[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 233 (Tuesday, December 4, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 63014-63015]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-30002]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. 01-106-1]


Notice of Request for Extension of Approval of an Information 
Collection

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Extension of approval of an information collection; comment 
request.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this 
notice announces the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service's 
intention to request an extension of approval of an information 
collection that is used to evaluate the plant pest risk posed by the 
introduction of certain genetically engineered organisms and products.

DATES: We invite you to comment on this docket. We will consider all 
comments we receive that are postmarked, delivered, or e-mailed by 
February 4, 2002.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by postal mail/commercial delivery 
or by e-mail. If you use postal mail/commercial delivery, please send 
four copies of your comment (an original and three copies) to: Docket 
No. 01-106-1, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 
3C71, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238. Please state 
that your comment refers to Docket No. 01-106-1. If you use e-mail, 
address your comment to [email protected]. Your comment must 
be contained in the body of your message; do not send attached files. 
Please include your name and address in your message and ``Docket No. 
01-106-1'' on the subject line.
    You may read any comments that we receive on this docket in our 
reading room. The reading room is located in room 1141 of the USDA 
South Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue SW., Washington, 
DC. Normal reading room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, except holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you, 
please call (202) 690-2817 before coming.
    APHIS documents published in the Federal Register, and related 
information, including the names of organizations and individuals who 
have commented on APHIS dockets, are available on the Internet at 
http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/webrepor.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information on the regulations for 
the introduction of genetically engineered organisms and products which 
are plant pests or which there is reason to believe are plant pests, 
contact Ms. Shirley Ingebritsen, Regulatory Analyst,

[[Page 63015]]

Regulatory Coordination Staff, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 141, 
Riverdale, MD 20737-1236; (301) 734-5874. For copies of more detailed 
information on the information collection, contact Mrs. Celeste 
Sickles, APHIS' Information Collection Coordinator, at (301) 734-7477.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Introduction of Organisms and Products Altered or Produced 
Through Genetic Engineering Which Are Plant Pests or Which There Is 
Reason To Believe Are Plant Pests.
    OMB Number: 0579-0085.
    Type of Request: Extension of approval of an information 
collection.
    Abstract: The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) of 
the United States Department of Agriculture is responsible for, among 
other things, preventing the introduction or spread of plant pests into 
or through the United States.
    As part of that responsibility, APHIS regulates the introduction 
(importation, interstate movement, and release into the environment) of 
organisms and products altered or produced through genetic engineering 
that are plant pests or that there is reason to believe are plant 
pests.
    In administering the regulations, the Biotechnology Permits Branch 
of Plant Protection and Quarantine, APHIS, collects certain information 
through its permitting and notification processes. The information 
enables us to evaluate the plant pest risk posed by the introduction of 
certain genetically engineered organisms and products.
    The information we seek with our notification and permit processes 
includes, among other things, a complete description of the organism or 
product, the safeguards that will be used in preventing escape, the 
destination or field test locations, and field test results that 
describe any unusual or harmful occurrences.
    Without the information we obtain through our notification and 
permit application processes, we would be unable to evaluate the plant 
pest risk posed by the introduction of certain genetically engineered 
organisms and products. Therefore, collecting the information is vital 
to preventing the introduction or spread of harmful plant pests into or 
through the United States.
    We are asking the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to approve 
our use of these information collection activities for an additional 3 
years.
    The purpose of this notice is to solicit comments from the public 
(as well as affected agencies) concerning our information collection. 
These comments will help us:
    (1) Evaluate 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;
    (2) Evaluate the accuracy of our estimate of the burden of the 
information collection, including the validity of the methodology and 
assumptions used;
    (3) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to 
be collected; and
    (4) Minimize the burden of the information collection on those who 
are to respond, through use, as appropriate, of automated, electronic, 
mechanical, and other collection technologies, e.g., permitting 
electronic submission of responses.
    Estimate of burden: The public reporting burden for this collection 
of information is estimated to average 3.18565 hours per response.
    Respondents: U.S. importers and shippers of genetically engineered 
organisms and products and agricultural companies that produce or test 
genetically engineered organisms or products or that engage in product 
research and development.
    Estimated annual number of respondents: 239.
    Estimated annual number of responses per respondent: 13.1841.
    Estimated annual number of responses: 3,151.
    Estimated total annual burden on respondents: 10,038 hours. (Due to 
averaging, the total annual burden hours may not equal the product of 
the annual number of responses multiplied by the reporting burden per 
response.)
    All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the 
request for OMB approval. All comments will also become a matter of 
public record.

    Done in Washington, DC, this 28th day of November, 2001.
W. Ron DeHaven,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 01-30002 Filed 12-3-01; 8:45 am]
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