[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 217 (Thursday, November 9, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65809-65811]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-19014]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OPPT-2006-0807; FRL-8098-2]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request; Request for Contractor Access to TSCA CBI; EPA ICR No. 
1250.08, OMB Control No. 2070-0075

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY:  In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 
U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that EPA is planning to 
submit a request to renew an existing approved Information Collection 
Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). This ICR, 
entitled: ``Request for Contractor Access to TSCA CBI'' and identified 
by EPA ICR No. 1250.08 and OMB Control No. 2070-0075, is scheduled to 
expire on August 31, 2007. Before submitting the ICR to OMB for review 
and approval, EPA is soliciting comments on specific aspects of the 
proposed information collection.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before January 8, 2007.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by docket identification 
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPPT-2006-0807, by one of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail: Document Control Office (7407M), Office of Pollution 
Prevention and Toxics (OPPT), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 
Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001.
     Hand Delivery: OPPT Document Control Office (DCO), EPA 
East Bldg., Rm. 6428, 1201 Constitution Ave., NW.,

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Washington, DC. Attention: Docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPPT-2006-0807. The 
DCO is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding 
legal holidays. The telephone number for the DCO is (202) 564-8930. 
Such deliveries are only accepted during the Docket's normal hours of 
operation, and special arrangements should be made for deliveries of 
boxed information.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPPT-
2006-0807. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included 
in the public docket without change and may be made available on-line 
at http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information 
provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be 
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose 
disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you 
consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through regulations.gov or e-
mail. The regulations.gov website is an ``anonymous access'' system, 
which means EPA will not know your identity or contact information 
unless you provide it in the body of your comment. If you send an e-
mail comment directly to EPA without going through regulations.gov your 
e-mail address will be automatically captured and included as part of 
the comment that is placed in the public docket and made available on 
the Internet. If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that 
you include your name and other contact information in the body of your 
comment and with any disk or CD ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your 
comment due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you for 
clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic 
files should avoid the use of special characters, any form of 
encryption, and be free of any defects or viruses.
    Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the 
regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some information 
is not publicly available, e.g., CBI or other information whose 
disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such as 
copyrighted material, will be publicly available only in hard copy. 
Publicly available docket materials are available electronically at 
http://www.regulations.gov, or, if only available in hard copy, at the 
OPPT Docket, EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC). The EPA/DC suffered structural 
damage due to flooding in June 2006. Although the EPA/DC is continuing 
operations, there will be temporary changes to the EPA/DC during the 
clean-up. The EPA/DC Public Reading Room, which was temporarily closed 
due to flooding, has been relocated in the EPA Headquarters Library, 
Infoterra Room (Room Number 3334) in the EPA West Bldg., located at 
1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The EPA/DC Public Reading 
Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
excluding legal holidays. The telephone number of the EPA/DC Public 
Reading Room is (202) 566-1744, and the telephone number for the OPPT 
Docket is (202) 566-0280. EPA visitors are required to show 
photographic identification and sign the EPA visitor log. Visitors to 
the EPA/DC Public Reading Room will be provided with an EPA/DC badge 
that must be visible at all times while in the EPA Building and 
returned to the guard upon departure. In addition, security personnel 
will escort visitors to and from the new EPA/DC Public Reading Room 
location. Up-to-date information about the EPA/DC is on the EPA web 
site at http://www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general information contact: Colby 
Lintner, Regulatory Coordinator, Environmental Assistance Division 
(7408M), Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics, Environmental 
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-
0001; telephone number: (202) 554-1404; e-mail address: [email protected].
    For technical information contact: Pam Moseley, Information 
Management Division (7407M), Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics, 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., 
Washington, DC 20460-0001; telephone number: (202) 564-8956; fax 
number: (202) 564-8955; e-mail address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. What Information is EPA Particularly Interested in?

    Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, EPA specifically 
solicits comments and information to enable it to:
    1. Evaluate whether the proposed 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 the Agency's estimates of the burden of 
the proposed 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.
    4. 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. In particular, EPA is requesting comments from 
very small businesses (those that employ less than 25) on examples of 
specific additional efforts that EPA could make to reduce the paperwork 
burden for very small businesses affected by this collection.

