[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 126 (Tuesday, July 6, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35474-35475]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-14288]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

International Trade Administration


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment 
Request; Domestic and International Client Export Services and 
Customized Forms Renewal

AGENCY: International Trade Administration, U.S. Commercial Service, 
Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of information collection, request for comment.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce, in accordance with the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), invites the general public and other 
Federal agencies to comment on proposed, and continuing information 
collections, which helps us assess the impact of our information 
collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden. The 
purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment 
preceding submission of the collection to OMB.

DATES: To ensure consideration, comments regarding this proposed 
information collection must be received on or before September 7, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments by 
mail to John Seo, Senior Economist, International Trade Administration, 
or by email to [email protected] or [email protected]. Please 
reference OMB Control Number 0625-0143 in the subject line of your 
comments. Do not submit Confidential Business Information or otherwise 
sensitive or protected information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
specific questions related to collection activities should be directed 
to John Seo, Senior Economist, International Trade Administration, 1401 
Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20230, (202) 482-7497 or 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

    The International Trade Administration's (ITA) Global Markets/U.S. 
Commercial Service (CS) is

[[Page 35475]]

mandated by Congress to broaden and deepen the U.S. exporter base. The 
CS accomplishes this by providing counseling, programs and services to 
help U.S. organizations export and conduct business in overseas 
markets. This information collection package enables the CS to provide 
appropriate export services to U.S. exporters and international buyers. 
CS offers a variety of services to enable clients to begin exporting/
importing or to expand existing exporting/importing efforts. Clients 
may learn about our services from business related entities such as the 
National Association of Manufacturers, Federal Express, State Economic 
Development offices, the internet or word of mouth. The CS provides a 
standard set of services to assist clients with identifying potential 
overseas partners, establishing meeting programs with appropriate 
overseas business contacts and providing due diligence reports on 
potential overseas business partners. The CS also provides other 
export-related services considered to be of a ``customized nature'' 
because they do not fit into the standard set of CS export services, 
but are driven by unique business needs of individual clients.
    The dissemination of international market information and potential 
business opportunities for U.S. exporters are critical components of 
the Commercial Service's export assistance programs and services. U.S. 
companies conveniently access and indicate their interest in these 
services by completing the appropriate forms via ITA and CS U.S. Export 
Assistance Center websites.
    The CS works closely with clients to educate them about the 
exporting/importing process and to help prepare them for exporting/
importing. When a client is ready to begin the exporting/importing 
process our field staff provide counseling to assist in the development 
of an exporting strategy. We provide fee-based, export-related services 
designed to help client export/import. The type of export-related 
service that is proposed to a client depends upon a client's business 
goals and where they are in the export/import process. Some clients are 
at the beginning of the export process and require assistance with 
identifying potential distributors, whereas other clients may be ready 
to sign a contract with a potential distributor and require due 
diligence assistance. Before the CS can provide export-related services 
to clients, such as assistance with identifying potential partners or 
providing due diligence, specific information is required to determine 
the client's business objectives and needs. For example, before we can 
provide a service to identify potential business partners we need to 
know whether the client would like a potential partner to have specific 
technical qualifications, coverage in a specific market, English or 
foreign language ability or warehousing requirements. This information 
collection is designed to elicit such data so that appropriate services 
can be proposed and conducted to most effectively meet the client's 
exporting goals. Without these forms the CS is unable to provide 
services when requested by clients.
    The forms ask U.S. exporters standard questions about their company 
details, export experience, information about the products or services 
they wish to export and exporting goals. A few questions are tailored 
to a specific program type and will vary slightly with each program. CS 
staff use this information to gain an understanding of client's needs 
and objectives so that they can provide appropriate and effective 
export assistance tailored to an exporter's requirements.

II. Method of Collection

    CS is seeking approval for the following data collection methods to 
provide flexibility for how clients will provide information about 
their company details, export experience, information about the 
products or services they wish to export and exporting goals. Clients 
will be asked to provide their information on our website (export.gov), 
web-based survey or form links, or paper-based forms.

III. Data

    OMB Control Number: 0625-0143.
    Form Number(s): ITA-4096P.
    Type of Review: Extension of a current information collection.
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profit organizations; Not-
for-profit institutions; State, Local, or Tribal government; and 
Federal government.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 200,000.
    Estimated Time per Response: 10 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 33,333 hours.
    Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.

IV. Request for Comments

    We are soliciting public comments to permit the Department/Bureau 
to: (a) Evaluate whether the proposed information collection is 
necessary for the proper functions of the Department, including whether 
the information will have practical utility; (b) Evaluate the accuracy 
of our estimate of the time and cost burden for this proposed 
collection, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions 
used; (c) Evaluate ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of 
the information to be collected; and (d) Minimize the reporting burden 
on those who are to respond, including the use of automated collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology.
    Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of 
public record. We will include or summarize each comment in our request 
to OMB to approve this ICR. Before including your address, phone 
number, email address, or other personal identifying information in 
your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment--including 
your personal identifying information--may be made publicly available 
at any time. While you may ask us in your comment to withhold your 
personal identifying information from public review, we cannot 
guarantee that we will be able to do so.

Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Chief Information 
Officer, Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2021-14288 Filed 7-2-21; 8:45 am]
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