[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 110 (Friday, June 6, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32283-32284]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-12731]


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 Notices
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 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules 
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  Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 110 / Friday, June 6, 2008 / 
Notices  

[[Page 32283]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. APHIS-2008-0049]


Notice of Request for Revision and Extension of Approval of an 
Information Collection; National Animal Identification System

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Revision and 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 a revision and extension of approval of an 
information collection associated with the National Animal 
Identification System.

DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before 
August 5, 2008.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/component/main?main=DocketDetail&d=APHIS-2008-0049 to submit or view comments and 
to view supporting and related materials available electronically.
     Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Please send two copies of 
your comment to Docket No. APHIS-2008-0049, Regulatory Analysis and 
Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road, Unit 118, 
Riverdale, MD 20737-1238. Please state that your comment refers to 
Docket No. APHIS-2008-0049.
    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 Federal holidays. To be sure someone is 
there to help you, please call (202) 690-2817 before coming.
    Other Information: Additional information about APHIS and its 
programs is available on the Internet at http://www.aphis.usda.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information on the National Animal 
Identification System, contact Mr. Vince Chapman, National Animal 
Identification System Staff, Surveillance and Identification Programs, 
VS, APHIS, 4700 River Road, Unit 200, Riverdale, MD 20737; (301) 734-
0739. For copies of more detailed information on the information 
collection, contact Mrs. Celeste Sickles, APHIS* Information Collection 
Coordinator, at (301) 851-2908.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: National Animal Identification System.
    OMB Number: 0579-0259.
    Type of Request: Revision and extension of approval of an 
information collection.
    Abstract: As part of its ongoing efforts to safeguard U.S. animal 
health, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) initiated the 
implementation of the National Animal Identification System (NAIS) in 
2004. NAIS is a cooperative State-Federal-industry partnership to 
standardize and expand animal identification programs and practices to 
all livestock species and poultry. NAIS is being developed through the 
integration of three components--premises registration, animal 
identification, and animal tracing. The goal of NAIS, for which 
participation at the Federal level is voluntary, is to have the 
information necessary to trace all animals associated with an incident 
of an animal disease within 48 hours in order to limit disease spread 
and thereby reduce the impact of diseases on America's agricultural 
producers.
    The NAIS program involves a number of approved collection and 
recordkeeping activities, including animal identification; premises 
registration; group/lot movement records; cooperative agreements; 
accomplishment reports; applications, registrations, and agreements 
associated with the Animal Identification Number (AIN) Management 
System; and applications for evaluation of animal tracking databases. 
New activities under the NAIS program include applications, agreements, 
and updates submitted by AIN manufacturers, managers, and resellers; 
cooperator quarterly accomplishment reports; and applications for 
cooperative agreements to support NAIS outreach, education, and 
premises registration activities.
    We are asking the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to approve 
our use of these information collection activities for 3 years.
    This notice includes a description of the information collection 
requirements currently approved by the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) for the NAIS program under numbers 0579-0259, 0579-0283, and 
0579-0288. After OMB approves and combines the burden for the three 
collections under a single collection (number 0579-0259), the 
Department will retire numbers 0579-0283 and 0579-0288. The new 
activities described above will also be combined under OMB collection 
0579-0259.
    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 
information collection, 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 information collection 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 0.7644215 hours per response.
    Respondents: State and Tribal animal health authorities; owners/
operators of feedlots, markets, and slaughter plants; producers; and 
nonproducer

[[Page 32284]]

participants such as accredited veterinarians, AIN device managers/
resellers (individuals or firms responsible for distributing AIN 
devices to producers), AIN device manufacturers (companies that 
manufacture animal identification devices approved for use in the 
NAIS), third-party service providers (companies that provide herd 
management, dairy herd improvement, genetic evaluation, and other 
services to producers), and diagnostic laboratories and livestock 
buyers/dealers who submit data to the national database.
    Estimated annual number of respondents: 500,472.
    Estimated annual number of responses per respondent: 7.4036789.
    Estimated annual number of responses: 3,705,334.
    Estimated total annual burden on respondents: 2,832,437 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 2nd day of June 2008.
Kevin Shea,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. E8-12731 Filed 6-5-08; 8:45 am]
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