[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 192 (Thursday, October 3, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61324-61325]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-24143]



[[Page 61324]]

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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food and Nutrition Service


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request--Special Nutrition Program Operations Study (SNPOS)

AGENCY: Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), United States Department of 
Agriculture (USDA).

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this 
notice invites the the general public and other public agencies to 
comment on this proposed information collection. This collection is a 
revision of a currently approved collection for the Special Nutrition 
Program Operations Study.

DATES: Written comments on this notice must be received by December 2, 
2013.

ADDRESSES: Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection 
of information is 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, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions that were used; (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 
those who are to respond, including use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology.
    Written comments may be sent to: Allison Magness, Social Science 
Research Analyst, Office of Policy Support, Food and Nutrition Service, 
USDA, 3101 Park Center Drive, Room 1014, Alexandria, VA 22302. Comments 
may also be submitted via fax to the attention of Allison Magness at 
703-305-2576 or via email to [email protected]. Comments 
will also be accepted through the Federal eRulemaking Portal. Go to 
http://www.regulations.gov, and follow the online instructions for 
submitting comments electronically.
    All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the 
request for Office of Management and Budget approval. All comments will 
be a matter of public record.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request more information on the 
proposed project or to obtain a copy of the data collection plans, 
contact Allison Magness, Social Science Research Analyst, Office of 
Policy Support, Food and Nutrition Service, USDA, 3101 Park Center 
Drive, Room 1014, Alexandria, VA 22302; Fax: 703-305-2576; Email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Special Nutrition Program Operations Study.
    Form Number: N/A.
    OMB Number: 0584-0562.
    Expiration Date: 04/30/2016.
    Type of Request: Revision of a currently approved collection.
    Abstract: The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition 
Service (FNS), is currently conducting a study to collect information 
needed to address current policy issues related to the Special 
Nutrition Programs. The study is designed to collect data from a 
nationally representative sample of public School Food Authorities 
(SFAs) and all Child Nutrition (CN) State Agencies. Data collection for 
the Special Nutrition Program Operations Study--Year 2 will conclude in 
September 2013; the existing approved burden hours for Year 2 are 
5,094. Special Nutrition Program Operations Study--Year 3 will include 
the third year of data collection for School Year (SY) 2013/14. Year 3 
will add an additional 1,956 burden hours to the existing collection. 
The reduction in burden hours for Year 3 is due to Year 3 not including 
the on-site data collection that was included in Year 2.
    The study will provide general descriptive information on the 
characteristics of the school-based CN programs necessary for the 
preparation of program budgets, data on various aspects of the program 
administration to inform program policy and regulations, as well as 
data to identify areas in need of technical assistance and training. 
Specifically, this study will help FNS obtain:
    [ssquf] General descriptive data on the CN programs characteristics 
to help FNS respond to questions about the nutrition programs in 
schools;
    [ssquf] Data related to program administration for designing and 
revising program regulations, managing resources, and reporting 
requirements; and
    [ssquf] Data related to program operations to help FNS develop and 
provide training and technical assistance for SFAs and State Agencies 
responsible for administering the CN programs.
The activities to be undertaken subject to this notice include:
    [ssquf] Conducting a multi-modal (e.g. paper, Web, and telephone) 
survey of approximately 1,900 SFA Directors.
    [ssquf] Conducting a paper survey of all 56 State Agency CN 
Directors.
    Affected Public: State, Local and Tribal Governments.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: The total estimated number of 
respondents is 1,956. This includes 1,900 SFA Directors and 56 State 
Agency CN Directors.
    Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: Once annually.
    Estimated Total Annual Responses: 1,956.
    Estimated Time per Response: Public reporting burden for this 
collection of information is estimated to average sixty (60) minutes 
per Self Administered Survey for the SFA Directors and the State Agency 
CN Directors (this includes 30 minutes for data gathering and 30 
minutes to respond to the questionnaire).
    Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: The annual reporting 
burden is estimated at 6605.46 hours. See the table below for estimated 
total annual burden for each type of respondent.

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                                                                                                                                           Total annual
                                    Data collection                          Estimated     Frequency of    Total annual       Average         burden
         Affected public               activity           Respondents        number of       response        responses     burden hours      estimate
                                                                            respondents                                    per response       (hours)
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Local and Tribal................  Self Administered   Non-Responders....             475               1             475            0.07           33.25
                                   Paper/Web/
                                   Telephone Survey.
                                                      School Food                  1,425               1           1,425               1           1,425
                                                       Authority
                                                       Directors.
State...........................  Self Administered   Non-Responders....               3               1               3            0.07            0.21
                                   Paper Survey.

[[Page 61325]]

 
                                                      State Agency Child              53               1              53               1              53
                                                       Nutrition
                                                       Directors.
                                                                         -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    TOTAL--YEAR 3...............  ..................  ..................           1,956               1           1,956          0.7727        1,511.46
                                                                         -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    TOTAL--YEAR 2 (Existing       ..................  ..................           1,938          4.9355           9,565           .5346           5,094
     Burden).
                                                                         -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    TOTAL BURDEN FOR 0584-0562.
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    Dated: September 25, 2013.
Audrey Rowe,
Administrator, Food and Nutrition Service.
[FR Doc. 2013-24143 Filed 10-2-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-30-P