[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 232 (Tuesday, December 3, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 72748-72749]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-28856]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Railroad Administration
[Docket No. FRA-2013-0002-N-23]
Proposed Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment
Request
AGENCY: Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), Department of
Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notice and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44
U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this notice announces that the Information
Collection Requests (ICRs) abstracted below are being forwarded to the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and comment. The ICRs
describe the nature of the information collections and their expected
burdens. The Federal Register notice with a 60-day comment period
soliciting comments on the following collections of information was
published on September 16, 2013 (78 FR 56995).
DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before January 2, 2014.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Robert Brogan, Office of Safety,
Planning and Evaluation Division, RRS-21, Federal Railroad
Administration, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE., 3rd Floor, Mail Stop 25,
Washington, DC 20590 (telephone: (202) 493-6292), or Ms. Kimberly
Toone, Office of Information Technology, RAD-20, Federal Railroad
Administration, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE., 3rd Floor, Mail Stop 35,
Washington, DC 20590 (telephone: (202) 493-6132). (These telephone
numbers are not toll-free.)
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA),
Public Law 104-13, Section 2, 109 Stat. 163 (1995) (codified as revised
at 44 U.S.C. 3501-3520), and its implementing regulations, 5 CFR Part
1320, require Federal agencies to issue two notices seeking public
comment on information collection activities before OMB may approve
paperwork packages. 44 U.S.C. 3506, 3507; 5 CFR 1320.5, 1320.8(d)(1),
1320.12. On September 16, 2013, FRA published a 60-day notice in the
Federal Register soliciting comment on these ICRs for which the agency
is seeking OMB approval. 78 FR 56995. FRA received no comments in
response to this notice pertaining to the two renewal collections of
information referenced below.
Before OMB decides whether to approve these proposed collections of
information, it must provide 30 days for public comment. 44 U.S.C.
3507(b); 5 CFR 1320.12(d). Federal law requires OMB to approve or
disapprove paperwork packages between 30 and 60 days after the 30 day
notice is published. 44 U.S.C. 3507(b)-(c); 5 CFR 1320.12(d); see also
60 FR 44978, 44983, Aug. 29, 1995. OMB believes that the 30 day notice
informs the regulated community to file relevant comments and affords
the agency adequate time to digest public comments before it renders a
decision. 60 FR 44983, Aug. 29, 1995. Therefore, respondents should
submit their respective comments to OMB within 30 days of publication
of this Notice to best ensure having their full effect. 5 CFR
1320.12(c); see also 60 FR 44983, Aug. 29, 1995.
The summary below describes the nature of the information
collection requests (ICRs) and the expected burden being submitted for
clearance by OMB as required by the PRA.
Title: Railroad Communications.
OMB Control Number: 2130-0524.
Type of Request: Extension with change of a previously approved
collection.
Affected Public: Businesses.
Abstract: The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) amended its
radio standards and procedures to promote compliance by making the
regulations more flexible; to require wireless communications devices,
including radios, for specified classifications of railroad operations
and roadway workers; and to re-title this part to reflect its coverage
of other means of wireless communications such as cellular telephones,
data radio
[[Page 72749]]
terminals, and other forms of wireless communications to convey
emergency and need-to-know information. The new rule establishes safe,
uniform procedures covering the use of radio and other wireless
communications within the railroad industry.
Form Number: N/A.
Total Annual Estimated Burden Hours: 337,717 hours.
Title: Safety Integration Plans.
Type of Request: Extension without change of a previously approved
collection.
Abstract: The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and the Surface
Transportation Board (STB), working in conjunction with each other,
have issued joint final rules establishing procedures for the
development and implementation of safety integration plans (``SIPs'' or
``plans'') by a Class I railroad proposing to engage in certain
specified merger, consolidation, or acquisition of control transactions
with another Class I railroad, or a Class II railroad with which it
proposes to amalgamate operations. The scope of the transactions
covered under the two rules is the same. FRA uses the information
collected, notably the required SIPs, to maintain and promote a safe
rail environment by ensuring that affected railroads (Class Is and some
Class IIs) address critical safety issues unique to the amalgamation of
large, complex railroad operations.
Form Number(s): N/A.
Total Annual Estimated Burden Hours: 528 hours.
Addressee: Send comments regarding this information collection to
the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management
and Budget, 725 Seventeenth Street NW., Washington, DC 20503,
Attention: FRA Desk Officer. Comments may also be sent via email to OMB
at the following address: [email protected].
Comments are invited on the following: Whether the proposed
collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of
the functions of the Department, including whether the information will
have practical utility; the accuracy of the Department's estimate of
the burden of the proposed information collection; ways to enhance the
quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and
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.
A comment to OMB is best assured of having its full effect if OMB
receives it within 30 days of publication of this notice in the Federal
Register.
Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3501-3520.
Issued in Washington, DC, on November 26, 2013.
Rebecca Pennington,
Chief Financial Officer.
[FR Doc. 2013-28856 Filed 12-2-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-06-P