[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 163 (Thursday, August 22, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54401-54404]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-21375]


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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 
 appearing in this section.
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  Federal Register / Vol. 67, No. 163 / Thursday, August 22, 2002 / 
Notices  

[[Page 54401]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

August 16, 2002.
    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 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 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 20250-7602. 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.

Agricultural Research Service

    Title: USDA Biological Shipment Record--Beneficial Organisms.
    OMB Control Number: 0518-0013.
    Summary of Collection: The Biological Control Documentation Program 
records the importation and release of foreign biological control 
agents. Provision of the data is entirely voluntary and is used to 
populate the USDA ``Release of Beneficial Organisms in the United 
States and Territories'' (ROBO) database.
    Need and Use of the Information: The Agricultural Research Service 
will collect information on the biological/control and taxonomic 
research program by recording the introduction and release of non-
indigenous biological control organisms in the pollinators in the 
United States. If information were not collected there would be no 
systematic method for the collection of such information.
    Description of Respondents: Federal Government; Not-for-profit 
institutions; State, Local or Tribal Government.
    Number of Respondents: 100.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: On occasion; annually.
    Total Burden Hours: 25.

Economic Research Service

    Title: Food Security Supplement to the Current Population Survey.
    OMB Control Number: 0536-0043.
    Summary of Collection: The Food Security Supplement is sponsored by 
the Economic Research Service (ERS) as a research and evaluation 
activity authorized under Section 17 of the Food Stamp Act of 1977. ERS 
is collaborating with the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) and the 
Bureau of Census to continue this program of research and development. 
The Food Stamp Program (FSP) is currently the primary source of 
nutrition assistance for low-income Americans enabling households to 
improve their diet by increasing their food purchasing power. As the 
nation's primary public program for ensuring food security and 
alleviating hunger, USDA needs to regularly monitor these conditions 
among its target population. This need requires that USDA continue 
basic data collection, analysis, and evaluation.
    Need and Use of the Information: ERS will collect information from 
the Current Population Survey Food Security Supplement to routinely 
obtain data from a large, representative national sample in order to 
develop a measure that can be used to track the prevalence of food 
insecurity and hunger within the U.S. population, as a whole, and by 
important population subgroups, and to continue development and 
improvement of methods for measuring these conditions. The data 
collected will partially fulfill the requirements of the 
Congressionally mandated 10-Year Plan for the National Nutrition 
Monitoring and Related Research Program.
    Description of Respondents: Individuals or households.
    Number of Respondents: 57,000.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: On occasion.
    Total Burden Hours: 7,126.

Farm Service Agency

    Title: Offer Forms.
    OMB Control Number: 0560-0177.
    Summary of Collection: The Agricultural Trade Development and 
Assistance Act of 1954, as amended, (Title II, Pub. L. 480), Section 
416(b) of the Agricultural Act of 1949, as amended (Section 416(b)), 
and the Food for Progress Act of 1985, as amended (for Food for 
Progress) authorizes CCC's Export Operations Division to procure, sell 
and transport agricultural commodities, and obtain discharge/delivery 
survey information. Contractors, vendors, and steamship companies 
submit competitive offers for agricultural commodities and services. 
The Farm Service Agency (FSA) will collect information using several 
forms.
    Need and Use of the Information: The information collected will 
enable Kansas City Commodity Office (KCCO) to evaluate offers 
impartially, purchase or sell commodities, and obtain services to meet 
domestic and export program needs. Without the information KCCO could 
not meet program requirements.
    Description of Respondents: Business or other for-profit; Not-for-
profit institutions; Federal Government; State, Local or Tribal 
Government.
    Number of Respondents: 2,025.
    Frequency of Responses: Recordkeeping; reporting: On occasion; 
quarterly; weekly; semi-annually; monthly; annually; other (Bi-weekly & 
bi-monthly)
    Total Burden Hours: 6,758.

