[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 191 (Tuesday, October 2, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49530-49531]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-21381]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

September 27, 2018.
    The Department of Agriculture will submit the following information 
collection requirement(s) to OMB for review and clearance under the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 on or after the date 
of publication of this notice. Comments are requested regarding: (1) 
Whether the 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 burden 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 through the use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical, or other

[[Page 49531]]

technological collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology should be addressed to: Desk Officer for Agriculture, Office 
of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB), New Executive Office Building, Washington, DC; New Executive 
Office Building, 725 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20503. Commenters 
are encouraged to submit their comments to OMB via email to: 
[email protected] or fax (202) 395-5806 and to Departmental 
Clearance Office, USDA, OCIO, Mail Stop 7602, Washington, DC 20250-
7602.
    Comments regarding these information collections are best assured 
of having their full effect if received by November 1, 2018. Copies of 
the submission(s) may be obtained by calling (202) 720-8681.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information 
unless the collection of information displays a currently valid OMB 
control number and the agency informs potential persons who are to 
respond to the collection of information that such persons are not 
required to respond to the collection of information unless it displays 
a currently valid OMB control number.

National Agricultural Statistics Service

    Title: Floriculture Survey.
    OMB Control Number: 0535-0093.
    Summary of Collection: The primary function of the National 
Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) is to prepare current official 
state and national estimates of crop and livestock production. Since 
1985 Congress has provided funds to conduct an annual Commercial 
Floriculture Survey which obtains data on this important and growing 
industry. Several program changes have occurred since the previous 
approval in November of 2015. Results from the surveys that were 
conducted in January 2016 referencing 2015 production data, were 
published in April 2016. In January 2017 and 2018 the national surveys 
were postponed due to budget cuts. NASS did collect data for the State 
of Hawaii only for those two years under a cooperative agreement with 
the Hawaii State Dept. of Agriculture.
    Following an extensive review of the floriculture industry and 
trends in production, NASS is proposing the following changes to the 
program. Based on the 2014 Horticultural Specialties Census, the top 16 
states which represent 79.6% of the combined total of floriculture 
production and sales in the United States, will be surveyed. In 
addition, Congress has provided line item funding for the inclusion of 
Alaska into the Floriculture Survey program. The 17 States that will be 
included in the program in this renewal request are: Alaska, 
California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, 
Oregon, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas, 
Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin. New to this program are the States 
of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Virginia, and Wisconsin. Dropped from 
the federally funded program are Hawaii, Maryland, and South Carolina. 
However, NASS has been contacted by the States of Arizona, Hawaii and 
Maryland about doing a reimbursable survey through a cooperative 
agreement with each State. These three State surveys will be included 
in this OMB approval request.
    General authority for these data collection activities is granted 
under U.S. Code Title 7, Section 2204. This statute specifies that 
``The Secretary of Agriculture shall procure and preserve all 
information concerning agriculture which can be obtained by the 
collection of statistics . . . and shall distribute them among 
agriculturists''. The floriculture industry accounted for approximately 
$5.9 billion in wholesale sales at the U.S. level in 2014 (Census of 
Horticultural Specialties). In 2015 the 15 States that were surveyed by 
the Commercial Floriculture Survey accounted for $4.37 billion in 
wholesale sales or a little over 74% of the U.S. total.
    Need and Use of the Information: NASS obtains basic agricultural 
statistics on production and value of floriculture products. The target 
population for this survey is all operations with production and sales 
of at least $10,000 of floriculture products. Data collected from the 
survey will assess alternative agriculture opportunities, and provide 
statistics for Federal and State agencies to monitor the use of 
agricultural chemicals. If the information is not collected data users 
could not keep abreast of changes.
    Description of Respondents: Farms; Business or other-for-profit.
    Number of Respondents: 12,000.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: Annually.
    Total Burden Hours: 5,793.

Ruth Brown,
Departmental Information Collection Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2018-21381 Filed 10-1-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3410-20-P