[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 203 (Wednesday, October 21, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56140-56142]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-28165]
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Notices
Federal Register
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This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules
or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings
and investigations, committee meetings, agency decisions and rulings,
delegations of authority, filing of petitions and applications and agency
statements of organization and functions are examples of documents
appearing in this section.
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Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 203 / Wednesday, October 21, 1998 /
Notices
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request
October 15, 1998.
The Department of Agriculture has submitted the following
information collection requirement(s) to OMB for review and clearance
under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Pub. L. 104-13. Comments
regarding (a) 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; (b) the accuracy
of the agency's estimate of burden including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used; (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 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 should be addressed to: Desk
Officer for Agriculture, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs,
Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Washington, DC 20503 and to
Departmental Clearance Office, USDA, OCIO, Mail Stop 7602, Washington,
DC 20250-7602. Comments regarding these information collections are
best assured of having their full effect if received within 30 days of
this notification. Copies of the submission(s) may be obtained by
calling (202) 720-6746.
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.
Food and Nutrition Service
Title: FCS-135 Affidavit of Return or Exchange of Food Coupons.
OMB Control Number: 0584-0052.
Summary of Collection: Section 11(a) of the Food Stamp Act (the
Act) requires that the State agencies assume responsibility for the
certification of applicant households and for the issuance of coupons
and the control and accountability thereof. Records shall be kept to
ascertain whether the program is being conducted in compliance with the
provisions of this Act and the regulations issued pursuant to this Act.
Such records shall be available for inspection and audit at any
reasonable time and shall be preserved for not less than 3 years.
Section 13 (a) and (b) of the Act authorized the Secretary to collect
any overissuance of coupons issued to a household by establishing
claims. The State agency shall collect for over-issuances by any
reasonable means including the return of food stamp coupons by
households to repay the overissuance. The Food and Nutrition Service
(FNS) will collect information using form FNS-135, Affidavit of Return
or Exchange of Food Coupons.
Need and Use of the Information: FNS will collect information on
coupons returned or exchanged and provides verification of who returned
the coupons and who received them. Participants return loose coupons
that have been lost, upon death of a participant, when a participant
departs from a rehabilitation center, upon payment of claim, mutilated
coupons that have been received, or to exchange old-series coupons or
improperly manufactured coupons.
Description of Respondents: Individuals or households; State,
Local, or Tribal Government.
Number of Respondents: 8,988.
Frequency of Responses: Recordkeeping; Reporting; On occasion.
Total burden Hours: 17,859.
Farm Service Agency
Title: 7 CFR 1464 Subpart B, Importer Assessments.
OMB Control Number: 0560-0148.
Summary of Collection: The payment of assessments on imported
tobacco is required by statute (7 U.S.C. 1445, 1445-1, and 1445-2). The
information collected by the Farm Service Agency (FSA) is necessary to
ensure that the proper amount has been paid for the applicable kind of
tobacco and that payments are made timely. The collected information is
recorded in a data base so that FSA can monitor and verify collected
amounts compared with amounts due and verify that payments are made
timely.
Need and Use of the Information: FSA will collect information on
the importers' name, import date, port of entry, and quantity imported
to calculate the marketing assessment amount and the import assessment
fee. The information collected is used by FSA, Tobacco and Peanuts
Division to ensure that the marketing assessment fees and the importers
no net cost assessment fees are timely and accurately remitted by
importers and unmanufactured tobacco that enters into the commerce of
the United States.
Description of Respondents: Farms; business or other for-profit.
Number of Respondents: 40.
Frequency of Responses: Reporting: Other (Assessment).
Total Burden Hours: 540.
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
Title: Users Fee Regulations, 7 CFR 354 and 9 CFR 130.
OMB Control Number: 0579-0094.
Summary of Collection: The Food, Agriculture, Conservation and
Trade Act of 1990, authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture and the
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) to prescribe and
collect fees to cover the cost of providing certain Agricultural
Quarantine and Inspection (AQI) services. The Act gives the Secretary
the authority to charge for the inspection of international passengers,
commercial vessels, trucks, aircraft, and railroad cars, and to recover
the costs of providing the inspection of plants and plant products
offered for export. The Secretary is authorized to use the revenue to
provide reimbursements to any appropriation accounts that incur costs
associated with the AQI services provided. APHIS collects information
using forms VS 16-3, Application for Permits to Import Controlled
Material and/or Import or Transport Organisms or Vectors, and VS 16-7,
Additional Information for Cell Cultures and Their Products.
