[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 233 (Tuesday, December 4, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 71805-71807]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-29199]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request

    In compliance with Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995 concerning opportunity for public comment on proposed 
collections of information, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health 
Services Administration (SAMHSA) will publish periodic summaries of 
proposed projects. To request more information on the proposed projects 
or to obtain a copy of the information collection plans, call the 
SAMHSA Reports Clearance Officer on (240) 276-1243.
    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collections of 
information are necessary for the proper performance of the functions 
of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways 
to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, 
including through the use of automated collection techniques or other 
forms of information technology.

Proposed Project: Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Block Grant 
Synar Report Format, FFY 2014-2016--(OMB No. 0930-0222)--Revision

    Section 1926 of the Public Health Service Act [42 U.S.C. 300x-26] 
stipulates that funding Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Block 
Grant (SABG) agreements for alcohol and drug abuse programs for fiscal 
year 1994 and subsequent fiscal years require states to have in effect 
a law providing that it is unlawful for any manufacturer, retailer, or 
distributor of tobacco products to sell or distribute any such product 
to any individual under the age of 18. This section further requires 
that states conduct annual, random, unannounced inspections to ensure 
compliance with the law; that the state submit annually a report 
describing the results of the inspections, the activities carried out 
by the state to enforce the required law, the success the state has 
achieved in reducing the availability of tobacco products to 
individuals under the age of 18, and the strategies to be utilized by 
the state for enforcing such law during the fiscal year for which the 
grant is sought.
    Before making an award to a State under the SABG, the Secretary 
must make a determination that the state has maintained compliance with 
these requirements. If a determination is made that the state is not in 
compliance, penalties shall be applied. Penalties ranged from 10 
percent of the Block Grant in applicable year 1 (FFY 1997 SABG 
Applications) to 40 percent in applicable year 4 (FFY 2000 SABG 
Applications) and subsequent years. Respondents include the 50 states, 
the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the U.S. 
Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern 
Mariana Islands, the Republic of Palau, the Federated States of 
Micronesia, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands.
    Regulations that implement this legislation are at 45 CFR 96.130, 
are approved by OMB under control number 0930-0163, and require that 
each state submit an annual Synar report to the Secretary describing 
their progress in complying with section 1926 of the PHS Act. The Synar 
report, due December 31 following the fiscal year for which the state 
is reporting, describes the results of the inspections and the 
activities carried out by the state to enforce the required law; the 
success the state has achieved in reducing the availability of tobacco 
products to individuals under the age of 18; and the strategies to be 
utilized by the state for enforcing such law during the fiscal year for 
which the grant is sought. SAMHSA's Center for Substance Abuse 
Prevention will request OMB approval of revisions to the current report 
format associated with Section 1926 (42 U.S.C. 300x-26). The report 
format is not changing significantly. Any changes in either formatting 
or content are being made to simplify the reporting process for the 
states and to clarify the information as the states report it; both 
outcomes will facilitate consistent, credible, and efficient monitoring 
of Synar compliance across the states. All of the information required 
in the new report format is already being collected by the states. 
Specific changes are listed below:

Clarification Changes

    To decrease the need for supplemental questions and reporting,

[[Page 71806]]

