13750 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 37 / Friday, February 23, 2024 / Notices 

Agency Number: None. 

Affected Public: Business or other forprofit entities. 

Total Respondents: 9,982. 

Total Annual Responses: 119,784. 

Average Time per Response: 1.5 

hours. 

Estimated Total Burden Hours: 

179,676 hours. 

Frequency: Monthly. 

Total Monetized Burden Cost: 

$13,700,054. 

Total Burden Costs to Federal 

government: $1,390,997. 

Comments submitted in response to 

this notice will be summarized and/or 

included in the request for OMB 

approval of the information collection 

request; they will also become a matter 

of public record. 

Tina T. Williams, 

Acting Deputy Director of OFCCP and 

Director of Policy & Program Development, 

Office of Federal Contract Compliance 

Programs. 

[FR Doc. 2024–03635 Filed 2–22–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4510–CM–P 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

Agency Information Collection 

Activities; Submission for OMB 

Review; Comment Request; Request 

for Assistance From the Department of 

Labor, Employee Benefits Security 

Administration 

ACTION: Notice of availability; request 

for comments. 

SUMMARY: The Department of Labor 

(DOL) is submitting this Employee 

Benefits Security Administration 

(EBSA)-sponsored information 

collection request (ICR) to the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) for 

review and approval in accordance with 

the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

(PRA). Public comments on the ICR are 

invited. 

DATES: The OMB will consider all 

written comments that the agency 

receives on or before March 25, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: Written comments and 

recommendations for the proposed 

information collection should be sent 

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. 

Comments are invited on: (1) whether 

the collection of information is 

necessary for the proper performance of 

the functions of the Department, 

including whether the information will 

have practical utility; (2) the accuracy of 

the agency’s estimates of the burden and 

cost of the collection of information, 

including the validity of the 

methodology and assumptions used; (3) 

ways to enhance the quality, utility and 

clarity of the information collection; and 

(4) ways to minimize the burden of the 

collection of information on those who 

are to respond, including the use of 

automated collection techniques or 

other forms of information technology. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Michael Howell by telephone at 202– 

693–6782, or by email at DOL_PRA_

PUBLIC@dol.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Department of Labor’s Employee 

Benefits Security Administration 

(EBSA) maintains a program designed to 

provide education and technical 

assistance to participants and 

beneficiaries as well as to employers, 

plan sponsors, and service providers 

related to their health and retirement 

plan benefits. EBSA assists participants 

in understanding their rights, 

responsibilities, and benefits under 

employee benefit law and intervenes 

informally on their behalf with the plan 

sponsor in order to assist them in 

obtaining the health and retirement 

benefits to which they may have been 

inappropriately denied, which can avert 

the necessity for a formal investigation 

or a civil action. EBSA maintains a tollfree telephone number through which 

inquirers can reach Benefits Advisors in 

ten Regional Offices. EBSA has also 

made a request for assistance form 

available on its website for those 

wishing to obtain assistance in this 

manner. Contact with EBSA is entirely 

voluntary. 

The collection of information is an 

intake form for assistance requests from 

the public. This information includes 

the plan type, broad categories of 

problem type, contact information for 

responsible parties, and a mechanism 

for the inquirer to attach relevant 

documents. Summary data from the 

existing intake form has also been used, 

in accordance with section 513 of 

ERISA, to respond to requests for 

information regarding employee benefit 

plans from members of Congress and 

governmental oversight entities, and to 

inform the policy formulation process. 

For additional substantive information 

about this ICR, see the related notice 

published in the Federal Register on 

August 25, 2023 (88 FR 58312). 

This information collection is subject 

to the PRA. A Federal agency generally 

cannot conduct or sponsor a collection 

of information, and the public is 

generally not required to respond to an 

information collection, unless the OMB 

approves it and displays a currently 

valid OMB Control Number. In addition, 

notwithstanding any other provisions of 

law, no person shall generally be subject 

to penalty for failing to comply with a 

collection of information that does not 

display a valid OMB Control Number. 

See 5 CFR 1320.5(a) and 1320.6. 

DOL seeks PRA authorization for this 

information collection for three (3) 

years. OMB authorization for an ICR 

cannot be for more than three (3) years 

without renewal. The DOL notes that 

information collection requirements 

submitted to the OMB for existing ICRs 

receive a month-to-month extension 

while they undergo review. 

Agency: DOL–EBSA. 

Title of Collection: Request for 

Assistance from the Department of 

Labor, Employee Benefits Security 

Administration. 

