[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 54 (Wednesday, March 20, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17220-17221]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-06435]
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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
[OMB Control Number 1615-0052]
Agency Information Collection Activities: Application for
Naturalization, Form N-400; Revision of a Currently Approved Collection
ACTION: 30-day notice.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. Citizenship
and Immigration Services (USCIS) will be submitting the following
information collection request to the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) for review and clearance in accordance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995. The information collection notice was previously
published in the Federal Register on December 20, 2012, at 77 FR 75440,
allowing for a 60-day public comment period. USCIS did receive multiple
comments in connection with the 60-day notice.
DATES: The purpose of this notice is to allow an additional 30 days for
public comments. Comments are encouraged and will be accepted until
April 19, 2013. This process is conducted in accordance with 5 CFR
1320.10.
ADDRESSES: Written comments and/or suggestions regarding the item(s)
contained in this notice, especially regarding the estimated public
burden and associated response time, must be directed to the OMB USCIS
Desk Officer via email at oira_submission@omb.eop.gov. The comments
submitted to the OMB USCIS Desk Officer may also be submitted to DHS
via the Federal eRulemaking Portal Web site at http://www.regulations.gov under e-Docket ID number USCIS-2008-0025 or via
email at uscisfrcomment@uscis.dhs.gov. All submissions received must
include the agency name and the OMB Control Number 1615-0052.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Comments
Regardless of the method used for submitting comments or material,
all submissions will be posted, without change, to the Federal
eRulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov, and will include any
personal information you provide. Therefore, submitting this
information makes it public. You may wish to consider limiting the
amount of personal information that you provide in any voluntary
submission you make to DHS. For additional information
[[Page 17221]]
please read the Privacy Act notice that is available via the link in
the footer of www.regulations.gov.
Note: The address listed in this notice should only be used to
submit comments concerning this information collection. Please do
not submit requests for individual case status inquiries to this
address. If you are seeking information about the status of your
individual case, please check ``My Case Status'' online at: https://egov.uscis.gov/cris/Dashboard.do, or call the USCIS National
Customer Service Center at 1-800-375-5283.
Written comments and suggestions from the public and affected
agencies should address one or more of the following four points:
(1) Evaluate 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) Evaluate 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) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to
be collected; and
(4) 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, e.g., permitting electronic
submission of responses.
USCIS continually reviews its information collection tools for
accuracy, completeness, and utility and, as a result, the agency is
proposing the addition of a number of questions to Form N-400. These
additional questions will allow USCIS to make more informed decisions
on the eligibility of respondents to the form. Form N-400 is the final
information collection activity that occurs before an eligibility
determination for naturalization is made. Even if the applicant for
naturalization has received a previous immigration benefit from USCIS,
the length of time that may have transpired between the initial
interaction that the respondent had with USCIS on another immigration
benefit request and the filing of the N-400 requires USCIS to verify
that actions taken by the respondent during the intervening years do
not affect his or her eligibility for naturalization. The form is also
updated to examine the inadmissibility grounds that were added by the
Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004. Pub. L. 108-
458 (Dec. 17, 2004). USCIS added these questions as required by the
agreement reached through a working group comprised of representatives
of affected agencies, including the Department of Justice and
Department of State, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement of
DHS. These additional questions are necessary for USCIS to meet the
statutory requirements and the President's directive to make a
determination that a person is ineligible to naturalize because of his
or her past involvement with terrorism, persecution, torture, or
genocide. See, Presidential Proclamation--Suspension of Entry as
Immigrants and Nonimmigrants of Persons Who Participate in Serious
Human Rights and Humanitarian Law Violations and Other Abuses, at
http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/08/04/presidential-proclamation-suspension-entry-immigrants-and-nonimmigrants-. Because
Form N-400 has changed significantly, the burden estimate in this
notice is not based on the experience and observations of actual public
usage. USCIS would appreciate and encourages the public's input on the
burden estimate so as to provide the most accurate estimate possible.
Overview of This Information Collection
(1) Type of Information Collection Request: Revision of a Currently
Approved Collection.
(2) Title of the Form/Collection: Application for Naturalization.
(3) Agency form number, if any, and the applicable component of the
DHS sponsoring the collection: N-400; USCIS.
(4) Affected public who will be asked or required to respond, as
well as a brief abstract: Primary: Individuals or households. USCIS
uses the information gathered on Form N-400 to make a determination as
to a respondent's eligibility to naturalize and become a United States
citizen.
(5) An estimate of the total number of respondents and the amount
of time estimated for an average respondent to respond: 764,450
respondents with an estimated response per respondent of 6 hours and 55
minutes for the form N-400 and 1 hour and 17 minutes for the biometric
processing.
(6) An estimate of the total public burden (in hours) associated
with the collection: 6,182,108 Hours. This is a change from the
estimated burden per response reported on the 60-day Federal Register
Notice published at 77 FR 75440.
If you need a copy of the information collection instrument with
supplementary documents, or need additional information, please visit
http://www.regulations.gov. We may also be contacted at: USCIS, Office
of Policy and Strategy, Regulatory Coordination Division, 20
Massachusetts Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20529-2140; Telephone 202-272-
8377.
Dated: March 15, 2013.
Laura Dawkins,
Chief, Regulatory Coordination Division, Office of Policy and Strategy,
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Department of Homeland
Security.
[FR Doc. 2013-06435 Filed 3-19-13; 8:45 am]
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