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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 232 (Tuesday, December 3, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 95895-95897]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-28339]

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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration

[Docket No. FHWA-2024-0077]

Agency Information Collection Activities: Request for Comments 
for a New Information Collection

AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The FHWA invites public comments about our intention to 
request the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) approval for a new 
information collection, which is summarized below under SUPPLEMENTARY 
INFORMATION. We are required to publish this notice in the Federal 
Register by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

DATES: Please submit comments by February 3, 2025.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by DOT Docket ID Number 
0077 by any of the following methods:
    Website: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received go to the Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov.
    Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
    Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
    Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
    Hand Delivery or Courier: U.S. Department of Transportation, West 
Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, 
Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET, Monday through 
Friday, except Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Rebecca Lupes, (202) 366-7808, Office 
of Natural Environment, Federal Highway Administration, Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590. Office 
hours are from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: Promoting Resilient Operations for Transformative, 
Efficient, and Cost-Saving Transportation (PROTECT) Discretionary Grant 
Program and Voluntary Resilience Improvement Plans.
    Background: The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) established the 
Promoting Resilient Operations for Transformative, Efficient, and Cost-
Saving Transportation (PROTECT) Program to help make surface 
transportation more resilient to natural hazards, including climate 
change, sea level rise, flooding, extreme weather events, and other 
natural disasters. The PROTECT Discretionary Grant Program provides 
competitive grants to conduct resilience planning, to make surface 
transportation assets more resilient to current and future weather 
events and natural disasters, to strengthen and protect evacuation 
routes, and to protect, strengthen, or relocate coastal infrastructure 
that is at long-term risk to sea level rise. The program includes four 
separate grant categories: Planning, Resilience Improvement, Community 
Resilience and Evacuation Routes, and At-Risk Coastal Infrastructure.
    Eligible applicants under the PROTECT Discretionary Grant Program 
include State Departments of Transportation (DOTs), Metropolitan 
Planning Organizations (MPOs), local governments, special purpose 
districts or public authorities with a transportation function, and 
Indian Tribes. Federal land management agencies are eligible entities 
if the agency applies jointly with a State or group of States. U.S. 
Territories are eligible under the At-Risk Coastal Infrastructure 
category.

Summary of Information Collection Activities

    For this competitive grant program, the FHWA has issued multiple 
Notices of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) that describe the requirements of 
the PROTECT Discretionary Grant Program, including the criteria that 
will be used to evaluate applications. The NOFOs provide a description 
of the application requirements. Eligible applicants request PROTECT 
funds in the form of an electronic grant application. Additional 
information submissions are required for applicants who are selected 
for a grant (i.e., the grantees) during the grant agreement, grant 
implementation and evaluation phases.
    Additionally, State DOTs and MPOs may develop Resilience 
Improvement Plans under the PROTECT Program. A Resilience Improvement 
Plan is a voluntary, risk-based assessment of vulnerable transportation 
assets in immediate and long-term transportation planning that 
demonstrates a systemic approach to surface transportation system 
resilience (23 U.S.C. 176(e)). A Resilience Improvement Plan can reduce 
Non-Federal match by up to 10% for both PROTECT Formula and 
Discretionary Grant projects (23 U.S.C. 176(e)(1)(B)).
    FHWA's Office of Natural Environment will continue to support ad-
hoc resilience & planning technical assistance for State DOTs and MPOs 
on a variety of topics during the PRA covered time frame. These 
activities may include voluntary virtual or in-person peer exchanges, 
in addition to general ad-hoc technical assistance when requested by 
DOTs and MPOs. Participants choosing to enroll in a peer exchange are 
asked to submit a pre-event questionnaire. There may be additional 
collection of information in support of FHWA's ad-hoc technical 
assistance activities.
    Lastly, FHWA is required by 23 U.S.C. 176(f)(1) to establish 
effectiveness metrics and evaluation procedures for the PROTECT 
Discretionary Grant Program and select a representative sample of 
projects to evaluate based on the metrics and procedures. FHWA will 
select a representative sample of approximately 50 funded projects to 
evaluate their impact and effectiveness to fulfil this statutory 
requirement and support a PROTECT Discretionary Program Evaluation. 
Projects selected as part of this representative sample will have 
additional reporting requirements.
    Burden estimates for each of these PROTECT program components are 
described below:

