Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 245 / Monday, December 22, 1997 / Notices 66863

associated with them, (2) determine

whether employees have acquired the

necessary expertise to perform their

jobs, and (3) determine whether LQGs

have developed adequate procedures to

respond to unplanned sudden or nonsudden releases of hazardous waste or

hazardous constituents to air, soil, or

surface water. This information is also

needed to help EPA determine whether

tank systems are operated in a manner

that is fully protective of human health

and the environment and to ensure that

releases to the environment are

managed quickly and efficiently.

Additionally, this information

contributes to EPA’s goal of preventing

contamination of the environment from

hazardous waste accumulation

practices, including contamination from

equipment leaks and process vents.

Export information is needed to ensure

that (1) foreign governments consent to

U.S. exported wastes, (2) exported waste

is actually managed at facilities listed in

the original notifications, and (3)

documents are available for compliance

audits and enforcement actions. In

general, these requirements contribute

to EPA’s goal of preventing

contamination of the environment. 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. The

Federal Register document required

under 5 CFR 1320.8(d), soliciting

comments on this collection of

information was published on 9/3/97

(62 FR 46491); no comments were

received.

Burden Statement: The average

annual public reporting burden per

response for LQGs under this collection

of information is estimated to range

from 21 minutes to 32 hours, and the

average annual public reporting burden

per response for SQGs is estimated to

range from 21 minutes to 7 hours. The

average annual recordkeeping burden

per response for LQGs under this

collection of information is estimated to

range from 27 minutes to 1 hour, and

the average annual recordkeeping

burden per response for SQGs is

estimated to range from 18 minutes to

45 minutes. 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.

Respondents/Affected Entities:

Hazardous Waste Generators, Hazardous

Waste Transporters who commingle

waste with different Department of

Transportation descriptions; and

Importers or Exporters of Hazardous

Waste.

Estimated Number of Respondents:

244,932.

Frequency of Response: On Occasion.

Estimated Total Annual Hour Burden:

282,696 hours.

Estimated Total Annualized Cost

Burden: $1,867,304.

Send comments on the Agency’s need

for this information, the accuracy of the

provided burden estimates, and any

suggested methods for minimizing

respondent burden, including through

the use of automated collection

techniques to the following addresses.

Please refer to EPA ICR No. 0820.07 and

OMB Control No. 2050–0035—in any

correspondence:

Ms. Sandy Farmer, U.S. Environmental

Protection Agency, OPPE Regulatory

Information Division (2137), 401 M

Street, SW, Washington, DC 20460.

(or E-Mail

Farmer.Sandy@epamail.epa.gov) and

Office of Information and Regulatory

Affairs, Office of Management and

Budget, Attention: Desk Officer for

EPA, 725 17th Street, NW,

Washington, DC 20503.

Dated: December 16, 1997.

Joseph Retzer,

Director, Regulatory Information Division.

[FR Doc. 97–33326 Filed 12–19–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

AGENCY

[FRL–5938–2]

Agency Information Collection

Activities: Submission for OMB

Review; Comment Request;

Application for Preauthorization of a

CERCLA Response Action

AGENCY: Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

SUMMARY: In compliance with the

Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C.

3501 et seq.), this notice announces that

the following Information Collection

Request (ICR) has been forwarded to the

Office of Management and Budget

(OMB) for review and approval:

Application for Preauthorization of a

CERCLA Response; OMB Control No.

2050–0106; expiring on January 31,

1998. The ICR describes the nature of

the information collection and its

expected burden and cost; where

appropriate, it includes the actual data

collection instrument.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on

or before January 21, 1998.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For

a copy of the ICR call Sandy Farmer at

EPA, (202) 260–2740, or download off

the Internet at http://www.epa.gov/icr/

icr.htm. Refer to EPA ICR No. 1304.05.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Title: ‘‘Application for

Preauthorization of a CERCLA Response

(OMB Control No. 2050–0106; EPA ICR

No. 1304.05) expiring 1/31/98. This is a

renewal of a previously approved

collection.

Abstract: This statement supports the

request for renewal of the information

collection requirements contained in

EPA’s final rule ‘‘Response Claims

Procedures for the Hazardous Substance

Superfund’’ (40 CFR part 307),

hereinafter referred to as the RCP. The

RCP was promulgated on January 21,

1993, and the ICR for this rule needs to

be renewed. The information collection

requirements under the RCP will

provide the information necessary to

fulfill the statutory requirements of

section 112 of the Comprehensive

Environmental Response,

Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980

(CERCLA).

Under section 111(a)(2) of CERCLA,

claimants are authorized to be

reimbursed from the Hazardous

Substance Superfund (the Fund) for

necessary response costs incurred as a

result of carrying out the National Oil

and Hazardous Substances Pollution

Contingency Plan (NCP, 40 CFR Part

300). In addition, section 122(b)(1) of

CERCLA provides the President (EPA,

by delegation under Executive Order

(E.O.) 12580) with the discretionary

authority to enter into agreements with

potentially responsible parties (PRPs),

whereby the PRPs will perform a

preauthorized phase of a response

action in return for reimbursement of an

agreed-on portion of response costs from

the Fund (i.e., a ‘‘mixed-funding’’

agreement).

Section 112(b)(1) of CERCLA

authorizes EPA (as delegated by E.O.

12580) to prescribe the appropriate
66864 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 245 / Monday, December 22, 1997 / Notices

forms and procedures for filing response

claims against the Fund, including a

provision requiring the claimant to

make a sworn verification of the claim

to the best of his/her knowledge. EPA

has promulgated the RCP pursuant to

the section 112 authority.

