Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 238 / Monday, December 11, 2000 / Notices 77375

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

AGENCY

[FRL–6914–2]

Agency Information Collection

Activities; Submission for OMB

Review; Comment Request; Measuring

Success of EPA Compliance

Assistance

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 approval: Measuring Success

of EPA Compliance Assistance ICR

number 1921.01. The ICR describes the

nature of the information collection, the

expected burden and cost to collect the

information, and the actual collection

instruments.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on

or before January 10, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Send comments, referencing

EPA ICR No. 1921.01 to the following

addresses: Sandy Farmer, U.S.

Environmental Protection Agency,

Collection Strategies Division (Mail

Code 2822), 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue,

NW., Washington, DC 20460; and to

Office of Information and Regulatory

Affairs, Office of Management and

Budget (OMB), Attention: Desk Officer

for EPA, 725 17th Street, NW.,

Washington, DC 20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For

a copy of the ICR contact Sandy Farmer

at EPA by phone at (202) 260–2740, by

email at farmer.sandy@epa.gov, or

download off the Internet at http://

www.epa.gov/icr and refer to EPA ICR

No. 1921.01. For technical questions

about the ICR contact Tracy Back, Office

of Compliance, (202) 564–7076.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Title: Information Collection Request

for Compliance Assistance Tool

Evaluation Surveys, EPA ICR Number

1921.01. This is a new collection.

Abstract: This will be a voluntary

collection of information to gather

customer satisfaction and behavioral

change feedback on EPA compliance

assistance, as well as data on the

resulting impact on compliance.

There are two components to this

voluntary collection of information.

First, EPA proposes to obtain customer

feedback on a variety of compliance

assistance tools and activities,

including: Compliance assistance

products; seminars/workshops; on-site

visits; telephone assistance/hotlines;

and Internet Websites. In addition to

assessing customer satisfaction with

EPA’s compliance assistance tools and

activities, EPA is also interested in

learning what actions were or will be

taken by survey respondents to improve

their compliance status and

environmental performance, in whole or

in part, as a result of the compliance

assistance provided by EPA.

Secondly, EPA proposes to seek

information from state/local regulating

agencies and committees regarding the

impact of EPA’s compliance assistance

activities on the state of compliance.

The regulating agencies and state/local

committees will be asked whether EPA’s

compliance assistance initiatives

resulted in improved compliance.

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 August

10, 1999 (64 FR 43380); no comments

were received.

It is estimated that approximately

317,920 entities may voluntarily

complete and return a compliance

assistance activity or tool assessment

survey on an annual basis. EPA

estimates that participating entities may

need to spend between five to twenty

minutes to complete either the complete

compliance assistance product,

seminar/workshop; on-site visit;

telephone assistance/hotline; or internet

website assessment survey. Therefore, a

total of 28,374 person hours annually

may be expended to provide EPA with

data to evaluate the effectiveness of its

compliance assistance tools and

activities. This burden hour estimate

translates to a cost of $6.24 per facility

who voluntarily completes the survey

and a total cost to industry of

$1,966,295. The costs were calculated

based on $33.00 per hour plus a 110

overhead for a total labor cost of $69.30.

In addition, EPA estimates that

participating state and local

governments may need to spend two

hours and 55 minutes to complete the

‘‘impact of compliance activities’’

survey instrument. Therefore, a total of

2,306 person hours within the regulated

community may be expended annually

to provide EPA with data to evaluate the

impact of its compliance assistance

activities. This burden hour estimate

translates to a cost of $1,610 per state or

local government who voluntarily

completes the survey and a total cost of

$85,367. These costs were calculated

based on labor rates of $17.48 per hour

plus 110% overhead for a total labor

rate of $36.71, plus $30.34 plus 110%

overhead for a supervisory rate of

$63.71. The labor rates were obtained

from the United States of Commerce,

Bureau of Labor Statistics, March 1998,

Table 4: Employment Costs of State and

Local Government.

Burden Statement: The average time

to complete the survey for participating

entities is 5–20 minutes and nearly 3

hours for state and local governments .

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: state/

local agencies and participating entities

that have used EPA compliance tools.

Estimated Number of Respondents:

317,920.

Frequency of Response: one time.

Estimated Total Annual Hour Burden:

30,679 hours.

Estimated Total Annualized Capital,

O&M Cost Burden: $0.

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 addresses listed above.

Please refer to EPA ICR No. 1921.01 in

any correspondence.

Dated: November 28, 2000.

Oscar Morales,

Director, Collection Strategies Division.

[FR Doc. 00–31467 Filed 12–8–00; 8:45 am]

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