[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 190 (Friday, October 1, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Page 58997]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-22143]



[[Page 58997]]

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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration

[FTA Docket No. FTA-2004-19219]


Agency Information Collection Activity Undre OMB Review

AGENCY: Federal Transit Administration, DOT.

ACTION: Notice of request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 
U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this notice announces that the Information 
Collection Request (ICR) abstracted below has been forwarded to the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval. The Federal 
Register Notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting comments was 
published on June 1, 2004.

DATES: Comments must be submitted before November 1, 2004. A comment to 
OMB is most effective if OMB receives it within 30 days of publication.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sylia L. Marion, Office of 
Administration, Office of Management Planning, (202) 366-6680.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Title: 49 CFR Part 611 Major Capital 
Investment Projects (OMB Number: 2132-0561).
    Abstract: On June 9, 1998, the Transportation Equity Act for the 
21st Century (TEA-21) (Pub. L. 105-178) was enacted. Section 3009(e)(5) 
of TEA-21 requires FTA to issue regulations on the manner in which 
candidate projects for capital investment grants and loans for new 
fixed guideway systems and extensions to existing systems (``New 
Starts'') will be evaluated and rated for purposes of the FTA Capital 
Investment Grants and Loans program for New Starts under 49 USC Section 
5309.
    The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for this regulation was 
issued on April 7, 1999, (64 FR 17062). The Final Rule was issued on 
December 7, 2000, (67 FR 76864). In the Federal Register of October 30, 
2001, FTA announced OMB's approval of the collection of information for 
the Final Rule.
    It is important to note that while the New Starts project 
evaluation and rating regulation was new when FTA first requested 
approval for this information collection, the requirements for project 
evaluation and data collection for the New Starts program are not. 
FTA's requirement to evaluate proposed New Starts against a prescribed 
set of statutory criteria is longstanding. The Surface Transportation 
and Uniform Relocation Assistance Act of 1987 (STURAA) established in 
law a set of criteria for proposed projects to become eligible for 
federal funding. The requirement for summary project ratings has been 
in place since 1998.
    In general, the information used by FTA for New Starts project 
evaluation and rating purposes should arise as a part of the normal 
planning process. Prior to this Rule, FTA collected project evaluation 
information from project sponsors under a Paperwork Reduction Act 
request (OMB No. 2132-0529) approved under the joint FTA/FHWA planning 
regulations. However, as the project evaluation criteria expanded under 
TEA-21, it became aparent that some information required under this 
Rule might be beyond the scope of ordinary planning activities. 
Further, whlie FTA has long required the reporting of information for 
project evaluations, there has never been a regulatory requirement 
until TEA-21. Finally, this Rule added a new requirement for before-
and-after data collection for purposes of Government Performance and 
Results Act reporting as a condition of obtaining a Full Funding Grant 
Agreement (FFGA). It is also important to note that since this is a new 
regulatory requirement, the burden estimates include all data 
collection efforts required by this Rule, regardless of whether the 
same data would have been required under the previous, policy 
statement-driven process. Thus, the total burden estimate includes 
items that would have been required whether this regulation had been 
issued or not. These estimates were also provided in the preamble to 
the Final Rule dated December 7, 2000.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden: 32,920 hours.

ADDRESSES: All written comments must refer to the docket number that 
appears at the top of this document and be submitted to the Office of 
Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, 
725-17th Street, NW., Washington, DC 20503, Attention: FTA Desk 
Officer.
    Comments are Invited On: Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the Department, including whether the information will have practical 
utility, the accuracy of the Department's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed information collection; ways to enhance the quality, utility, 
and clarity of the information to be collected; and ways to minimize 
the burden of the collection of information on respondents, including 
the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of 
information technology.

    Dated: September 27, 2004.
Ann M. Linnertz,
Deputy Associate Administrator for Administrator.
[FR Doc. 04-22143 Filed 9-30-04; 8:45 am]
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