I. Grant Application, Agreement, Implementation and Evaluation Phase 
Activities

Grant Application Phase

    Eligible entities that may apply for PROTECT Discretionary grants 
vary depending on the type of the competitive grant. Planning Grants, 
Resilience Improvement Grants, and Community Resilience and Evacuation 
Route Grants have the same statutory rules for eligible applicants. The 
At-Risk Coastal Infrastructure Grant category has different statutory 
rules for eligible applicants. During the application process 
applicants will provide a project narrative and budget information, 
Standard Form 424, and Disclosure of Lobbying Activities form (SF-LLL).

--Respondents: PROTECT Grant applicants.
--Frequency: One time per grant application.

[[Page 95896]]

--Estimated Average Burden per Response: 157 hours for a Planning Grant 
application, 208 hours to for a Resilience Improvement Grant 
application, 208 hours for a Community Resilience and Evacuation Routes 
Grant application, and 108 hours for an At-Risk Coastal Infrastructure 
Grant application.
--Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: It is expected that 945 
respondents will complete approximately one application during the 3-
year PRA period for an estimated total of 177,160 annual burden hours.

Grant Agreement Phase

    All grant recipients must work with FHWA to develop and execute a 
grant agreement detailing terms and conditions for use of funds.

--Respondents: All Grant Recipients.
--Frequency: One time, unless a grant agreement amendment is necessary.
--Estimated burden: Approximately 30 hours per respondent. Some capital 
projects may need to process amendments to the grant agreement which is 
expected to take an additional 10-15 hours per amendment.

Grant Implementation Phase

    During the grant implementation phase, the grantee completes semi-
annual progress and recertification reports to ensure the project 
budget and schedule are maintained to the maximum extent possible, that 
compliance with Federal regulations are met, and the project is 
completed to the highest degree of quality. Post-award reporting 
responsibilities include Semi-Annual Performance Progress Reports 
(FHWA-PPR), and a financial status report called the SF-425 (also known 
as the Federal Financial Report or SF-FFR). Semi-Annual Project 
Progress Reports are submitted as an attachment to the SF-425 form. 
Additionally, grant recipients requesting advance or reimbursement need 
to provide an SF 270 and an SF 271 form, respectively. After project 
close and no later than 120 days after the end of the period of 
performance, grant recipients shall submit a Final Project Progress 
Report and Recertification, including a final Federal Financial Report 
(SF-425).

--Respondents: All Grant recipients.
--Frequency: Semi-Annually During the period of performance; one Final 
Progress Report after project close.
--Estimated Burden Hours: Grantees provide a Semi-Annual Project 
Progress Report (FHWA-PPR) as an attachment to their Federal Financial 
Report (SF 425). Approximately 1 hours.
--Approximately 1 additional hours each time an SF 270 and an SF 271 
are used for an advance or reimbursement.

Grant Evaluation Phase

    During the evaluation phase, reporting is necessary to comply with 
2 CFR 200.301, to assess program effectiveness for the Federal 
Government, and to provide information regarding how the project is 
achieving the outcomes that grantees have targeted. Grantees collect 
both baseline and project performance measure data unique to their 
project as outlined in their grant agreement, and report on their 
chosen performance measure(s) via an Annual Performance Report (see 
Grant Agreement Schedule G--Performance Measurement). Annual 
Performance Reports are submitted electronically to FHWA for three 
years post project completion for all project types, followed by a 
final performance report.

--Respondents: All Grant Recipients.
--Frequency: Annually during a 3-year period of performance.
--Estimated Burden: Approximately 2 hours per year.

