[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 240 (Friday, December 15, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 87056-87057]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-27535]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY


Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request; State Small Business Credit Initiative

AGENCY: Departmental Offices, U.S. Department of the Treasury.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department of the Treasury, as part of its continuing 
effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general 
public and other federal agencies to comment on the proposed 
information collections listed below, in accordance with the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995.

DATES: Written comments must be received on or before February 13, 
2024.

ADDRESSES: Send comments regarding the burden estimate, or any other 
aspect of the information collection, including suggestions for 
reducing the burden, by the following method:
     Federal E-rulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments. Refer to Docket Number 
TREAS-DO-2022-0009 and the specific Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) control number 1505-0227.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jeffrey Stout, State Small Business 
Credit Initiative (SSBCI), at (866) 220-9050 or 
[email protected]. Further information may be obtained 
from the SSBCI website, https://home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/small-business-programs/state-small-business-credit-initiative-ssbci, or by 
contacting [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: State Small Business Credit Initiative Information 
Collection Activities.
    OMB Control Number: 1505-0227.
    Type of Review: Revision of currently approved information 
collection activities.
    Description: This information collection captures information 
related to the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI). The 
American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) reauthorized and amended the 
Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 (SSBCI statute) to fund SSBCI as a 
response to the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.\1\ SSBCI is 
a federal program administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury 
(Treasury) that was created to strengthen the programs of states, the 
District of Columbia, territories, and Tribal Governments 
(collectively, jurisdictions) that support private financing for small 
businesses. SSBCI includes the Capital Program, through which Treasury 
provides funding to jurisdictions to expand access to capital for small 
businesses, and the Technical Assistance (TA) Program, through which 
jurisdictions provide legal, accounting, and financial advisory 
services (TA services) to very small and underserved businesses 
(eligible beneficiaries) that are applying for SSBCI Capital Program 
funding and other governmental programs that support small businesses. 
The TA Program includes the allocation formula-based TA Grant Program. 
In addition, as part of the TA Program, Treasury has published the 
SSBCI Investing in America Small Business Opportunity Program (SBOP) 
Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), which is a competitive grant 
program.\2\
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    \1\ ARPA, Public Law 117-2, sec. 3301, codified at 12 U.S.C. 
5701 et seq. SSBCI was originally established in Title III of the 
Small Business Jobs Act of 2010.
    \2\ The SSBCI Investing in America SBOP NOFO is available on 
Treasury's website at https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/136/Competitive-TA-NOFO-FINAL-Oct-25-2023.pdf.
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     SSBCI Investing in America SBOP Application. Any 
jurisdiction that has been approved as a participating jurisdiction in 
the SSBCI Capital Program can apply for the program. Jurisdictions that 
are not yet approved as participating jurisdictions in the SSBCI 
Capital Program, but that have submitted complete and timely SSBCI 
Capital Program applications (or are part of a joint Tribal government 
application), are also eligible to apply; however, to receive an SSBCI 
Investing in America SBOP award, a jurisdiction must be approved as a 
participating jurisdiction in the SSBCI Capital Program. Only certain 
applicants will be selected for funding under this competitive program 
in accordance with the SSBCI Investing in America SBOP NOFO.
    To determine whether an application should be selected for funding, 
Treasury must collect certain types of information in an application. 
This information is detailed in the publicly-posted NOFO on Treasury's 
website, and includes: designation letter from the jurisdiction's 
governing official designating the eligible applicant to take specific 
actions with respect to the program; information about the applicant's 
proposed program, including a description of the project service area 
and potential to connect eligible beneficiaries to business 
opportunities, the applicant's proposed solution and how it aligns with 
the needs of eligible beneficiaries and overcomes any limitations or 
gaps in coverage in providing TA services, a description of the 
applicant's key partners and project support, information about the 
applicant's organizational capacity and experience, and the applicant's 
performance goals and measures; details on the applicant's budget using 
the line items of Form SF-424A ``Budget Information--Non-Construction 
Programs'' and a budget narrative that details the use of funds in each 
line item, as applicable to the proposed programs; certain required 
assurances and certifications; and supporting

[[Page 87057]]

documentation to substantiate elements of an application, which may 
include letters of commitment for proposed matching funds and letters 
from other jurisdictions demonstrating a plan to coordinate on a 
regional approach, as applicable. Treasury will collect application 
information from eligible jurisdictions through an online portal.
     SSBCI Investing in America SBOP Reports. Treasury must 
collect financial and performance reports consistent with 2 CFR 200.328 
and 329 in order for Treasury to determine compliance with the SSBCI 
statute, regulations, and guidance and to evaluate program outcomes. 
The financial and performance reports must include information about 
the applicant's progress in implementing its project and details on its 
use of program funds. Treasury anticipates publishing reporting 
guidance for the SSBCI Investing in America SBOP that is anticipated to 
be generally consistent with the reporting guidance for the formula-
based TA Grant Program, which may be found on Treasury's website at 
https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/136/SSBCI-Technical-Assistance-Reporting-Guidance.pdf, with potential new or modified data elements 
specific to this program. Treasury will clearly specify all reporting 
requirements specific to the SSBCI Investing in America SBOP. All 
reports must be submitted in electronic format as specified in the 
terms and conditions of the award.
    Treasury is updating the burden estimate for OMB Control Number 
1505-0227 to account for applications and reports under the SSBCI 
Investing in America SBOP.
    Form: SSBCI Investing in America SBOP Application and reporting 
forms, through an online Treasury portal annual report forms.
    Affected Public: States, the District of Columbia, territories, and 
Tribal governments, small businesses.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: For application submission: 100; 
for reporting: 15.
    Frequency of Response: For application submission: one time; for 
grant award modifications: one time; for reporting: annually and 
semiannually.
    Estimated Total Number of Annual Responses: The current estimate 
for OMB Control Number 1505-0227 is 112,376. Treasury estimates the 
SSBCI Investing in America SBOP will increase this estimate by 6,115 to 
118,491.
    Estimated Time per Response: For the SSBCI Investing in America 
SBOP, depending on the type of collection Treasury estimates that 
responses will take 9 minutes up to 6 hours.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: The current estimate for OMB 
Control Number 1505-0227 is 24,877. Treasury estimates the SSBCI 
Investing in America SBOP will increase this estimate by 1,530 hours to 
26,407.
    Request for Comments: Comments submitted in response to this notice 
will be summarized and included in the request for OMB approval. All 
comments will become a matter of public record. Comments are invited 
on: (a) whether the collection of information is necessary for the 
proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether 
the information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the 
agency's estimate of the burden of the collection of information; (c) 
ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to 
be collected; (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of 
information on respondents, including through the use of technology; 
and (e) estimates of capital or start-up costs and costs of operation, 
maintenance, and purchase of services required to provide information.
    Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.

Jeffrey Stout,
Director, SSBCI.
[FR Doc. 2023-27535 Filed 12-14-23; 8:45 am]
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