 CFR part 1792, Subpart C.
    Description of Respondents: Business or other for-profit.
    Number of Respondents: 100.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: On occasion.
    Total Burden Hours: 225.

Rural Utility Service

    Title: Prospective Large Power Service.
    OMB Control Number: 0572-0001.
    Summary of Collection: The Rural Utilities Service (RUS) is a 
credit agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It makes mortgage 
loans and loan guarantees to finance electric, telecommunications, and 
water and waste water facilities in rural areas. Loan programs are 
managed in accordance with the Rural Electrification Act (RE Act) of 
1936, 7 U.S.C. 901 et seq., as amended, and as prescribed by Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-129, Policies for Federal Credit 
Programs and Non-Tax Receivables, which states that

[[Page 5851]]

agencies must, based on a review of a loan application, determine that 
an applicant complies with statutory, regulatory, and administrative 
eligibility requirements for loan assistance. RUS Form 170 is used to 
obtain information from borrowers on contracts that the borrower 
proposes to enter into for a large industrial or commercial electric 
power load, specifically setting forth load estimates by analyzing 
market costs.
    Need and Use of the Information: RUS will collect information to 
show the feasibility of providing services to prospective large power 
consumers; check the adequacy of rates based on the amount of 
investment in facilities; show the method used to obtain funds for 
financing construction; and show contract terms, i.e., length of 
service, proposed rate, and minimum charge.
    Description of Respondents: Not-for-profit institutions.
    Number of Respondents: 5.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: On occasion.
    Total Burden Hours: 22.

Food and Nutrition Service.

    Title: Summer Food Service Program Claim for Reimbursement.
    OMB Control Number: 0584-0041.
    Summary of Collection: The Summer Food Service Program Claim for 
Reimbursement Form is used to collect meal and cost data from sponsors 
to determine the reimbursement entitlement for meals served. The form 
is sent to the Food and Nutrition Service's (FNS) Regional Offices 
where it is entered into a computerized payment system. The payment 
system computes earnings to date and the number of meals to date and 
generates payments for the amount of earnings in excess of prior 
advance and claim payments. To fulfill the earned reimbursement 
requirements set forth in the Summer Food Service Program regulations 
issued by the Secretary of Agriculture (7 CFR 225.9), the meal and cost 
data must be collected on the FNS-143 claim form.
    Need and Use of the Information: FNS will collect information to 
manage, plan, evaluate, and account for government resources. The 
reports and records are required to ensure the proper and judicious use 
of public funds. If the information is not collected on the claim form, 
the sponsor could not receive reimbursement.
    Description of Respondents: Not-for-profit institutions.
    Number of Respondents: 530.
    Frequency of Responses: Recordkeeping; Reporting: Other (Summer).
    Total Burden Hours: 1,193.

Forest Service

    Title: Improve Management of the Tongass National Forest and 
Service to Local, Regional, and National Customers.
    OMB Control Number: 0596-NEW.
    Summary of Collection: The Tongass National Forest encompasses 
nearly 85 percent of the land in southeast Alaska and forms the basis 
for the regional economy. Commercial fishing, timber production, 
mineral extraction, and the quickly growing tourism industry depend on 
the renewable and non-renewable natural resources of this national 
forest. Forest plans are required by the National Forest Management Act 
of 1976; the Alaska National Interest Conservation Act of 1980 requires 
evaluation of forest plans and other use actions in Alaska that may 
affect subsistence use of fish and wildlife. The Forest Service (FS) 
will manage the Tongass National Forest, the nation's largest National 
Forest, over the next 10-15 years. Tourism, expected to continue to 
grow at 10-20% per year in coming years, is beginning to tax both the 
natural resources and the resident communities of the area. The Tongass 
Land Management Plan recognized significant changes in public use of 
the forest and in public values and attitudes and identified the 
information need to collect relevant socioeconomic data. The FS will 
collect information using a study survey.
    Need and Use of the Information: FS will collect information to 
identify needs by providing information on public use of the Tongass 
National Forest and on public attitudes and values relevant to the 
forest management issues that are likely to be important in coming 
years. The information will be used in making regular management 
decisions and in developing larger scale plans for the Tongass National 
Forest. If the information is not collected, FS decision-makers/will 
lack essential information.
    Description of Respondents: Individuals or households.
    Number of Respondents: 1600.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: On occasion.
    Total Burden Hours: 800.