OMB Control Number: 1210–0146. 

Affected Public: Businesses or other 

for-profits. 

Total Estimated Number of 

Respondents: 14,991. 

Total Estimated Number of 

Responses: 14,991. 

Total Estimated Annual Time Burden: 

7,496 hours. 

Total Estimated Annual Other Costs 

Burden: $0. 

(Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3507(a)(1)(D)) 

Michael Howell, 

Senior Paperwork Reduction Act Analyst. 

[FR Doc. 2024–03659 Filed 2–22–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4510–29–P 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

Occupational Safety and Health 

Administration 

[Docket No. OSHA–2011–0057] 

Excavations Standard (Design of Cavein Protection Systems); Extension of 

the Office of Management and 

Budget’s (OMB) Approval of 

Information Collection (Paperwork) 

Requirements 

AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health 

Administration (OSHA), Labor. 

ACTION: Request for public comments. 

SUMMARY: OSHA solicits public 

comments concerning the proposal to 

extend the Office of Management and 

Budget’s (OMB) approval of the 

information collection requirements 

specified in the Excavations Standard 

(Design of Cave-in Protection Systems). 

DATES: Comments must be submitted 

(postmarked, sent, or received) by April 

23, 2024. 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 37 / Friday, February 23, 2024 / Notices 13751 

ADDRESSES: 

Electronically: You may submit 

comments and attachments 

electronically at https://

www.regulations.gov, which is the 

Federal eRulemaking Portal. Follow the 

instructions online for submitting 

comments. 

Docket: To read or download 

comments or other material in the 

docket, go to https://

www.regulations.gov. Documents in the 

docket are listed in thehttps://

www.regulations.gov index; however, 

some information (e.g., copyrighted 

material) is not publicly available to 

read or download through the websites. 

All submissions, including copyrighted 

material, are available for inspection 

through the OSHA Docket Office. 

Contact the OSHA Docket Office at (202) 

693–2350 (TTY (877) 889–5627) for 

assistance in locating docket 

submissions. 

Instructions: All submissions must 

include the agency name and OSHA 

docket number (OSHA–2011–0057) for 

the Information Collection Request 

(ICR). OSHA will place all comments, 

including any personal information, in 

the public docket, which may be made 

available online. Therefore, OSHA 

cautions interested parties about 

submitting personal information such as 

social security numbers and birthdates. 

For further information on submitting 

comments, see the ‘‘Public 

Participation’’ heading in the section of 

this notice titled SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Seleda Perryman, Directorate of 

Standards and Guidance, OSHA, U.S. 

Department of Labor; telephone (202) 

693–2222. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

The Department of Labor, as part of 

the continuing effort to reduce 

paperwork and respondent (i.e., 

employer) burden, conducts a 

preclearance consultation program to 

provide the public with an opportunity 

to comment on proposed and 

continuing information collection 

requirements in accordance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) 

(44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)). This program 

ensures that information is in the 

desired format, reporting burden (time 

and costs) is minimal, the collection 

instruments are clearly understood, and 

OSHA’s estimate of the information 

collection burden is accurate. The 

Occupational Safety and Health Act of 

1970 (OSH Act) (29 U.S.C. 651 et seq.) 

authorizes information collection by 

employers as necessary or appropriate 

for enforcement of the OSH Act or for 

developing information regarding the 

causes and prevention of occupational 

injuries, illnesses, and accidents (29 

U.S.C. 657). The OSH Act also requires 

that OSHA obtain such information 

with minimum burden upon employers, 

especially those operating small 

businesses, and to reduce to the 

maximum extent feasible unnecessary 

duplication of effort in obtaining 

information (29 U.S.C. 657). 

The following sections describe who 

uses the information collected under 

each requirement, as well as how they 

use it. The purpose of these 

requirements is to reduce employees’ 

risk of death or serious injury while 

working in hazardous conditions due to 

cave-ins. 

Paragraphs (b) and (c) of § 1926.652 

(‘‘Requirements for Protective Systems’’; 

the ‘‘Standard’’) contain paperwork 

requirements that impose burden hours 

or costs on employers. These paragraphs 

require employers to use protective 

systems to prevent cave-ins during 

excavation work; these systems include 

sloping the side of the trench, benching 

the soil away from the excavation, or 

using a trench shielding system (such as 

a trench box). The Standard specifies 

allowable configurations and slopes for 

excavations and provides appendices to 

assist employers in designing protective 

systems. However, paragraphs (b)(3) and 

(4) of the Standard permit employers to 

design sloping or benching systems 

based on tabulated data (Option 3), or to 

use a design approved by a registered 

professional engineer (Option 4). 

