[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 197 (Friday, October 10, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 61342-61344]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-24234]
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NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD
Plan for Generic Information Collection Activity: Submission for
OMB Review; Comment Request
AGENCY: National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The NTSB is announcing it is submitting a plan for an
Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) for approval, in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction
Act.
This ICR Plan describes various evaluation forms the NTSB plans to
use to obtain feedback from attendees of various NTSB training
programs. Feedback from attendees is important to the NTSB in ensuring
the NTSB's training courses and programs are helpful to attendees in
their places of employment; and useful to attendees who participate in
NTSB investigations and other related agency matters. This ICR Plan is
the second notice, as required by OMB regulations concerning approvals
of information collections. This notice again describes the nature of
the information collection and its expected burden and advises the
public it may submit comments on this proposed information collection
to the OMB desk officer for the NTSB.
DATES: Submit written comments regarding this proposed plan for the
collection of information by November 10, 2014.
ADDRESSES: Interested members of the public may submit written comments
on the collection of information to the OMB Desk Officer for the NTSB
at Office of Management and Budget, 725 17th Street NW., Washington, DC
20503, or via fax: 202-395-5806, (this is not a toll-free number), or
email: [email protected]. Commenters are encouraged, but not
required, to send a courtesy copy of any comments to the National
Transportation Safety Board Training Center, 45065 Riverside Parkway,
Ashburn, Virginia 20147.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: James Pritchert, NTSB Training
Officer, at (571) 223-3927.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with OMB regulations that
require this Notice for proposed ICRs, as well as OMB guidance
concerning generic approval of plans for information collections, the
NTSB herein notifies the public that it may submit comments on this
proposed ICR Plan to the OMB Desk Officer for the NTSB. 5 CFR
1320.10(a). Section 1320.10(a) requires this ``notice shall direct
comments to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs of OMB,
Attention: Desk Officer for [NTSB].'' Pursuant to Sec. 1320.10(a), the
NTSB will provide a copy of this notice to OMB.
On March 13, 2014, the NTSB published a Notice requesting comments
for this ICR. 79 FR 14302-02. The NTSB did not receive any comments in
response to the request.
A. NTSB Training Center Evaluation Forms Are Appropriate for Generic
Approval
On May 28, 2010, Administrator, Office of Information and
Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), OMB, issued a memorandum to the Heads of
Executive Departments and Agencies, and Independent Regulatory
Agencies, providing instructions concerning how agencies can obtain
generic OMB clearances for information collections in certain
circumstances. Paperwork Reduction Act--Generic Clearances, available
at http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/assets/inforeg/PRA_Gen_ICRs_5-28-2010.pdf. The memorandum states as follows concerning
the appropriateness of obtaining such clearances:
A generic ICR is a request for OMB approval of a plan for
conducting more than one information collection using very similar
methods when (1) the need for and the overall practical utility of
the data collection can be evaluated in advance, as part of the
review of the proposed plan, but (2) the agency cannot determine the
details of the specific individual collections until a later time.
The NTSB's desire to obtain information immediately following a
training course will assist the NTSB Training Center in developing
courses to achieve the NTSB's objective of improving investigators' and
transportation industry peers' practices of accident investigation. The
mission of the NTSB Training Center, in accordance with 49 U.S.C.
1113(b)(1)(I), is to promote safe transport by:
Ensuring and improving the quality of accident
investigation through critical thought, instruction, and research;
Communicating lessons learned, fostering the exchange of
new ideas and new experience, and advocating operational excellence;
Providing a modern platform for accident reconstruction
and evaluation; and
Utilizing its high-quality training resources to
facilitate family assistance and first responder programs, sister
agency instruction, and other compatible federal activity.
In administering training courses designed to achieve these
objectives, the NTSB seeks to maintain a standard of excellence. The
NTSB's goal of providing materials, instructors, methods of
instruction, and facility arrangements that are a worthy expenditure of
Federal funds will
[[Page 61343]]
require the NTSB to obtain feedback on the training courses from
attendees.
This type of information collection is appropriate for generic
approval under the OIRA Administrator's guidance. The NTSB periodically
changes the identification numbers and subject matter addressed in NTSB
training courses. Such variance renders generic approval appropriate.
By distributing evaluation forms, the NTSB will gather feedback
concerning whether attendees found the instructor knowledgeable and
helpful; whether the course materials were appropriate; the location
and course facilities; the ``case studies'' discussed in the course;
and other similar topics. Each course evaluation form will include some
course-specific questions. Responses to such evaluations will assist
the NTSB in ensuring its courses work to fulfill the goals listed
above.
Currently, the NTSB offers the following training courses, about
which the NTSB seeks approval for evaluation forms: Accident
Investigation Orientation (RPH301); Aircraft Accident Investigation
(AS101); Aircraft Accident Investigation for Aviation Professionals (AS
301); Cognitive Interviewing Series (IM401S); Family Assistance
(TDA301); Investigating Human Fatigue Factors (IM303); Managing
Communications During an Aircraft Accident or Incident (PA302);
Managing Communications Following a Major Transportation Accident
(PA303); Managing Transportation Mass Fatality Incidents (TDA406);
Marine Accident Investigation (MS101); Mass Fatality Incidents for
Medicolegal Professionals (TDA403); Rotorcraft Accident Investigation
(AS102); and Survival Factors in Aviation Accidents (AS302). In
response to attendee feedback, requests for training in specific areas,
and other considerations, the NTSB will likely add or remove classes
from this list in the coming years.