Farm Service Agency

    Title: Warehouse Regulations under USWA and Standards for Approval 
of Warehouses.
    OMB Control Number: 0560-0120.
    Summary of Collection: Section 4 of the United States Warehouse Act 
(USWA) (7 U.S.C. 244) states that the Secretary of Agriculture, or his 
designated representative, is authorized, upon application to him, to 
issue to any warehouseman a license for the conduct of a warehouse or 
warehouses in accordance with this Act and such rules and regulations 
as may be hereunder: PROVIDED, that each such warehouse be found 
suitable for the proper storage of the particular agricultural product 
or products for which a license is applied for, and that such 
warehousemen agree, as a condition to the granting of the license, to 
comply with and abide by all the terms of this act and the rules and 
regulations prescribed hereunder. The USWA is administered by the Farm 
Service Agency (FSA). Although there are several warehouse types 
covered under the USWA, the reporting requirements within a particular 
warehouse type are essentially the same as those across all warehouse 
types and, with some exceptions, the forms are used bilaterally; that 
is, they are used for both USWA licensing and Commodity Credit 
Corporation purposes. The forms are furnished to interested 
warehousemen/warehouse operators or used by the warehouse examiners 
employed by FSA to secure and record information about the 
warehouseman/warehouse operators and the warehouse. FSA will collect 
information using several forms.
    Need And Use of the Information: FSA will collect Information (1) 
to determine whether or not the warehouse and the warehouseman/
warehouse operator making application for licensing and/or approval 
meets applicable standards; (2) to issue such licensed or approvals' 
(3) to determine, once licenses or approved, that the licensee or 
warehouse operator continues to meet such standards and is conforming 
to regulatory or contractual obligations; (4) to determine that the 
stored commodity is in good condition; and (5) to determine that the 
licensee or warehouse operator is storing the commodity for which 
licensed or approved in a safe and prudent manner.
    Description of Respondents: Business or other for-profit.
    Number of Respondents: 4,500.
    Frequency of Responses: Recordkeeping; Reporting: On occasion; 
Annually; Other (daily record).
    Total Burden Hours: 15,151.

Food and Nutrition Service

    Title: 7 CFR Part 220 School Breakfast Program.
    OMB Control Number: 0584-0012.
    Summary of Collection: Section 4 of the Child Nutrition Act (CNA) 
of 1966, as amended, authorizes the School Breakfast Program (SBP). The 
Food and

[[Page 5852]]

Nutrition Service (FNS) administers the School Breakfast Program on 
behalf of the Secretary of Agriculture so that needy children may 
receive their breakfasts free or at a reduced price. Although 
supervised by FNS, the SBP is delivered through State agencies and 
school food authorities. FNS must collect information at regular 
intervals from these organizations to determine eligibility and to 
determine the number of meals served and the amount of reimbursement 
due. FNS also requires that certain records be maintained as directed 
by the CNA and associated regulations.
    Need and Use of the Information: School food authorities provide 
information to State agencies. The State agencies report to FNS. FNS 
uses the information submitted to determine the amount of funds to be 
reimbursed, evaluate and adjust program operations, and to develop 
projections for future program operations.
    Description of Respondents: State, Local, or Tribal Government, 
Individuals or household, Business or other for-profit, Not-for-profit 
institutions, Federal Government.
    Number of Respondents: 81,748.
    Frequency of Responses: Recordkeeping; Reporting: On occasion; 
Quarterly; Monthly; Annually; Other.
    Total Burden Hours: 4,894,701.

Nancy B. Sternberg,
Departmental Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 00-2619 Filed 2-4-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-01-M