Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 14 /Thursday, January 22, 1998 / Notices 3343

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service

[WO–830–1030–2–241A]

Agency Information Collection

Activities: Proposed Collection;

Comment Request

AGENCIES: Bureau of Land Management,

Interior, and United States Forest

Service, Agriculture.

ACTION: Notice and request for

comments.

SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land

Management (BLM) and the U.S. Forest

Service are soliciting comments

concerning the proposed three-year joint

collection of information that would

conduct surveys of the public in each of

their users groups.

DATES: Written comments must be

submitted on or before March 23, 1998

to be assured of consideration.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to John

Kerwyn Keith, Management Systems

Group, Business and Fiscal Resources

Directorate, Bureau of Land

Management, 1849 C Street, NW, Room

LS1000, Washington, DC 20240 (fax:

202–452–5171, email:

j55keith@wo.blm.gov).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

John Kerwyn Keith at 202–452–5159.

NATURE OF COMMENTS: We specifically

request your comments on the proposed

collection in the following areas:

(1) Whether the collection of

information is necessary for the proper

functioning of BLM and the Forest

Service;

(2) The accuracy of our estimates of

the burden of collecting the information,

including the validity of the

methodology and assumptions used;

(3) The quality, utility, and clarity of

the information collected; and

(4) How to minimize the burden of

collecting the information on those who

are to respond, including using the

appropriate automated, electronic,

mechanical or other forms of

information technology.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

II. Current Actions

III. Methodology

IV. Requests for Comments

I. Background

The Government Performance and

Results Act of 1993 (Pub. L. No. 103–62)

sets out to ‘‘improve Federal program

effectiveness and public accountability

by promoting a new focus on results,

service quality, and customer

satisfaction’’ (Section 2, b, 3). In order

to fulfill this responsibility, the BLM

and the Forest Service must collect data

from their respective user groups to (1)

better understand the needs and desires

of the public and (2) respond to those

needs and desires accordingly.

This course of action is fortified by

Executive Order No. 12862, signed by

the President on September 11, 1993,

aimed at ‘‘ensuring the Federal

government provides the highest quality

service possible to the American

people.’’ The Order discusses surveys as

a means for determining the kinds and

qualities of services desired by the

Federal Government’s customers and for

determining satisfaction levels for

existing services. These voluntary

customer surveys will be used to

ascertain customer satisfaction with the

BLM and Forest Service in terms of

services and products. Respondents will

be individuals and organizations that

are the recipients of the BLM and Forest

Service’s services and products.

Previous customer surveys have

provided useful information to the BLM

and Forest Service for assessing how

well we deliver our services and

products and for making improvements.

The results are used internally and

summaries are provided to the Office of

Management and Budget on an annual

basis and are used to satisfy the

requirements and spirit of Executive

Order No. 12862.

Continuing to work collectively on

issues that pertain to the outside public,

the BLM and Forest Service anticipate

performing all of their customer surveys

under one three-year clearance. Where

applicable, similar questions will be

asked in the surveys of the two agencies,

thus allowing better bench marking

between the agencies.

II. Current Actions

The request to OMB will be for a

three-year clearance to conduct

customer surveys in the BLM and the
3344 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 14 /Thursday, January 22, 1998 / Notices

Forest Service. During the past

clearance cycle the BLM conducted 17

customer surveys and the Forest Service

conducted 9 surveys by telephone and

mail. (Examples of previously

conducted customer surveys are

available upon request.) Our planned

activities in the next three fiscal years

reflect our increased emphasis on and

expansion of these activities.

III. Methodology

The BLM and Forest Service survey

customers in the following general

categories: (1) Use requiring

authorization; (2) state and private

forestry; (3) timber sales; (4) wild horse

and burro; (5) research; (6) law

enforcement; (7) fire and aviation; (8)

wildlife and fisheries; (9) recreation;

(10) information [general, land, title,

and technology-based]; (11) pilot

programs; (12) stakeholders and

partners; and (13) state and local

governments.

A stratified sampling technique is

employed for categories 1 through 8;

categories 9 and 10 use intercept

surveys; and a general sampling

technique is employed for categories 11

through 13. The randomized sample

pulled from the databases will include

an estimated 1200 persons unless the

population is less than 1200, at which

point the entire user population will be

surveyed. An 80% response rate goal

has been set; for this reason, whenever

possible telephone surveys are chosen

over mail surveys.

