[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 15 (Monday, January 26, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4473-4475]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-1620]


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NATIONAL MEDIATION BOARD


Notice of Proposed Information Collection Requests

AGENCY: National Mediation Board.
SUMMARY: The Director, Office of Administration, invites comments on 
the proposed information collection requests as required by the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before 
March 14, 2009

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 3506 of the Paperwork Reduction Act 
of 1995 (U.S.C. Chapter 35) requires that the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) provide interested Federal agencies and the public an 
early opportunity to comment on information collection requests. OMB 
may amend or waive the requirement for public consultation to the 
extent that public

[[Page 4474]]

participation in the approval process would defeat the purpose of the 
information collection, violate State or Federal law, or substantially 
interfere with any agency's ability to perform its statutory 
obligations. The Director, Office of Administration, publishes that 
notice containing proposed information collection requests prior to 
submission of these requests to OMB. Each proposed information 
collection contains the following: (1) Type of review requested, e.g., 
new, revision extension, existing or reinstatement; (2) Title; (3) 
Summary of the collection; (4) Description of the need for, and 
proposed use of, the information; (5) Respondents and frequency of 
collection; and (6) Reporting and/or Record keeping burden. OMB invites 
public comment.
    Currently, the National Mediation Board is soliciting comments 
concerning the proposed extension of the Application for Investigation 
of Representation Dispute and is interested in public comment 
addressing the following issues: (1) Is this collection necessary to 
the proper functions of the agency; (2) will this information be 
processed and used in a timely manner; (3) is the estimate of burden 
accurate; (4) how might the agency enhance the quality, utility, and 
clarity of the information to be collected; and (5) how might the 
agency minimize the burden of this collection on the respondents, 
including through the use of information technology.

    Dated: January 21, 2009.
June D. W. King,
Director, Office of Administration, National Mediation Board.

Application for Investigation of Representation Dispute

    Type of Review: Extension.
    Title: Application for Investigation of Representation Dispute.
    OMB Number: 3140-0001.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Affected Public: Carrier and Union Officials, and employees of 
railroads and airlines.
    Reporting and Recordkeeping Hour Burden:
     Responses: 68 annually.
     Burden Hours: 17.00.
    1. Abstract: When a dispute arises among a carrier's employees as 
to who will be their bargaining representative, the National Mediation 
Board (NMB) is required by Section 2, Ninth, to investigate the 
dispute, to determine who is the authorized representative, if any, and 
to certify such representative. The NMB's duties do not arise until its 
services have been invoked by a party to the dispute. The Railway Labor 
Act is silent as to how the invocation of a representation dispute is 
to be accomplished and the NMB has not promulgated regulations 
requiring any specific vehicle. Nonetheless, 29 CFR 1203.2, provides 
that applications for the services of the NMB under Section 2, Ninth, 
to investigate representation disputes may be made on printed forms 
secured from the NMB's Office of Legal Affairs or on the Internet at 
http://www.nmb.gov/representation/rapply.html. The application requires 
the following information: The name of the carrier involved; the name 
or description of the craft or class involved; the name of the 
petitioning organization or individual; the name of the organization 
currently representing the employees, if any; the names of any other 
organizations or representatives involved in the dispute; and the 
estimated number of employees in the craft or class involved. This 
basic information is essential in providing the NMB with the details of 
the dispute so that it can determine what resources will be required to 
conduct an investigation.
    2. The application form provides necessary information to the NMB 
so that it can determine the amount of staff and resources required to 
conduct an investigation and fulfill its statutory responsibilities. 
Without this information, the NMB would have to delay the commencement 
of the investigation, which is contrary to the intent of the Railway 
Labor Act.
    3. There is no improved technological method for obtaining this 
information. The burden on the parties is minimal in completing the 
``Application for Investigation of Representation Dispute.''
    4. There is no duplication in obtaining this information.
    5. Rarely are representation elections conducted for small 
businesses. Carriers/employers are not permitted to request our 
services regarding representation investigations. The labor 
organizations, which are the typical requesters, are national in scope 
and would not qualify as small businesses. Even in situations where the 
invocation comes from a small labor organization, we believe the burden 
in completing the application form is minimal and that no reduction in 
burden could be made.
    6. The NMB is required by Section 2, Ninth, to investigate the 
dispute, to determine who is the authorized representative, if any, and 
to certify such representative. The NMB has no ability to control the 
frequency, technical, or legal obstacles, which would reduce the 
burden.
    7. The information requested by the NMB is consistent with the 
general information collection guidelines of CFR 1320.6. The NMB has no 
ability to control the data provided or timing of the invocation. The 
burden on the parties is minimal in completing the ``Application for 
Investigation of Representation Dispute.''
    8. No payments or gifts have been provided by the NMB to any 
respondents of the form.
    9. There are no questions of a sensitive nature on the form.
    10. The total time burden on respondents is 17.00 hours annually--
this is the time required to collect information. After consulting with 
a sample of people involved with the collection of this information, 
the time to complete this information collection is estimated to 
average 15 minutes per response, including gathering the data needed 
and completion and review of the information.
    Number of respondents per year: 68.
    Estimated time per respondent: 15 minutes.
    Total burden hours per year: 17.

