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[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 85 (Tuesday, May 3, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24848-24850]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-10718]

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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. APHIS-2006-0011]
RIN 0579-AC03

Notice of Request for Approval of an Information Collection; 
Category of Plants for Planting Not Authorized for Importation Pending 
Pest Risk Analysis

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: New information collection; comment request.

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[[Page 24849]]

SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act, this notice 
announces the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service's intention to 
initiate an information collection associated with a new category of 
plants for planting, also referred to as nursery stock, whose 
importation is not authorized for importation pending pest risk 
analysis.

DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before July 
5, 2011.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:

     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/component/main?main=DocketDetail&d=APHIS-2006-0011 to submit or view comments and 
to view supporting and related materials available electronically.
     Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Please send one copy of 
your comment to Docket No. APHIS-2006-0011, Regulatory Analysis and 
Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118, 
Riverdale, MD 20737-1238. Please state that your comment refers to 
Docket No. APHIS-2006-0011.
    Reading Room: You may read any comments that we receive on this 
docket in our reading room. The reading room is located in room 1141 of 
the USDA South Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue SW., 
Washington, DC. Normal reading room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., 
Monday through Friday, except holidays. To be sure someone is there to 
help you, please call (202) 690-2817 before coming.
    Other Information: Additional information about APHIS and its 
programs is available on the Internet at http://www.aphis.usda.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information on a new category of 
plants for planting not authorized for importation pending pest risk 
analysis, contact Dr. Arnold Tschanz, Senior Plant Pathologist, Plants 
for Planting Policy, Risk Management and Plants for Planting Policy, 
RPM, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 133, Riverdale, MD 20737-1236; 
(301) 734-0627. For copies of more detailed information on the 
information collection, contact Mrs. Celeste Sickles, APHIS' 
Information Collection Coordinator, at (301) 851-2908.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Title: Category of Plants for Planting Not Authorized for 
Importation Pending Pest Risk Analysis.
    OMB Number: 0579-xxxx.
    Type of Request: Approval of a new information collection.
    Abstract: Under the Plant Protection Act (PPA) (7 U.S.C. 7701 et 
seq.), the Secretary of Agriculture is authorized to take such actions 
as may be necessary to prevent the introduction and spread of plant 
pests and noxious weeds within the United States. The Secretary has 
delegated this authority to the Administrator of the Animal and Plant 
Health Inspection Service (APHIS).
    The regulations in 7 CFR part 319 prohibit or restrict the 
importation of certain plants and plant products into the United States 
to prevent the introduction of plant pests that are not already 
established in the United States or plant pests that may be established 
but are under official control to eradicate or contain them within the 
United States. The regulations in ``Subpart--Nursery Stock, Plants, 
Roots, Bulbs, Seeds, and Other Plant Products,'' Sec. Sec.  319.37 
through 319.37-14 (referred to below as the regulations), restrict, 
among other things, the importation of living plants, plant parts, 
seeds, and plant cuttings for planting or propagation. These 
regulations are intended to ensure that imported nursery stock does not 
serve as a host for plant pests, such as insects or pathogens, that can 
cause damage to U.S. agricultural and environmental resources.
    On July 23, 2009, we published in the Federal Register (74 FR 
36403-36414, Docket No. APHIS-2006-0011) a proposal to amend the 
nursery stock regulations. We proposed, among other things, to change 
the nursery stock regulations to refer instead to ``plants for 
planting,'' a term that is consistent with the International Plant 
Protection Convention's Glossary of Phytosanitary Terms. In addition, 
the proposal would add a new category of plants for planting whose 
importation is not authorized pending the completion of a pest risk 
analysis (NAPPRA).
    APHIS is in the final rulemaking stage to amend part 319 which, if 
adopted, will require that requests to remove a taxon from the NAPPRA 
category be made in accordance with Sec.  319.5, which contains 
requirements for requests to change the regulations in part 319. The 
current regulations in Sec.  319.5 will apply, if adopted in the final 
rule, to the new category of plants for planting. This requirement was 
not part of the 2009 proposed rule and was added based on commenters' 
requests to allow only national plant protection organizations (NPPOs) 
to request that taxa be removed from the NAPPRA list. The final rule 
will allow any person to request that a taxon be removed from the 
NAPPRA list, but the regulations in Sec.  319.5 will require the NPPO 
to be involved in the request, to ensure that APHIS has all the 
information necessary to evaluate the taxon.
    Section 319.5 contains information collection activities for the 
submission of requests to APHIS that are necessary for us to conduct a 
PRA, including information about the party making the request, 
information about the commodity proposed for importation into the 
United States, shipping information, and a description of pests 
associated with the commodity.
    We are asking the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to approve 
our use of this information collection for 3 years.
    The purpose of this notice is to solicit comments from the public 
(as well as affected agencies) concerning our information collection. 
These comments will help us:
    (1) Evaluate whether the 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 our estimate of the burden of the 
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, through use, as appropriate, of automated, 
electronic, mechanical, and other collection technologies; e.g., 
permitting electronic submission of responses.
    Estimate of burden: The public reporting burden for this collection 
of information is estimated to average 5.6 hours per response.
    Respondents: NPPOs and importers of nursery stock into the United 
States.
    Estimated annual number of respondents: 5.
    Estimated annual number of responses per respondent: 1.
    Estimated annual number of responses: 5.
    Estimated total annual burden on respondents: 28 hours. (Due to 
averaging, the total annual burden hours may not equal the product of 
the annual number of responses multiplied by the reporting burden per 
response.)
    All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the 
request for OMB approval. All comments will also become a matter of 
public record.

[[Page 24850]]

    Done in Washington, DC, this 27th day of April 2011.
Gregory L. Parham,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2011-10718 Filed 5-2-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P
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