    Total burden hours for grant agreement, implementation, and 
evaluation phases (all recipients): Over the three-year PRA period, 
FHWA estimates that it will take approximately 40 hours to complete all 
the post-award activities outlined above for a Planning Grant, 63 hours 
to for a Resilience Improvement Grant, 63 hours for a Community 
Resilience and Evacuation Route Grant, and 63 hours for an At-Risk 
Coastal Infrastructure Grant. FHWA estimates that 255 award recipients 
will perform these reporting activities during the 3-year PRA period, 
which will result in 16,455 total burden hours.

II. Resilience Improvement Plans and Related Technical Assistance

    Resilience Improvement Plans, Resilience Planning Peer Exchanges, 
and FHWA on-demand planning and resilience technical assistance are all 
voluntary activities completed by State DOTs and MPOs that occur on an 
ad-hoc frequency. Resilience Improvement Plans are estimated to require 
250 hours to complete. Resilience Planning Peer Exchange pre-event 
questionnaires require approximately 1 hour. Information collections to 
support related FHWA resilience technical assistance activities will 
vary widely. Generally, these activities may include electronic or in-
person submission of project plans and designs, draft technical 
materials, and PowerPoint materials from a State DOT or MPO to FHWA 
and/or a peer group. FHWA may conduct informal interviews, focus groups 
or additional short electronic questionnaires to support these 
technical assistance activities and gauge interest in future trainings 
and assistance offerings.

--Respondents: State Departments of Transportation and Metropolitan 
Planning Organizations.
--Frequency: One time.
--Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: It is estimated that 25 State 
DOTs and 25 MPOs will complete Resilience Improvement Plans during the 
3-year PRA period for an estimated total of 12,500 annual burden hours. 
FHWA estimates that approximately 350 participants will complete a peer 
exchange pre-event questionnaire for an FHWA peer exchange event, 
resulting in an estimated total of 350 burden hours.

III. PROTECT Metrics and Program Evaluation Activities

    A smaller number of grantees selected for further monitoring to 
support an FHWA Evidence Act Program Evaluation and fulfill FHWA's 
obligations under 23 U.S.C. 176(f)(1)(B) will need to coordinate with 
FHWA to provide baseline data in the pre-construction phase. These 
grantees will also assist FHWA in gathering annual project performance 
data for 3-5 years post construction. Participants may be asked to 
attend interviews and focus groups to verify desktop, primary source, 
or field measurement data collected by FHWA. A small amount of 
additional data collection may be required of all ~200 PROTECT Grantees 
and/or their supporting FHWA Division (State) Offices to gauge interest 
and capacity to participate in the program evaluation and identify the 
range of typical outcomes and challenges for grantees. It is 
anticipated that any information collection from this wider group would 
be done via an electronic form submittal and be a one-time collection 
of approximately 2 hours.

--Respondents: A representative sample of approximately 50 selected 
grantees are expected to participate in the PROTECT Discretionary 
Resilience Metrics and Program Evaluation data collection.
--Frequency: One-time baseline data collection followed by annual data 
collection/coordination with FHWA during study period.
--Estimated Average Burden per Response: FHWA estimates 60 hours

[[Page 95897]]

of burden annually per selected project for data collection and 
coordination with FHWA. An additional 15 hours of burden in the first 
year for notification, initial coordination with FHWA and baseline data 
collection.
--Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: It is expected that 50 grantees 
will be selected for this evaluation for an estimated total of 9,850 
annual burden hours during the PRA period.

    Public Comments Invited: You are asked to comment on any aspect of 
this information collection, including: (1) Whether the proposed 
collection is necessary for the FHWA's performance; (2) the accuracy of 
the estimated burdens; (3) ways for the FHWA to enhance the quality, 
usefulness, and clarity of the collected information; and (4) ways that 
the burden could be minimized, including the use of electronic 
technology, 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.
    Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. chapter 
35, as amended; and 49 CFR 1.48.

    Issued on: November 27, 2024.
Jazmyne Lewis,
Information Collection Officer.
[FR Doc. 2024-28339 Filed 12-2-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-22-P
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