    (68 x .25)

    11. The total collection and mail cost burden on respondents is 
estimated at $365.16 annually ($340.00 time cost burden + $25.16 mail 
cost burden.)
    a. The respondents will not incur any capital costs or start up 
costs for this collection.
    b. Cost burden on respondents--detail:
    The total time burden annual cost is $340.00.
    Time burden basis: The total hourly burden per year, upon 
respondents, is 17.
    Staff cost = $340.00.

    $20.00 per hour--based on mid-level clerical salary
    $20.00 x 17 hours per year = $340.00

    We are estimating that a mid-level clerical person, with an average 
salary of $20.00 per hour, will be completing the ``Application for 
Investigation of Representation Dispute'' form. The total burden is 
estimated at 17 hours, therefore, the total time burden cost is 
estimated at $340.00 per year.
    The total annual mailing cost to respondents is $25.16.
    Number of applications mailed by respondents per year: 68.
    Total estimated cost: $28.56.

    (68 x .42 stamp)

The collection of this information is not mandatory; it is a voluntary 
request from airline and railroad carrier employees seeking to invoke 
an investigation of a representation

[[Page 4475]]

dispute. After consulting with a sample of people involved with the 
collection of this information, the time to complete this information 
collection is estimated to average 15 minutes per response, including 
gathering the data needed and completion and review of the information. 
However, the estimated hour burden costs of the respondents may vary 
due to the complexity of the specific question in dispute. The 
application form is available from the NMB's Office of Legal Affairs 
and is also available on the Internet at http://www.nmb.gov/representation/rapply.html.
    12. The total annualized Federal cost is $428.01 This includes the 
costs of printing and mailing the forms upon request of the parties. 
The completed applications are maintained by the Office of Legal 
Affairs.
    a. Printing cost: $ 80.00.
    b. Mailing costs: $ 8.01.
    Basis (mail cost): Forms are requested approximately 3 times per 
year and it takes 5 minutes to prepare the form for mail.
    Postage cost = $1.26.
    3 (times per year) x .42 (cost of postage)
    Staff cost = $6.75.

    $.45 per minute (GS 9/10 $56,371 = $27.01 per hr. / 60)
    $.45 x 5 minutes per mailing = $2.25
    $2.25 x 3 times per year = $6.75

    Total Mailing Costs = $8.01
    13. Item 13--no change in annual reporting and recordkeeping hour 
burden.
    14. The information collected by the application will not be 
published.
    15. The NMB will display the OMB expiration date on the form.

    16 (a)--the form does not reduce the burden on small entities; 
however, the burden is minimized and voluntary.
    16 (b)--the form does not indicate the retention period for 
recordkeeping requirements.
    196 (c)--the form is not part of a statistical survey.

    Requests for copies of the proposed information collection request 
may be accessed from http://www.nmb.gov or should be addressed to 
Denise Murdock, NMB, 1301 K Street, NW., Suite 250 E, Washington, DC 
20005 or addressed to the e-mail address [email protected] or faxed to 
202-692-5081. Please specify the complete title of the information 
collection when making your request.
    Comments regarding burden and/or the collection activity 
requirements should be directed to June D. W. King at 202-692-5010 or 
via Internet address [email protected]. Individuals who use a 
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD/TDY) may call the Federal 
Information Relay Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339.

 [FR Doc. E9-1620 Filed 1-23-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7550-01-P