Under Option 3, employers must 

provide the tabulated data in a written 

form that also identifies the registered 

professional engineer who approved the 

data and the parameters used to select 

the sloping or benching system drawn 

from the data, as well as the limitations 

of the data (including the magnitude 

and configuration of slopes determined 

to be safe). The document must also 

provide any explanatory information 

necessary to select the correct benching 

system based on the data. Option 2 

requires employers to develop a written 

design approved by a registered 

professional engineer. The design 

information must include the magnitude 

and configuration of the slopes 

determined to be safe, and the identity 

of the registered professional engineer 

who approved the design. 

Paragraph (c)(2)(iii) allows employers 

to use manufacturer’s tabulated data or 

to deviate from the data provided. The 

manufacturer’s specification, 

recommendations, and limitations as 

well as the manufacturer’s approval to 

deviate from these items shall be in 

writing. Paragraphs (c)(3) and (4) allow 

employers to design support systems, 

shield systems, and other protective 

systems based on tabulated data 

provided by a system manufacturer 

(Option 3) or obtained from other 

sources including a registered 

professional engineer and approved by 

a registered professional engineer 

(Option 4). 

Each of these provisions requires 

employers to maintain a copy of the 

documents described in these options at 

the jobsite during construction. After 

construction is completed, employers 

may store the documents off-site 

provided they make them available to 

an OSHA compliance officer on request. 

These documents provide both the 

employer and the compliance officer 

with information needed to determine if 

the selection and design of the 

protective system are appropriate to the 

excavation work, thereby assuring 

workers of maximum protection against 

cave-ins. 

II. Special Issues for Comment 

OSHA has a particular interest in 

comments on the following issues: 

• Whether the proposed information 

collection requirements are necessary 

for the proper performance of the 

agency’s functions to protect workers, 

including whether the information is 

useful; 

• The accuracy of OSHA’s estimate of 

the burden (time and costs) of the 

information collection requirements, 

including the validity of the 

methodology and assumptions used; 

• The quality, utility, and clarity of 

the information collected; and 

• Ways to minimize the burden on 

employers who must comply; for 

example, by using automated or other 

technological information, and 

transmission techniques. 

III. Proposed Actions 

OSHA is requesting that OMB extend 

the approval of the information 

collection requirements contained in the 

Excavations Standard. The agency is 

requesting an adjustment decrease in 

burden hours from 40,041 hours to 

22,697 hours, a difference of 17,344 

hours. This decrease is due to the 

number of apartment and nonresidential construction projects/sites 

from 5,720 to 3,243. 

OSHA will summarize the comments 

submitted in response to this notice and 

will include this summary in the 

request to OMB to extend the approval 

of the information collection 

requirements. 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1
13752 Federal Register / Vol. 89, No. 37 / Friday, February 23, 2024 / Notices 

Type of Review: Extension of a 

currently approved collection. 

Title: Excavations Standard (Design of 

Cave-in Protection Systems). 

OMB Control Number: 1218–0137. 

Affected Public: Business or other forprofits. 

Number of Respondents: 1,144,081. 

Number of Responses: 22,697. 

Frequency of Responses: On occasion. 

Average Time per Response: Varies. 

Estimated Total Burden Hours: 

22,697. 

Estimated Cost (Operation and 

Maintenance): $430,152. 

IV. Public Participation—Submission of 

Comments on This Notice and Internet 

Access to Comments and Submissions 

You may submit comments in 

response to this document as follows: 

(1) electronically at https://

www.regulations.gov, which is the 

Federal eRulemaking Portal; or (2) by 

facsimile (fax), if your comments, 

including attachments, are not longer 

than 10 pages you may fax them to the 

OSHA Docket Office at 202–693–1648. 

All comments, attachments, and other 

material must identify the agency name 

and the OSHA docket number for the 

ICR (Docket No. OSHA–2011–0057). 

You may supplement electronic 

submission by uploading document files 

electronically. 

Comments and submissions are 

posted without change at http://

www.regulations.gov. Therefore, OSHA 

cautions commenters about submitting 

personal information such as social 

security numbers and dates of birth. 

Although all submissions are listed in 

the https://www.regulations.gov index, 

some information (e.g., copyrighted 

material) is not publicly available to 

read or download from this website. All 

submission, including copyrighted 

material, are available for inspection 

and copying at the OSHA Docket Office. 

