[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 156 (Monday, August 15, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47784-47785]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E5-4405]


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 Notices
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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 
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  Federal Register / Vol. 70, No. 156 / Monday, August 15, 2005 / 
Notices  

[[Page 47784]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. 05-044-1]


Notice of Request for Extension of Approval of an Information 
Collection; National Poultry Improvement Plan

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 in support of the National Poultry Improvement Plan.

DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before 
October 14, 2005.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
     EDOCKET: Go to http://www.epa.gov/feddocket to submit or 
view public comments, access the index listing of the contents of the 
official public docket, and to access those documents in the public 
docket that are available electronically. Once you have entered 
EDOCKET, click on the ``View Open APHIS Dockets'' link to locate this 
document.
     Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Please send four copies 
of your comment (an original and three copies) to Docket No. 05-044-1, 
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. 05-044-1.
    Reading Room: 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.
    Other Information: You may view APHIS documents published in the 
Federal Register and related information on the Internet at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/webrepor.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:  For information regarding the 
National Poultry Improvement Plan, contact Mr. Andrew Rhorer, Senior 
Coordinator, National Poultry Improvement Plan, VS, APHIS, 1498 
Klondike Road, Suite 200, Conyers, GA 30094-5104, (770) 922-3496. 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: National Poultry Improvement Plan.
    OMB Number: 0579-0007.
    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, administering the National Poultry Improvement Plan 
(NPIP), the primary purpose of which is to protect the health of the 
U.S. poultry population. NPIP is a voluntary Federal-State-industry 
cooperative program for the improvement of poultry breeding flocks and 
products through disease control techniques.
    Administering the NPIP requires us to engage in a number of 
information collection activities, which are described below. We are 
asking the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to approve our use of 
this information collection activities, which are critical to our 
ability to prevent the spread of contagious poultry diseases within the 
United States.

Flock Selecting and Testing Report (VS Form 9-2)

    This form is used by authorized agents and State inspectors when 
breeding flocks are selected and tested. The form provides space for 
the number of birds tested and the results of the test. This form also 
identifies a given flock as to owner, hatchery affiliation, stock, 
type, purpose, classification, and most importantly, flock location. 
Since most of the flocks are supply flocks for the same hatchery, it is 
extremely important to know the location of the flock. The information 
on this form is of critical importance when an investigation must be 
conducted to determine the source of a hatchery-disseminated or egg-
transmitted disease.

Report of Sales of Hatching Eggs, Chicks, and Poults (VS Form 9-3)

    NPIP participants use this form to record any interstate sales of 
their hatching eggs, chicks, and poults. This document is used by both 
APHIS and the receiving State to monitor the movements of these items. 
This form also serves as a vital investigative aid when APHIS is 
attempting to track down the source of a poultry disease. These records 
must be maintained by producers for 3 years.

Summary of Breeding Flock Participation (VS Form 9-4)

    This report form, which is completed by State animal health 
authorities, contains a summary of blood testing work and of flock 
participation by classes and breeding status. It is distributed to 
Official State Agencies from our offices at the end of the testing year 
in June and must be returned to us in July. With this information, we 
can publish our Tables on Hatchery and Flock Participation, which serve 
as an important tool in monitoring the health status of participating 
flocks.

Report of Hatcheries, Dealers, and Independent Flocks Participating in 
the NPIP (VS Form 9-5)

    This form is completed by the official State Agency to record an 
NPIP program participant's decision to withdraw from the program, or to 
record a producer's decision to join the program. The form requests 
information on the location and size of each flock owned by the 
producer. It is important for any individual participating in the NPIP 
to report the existence and location of all his or her flocks, since 
the disease status of one flock can affect the health of other flocks. 
Failing to report the existence and location of all flocks could have 
detrimental effects upon our ability to effectively monitor the health

[[Page 47785]]

status of flocks within a given State. In the event of a poultry 
disease outbreak, this lack of information could prove detrimental to 
our efforts to promptly contain and eradicate the disease. This 
document is also used to record a change in disease program 
classification. This form allows us to effectively monitor 
participation in the plan, and to maintain an up-to-date list of 
program participants, their addresses, and other important information 
concerning their poultry operations.