[[Page 54402]]

Rural Utilities Service

    Title: Accounting Requirements for RUS Electric and 
Telecommunications Borrows.
    OMB Control Number: 0572-0003.
    Summary of Collection: Rural Utilities Service (RUS) is a credit 
agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that makes loans (direct 
and guaranteed) to finance electric and telecommunications facilities 
in rural areas. Currently, there are approximately 685 active electric 
borrowers and 737 RUS telecommunications borrows. RUS does not own or 
operate rural electric facilities. Its function is to provide, through 
self-liquidating loans and technical assistance, adequate and 
dependable electric and telecommunications service to rural people 
under rates and conditions that permit productive use of these utility 
services. RUS borrowers, as all businesses, need accounting systems for 
their own internal use as well as external use. Such records are 
maintained as part of normal business practices. Without systems, no 
records would exist, for example, or what they own or what they owe. 
Such records systems provide borrowers with information that is 
required by the manager and board of directors to operate on a dialy 
basis, to complete their tax returns, and to support requests to state 
regulatory commissions for rate approvals.
    Need and Use of the Information: RUS collects information to 
evaluate a borrower's financial performance, to determine whether 
current loans are at risk, and to determine the credit worthiness of 
future loans. If basic financial records were not maintained, the 
borrower, its investors, and RUS would be unable to evaluate a 
borrower's financial performance.
    Description of Respondents: Not-for-profit institutions; business 
or other for-profit.
    Number of Respondents: 1,422.
    Frequency of Responses: Recordkeeping; Reporting: On occasion.
    Total Burden Hours: 38,394.

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

    Title: Imported Fire Ant.
    OMB Control Number: 0579-0102.
    Summary of Collection: The Plant Protection and Quarantine Service 
(PPQ) of USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has 
the responsibility of enforcing quarantines that are designed to 
prevent Imported Fire Ants from invading areas of the United States 
that are not yet infested. Information is collected through a variety 
of forms and certificates to ensure that nursery stock are free of 
infestation and to regulate movement of specific articles that might 
carry Imported Fire Ants from infested areas to non-infested areas.
    Need and Use of the Information: APHIS requires a variety of forms 
and certifications to be provided by nursery owners to ensure that 
plant stock is visually inspected for Imported Fire Ants and to 
document what treatment was performed if Imported Fire Ants were 
detected. Additionally, nursery owners must provide information on the 
movement of regulated items from quarantined areas. APHIS officials 
used this information to ensure compliance with the Federal and State 
Imported Fire Ant regulations. Without the collection of this 
information, APHIS would be unable to prevent Imported Fire Ants from 
moving beyond the quarantine zone.
    Description of Respondents: Business or other for-profit; Federal 
Government; State, Local or Tribal Government; Farms.
    Number of Respondents: 4,024.
    Frequency of Responses: Recordkeeping; Reporting: Other (twice 
monthly).
    Total Burden Hours: 5,010.

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

    Title: Foot-and-Mouth Disease; Prohibition on Importation of Farm 
Equipment.
    OMB Control Number: 0579-0195.
    Summary of Collection: 21 U.S.C. authorizes sections 111, 114, 
114a, 115, 120, 121, 125, 126 134a, 134c, 134f, and 134g. These 
authorities permit the Secretary to prevent, control and eliminate 
domestic diseases such as tuberculosis, as well as to take actions to 
prevent and to manage exotic diseases such as foot-and-mouth disease 
(FMD) and other foreign diseases. Disease prevention is the most 
effective method for maintaining a healthy animal population and 
enhancing the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) 
ability to compete in exporting animals and animal products. Because of 
the recent increase in the spread of FMD in different parts of the 
world, APHIS published an interim rule to prohibit the importation of 
all used farm equipment into the United States from regions in which 
FMD exists, unless the equipment has been cleaned free of all soil and 
other particulate material in the exporting region.
    Need and Use of the Information: APHIS will collect information 
through the use of a certification statement in which the exporter 
states that the cleaning of the equipment has been done. This is 
necessary to help prevent the introduction of foot-and-mouth disease 
into the United States. If the information were not collected APHIS 
would be forced to discontinue the importation of any used farm 
equipment from FMD regions, a development that could have a damaging 
financial impact on exporters and importers of this equipment.
    Description of Respondents: Business or other for-profit; State, 
Local or Tribal Government.
    Number of Respondents: 1,000.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: On occasion.
    Total Burden Hours: 2,000.