Under the RCP and pursuant to

sections 111(a)(2) and 122(b)(1) of

CERCLA, individuals, private entities,

and potentially responsible parties

(PRPs) (including States and political

subdivisions) are eligible to submit

claims against the Fund for

reimbursement of response costs. As

specified by section 111(a)(2) of

CERCLA and section 300.700(d) of the

NCP, all proposed response actions

must be approved in advance by EPA

through the preauthorization process in

order for a subsequent claim to be

awarded. Applicants may obtain

preauthorization from EPA for proposed

response actions by completing and

submitting the ‘‘Application for

Preauthorization of a CERCLA Response

Action’’ (EPA Form 2075–3). EPA will

review and evaluate such applications

and will respond in writing to

applicants within approximately 45

days of receipt of a completed

application. After completing this

review, EPA will develop a

Preauthorization Decision Document

(PDD). The PDD will establish a record

of the Agency’s preauthorization

decision and will contain the terms and

conditions that must be satisfied for the

applicant to be reimbursed from the

Fund.

After an applicant has obtained

preauthorization from EPA and has

completed the preauthorized response

action (or a preauthorized phase of a

response action), he/she may submit a

claim for reimbursement of the resultant

response costs. In order to file a claim,

the claimant must complete and submit

to EPA the ‘‘Claim for CERCLA

Response Action’’ (EPA Form 2075–41).

EPA will review and evaluate the

information contained on the completed

claim form and will make a

determination on whether to award or

deny the claim, in whole or in part.

The application for preauthorization

and the claim form may be obtained

from any of the EPA Regional Offices,

and shall be submitted to the

appropriate EPA Regional Office for

review. The EPA Regional Office will

review and evaluate the application for

preauthorization and the claim form in

coordination with the Office of

Emergency and Remedial Response, the

Office of the General Counsel, the Office

of Enforcement and Compliance

Assurance, and other offices, as

necessary. Both forms will be evaluated

according to the criteria set forth in the

RCP. The information contained on the

application and the claim form will be

retained in the EPA Regional Office for

three years after the completion of a

project and will be available (if not

deemed confidential), upon request, to

the public through the public docket in

accordance with the Freedom of

Information Act.

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. The Federal Register document

required under 5 CFR 1320.8(d),

soliciting comments on this collection

of information was published on 8/4/97

(62 FR 41962); no comments were

received.

Burden Statement: EPA estimates that

five preauthorization requests will be

submitted annually with an average of

258 work hours per request. It is

estimated that 12 claim applications

will be submitted annually with an

average of 42 work hours per claim.

Once claims are awarded, claimants will

have to maintain records for 10 years.

Record maintenance will be performed

by 10 claimants annually at an average

of 15 hours per activity. The total

annual costs will be $107,650.

The total burden hours for completing

the preauthorization application, the

claim form, and maintaining necessary

records is an average of 317 hours. Total

annual average burden for all

respondents is 1,968 hours.

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.

Send comments on the Agency’s need

for this information, the accuracy of the

provided burden estimates, and any

suggested methods for minimizing

respondent burden, including through

the use of automated collection

techniques to the following addresses.

Please refer to EPA ICR No.1304.05 and

OMB Control No.2050–0106 in any

correspondence.

Ms. Sandy Farmer, U.S. Environmental

Protection Agency, OPPE Regulatory

Information Division (2137), 401 M

Street, SW, Washington, DC 20460 (or

email

Farmer.Sandy@epamail.epa.gov).

and

Office of Information and Regulatory

Affairs, Office of Management and

Budget, Attention: Desk Officer for

EPA, 725 17th Street, NW,

Washington, DC 20503.

Dated: December 16, 1997.

Joseph Retzer,

Director, Regulatory Information Division.

[FR Doc. 97–33327 Filed 12–19–97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P

FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE

CORPORATION

Notice of Agency Meeting

Pursuant to the provisions of the

‘‘Government in the Sunshine Act’’ (5

U.S.C. 552b), notice is hereby given that

at 10:10 a.m. on Tuesday, December 16,

1997, the Board of Directors of the

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

met in closed session to consider

matters relating to the Corporation’s

personnel and supervisory activities.

In calling the meeting, the Board

determined, on motion of Director

Joseph H. Neely (Appointive), seconded

by Director Ellen S. Seidman (Director,

Office of Thrift Supervision), concurred

in by Director Eugene A. Ludwig

(Comptroller of the Currency), and

Acting Chairman Andrew C. Hove, Jr.,

that Corporation business required its

consideration of the matters on less than

seven days’ notice to the public; that no

earlier notice of the meeting was

practicable; that the public interest did

not require consideration of the matters

in a meeting open to public observation;

and that the matters could be

considered in a closed meeting by

authority of subsections (c)(2), (c)(4),

(c)(6), (c)(8), and (c)(9)(A)(ii) of the

‘‘Government in the Sunshine Act’’ (5

U.S.C. 552b (c)(2), (c)(4), (c)(6), (c)(8),

and (c)(9)(A)(ii)).

The meeting was held in the Board

Room of the FDIC Building located at

550 17th Street, NW., Washington, DC.

Dated: December 16, 1997.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

James D. LaPierre,

Deputy Executive Secretary.

[FR Doc. 97–33419 Filed 12–18–97; 1034 am]

BILLING CODE 6714–01–M