[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 241 (Monday, December 17, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71479-71480]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-24422]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Transit Administration

[FTA Docket No. FTA-2007-0028]


Agency Information Collection Activity Under 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 October 1, 2007. No comments were received in response to 
that notice.

DATES: Comments must be submitted before January 16, 2008. A comment to 
OMB is most effective if OMB receives it within 30 days of publication.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: LaStar Matthews, Office of 
Administration, Office of Management Planning, (202) 366-2295 or e-
mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: 49 CFR Part 611 Major Capital Investment Projects (OMB 
Number: 2132-0561).
    Abstract: On August 10, 2005, the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, 
Efficient, Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) 
was enacted. Sections 3011(d)(5) and 3011(e)(6) of SAFETEA-LU require 
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,'' ``Small Starts,'' 
respectively) will be evaluated and rated for purposes of the FTA 
Capital Investment Grants and Loans program for New and Small Starts 
under 49 U.S.C. 5309. The Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking 
(ANPRM) for this regulation was issued on January 30, 2006, (71 FR 
22841). The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) was issued on August 
3, 2007, (72 FR 43328).
    FTA has a longstanding requirement to evaluate proposed projects 
against a prescribed set of statutory criteria. The Surface 
Transportation and Uniform Relocation Assistance Act of 1987 (STURAA) 
established in law a set of criteria that proposed projects had to meet 
in order to be eligible for federal funding. The requirement for 
summary project ratings has been in place since 1998. Thus, the 
requirements for project evaluation and data collection for New Starts 
projects are not new, nor have they changed extensively since their 
inception. One addition included in SAFETEA-LU is the Small Starts 
program. The Small Starts program enables projects with a lesser total 
capital cost and smaller requested share of New Starts funds to 
progress through a simplified and streamlined project evaluation and 
data collection process. In general, though, the information used by 
FTA for New and Small Starts project evaluation and rating purposes 
should arise as a part of the normal planning process.
    FTA has been collecting project evaluation information from project 
sponsors under the existing OMB approval for this program (OMB No. 
2132-0561). However, due to modifications in project evaluation 
criteria for the New Starts program and the addition of the Small 
Starts program, it became apparent that some information required under 
this proposed rule might be beyond the scope of ordinary planning 
activities.
    The proposed rule creates additional requirements 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) or a Project Construction Grant Agreement (PCGA).
    Estimated Total Annual Burden: 38,760 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

[[Page 71480]]

automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology.

    Issued: December 10, 2007.
Ann M. Linnertz,
Associate Administrator for Administration.
[FR Doc. E7-24422 Filed 12-14-07; 8:45 am]
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