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SUPPORTING STATEMENTPART A

 

PRODUCTION OUTLOOK REPORTS FOR UN-REGISTERED 

RENEWABLE FUELS PRODUCERS

A. JUSTIFICATION

1. Identification of the Information Collection

a. Title: Production Outlook Reports for Un-Registered Renewable Fuels 

Producers; EPA ICR No. 2409.01; OMB Control Number 2060-NEW

b. Short characterization:

With this information collection request (ICR), we are seeking permission to 

accept production outlook reports from domestic or foreign renewable fuel producers 

who are not currently regulated parties under the RFS2 program. The respondents for 

this ICR are not regulated parties under the RFS2 program and are therefore, not required 

to register or report under the RFS2 regulations. Submission of production outlook 

information to EPA under this ICR will be on a voluntary basis. 

The information that respondents provide will allow EPA to more accurately 

project cellulosic biofuel volumes for the following calendar year, and these volume 

projections will form the basis of the percentage standards EPA sets under the RFS2 

program. Without information from these respondents, EPA's volume projections are 

more likely to fall below actual projection volumes. Under such circumstances, actual 

supply for cellulosic biofuel will exceed the demand created by the standards EPA sets, 

and the value of cellulosic biofuel Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs) will fall. 

RINs are marketable credits that correspond to a given volume of renewable fuel. Since 

RIN market price directly affects the economic viability of cellulosic biofuel production, 

low RIN prices could present economic difficulties to producers. Thus, it is in the 

interests of these respondents to provide this information to EPA, as doing so could 

ensure that the market price of RINs appropriately reflects the value of their cellulosic 

biofuel. This information also serves a more general program purpose, because it will 

assist EPA in setting the annual RFS2 standards more accurately for biomass-based 

diesel, advanced biofuel, and total renewable fuel. Compiling this information may also 

assist respondents with their planning and compliance activities. We believe that many 

parties would wish to submit this information in order to receive better assistance in 

understanding and preparing to comply with the RFS2 regulations

We anticipate that approximately 35 parties will elect to participate in this 

information collection, nearly all of whom would submit information during the first year

of the ICR. The format for submitting the production outlook information to EPA would 

follow the “RFS2 Production Outlook Form, Report Form ID: RFS0900.” Reporting by

regulated parties is covered under the RFS2 ICR, OMB Control No. 2060-0640 
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(Expiration Date: July 31, 2013.) A copy of the current RFS0900 form and its 

instructions are available at:

 Instructions: www.epa.gov/otaq/regs/fuels/rfs0900.pdf

 Form: www.epa.gov/otaq/regs/fuels/rfs0900.xls

.

 

2. Need For, and Use of, the Collection

a. Authority for the Collection

Sections 114 and 208 of the Clean Air Act (CAA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 7414 and 7542, 

authorize EPA to require recordkeeping and reporting regarding enforcement of the 

provisions of Title II of the CAA. This voluntary collection of information is related to 

the RFS2 program. 

b. Practical Utility/Uses of the Data

As discussed above in “Short Characterization,” collection of this information 

will assist EPA in setting accurate annual standards under the RFS2 rule and will assist 

respondents with their planning and compliance activities. 

3. Non-duplication, Consultation, and other Collection Criteria

a. Non-duplication

Efforts have been made to eliminate duplication in this information collection. 

b. Public Notice

On October 14, 2010, EPA published a notice in the Federal Register announcing 

our intent to submit this proposed ICR to OMB for approval. (See 75 FR 63173). The 

comment period closed on December 14, 2010. No comments were received. 

c. Consultations

We have drawn upon our experience with RFS1, RFS2, and with similar fuels 

regulations to develop the estimates in this supporting statement. We are soliciting 

comments on our estimates via the Federal Register notice and have prepared this 

document for the public docket.

d. Effects of Less Frequent Data Collection

This is a voluntary information collection. If EPA could not collect this 

information, then both the respondent and the Agency would be disadvantaged. EPA 
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would base its RFS2 standard setting on incomplete information, and this in turn would 

have a negative effect upon the respondents. Collecting this information would allow 

EPA to assist the respondents in compliance, as the respondents would be subject to the 

RFS2 regulations in the future.

e. General Guidelines

This proposed ICR does not exceed any of the OMB guidelines.

f. Confidentiality

We will inform respondents that they may assert claims of business 

confidentiality (CBI) for information they submit. Any information claimed as 

confidential will be treated in accordance with 40 CFR Part 2 and established Agency

procedures. Information that is received without a claim of confidentiality may be made 

available to the public without further notice to the submitter under 40 CFR § 2.203.

g. Sensitive Information

This information collection does not require submission of any sensitive 

information.

4. The Respondents and the Information Requested

a. Respondents/with NAICS and SIC Codes

The respondents to this information collection are renewable fuel producers who 

are expected to fall under the general category of petroleum refineries (324110/2911), 

ethyl alcohol manufacturers (325193/2869), and/or other basic organic chemical 

manufacturing (325199/2869). We expect that 35 parties elect to participate in this 

information collection. (Since this information collection is voluntary in nature, the 

actual number is determined by the respondents themselves.)

b. Information Requested

The information requested includes the information collected on the RFS0900 

form. Parties may submit some, or all, of the information and submission of the 

information is voluntary. Parties do not have to use the form, but we plan to provide it as 

a convenience for those who wish to use it. 

