### 71773 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 233 / Tuesday, December 4, 2012 / Notices

connection between the amounts of organic matter produced and how crop residues impact future crop yields. General authority for these data collection activities is granted under U.S. Code Title 7, Section 2204(a) which specifies that ‘‘The Secretary of Agriculture shall procure and preserve all information concerning agriculture which he can obtain * * * by the collection of statistics * * * and shall distribute them among agriculturists.’’ Individually identifiable data collected under this authority are governed by Section 1770 of the Food Security Act of 1985 as amended, 7 U.S.C. 2276, which requires USDA to afford strict confidentiality to non-aggregated data provided by respondents.

Need and Use of the Information: This study will investigate the effect crop residue removal has on soil and water quality. The study will use, as a sampling universe fields in the South Fork watershed in central Iowa. The study will be conducted in several phases. Permission forms will be presented to farm operators. With the farmers permission the field enumerators will return several times during the growing season to measure and collect samples from the target areas. Measurements of crop residues will be compared with remote sensed data to measure crop residue cover and soil tillage intensity for the entire watershed. After measurements and samples are taken the farm operators will be asked to complete a questionnaire and, if possible provide a yield map. The questionnaire and yield maps help associate measured residue and biomass to specific field management plans and provide realistic operation files for the water and soil quality models. Without this collection, our knowledge of the management practices in the watershed would be severely limited.

Description of Respondents: Business or other for-profit; Farms.

Number of Respondents: 100. Frequency of Responses: Reporting: One time.

Total Burden Hours: 52.

Charlene Parker, Departmental Information Collection Clearance Officer.

[FR Doc. 2012–29162 Filed 12–3–12; 8:45 am]

**BILLING CODE 3410–20–P DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE** 

**Agricultural Marketing Service**

**[Doc. No. AMS–LS–12–0047]**

**Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling of Covered Commodities: Notice of**  **Request for Revision of a Currently Approved Information Collection** 

**AGENCY :**  Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

**ACTION :**  Notice and request for

comments.

**SUMMARY :**  In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), this notice announces the Agricultural Marketing Service’s (AMS) intention to request approval, from the Office of Management and Budget, for an extension and revision to the currently approved information collection of the Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) of Covered Commodities.

**DATES :**  Comments must be received by February 4, 2013.

Comments: Comments should be submitted electronically at http:// www.regulations.gov. Comments may also be submitted to Julie Henderson, Director, COOL Division, Livestock, Poultry, and Seed Program, Agricultural Marketing Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA); STOP 0216; 1400 Independence Avenue SW., Room 2620–S; Washington, DC 20250–0216. All comments should reference docket number AMS–LS–12–0047 and note the date and page number of this issue of the Federal Register

.

Submitted comments will be available for public inspection at http:// www.regulations.gov or at the above address during regular business hours. Comments submitted in response to this Notice will be included in the records and will be made available to the public. Please be advised that the identity of the individuals or entities submitting the comments will be made public on the Internet at the above address.

**FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT :**  Julie Henderson, Director, COOL Division, AMS, USDA, by telephone at (202) 720– 4486, or email at julie.henderson@ams.usda.gov

. **SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION :** 

Title: Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling of Covered Commodities.

OMB Number: 0581–0250. Expiration Date of Approval: March 31, 2013.

Type of Request: Request for Revision of a Currently Approved Information Collection Abstract: The 2002 and 2008 Farm Bills amended the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 to require retailers to notify their customers of the country of origin of muscle cuts and ground beef (including veal), lamb,pork, chicken, and goat; wild and farmraised fish and shellfish; perishable agricultural commodities; peanuts, pecans, and macadamia nuts; and ginseng. An interim final rule for mandatory COOL for fish and shellfish became effective on April 4, 2005. An interim final rule for the remaining covered commodities became effective on September 30, 2008. On January 15, 2009, a final rule was published for all covered commodities which became effective March 16, 2009. Enforcement activities have been conducted since 2006 utilizing cooperative agreements established with State agencies.

Individuals who supply covered commodities, whether directly to retailers or indirectly through other participants in the marketing chain, are required to establish and maintain country of origin and, if applicable, method of production information for the covered commodities and supply this information to retailers. As a result producers, handlers, manufacturers, wholesalers, importers and retailers of covered commodities are affected.

This public reporting burden is a necessary to ensure accuracy of country of origin and method of production declarations relied upon at the point of sale at retail. The public reporting burden also assures that all parties involved in supplying covered commodities to retail stores maintain and convey accurate information as required.

Estimate of Burden: Public reporting burden for recordkeeping storage and maintenance is estimated to average 19 hours per year per individual.

