[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 104 (Thursday, May 30, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32408-32410]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-12775]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

[USCG-2012-1047]


Collection of Information Under Review by Office of Management 
and Budget

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Thirty-day notice requesting comments.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the 
U.S. Coast Guard is forwarding an Information Collection Request (ICR), 
abstracted below, to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Office 
of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), requesting an extension 
of its approval to the following collection of information: 1625-0089, 
National Recreational Boating Survey. Before submitting this ICR to 
OMB, the Coast Guard is inviting comments as described below.

DATES: Comments must reach the Coast Guard on or before July 1, 2013.

ADDRESSES: To avoid duplicate submissions to the docket [USCG-2012-
1047], please use only one of the following means:
    (1) Online: http://www.regulations.gov.
    (2) Mail: Docket Management Facility (DMF) (M-30), U.S. Department 
of Transportation (DOT), West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 
New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001.
    (3) Hand deliver: Same as mail address above, between 9 a.m. and 5 
p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The telephone 
number is 202-366-9329.
    (4) Fax: 202-493-2251.
    The DMF maintains the public docket for this Notice. Comments and 
material received from the public, as well as documents mentioned in 
this Notice as being available in the docket, will become part of the 
docket and will be available for inspection or copying at Room W12-140 
on the West Building Ground Floor, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., 
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays. You may also find the docket on the Internet 
at http://www.regulations.gov.
    A copy of the ICR is available through the docket on the Internet 
at http://www.regulations.gov. Additionally, a copy is available from: 
Commandant (CG-612), Attn Paperwork Reduction Act Manager, US Coast 
Guard, 2100 2nd St. SW., STOP 7101, Washington DC 20593-7101.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Contact Mr. Anthony Smith, Office of 
Information Management, telephone 202-475-3532, or fax 202-475-3929, 
for questions on these documents. Contact Ms. Barbara Hairston, Program 
Manager, Docket Operations, 202-366-9826, for questions on the docket.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

[[Page 32409]]

Public Participation and Request for Comments

    This Notice relies on the authority of the Paperwork Reduction Act 
of 1995; 44 U.S.C. chapter 35, as amended. An ICR is an application to 
OIRA seeking the approval, extension, or renewal of a Coast Guard 
collection of information (Collection). The ICR contains information 
describing the Collection's purpose, the Collection's likely burden on 
the affected public, an explanation of the necessity of the Collection, 
and other important information describing the Collections. There is 
one ICR for each Collection.
    The Coast Guard invites comments on whether this ICR should be 
granted based on the collection being necessary for the proper 
performance of Departmental functions. In particular, the Coast Guard 
would appreciate comments addressing: (1) The practical utility of the 
collections; (2) the accuracy of the estimated burden of the 
collections; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of 
information subject to the collection; and (4) ways to minimize the 
burden of the collections on respondents, including the use of 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology. These comments will help OIRA determine whether to approve 
the ICR referred to in this Notice.
    We encourage you to respond to this request by submitting comments 
and related materials. Comments to Coast Guard or OIRA must contain the 
OMB Control Number of the ICR. They must also contain the docket number 
of this request, [USCG 2012-1047], and must be received by July 1, 
2013. We will post all comments received, without change, to http://www.regulations.gov. They will include any personal information you 
provide. We have an agreement with DOT to use their DMF. Please see the 
``Privacy Act'' paragraph below.
    Submitting comments: If you submit a comment, please include the 
docket number [USCG-2012-1047], indicate the specific section of the 
document to which each comment applies, providing a reason for each 
comment. You may submit your comments and material online (via http://www.regulations.gov), by fax, mail, or hand delivery, but please use 
only one of these means. If you submit a comment online via 
www.regulations.gov, it will be considered received by the Coast Guard 
when you successfully transmit the comment. If you fax, hand deliver, 
or mail your comment, it will be considered as having been received by 
the Coast Guard when it is received at the DMF. We recommend you 
include your name, mailing address, an email address, or other contact 
information in the body of your document so that we can contact you if 
we have questions regarding your submission.
    You may submit your comments and material by electronic means, 
mail, fax, or delivery to the DMF at the address under ADDRESSES; but 
please submit them by only one means. To submit your comment online, go 
to http://www.regulations.gov, and type ``USCG-2012-1047'' in the 
``Keyword'' box. If you submit them by mail or delivery, submit them in 
an unbound format, no larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable for 
copying and electronic filing. If you submit them by mail and would 
like to know that they reached the Facility, please enclose a stamped, 
self-addressed postcard or envelope. We will consider all comments and 
material received during the comment period and will address them 
accordingly.

