[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 188 (Friday, September 29, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 67225-67226]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-21303]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. APHIS-2023-0061]


Notice of Request for Revision to and Extension of Approval of an 
Information Collection; Commercial Transportation of Equines to 
Slaughter

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

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

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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 with the regulations for the 
commercial transportation of equines to slaughtering facilities.

DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before 
November 28, 2023.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to www.regulations.gov. 
Enter APHIS-2023-0061 in the Search field. Select the Documents tab, 
then select the Comment button in the list of documents.
     Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to 
Docket No. APHIS-2023-0061, 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 regulations.gov 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 the regulations for 
the commercial transportation of equines to slaughter, contact Dr. Lisa 
Rochette, Equine Health Director, Strategy and Policy, VS, APHIS, 920 
Main Campus Drive, Suite 200, Raleigh, NC 27606;

[[Page 67226]]

(801) 879-5156; [email protected]. For more information on the 
information collection reporting process, contact Mr. Joseph Moxey, 
APHIS' Paperwork Reduction Act Coordinator, at (301) 851-2483; 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: Commercial Transportation of Equines to Slaughter.
    OMB Control Number: 0579-0332.
    Type of Request: Revision to and extension of approval of an 
information collection.
    Abstract: Sections 901-905 of the Federal Agriculture Improvement 
and Reform Act of 1996 (7 U.S.C. 1901) authorize the Secretary of 
Agriculture to issue guidelines for regulating the commercial 
transportation of equines to slaughter by persons regularly engaged in 
that activity within the United States. Specifically, the Secretary is 
authorized to regulate the food, water, and rest provided to these 
equines while the equines are in transit and to review related issues 
appropriate to ensuring that these animals are treated humanely.
    To implement the provisions of this Act, the Animal and Plant 
Health Inspection Service (APHIS) within the U.S. Department of 
Agriculture (USDA) has established minimum standards to ensure the 
humane movement of equines to slaughtering facilities or to assembly 
points while en route to slaughtering facilities, via commercial 
transportation. These standards, contained in 9 CFR part 88, require 
that conveyances protect the health and well-being of the animals and 
meet certain other criteria; that double-decker conveyances are 
prohibited; and that access to food, water, and rest be provided to 
these animals 6 hours prior to shipment. APHIS' regulations also 
require the application of backtags and completion of owner/shipper 
certificates of fitness to travel to a slaughtering facility with 
identification of the animals and details of the transportation and 
signatures attesting to compliance with the provision of food, rest, 
and water and to the animal's fitness to travel. The regulations 
further prohibit the use of electric prods and state aggressive animals 
must be separated. Any owner/shipper transporting equines to 
slaughtering facilities outside the United States must present the 
owner-shipper certificates to USDA representatives at the border.
    Implementing these regulations entails the use of information 
collection activities, such as providing business information; 
completing owner/shipper certificates of fitness to travel to a 
slaughtering facility; applying backtags, as needed; and maintaining 
records of the owner/shipper certificates and continuation sheets.
    We are asking the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to approve 
our 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 0.25 hours per response.
    Respondents: Owners and shippers of slaughter horses, owners or 
operators of slaughtering facilities, and drivers of the transport 
vehicles.
    Estimated annual number of respondents: 232.
    Estimated annual number of responses per respondent: 69.
    Estimated annual number of responses: 16,100
    Estimated total annual burden on respondents: 4,049 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 25th day of September 2023.
Michael Watson,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2023-21303 Filed 9-28-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P