14340 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 47 / Friday, March 9, 2012 / Notices 

0857; Mail: Office of Information 

Technology (OIT), NIFA, USDA, STOP 

2216, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., 

Washington, DC 20250–2216. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Gidel Mendez, eGovernment Program 

Leader; Email: gmendez@nifa.usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Title: Division of Community and 

Education Project Output Tracking 

Questionnaires. 

OMB Number: 0524–XXXX. 

Type of Request: Intent to request 

approval to establish a new information 

collection system for three years. 

Abstract: The Division of Community 

and Education (DOCE) at the National 

Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) 

houses grant programs that are 

responsible for awarding funds to 

secondary and postsecondary 

institutions to support a variety of 

activities including curriculum 

development, faculty development, 

experiential learning activities, and 

scientific instrumentation, among 

others. In order to improve federal 

program effectiveness and public 

accountability, DOCE will create 

questionnaires that will ask project 

directors to quantitatively report on the 

activities they use for their project and 

the outputs that are produced from the 

money. 

Need and Use of the Information: Per 

the Government Performance and 

Results Act of 1993, agencies are 

expected to provide adequate oversight 

and eliminate waste and inefficiency in 

federal programs. These questionnaires 

will help to do this in two ways: 1. They 

will provide transparency in the way in 

which federal money is spent; and 2. 

They will help to inform and guide 

programmatic priorities. 

The information collected by these 

questionnaires will be able to be 

aggregated across the division, creating 

a clear picture of how the money was 

spent and the outputs that resulted 

without identifying specific project 

directors or institutions. This aggregated 

information can be summarized, and 

presented to stakeholders, as well as be 

used to respond to congressional 

inquiries. 

In addition, trends and patterns in the 

way in which money was spent will be 

evident. National Program Leaders will 

be able to determine how much grant 

money went toward specific grant 

activities in a given year. They may be 

able to use this information to adjust 

programmatic priorities for the 

following fiscal year if projects 

addressing particular grant activities are 

disproportionately funded. 

The information collected from the 

questionnaire will provide a more 

comprehensive and accurate assessment 

of national program outputs. Currently, 

project directors are required to 

complete Current Research Information 

System (CRIS) reports annually, as well 

as a final report. There are no specific 

guidelines for the CRIS reports, and as 

a result, the reports often do not contain 

quantitative information relevant to 

project and program goals. CRIS reports 

do, however, provide important 

descriptive information, but 

standardized information at the division 

level is needed to augment these 

reports. 

Estimate of Burden: DOCE estimates 

that an average of 20 minutes is required 

to complete the questionnaire and 

supplemental questionnaire with 

respect to each award. DOCE estimates 

that it makes approximately 300 awards 

each year, which means that there are 

300 Project Directors that must complete 

these questionnaires annually. 

Therefore, the total annual burden on 

Project Directors is 100 hours. 

Comments are invited on: (a) Whether 

the proposed collection of information 

is necessary for the proper performance 

of the functions of the Agency, 

including whether the information will 

have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of 

the Agency’s estimate of the burden of 

the proposed collection of information; 

(c) ways to enhance the quality, utility 

and clarity of the information to be 

collected; and (d) ways to minimize the 

burden of the collection of information 

on those who are to respond, including 

through the use of appropriate 

automated, electronic, mechanical, or 

other technological collection 

techniques or other forms of information 

technology. 

All responses to this notice will be 

summarized and included in the request 

to OMB for approval. All comments will 

become a matter of public record. 

Done in Washington, DC, March 1, 2012. 

Catherine E. Woteki, 

Under Secretary, Research, Education, and 

Economics. 