The NTSB will tailor each evaluation form to ensure it requests
feedback specific to the particular course of which the NTSB seeks
evaluation. Consistent with the OIRA Administrator's guidance
concerning generic approvals, the NTSB will not be able to finalize
draft evaluations specific to each course until the NTSB offers the
course. These types of questions are unique to the specific course, and
impossible to know prior to the offering of the course. Overall, the
types of information the NTSB will solicit in its Training Center
course evaluations is appropriate for a generic approval for the
information collection.
B. Supporting Statement
The OIRA Administrator's memorandum instructs agencies to provide
specific information in the supporting statements describing the
information collections. In particular, the supporting statements
should include the following:
The method of collection and, if statistical methods
will be used, a discussion of the statistical methodology;
The category (or categories) of respondents;
The estimated ``burden cap,'' i.e., the maximum number
of burden hours (per year) for the specific information collections,
and against which burden will be charged for each collection
actually used;
The agency's plans for how it will use the information
collected;
The agency's plans to obtain public input regarding the
specific information collections (i.e., consultation); and
The agency's internal procedures to ensure that the
specific collections comply with the PRA, applicable regulations,
and the terms of the generic clearance.
Id. at 2.
1. Method of Collection
The NTSB will collect the information by transmitting the
evaluation form to attendees of each Training Center course. Depending
on the circumstances, such transmission may occur via hand delivery,
electronic mail, postal mail, or express mail, or a combination of
these methods. Respondents will be provided instructions concerning how
to return questionnaires to the Training Center.
The NTSB will not use statistical methodology in reaching any
conclusions based on the evaluations. Instead, the NTSB merely will
note the total number of respondents in any documents in which it
discusses the evaluations.
Respondents' completion of the evaluations is voluntary, and the
NTSB generally will not contact them more than once to request
completion of the evaluation.
2. Category of Respondents
In its evaluation forms, the NTSB will generally seek information
only from attendees of each course. The NTSB will have the contact
information for each attendee, because such information is required
when registering for Training Center courses.
3. Maximum Burden Hours
The NTSB plans to distribute the evaluations to attendees of each
Training Center course. The NTSB offers 12 different courses per year
and provides a repeated program for those courses with the highest
attendance levels. Among all courses, the NTSB estimates a total of 600
non-Government attendees complete courses in any given year. As a
result, the NTSB estimates it will distribute approximately 600
Training Center evaluation forms each year. Each evaluation form will
take approximately 11 minutes to complete.
The NTSB seeks to emphasize these estimations are approximate, as
they are depend on the number of courses the NTSB offers in the
Training Center. Some courses may be cancelled due to low registration.
In addition, only Government employees may choose to attend other
courses. As a result, the NTSB can only provide an approximate estimate
of the number of attendees per year.
4. Use of the Information Collected
Feedback from attendees of NTSB Training Center courses is
extremely important to the NTSB. The NTSB plans its course offerings
based on the level of interest from potential attendees and on the
degree to which attendees have found useful the information they
learned during such courses. As a result, evaluations of NTSB Training
Center courses will influence future course offerings. The NTSB will
rely upon the provision of completed course evaluations to assist with
the planning of course offerings.
5. Public Input Regarding the Information Collected
The NTSB does not generally obtain public input concerning the
scope of, or specific questions on, NTSB Training Center evaluation
forms.
6. Internal Procedures
Lastly, the OIRA Administrator's memorandum describing generic
clearances recommends agencies describe the procedures it will
undertake to ensure information collections to which the generic
clearance applies will comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act,
applicable regulations, and the terms provided in the generic
clearance. The NTSB Office of General Counsel plans to provide internal
guidance to agency personnel who offer courses and distribute course
evaluations at the NTSB Training Center. Such guidance will include
this publication, as well as the OIRA Administrator's memorandum
discussing generic clearances, upon OMB approval of the clearance. The
internal guidance will include specific instructions concerning use of
evaluation forms, and explain the applicable provisions of the
Paperwork Reduction Act and its implementing regulations.
[[Page 61344]]
C. Description of Burden
The NTSB has carefully reviewed previous questionnaires it has used
to obtain information from attendees of courses the NTSB Training
Center offers. The NTSB assures the public that these questionnaires
have used plain, coherent, and unambiguous terminology in its requests
for feedback. In addition, the questionnaires are not duplicative of
other agencies' collections of information, because the NTSB maintains
unique authority to offer such courses concerning investigations of
transportation events. 49 U.S.C. 1113(b)(1)(I).
In general, the NTSB believes the evaluation forms will impose a
minimal burden on respondents: As indicated above, the NTSB estimates
that each respondent will spend approximately 11 minutes in completing
the evaluation. The NTSB estimates that a maximum of 240 respondents
per year would complete an evaluation. Although the NTSB may distribute
evaluations to perhaps as many as 600 people, historic response rates
indicate only 40 percent of the evaluations will be returned completed.
However, the NTSB again notes this number will vary, given the changes
in course offerings at the NTSB Training Center.
D. Request for Comments
In accordance with 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A), the NTSB seeks feedback
from the public concerning this proposed plan for information
collection. In particular, the NTSB asks the public to evaluate whether
the proposed collection of information is necessary; to assess the
accuracy of the NTSB's burden estimate; to comment on how to enhance
the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected;
and to comment on how the NTSB might minimize the burden of the
collection of information.
The NTSB will carefully consider all feedback it receives in
response to this notice. As described above, obtaining the information
the NTSB seeks on these evaluations in a timely manner is important to
course offerings at the NTSB Training Center; therefore, obtaining
approval from OIRA for these collections of information on a generic
basis is a priority for the NTSB.
Dated: October 6, 2014.
Christopher A. Hart,
Acting Chairman.
[FR Doc. 2014-24234 Filed 10-9-14; 8:45 am]
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