[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 249 (Tuesday, December 29, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 81276-81279]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-32747]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

National Institute of Food and Agriculture


Notice of Intent To Request Approval To Establish a New 
Information Collection and Record Keeping Requirement

AGENCY: National Institute of Food and Agriculture, USDA.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations that implement the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the National 
Institute of Food and Agriculture's (NIFA) intention to request 
approval to establish a new information collection and record keeping 
requirement for the Veterinary Medical Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP).

DATES: Written comments on this notice must be received by February 29, 
2016, to be assured of consideration. Comments received after that date 
will be considered to the extent practicable.

ADDRESSES: Written comments may be submitted by any of the following 
methods: Email: [email protected]; Mail: Office of Information 
Technology (OIT), NIFA, USDA, STOP 2216, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., 
Washington, DC 20250-2216.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robert Martin, Records Officer; Email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Veterinary Medical Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP).
    OMB Number: 0524-New.
    Type of Request: Intent to request approval to establish a new 
information collection and record keeping requirement for three years.
    Abstract: In January 2003, the National Veterinary Medical Service 
Act (NVMSA) was passed into law adding section 1415A to the National 
Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1997. This 
law established a new Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program 
(VMLRP) (7 U.S.C. 3125a) authorizing the Secretary of Agriculture to 
carry out a program of entering into agreements with veterinarians 
under which they agree to provide veterinary services in veterinarian 
shortage situations. The purpose of the program is to assure an 
adequate supply of trained food animal veterinarians in shortage 
situations and provide USDA with a pool of veterinary specialists to 
assist in the control and eradication of animal disease outbreaks.
    The VMLRP Program Office proposes a record keeping requirement for 
VMLRP participants and to collect additional information from current 
participants, their employers and past participants. The records to be 
maintained and the information collected will allow for better 
oversight and assessment of the program. Additionally, to streamline 
OMB approval processes all currently approved VMLRP information 
collections (OMB Control Number 0524-0046 and 0524-0047) will be 
combined into a single package along with the new information proposed. 
Each new requirement is described in detail below.

(1) Service Log

    Need and Use of the Records: Program participants are required to 
verify on a quarterly basis that the terms of the VMLRP service 
agreement are being met through the Service Verification Form (NIFA-09-
10, OMB No 0534-0047). This form is an affidavit signed by the program 
participant's employer or, if self-employed, by the participant. Upon 
receipt by NIFA of a signed form affirming service under the terms and 
conditions of the service agreement, funds are released to 
participant's lender(s). At this time the affidavit is not validated by 
VMLRP program staff. In order to validate service affidavits, the VMLRP 
proposes a recording keeping requirement for participants in the form 
of service log that would be subject to audit by program staff. During 
a service audit VMLRP staff will compare the service log to the 
shortage area description and contact participants with any questions.

[[Page 81277]]

Discrepancies between the shortage situation description and service 
log may indicate a breach in the service agreement and payments to 
lender(s) will be put on hold until the discrepancy is resolved.
    Components of the Record: For those participants serving in the 
private sector (Type I and Type II shortage situations), the service 
log would contain the following for each service/appointment: Date of 
service, duration of services/appointment, windshield/drive time, 
species or species type served, county and zip of client/farm receiving 
services, and services provided. For those serving in the public sector 
(Type III shortage situations), the service log would contain the 
following: Date of service/activity, duration of service/activity and 
description of service/activity conducted including the specific role 
of the participant in that service/activity.
    Method of Collection: Participants should maintain their service 
logs in any data format e.g. csv, .xls, etc. A template will be 
provided. The full service log should be sent via email to the VMLRP 
Program Office along with the signed service verification form.
    Frequency of Response: Random audit. When the quarterly affidavit 
is sent to participants for signature, each participant will be 
notified if they have been selected for audit. A VMLRP participant 
should anticipate at least one audit during their service agreement 
period.
    Affected Public: VMLRP participants under service agreement.
    Type of Respondents: Veterinarians.
    Estimate of Burden:

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                          Estimated number    Average burden
                 Number of respondents                    of responses per      hours per        Annual burden
                                                             respondent          response       hours requested
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
150....................................................                260                .25               9750
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(2) Feedback Survey

    Need for and Use of the Information: The VMLRP Program Office does 
not have a formal mechanism for program participants to provide 
feedback to the program or to State Animal Health Officials (SAHOs) on 
the status of the shortage situation they are serving. Moreover, there 
is no formal mechanism to obtain feedback on program processes, program 
resources, or quality of services and interactions with program staff. 
Currently, any feedback provided by participants is ad hoc on their own 
volition. The VMLRP Program Office is proposing to collect data on the 
current and 5-10y projected status of a shortage area, and program 
processes, resources and customer service. Data will be used by VMLRP 
to improve internal processes and shortage area information and will be 
shared with SAHOs to aide them in future nominations of veterinarian 
shortage situations. Active solicitation by VMLRP for feedback will 
occur after participants complete year one of the service agreement. 
This timing enables VMLRP to respond to feedback as appropriate and 
provide information to SAHOs during a participant's service agreement 
period.
    Method of Collection: Feedback questions will be solicited through 
a survey sent by email to participants as a pdf-fillable form or as a 
link to a web-based survey system. Completed surveys will be emailed to 
the VMLRP Program Office or stored on the web-based system. Completion 
of the survey is voluntary.
    Frequency of Response: Once during the service agreement period.
    Affected Public: VMLRP participants under service agreement.
    Type of Respondents: Veterinarians.
    Estimate of Burden:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                    Estimated number   Average burden
    Number of       of responses per      hours per       Annual burden
   respondents         respondent         response       hours requested
------------------------------------------------------------------------
             50                  1                .33              16.5
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(3) Close-Out Report

