[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 86 (Thursday, May 3, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19524-19525]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-09381]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration


Proposed Information Collection Renewal; Comment Request; 
Domestic and International Client Export Services and Customized Forms

AGENCY: International Trade Administration, Commerce.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort 
to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public 
and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on 
proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before July 2, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Jennifer Jessup, Departmental 
Paperwork Clearance Officer, Department of Commerce, Room 6616, 14th 
and Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230 (or via the internet 
at [email protected]).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
copies of the information collection instrument and instructions should 
be directed to Joe Carter, Office of Strategic Planning, 1999 Broadway, 
Suite 2205 Denver, CO 80220, (303) 844-5656, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract

    The International Trade Administration's (ITA) Global Markets/U.S. 
Commercial Service (CS) is mandated by Congress to broaden and deepen 
the U.S. exporter base. The CS accomplishes this by providing 
counseling, programs and services to help U.S. organizations export and 
conduct business in overseas markets.

[[Page 19525]]

This information collection package enables the CS to provide 
appropriate export services to U.S. exporters and international buyers.
    CS offers a variety of services to enable clients to begin 
exporting/importing or to expand existing exporting/importing efforts. 
Clients may learn about our services from business related entities 
such as the National Association of Manufacturers, Federal Express, 
State Economic Development offices, the internet or word of mouth. The 
CS provides a standard set of services to assist clients with 
identifying potential overseas partners, establishing meeting programs 
with appropriate overseas business contacts and providing due diligence 
reports on potential overseas business partners. The CS also provides 
other export-related services considered to be of a ``customized 
nature'' because they do not fit into the standard set of CS export 
services, but are driven by unique business needs of individual 
clients.
    The dissemination of international market information and potential 
business opportunities for U.S. exporters are critical components of 
the Commercial Service's export assistance programs and services. U.S. 
companies conveniently access and indicate their interest in these 
services by completing the appropriate forms via ITA and CS U.S. Export 
Assistance Center websites.
    The CS works closely with clients to educate them about the 
exporting/importing process and to help prepare them for exporting/
importing. When a client is ready to begin the exporting/importing 
process our field staff provide counseling to assist in the development 
of an exporting strategy. We provide fee-based, export-related services 
designed to help client export/import. The type of export-related 
service that is proposed to a client depends upon a client's business 
goals and where they are in the export/import process. Some clients are 
at the beginning of the export process and require assistance with 
identifying potential distributors, whereas other clients may be ready 
to sign a contract with a potential distributor and require due 
diligence assistance.
    Before the CS can provide export-related services to clients, such 
as assistance with identifying potential partners or providing due 
diligence, specific information is required to determine the client's 
business objectives and needs. For example, before we can provide a 
service to identify potential business partners we need to know whether 
the client would like a potential partner to have specific technical 
qualifications, coverage in a specific market, English or foreign 
language ability or warehousing requirements. This information 
collection is designed to elicit such data so that appropriate services 
can be proposed and conducted to most effectively meet the client's 
exporting goals. Without these forms the CS is unable to provide 
services when requested by clients.
    The forms ask U.S. exporters standard questions about their company 
details, export experience, information about the products or services 
they wish to export and exporting goals. A few questions are tailored 
to a specific program type and will vary slightly with each program. CS 
staff use this information to gain an understanding of client's needs 
and objectives so that they can provide appropriate and effective 
export assistance tailored to an exporter's requirements.

II. Method of Collection

    CS is seeking approval for the following data collection methods to 
provide flexibility for how clients will provide information about 
their company details, export experience, information about the 
products or services they wish to export and exporting goals. Clients 
will be asked to provide their information on our website (export.gov), 
web-based survey or form links, or paper-based forms.

III. Data

    OMB Control Number: 0625-0143.
    Form Number(s): ITA-4096P.
    Type of Review: Renewal submission.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profit organizations; Not-
for-profit institutions; State, Local, or Tribal government; and 
Federal government.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 200,000.
    Estimated Time per Response: 10 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 33,333 hours.

IV. Request for 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 shall have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden 
(including hours and cost) 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 the 
collection of information on respondents, including through the use of 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology.
    Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized 
and/or included in the request for OMB approval of this information 
collection; they also will become a matter of public record.

Sheleen Dumas,
Departmental Lead PRA Officer, Office of the Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 2018-09381 Filed 5-2-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-FP-P