[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 189 (Monday, September 30, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 79687-79688]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-22302]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

[Docket No. DOT-OST-2024-0021]


Agency Requests for Approval of a New Information Collection: The 
Department of Transportation Title VI Program

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary (OST), Department of Transportation.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Transportation (DOT or Department) invites 
public comments about our intention to request the Office of Management 
and Budget's (OMB) approval for an information collection for the 
Department's activities conducted pursuant to Title VI of the Civil 
Rights Act of 1964. We are required to publish this notice in the 
Federal Register by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

DATES: Written comments should be submitted by November 29, 2024.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Docket No. DOT-OST-
2024-0021 through one of the following methods:
    <bullet> Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
    <bullet> Mail or Hand Delivery: Docket Management Facility, U.S. 
Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, 
Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday 
through Friday, except on Federal holidays. To ensure that someone is 
present to assist you, please call prior to visiting.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Chris Cialeo, Office of the General 
Counsel, Office of the Secretary, U.S. Department of Transportation, 
1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590, (202) 366-8789 or 
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#b2d1dac0dbc1c6ddc2dad7c09cd1dbd3ded7ddf2d6ddc69cd5ddc4"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="92f1fae0fbe1e6fde2faf7e0bcf1fbf3fef7fdd2f6fde6bcf5fde4">[email protected]</span></a>.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:  Title VI states that ``[n]o person in the 
United States shall, on the grounds of race, color, or national origin, 
be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be 
subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving 
Federal financial assistance.'' 42. U.S.C. 2000d.
    To achieve this purpose, each Federal department and agency which 
provides financial assistance for any program or activity is authorized 
and directed by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to effectuate 
provisions of Title VI for each program or activity by issuing 
generally applicable regulations or requirements. The Department of 
Transportation (DOT) has issued its regulations implementing this DOJ 
mandate at 49 CFR part 21.
    Pursuant to its Title VI regulations, DOT is responsible for 
ensuring that DOT-assisted programs and activities are carried out in a 
manner consistent with Title VI. The employment practices of a grant 
applicant, recipient, or sub-recipient are also covered under Title VI 
if the primary purpose of the DOT-supported program is to provide 
employment, or if those employment practices would result in 
discrimination against beneficiaries of DOT-assisted services and 
benefits. All project sponsors receiving financial assistance pursuant 
to a DOT-funded project shall not discriminate in the provision of 
services because of race, color, or national origin. This information 
collection will cover all Title VI information collections undertaken 
by DOT and its operating administrations (OAs) and would eliminate the 
need for different DOT OAs to submit individual Title VI information 
collection requests to OMB. Collection of Title VI information includes 
Title VI certifications and assurances, pre-award assessments, Title VI 
program plans, community participation plans, and compliance reviews. 
DOT's Title VI implementing regulations and the Department of Justice 
(DOJ) regulation Coordination of Non-discrimination in Federally 
Assisted Programs provide for the collection of data and information 
from recipients (see 49 CFR 21.7(a), 21.9; 28 CFR 42.406, 42.407(a)).
    We have characterized this as a new collection because it is the 
first time that the Department-wide clearance has been sought for the 
Department's Title VI information collections, though Title VI 
information collections have been sought in the past by different OAs 
and for different grant programs. Upon OMB approval of this Title VI 
collection, DOT plans to terminate any duplicative OA collections that 
were previously approved separately. In addition, pursuant to the 
Department's current Title VI Order (DOT Order 1000.12C), DOT will be 
collecting information pursuant to its Title VI-related activities that 
was not collected under the

[[Page 79688]]