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Need and Use of the Information: APHIS collects information which
includes the taxpayer identification number, name, address and
telephone number to collects fees. The procedures and the information
requested for the passengers and aircrafts are used to ensure that the
correct users fees are collected and remitted in full in a timely
manner. Without the information from the respondents, APHIS would not
be able to ensure substantial compliance with the statute.
Noncompliance with the statute could result in misappropriation of
public funds and lost revenue to the Federal Government.
Description of Respondents: Business or other for-profit;
Individuals or households; Federal Government; State, Local or Tribal
Government.
Number of Respondents: 17,761.
Frequency of Responses: Recordkeeping; Reporting: On occasion.
Total Burden Hours: 7,663.
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
Title: Endangered Species Regulations and Forfeiture Procedures.
OMB Control Number: 0579-0076.
Summary of Collection: The Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16
U.S.C. 1513 et seq.) Directs Federal departments to utilize their
authorities under the Act to conserve endangered and threatened
species. Section 3 of the Act specifies that the Secretary of
Agriculture is authorized to promulgate such regulations as may be
appropriate to enforce the Act. The regulations contained in 7 CFR 355
are intended to carry out the provisions of the Act. The Plant
Protection & Quarantine (PRQ) division of USDA's Animal & Plant Health
Inspection Service (APHIS) is responsible for implementing these
regulations. Specifically, Section 9(d) of the Act authorizes 7 CFR
355.11, which requires a general permit to engage in the business of
importing or exporting terrestrial plants listed in 50 CFR Parts 17 and
23. APHIS will collect information using APHIS PPQ 621 application
form.
Need and Use of the Information: APHIS will collect information on
the applicant's name and address, whether the applicant is affiliated
with a business, and the address of all the applicant's business
locations in order for the applicant to obtain a general permit. Upon
approval of the permit, any endangered species shipped via mail must be
sent to an authorized port of entry and must be accompanied by
appropriate supporting documentation.
Description of Respondents: Business or other for-profit.
Number of Respondents: 1,400.
Frequency of Responses: Recodkeeping; Reporting: On occasion.
Total Burden Hours: 3,186.
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
Title: Federal Plant Pest and Noxious Weeds Regulations, 7 CFR 330
& 360, 9 CFR 94.5.
OMB Control Numbers: 0579-0054.
Summary of Collection: The United States Department of Agriculture
is responsible for preventing plant pests and noxious weeds from
entering the United States, preventing the spread of pests and weeds
not widely distributed in the United States, and eradicating those
imported pests and weeds when eradication is feasible. Section 150bb of
the Federal Plant Pest Act (7 USC 150aa-150jj) and Section 4(a) of the
Federal Noxious Weed Act (7 U.S.C. 2801-2813) provide that no plant
pest or noxious weed can be moved from a foreign country into or
through the United States, or interstate, unless the movement is
authorized under a permit issued by the Secretary of Agriculture and
the movement is carried out in accordance with the conditions the
Secretary may prescribe to prevent the dissemination of plant pests or
noxious weeds into the United States. The Plant Protection and
Quartantine Program (PPQ) of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service (APHIS), is responsible for implementing these regulations.
APHIS will collect information using several forms.
Need and Use of the Information: APHIS will collect information to
determine whether certain articles destined for importation into the
United States, or interstate movement within the United States, pose a
threat of introducing or spreading plant pests or noxious weeds that
could cause significant harm to American agriculture. All the data
collected enables APHIS to evaluate the risks associated with the
proposed importation or interstate movement of regulated articles, and
also enables it to develop risk-mitigating conditions, if necessary,
for the proposed importation or movement.
Description of Respondents: Business or other for-profit;
Individual or households; Federal Government; State, Local or Tribal
Government.
Number of Respondents: 39,912.
Frequency of Responses: Reporting: On occasion.
Total Burden Hours: 37,633.
Rural Business-Cooperative Service
Title: Annual Survey of Cooperative Involvement in International
Markets.
OMB Control Number: 0570-0020.