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

    Title: Center for Animal Health Monitoring Catfish 2003.
    OMB Control Number: 0579-NEW.
    Summary of Collection: The Department of Agriculture is responsible 
for protecting the health of our Nation's livestock and poultry 
populations by preventing the introduction and interstate spread of 
contagious, infectious, or communicable diseases of livestock 
(including farm-raised fish) and poultry and for eradicating such 
diseases from the United States when feasible. The Animal and Plant 
Health Inspection Service (APHIS) operates the National Animal Health 
Monitoring System (NAHMS), which collects on a national basis, 
statistically valid and scientifically sound data on the prevalence and 
economic importance of livestock and poultry diseases. NAHMS will 
initiate a national study titled Catfish 2003. The Catfish 2003 study 
will take place on farms in Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, and 
Mississippi. 7 U.S.C. 391, the Animal Industry Act of 1884, which 
established the precursor of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection 
Service, Veterinary Services, the Bureau of Animal Industry, mandates 
collection and dissemination of animal and poultry health data and 
information.
    Need and Use of the Information: APHIS will use the information 
collected to (1) address emerging issues, (2) determine the economic 
consequences of disease, (3) and develop trade strategies and support 
trade decisions. APHIS will also collect information on the aspects of 
the catfish growers operation ranging from stocking and feeding 
practices to pest management practices.
    Description of Respondents: Business or other for-profit; State, 
Local or Tribal Government; Farms.
    Number of Respondents: 1,080.

[[Page 54403]]

    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: On occasion.
    Total Burden Hours: 495.

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

    Title: National Animal Health Monitoring System Dairy 2002.
    OMB Control Number: 0579-NEW.
    Summary of Collection: The Department of Agriculture is responsible 
for protecting the health of our Nation's livestock and poultry 
populations by preventing the introduction and interstate spread of 
contagious, infectious, or communicable diseases of livestock and 
poultry and for eradicating such diseases from the United States when 
feasible. The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) 
operates the National Animal Health Monitoring System (NAHMS), which 
collects on a national basis, statistically valid and scientifically 
sound data on the prevalence and economic importance of livestock and 
poultry diseases. NAHMS will initiate a national study titled Dairy 
2002. The data collected through the national study will be used to 
describe Johne's management strategies, evaluate management factors 
associated with key food safety pathogens, describe level of 
understanding and preparedness of U.S. dairy producers to respond to 
threats of foreign animal diseases, and describe biosecurity practices, 
baseline dairy health, and animal waste handling practices. 7 U.S.C. 
391, the Animal Industry Act of 1884, which established the precursor 
of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Veterinary Services, 
the Bureau of Animal Industry, mandates collection and dissemination of 
animal and poultry health data and information. APHIS will use several 
forms to collect information.
    Need and Use of the Information: APHIS will use the information 
collected to (1) predict or detect national and regional trends in 
disease emergence and movement, (2) address emerging issues, (3) 
determine the economic consequences of diseases, and (4) develop trade 
strategies and support trade decisions. Without this type of national 
data, the U.S. ability to detect trends in management, production and 
health status that increase/decrease farm economy, either directly or 
indirectly, would be reduced or nonexistent. The ability to respond to 
international trade issues involving the health status of the U.S. 
dairy herd would be severely reduced, jeopardizing the marketability of 
meat and byproducts.
    Description of Respondents: Business or other for-profit; State, 
Local or Tribal Government; Farms.
    Number of Respondents: 8,405.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: On occasion.
    Total Burden Hours: 6,680.

Food and Nutrition Service

    Title: Evaluation of the NSLP Application and Verification Pilot 
Project.
    OMB Control Number: 0584-NEW.
    Summary of Collection: The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) 
provides federal financial assistance and commodities to schools 
serving lunches that meet required nutrition standards. Children living 
in families whose incomes are 130 percent or less of the federal 
poverty level qualify for free meals; those living in families whose 
income are between 131 and 185 percent of poverty qualify for reduced-
price meals. A verification process instituted in the early 1980s 
required that each school verify the application of a small sample of 
families by requiring them to submit documentation of their income. 
During the late 1990s, USDA and members of Congress became concerned 
about an apparent increase in the rates of error in determining 
eligibility for free and reduced-price meals. The study found that the 
number of children approved for free meals exceeded by 20 percent. In 
response to concerns about apparent increases in the number of 
ineligible students approved for free and reduced-price meals, the Food 
and Nutrition Service (FNS) has undertaken a set of pilot demonstration 
designed to improve the process of approving students for free and 
reduced-price meals and verifying their eligibility.
    Need and Use of the Information: FNS will collect information to 
improve the accuracy of the eligibility determination system; raise 
substantial barriers to income-eligible households; deter income-
ineligible households from becoming approved for free/reduced price 
meals benefits. Not conducting this data collection would significantly 
impede USDA's ability to evaluate the impacts of the NSLP Application/
Verification Pilot Projects.
    Description of Respondents: Individuals or household; State, Local, 
or Tribal Government.
    Number of Respondents: 3,216.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: On occasion; other (1 time).
    Total Burden Hours: 2,308.

