[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 134 (Tuesday, July 14, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41056-41057]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-17231]



[[Page 41056]]

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[BLM EQD SSB-LLWO250000.L12200000.PM0000]


Proposed Information Collection: Surveys and Focus Groups To 
Support Outcomes-Focused Management

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: 60-day notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, the Bureau of 
Land Management (BLM) will ask the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) to approve a collection of information to support recreation 
planning and management on public lands. The respondents will be 
recreationists visiting BLM-managed areas and members of communities 
near BLM-managed areas. The BLM invites public comments on this 
proposed collection. A Federal agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a 
person is not required to respond to, a collection of information 
unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.

DATES: Please submit comments on the proposed information collection by 
September 14, 2015.

ADDRESSES: Comments may be submitted by mail, fax, or electronic mail.
    Mail: U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, 
1849 C Street NW., Room 2134LM, Attention: Anna Atkinson, Washington, 
DC 20240.
    Fax: to Anna Atkinson at 202-245-0050.
    Electronic mail: [email protected].
    Please indicate ``Attn: 1004-XXXX'' regardless of the form of your 
comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Peter J. Fix, University of Alaska 
Fairbanks, Department of Natural Resources Management, Fairbanks, AK 
99775-7200; email: [email protected]; or phone: 907-474-6926.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

    The BLM's recently issued planning and management guidelines for 
outdoor recreation in Handbook 8320-1 require managers to consider 
recreational visitors' and local community members' perspectives on the 
preferred characteristics of the resource area (e.g., the type and 
amount of facilities/development, the number of other visitors present, 
etc.), the desired recreational experience, and longer-term benefits 
that might be realized. Information on these topics would assist with 
the development of a Land Use Plan (LUP) and monitor implementation of 
that LUP. The BLM proposes to collect information regarding these 
topics from two populations, recreational visitors and local community 
members, utilizing both surveys and focus groups.
    For the surveys, the BLM would ask onsite, randomly selected 
recreational visitors 10 questions related to specific areas visited, 
activity participation, and basic demographics. After completion of 
those questions, the BLM would ask if they are interested in 
participating in a more in-depth mailback or internet survey. The 
mailback/internet survey would ask approximately 25 detailed questions 
about the trip, including: specific areas and attractions visited, 
activity participation, reasons for visiting and expected outcomes, 
evaluation of their visit, preferences for management of the area. 
Demographic questions would also be included. A reminder postcard/email 
will be sent after one week and a second survey will be sent to those 
who did not respond after two weeks. Surveys would be conducted at no 
more than 108 field offices.
    As a random sample is not the goal of the focus groups, 
participants would be solicited through a variety of methods including 
agency lists of key stakeholder groups; outreach to BLM partners; BLM 
field office Web sites; flyers at visitor centers, information kiosks, 
BLM offices, public spaces of gateway communities, and local hotels and 
restaurants; and local newspaper articles. During the focus group, the 
BLM staff would lead participants through a series of topics regarding 
how often participants visit the site in question, what makes the site 
special to them/the local community, reasons for visiting, desired 
outcomes from the site, perceived positive/negative changes to the 
site, and the participants' thoughts on partnerships and management. 
Questions asked of participants would include a mix of open-ended and 
fixed-choice responses. Answers will be recorded by electronic clickers 
and/or paper forms. The BLM field offices would be selected to 
administer a visitor survey based on one of two conditions: (1) A 
forthcoming Land Use Plan (LUP) in which Special Recreation Management 
Areas (SRMA) might be considered (e.g., high visitation, unique 
recreation opportunities, and unique natural features); or (2) a 
recently completed LUP in which SRMAs were designated. Gateway 
communities selected for focus groups would be those near a BLM field 
office with a forthcoming or recently completed LUP in which SRMAs will 
be considered or have been designated. The BLM would conduct a maximum 
of 648 focus groups over a 3-year period within the 12 states in which 
the BLM manages public lands.
    The information gathered would be used to:
    (1) Identify onsite experiences and longer-term outcomes desired/
attained by visitors, local residents, and other relevant local 
stakeholders (e.g., improved health, improved family bonding, economic 
diversity).
    (2) Determine the field office's ability to respond to identified 
recreational issues and opportunities and understand the relationships 
among desirable/attained outcomes, activities, setting characteristics, 
and service delivery systems (within BLM-administered and other public 
lands as well as those provided by local communities) which those 
outcomes and activities depend on.
    (3) Develop LUPs that ensure visitor services and facilities are 
appropriate to provide desired experiences, settings and longer-term 
outcomes.
    (4) Monitor progress towards meeting SRMA objectives put forth in 
the LUP.
    (5) Prepare and maintain a continuing inventory of outdoor 
recreation values, kept current so as to reflect changing conditions 
and identify new and emerging values.

