[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 147 (Thursday, July 30, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45862-45863]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-16493]


 ========================================================================
 Notices
                                                 Federal Register
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules 
 or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings 
 and investigations, committee meetings, agency decisions and rulings, 
 delegations of authority, filing of petitions and applications and agency 
 statements of organization and functions are examples of documents 
 appearing in this section.
 
 ========================================================================
 

  Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 147 / Thursday, July 30, 2020 / 
Notices  

[[Page 45862]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

July 27, 2020.
    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: 
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; the accuracy of the agency's 
estimate of burden including the validity of the methodology and 
assumptions used; ways to enhance the quality, utility and clarity of 
the information to be collected; and 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.
    Comments regarding these information collections are best assured 
of having their full effect if received by August 31, 2020. Written 
comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection 
should be submitted within 30 days of the publication of this notice on 
the following website www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this 
particular information collection by selecting ``Currently under 30-day 
Review--Open for Public Comments'' or by using the search function.
    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: Census of Agriculture Content Test.
    OMB Control Number: 0535-0243.
    Summary of Collection: The purpose of the content test is to 
evaluate factors impacting the National Agricultural Statistics Service 
(NASS) Census of Agriculture program. The factors include, but are not 
limited to, respondent burden, questionnaire format and design, 
internet instrument performance, new items, changes in question wording 
and location, ease of completion, and processing methodology such as 
edit and summary. The proposed forms and letters will be used in 
several tests in 2020-2021 in preparation for conducting the 2022 
Census of Agriculture. NASS is responsible for conducting the Census of 
Agriculture under the authority of the Census of Agriculture Act of 
1997, Public Law 105-113 (U.S.C. 2204g).
    This is a reinstatement of the Census of Agriculture Content Test, 
which is conducted every five years prior to the full Census of 
Agriculture. The last content test was done in 2015-2016 in preparation 
for the 2017 Census of Agriculture.
    Need and Use of the Information: The Census of Agriculture Content 
Test is designed to evaluate a number of factors affecting the Census 
of Agriculture program. It is critical to NASS' ability to design a 
successful census survey. The actual Census of Agriculture is required 
by law every five years and serves as the basis for many 
agriculturally-based decisions. Less frequent content test collections 
would hinder NASS' ability to adequately evaluate changes needed to 
improve census data collection and therefore recognize changing trends 
in agriculture.
    Description of Respondents: Farmers and Ranchers.
    Number of Respondents: 51,200.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: Other (every 5 years).
    Total Burden Hours: 29,788.

National Agricultural Statistics Service

    Title: Local Food Marketing Practices Survey.
    OMB Control Number: 0535-0259.
    Summary of Collection: Data will be collected under the authority 
of 7 U.S.C. 2204(a). Section 10016(a)(1)(A) of the 2014 Farm Bill (Pub. 
L. 113-79) directs the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to collect data 
on ``the production and marketing of locally or regionally produced 
agricultural food products,'' while Section 10016(b)(2) requires USDA 
to ``conduct surveys and analysis and publish reports relating to the 
production, handling, distribution, retail sales, and trend studies . . 
. of or on locally or regionally produced agricultural food products.''
    This is a reinstatement of the survey that was conducted in 2016, 
referencing the calendar year 2015. The 2018 Farm Bill has provided 
funding for the continuation of the Local Food programs through 2023. 
The Local Foods Marketing Practices Survey will be a Census follow-on-
survey.
    Need and Use of the Information: The Local Food Marketing Practices 
Survey (LFMPS) is valuable because local farms have different business 
models than conventional farms, and the LFMPS is able to discern 
important data that are otherwise unavailable from pre-existing farmer 
surveys. This includes details on different types of market channels 
used, information about on-farm value-added processing, and outreach 
and advertising directly to community members and shoppers. Food and 
agriculture economists and other researchers in university, government, 
and nonprofit sectors analyze and rely on the data in this survey to 
understand local food marketing practices, make programmatic decisions, 
and support farms and related food production, aggregation, and 
distribution businesses.
    Because the survey gathers data on production, risk management, and 
marketing practices, it will be used by a number of USDA agencies and 
federal policymakers to inform their policies and programs. Just some 
of the USDA agencies that will benefit from this data are Farm Service 
Agency (FSA), Risk Management Agency (RMA), Rural Development (RD), 
Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), and Food and Nutrition Service 
(FNS). Farms in all 50 states will be asked to provide these data. 
Statistics from this survey will be used by state agencies to better 
understand, support, and promote their local food markets, as well as 
by researchers studying local foods.

[[Page 45863]]

    Description of Respondents: Farmers and Ranchers.
    Number of Respondents: 36,550.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: Annually.
    Total Burden Hours: 20,428.

Ruth Brown,
Departmental Information Collection Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2020-16493 Filed 7-29-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-20-P