[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 204 (Tuesday, October 24, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 72987-72988]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-23451]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

    The Department of Agriculture has submitted the following 
information collection requirement(s) to Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) for review and clearance under the Paperwork Reduction Act 
of 1995, Public Law 104-13. Comments are requested regarding: 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; the accuracy of the agency's estimate of burden 
including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; ways to 
enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the information to be 
collected; ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information 
on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate 
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology.
    Comments regarding this information collection received by November 
24, 2023 will be considered. Written comments and recommendations for 
the proposed information collection should be submitted within 30 days 
of the publication of this notice on the following website 
www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular information 
collection by selecting ``Currently under 30-day Review--Open for 
Public Comments'' or by using the search function.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information 
unless the collection of information displays a currently valid OMB 
control number and the agency informs potential persons who are to 
respond to the collection of information that such persons are not 
required to respond to the collection of information unless it displays 
a currently valid OMB control number.

Rural Utilities Service

    Title: Empowering Rural America Program.
    OMB Control Number: 0572-0158.
    Summary of Collection: The Empowering Rural America (New ERA) 
Program provides financial assistance to Eligible Entities, as 
described in Section C, to achieve the greatest reductions in GHG 
emissions through the cooperatives' voluntary transformation of rural 
electric systems in a way that promotes resiliency and reliability of 
rural electric systems and affordability for their members.
    With the Inflation Reduction Act, the Biden-Harris Administration 
and the United States Congress are making the greatest investment in 
rural electrification since the New Deal. The Biden-Harris 
Administration understands the transformative nature

[[Page 72988]]

and special qualities provided by this appropriation. Energy produced 
will be clean, affordable, reliable, and owned by the people who live 
in rural America. As a result, this legislation and the funding 
opportunity here allows for a New ERA in rural communities.
    Need and Use of the Information: Eligible applicants under the New 
ERA Program are electric cooperatives as described in section 
501(c)(12) or 1381(a)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and is or 
has been a RUS (formerly the Rural Electrification Administration) 
electric loan borrower pursuant to the RE Act or is serving a 
predominantly rural area (or a wholly or jointly owned subsidiary of 
such electric cooperative). There are well over 900 rural electric 
cooperatives eligible for this program.
    The application process for the New ERA Program will be conducted 
in two phases. Phase one will be a Letter of Interest (LOI) with 
sufficient information to determine a pool of prospective applicants 
which advance the goals of the statute, achieve policy objectives, meet 
minimum requirements, and are within the budget of the program. Those 
LOIs that meet the criteria will be issued an Invitation to Proceed to 
submit a full, complete New ERA application (phase two).
    Applicants wishing to apply for the New ERA Program with an LOI and 
if successful, a complete application must submit requested data, 
proposals, certifications and agreements to the Agency thru an online 
application window. The information collected will be used to: 
determine applicant and project eligibility, assess the projects' 
technical and financial merit and evaluate the metrics that reflect 
achieving the greatest reductions in greenhouse gas emissions in order 
to rank the applications and determine which ones to offer an award. 
Lack of adequate information to make the determinations could result in 
the improper administration and appropriation of Federal funds.
    Description of Respondents: State, Local, and Tribal Governments.
    Number of Respondents: 250.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: On occasion; Annually.
    Total Burden Hours: 185,514.

Rural Utilities Service

    Title: Powering Affordable Clean Energy Program.
    OMB Control Number: 0572-0159.
    Summary of Collection: On August 16, 2022, Congress passed the 
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022 (Pub. L. 117-169). Subtitle C, 
Section 22001 of IRA amended Section 9003 of the Farm Security and 
Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8103) by adding new subsection 
(h). Through the passing of IRA, the Powering Affordable Clean Energy 
(PACE) Program was established with the goal of supporting clean, 
affordable energy growth across America.
    The PACE Program will be administered by the Rural Utilities 
Service (RUS), a Rural Development (RD) Agency of the United States 
Department of Agriculture (USDA), that provides mortgage loans and loan 
guarantees to electric systems to provide and improve electric service 
in rural areas pursuant to the Rural Electrification Act of 1936, as 
amended (7 U.S.C. 901 et seq., RE Act). Section 22001 of IRA provided 
the Agency with $1,000,000,000 in Budget Authority (BA), to remain 
available until September 30, 2031. With this BA, the Agency through 
the PACE Program, will provide loans to eligible entities, with varying 
levels of loan forgiveness, for Projects that generate and/or store 
electricity from Renewable Energy Resource (RER) systems.
    Need and Use of the Information: The Application process for the 
PACE Program will be conducted in two phases. Phase one will be a 
Letter of Interest (LOI) with sufficient information to determine a 
pool of prospective applicants which advance the goals of the statute, 
achieve policy objectives, meet minimum requirements, and are within 
the budget of the program. Those LOIs that meet the criteria will be 
issued an Invitation to Proceed to submit a full, complete Application 
(phase two).
    Applicants wishing to apply for the PACE Program with a LOI and if 
successful, a completed Application must submit requested data, 
proposals, certifications, and agreements to the Agency thru an online 
application window. The information collected will be used to determine 
a borrower's ability to meet financial obligations, includes analyses 
and document review by RUS regarding the applicant's historical, 
current, and projected costs, revenues, cash flows, assets, and other 
factors that may be relevant on a case-by-case basis. RUS recognizes 
that Projects outlined by applicants may vary in size, financial 
complexity, and administration; so, the respondent's burden may vary as 
well. The RUS Administrator maintains discretion to forego requirements 
for parts of the following information as required by the conditions 
among applicants.
    Description of Respondents: State, Local, and Tribal Governments.
    Number of Respondents: 250.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: On occasion; Annually.
    Total Burden Hours: 23,333.

Levi S. Harrell,
Departmental Information Collection Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2023-23451 Filed 10-23-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-15-P