[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 8 (Thursday, January 12, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2071-2072]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-00463]



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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment 
Request; Evaluations of Coastal Zone Management Act Programs: State 
Coastal Management Programs and National Estuarine Research Reserves

AGENCY: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 
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 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 March 13, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments to 
Adrienne Thomas, NOAA PRA Officer, at [email protected]. Please 
reference OMB Control Number 0648-0661 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 Michael Migliori, lead evaluator, NOS Office of Coastal Management, 
1305 East West Hwy., Bldg. SSMC4, Silver Spring, MD 20910, (443) 332-
8936, or [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract

    This request is for revision and extension of a currently approved 
information collection. A few questions will be rewritten to improve 
the usefulness of information collected. A new question is proposed for 
inclusion that will collect information from Coastal Zone Management 
Act programs about efforts in diversity, inclusion, equity, and 
accessibility.
    The Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, as amended (CZMA; 16 
U.S.C. 1451 et seq.) requires that state coastal management programs 
and national estuarine research reserves developed in accordance with 
the CZMA and approved by the Secretary of Commerce be evaluated 
periodically. This request is to collect information to accomplish 
those evaluations. NOAA's Office for Coastal Management conducts 
periodic evaluations of the 34 coastal management programs and 30 
research reserves and produces written findings for each evaluation. 
The Office for Coastal Management has access to documents submitted in 
cooperative agreement applications, performance reports, and certain 
documentation required by the CZMA and implementing regulations. 
However, additional information from each coastal management program 
and research reserve, as well as information from the program and 
reserve partners and stakeholders with whom each works, is necessary to 
evaluate against statutory and regulatory requirements. Different 
information collection subsets are necessary for (1) coastal management 
programs, (2) their partners and stakeholders, (3) research reserves, 
and (4) their partners and stakeholders.
    As part of this submission, a few questions will be modified to 
clarify the information that should be provided as part of the 
information requests and questionnaires sent to the coastal program and 
reserve managers. One new question about efforts in diversity, 
inclusion, equity, and accessibility will be included for coastal 
program and reserve managers. A few questions will be revised to 
clarify and improve the usefulness of responses for the partners and 
stakeholders' survey.
    Given the addition of a designated research reserve since the last 
renewal of this information collection and the anticipated designation 
of additional reserves in the coming years, and an increase in Office 
for Coastal Management staff capacity to conduct evaluations, the 
number of CZMA programs to be evaluated, on average, in the next three 
years will increase from 11 to 12 programs per year. This increase in 
the number of programs to be evaluated will also increase the number of 
partner and stakeholder respondents to this information collection.

II. Method of Collection

    Coastal program and reserve manager respondents will receive 
information requests and questionnaires via email, and submittals will 
be made via email. Partners and stakeholders of coastal management 
programs and of reserves will receive a link to a web-based survey tool 
and respond through the survey tool.

III. Data

    OMB Control Number: 0648-0661.
    Form Number(s): None.
    Type of Review: Regular submission (revision and extension of a 
current information collection).
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profit organizations; not-
for-profit institutions; state, local, or tribal government; federal 
government.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 288.
    Estimated Time per Response: 72 hours per CZMA program manager's 
evaluation; 15 minutes per partner/stakeholder response.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 933.
    Estimated Total Annual Cost to Public: $0 in recordkeeping/
reporting costs.
    Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory for CZMA programs; voluntary for 
program partners and stakeholders.
    Legal Authority: Section 312 of the Coastal Zone Management Act, as 
amended (16 U.S.C. 1458).

IV. Request for Comments

    We are soliciting public comments to permit the 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 information collection request. Before including 
your address, phone number, email address, or other personally 
identifiable information in your comment, you should be aware that your 
entire comment--including your personally identifiable information--may 
be made publicly available at any time. While you may ask us in your 
comment to withhold your personally identifiable information from 
public review, we

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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. 2023-00463 Filed 1-11-23; 8:45 am]
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