[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 103 (Tuesday, May 30, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30685-30686]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-8250]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Federal Emergency Management Agency


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request

AGENCY: Federal Emergency Management Agency, Department of Homeland 
Security.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Federal Emergency Management Agency, as part of its 
continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites 
the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity 
to comment on a proposed new information collection. In accordance with 
the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice seeks comments 
concerning the use of a metropolitan firefighter demographic 
questionnaire to collect data to determine firefighter demographics of 
metropolitan fire departments. For the purposes of this study, 
metropolitan fire departments are defined as fire departments that have 
a minimum of 400 fully paid career firefighters. In addition to the 400 
career firefighters, some of the metropolitan fire departments also 
have volunteer firefighters.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) \1\ 
receives many requests from fire service organizations and the general 
public for information related to the demographics of firefighters, 
including gender, race and ethnicity breakdowns, and the number of 
firefighters holding chief officer and line officer positions. The USFA 
also has a need for this information to guide programmatic decisions, 
to ensure that the demographic make up of firefighters attending 
National Fire Academy training courses is comparable to that of fire 
departments across the United States, and to encourage and recruit 
women and minorities to join the fire service. Finally, recommendations 
for the creation of a fire department database included the collection 
of information related to demographics, capabilities and activities of 
fire departments. This recommendation came out of a Blue Ribbon Panel's 
review of the USFA--initiated by FEMA Director James Lee Witt in the 
spring of 1998. As a result of those recommendations, the USFA created 
the National Fire Department Census with which more than 24,500 fire 
departments have registered. As a continuation of this effort, USFA 
plans to look at a snapshot of the demographics of firefighters in 
metropolitan fire departments.
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    \1\ The USFA is currently being transferred to the newly created 
Preparedness Directorate of the Department of Homeland Security. 
During this transition FEMA, also part of the Department of Homeland 
Security, will continue to support this program as the new 
Directorate stands up. Ultimately this data collection will be 
transferred to the Preparedness Directorate.
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Collection of Information

    Title: Metropolitan Firefighter Demographics Study.
    Type of Information Collection: New Collection.
    OMB Number: 1660-NW17.
    Form Numbers: None.
    Abstract: Data products and reports exist that contain fragmented 
or estimated information about firefighter demographics, but there is 
no single reference source today that aggregates this data to provide 
an accurate profile of firefighters on a per department basis. The USFA 
receives many requests for information related to firefighters, 
including gender, race and ethnicity, as well as the number of 
firefighters

[[Page 30686]]

holding chief officer and line officer positions. The USFA is working 
to identify the demographic make up of metropolitan fire departments in 
the United States to provide input for program planning and to inform 
stakeholders of the demographic composition of firefighters. The 
database will be used by USFA to guide programmatic decisions and 
provide the Fire Service and the public with information about 
firefighter demographics at an aggregate level. Fire departments are 
able to complete the demographic firefighter questionnaire by filling 
out a paper form and faxing the completed form, or sending it in a 
return envelope.
    Affected Public: Federal, State, local government, and career fire 
departments.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 39 Hours.

                                                                   Annual Burden Hours
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                                                  Number of                                                                   Annual       Total annual
   Project/activity (survey, form(s), focus      respondents    Frequency of        Burden hours per  respondent (C)         responses     burden hours
           group, worksheet, etc.)                   (A)        responses (B)                                                  (AxB)          (AxBxC)
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Questionnaire................................             115               1  .33 hrs (20 min).........................             115              39
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    Total....................................             115               1  .33 hrs..................................             115              39
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    Estimated Cost: The estimated costs to the government will be 
direct labor and associated overhead costs of $12,625. There would be 
no costs to the respondent other than the minimal direct labor cost of 
a single firefighter or emergency service worker taking a small amount 
of time to complete the firefighter demographic form and this would be 
applicable only to those fire departments and emergency service 
agencies employing career firefighters. The estimate of respondent 
costs for those career departments is computed as follows: Estimated 
number of forms multiplied by the national mean hourly rate of a 
firefighter of $18.95 multiplied by \1/3\ (representing the estimated 
20 minutes it takes to complete the firefighter demographic form). 
Using this equation, total estimated costs to respondents of $726.42 is 
derived (115 estimated firefighter demographic forms x $18.95 x\1/3\ = 
726.42). The average cost per firefighter demographic form is a minimal 
$6.32. The respondents are under no obligation to complete the form and 
may refuse to do so or stop at any time. As a result, the average cost 
to the respondent of $6.32 could easily not be incurred by refusing to 
fill out the firefighter demographic form.
    Comments: Written comments are solicited to (a) evaluate whether 
the proposed data collection is necessary for the proper performance of 
the agency, including whether the information shall have practical 
utility; (b) evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the 
burden of the proposed collection of information, including the 
validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (c) enhance the 
quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and 
(d) 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, e.g., permitting electronic 
submission of responses. Comments must be submitted on or before July 
31, 2006.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons should submit written comments to Chief, 
Records Management Section, Information Resources Management Branch, 
Information Technology Services Division, Federal Emergency Management 
Agency, 500 C Street, SW., Room 316, Washington, DC 20472.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Contact Gayle Kelch, Statistician, 
United States Fire Administration, National Fire Data Center (301) 447-
1154 for additional information. You may contact the Records Management 
Branch for copies of the proposed collection of information at 
facsimile number (202) 646-3347 or e-mail address: [email protected].

    Dated: May 9, 2006.
Darcy Bingham,
Branch Chief, Information Resources Management Branch, Information 
Technology Services Division.
 [FR Doc. E6-8250 Filed 5-26-06; 8:45 am]
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