Summary of Collection: The Cooperative Marketing Act of 1926, 7
U.S.C. 453(b)(5), authorizes Rural Business-Cooperative Services (RBS)
``to acquire from all available sources, information concerning crop
prospects, supply, demand, current receipts, exports, imports, and
prices of agricultural products handled or marketed by cooperative
associations, and to employ qualified commodity marketing specialists
to summarize and analyze this information and disseminate the same
among cooperative associations, and others.'' The mission of the
Cooperative Services Program of RBS is to assist farmer-owned
cooperatives in improving the economic well-being of their farmer-
members. To facilitate the program's mission and activities as
authorized by the Cooperative Marketing Act of 1926, RBS collects,
maintains, and analyzes data pertaining to farmer cooperatives.
Information is collected through an annual survey mailed to all
cooperatives.
Need and Use of the Information: The information collected by RBS
will be used to comply with the agency's mission to acquire and report
such information. In addition to monitoring and reporting the progress
of cooperatives in global markets, RBS will use the data in economic/
market research and will also produce educational materials about
cooperatives.
Description of Respondents: Business or other for-profit.
Number of Respondents: 170.
Frequency of Responses: Reporting: Annually.
Total Burden Hours: 170.
Rural Business-Cooperative Service
Title: Research on Rural Cooperative Opportunities and Problems.
OMB Control Number: 0570-0028.
Summary of Collection: The Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBS)
was established by Public Law 103-350, the Department of Agriculture
Reorganization Act of 1994. The mission of RBS is to improve the
quality of life in rural America by financing community facilities and
businesses, providing technical assistance and creating effective
strategies for rural development. The primary objective of this funding
is to encourage research through cooperative agreements on critical
issues vital to the development and sustainability of cooperatives as a
means of improving the quality of life in America's rural communities.
RBS will collect information through research proposals prepared by
applicants, who may be public or private colleges or
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universities, research foundations maintained by a college or
university, or private nonprofit organizations.
Need and Use of the Information: RBS will collect project proposal
information from applicants to determine (1) eligibility; (2) the
specific purpose for which the funds will be utilized; (3) time frames
or dates by which activities surrounding the use of funds will be
accomplished; (4) feasibility of the project; (5) applicants'
experience in managing similar activities; and (6) the effectiveness
and innovation used to address critical issues vital to the development
and sustainability of cooperatives as a means of improving the quality
of life in America's rural communities. Without the collection of this
information, there would be no basis on which to award funds or monitor
project progress.
Description of Respondents: Not-for-profit institutions.
Number of Respondents: 50.
Frequency of Responses: Recordkeeping; Reporting: On occasion;
Quarterly.
Total Burden Hours: 1,415.
Food and Nutrition Service
Title: FNS 292--Report of Coupon Issuance and Commodity
Distribution for Disaster Relief.
OMB Control Number: 0584-0037.
Summary of Collection: The Emergency Food Stamp Assistance Program
is authorized by the Disaster Relief Act of 1970; the Food Stamp Act,
as amended; and Part 274 of the Food Stamp Program regulations. This
program is initiated in a food stamp project area by the Food and
Nutrition Service (FNS) when all or part of the area has been affected
by a disaster. Sections 274.7 and 274.14 of the Food Stamp Program
regulations contain requirements that State agencies keep records and
submit reports on food stamps issued under disaster procedures ``as may
from time to time be required by FNS''. Food distribution in disaster
situations is authorized under Section 32 of the Act of August 24,
1935. Surplus foods are made available by State distributing agencies
for relief purposes to victims of natural disasters such as hurricanes,
floods, tornadoes, etc. Distribution to these recipients is made
primarily through such organizations as the American Red Cross of the
Salvation Army. These organizations use surplus foods for both central
feeding operations and for distribution to families in homes cut off
from normal sources of food supply. Form FNS-292 will be used by State
welfare departments to report to FNS the number of households and
persons who were certified for Emergency Food Stamp Assistance, and
also to report the value of coupons issued to those households.
Need and Use of the Information: FNS will collect information
through the use of form FNS-292, which is used by the FNS
Administrator, the Food Distribution Division, and the three Food Stamp
Program divisions to monitor program activity, assess coverage provided
to needy recipients, and to prepare budget requests. If the information
were not collected, FNS would be unable to monitor the issuance of food
stamp coupons and the distribution of surplus foods during disaster
situations.
Description of Respondents: State, Local or Tribal Government.
Number of Respondents: 55.
Frequency of Responses: Recordkeeping; Reporting: On occasion.
Total Burden Hours: 97.
Nancy Sternberg,
Departmental Information Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 98-28165 Filed 10-20-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-01-M