Food and Nutrition Service

    Title: Case Study of NSLP Verification Outcomes in Large 
Metropolitan Areas.
    OMB Control Number: 0584-NEW.
    Summary of Collection: The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) 
provides federal financial assistance and commodities to schools 
serving lunches that meet required nutrition standards. Children living 
in families whose incomes are 130 percent or less of the federal 
poverty level qualify for free meals; those living in families whose 
incomes are between 131 and 185 percent of poverty qualify for reduced-
price meals. A verification process instituted in the early 1980s 
required that each school verify the application of a small sample of 
families by requiring them to submit documentation of their income. 
During the late 1990s, USDA and members of Congress became concerned 
about an apparent increase in the number of children approved for free 
and reduced-price meals whose family income made them ineligible. The 
planned Case Study of Verification Outcomes in Large Metropolitan 
School Food Authorities will document the outcomes of verification in 
21 large metropolitan school districts around the country. Also, 
through in-person interviews, it will independently assess the 
eligibility status of two groups of verified cases: (1) Those students 
continuing to attend district schools whose benefits are terminated for 
failure to respond to the verification request, and (2) those students 
whose benefits are unchanged as a result of the verification process.
    Need and Use of the Information: FNS will collect information about 
whether the verification process terminates the benefits of students 
whose incomes would make them eligible and also evaluate the collection 
and processing of information by the School Food Authority. Not 
conducting this data collection would significantly impede the ability 
of USDA and Congress to evaluate potential changes to the NSLP that 
might be considered to improve program targeting and administration.
    Description of Respondents: Individuals or household; State, Local 
or Tribal Government.
    Number of Respondents: 1,113.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: On occasion; other (1 time).
    Total Burden Hours: 672.

Forest Service

    Title: ``How Are We Doing''? Customer Service Comment Card.
    OMB Control Number: 0596-0146.
    Summary of Collection: Executive Order 12862 issued September 11, 
1993, directed Federal agencies to change the way they do business, to 
reform their management practices, to provide service to the public 
that matches or exceeds the best service available in the private 
sector, and to establish and implement customer service standards

[[Page 54404]]

to carry out principles of the National Performance Review. In response 
to this Executive Order, the Forest Service (FS) set up their customer 
service comment card program to provide an easy way for the public and 
partners to communicate their level of satisfaction with FS services 
and facilities.
    Need and Use of the Information: FS will collect information to 
monitor customer perceptions and provide a means to learn about and 
address customer complaints. FS will also collect information to help 
them to improve services and facilities.
    Description of Respondents: Individuals or households; Business or 
other for-profit; Not-for-profit institutions; Federal Government; 
State, Local or Tribal Government.
    Number of Respondents: 15,000.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: On occasion.
    Total Burden Hours: 1,000.

Food Safety and Inspection Service

    Title: Pathogen Reduction/Hazard Analysis and Critical Control 
Point (HACCP) System.
    OMB Control Number: 0583-0103.
    Summary of Collection: The Food Safety and Inspection Service 
(FSIS) has been delegated the authority to exercise the functions of 
the Secretary as provided in the Federal Meat Inspection Act (FMIA) (21 
U.S.C. 601) and the Poultry Products Inspection Act (PPIA) (21 U.S.C. 
451). These statutes mandate that FSIS protect the public by ensuring 
the meat and poultry products are safe, wholesome, unadulterated, and 
properly labeled and packaged. FSIS has begun to build the principle of 
prevention into its inspection program and requires regulated 
establishments to prepare operating plans and continuously report 
performance against the plans.
    Need and Use of the Information: Information will be collected from 
establishments as proof that standard operating plans have been 
developed. Additionally, information must be reported and pertinent 
records maintained on the occurrence and numbers of pathogenic 
microoganisms on meat and poultry products. FSIS will use this 
information during the inspection process to determine whether an 
establishment should change its operating procedures so that the 
public's health is protected.
    Description of Respondents: Business or other for-profit.
    Number of Respondents: 7,374.
    Frequency of Responses: Recordkeeping; Reporting: On occasion; 
other (daily).
    Total Burden Hours: 7,904,222.

Barbara A. Lacour,
Departmental Information Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 02-21375 Filed 8-21-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-01-M