[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 226 (Monday, November 23, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Page 74665]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-25714]


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

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. APHIS-2020-0102]


Notice of Request for Revision to and Extension of Approval of an 
Information Collection; Standardizing Phytosanitary Treatment 
Regulations: Approval of Cold Treatment and Irradiation Facilities; 
Cold Treatment Schedules; and Establishment of Fumigation and Cold 
Treatment Compliance Agreements

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Revision to and extension of approval of an information 
collection; comment request.

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

SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this 
notice announces the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service's 
intention to request a revision to and extension of approval of an 
information collection associated the phytosanitary treatment 
regulations to establish generic criteria that would allow for the 
approval of new cold treatment facilities in the Southern and Western 
States of the United States.

DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before 
January 22, 2021.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2020-0102.
     Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to 
Docket No. APHIS-2020-0102, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, 
APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road, Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-
1238.
    Supporting documents and any comments we receive on this docket may 
be viewed at http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2020-
0102 or in our reading room, which is located in room 1620 of the USDA 
South Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC. 
Normal reading room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, except holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you, 
please call (202) 799-7039 before coming.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information on environmental 
monitoring, contact Mr. Todd Dutton, Assistant Director, PHP, PPQ, 
APHIS, 4700 River Road, Riverdale, MD 20737; (301) 851-2348. For copies 
of more detailed information on the information collection, contact Mr. 
Joseph Moxey, APHIS' Information Collection Coordinator, at (301) 851-
2483.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: Standardizing Phytosanitary Treatment Regulations: Approval 
of Cold Treatment and Irradiation Facilities; Cold Treatment Schedules; 
and Establishment of Fumigation and Cold Treatment Compliance 
Agreements.
    OMB Control Number: 0579-0450.
    Type of Request: Revision to and extension of approval of an 
information collection.
    Abstract: The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is 
responsible for preventing plant diseases or insect pests from entering 
the United States, preventing the spread of pests and noxious weeds not 
widely distributed into the United States, and eradicating those 
imported pests when eradication is feasible. The Plant Protection Act 
(PPA, 7 U.S.C. 7701 et seq.) authorizes the Department to carry out 
this mission. Under the PPA, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection 
Service (APHIS) is authorized, among other things, to regulate the 
importation of plants, plant products, and other articles to prevent 
the introduction of plant pests into the United States.
    The phytosanitary treatment regulations contained in 7 CFR part 305 
(referred to below as the regulations) set out the general requirements 
for performing treatments and certifying or approving treatment 
facilities for fruits, vegetables, and other articles to prevent the 
introduction or dissemination of plant pests or noxious weeds into or 
throughout the United States.
    The phytosanitary treatment regulations establish generic criteria 
that would allow for the approval of new cold treatment and irradiation 
facilities; cold treatment schedules; and establishment of fumigation 
and cold treatment compliance agreements. These criteria also require 
additional information collection activities. For instance, APHIS 
requires the establishment of compliance agreements for those entities 
that operate fumigation facilities. Also, APHIS requires harmonized 
language concerning State compliance with facility establishment and 
parameters for the movement of consignments from the port of entry or 
points of origin in the United States to the treatment facility in the 
irradiation treatment regulations language in the cold treatment 
regulations.
    We are asking the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to approve 
the use of these information collection activities, as described, for 
an additional 3 years.
    The purpose of this notice is to solicit comments from the public 
(as well as affected agencies) concerning our information collection. 
These comments will help us:
    (1) Evaluate 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) Evaluate the accuracy of our estimate of the burden of the 
collection of information, including the validity of the methodology 
and assumptions used;
    (3) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to 
be collected; and
    (4) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those 
who are to respond, through use, as appropriate, of automated, 
electronic, mechanical, and other collection technologies; e.g., 
permitting electronic submission of responses.
    Estimate of burden: The public burden for this collection of 
information is estimated to average 0.51 hours per response.
    Respondents: National plant protection organizations, facility 
operators, importers, and State governments.
    Estimated annual number of respondents: 118.
    Estimated annual number of responses per respondent: 3.
    Estimated annual number of responses: 398.
    Estimated total annual burden on respondents: 203 hours. (Due to 
averaging, the total annual burden hours may not equal the product of 
the annual number of responses multiplied by the reporting burden per 
response.)
    All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the 
request for OMB approval. All comments will also become a matter of 
public record.

    Done in Washington, DC, this 17th day of November 2020.
Michael Watson,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2020-25714 Filed 11-20-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P