[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 127 (Monday, July 2, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 30910-30911]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-14156]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

National Agricultural Statistics Service


Notice of Intent To Request Revision and Extension of a Currently 
Approved Information Collection

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

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this 
notice announces the intention of the National Agricultural Statistics 
Service (NASS) to request revision and extension of a currently 
approved information collection, the Cost of Pollination Survey. This 
survey gathers 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 August 31, 2018 to 
be assured of consideration.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by docket number 0535-
0258, 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: Kevin L. Barnes, 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--OMB Clearance Officer, at (202) 690-2388 or at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Cost of Pollination Survey.
    OMB Control Number: 0535-0258.
    Type of Request: Intent to Seek Approval to Revise and Extend an 
Information Collection for 3 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 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 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 involves 
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 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 was 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 also collects 
the economic data under this collection. NASS collects data from crop 
farmers who rely on pollinators for their crops (fruits, nuts, 
vegetables, etc.). Data relating to the targeted crops are 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 are also 
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

[[Page 30911]]

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 20,000 crop farmers 
who rely on honey bees to pollinate their fruit, nut, vegetable, and 
other crops. NASS will conduct the annual survey 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: 20,000.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: With an estimated 
response rate of approximately 80%, we estimate the burden to be 6,100 
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, June 20, 2018.
Kevin L. Barnes,
Associate Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2018-14156 Filed 6-29-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-20-P