Viewing Comments and Documents

    To view comments, as well as documents mentioned in this Notice as 
being available in the docket, go to http://www.regulations.gov, click 
on the ``read comments'' box, which will then become highlighted in 
blue. In the ``Keyword'' box insert ``USCG-2012-1047'' and click 
``Search.'' Click the ``Open Docket Folder'' in the ``Actions'' column. 
You may also visit the DMF in Room W12-140 on the West Building Ground 
Floor, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 
p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
    OIRA posts its decisions on ICRs online at http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain after the comment period for each ICR. An OMB Notice 
of Action on each ICR will become available via a hyperlink in the OMB 
Control Number: [1625-0089].

Privacy Act

    Anyone can search the electronic form of all comments received in 
dockets by the name of the individual submitting the comment (or 
signing the comment, if submitted on behalf of an association, 
business, labor union, etc.). You may review the Privacy Act statement 
regarding our public dockets in the January 17, 2008 issue of the 
Federal Register (73 FR 3316).

Previous Request for Comments

    This request provides a 30-day comment period required by OIRA. The 
Coast Guard published the 60-day notice (77 FR 74686, December 17, 
2012) required by 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2). That Notice elicited three 
comments.

    1. The first commenter wrote: ``It would be helpful to 
recreational boaters if you would take the broadcast from channel 16 
and 21 (VHF) as well as DSC distress calls and republish on a 
twitter feed. Local boaters could follow the feed for ``there'' 
[sic] area. (AOR) This is a simple but helpful solution to increase 
awareness for boating safety issues. Please contact me if you need 
more information. I am also in the CGA. Thanks.
    Answer:
    Although the proposed initiative could be potentially beneficial 
to recreational boaters, it is not within the scope of the National 
Recreational Boating Survey. This survey's primary goals include 
measuring boating participation and exposure hours. However, the 
suggestion made by this commenter will be examined within the 
broader scope of the Coast Guard's national recreational boating 
safety program.
    2. The second commenter wrote: ``we have two federal agencies 
gouging american taxpayers for wasted tax dollars the sport fishing 
and boating council of the fws and the us coast guard. to me, the 
coast guad should be fully in charge of boating. i see absolutely no 
reason why taxpayers are being gouged to pay for the lobbying 
organization called the sport fishing and boating council, which 
obviously should be existing on private dollars and not giouging us 
taxpayers and pretending to be a federal agency working for the good 
of all americans, when clearly it is working for corporate 
profitability. when will the gouging of tax payers stop? when will 
we shut down obvioius loggying groups that should not be getting one 
cent of american taxpayers dollars like th esport fishing and 
boating council of the usfws. the excesses and out of control 
spending of this govt is oppressive. l out of 2 americans are living 
in poverty and they are being dunned for taxes so a boating council 
can operate wastefully, when they have no hope of ever in their 
lives getting on a boat. the washington excesses are disgusting and 
depraved. make some cuts here. the coast guard we need. take the 
money away from the boating council and give it to the coast guard, 
who should be defending this country's borders from the leaches 
massively sneaking in here.''[sic]
    Answer:
    The Coast Guard's National Recreational Boating Survey is 
presently the only nationwide survey sponsored by the federal 
government that focuses entirely on recreational boating. Other 
agencies may collect very limited data on recreational boaters, 
which does not interfere and is not redundant with the Coast Guard's 
data collection efforts.
    3. The third commenter wrote: ``BoatUS is the largest 
organization of recreational boaters in the United States, with more 
than half a million members nationwide. As an active participant in 
the U.S. Coast Guard's boating safety efforts, we appreciate the 
opportunity to provide our views on the National Recreational 
Boating Survey.
    The development of an accurate picture of the many facets of 
recreational boating is a commendable goal, particularly for the