5. The Information Collected, Agency Activities, Collection Methodology, and 

Information Management

a. Agency Activities
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The Agency may contact respondents if there is a question about their submission. 

We already perform this activity for required reports submitted under the RFS2 program 

and do not anticipate that this proposed collection will add any significant burden.

b. Collection and Methodology and Management

We anticipate accepting this information in various formats, including 

electronically. Information claimed as CBI will be stored in appropriately controlled 

areas.

c. Small Entity Flexibility

This collection will not adversely affect small entities. This collection is a 

voluntary collection and there will be no adverse consequences if a party elects not to 

submit the information. 

d. Collection Schedule

This would be a voluntary collection and, as result, this collection is not subject to 

any set collection schedule. Respondents may submit all, or some, of the information on 

the production outlook report at will.

6. Estimating the Burden and Cost of Collection

a. Estimating the Respondent Universe 

We drew upon experience implementing similar regulations among the same 

entities to develop estimates of the burden associated with this collection. 

b. Estimating the Respondent Burden and Cost

Three labor categories are involved: managerial (includes legal and professional 

review), technical, and clerical. The estimates use the Bureau of Labor Statistics figures 

from "Employer Costs for Employee Compensation - Table 12 - Private Industry, 

Manufacturing, and Non-Manufacturing Industries by Occupational Group” (December 

2003), with a 3% annual inflation factor applied to bring the values to the present. Using 

this method, the following wages and benefits apply by category:

Wages and Benefits

Managerial $53.87 per hour

Technical $35.29 per hour

Clerical $24.56 per hour
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Doubling for company overhead beyond wages and benefits, and for convenience, 

rounding up to the dollar, gives the following rates for this ICR:

Total Employer Cost

Managerial $108 per hour

Technical $71 per hour

Clerical $49 per hour

It is assumed that for each hour of activity the mix will be about 0.1 hour managerial, 0.7 

hour technical, and 0.2 hour clerical. This gives an average labor cost of $71 per hour, 

which will be used in this ICR. We estimate the following burden: 

Number of 

Respondents

Number of 

Reports per 

Respondent

Annual 

Hours per 

Response*

Cost per 

Response

@ $71/hr.

Total 

Hours/Year

Total Cost

In 

Dollars/Year

($)

35 1 4 284.00 140 9,940

* We believe that each report would take up to 12 hours to complete at $71/hour, and have divided 12 by 

three in order to determine an annual burden (over the three year period covered by this proposed ICR).

We estimate that most respondents would elect to submit reports during the first year covered by this 

proposed ICR. 

c. Estimating the Agency Burden and Cost 

We do not anticipate any significant Agency burden associated with reviewing 

these voluntary submissions. We expect that the burden of reviewing these few reports is 

already adequately covered by the RFS2 ICR. As with all items in this supporting 

statement, we strongly encourage comment on the estimated Agency burden and on the 

Agency activities associated with this proposed information collection. 

 

d. Estimating the Respondent Universe

We were able to estimate the number of regulated entities drawing upon 

experience regulating the same or similar entities. 

e. Bottom Line Burden Hours and Costs

From “Estimating the Respondent Burden and Cost,” we estimate the following 

totals:

TOTAL NO. OF RESPONDENTS: 35

TOTAL NO. OF RESPONSES: 35

TOTAL ANNUAL HOURS: 140

TOTAL ANNUAL COST: $9,940
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f. Reason for Change in Burden

Not applicable, as this is a new information collection.

g. Burden Statement 

The annual public reporting and recordkeeping burden for this collection of 

information is estimated to be 4 hours per response. Burden means the total time, effort, 

or financial resources expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or 

provide information to or for a Federal agency. This includes the time needed to review 

instructions; develop, acquire, install, and utilize technology and systems for the purposes 

of collecting, validating, and verifying information, processing and maintaining 

information, and disclosing and providing information; adjust the existing ways to 

comply with any previously applicable instructions and requirements; train personnel to 

be able to respond to a collection of information; search data sources; complete and 

review the collection of information; and transmit or otherwise disclose the information. 

An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a 

collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The 

OMB control numbers for EPA's regulations are listed in 40 CFR part 9 and 48 CFR 

chapter 15. 

To comment on the Agency's need for this information, the accuracy of the 

provided burden estimates, and any suggested methods for minimizing respondent 

burden, including the use of automated collection techniques, EPA has established a 

public docket for this ICR under Docket ID number EPA-HQ-OAR-2005-0161, which is 

available for online viewing at www.regulations.gov, or in person viewing at the Air 

Docket in the EPA Docket Center in Washington, DC (EPA/DC). The docket is located 

in the EPA West Building, 1301 Constitution Avenue, NW, Room 3334, and is open 

from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, Monday through Friday, excluding 

legal holidays. The telephone number for the Reading Room is (202) 566-1744, and the 

telephone number for the Air Docket is (202) 566-1742. 

You may use www.regulations.gov to submit or view public comments, access 

the index listing of the contents of the public docket, and to access those documents in 

the public docket that are available electronically. When in the system, select “search,” 

then key in the Docket ID Number EPA-HQ-OAR-2005-0161. Also, you can send 

comments to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management 

and Budget, 725 17th Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20503, Attention: Desk Officer for 

EPA. Please include the EPA Docket ID Number EPA-HQ-OAR-2005-0161 and OMB 

Control Number 2060-NEW in any correspondence.