II. Data

    OMB Control Number: This is a new collection; 1004-XXXX.
    Title: Surveys and Focus Groups to Support Outcomes-Focused 
Management.
    Affected Public: Visitors to BLM resource areas, residents and 
other relevant stakeholders (e.g., representatives of the business 
community, local government, etc.) of communities near BLM resource 
areas.
    Respondent Obligation: Voluntary.
    Frequency of Collection: Annually, no more than 36 BLM field 
offices would be surveyed (32 would be pre-LUP inventory/needs 
assessment surveys and 4 would be post-LUP monitoring surveys) and no 
more than 216 focus groups would be conducted.
    Estimated Number of Annual Responses: pre-LUP inventory/needs 
assessment visitor surveys: 12,800; post-LUP monitoring visitor 
surveys: 1,600; focus groups: 5,400
    Annual Burden Hours: We estimate the public reporting burden to be 
approximately 30 minutes per completed inventory/needs assessment 
visitor survey, 10 minutes per

[[Page 41057]]

monitoring survey, and 90 minutes per focus group meeting participant. 
Total annual burden hours: 14,772.

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                               A.                                       B.              C.              D.
Type of response                                                       Number of        Time per     Total hours
                                                                       responses        response  (Col. B x Col.
                                                                                       (minutes)       C/60 min)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pre-RMP, onsite contact.........................................           20729             0.5             173
Pre-RMP, onsite survey (95% of above)...........................           19692               5            1641
Pre-RMP follow-up contacts (100% of above)......................           19692               1             328
Pre-RMP follow-up completion of survey (65% of above)...........           12800              20            4267
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
    Total for Pre-RMP...........................................  ..............  ..............            6409
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                               A.                                       B.              C.              D.
Type of response                                                       Number of        Time per     Total hours
                                                                       responses        response  (Col. B x Col.
                                                                                       (minutes)       C/60 min)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Post-RMP, onsite contact........................................            2591             0.5              22
Post-RMP, onsite survey (95% of above)..........................            2462               1              41
Post-RMP follow-up contacts (100% of above).....................            2462               1              41
Post-RMP follow-up completion of survey (65% of above)..........            1600               6             160
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
    Total for Post-RMP..........................................  ..............  ..............             264
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                               A.                                       B.              C.              D.
Type of response                                                       Number of        Time per     Total hours
                                                                       responses        response  (Col. B x Col.
                                                                                       (minutes)       C/60 min)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Focus group.....................................................            5400              90            8100
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    Estimated Reporting and Recordkeeping ``Non-Hour Cost'' Burden: 
There are no identified ``non-hour cost'' burdens associated with this 
collection of information.

III. Request for Comments

    Comments are invited on: (1) The practical utility of the 
information being gathered; (2) the accuracy of the burden hour 
estimate; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (4) ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on respondents, including use of automated 
information techniques or other forms of information technology.
    Please note that the comments submitted in response to this notice 
are a matter of public record. We will include or summarize each 
comment in our request to OMB to approve this IC. Before including your 
address, phone number, email address, or other personal identifying 
information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire 
comment, including your personal identifying information, may be made 
publicly available at any time. While you can ask BLM in your comment 
to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, 
we cannot guarantee that it will be done.

Anna Atkinson,
Bureau of Land Management, Information Collection Clearance Officer 
(Acting).
[FR Doc. 2015-17231 Filed 7-13-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4310-84-P