additional instruction has been included in 4 portions of the report.
    In Section I (Compliance Progress), the following clarification 
changes are being made with respect to the Annual Synar Report:
    Question 1c: Changes to State law--This question, which was 
formerly Question 1d, asks about changes to state youth access to 
tobacco laws and has been edited to include an option for changes to 
state law concerning vending machines. The former Question 1c, which 
contained detailed information about types of changes to vending 
machine laws has been eliminated due to the fact that the Family 
Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, which gives the Food and 
Drug Administration (FDA) the authority to regulate tobacco products, 
banned vending machines in youth accessible locations as of June 2010, 
making it unlikely that states that have not done so already will enact 
similar state laws. However, there are three U.S. jurisdictions not 
subject to federal law that may still enact vending machine 
restrictions and can report this information in the new Question 1c.
    Questions 5a, 5b, and 5d: Enforcement Agencies, Evidence of 
Enforcement and Frequency of Enforcement--These questions have been 
clarified so it is clear that they refer to enforcement of state youth 
access laws, and not federal youth access laws.
    In Section II (Intended Use), the following clarification change is 
being made:
    Question 3--State Challenges: This question includes a new response 
option (``Issues regarding the age or gender balance of youth 
inspectors'') since this is a common challenge reported by states.
    In Appendix B (Synar Survey Sampling Methodology), the following 
clarification is being made:
    Question 4--Vending machine inclusion in Synar Survey - This 
question, which asks if vending machines are included in the Synar 
survey and the reasons for their elimination if they are not included, 
includes a new response option (``State has a contract with the FDA and 
is actively enforcing the vending machine requirements of the Family 
Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act''). This new option is 
included because federal law bans vending machines in youth accessible 
locations and states that are contracted with the FDA to enforce this 
provision are not required to include vending machines in their Synar 
surveys.
    In Appendix C (Synar Survey Inspection Protocol), the following 
change is being made:
    Question 1--Synar Survey Protocol-- This question, which asks about 
aspects of the state's Synar survey protocol (including whether buys 
are consummated or unconsummated, whether youth inspectors carry 
identification, whether adult inspectors enter the outlet with the 
youth, and whether youth inspectors are compensated), has been edited 
to remove the option for ``Not specified in protocol'' since all states 
are required to submit Synar protocols that include these items. 
Additionally, a requirement for states to provide a narrative 
explanation has been included for those states who choose the response 
option ``Permitted under specified circumstances.''

Content Changes

    The content of the Synar Report has changed little. The content 
changes that have been made address the need to (1) clarify the intent 
of information requested via the addition of clarifying questions, (2) 
reduce the need for Government Project Officers to ask additional 
questions to supplement the originally submitted Report. These 
additions and changes are essential to SAMHSA's ability to adequately 
assess state and jurisdictional compliance with the Synar regulation.
    In Section I (Compliance Progress), the following changes are being 
made with respect to the Annual Synar Report:
    Questions 4d-g--Coordination With Agency That Receives the FDA 
State Enforcement Contract-- These close-ended questions ask the state 
to list the agency that is under contract to the FDA to enforce federal 
youth access laws, to describe the relationship between the state's 
Synar program and this agency, and to identify if the state uses data 
from the FDA enforcement inspections for the Synar survey. They have 
been added to replace the previously open-ended Question 5g, which 
required a narrative response. These close-ended questions will focus 
state responses.
    In Appendix B (Synar Survey Sampling Methodology), the following 
changes are being made:
    Questions 9a-b--Synar Survey Estimation System Sample Size (SSES) 
Calculator-- These questions, which ask if the state used the SSES 
sample size calculator and if so, if they used the state or stratum 
level calculator, will eliminate the need for Government Project 
Officers to ask these clarifying questions during the review process. 
This revision also eliminates the need for those states who use the 
SSES sample size calculator to manually list the sample size formulas.
    Question 10b--Stratum Level Information-- This question, which asks 
states who used the stratum level calculator to provide the stratum 
level information, eliminates the need for Government Project Officers 
to ask this clarifying question during the review process.
    In Appendix C (Synar Survey Inspection Protocol), the following 
change is being made:
    Questions 4a-b--Type of Tobacco Products-- These questions, which 
ask the state to define the type of tobacco products requested during 
Synar inspections and to describe the protocol for tobacco type 
selection, have been added to Appendix C. They have been added to 
provide additional information about state Synar protocols, which is 
frequently requested by partner agencies and can also be used to target 
technical assistance.
    There are no changes to Forms 1-5 or Appendix D.

                                             Annual Reporting Burden
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                                     Number of
         45 CFR Citation            respondents    Responses per   Total number      Hours per      Total hour
                                        \1\         respondents    of responses      response         burden
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Annual Report (Section 1--States              59               1              59              15             885
 and Territories) 96.130(e)(1-3)
State Plan (Section II--States                59               1              59               3             177
 and Territories)
 96.130(e)(4,5)96.130(g)........
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    Total.......................              59  ..............  ..............  ..............           1,062
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\1\ Red Lake Indian Tribe is not subject to tobacco requirements.


[[Page 71807]]

    Send comments to Summer King, SAMHSA Reports Clearance Officer, 
Room 2-1057, One Choke Cherry Road, Rockville, MD 20857 OR email a copy 
to [email protected]. Written comments must be received before 
60 days after the date of the publication in the Federal Register.

Summer King,
Statistician.
[FR Doc. 2012-29199 Filed 12-3-12; 8:45 am]
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