[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 221 (Friday, November 15, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Page 62502]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-24789]


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 Notices
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  Federal Register / Vol. 84, No. 221 / Friday, November 15, 2019 / 
Notices  

[[Page 62502]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

November 12, 2019.
    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 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.
    Dates: Comments regarding these information collections are best 
assured of having their full effect if received by December 16, 2019. 
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 (NASS)

    Title: Field Crops Production--County Estimates Survey--Row Crops--
Substantive Change.
    OMB Control Number: 0535-0002.
    Summary of Collection: General authority for these data collection 
activities is granted under U.S. Code Title 7, Section 2204 which 
specifies that ``The Secretary of Agriculture shall procure and 
preserve all information concerning agriculture which he can obtain . . 
. by the collection of statistics . . .''. The primary objective of the 
National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) is to provide data 
users with timely and reliable agricultural production and economic 
statistics, as well as environmental and specialty agricultural related 
statistics. To accomplish this objective, NASS relies on the use of 
diverse surveys that show changes within the farming industry over 
time.
    Numerous surveys included in the Agricultural Surveys Program 
(0535-0213) and the Field Crops Production docket (0535-0002) are used 
to set State and National estimates for numerous commodities. In order 
to publish data on a county level, much larger samples are needed. 
Within the Field Crops docket, are two surveys that collect 
supplemental data for the purpose of publishing county level data. 
Historically, the data collection costs for these two surveys has been 
partially funded through a cooperative agreement between NASS and the 
USDA Risk Management Agency (RMA). Due to program changes, RMA withdrew 
from this cooperative agreement this year. As a result, NASS is forced 
to reduce the County Estimates program. In the first step, NASS will 
reduce the number of commodities for which county level data will be 
made available. The commodities for which county level data will be 
discontinued are: Dry edible beans, flaxseed, hay (alfalfa and other), 
potatoes, sugarbeets, sugarcane, sunflower (non-oil and oil varieties) 
and tobacco. In addition, NASS will discontinue county estimates based 
on irrigated/non-irrigated practices. In the second step, in early 2020 
NASS will evaluate the need for potentially more cost savings to the 
county estimate programs. If additional savings are needed, changes to 
small grain county estimates will be published in the Federal Register.
    This substantive change resulted in an overall decrease in response 
burden of approximately 13,940 hours. The target sample size for 
enumerated questionnaires will be reduced by approximately 51,000.
    Need and Use of the Information: County estimates for field crops 
are used by the Farm Service Agency (FSA) to carry out their 
legislative mandates. The primary use of the data is to determine 
average yields by county, used in determining participating farmers' 
compensation payments. The information is useful to the Natural 
Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) for administering programs. The 
information will also benefit the agricultural sector more generally by 
enabling the rental market for cropland to operate more competitively.
    Description of Respondents: Farms sampled for the County 
Estimates--Row Crops.
    Number of Respondents: 124,000.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: Once.
    Total Burden Hours: 33,894.

Ruth Brown,
Departmental Information Collection Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2019-24789 Filed 11-14-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3410-20-P