[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 65 (Tuesday, April 5, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19662-19663]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-07137]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Information Collection; Cooperative Wildland Fire Management and 
Stafford Act Response Agreements

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice; request for comment.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the 
Forest Service is seeking comments from all interested individuals and 
organizations on the renewal without revision to an existing 
information collection, Cooperative Wildland Fire Management and 
Stafford Act Response Agreements.

DATES: Comments must be received in writing on or before June 6, 2022 
to be assured of consideration. Comments received after that date will 
be considered to the extent practicable.

ADDRESSES: Commenters are encouraged to submit comments by email, if 
possible. You may submit comments by any of the following methods:
     Email: [email protected].
     Mail: Timothy Melchert, USDA Forest Service, Fire and 
Aviation Management, Fire and Aviation Management, National Interagency 
Fire Center (NIFC), 3833 Development Avenue, Boise, ID 83705-5354.
     Hand Delivery/Courier: Timothy Melchert, USDA Forest 
Service, Fire and Aviation Management, Fire and Aviation Management, 
National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC), 3833 Development Avenue, 
Boise, ID 83705-5354.
     Facsimile: 202-205-1401.
    The public may inspect the draft supporting statement and/or 
comments received at 3833 Development Avenue, Boise, ID 83705-5354 
during normal business hours. Visitors are encouraged to call ahead to 
208-387-5512 to facilitate entry to the building and ensure staff is 
available to make documents available for review. The public may 
request an electronic copy of the draft supporting statement and/or any 
comments received be sent via return email. Requests should be emailed 
to: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Timothy Melchert, USDA Forest Service, 
Fire and Aviation Management 208-387-5887, or 
[email protected]. Individuals who use telecommunication 
devices for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay 
Service (FIRS) at 1-800-877-8339 twenty-four hours a day, every day of 
the year, including holidays.

[[Page 19663]]


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: Cooperative Wildland Fire Management and Stafford Act 
Response Agreements.
    OMB Number: 0596-0242.
    Expiration Date of Approval: June 30, 2022.
    Type of Request: Renewal without revision to an existing 
information collection.
    Abstract: To allow the performance of specific activities in 
cooperation with Federal, State, local, and Tribal governments, 
Congress enacted authorities allowing the United States Department of 
Agriculture (USDA) and United States Department of the Interior (DOI) 
to enter into cooperative agreements with fire organizations to improve 
efficiency.
    These include:
    1. Facilitating the coordination and exchange of personnel, 
equipment, supplies, services, and funds among the parties.
    2. Sustaining Wildland Fire Management activities, such as 
prevention, preparedness, communication and education, fuels treatment 
and hazard mitigation, fire planning.
    3. Response strategies, tactics and alternatives, suppression and 
post-fire rehabilitation and restoration.
    4. Allow for the parties to respond to presidentially declared 
emergencies or disasters.
    The primary authorities allowing for the agreements are the 
Reciprocal Fire Protection Act, 42 U.S.C 1856, and the Stafford Act, 42 
U.S.C. 5121. The proposed Cooperative Wildland Fire Management and 
Stafford Act Response Agreement template will allow authorized agencies 
to streamline coordination with other Federal, State, local, and Tribal 
governments in wildland fire protection activities, and to document in 
an agreement the roles and responsibilities among the parties, ensuring 
maximum protection of resources.
    To negotiate, develop, and administer Cooperative Wildland Fire 
Management and Stafford Act Response Agreements, the USDA Forest 
Service, DOI Bureau of Land Management, DOI Fish and Wildlife Service, 
DOI National Park Service, and DOI Bureau of Indian Affairs must 
collect information from willing State, local, and Tribal governments 
from the pre-agreement to the closeout stage via telephone calls, 
emails, postal mail, and person-to-person meetings. There are multiple 
means to communicate responses, which include forms, optional forms, 
templates, electronic documents, in person, telephone, and email. The 
scope of information collected includes the project type, project 
scope, financial plan, statement of work, and cooperator's business 
information. Without the collected information, authorized Federal 
agencies would not be able to negotiate, create, develop, and 
administer cooperative agreements with stakeholders for wildland fire 
protection, approved fire severity activities, and presidentially 
declared emergencies or disasters. Authorized Federal agencies would be 
unable to develop or monitor projects, make payments, or identify 
financial and accounting errors.
    The regulations governing Federal financial assistance 
relationships are not applicable to agreement templates under this 
information collection request. The regulations in 2 CFR 200 set forth 
the general rules that are applicable to all grants and cooperative 
agreements made by the Department of Agriculture and Department of the 
Interior. Because the Federal government's use of Cooperative Wildland 
Fire Management and Stafford Act Response Agreements entered into under 
cited Federal statutes are not financial assistance for the benefit of 
the recipient, but instead are entered into for the mutual benefit of 
the Federal government and the non-Federal cooperators, the assistance 
regulations in 2 CFR 200, as adopted and supplemented by the Department 
of Start Printed Page 59768 Agriculture and Department of Interior, are 
not applicable to such agreements.
    This is an information collection request reinstatement. The 
Cooperative Wildland Fire Management and Stafford Act Response 
Agreement template can be viewed at www.fs.fed.us/managing-land/fire/
master-agreement-template.
    Estimate of Annual Burden: 4 to 24 hours annually per respondent.
    Type of Respondents: State, local, and Tribal governments.
    Estimated Annual Number of Respondents: 320.
    Estimated Annual Number of Responses per Respondent: 1 to 4.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 47,040 hours.
    Public Comment: Public comment is invited on (1) whether this 
information collection is necessary for the stated purposes and the 
proper performance of the functions of the Agency, including whether 
the information will have practical or scientific utility; (2) the 
accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden of the information 
collection, 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 
information collection on respondents, including the use of automated, 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology.
    All comments received in response to this notice, including names 
and addresses when provided, will be a matter of public record. 
Comments will be summarized and included in the submission request 
toward Office of Management and Budget approval.

Jaelith Hall-Rivera,
Acting Deputy Chief, State and Private Forestry.
[FR Doc. 2022-07137 Filed 4-4-22; 8:45 am]
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