[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 130 (Friday, July 6, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 39988-39990]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-16564]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Risk Management Agency
[Docket No. FCIC-12-0007]
Notice of Request for Approval of a New Information Collection
AGENCY: Risk Management Agency, USDA.
ACTION: Notice and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44
U.S.C. Chapter 35), this notice announces the intention of the Risk
Management Agency (RMA) to request approval for a new information
collection for Federal Crop Insurance Program Delivery Cost Survey and
Interview.
DATES: Comments on this notice must be received by September 4, 2012 to
be assured of consideration.
ADDRESSES: FCIC prefers that comments be submitted electronically
through the Federal eRulemaking Portal. You may submit comments,
identified by Docket ID No. FCIC-12-0007, by any of the following
methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
Mail: Stan Harkey, Product Analysis & Accounting Division,
U.S. Department of Agriculture Risk Management Agency, Beacon Facility-
Mail Stop 0811, P.O. Box 419205, Kansas City, MO 64141-6205, (816) 926-
3799.
All comments received, including those received by mail, will be
posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov, including any
personal information provided, and can be accessed by the public. All
comments must include the agency name and
[[Page 39989]]
docket number or Regulatory Information Number (RIN) for this rule. For
detailed instructions on submitting comments and additional
information, see http://www.regulations.gov. If you are submitting
comments electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal and want
to attach a document, we ask that it be in a text-based format. If you
want to attach a document that is a scanned Adobe PDF file, it must be
scanned as text and not as an image, thus allowing FCIC to search and
copy certain portions of your submissions. For questions regarding
attaching a document that is a scanned Adobe PDF file, please contact
the RMA Web Content Team at (816) 823-4694 or by email at
[email protected].
Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search the electronic form of all
comments received for any dockets by the name of the individual
submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf
of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review the
complete User Notice and Privacy Notice for Regulations.gov at http://www.regulations.gov/#!privacyNotice.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stan Harkey, Product Analysis &
Accounting Division, U.S. Department of Agriculture Risk Management
Agency, Beacon Facility-Mail Stop 0811, P.O. Box 419205, Kansas City,
MO 64141-6205, (816) 926-3799.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: Federal Crop Insurance Program Delivery Cost Survey and
Interview.
OMB Number: 0563--NEW.
Expiration Date of Approval: Three years from approval date.
Type of Request: New information collection.
Abstract: The Risk Management Agency (RMA), through the Federal
Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC), provides crop insurance to American
agricultural producers through cooperative financial assistance
agreements with private-sector insurance companies (known as Approved
Insurance Providers, or AIPs) who sell and service the policies. The
insurance companies who sell and service FCIC policies are reimbursed
for their administrative and operating (A&O) expenses directly by RMA
on behalf of the policyholders. The amount of the A&O expense
reimbursement paid to these companies has been an issue of legislative
interest by Congress, an audit target for program oversight bodies, and
a primary focus of recent negotiations between the companies and RMA.
Congress directed the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to conduct
a review of crop insurance delivery costs, and in April 2009, GAO
released Report GAO-09-445, ``Crop Insurance: Opportunities Exist to
Reduce the Costs of Administering the Program.'' Among GAO's
recommendations was that RMA conduct a ``study of the costs associated
with selling and servicing crop insurance policies to establish a
standard method for assessing agencies' reasonable costs in selling and
servicing policies.'' RMA agreed with this recommendation and is
therefore conducting a study to determine the reasonable and necessary
economic costs of selling and servicing Federal crop insurance
policies. The information collection efforts (i.e., interviews and
surveys) that are being announced herein will be an important part of
the study. Specifically, RMA plans to conduct interviews with AIPs,
insurance agents and insured farmers, and surveys to both insurance
agents and insured farmers.
Interviews
The purpose of the interviews with AIPs and insurance agents is to
understand the activities performed and types of costs incurred by the
AIPs and insurance agents to deliver Federal crop insurance. The
purpose of the interviews with insured farmers is to gain a good
understanding of the interactions between the insurance agents and
insured farmers and the level of agent services required by farmers to
make an informed insurance choice. Information obtained from the
interviews with different stakeholders (AIPs, insurance agents and
insured farmers) will help RMA understand the expenses AIPs incur in
delivering the Federal crop insurance and such information will be used
to help design the survey instruments and determine the type of data
that needs to be collected from the insurance agents and insured
farmers.
Surveys
The purpose of the survey of the insurance agents is to collect
relevant cost data incurred by the insurance agents in selling and
servicing the Federal crop insurance policies. In order to determine
the cost incurred by the insurance agents, information on the time
insurance agents spend on each task required for selling and servicing
the Federal crop insurance (including the insurance agents' out of
pocket expenses for support staff and travel) will be gathered from the
survey. General background information on the surveyed insurance
agents, e.g. geographical region, types of crop insurance sold, and
number of crop insurance policies sold, will also be collected. A
parallel survey of the insured farmers to whom the sampled insurance
agents sell crop insurance will be conducted to determine the level of
service (e.g. number of insurance agent visits, educational services,
and other services) that is necessary for the farmers to make an
informed decision.
Interviews With AIPs
Estimate of Burden: Public reporting burden for this collection of
information is estimated to average 2 hours per response.
Type of Respondents: AIPs.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 15.
Estimated Number of Responses: 15.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 31 hours.
Interviews With Insurance Agents
Estimate of Burden: Public reporting burden for this collection of
information is estimated to average 1.5 hours per response.
Type of Respondents: Insurance agents.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 60.
Estimated Number of Responses: 15.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 0.25.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 26 hours.
Interviews With Insured Farmers
Estimate of Burden: Public reporting burden for this collection of
information is estimated to average 1.5 hours per response.
Type of Respondents: Insured farmers.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 60.
Estimated Number of Responses: 15.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 0.25.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 26 hours.
Survey of Insurance Agents
Estimate of Burden: Public reporting burden for this collection of
information is estimated to average 0.5 hour per response.
Type of Respondents: Insurance agents.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 2,627.
Estimated Number of Responses: 788.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 0.3.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 600 hours.
Survey of Insured Farmers
Estimate of Burden: Public reporting burden for this collection of
information
[[Page 39990]]
is estimated to average 0.5 hour per response.
Type of Respondents: Insured farmers.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 525.
Estimated Number of Responses: 158.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 0.3.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 120 hours.
Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the proposed collection of
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of
the agency, including whether the information will have practical
utility; (2) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the
proposed collection of information including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality,
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways
to minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who
are to respond, including the use of appropriate automated, electronic,
mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms
of information technology. Comments may be sent to Stan Harkey, Product
Analysis & Accounting Division, U.S. Department of Agriculture Risk
Management Agency, Beacon Facility-Mail Stop 0811, P.O. Box 419205,
Kansas City, MO 64141-6205. All comments received will be available for
public inspection during regular business hours at the same address.
All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the
request for OMB approval. All comments will become a matter of public
record.
Signed in Washington, DC, on June 27, 2012.
William J. Murphy,
Manager, Federal Crop Insurance Corporation.
[FR Doc. 2012-16564 Filed 7-5-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-08-P