[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 184 (Thursday, September 21, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57163-57164]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-24259]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Information Collection; Request for Comments; Small Business 
Timber Sale Set-Aside Program; Appeal Procedures on Recomputation of 
Shares

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the 
Forest Service announces its intention to reinstate an information 
collection. The collected information will help the Forest Service 
fairly consider administrative appeals from timber companies appealing 
small business timber sale set-aside recomputations.

DATES: Comments must be received in writing on or before November 20, 
2000.

ADDRESSES: All comments should be addressed to Rod Sallee, Forest 
Management Staff, Mail Stop 1105, Forest Service, USDA, P.O. Box 96090, 
Washington, DC 20090-6090.
    Comments also may be submitted via facsimile to (202) 205-1766 or 
by email to [email protected].
    The public may inspect comments received at the Forest Management 
Staff Office, room 3NW located at 201 14th Street, SW., at Independence 
Ave., SW., Washington, DC. Visitors should call ahead to facilitate 
entrance into the building.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rodney Sallee, Forest Management 
Staff, at (202) 205-1766.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Forest Service adopted the Small Business Timber Sale Set-Aside 
Program on July 26, 1990 (55 FR 30485). The agency administers the 
program in cooperation with the Small Business Administration (SBA) 
under the authorities of The Small Business Act, the National Forest 
Management Act of 1976, and SBA's regulations at Part 121 of Title 13 
of the Code of Federal Regulations (13 CFR, Part 121). The program is 
designed to ensure that small business timber purchasers have the 
opportunity to purchase a fair proportion of National Forest System 
timber offered for sale.
    Under the program, the Forest Service must recompute the shares of 
timber sales to be set aside for qualifying small businesses every 5 
years on the actual volume of sawtimber that has been purchased by 
small business. Also, shares must be recomputed if there is a change in 
manufacturing capability, if the purchaser size class changes, or if 
certain purchasers discontinue operations. Direction to guide 
administration of the Set-Aside Program is issued in Chapter 2430 of 
the Forest Service Manual and Chapter 90 of the Forest Service Timber 
Sale Preparation Handbook.
    In 1992, the agency adopted new administrative appeal procedures at 
Part 215 of Title 36 of the Code of Federal Regulations in response to 
new statutory direction. These rules apply to certain National Forest 
System project-level decisions for which an environmental

[[Page 57164]]

assessment (EA) or environmental impact statement (EIS) has been 
prepared. Because the recomputation of shares under the Small Business 
Timber Sale Set-Aside Program is not subject to documentation in an EA 
or EIS, the decisions on the 1996-2000 Forest Service recomputation of 
small business shares were not subject to the new appeal procedures. 
These decisions also were not appealable as conditions of special-use 
authorizations under Part 251, Subpart C, of Title 36 of the Code of 
Federal Regulations.
    However, since the agency had accepted appeals of recomputation 
decisions under Part 217 of Title 36 of the Code of Federal Regulations 
prior to adoption of Part 215, the agency decided to establish 
procedures for providing notice to affected purchasers with opportunity 
to comment on the recomputation of shares. Notice of these procedures 
was published in the Federal Register on February 28, 1996 (61 FR 
7468).
    The Conference Report accompanying the 1997 Omnibus Appropriation 
Act found the Forest Service decision to eliminate an administrative 
appeals opportunity for the Small Business Timber Sale Set-Aside 
Program ``unacceptable'' and directed the Forest Service to reinstate 
an appeals process before December 31, 1996.
    The Conference Report required the agency to establish a process by 
which purchasers may appeal decisions concerning recomputations of 
Small Business Set-Aside (SBA) shares, structural recomputations of SBA 
shares, or changes in policies impacting the Small Business Timber Sale 
Set-Aside Program.
    The Forest Service published an interim rule in the Federal 
Register on March 24, 1997, (62 FR 13826) to comply with the Conference 
Report appeal requirement. The agency published a final rule, Small 
Business Timber Sale Set-Aside Program; Appeal Procedures on 
Recomputation of Shares (36 CFR 223), in the Federal Register on 
January 5, 1999 (64 FR 406). This final rule clarified the kinds of 
decisions that are subject to appeal, who may appeal decisions, the 
procedures for appealing decisions, the timelines for appeal, and the 
contents of the notice of appeal.

Description of Information Collection

    The following describes the information collection to be 
reinstated:
    Title: Small Business Timber Sale Set-Aside Program; Appeal 
Procedures on Recomputation of Shares.
    OMB Number: 0596-0141.
    Expiration Date of Approval: May 31, 2000.
    Type of Request: Reinstatement of an information collection 
previously approved by the Office of Management and Budget.
    Abstract: The Appeal Deciding Officer, who is the official one 
level above the level of the Responsible Official who made the 
recomputation of shares decision, will evaluate the data provided in 
the notice of appeal to resolve appeals of recomputations of small 
business shares of the timber sale program.
    The Responsible Official provides qualifying timber sale purchasers 
30 days for predecisional review and comment on any draft decision to 
reallocate shares, including the data used in making the proposed 
recomputation decision. Within 15 days of the close of the 30-day 
predecisional review period, the Responsible Official makes a decision 
on the shares to be set aside for small businesses and gives written 
notice of the decision to all parties on the national forest timber 
sale bidders list for the affected area. The written notice provides 
the date by which the appeal may be filed and how to obtain appeal 
procedures information.
    Only timber sale purchasers, or their representatives, who are 
affected by recomputation decision of the small business share of 
timber sale set-aside and who have submitted predecisional comments may 
appeal recomputation decisions.
    The appellant must file a notice of appeal with the Appeal Deciding 
Officer within 20 days of the date of the notice of decision.
    The notice of appeal must include the appellant's name, mailing 
address, and daytime phone number; the title and date of the decision 
and the name of the responsible official; a brief description and date 
for the decision being appealed; a statement of how the appellant is 
adversely affected by the decision being appealed; and a statement of 
the facts in dispute regarding the issue(s) raised by the appeal; 
specific references to law, regulation, or policy that the appellant 
believes to have been violated, if any, and the basis for such an 
allegation; a statement as to whether and how the appellant has tried 
to resolve with the Responsible Official the issue(s) being appealed, 
including evidence of submission of written comments at the 
predecisional stage; and a statement of the relief the appellant seeks.
    Data gathered in this information collection are not available from 
other sources.
    Estimate of Annual Burden: 4 hours.
    Type of Respondents: Timber sale purchasers, or their 
representatives, who are affected by recomputations of the small 
business share of timber sales.
    Estimated Annual Number of Respondents: 40.
    Estimated Annual Number of Responses per Respondent: 2.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 320 hours.

Comment Is Invited

    The agency invites comments on the following: (a) Whether the 
proposed collection of information is necessary for the stated purposes 
and the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including 
whether the information will have practical or scientific utility; (b) 
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; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and 
clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize 
the burden of the collection of information on respondents, including 
the use of automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological 
collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

Use of Comments

    All comments received in response to this notice, including names 
and addresses when provided, will become a matter of public record. 
Comments will be summarized and included in the request for Office of 
Management and Budget approval.

    Dated: September 14, 2000.
Paul Brouha,
Associate Deputy Chief, National Forest System.
[FR Doc. 00-24259 Filed 9-20-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-11-U