[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 168 (Thursday, August 29, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53497-53498]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-21037]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[DOT Docket No. NHTSA-2013-0001]


Uniform Procedures for State Highway Safety Grant Programs

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, DOT.

ACTION: Request for public comment on collection of information.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 
U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), on January 23, 2013 (78 FR 4986), the agency 
published a notice in the Federal Register soliciting public comment on 
the proposed Information Collection Request (ICR) abstracted below. In 
further compliance, the agency now publishes this additional notice 
announcing that the information collection request has been forwarded 
to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and comment.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before September 30, 2013.

ADDRESSES: Written comments to NHTSA may be submitted using any one of 
the following methods:
     Mail: Send comments to: Docket Management Facility, M-30, 
U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., West 
Building, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590.
     Fax: Written comments may be faxed to (202) 493-2251.
     Internet: To submit comments electronically, go to the 
U.S. Government regulations Web site at http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
     Hand Delivery: If you plan to submit written comments by 
hand or courier, please do so at 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., West 
Building, Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. 
and 5 p.m., Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays.
    Whichever way you submit your comments, please remember to identify 
the docket number of this document within your correspondence. You may 
contact the docket by telephone at (202) 366-9324.
    Docket: All documents in the dockets are listed in the http://www.regulations.gov index. Publicly available docket materials are 
available either electronically in www.regulations.gov or in hard copy 
at the Docket Management Facility, M-30, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, West Building, Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC. The Docket Management Facility is 
open between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Barbara Sauers, Program Manager, 
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Office of Regional 
Operations and Program Delivery. Telephone number: (202) 366-2121. 
Email address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

    Title: Uniform Procedures for State Highway Safety Grant Programs.
    OMB Number: 2127-0687.
    Type of Request: Approval of information collection request used 
for the administration of state highway safety grant programs.
    Affected Public: 57 State governments and jurisdictions (fifty 
States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, 
Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, 
and the Secretary of the Interior).
    Abstract: MAP-21, the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century 
Act (Pub. L. 112-141), authorizes the National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration to issue highway safety grants to States under Chapter 4 
of Title 23, U.S.C. for fiscal years (FY) 2013-14. These Chapter 4 
grant programs are identified as the Highway Safety

[[Page 53498]]

Program Grants under 23 U.S.C. 402 and the National Priority Safety 
Program Grants under 23 U.S.C. 405.
    Under MAP-21, the statute directs States to submit a Highway Safety 
Plan (HSP) that serves as a single, consolidated application for the 
grants. The information collected as part of the required HSP includes 
information on the highway safety planning process, performance plan, 
highway safety strategies and projects, performance report, program 
cost summary, certifications and assurances, and an application for 
Section 405 grants. In general, a State is required to submit 
information to the agency that supports its qualifications for 
receiving grant funds.
    Consistent with the statute, the agency published an interim final 
rule creating an application process for States to apply for these 
grant funds. An additional section of the interim final rule explained 
the agency's information collection request identifying the affected 
public and estimating the burden hours.
    The estimated burden hours for the collection of information were 
based on all eligible respondents (i.e., applicants) for each of the 
grants:
     Section 402 grants: 57 (fifty States, the District of 
Columba, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the 
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Secretary of the 
Interior);
     Section 405(f) grants: 52 (fifty States, the District of 
Columbia, and Puerto Rico);
     Section 405(a)-(e), (g) grants: 56 (fifty States, the 
District of Columba, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American 
Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands).
    The agency estimated that it would take each respondent 
approximately 240 hours to collect, review and submit the reporting 
information to NHTSA for the Section 402 program and further estimated 
that it would take each respondent approximately 180 hours to collect, 
review and submit the reporting information to NHTSA for the Section 
405 program. Based on the above information, the estimated annual 
burden hours for all respondents is 23,940 hours.
    Assuming the average salary of these individuals is $50.00 per 
hour, the estimated cost for each respondent is $21,000; the estimated 
total cost for all respondents is $1,197,000. (This represents a 
reduced burden estimate from the interim final rule to reflect that 
this notice does not include burden estimates for the program cost 
summary information included with the HSP (i.e., HS-217 form). This 
information is collected under a previously approved information 
collection request (OMB Control Number 2127-0003.))
    These estimates present the highest possible burden hours and 
amounts possible. All States do not apply for and receive a grant each 
year under each of these programs.
    In response to the information collection request published in the 
interim final rule, the agency received one comment from the Montana 
Department of Transportation referencing paperwork reduction act 
criteria. The commenter concludes that the agency violated the 
paperwork reduction act by requiring that States submit certain 
information with their grant applications. However, in our view, this 
comment concerns substantive grant application requirements, rather 
than identifying specific issues with paperwork reduction act 
compliance. As a result, we will respond to this comment along with 
other similar comments on grant application requirements in the final 
rule.
    Comments are invited on:
     Whether the collection of information is necessary for the 
proper performance of the functions of the Department, including 
whether the information will have practical utility.
     Whether the Department's estimate for the burden of the 
information collection is accurate.
     Ways to minimize the burden of the collection of 
information on respondents, including the use of automated collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology.

Please submit any comments, identified by the docket number in the 
heading of this document, by any of the methods described in the 
ADDRESSES section of this document. Comments are due by September 30, 
2013.

Mary D. Gunnels,
Associate Administrator, Regional Operations and Program Delivery.
[FR Doc. 2013-21037 Filed 8-28-13; 8:45 am]
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