[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 25 (Monday, February 8, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6584-6585]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-02369]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

[Docket No. DOT-OST-2015-0221 (Formerly Docket Number DOT-OST-2012-
0080)]


Agency Requests for Renewal of a Previously Approved Information 
Collection: Small Business Transportation Resource Center (SBTRC) 
Regional Field Offices Intake Form (DOT F 4500)

AGENCY: Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU), 
Office of the Secretary of Transportation (OST), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The OSDBU invites the public to comment about our intention to 
request the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) approval to renew 
an information collection. The collection involves the use of the SBTRC 
Regional Field Offices Intake Form (DOT F 4500). On November 12, 2015, 
OSDBU published a 60-day notice in the Federal Register (Vol. 80, No. 
218) (Formerly Docket Number DOT-OST-2012-0080), informing the public 
of OSDBU's intention to extend an approved information collection. The 
collection involves the use of the Regional Field Offices Intake Form 
(DOT F 4500), which documents the type of assistance provided to each 
small business that is enrolled in the program database. The 
information will be used to ascertain whether the program is providing 
services to its constituency, the small business community, and is done 
so in a fair and equitable manner. The information collected is 
necessary to determine whether small businesses are participating in 
DOT funded and DOT assisted opportunities.
    We are required to publish this notice in the Federal Register by 
the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13.

DATES: Written comments should be submitted by: March 9, 2016.

ADDRESSES: Your comments should be identified by Docket No. DOT-OST-
2015-0221 and may be submitted through one of the following methods:
     Office of Management and Budget, Attention: Desk Officer 
for U.S. Department of Transportation, Office of Information and 
Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, Docket Library, 
Room 10102, 725 17th Street NW., Washington, DC 20503.
     Email: [email protected].
     Fax: (202) 395-5806. Attention: DOT/OST Desk Officer.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michelle Harris, Office of Small and 
Disadvantaged Business Utilization, Office of the Secretary, U.S. 
Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Room W56-444, 
Washington, DC 20590, (202) 366-2253 or [email protected] 
(email).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: U.S. Department of Transportation, Office of Small and 
Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU).
    Affected Public: Representatives of OSDBU's SBTRC Regional Field 
Offices and the Small Business community on a national basis.
    Type of Request: Extension of a Currently Approved Collection of 
Information.
    Abstract: In accordance with Public Law 95-507, an amendment to the 
Small Business Act and the Small Business Investment Act of 1953, OSDBU 
is responsible for the implementation and execution of DOT activities 
on behalf of small businesses, in accordance with Sections 8, 15 and 31 
of the Small Business Act (SBA), as amended. The Office of Small and 
Disadvantaged Business Utilization also administers the provisions of 
Title 49, of the United States Code, Section 332, the Minority Resource 
Center (MRC) which includes the duties of advocacy, outreach, and 
financial services on behalf of small and disadvantaged businesses and 
those certified under CFR 49 parts 23 and or 26 as Disadvantaged 
Business Enterprises (DBE).
    SBTRC's Regional Field Offices will collect information on small 
businesses, which includes Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE), 
Women-Owned Small Business (WOB), Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB), 
8(a), Service Disabled Veteran Owned Business (SDVOB), Veteran Owned 
Small Business (VOSB), HubZone, and types of services they seek from 
the Regional Field Offices. Services and responsibilities of the Field 
Offices include business analysis, general management and technical 
assistance and training, business counseling, outreach services/
conference participation, short-term loan and bond assistance. The 
cumulative data collected will be analyzed by the OSDBU to determine 
the effectiveness of services provided, including counseling, outreach, 
and financial services. Such data will also be analyzed by the OSDBU to 
determine agency effectiveness in assisting small businesses to enhance 
their opportunities to participate in government contracts and 
subcontracts.
    The Regional Field Offices Intake Form, (DOT F 4500) is used to 
enroll small business clients into the program in order to create a 
viable database of firms that can participate in government contracts 
and subcontracts, especially those projects that are transportation 
related. Each area on the fillable pdf form must be filled in 
electronically by the Field Offices and submitted every quarter to 
OSDBU. The Offices will retain a copy of each Intake Form for their 
records. The completion of the form is used as a tool for making 
decisions about the needs of the business, such as; referral to 
technical assistance agencies for help, identifying the type of 
profession or trade of the business, the type of certification that the 
business holds, length of time in business, and location of the firm. 
This

[[Page 6585]]

data can assist the Field Offices in developing a business plan or 
adjusting their business plan to increase its ability to market its 
goods and services to buyers and potential users of their services.
    Respondents: SBTRC Regional Field Offices.
    Annual Estimated Number of Respondents: 100.
    Frequency: The information will be collected quarterly.
    Annual Estimated Number of Responses: 400.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 600 hours per year 
(90 minutes per response to complete each Intake Form).
    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the Department, including whether the information will have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the Department's estimate of the burden of 
the proposed information collection; (c) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility and clarity of the information collection; and (d) ways to 
minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, by 
the use of electronic means, including the use of automated collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology. The agency will 
summarize and/or include your comments in the request for OMB's 
clearance of this information collection.

    Authority:  The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. 
Chapter 35, as amended; and 49 CFR 1:48.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on February 1, 2016.
Habib Azarsina,
OST Privacy and PRA Officer.
[FR Doc. 2016-02369 Filed 2-5-16; 8:45 am]
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