Parallel to this effort, comment cards

will be solicited from all of the above

groups on an intercept basis—

accompanying transaction performed

with the agencies.

The questionnaires are developed

with the help of focus groups from

around the country. We ask questions in

the following general areas: (1) Program

specific (i.e., processing permits,

recordation of mining claims, facilities

and access to public land for recreation);

(2) service delivery; (3) management

practices; (4) resource protection; (5)

rules, regulations, and policies; (6)

communication with the public; (7)

overall satisfaction; and (8) general

demographics.

IV. Requests for Comments

Prospective respondents and other

interested parties should comment on

the actions discussed in items II & III.

The following guidelines are provided

to assist you in responding.

General Issues

A. Is the proposed collection of

information necessary, taking into

account its accuracy, adequacy, and

reliability, and the agency’s ability to

process the information it collects in a

useful and timely fashion?

B. What enhancements can the BLM

and Forest Service make to the quality,

utility, and clarity of the information to

be collected?

As a Potential Respondent

A. The average public reporting

burden for a customer survey is

estimated to be .25 hours per response

(13,000 respondents per year ×15

minutes per response =3250 hours

annually). For comment cards, the

average public reporting burden is

estimated to be 3 minutes per response

(30,000 respondents per year × 3

minutes per response =1500 hours

annually). Burden includes the total

time, effort, or financial resources

expended to generate, maintain, retain,

or disclose or provide the information

including: (1) Reviewing instructions;

(2) developing, acquiring, installing, and

utilizing technology and systems for

purposes of collecting, validating,

verifying, processing, maintaining,

disclosing, and providing information;

(3) adjusting the existing ways to

comply with any previously applicable

instructions and requirements; (4)

training personnel to respond to a

collection of information; (5) searching

data sources; (6) completing and

reviewing the collection of information;

and (7) transmitting or otherwise

disclosing the information.

Please comment on (1) the accuracy of

our estimate and (2) how the agencies

could minimize the burden of the

collection information, including the

use of automated collection techniques.

B. The BLM and Forest Service

estimate that respondents will incur no

additional costs for reporting other than

the time required to complete the

collection. What is the estimated (1)

total dollar amount annualized for

capital and start-up costs and (2)

recurring annual dollar amount of

operation and maintenance and

purchase of services costs associated

with this data collection? The estimates

should take into account the costs

associated with generating, maintaining,

and disclosing or providing information.

C. Do you know of any other Federal,

State, or local agency that collects

similar data? If you do, specify the

agency, collection element (s), and the

methods of collection.

As a Potential User

Are there any alternative sources of

data and do you use them? If so, what

are their deficiencies and/or strengths?

Comments submitted in response to

this notice will be summarized and/or

included in the request for OMB

approval of the survey. They also will

become a matter of public record.

Dated: January 15, 1998.

Carole Smith,

Bureau of Land Management, Information

Collection Officer.

Dated: January 8, 1998.

William Delaney,

U.S. Forest Service, Management

Improvement.

[FR Doc. 98–1458 Filed 1–21–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4310–84–M

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[NV–010–1990–09]

Notice of Intent; Nevada

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management,

Interior.

ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare a

supplemental Environmental Impact

Statement for the Barrick Goldstrike

Mines Inc. Betze Project in the Elko and

Eureka Counties, Nevada.

SUMMARY: On August 31, 1994 pursuant

to Section 102(2)(c) of the National

Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as

amended, the Bureau of Land

Management, Elko Field Office

published a Notice of Intent to prepare

a supplemental environmental impact

statement (EIS) with respect to Barrick

Goldstrike Mines Inc.’s (Barrick) Betze

Project. At that time, the Bureau had

determined the need to prepare the

Supplemental EIS to assess the

environmental impacts of the pumping

and water management operations

associated with Barrick’s mining

operations. Since the Notice of Intent

was published, Barrick has begun

discharging water produced by

groundwater pumping operations to the

Humboldt River under a permit from the

Nevada Division of Environmental

Protection. In addition, Barrick and Elko

Land and Livestock Company (ELLCO)

submitted an application to amend an

existing water pipeline right-of-way

from 40 feet to 80 feet in width to

accommodate installation of

approximately 4,000 linear feet of

buried 48-inch steel pipeline. The

additional pipeline would be used to

increase the operational efficiency of

discharging water to either the

Humboldt River or to irrigation and

infiltration. The Bureau of Land

Management is publishing this

supplemental Notice of Intent to advise

the public of the application to amend

the right-of-way and to seek any