preceding Title VI Order. Specifically, new information will include 
community participation plans and pre-award assessments, in addition to 
the Title VI plans and compliance reviews collected under the preceding 
Title VI Order that will continue to be collected under DOT Order 
1000.12C. Because OAs are authorized by the Title VI Order to tailor 
their financial assistance application guidelines, the actual 
information collected may vary between OAs. A copy of the Department's 
proposed Title VI pre-award assessment template form is available for 
public comment in the docket.
    To help commenters provide information that will better allow the 
Department to include the appropriate paperwork burden within this 
collection, we offer the following clarifications. A ``collection of 
information,'' is defined as ``the obtaining, causing to be obtained, 
soliciting, or requiring the disclosure to an agency, third parties or 
the public of information by or for an agency by means of identical 
questions posed to, or identical reporting, recordkeeping, or 
disclosure requirements imposed on, ten or more persons.'' 5 CFR 
1320.3(c)(1). The activities that constitute the ``burden'' associated 
with a collection are defined in 5 CFR 1320.3(b)(1) as ``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.'' Importantly, this burden is not necessarily the same 
as the entire regulatory burden for a program or an aspect of a 
program.
    Public Comments Invited: You are asked to comment on any aspect of 
this information collection, including (a) Whether the proposed 
collection of information is necessary for the Department's 
performance; (b) the accuracy of the estimated burden; (c) ways for the 
Department to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information collection; and (d) ways that the burden could be minimized 
without reducing the quality of the collected information. The agency 
will summarize and/or include your comments in the request for OMB's 
clearance of this information collection.
    Respondents: Airports, cities, counties, ports, Metropolitan 
Planning Organizations, railroads, shipyards, States, transit agencies, 
and universities.
    Estimated Annual Burden per Respondent: Burden hours are provided 
by OA based on the specific Title VI compliance activity. The total 
number listed is the number that would be required to complete all five 
identified activities (Title VI Assurances, Pre-Award Assessments, 
Title VI Plans, Community Participation Plans, and Compliance Reviews). 
Because certain activities, such as Compliance Reviews and the Pre-
Award Assessment Form, will not apply to every recipient every year, 
the actual burden per respondent is likely to be lower.

Federal Aviation Administration: 43 hours (1 hour for Title VI 
Assurances, 2 hours for Pre-Award Assessments, 20 hours for Title VI 
plans, 10 hours for Community Participation Plans, 10 hours for 
Compliance Reviews)
Federal Highway Administration: 138 hours (1 hour for Title VI 
Assurances, 5 hours for Pre-Award Assessments, 60 hours for Title VI 
plans, 40 hours for Community Participation Plans, 32 hours for 
Compliance Reviews)
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration: 13 hours (1 hour for Title 
VI Assurances, 3 hours for Pre-Award Assessments, 3 hours for Title VI 
plans, 3 hours for Community Participation Plans, 3 hours for 
Compliance Reviews)
Federal Railroad Administration: 209 hours (1 hour for Title VI 
Assurances, 8 hours for Pre-Award Assessments, 80 hours for Title VI 
plans, 80 hours for Community Participation Plans, 40 hours for 
Compliance Reviews)
Federal Transit Administration: 37 hours (1 hour for Title VI 
Assurances, 3 hours for Pre-Award Assessments, 16 hours for Title VI 
plans, 2 hours for Community Participation Plans, 15 hours for 
Compliance Reviews)
Maritime Administration: 163 hours (1 hour for Title VI Assurances, 22 
hours for Pre-Award Assessments, 20 hours for Title VI plans, 40 hours 
for Community Participation Plans, 80 hours for Compliance Reviews)
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration: 141 hours (1 hour for 
Title VI Assurances, 40 hours for Pre-Award Assessments, 40 hours for 
Title VI plans, 60 hours for Community Participation Plans)
Office of the Secretary: 49 hours (1 hour for Title VI Assurances, 8 
hours for Pre-Award Assessments, 25 hours for Title VI plans, 15 hours 
for Community Participation Plans)
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration: 16 hours (1 
hour for Title VI Assurances, 7 hours for Pre-Award Assessments, 6 
hours for Title VI plans, 2 hours for Community Participation Plans)
    Estimated Total Annual Burden: 133,422 hours, Department-wide. A 
breakdown of the total burden by OA is included below.

Federal Aviation Administration: 59,800 hours
Federal Highway Administration: 7,314 hours
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration: 1,672 hours
Federal Railroad Administration: 6,360 hours
Federal Transit Administration: 10,508 hours
Maritime Administration: 15,948 hours
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration: 10,716 hours
Office of the Secretary: 2,940 hours
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration: 4,400 hours

    Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. chapter 
35, as amended; and 49 CFR 1.49.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on September 25, 2024.
Peter Constantine,
Assistant General Counsel for General Law.
[FR Doc. 2024-22302 Filed 9-27-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-9X-P


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