[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 127 (Wednesday, July 2, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39538-39539]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-16732]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[OA-2003-0001; FRL-7521-7]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission of EPA ICR 
No. 1949.02 (OMB No. 2010-0032) to OMB for Review and Approval; Comment 
Request

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

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 the following Information 
Collection Request (ICR) has been forwarded to the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) for review and approval: National Environmental 
Performance Track Program. This ICR describes the nature of the 
information collection and its estimated burden and cost.

DATES: Additional comments may be submitted on or before August 1, 
2003.

ADDRESSES: Follow the detailed instructions in SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert D. Sachs, Office of Policy, 
Economics and Innovation, Mail Code 1808T, Environmental Protection 
Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone 
number: 202-566-2884; fax number: 202-566-0966; email address 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: EPA has submitted the following ICR to OMB 
for review and approval according to the procedures prescribed in 5 CFR 
1320.12. On January 27, 2003, 68 FR 3879, EPA sought comments on this 
ICR pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.8(d). EPA received no relevant comments.
    EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under Docket ID 
No. OA-2003-0001, which is available for public viewing at the Office 
of Environmental Information Docket in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), 
EPA West, Room B102, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The 
EPA Docket Center Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 
p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone 
number for the Reading Room is (202) 566-1744, and the telephone number 
for the Office of Environmental Information Docket is (202) 566-1752. 
An electronic version of the public docket is available through EPA 
Dockets (EDOCKET) at http://www.epa.gov/edocket. Use EDOCKET to submit 
or view public comments, access the index listing of the contents of 
the public docket, and to access those documents in the public docket 
that are available electronically. Once in the system, select 
``search,'' then key in the docket ID number identified above.
    Any comments related to this ICR should be submitted to OMB and EPA 
within 30 days of this notice, and according to the following detailed 
instructions: (1) Mail your comments to OMB at: Office of Information 
and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget (OMB), 
Attention: Desk Officer for EPA, 725 17th Street, NW., Washington, DC 
20503 and (2) Submit your comments to EPA online using EDOCKET (our 
preferred method), by email to [email protected], or by mail to: EPA 
Docket Center, Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Environmental 
Information Docket, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., 
Washington, DC 20460.
    EPA's policy is that public comments, whether submitted 
electronically or in paper, will be made available for public viewing 
in EDOCKET as EPA receives them and without change, unless the comment 
contains copyrighted material, CBI, or other information whose public 
disclosure is restricted by statute. When EPA identifies a comment 
containing copyrighted material, EPA will provide a reference to that 
material in the version of the comment that is placed in EDOCKET. The 
entire printed comment, including the copyrighted material, will be 
available in the public docket. Although identified as an item in the 
official docket, information claimed as CBI, or whose disclosure is 
otherwise restricted by statute, is not included in the official public 
docket, and will not be available for public viewing in EDOCKET. For 
further information about the electronic docket, see EPA's Federal 
Register notice describing the electronic docket at 67 FR 38102 (May 
31, 2002), or go to http://www.epa.gov/edocket.
    Title: National Environmental Performance Track Program (OMB 
Control Number 2010-0032, EPA ICR Number 1949.02). This is a request to 
renew an existing approved collection that is scheduled to expire on 
June 30, 2003. Under OMB regulations, the Agency may continue to 
conduct or sponsor the collection of information while this submission 
is pending at OMB.
    Abstract: EPA announced the National Environmental Performance 
Track Program on June 26, 2000. The program is designed to recognize 
and encourage facilities that consistently meet their legal 
requirements, that have implemented management systems to monitor and 
improve performance, that have voluntarily achieved environmental 
improvements beyond compliance, and that publicly commit to specific 
environmental improvements and report on progress. Applications 
submitted by facilities are used by EPA and participating regulatory 
entities to determine whether the applicant qualifies for the program. 
A total of 304 facilities are current members of this voluntary 
program. Environmental Performance Track members are also required to 
submit an annual performance report documenting their environmental 
performance relative to the commitments they made upon entry into the 
program. This information is important to determine whether 
participants are meeting their commitments, as well as to evaluate the 
effectiveness of the program. The public reporting elements of the 
program also provide information to the local community.
    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, and are 
identified on the form and/or instrument, if applicable.
    Burden Statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping 
burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 268 
hours per response. 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; 
adjust the existing ways to comply with any previously applicable 
instructions and requirements; train personnel to be able to respond to 
a collection of

[[Page 39539]]

information; search data sources; complete and review the collection of 
information; and transmit or otherwise disclose the information. For 
this ICR, EPA considers facilities that are members of the Performance 
Track program to be respondents.
    Respondents/Affected Entities: Public and private facilities/
entities that consistently meet their legal requirements, that have 
implemented management systems to monitor and improve performance, that 
have voluntarily achieved environmental improvements beyond compliance, 
and that publicly commit to specific environmental improvements and 
report on progress.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 513, the average calculated from 
years 1, 2 and 3 projections of 404, 505 and 631 respondents.
    Frequency of Response: Annually.
    Estimated Total Annual Hour Burden: 109,445.
    Estimated Total Annual Cost: $6,735,712 includes $0 annualized 
capital or O&M costs.
    Changes in the Estimates: There is an increase of 58,995 hours in 
the total estimated burden currently identified in the OMB Inventory of 
Approved ICR Burdens. This increase is based on the estimated growth in 
membership in the National Environmental Performance Track Program.

    Dated: June 18, 2003.
Doreen Sterling, Acting Director,
Collection Strategies Division.
[FR Doc. 03-16732 Filed 7-1-03; 8:45 am]
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