[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 148 (Monday, August 3, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45932-45933]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-18975]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

National Agricultural Statistics Service


Notice of Intent To Request To Conduct a New Information 
Collection

AGENCY: National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), USDA.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 this 
notice announces the intention of the National Agricultural Statistics 
Service (NASS) to seek approval to conduct a new information collection 
to gather data related to the costs incurred by farmers to improve the 
pollination of their crops through the use of honey bees and other 
pollinators.

DATES: Comments on this notice must be received by October 2, 2015 to 
be assured of consideration.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by docket number 0535-
NEW, by any of the following methods:
     Email: [email protected]. Include docket number 
above in the subject line of the message.
     eFax: (855) 838-6382
     Mail: Mail any paper, disk, or CD-ROM submissions to: 
David Hancock, NASS Clearance Officer, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 
Room 5336 South Building, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 
20250-2024.
     Hand Delivery/Courier: Hand deliver to: David Hancock, 
NASS Clearance Officer, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Room 5336 South 
Building, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20250-2024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Renee Picanso, Associate 
Administrator, National Agricultural Statistics Service, U.S. 
Department of Agriculture, (202) 720-2707. Copies of this information 
collection and related instructions can be obtained without charge from 
David Hancock, NASS Clearance Officer, at (202) 690-2388.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Cost of Pollination Survey.
    OMB Control Number: 0535--NEW.
    Type of Request: Intent to seek approval to conduct a new 
information collection for a period of three years.
    Abstract: The primary objective of the National Agricultural 
Statistics Service (NASS) is to prepare and issue state and national 
estimates of crop and livestock production, prices, and disposition; as 
well as economic statistics, environmental statistics related to 
agriculture, and also to conduct the Census of Agriculture.
    Pollinators (honey bees, bats, butterflies, hummingbirds, etc.) are 
vital

[[Page 45933]]

to the agricultural industry for pollinating numerous food crops for 
the world's population. Concern for honey bee colony mortality has 
risen since the introduction of Varroa mites in the United States in 
the late 1980s and the appearance of Colony Collapse Disorder in the 
past decade.
    In the Pollinator Research Action Plan, the President's Pollinator 
Health Task Force identified nearly 200 tasks that need to be conducted 
and coordinated from across the government to research all aspects of 
pollinator health and to come up with suggestions for improving this 
vital part of our food system. The Task Force's plan will involve 
conducting research and collecting data for the following categories: 
Status & Trends, Habitats, Nutrition, Pesticides, Native Plants, 
Collections, Genetics, Pathogens, Decision Tools, and Economics. The 
pollinators have been classified into Honey Bee, Native Bee, Wasp, 
Moth/Butterfly, Fly, and Vertebrate. The departments that will conduct 
the bulk of the research are the Department of the Interior (DOI), the 
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the National Science Foundation 
(NSF), the Smithsonian Institute (SI), and the United States Department 
of Agriculture (USDA).
    NASS has been given the tasks of collecting economic data related 
to honey bees and quantifying the number of colonies that were lost or 
reduced. NASS was approved to conduct the Quarterly and Annual Colony 
Loss Surveys under OMB approval number 0535-0255. NASS plans to also 
collect the economic data under this new collection. NASS collects data 
from crop farmers who rely on pollinators for their crops (fruits, 
nuts, vegetables, etc.). Data relating to the targeted crops will be 
collected for the total number of acres that rely on honey bee 
pollination, the number of honey bee colonies that were used on those 
acres, and any cash fees associated with honey bee pollination. Crop 
Farmers will also be asked if beekeepers who were hired to bring their 
bees to their farm were notified of pesticides used on the target 
acres, how many acres they were being hired to pollinate, and how much 
they were being paid to pollinate the targeted crops.
    Authority: These data will be collected under the authority of 7 
U.S.C. 2204(a). Individually identifiable data collected under this 
authority are governed by Section 1770 of the Food Security Act of 1985 
as amended, 7 U.S.C. 2276, which requires USDA to afford strict 
confidentiality to non-aggregated data provided by respondents. This 
Notice is submitted in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995 (Pub. L. 104-113) and the Office of Management and Budget 
regulations at 5 CFR part 1320.
    NASS also complies with OMB Implementation Guidance, 
``Implementation Guidance for Title V of the E-Government Act, 
Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act of 
2002 (CIPSEA),'' Federal Register, Vol. 72, No. 115, June 15, 2007, p. 
33376.
    Estimate of Burden: Public reporting burden for this collection of 
information is estimated to average 15 minutes per response. Publicity 
materials and an instruction sheet for reporting via internet will 
account for 5 minutes of additional burden per respondent. Respondents 
who refuse to complete a survey will be allotted 2 minutes of burden 
per attempt to collect the data.
    Once a year, NASS will contact approximately 53,000 crop farmers 
who rely on honey bees to pollinate their fruit, nut, vegetable, and 
other crops. NASS will conduct the annual survey initially using a mail 
and internet approach. This will be followed up with phone and personal 
enumeration for non-respondents. NASS will attempt to obtain at least 
an 80% response rate.
    Respondents: Farmers.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 53,000.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: With an estimated 
response rate of approximately 80%, we estimate the burden to be 13,400 
hours.
    Comments: 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 will 
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 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, through the use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical, technological, or other forms of information 
technology collection methods.
    All responses to this notice will become a matter of public record 
and be summarized in the request for OMB approval.

    Signed at Washington, DC, July 24, 2015.
Joseph T. Reilly,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2015-18975 Filed 7-31-15; 8:45 am]
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