4168 Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 13 / Friday, January 20, 1995 / Notices

by OF 523B allowing individual

hospitals to use the consortium forms.

The optional form is authorized for local

reproduction. Upon request, a camera

copy of OF 520 will be provided by the

General Services Administration

(CARM), Attn.: Barbara Williams, (202)

501–0581.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms.

Barbara Williams, General Services

Administration, (202) 501–0581.

Dated: January 12, 1995.

Theodore D. Freed,

Chief, Forms Management Branch.

[FR Doc. 95–1458 Filed 1–19–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6820–34–M

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND

HUMAN SERVICES

Office of the Secretary

Agency Forms Submitted to the Office

of Management and Budget for

Clearance

On Fridays, the Department of Health

and Human Services, Office of the

Secretary publishes a list of information

collections it has submitted to the Office

of Management and Budget (OMB) for

clearance in compliance with the

Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C.

Chapter 35). The following are those

information collections recently

submitted to OMB.

1. Applicant Background Survey—

This form will be used to ask applicants

for employment how they learned about

a vacancy, to make sure that recruitment

sources yield qualified women, minority

and handicapped applicants in

compliance with EEOC Management

Directives.

Respondents: Individuals; Annual

Number of

Respondents: 310,000; Annual

Frequency of Response: one time;

Average Burden per Response: 2

minutes;

Total Annual Burden: 10,333 hours.

OMB Desk Officer: Allison Eydt.

Copies of the information collection

packages listed above can be obtained

by calling the OS Reports Clearance

Officer on (202) 619–0511. Written

comments and recommendations for the

proposed information collection should

be sent directly to the OMB disk officer

designated above at the following

address: OMB Reports Management

Branch, New Executive Office Building,

Room 3208, Washington, D.C. 20503.

Dated: January 9, 1995.

Dennis P. Williams,

Deputy Assistant Secretary, Budget.

[FR Doc. 94–1163 Filed 1–19–94; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4150–04–M

Notice of a Regional Public Hearing of

the Commission on Research Integrity

Pursuant to Pub. L. 92–463, notice is

hereby given of a public hearing and

meeting, respectively, of the

Commission on Research Integrity on

Thursday and Friday, February 9 and

10, 1995, from 9:00 a.m. to 5 p.m. at

University of California-San Francisco

in the auditorium of the Laurel Heights

Conference Center at 3333 California

Street, San Francisco, CA 94118. The

sessions will be open to the public.

Interested parties are advised to call the

Executive Secretary shortly before the

meeting to verify the date, place, and

agenda.

The mandate of the Commission is to

develop recommendations for the

Secretary of the Department of Health

and Human Services (DHHS) and the

Congress on the administration of

Section 493 of the Public Health Service

Act, as amended by and added to, by

Section 161 of the NIH Revitalization

Act of 1993.

It has become increasingly clear to the

Commission that the current DHHS and

institutional oversight of research

integrity deserves serious attention.

Also, the Commission has confirmed

that there are no quick and easy answers

as it searches for fair, effective, and

realistic administrative solutions to

these issues. Therefore, an essential

component of the Commission’s

information-gathering is to interact

extensively with all relevant

constituencies of the scientific

community—including junior and

senior scientists, witnesses,

respondents, and academic

administrators—to understand their

particular experiences and perspectives

and to explore possible improvements.

Three major areas are currently of

great interest to the Commission:

1. A New Definition of Research

Misconduct. The Commission believes

that any definition needs to address the

full extent of serious research

misconduct, but must avoid a definition

that is too broad, vague, and potentially

unfair. In addition, a two-tiered

approach for research integrity, and

failures thereof, would be useful; it

would emphasize institutional

responsibility, and reserve an oversight

role for the Federal Government.

2. Assurance for Institutions and

Accountability for Federally-Funded

Research. The Commission is

considering that each institution

receiving Federal funds develop and

submit for Federal review and approval

assurances concerning the

establishment and implementation of:

(a) good research practices and

professional norms; (b) procedures for

disseminating that information

throughout its community; and (c)

educational activities designed to foster

practice of the highest ethical standards

in the conduct of research with

particular emphasis on beginning

researchers. Topics affecting good

research practices that might be

addressed in institutional assurances

include: data recording and retention;

supervisory responsibility; authorship

practices; protection of witnesses; and

other professional conduct bearing

directly on the integrity of Federallysupported research.

3. Bill of Rights for Witnesses.

Testimony from witnesses (also called

‘‘whistleblowers’’) who had challenged

perceived research misconduct reaffirms

the Commission’s mandate to propose

effective whistleblower protection rules.

Witnesses stated that retaliation occurs

with sufficient frequency to have a

chilling effect on potential witnesses

throughout the research community.

The Commission is considering a

Witness Bill of Rights and procedures

for its implementation.

The Commission will also continue

its discussion of other issues on which

the Commission is planning to make

recommendations.

Lengthy statements from witnesses

exceeding the 10 or 15 minutes of oral

presentation may be submitted in

writing to the Executive Secretary before

or at the meeting. Each statement will be

reviewed by Commission Members.

Henrietta D. Hyatt-Knorr, Executive

Secretary, Commission on Research

Integrity, at Rockwall II, Suite 700, 5515

Security Lane, Rockville, MD 20852,

(301) 443–5300 or (301) 443–9369 (voice

mail), will furnish the meeting agenda,

the Committee charter, and a roster of

the Committee members upon request.

Members of the public wishing to make

presentations should contact the

Executive Secretary. Depending on the

number of presentations and other

considerations, the Executive Secretary

will allocate a reasonable timeframe for

each speaker.

Henrietta D. Hyatt-Knorr,

Executive Secretary, Commission on Research

Integrity.

[FR Doc. 95–1381 Filed 1–19–95; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4160–17–P–M