[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 226 (Wednesday, November 24, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68345-68346]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-26076]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[OW-2004-0008; FRL-7841-4]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to OMB for 
Review and Approval; Comment Request; Microbial Rules (Renewal), EPA 
ICR Number 1895.03, OMB Control Number 2040-0205

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

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 an Information Collection 
Request (ICR) has been forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) for review and approval. This is a request to renew an existing 
approved collection. This ICR is scheduled to expire on November 30, 
2004. Under OMB regulations, the Agency may continue to conduct or 
sponsor the collection of information while this submission is pending 
at OMB. This ICR describes the nature of the information collection and 
its estimated burden and cost.

DATES: Additional comments may be submitted on or before December 27, 
2004.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, referencing docket ID number OW-2004-
0008, to (1) EPA online using EDOCKET (our preferred method), by e-mail 
to [email protected], or by mail to: EPA Docket Center, Environmental 
Protection Agency, Water Docket, Mail Code 4101T, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460, and (2) 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Richard P. Naylor, Office of Ground 
Water and Drinking Water, (4606M), Environmental Protection Agency, 
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: 
202.564.3847; fax number: 202.564.3755; e-mail 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 April 30, 2004 (69 FR 23741), EPA sought comments on this 
ICR pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.8(d). EPA received no comments.
    EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under Docket ID 
No. OW-2004-0008, which is available for public viewing at the Water 
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 Water Docket 
is (202) 566-2426. 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 EPA and OMB 
within 30 days of this notice. 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

[[Page 68346]]

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: Microbial Rules (Renewal).
    Abstract: This ICR examines public water system (PWS), primacy 
agency, and EPA burden and costs for recordkeeping and reporting 
required in support of microbial contaminant-associated rulemakings. 
These rules that have recordkeeping and reporting requirements that are 
mandatory for compliance with 40 CFR parts 141 and 142 include the 
following: (1) Surface Water Treatment Rule (SWTR); (2) Total Coliform 
Rule (TCR); (3) Interim Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (IESWTR); 
(4) Filter Backwash Recycling Rule (FBRR); and (5) Long Term 1 Enhanced 
Surface Water Treatment Rule (LT1ESWTR). This Microbial Rules ICR 
includes all SWTR components except disinfectant residual monitoring 
and associated activities, which are included in the Disinfectants and 
Disinfection Byproducts, Chemical, and Radionuclides Rules ICR. Burden 
for future rules that address microbial contaminants (Long Term 2 
Enhanced Surface Water Treatment Rule (LT2ESWTR), and the Ground Water 
Rule (GWR) will be added to this ICR when the regulations are finalized 
and the original stand-alone ICRs for each rule expires.
    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 in 40 CFR are listed in 40 CFR part 9 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 .77 
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 information; search data sources; complete and review 
the collection of information; and transmit or otherwise disclose the 
information.
    Respondents/Affected Entities: (1) Owners/operators of PWSs, who 
must report to the primacy agency; (2) primacy agencies that must 
report to EPA Headquarters; and (3) regional EPA administrators, who 
must send reports and notices to PWS owners and States.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 161,274.
    Frequency of Response: As necessary, monthly, quarterly, annually.
    Estimated Total Annual Hour Burden: 8,624,865.
    Estimated Total Annual Cost: $340,480,000, includes $96,939,000 
annualized capital or O&M costs and $243,541,000 annual labor costs.
    Changes in the Estimates: There is an increase of 431,665 hours in 
the total estimated burden currently identified in the OMB Inventory of 
Approved ICR Burdens. This increase is primarily due to restructuring 
adjustments (i.e., incorporation of previously stand-alone ICRs for the 
LT1ESWTR and the FBRR).

    Dated: November 17, 2004.
Oscar Morales,
Director, Collection Strategies Division.
[FR Doc. 04-26076 Filed 11-23-04; 8:45 am]
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