Report of Salmonella Isolations to NPIP Official State Agencies (VS 
Form 9-6)

    When salmonella organisms are isolated from a specimen that 
originated in an NPIP participating hatchery, State veterinary 
authorities must attempt to locate the source of the infection. The 
results of this investigation, and the actions taken to eliminate the 
infection, must be reported to APHIS by the State. The VS Form 9-6 is 
used for this purpose.

Investigation of Salmonella Isolations in Poultry (VS Form 9-7)

    If a multi-State disease outbreak occurs, the NPIP will conduct an 
investigation and share the resulting information with all the States 
involved. The VS Form 9-7 is one of the tools used to complete this 
investigation; it provides the investigating State agency with a 
uniform method of compiling and analyzing information that can 
subsequently be used to study trends, economic importance, and other 
matters. This form is arranged in sections so that the disease 
investigations can be completed in stages by different inspectors, 
depending upon the location of the flock, hatchery, and breeding flock. 
The inspector obtains some of the needed information by interviewing 
the appropriate poultry producers. When several States are involved in 
a pullorum-typhoid infection, the completed form will be sent to each 
of the States involved so that all of them will be aware of the 
investigation's outcome.

Flock Inspection and Check Testing Report (VS Form 9-8)

    This form is completed by a State inspector to recheck a flock that 
has already been tested for pullorum-typhoid. This retesting is 
performed randomly, periodically, and unannounced as a means of 
verifying that pullorum-typhoid testing was correctly carried out on a 
given flock. The form contains such information as the location of the 
flock, the flock owner's name and address, the date of the last 
pullorum-typhoid test, the number of birds tested, and other relevant 
testing information.

Hatchery Inspection Form (VS Form 9-9)

    This form is completed by a State inspector while inspecting a 
hatchery to determine if it is in compliance with NPIP standards. On 
this form the inspector notes the level of cleanliness in the facility 
and its equipment, as well as the effectiveness of the sanitation 
procedures in place at the facility. On this form the inspector also 
records the number of incubators and their condition, the make and 
model of these units, their egg capacity for both setting and hatching 
trays, the source of the supply flock, whether the flock is a 
multiplier or primary flock, and the flock's official health status 
classification. The primary reason for the inspection is to ensure that 
the facility's birds originate from approved NPIP sources. Hatcheries 
are generally inspected once each year.

Sentinel Birds Banded for Identification Prior to Flock Vaccination

    When a federally licensed Salmonella enteritidis bacterin is used 
to vaccinate a flock, 350 birds must remain unvaccinated so that they 
can be used to conduct the necessary serological tests for Salmonella 
pullorum and Salmonella gallinarum. These test birds must be banded so 
that they can be recognized as sentinel birds.

Request for Salmonella Serotyping (VS Form 10-3)

    This is a National Veterinary Services Laboratories (NVSL) form 
that must be completed by State or APHIS personnel who are submitting 
samples for salmonella serotyping. If samples were sent to NVSL without 
this form, lab personnel would have no way of identifying any given 
sample as to the flock from which it came, or even the disease for 
which the sample is to be tested.

Printing and Mailing Computerized Printouts

    These printouts are constructed by hatchery operators who ship 
large numbers of small chick orders all across the United States. These 
computerized lists contain all the information found on a VS Form 9-3, 
but reduces the paperwork load substantially because they are computer 
generated. These printouts are sent every month to those States that 
request them. The States use these printouts to monitor the number of 
small chicks they are receiving.

Purpose of Notice

    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 
collection of information, 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 collection of information 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 0.5112739 hours per response.
    Respondents: Flock owners, breeders, hatchery operators, and State 
veterinary medical officers.
    Estimated annual number of respondents: 10,000.
    Estimated annual number of responses per respondent: 7.3.
    Estimated annual number of responses: 73,000.
    Estimated total annual burden on respondents: 37,323 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 9th day of August 2005.
Kevin Shea,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. E5-4405 Filed 8-12-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P