89688 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 248 / Thursday, December 28, 2023 / Notices 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[EPA–HQ–OW–2040–0299; FRL–11641–01– 

OMS] 

Agency Information Collection 

Activities; Submission to the Office of 

Management and Budget for Review 

and Approval; Comment Request; Use 

of Lead Free Pipes, Fittings, Fixtures, 

Solder and Flux for Drinking Water 

(Renewal) 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA) is planning to submit an 

information collection request (ICR), 

Use of Lead Free Pipes, Fittings, 

Fixtures, Solder and Flux for Drinking 

Water (EPA ICR Number 2563.02, OMB 

Control Number 2040–0299) to the 

Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) for review and approval in 

accordance with the Paperwork 

Reduction Act. This is a proposed 

extension of the ICR, which is currently 

approved through December 31, 2023. 

Public comments were previously 

requested via the Federal Register on 

July 11, 2023 during a 60-day comment 

period. This notice allows for an 

additional 30 days for public comments. 

DATES: Comments may be submitted on 

or before January 29, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, 

referencing Docket ID No. EPA–HQ– 

OW–2040–0299, online using 

www.regulations.gov (our preferred 

method), by email to OW-Docket@

epa.gov, or by mail to: EPA Docket 

Center, Environmental Protection 

Agency, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 

Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 

20460. EPA’s policy is that all 

comments received will be included in 

the public docket without change 

including any personal information 

provided, unless the comment includes 

profanity, threats, information claimed 

to be Confidential Business Information 

(CBI) or other information whose 

disclosure is restricted by statute. 

Submit written comments and 

recommendations to OMB for the 

proposed information collection within 

30 days of publication of this notice to 

www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. 

Find this particular information 

collection by selecting ‘‘Currently under 

30-day Review—Open for Public 

Comments’’ or by using the search 

function. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Kevin Roland, Drinking Water 

Infrastructure Development Division, 

Office of Ground Water and Drinking 

Water, (4606M), Environmental 

Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania 

Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460; 

telephone number: 202–564–4588: fax 

number: 202–564–3755; email address: 

roland.kevin@epa.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a 

proposed extension of the ICR, which is 

currently approved through December 

31, 2023. An agency may not conduct or 

sponsor and a person is not required to 

respond to a collection of information 

unless it displays currently valid OMB 

control number. 

Public comments were previously 

requested via the Federal Register on 

July 11, 2023 during a 60-day comment 

period (88 FR 44129). This notice allows 

for an additional 30 days of public 

comments. Supporting documents, 

which explain in detail the information 

that the EPA will be collecting, are 

available in the public docket for this 

ICR. The docket can be viewed online 

at www.regulations.gov or in person at 

the EPA Docket Center, WJC West, 

Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW, 

Washington, DC. The telephone number 

for the Docket Center is 202–566–1744. 

For additional information about EPA’s 

public docket, visit http://www.epa.gov/ 

dockets. 

Abstract: The Reduction of Lead in 

Drinking Water Act of 2011 (RLDWA, 

the Act) modified the technical 

definition of ‘‘lead free’’ by lowering the 

maximum lead content of pipes, fittings, 

and fixtures from 8% to 0.25% and 

introduced greater complexity to 

calculating lead free by requiring that 

level be met based on a weighted 

average of wetted surfaces. The Act also 

created exemptions for certain plumbing 

products from pre-existing lead free 

requirements. The final rule establishes 

product certification requirements for 

products intended for potable use 

applications in public water systems 

and residential or non-residential 

facilities to demonstrate compliance 

with the lead free requirements. EPA 

expects that these requirements for lead 

content in plumbing materials used in 

new installations and repairs will result 

in fewer sources of lead in drinking 

water and, consequently, will reduce 

adverse health effects associated with 

exposure to lead in drinking water. 

Manufacturers with 10 or more 

employees or importers entering 

products purchased from or 

manufactured by manufacturers with 10 

or more employees must demonstrate 

compliance with the lead free definition 

by obtaining third party certification by 

an American National Standards 

Institute (ANSI) accredited, third party 

certification body. Firms with fewer 

than 10 employees can use a third party 

certification body or self-certify that 

their products conform to the Safe 

Drinking Water Act’s (SDWA) lead free 

requirements. This self-certification 

option also extends to custom fabricated 

products regardless of a manufacturer’s 

number of employees. This rule imposes 

a burden on states to enforce the 

statutory provisions in SDWA Section 

1417(a)(1), which cross references 

updated statutory definition of lead free 

within the meaning of SDWA Section 

1417(d) according to the 2011 Reduction 

of Lead in Drinking Water Act and the 

2013 Community Fire Safety Act. 

Form Numbers: None. 

Respondents/affected entities: 

Primacy Agencies, Manufacturers of 

lead-free pipes, fixtures and fittings. 

Respondent’s obligation to respond: 

Mandatory for compliance with 

Reduction of Lead in Drinking Water 

Act of 2011. 

Estimated number of respondents: 

2,250 (total). 

Frequency of response: Annual. 

Total estimated burden: 97,186 hours 

(per year). Burden is defined at 5 CFR 

1320.03(b). 

Total estimated cost: $12.2 million 

(per year), including $7.5 million 

annualized capital or operation & 

maintenance costs. 

Changes in Estimates: There is an 

increase of 19,349 hours in the total 

estimated respondent burden compared 

with the ICR currently approved by 

OMB. This increase is a result of shifts 

in respondent activities required as the 

rule comes into full effect. 

Manufacturers have complied with 

initial requirements to conduct rule 

familiarization and initial product 

certifications and are now responsible 

for recertifications and recordkeeping. 

In the three-year period covered by this 

ICR, primacy agencies are responsible 

for developing and implementing 

oversight plans. These changes are 

considered adjustments because the 

parameters of this overall collection as 

defined by the September 2020 rule (85 

FR 54235) have not been modified. 

Courtney Kerwin, 

Director, Information Engagement Division. 

[FR Doc. 2023–28640 Filed 12–27–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 


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