II. What Should I Consider when I Prepare My Comments for EPA?

    You may find the following suggestions helpful for preparing your 
comments:
    1. Explain your views as clearly as possible and provide specific 
examples.
    2. Describe any assumptions that you used.
    3. Provide copies of any technical information and/or data you used 
that support your views.
    4. If you estimate potential burden or costs, explain how you 
arrived at the estimate that you provide.
    5. Provide specific examples to illustrate your concerns.
    6. Offer alternative ways to improve the collection activity.
    7. Make sure to submit your comments by the deadline identified 
under DATES.
    8. To ensure proper receipt by EPA, be sure to identify the docket 
ID number assigned to this action in the subject line on the first page 
of your response. You may also provide the name, date, and Federal 
Register citation.

III. What Information Collection Activity or ICR Does this Action Apply 
to?

    Affected entities: Entities potentially affected by this action are 
companies under contract to EPA to provide certain services and whose 
employees must have access to the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) 
CBI to perform their duties.
    Title: Request for Contractor Access to TSCA CBI.
    ICR numbers: EPA ICR No. 1250.08, OMB Control No. 2070-0075.
    ICR status: This ICR is currently scheduled to expire on August 31, 
2007. 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 title 40 of the CFR, after appearing in the Federal 
Register when approved, are listed in 40 CFR part 9, are displayed 
either by publication in the Federal Register or

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by other appropriate means, such as on the related collection 
instrument or form, if applicable. The display of OMB control numbers 
in certain EPA regulations is consolidated in 40 CFR part 9.
    Abstract: Certain employees of companies working under contract to 
EPA require access to TSCA CBI collected under the authority of TSCA in 
order to perform their official duties. The Office of Pollution 
Prevention and Toxics (OPPT), which is responsible for maintaining the 
security of TSCA confidential business information, requires that all 
individuals desiring access to TSCA CBI obtain and annually renew 
official clearance to TSCA CBI. As part of the process for obtaining 
TSCA CBI clearance, OPPT requires certain information about the 
contracting company and about each contractor employee requesting TSCA 
CBI clearance, primarily the name, social security number and EPA 
identification badge number of the employee, the type of TSCA CBI 
clearance requested and the justification for such clearance, and the 
signature of the employee to an agreement with respect to access to and 
use of TSCA CBI.
    Responses to the collection of information are voluntary, but 
failure to provide the requested information will prevent a contractor 
employee from obtaining clearance to TSCA CBI. EPA will observe strict 
confidentiality precautions with respect to the information collected 
on individual employees, based on the Privacy Act of 1974, as outlined 
in the ICR and in the collection instrument.
    Burden statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping 
burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1.6 
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 which have subsequently changed; 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.
    The ICR provides a detailed explanation of this estimate, which is 
only briefly summarized here:
    Estimated total number of potential respondents: 28.
    Frequency of response: On occasion (one time only per individual 
employee needing TSCA CBI clearance).
    Estimated total average number of responses for each respondent: 
10.
    Estimated total annual burden hours: 446 hours.
    Estimated total annual costs: $20,466. This includes an estimated 
burden cost of $20,466 and an estimated cost of $0 for capital 
investment or maintenance and operational costs.

IV. Are There Changes in the Estimates from the Last Approval?

    There is an increase of 31 hours in the total estimated respondent 
burden compared with that identified in the ICR currently approved by 
OMB. This increase reflects an increase in the number of contractor 
employees needing TSCA CBI clearance. This change is an adjustment.

V. What is the Next Step in the Process for this ICR?

    EPA will consider the comments received and amend the ICR as 
appropriate. The final ICR package will then be submitted to OMB for 
review and approval pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.12. EPA will issue another 
Federal Register notice pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.5(a)(1)(iv) to announce 
the submission of the ICR to OMB and the opportunity to submit 
additional comments to OMB. If you have any questions about this ICR or 
the approval process, please contact the technical person listed under 
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

List of Subjects

    Environmental protection, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.


    Dated: November 1, 2006.
James B. Gulliford,
Assistant Administrator, Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic 
Substances.

[FR Doc. E6-19014 Filed 11-8-06; 8:45 am]
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