Information on using the https://

www.regulations.gov website to submit 

comments and access the docket is 

available at the website’s ‘‘User Tips’’ 

link. Contact the OSHA Docket Office at 

(202) 693–2350, (TTY (877) 889–5627) 

for information about materials not 

available from the website, and for 

assistance in using the internet to locate 

docket submissions. 

V. Authority and Signature 

James S. Frederick, Deputy Assistant 

Secretary of Labor for Occupational 

Safety and Health, directed the 

preparation of this notice. The authority 

for this notice is the Paperwork 

Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3506 

et seq.) and Secretary of Labor’s Order 

No. 8–2020 (85 FR 58393). 

Signed at Washington, DC, on February 15, 

2024. 

James S. Frederick, 

Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor for 

Occupational Safety and Health. 

[FR Doc. 2024–03636 Filed 2–22–24; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4510–26–P 

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

Occupational Safety and Health 

Administration 

[Docket No. OSHA–2009–0045] 

Powered Industrial Trucks Standard; 

Extension of the Office of Management 

and Budget’s (OMB) Approval of 

Information Collection (Paperwork) 

Requirements 

AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health 

Administration (OSHA), Labor. 

ACTION: Request for public comments. 

SUMMARY: OSHA solicits public 

comments concerning the proposal to 

extend the Office of Management and 

Budget’s (OMB) approval of the 

information collection requirements 

specified in the Powered Industrial 

Trucks Standard. 

DATES: Comments must be submitted 

(postmarked, sent, or received) by April 

23, 2024. 

ADDRESSES: 

Electronically: You may submit 

comments and attachments 

electronically at https://

www.regulations.gov, which is the 

Federal eRulemaking Portal. Follow the 

instructions online for submitting 

comments. 

Docket: To read or download 

comments or other material in the 

docket, go to https://

www.regulations.gov. Documents in the 

docket are listed in the https://

www.regulations.gov index; however, 

some information (e.g., copyrighted 

material) is not publicly available to 

read or download through the websites. 

All submissions, including copyrighted 

material, are available for inspection 

through the OSHA Docket Office. 

Contact the OSHA Docket Office at (202) 

693–2350 (TTY (877) 889–5627) for 

assistance in locating docket 

submissions. 

Instructions: All submissions must 

include the agency name and OSHA 

docket number (OSHA–2009–0045) for 

the Information Collection Request 

(ICR). OSHA will place all comments, 

including any personal information, in 

the public docket, which may be made 

available online. Therefore, OSHA 

cautions interested parties about 

submitting personal information such as 

social security numbers and birthdates. 

For further information on submitting 

comments, see the ‘‘Public 

Participation’’ heading in the section of 

this notice titled SUPPLEMENTARY

INFORMATION. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Seleda Perryman, Directorate of 

Standards and Guidance, OSHA, U.S. 

Department of Labor; telephone (202) 

693–2222. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

The Department of Labor, as part of 

the continuing effort to reduce 

paperwork and respondent (i.e., 

employer) burden, conducts a 

preclearance consultation program to 

provide the public with an opportunity 

to comment on proposed and 

continuing information collection 

requirements in accordance with the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) 

(44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)). This program 

ensures that information is in the 

desired format, reporting burden (time 

and costs) is minimal, the collection 

instruments are clearly understood, and 

OSHA’s estimate of the information 

collection burden is accurate. The 

Occupational Safety and Health Act of 

1970 (OSH Act) (29 U.S.C. 651 et seq.) 

authorizes information collection by 

employers as necessary or appropriate 

for enforcement of the OSH Act or for 

developing information regarding the 

causes and prevention of occupational 

injuries, illnesses, and accidents (29 

U.S.C. 657). The OSH Act also requires 

that OSHA obtain such information 

with minimum burden upon employers, 

especially those operating small 

businesses, and to reduce to the 

maximum extent feasible unnecessary 

duplication of effort in obtaining 

information (29 U.S.C. 657). 

The following sections describe who 

uses the information collected under 

each requirement, as well as how they 

use it. 

The purpose of these requirements is 

to address truck design, construction, 

and modification, as well as 

certification of training and evaluation 

for truck operators. 

II. Special Issues for Comment 

OSHA has a particular interest in 

comments on the following issues: 

• Whether the proposed information 

collection requirements are necessary 

for the proper performance of the 

agency’s functions to protect workers, 

including whether the information is 

useful; 

• The accuracy of OSHA’s estimate of 

the burden (time and costs) of the 


ddrumheller on DSK120RN23PROD with NOTICES1