[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 207 (Friday, October 25, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 85197-85198]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-24843]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OLEM-2024-0477; FRL 12345-01-OLEM]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Information 
Collection Request; Comment Request; Brownfields Program--
Accomplishment Reporting in Assessment, Cleanup and Redevelopment 
Exchange System (ACRES) (Revision)

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is planning to 
submit an information collection request (ICR), Brownfields Program--
Accomplishment Reporting in Assessment, Cleanup and Redevelopment 
Exchange System (ACRES) (EPA ICR Number 2104.10, OMB Control Number 
2050-0192) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and 
approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act. Before doing 
so, EPA is soliciting public comments on specific aspects of the 
proposed information collection as described below. This is a proposed 
extension of the ICR, which is currently approved through March 31, 
2026. This notice allows for 60 days for public comments.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before December 24, 2024.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, referencing Docket ID Number EPA-HQ-
OLEM-2024-0477, to EPA online using www.regulations.gov (our preferred 
method), 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nicole Wireman, Office of Brownfields 
and Land Revitalization, (5105T), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 
Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 
566-2649; email address: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#d1a6b8a3b4bcb0bfffbfb8b2bebdb491b4a1b0ffb6bea7"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="f6819f84939b9798d8989f95999a93b6938697d8919980">[email protected]</span></a>.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a proposed extension of the ICR, 
which is currently approved through March 31, 2026. 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.
    This notice allows 60 days for 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.
    Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, EPA is soliciting 
comments and information to enable it to: (i) Evaluate whether the 
proposed collection of information is necessary

[[Page 85198]]

for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, including 
whether the information will have practical utility; (ii) evaluate 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; (iii) enhance the quality, utility, and clarity 
of the information to be collected; and (iv) minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on those who are to respond, including 
through the use of appropriate forms of information technology. EPA 
will consider the comments received and amend the ICR as appropriate. 
The final ICR package will then be submitted to OMB for review and 
approval. At that time, EPA will issue another Federal Register notice 
to announce the submission of the ICR to OMB and the opportunity to 
submit additional comments to OMB.
    Abstract: This ICR covers the collection of information from those 
organizations that receive cooperative agreements, contracts, and 
Targeted Brownfields Assessment (TBA) funds from EPA under the 
authority of the section 104(k) of the Comprehensive Environmental 
Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) as amended by the 
Brownfields Utilization, Investment, and Local Development (BUILD) Act 
(Pub. L. 115-141). CERCLA 104(k), as amended, authorizes EPA to award 
grants or cooperative agreements and contract funding to states, 
tribes, local governments, other eligible entities, and nonprofit 
organizations to support the assessment and cleanup of brownfields 
sites. Under section 101(39) of CERCLA, a brownfields site means real 
property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse of which may be 
complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous 
substance, pollutant, or contaminant. Cooperative agreement recipients 
(``recipients'') have general reporting and record keeping requirements 
as a condition of their cooperative agreement that result in burden. A 
portion of this reporting and record keeping burden is authorized under 
2 CFR part 1500 and identified in the EPA's general grants ICR (OMB 
Control Number 2030-0020). EPA requires Brownfields program recipients 
to maintain and report additional information to EPA on the uses and 
accomplishments associated with funded brownfields activities. EPA has 
expanded programmatic reporting requirements to include TBA contractors 
and technical assistance contractors. EPA will use several forms to 
assist recipients and contractors in reporting the information and to 
ensure consistency of the information collected. EPA uses this 
information to meet Federal stewardship responsibilities to manage and 
track how program funds are being spent, to evaluate the performance of 
the Brownfields Cleanup and Land Revitalization Program, to meet the 
Agency's reporting requirements under the Government Performance and 
Results Act, and to report to Congress and other program stakeholders 
on the status and accomplishments of the program.
    Form Numbers: EPA ICR No. 2104.10, OMB Control No. 2050-0192.
    Respondents/affected entities: State/local/tribal governments; Non-
Profits; Contractors.
    Respondent's obligation to respond: Required to obtain or Retain 
Benefits (2 CFR part 1500).
    Estimated number of respondents: 2,697 (total).
    Frequency of response: Varies but generally bi-annual for subtitle 
CERCLA 128 recipients and quarterly for CERCLA 104(k) recipients.
    Total estimated burden: 11,548 hours (per year). Burden is defined 
at 5 CFR 1320.03(b).
    Total estimated cost: $1,622,953 (per year), which includes $0 
annualized capital or operation & maintenance costs.
    Changes in the Estimates: There is an increase of 7,740 hours in 
the total estimated respondent burden compared with the ICR currently 
approved by OMB. The increase in reporting hours and cost is due to the 
introduction of electronic quarterly and annual progress reporting 
forms in ACRES for six cooperative agreement types. Recipients have 
always been required to submit quarterly and annual progress reports 
per their cooperative agreement terms and conditions, but this is the 
first time an electronic form option is available in ACRES. Including 
these forms in ACRES enables several fields to be prefilled with 
existing ACRES data, saving the recipient significant time compared to 
completing progress reporting outside of ACRES. This reporting 
enhancement will enable a larger number of respondents to use forms 
under this ICR, resulting in an overall increase in the total burden 
hours. Yet the electronic forms are anticipated to result in an overall 
decrease in burden hours per individual respondent. With respect to 
ACRES forms previously submitted as part of this ICR, recipients 
interviewed during the last few years have self-reported data entry 
times at half the burden hours compared to previous estimates. This can 
be attributed to the tremendous improvements in the ACRES database to 
streamline reporting requirements over the past several years. The new 
quarterly and annual reporting forms continue such efforts and will 
help ensure recipients comply with their cooperative agreement terms 
and conditions.

Patricia Overmeyer,
Acting Director, Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization.
[FR Doc. 2024-24843 Filed 10-24-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P


</pre><script data-cfasync="false" src="/cdn-cgi/scripts/5c5dd728/cloudflare-static/email-decode.min.js"></script></body>
</html>