Respondents: Retailers, wholesalers, producers, handlers, and importers.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 1,655,905.

Estimated Total Annual Responses: 31,437,002.

Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 19.

Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 31,437,002.

Comments are invited on: (1) 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; (2) the accuracy of the agency’s estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and


### 71774 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 233 / Tuesday, December 4, 2012 / Notices

clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including 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 for OMB approval. All comments will become a matter of public record.

Dated: November 28, 2012. David R. Shipman, Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service.
[FR Doc. 2012–29167 Filed 12–3–12; 8:45 am]

**BILLING CODE 3410–02–P**

**DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE**

**Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service** 

**[Docket No. APHIS–2012–0092]**

**Notice of Request for Extension of Approval of an Information Collection;**  **National Management Information System** 

**AGENCY :**  Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

**ACTION :**  Extension of approval of an information collection; comment request.

**SUMMARY :**  In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s intention to request an extension of approval of an information collection associated with cooperative wildlife damage management programs.

**DATES :**  We will consider all comments that we receive on or before February 4,

2013.

**ADDRESSES :**  You may submit comments by either of the following methods:

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/ #!documentDetail;D=APHIS-2012-0092-

0001.

• Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to Docket No. APHIS–2012–0092, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 3A–03.8, 4700 River Road, Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737–1238.

Supporting documents and any comments we receive on this docket may be viewed at http:// www.regulations.gov/ #!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2012-0092 or in our reading room, which is located in room 1141 of the USDA South Building, 14th Street and Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC. Normal reading room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except holidays. To be sure someone is there to help you, please call (202) 799–7039 before coming.

**FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT :**  For information on the national management information system for cooperative wildlife damage management programs, contact Mr. Robert Myers, Wildlife Biologist, Wildlife Services, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 87, Riverdale, MD 20737; (301) 651–8845. For copies of more detailed information on the information collection, contact Mrs. Celeste Sickles, APHIS’ Information Collection Coordinator, at (301) 851–2908.

**SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION :** 

Title: National Management Information System.

OMB Number: 0579–0335. Type of Request: Extension of approval of an information collection.

Abstract: As authorized by the Animal Damage Control Act of 1931 (7 U.S.C. 426–426c; 46 Stat. 1468), as amended, the Secretary of Agriculture may conduct activities and enter into agreements with States, local jurisdictions, individuals, public and private agencies, organizations, and institutions in the control of nuisance mammals and birds and those mammal and bird species that are reservoirs for zoonotic diseases.

Wildlife Services (WS) of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), U.S. Department of Agriculture, cooperates with Federal agencies, State and local governments, and private individuals to research and implement the best methods of managing conflicts between wildlife and human health and safety, agriculture, property, and natural resources.

Program activities usually consist of either cooperative direct control or technical assistance programs. As part of its program, WS enters into agreements to document the terms and conditions for cooperating with parties outside of APHIS (those parties are referred to as ‘‘cooperators’’). In response to requests for assistance in managing wildlife damage, WS collects information about organizations, industry, Federal and non-Federal entities, and members of public as part of its program. Information is collected through the use of work initiation documents, cooperative agreement forms, supply order forms and sales records, project reports, and a resource values survey. The information collected through these forms is used by the Agency to: • Identify cooperators appropriately.

• Identify lands on which WS personnel will work.

• Differentiate between cooperators (i.e., property owners, land managers, or resource owners) who request assistance in managing damage caused by wildlife.

• Identify the land areas on which wildlife damage management activities would be conducted.

• Identify the relationship between resources or property, WS’ protection of such resources or property, and the damage caused by wildlife.

• Determine the methods or damage management activities to deal with the damage.

• Establish a record that a cooperative agreement has been entered into with a cooperator.

• Document that permission has been obtained from landowners to go on the cooperator’s property.

• Record wildlife damage occurrences on cooperator’s property and steps to address them.

• Record occurrences that may have affected non-target species or humans during, or related to, WS project actions.

• Determine satisfaction with service to help WS evaluate, modify, and improve its program.

We are asking the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to approve our use of these information collection activities for an additional 3

years.

The purpose of this notice is to solicit comments from the public (as well as affected agencies) concerning our information collection. These comments will help us:

(1) Evaluate whether the collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, including whether the information will have practical utility;

(2) Evaluate the accuracy of our estimate of the burden of the collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used;

(3) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and

(4) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, through use, as appropriate, of automated, electronic, mechanical, and other collection technologies; e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses.

Estimate of burden: The public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 0.04623497 hours per response.

Respondents: Federal, State, and local agencies, and the public who request services from WS or engage in wildlife damage management projects with WS.