[FR Doc. 2012–5796 Filed 3–8–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–22–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Telecommunications and 

Information Administration 

Proposed Information Collection; 

Comment Request; Broadband 

Technology Opportunities Program 

(BTOP) Quarterly and Annual 

Performance Progress Reports 

AGENCY: National Telecommunications 

and Information Administration. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Department of 

Commerce, as part of its continuing 

effort to reduce paperwork and 

respondent burden, invites the general 

public and other Federal agencies to 

take this opportunity to comment on 

proposed and/or continuing information 

collections, as required by the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. 

DATES: Written Comments must be 

submitted on or before May 8, 2012. 

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments 

to Jennifer Jessup, Departmental 

Paperwork Clearance Officer, U.S. 

Department of Commerce, Room 6616, 

14th and Constitution Avenue NW., 

Washington, DC 20230 (or via email to 

JJessup@doc.gov). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Requests for additional information or 

copies of the information collection 

instruments and instructions should be 

sent to Anthony G. Wilhelm, Director, 

BTOP, Office of Telecommunications 

and Information Applications, National 

Telecommunications and Information 

Administration, via email at btop@ntia.

doc.gov, or by telephone at (202) 482– 

2048. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract 

The American Recovery and 

Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery 

Act) appropriated funds for BTOP, 

which included competitive grants to 

expand public computer center capacity 

and innovative programs to encourage 

sustainable adoption of broadband 

service. Section 6001 of the Recovery 

Act establishes five core purposes to be 

advanced by projects funded under 

BTOP: 

(1) To provide access to broadband 

service to consumers residing in 

unserved areas of the country; 

(2) To provide improved access to 

broadband service to underserved areas 

of the country; 

(3) To provide broadband access, 

education, and support to community 

anchor institutions (e.g., schools, 

libraries, and medical facilities), or 

organizations and agencies serving 

vulnerable populations (e.g., lowincome, unemployed, and aged), or jobcreating strategic facilities located in 

State- or Federally-designated economic 

development areas; 

(4) To improve access to, and use of, 

broadband service by public safety 

agencies; and 

(5) To stimulate the demand for 

broadband, economic growth, and job 

creation. 

OMB also requires agencies 

administering grant programs to 


srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 47 / Friday, March 9, 2012 / Notices 14341 

implement post-award financial and 

performance reporting for those 

programs. Finally, the Department of 

Commerce’s implementation of OMB’s 

Uniform Administrative Requirements 

authorizes NTIA to require performance 

reports from BTOP grant recipients. 

To date, NTIA has utilized OMBapproved Performance Progress Reports 

(PPRs) to capture quarterly and annual 

reports for each project type 

(Infrastructure, Public Computer Center, 

and Sustainable Broadband Adoption). 

Each PPR provides updates on 

fundamental project milestones and key 

performance indicators that allow NTIA 

to measure project progress and ensure 

proper monitoring and compliance with 

program rules. 

After reviewing recent PPRs, NTIA 

identified a need to collect additional 

information from Infrastructure grant 

recipients to assess more accurately the 

progress of BTOP grants in relation to 

intended program benefits. Specifically, 

NTIA modified its existing annual 

performance report for Infrastructure 

awards by adding questions that require 

Infrastructure grantees to provide 

supplemental information regarding 

project deployment. NTIA requires this 

additional project implementation 

information to better monitor and assess 

the effect BTOP grant awards are having 

meeting program goals, including 

increasing broadband availability and 

adoption and achieving economic and 

social benefits in communities served 

by the grantees. 

NTIA intends to use the information 

collected to: (1) Identify more accurately 

BTOP grant beneficiaries; (2) track better 

a project’s progress against programspecific objectives; (3) facilitate further 

monitoring and oversight efforts of 

existing grants; and (4) ensure that grant 

projects will have the intended 

sustained impacts. 

II. Method of Collection 

The reports will be submitted 

electronically. 

III. Data 

OMB Control Number: 0660–0037. 

Form Number(s): None. 

Type of Review: Regular submission 

(revision of a currently approved 

information collection). 

Affected Public: Business or other forprofit organizations; not-for-profit 

institutions; and State, Local, or Tribal 

government organizations. 

