[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 99 (Monday, May 23, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29788-29790]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-12578]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Reclamation
Agency Information Collection; Activities Under OMB Review;
Comment Request
AGENCY: Bureau of Reclamation, Interior.
[[Page 29789]]
ACTION: Notice of renewal of a currently approved collection (OMB No.
1006-0023).
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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Reclamation (we, our, or us) has forwarded the
following Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval: Forms to Determine
Compliance by Certain Landholders. The ICR describes the nature of the
information collection and its expected cost and burden.
DATES: OMB has up to 60 days to approve or disapprove this information
collection, but may respond after 30 days; therefore, public comments
must be received on or before June 22, 2011 to assure maximum
consideration.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments regarding the burden estimate, or any
other aspect of the information collection, including suggestions for
reducing the burden, to the Desk Officer for the Department of the
Interior at the Office of Management and Budget, Office of Information
and Regulatory Affairs, via facsimile to (202) 395-5806, or e-mail to
[email protected]. A copy of your comments should also be
directed to the Bureau of Reclamation, Attention: 84-53000, P.O. Box
25007, Denver, CO 80225-0007.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stephanie McPhee at (303) 445-2897.
The entire Information Collection Request may be found at http://www.reginfo.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: Forms to Determine Compliance by Certain Landholders, 43 CFR
part 426.
Abstract: Identification of limited recipients--Some entities that
receive Reclamation irrigation water may believe that they are under
the Reclamation Reform Act of 1982 (RRA) forms submittal threshold and,
consequently, may not submit the appropriate RRA form(s). However, some
of these entities may in fact have a different RRA forms submittal
threshold due to the number of natural persons benefiting from each
entity and the location of the land held by each entity. In addition,
some entities that are exempt from the requirement to submit RRA forms
due to the size of their landholdings (directly and indirectly owned
and leased land) may in fact be receiving Reclamation irrigation water
for which the full-cost rate must be paid because the start of
Reclamation irrigation water deliveries occurred after October 1, 1981
[43 CFR 426.6(b)(2)]. The information obtained through completion of
the Limited Recipient Identification Sheet (Form 7-2536) allows us to
establish entities' compliance with Federal reclamation law. The
Limited Recipient Identification Sheet is disbursed at our discretion.
Trust review--In order to administer section 214 of the RRA and 43
CFR 426.7, we are required to review all trusts. Land held in trust
generally will be attributed to the beneficiaries of the trust rather
than the trustee if the criteria specified in the RRA and 43 CFR 426.7
are met. When we become aware of trusts with a relatively small
landholding (40 acres or less), we may extend to those trusts the
option to complete and submit for our review the Trust Information
Sheet (Form 7-2537) instead of actual trust documents. If we find
nothing on the completed Trust Information Sheet that would warrant the
further investigation of a particular trust, that trustee will not be
burdened with submitting trust documents to us for in-depth review. The
Trust Information Sheet is disbursed at our discretion.
Acreage limitation provisions applicable to public entities--Land
farmed by a public entity can be considered exempt from the application
of the acreage limitation provisions provided the public entity meets
certain criteria pertaining to the revenue generated through the
entity's farming activities (43 CFR 426.10 and the Act of July 7, 1970,
Pub. L. 91-310). We are required to ascertain whether or not public
entities that receive Reclamation irrigation water meet such revenue
criteria regardless of how much land the public entities hold (directly
or indirectly own or lease) [43 CFR 426.10(a)]. To minimize the burden
on public entities, standard RRA forms are submitted only when the
public entity holds more than 40 acres subject to the acreage
limitation provisions westwide, which makes it difficult to apply the
revenue criteria as required to those public entities that hold less
than 40 acres. When we become aware of such public entities, we request
them to complete and submit the Public Entity Information Sheet (Form
7-2565). This form allows us to establish compliance with Federal
reclamation law for those public entities that hold 40 acres or less
and, thus, do not submit a standard RRA form because they are below the
RRA forms submittal threshold. In addition, for those public entities
that do not meet the exemption criteria, we must determine the proper
rate to charge for Reclamation irrigation water deliveries. The Public
Entity Information Sheet is disbursed at our discretion.
Acreage limitation provisions applicable to religious or charitable
organizations--Some religious or charitable organizations that receive
Reclamation irrigation water may believe that they are under the RRA
forms submittal threshold and, consequently, may not submit the
appropriate RRA form(s). However, some of these organizations may in
fact have a different RRA forms submittal threshold depending on
whether these organizations meet all of the required criteria for full
special application of the acreage limitation provisions to religious
or charitable organizations [43 CFR 426.9(b)]. In addition, some
organizations that (1) Do not meet the criteria to be treated as a
religious or charitable organization under the acreage limitation
provisions, and (2) are exempt from the requirement to submit RRA forms
due to the size of their landholdings (directly and indirectly owned
and leased land), may in fact be receiving Reclamation irrigation water
for which the full-cost rate must be paid because the start of
Reclamation irrigation water deliveries occurred after October 1, 1981
[43 CFR 426.6(b)(2)]. The Religious or Charitable Organization
Identification Sheet (Form 7-2578) allows us to establish certain
religious or charitable organizations' compliance with Federal
reclamation law. The Religious or Charitable Organization
Identification Sheet is disbursed at our discretion.
There are no proposed revisions to the Limited Recipient
Identification Sheet, the Trust Information Sheet, or the Religious or
Charitable Organization Sheet. A single change was made to the Public
Entity Identification Sheet prior to the 60-day comment period
initiated by the notice published in the Federal Register (75 FR 59738,
Sept. 28, 2010). This change is designed to further delineate the
identification of certain excess land as required by 43 CFR 426.12(g).
The proposed revision to the Public Entity Identification Sheet will be
included starting in the 2012 water year. No public comments were
received in response to that notice.
Frequency: Generally, these forms will be submitted only once per
identified entity, trust, public entity, or religious or charitable
organization. Each year, we expect new responses in accordance with the
following numbers.
Respondents: Entity landholders, trusts, public entities, and
religious or charitable organizations identified by Reclamation that
are subject to the acreage limitation provisions of Federal reclamation
law.
Estimated Total Number of Respondents: 500.
[[Page 29790]]
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.0.
Estimated Total Number of Annual Responses: 500.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 72 hours.
Estimate of Burden for Each Form
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Burden
Estimated Frequency of Total annual Estimate per Total burden
Form name number of response responses form (in hours
respondents minutes)
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Limited Recipient Identification 175 1.00 175 5 15
Sheet..........................
Trust Information Sheet......... 150 1.00 150 5 13
Public Entity Information Sheet. 100 1.00 100 15 25
Religious or Charitable 75 1.00 75 15 19
Identification Sheet...........
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Total....................... 500 1.00 500 .............. 72
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Comments
Comments are invited on:
(a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for
the proper performance of our functions, including whether the
information will have practical use;
(b) accuracy of our burden estimate for the proposed collection of
information;
(c) ways to enhance the quality, usefulness, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
(d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on
respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or
other forms of information technology.
An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required
to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a
currently valid OMB control number. Reclamation will display a valid
OMB control number on the RRA forms.
Before including your address, telephone number, e-mail address, or
other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be
aware that your entire comment--including your personal identifying
information--may be made publicly available at any time. While you can
ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying
information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be
able to do so.
Roseann Gonzales,
Director, Policy and Administration, Denver Office.
[FR Doc. 2011-12578 Filed 5-20-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-MN-P