[[Page 32410]]

government agency that has the day-to-day responsibility for its 
regulation. Well reasoned regulations, supported by timely, precise 
data, will engender greater support from the regulated community. 
That, in turn, should result in better compliance with regulations 
and an increased level of safety.
    The current budget constraints faced by various government 
agencies and non-profit groups with a direct interest in boating 
safety should also be considered. In reviewing the supporting 
documentation for this information request, it is apparent this is 
an ambitious undertaking that will require significant, on-going 
resources. As this information request is reviewed, we suggest 
consideration be given to the impact its funding might have on other 
boating safety programs, particularly those administered by the non-
profit sector.
    We further believe that The U.S. Coast Guard should review the 
scope and methodology of the survey. In our view, gathering safety 
related information should be the priority. The breadth of this 
survey is too broad given current budget conditions. We also suggest 
greater use of the Internet, or other less costly methods to 
implement the survey. Given the continuing advances in access to the 
Internet by large sections of the United States populations (some 49 
million U.S. households have such access) the Coast Guard should 
work to make greater use of this economical medium to gather data.
    The development of timely, accurate data should be integral to 
the Coast Guard's recreational boating safety mission, and we 
support that goal. The cost of developing this data, which is funded 
by the recreational boating community itself through the Sport Fish 
Restoration and Boating Trust Fund, must, however, be carefully 
managed. Other crucial boating safety programs should not be 
sacrificed in the process of gathering this information. Thoughtful 
deployment of these funds to maximize their safety benefit is 
crucial to the continued support of the recreational boating 
community. Thank you for the opportunity to provide our views on the 
proposed survey.''
    Answer:
     Regarding the scope of the survey, the Coast Guard 
priority is to collect data that is pertinent to the safety program 
and will reduce redundancy and costs among federal and other 
partnering agencies. The Coast Guard will review its survey 
questionnaires before it is implemented, and strive to eliminate the 
collection of non-essential data. However, reducing the number of 
questions asked to survey participants will only have a marginal 
effect on the overall cost of the survey. This is due to the small 
number of questions that generally apply to the majority of survey 
respondents. Consequently, the Coast Guard will explore all cost-
saving strategies to keep the survey costs reasonable.
     Regarding the use of the Internet for collecting 
information from boaters, the Coast Guard is already using that data 
collection mode to a certain extent. In 2012, a substantial amount 
of boating trip information was collected with the Internet. 
However, the Internet was used primarily as an alternative data 
collection mode that was offered to survey participants recruited in 
a panel from a previously selected random telephone sample.
    The Internet as the primary or sole data gathering tool is not 
yet widely used in government surveys, due to concerns that the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has expressed about this 
approach. In a 2006 Memorandum for the President's Management 
Council, entitled ``Guidance on Agency Survey and Statistical 
Information Collections,'' OMB indicated the following:

    ``Recent estimates are that more than 50 percent of households 
have Internet access at home. Despite the increasing rate of 
Internet access in the U.S., there remain systematic differences in 
socio-demographic characteristics between those who have access to 
the Internet at home and those who do not. Thus, there are 
significant coverage errors in any sampling frame composed only of 
those who have access to the Internet, which could lead to biased 
estimates when generalizing to the national population.''
    Nevertheless, the Coast Guard will continue using the Internet 
as an alternative data collection mode for boaters who were 
previously selected using well-established sample selection methods.

Information Collection Request

    Title: National Recreational Boating Survey.
    OMB Control Number: 1625-0089.
    Type of Request: Extension of a currently approved collection.
    Respondents: Recreational boating participants and owners of 
recreational vessels.
    Abstract: The Coast Guard National Recreational Boating Survey 
collects data on recreational boating participants and exposure to 
hazards. The goal is for the Boating Safety Division to draw a general 
statistical profile of the U.S. recreational boating population. Of 
particular importance will be statistics on the type of boats used, 
activities associated with them, boat operators' knowledge of safety 
measures, and duration of a typical boating day (referred to as 
``exposure''). Exposure data will be used to derive a reliable measure 
of the risk associated with recreational boating that can be used in 
all jurisdictions.
    Forms: None.
    Burden Estimate: This is a biennial requirement. The estimated 
burden has increased from 10,880 hours to 13,050 hours a year.

    Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. 
chapter 35, as amended.

    Dated: May 20, 2013.
R.E. Day,
Rear Admiral, U.S. Coast Guard, Assistant Commandant for Command, 
Control, Communications, Computers and Information Technology.
[FR Doc. 2013-12775 Filed 5-29-13; 8:45 am]
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