Number of Respondents: 121. 

Average Burden Hours per Response 

for the Annual Report: 3.94. 

Average Burden Hours for the 

Additional Responses in the Annual 

Report: 2.0. 

Estimated Total Annual Burden 

Hours on Respondents: 719. 

IV. Request for Comments 

Comments are invited on: (a) Whether 

the collection of information is 

necessary for the proper performance of 

the functions of the agency, including 

whether the information shall have 

practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the 

agency’s estimate of the burden 

(including hours and cost) of the 

proposed collection of information; (c) 

ways to enhance the quality, utility, and 

clarity of the information to be 

collected; and (d) ways to minimize the 

burden of the collection of information 

on respondents, including through the 

use of automated collection techniques 

or other forms of information 

technology. 

Comments submitted in response to 

this notice will be summarized and/or 

included in the request for OMB 

approval of this proposed revision of a 

currently approved collection of 

information. They will also become a 

matter of public record. 

Dated: March 5, 2012. 

Gwellnar Banks, 

Management Analyst, Office of the Chief 

Information Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2012–5724 Filed 3–8–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

Bureau of the Census 

Establishment of the National Advisory 

Committee on Racial, Ethnic, and 

Other Populations 

AGENCY: Bureau of the Census, 

Department of Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of Committee 

Establishment. 

SUMMARY: The Bureau of the Census 

(Census Bureau) is hereby giving notice 

that the Secretary of Commerce has 

determined that the establishment of the 

National Advisory Committee of Race, 

Ethnic, and Other Populations is 

necessary and in the public interest. The 

Committee will function solely as an 

advisory body and in compliance with 

provisions of the Federal Advisory 

Committee Act. Copies of the charter 

will be filed with the appropriate 

Committees of the Congress and with 

the Library of Congress. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jeri 

Green, Chief, Office of External 

Engagement, U.S. Census Bureau, 

Washington, DC 20233, telephone 301– 

763–2075 or Jeri.Green@Census.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Census Bureau’s National Advisory 

Committee on Racial, Ethnic, and Other 

Populations will advise the Director of 

the Census Bureau on the full range of 

Census Bureau programs and activities. 

The Advisory Committee will provide 

race, ethnic, and other population 

expertise from the following disciplines: 

economic, housing, demographic, 

socioeconomic, linguistic, 

technological, methodological, 

geographic, behavioral and operational 

variables affecting the cost, accuracy, 

and implementation of Census Bureau 

programs and surveys, including the 

decennial census. 

Dated: March 2, 2012. 

Robert M. Groves, 

Director, Bureau of the Census. 

[FR Doc. 2012–5752 Filed 3–8–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–07–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

International Trade Administration 

[A–583–835] 

Certain Hot-Rolled Carbon Steel Flat 

Products From Taiwan: Notice of 

Rescission of Antidumping Duty 

Administrative Review 

AGENCY: Import Administration, 

International Trade Administration, 

Department of Commerce. 

SUMMARY: In response to separate 

requests from United States Steel 

Corporation and Nucor Corporation, 

interested parties, the Department of 

Commerce (the Department) initiated an 

administrative review of the 

antidumping duty order on certain hotrolled carbon steel flat products from 

Taiwan. The period of review is 

November 1, 2010, through October 31, 

2011. Based on the withdrawal of 

requests for review submitted by United 

States Steel Corporation and Nucor 

Corporation, we are now rescinding this 

administrative review. 

DATES: Effective Date: March 9, 2012. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Steve Bezirganian or Robert James, AD/ 

CVD Operations, Office 7, Import 

Administration, International Trade 

Administration, U.S. Department of 

Commerce, 14th Street and Constitution 

Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230; 

telephone: (202) 482–1131 or (202) 482– 

0649, respectively. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

On December 30, 2011, the 

Department published in the Federal 

Register a notice of initiation of an 


srobinson on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES