[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 71 (Wednesday, April 12, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19750-19751]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-9094]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL-6576-9]


Agency Information Collection Activities: Continuing Collection; 
Comment Request; Confidentiality Rules

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 EPA is planning to submit the 
following continuing Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office 
of Management and Budget (OMB): Confidentiality Rules, EPA ICR No. 
1665.03, OMB Control No. 2020-0003, expiration date May 31, 2000. 
Before submitting the ICR to OMB for review and approval, EPA is 
soliciting comments on specific aspects of the proposed information 
collection as described below.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before June 12, 2000.

ADDRESSES: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Environ-
mental Information, Office of Information Collection, Mailstop 2822, 
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20460. Interested persons 
may obtain a copy of the ICR without charge.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rebecca Moser, Office of Information 
Collection, Collection Strategies Division, Information Strategies 
Branch; Phone, 202-260-6780; Fax, 202-260-8550; Email, 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Affected entities: Entities potentially 
affected by this action are those who characterize the information they 
provide to EPA as confidential business information (CBI).
    Title: Confidentiality Rules, OMB Control No. 2020-0003, EPA ICR 
No. 1665.03, expiring May 31, 2000.
    Abstract: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 
administers a number of environmental protection statutes (e.g., the 
Clean Water Act; the Clean Air Act; the Toxic Substances Control Act; 
the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act; the Comprehensive

[[Page 19751]]

Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act; the Federal 
Water Pollution Control Act; and others), which require it to collect 
data from thousands of facilities in many economic sectors. The data 
often provide information on toxic chemicals, industrial processes, 
waste streams, regulatory compliance; and in many cases, businesses 
that submit the data claim it as confidential business information 
(CBI). EPA established the procedures described in 40 CFR Part 2, 
Subpart B, to protect the confidentiality of information as well as the 
rights of the public under FOIA. In accordance with these regulations, 
when EPA finds it necessary to make a final confidentiality 
determination (e.g., in response to a FOIA request or in the course of 
rulemaking or litigation), it notifies the affected business and 
provides it with an opportunity to submit comments (i.e., a 
substantiation). This ICR relates to the collection of information that 
will assist EPA in determining whether previously submitted information 
is entitled to confidential treatment.
    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 EPA would like to solicit comments to:
    (i) evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility;
    (ii) evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden 
of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of 
the methodology and assumptions used;
    (iii) enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information 
to be collected; and
    (iv) minimize the burden of the collection of information on those 
who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic 
submission of responses.
    Burden Statement: EPA estimates that in response to the procedures 
outlined in 40 CFR Part 2, Subpart B, the Agency would notify 543 
businesses and provide them with an opportunity to submit comments 
explaining why previously submitted information should be treated as 
confidential. Of the 543 businesses, EPA estimates that approximately 
443 industries would respond by submitting substantiations. The Agency 
estimates that it takes industry approximately 14 hours and $464.43 in 
labor costs to prepare and submit each substantiation; or a total of 
6,202 hours at a cost of $205,742.49 in labor for all 443 
substantiations. For those 100 businesses that do not submit 
substantiations, they are still likely to spend approximately 1 hour at 
a cost of $32.04 in labor to review EPA's notice, examine the 
information in question, and make a decision not to respond; or a total 
of 100 hours at a cost of $3,204.00 in labor costs for reviewing and 
deciding not to respond in 100 cases. The total burden on industry to 
review and, if desired, respond to 543 EPA substantiation requests is 
6,302 hours at a cost of $208,946.49 in labor.
    In addition, when EPA utilizes the services of contractors/
subcontractors in implementing 40 CFR, Part 2, Subpart B, all 
contractor/subcontractor employees who may be given access to 
confidential information must first sign confidentiality agreements 
stating that they will honor the terms of the contract/subcontract 
which requires the protection of CBI.
    In addition, contractor/subcontractor businesses must maintain a 
file of all such agreements. EPA estimates that there are about 129 
contractor/subcontractor businesses that handle CBI in connection with 
their work for EPA each year. These 129 contractor/subcontractor 
businesses together have a total of approximately 658 employees who 
must sign confidentiality agreements each year. Each employee would 
need approximately 0.1 hour to review and sign an agreement, at a cost 
of $3.34 in labor; employees' review and signature of all agreements 
would require approximately 65.8 hours at a cost of $2197.72 in labor 
per year. In addition, each subcontractor/contractor business would 
need approximately 0.5 hour at a cost of $8.07 in labor per year to 
maintain a file of employee confidentiality agreements; the 129 
contractor/subcontractor businesses together would require a total of 
64.5 hours at a labor cost of $1041.03 to maintain a file of 
confidentiality agreements. The total burden for signing and 
maintaining confidentiality agreements would thus be 130.3 hours at a 
cost of $3238.75.
    The overall burden for handling confidentiality claims--including 
the substantiation process and the signing and maintaining of 
confidentiality agreements--would be 6432.3 hours at a total labor cost 
of $212,185.24 per year. EPA estimates that no capital costs or 
operation and maintenance costs would be incurred as a result of this 
information collection.
    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; adjusting 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.

    Dated: April 4, 2000.
Oscar Morales,
Director, Collection Strategies Divisio, Office of Information 
Collection
[FR Doc. 00-9094 Filed 4-11-00; 8:45 am]
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