    Need for and Use of the Information: Close-out reports serve as 
documentation for federal award programs to assess whether the program 
is meeting its intended outcomes. VMLRP proposes to collect data from 
participants on the services provided during their service award, their 
impact on the shortage situation, and their professional plans post-
service agreement. The information collected will be reported in 
aggregate as part of the program's annual report and used to evaluate 
VMLRP processes, impacts and projected outcomes.
    Method of Collection: Information will be solicited via email using 
a pdf-fillable form or as a link to a web-based survey system. 
Completed surveys will be emailed to the VMLRP Program Office or stored 
on the web-based system. Completion of the report is mandatory and a 
condition of the service agreement.
    Frequency of Response: Once at the end of the service agreement 
period.
    Affected Public: VMLRP participants under service agreement.
    Type of Respondents: Veterinarians.
    Estimate of Burden:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                    Estimated number   Average burden
    Number of       of responses per      hours per       Annual burden
   respondents         respondent         response       hours requested
------------------------------------------------------------------------
             50                  1                .33              16.5
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(4) Employer Feedback

    Need for and Use of the Information. The VMLRP Program Office does 
not have a formal mechanism for program participants' employers to 
provide feedback to the program or to State Animal Health Officials 
(SAHOs) on the status of the shortage situation their employee is 
serving. Currently, any

[[Page 81278]]

feedback provided by employers is ad hoc on their own volition. The 
VMLRP Program Office is proposing to collect data on the current and 5-
10y projected status of a shortage situation, as well as feedback on 
the impact their employee has had on the shortage situation. Data will 
be used by VMLRP to assess program impact and may be reported in 
aggregate in the program's annual reports. Shortage area information 
will be shared with SAHOs to aide them in future nominations of 
veterinarian shortage situations. Active solicitation by VMLRP for 
feedback will occur during the last quarter of the VMLRP participant's 
agreement period.
    Method of Collection: Feedback will be solicited through a survey 
emailed to participants' employers as a pdf-fillable form or as a link 
to a web-based survey system. Completed surveys will be emailed to the 
VMLRP Program Office or stored on the web-based system. Completion of 
the survey is voluntary.
    Frequency of Response: Once at the end of the service agreement 
period.
    Affected Public: Employers of VMLRP participants.
    Type of Respondents: Veterinarians.
    Estimate of Burden:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                    Estimated number   Average burden
    Number of       of responses per      hours per       Annual burden
   respondents         respondent         response       hours requested
------------------------------------------------------------------------
             30                  1                .25               7.5
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(5) Post-Award Termination Survey

    Need for and Use of the Information. One of the goals of the VMLRP 
is long-term mitigation of designated veterinarian shortage situations. 
At this time, it is unknown whether program participants continue 
providing services for their shortage situation after their service 
agreement ends. Data collected will be reported in aggregate as part of 
the program's annual report, used to assess factors associated with 
retention (remaining in the same area and providing the same services 
as described by the shortage situation), and help determine if shortage 
situations are being mitigated in the long-term.
    Method of Collection: Questions on retention will be solicited 
through a survey emailed to participants as a pdf-fillable form or as a 
link to a web-based survey system. Completed surveys will be emailed to 
the VMLRP Program Office or stored on the web-based system. Completion 
of the survey is voluntary.
    Frequency of Response: One, three and five years after service 
agreement end date.
    Affected Public: Past VMLRP participants.
    Type of Respondents: Veterinarians.
    Estimate of Burden:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                    Estimated number   Average burden
    Number of       of responses per      hours per       Annual burden
   respondents         respondent         response       hours requested
------------------------------------------------------------------------
            150                  1                .25              37.5
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Total Estimate of Burden: The estimated annual reporting burden for 
all VMLRP collection is as follows:

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                     Estimated
                                                     Number of       number of        Average      Annual burden
               Type of respondents                  respondents    responses per   burden hours        hours
                                                                    respondent     per response      requested
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Applicants:
    Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program               602               1            2.25            1350
     Application OMB0524-0047...................
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
        Current Participants subtotal...........  ..............  ..............  ..............            1350
State Animal Health Officials:
    Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program                60               4               2             480
     Shortage Situation Nomination OMB0524-0046.
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
        State Animal Health Official subtotal...  ..............  ..............  ..............             480
Current Participants:
    Service Log.................................             150             260             .25            9750
    Feedback Survey.............................              50               1             .33            16.5
    Close-out Report............................              50               1             .33            16.5
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
        Current Participants subtotal...........  ..............  ..............  ..............            9783
Employers:
    Employer Feedback...........................              30               1             .25             7.5
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
        Employer subtotal.......................  ..............  ..............  ..............             7.5
Past Participants:
    Post-Award Termination Survey...............             150               1             .25            37.5
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
        Past Participants subtotal..............  ..............  ..............  ..............            37.5
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------

[[Page 81279]]

 
GRAND TOTAL.....................................  ..............  ..............  ..............          11,658
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    Comments: Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed record 
keeping requirement and collection of information are 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; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of 
the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of 
collecting the information on respondents, including through the use of 
appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological 
collection techniques or other forms of information technology.
    All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the 
request to OMB for approval. All comments will become a matter of 
public record.
    Obtaining a Copy of the Information Collection: A copy of the 
information collection and related instructions may be obtained free of 
charge by contacting Robert Martin as directed above.

    Done at Washington, DC, this 16 day of December 2015.
Catherine E. Woteki,
Under Secretary, Research, Education, and Economics.
[FR Doc. 2015-32747 Filed 12-28-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3410-22-P