[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 65 (Thursday, April 6, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16783-16784]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-06856]



[[Page 16783]]

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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Office of Procurement and Property Management


Notice of Request for Comments on Extension of a Currently 
Approved Information Collection

AGENCY: Departmental Management, Office of Procurement and Property 
Management, USDA.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: This notice announces the Department of Agriculture, 
Departmental Management, Office of Procurement and Property 
Management's intention to request an extension and a revision to a 
currently approved information collection, Voluntary Labeling Program 
for Biobased Products for Federal Biobased Products Preferred 
Procurement Program.

DATES: Comments on this notice must be received by June 5, 2017 to be 
assured of consideration.

ADDRESSES: The Office of Procurement and Property Management invites 
interested persons to submit comments on this notice. Comments may be 
submitted by one of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: This Web site provides the 
ability to type short comments directly into the comment field on this 
Web page or attach a file for lengthier comments. Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Email: [email protected]. Include ``Notice 
on Request for Comments on Extension of a Currently Approved 
Information Collection'' on the subject line. Please include your name 
and address in your message.
     Mail/commercial/hand delivery: Mail or deliver your 
comments to: Karen Zhang, USDA, Office of Procurement and Property 
Management, 1400 Independence Ave. SW., Washington, DC 20250.
    Instructions: All items submitted by mail or electronic mail must 
include the Agency name (Office of Procurement and Property 
Management). Comments received in response to this notice will be made 
available for public inspection and posted without change, including 
any personal information, to http://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Karen Zhang, USDA, Office of 
Procurement and Property Management, 1400 Independence Ave. SW., 
Washington, DC 20250.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), this notice announces the intention 
of the USDA, Office of Procurement and Property Management, to request 
approval for an extension of an existing collection.
    Title: Voluntary Labeling Program for Biobased Products for Federal 
Biobased Products Preferred Procurement Program.
    OMB Control Number: 0503-0020.
    Expiration Date of Approval: July 31, 2017.
    Type of Request: Extension and revision of a currently approved 
information collection.
    Abstract: Section 9002(h) of the Farm Security and Rural Investment 
Act (FSRIA) of 2002 (the 2002 Farm Bill), as amended by the Food, 
Conservation, and Energy Act (FCEA) of 2008 (the 2008 Farm Bill) and 
the Agricultural Act of 2014 (the 2014 Farm Bill), requires the 
Secretary of Agriculture to implement a voluntary labeling program that 
would enable qualifying biobased products to be labeled with a ``USDA 
Certified Biobased Product'' label. USDA subsequently published the 
terms and conditions for voluntary use of the label. These terms and 
conditions can be found in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) at 7 
CFR part 3202. To implement the statutory requirements of FSRIA, USDA 
will gather relevant product information on biobased products for which 
manufacturers and vendors seek certification to use the label. 
Participation in the voluntary labeling program is entirely voluntary. 
The information collected will enable USDA to evaluate the 
qualifications of biobased products to carry the USDA Certified 
Biobased Product label and to ensure that the label is used properly 
and in accordance with the requirements specified in 7 CFR part 3202. 
To the extent feasible, the information sought by USDA can be 
transmitted electronically using the Web site http://www.biopreferred.gov. If electronic transmission of information is not 
practical for some applicants, USDA will provide technical assistance 
to support the transmission of information to USDA.
    Estimate of Burden: Public reporting burden for this collection of 
information is estimated to average 3 hours per response.
    Respondents: Manufacturers and vendors who wish to apply the ``USDA 
Certified Biobased Product'' label to their biobased products. 
Participation is entirely voluntary.
    Estimated Annual Number of Respondents: 150.
    Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 3. One response is 
required for each stand-alone product or product family for which 
certification is sought. The average number of stand-alone products or 
product families that each respondent is expected to apply for 
certification is three. A stand-alone product is one that is marketed 
or sold under a single product name, while a product family is a group 
of products that share the same formulation and biobased content 
(within 3%) yet are marketed differently depending on factors such as 
brand names or uses.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 1,350 hours, one time 
only. Manufacturers and vendors are only required to respond once for 
each stand-alone product or product family for which they wish to 
receive certification. Therefore, there is no ongoing annual paperwork 
burden on respondents unless they wish to apply to label additional 
stand-alone products or product families. Furthermore, their 
participation in the voluntary labeling program is entirely voluntary.
    Comments are invited on: (1) 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; (2) 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; (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 those who 
are to respond, including the use of appropriate automated, electronic, 
mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms 
of information technology. Comments may be sent to Karen Zhang, USDA, 
Office of Procurement and Property Management, 1400 Independence Ave. 
SW., Washington, DC 20250. All comments received will be available for 
public inspection during regular business hours at the same address.
    All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the 
request for OMB (Office of Management and Budget) approval. All 
comments will become a matter of public record.


[[Page 16784]]


    Dated: March 24, 2017.
Malcom A. Shorter,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Administration, U.S. Department of 
Agriculture.
[FR Doc. 2017-06856 Filed 4-5-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3410-93-P