6114 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 22 / Friday, February 1, 2008 / Notices 

of Agriculture (USDA) Rural 

Development Utilities Programs, invites 

comments on this information 

collection for which approval from the 

Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) will be requested. 

DATES: Comments on this notice must be 

received by April 1, 2008. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Michele L. Brooks, Acting Director, 

Program Development & Regulatory 

Analysis, Rural Utilities Service, USDA, 

1400 Independence Ave., SW., STOP 

1522, Room 5168—South Building, 

Washington, DC 20250–1522. 

Telephone: (202) 690–1078. Fax: (202) 

720–8435. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Office 

of Management and Budget’s (OMB) 

regulation (5 CFR part 1320) implanting 

provisions of the Paperwork Reduction 

Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104–13) requires 

that interested members of the public 

and affected agencies have an 

opportunity to comment on information 

collection and recordkeeping activities 

(see 5 CFR 1320.8(d)). This notice 

identifies an information collection that 

RUS is submitting to OMB for 

extension. 

Comments are invited on (a) whether 

the collection of information is 

necessary for the proper performance of 

the functions of the agency, including 

whether the information will have 

practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the 

agency’s estimate of burden including 

the validity of the methodology and 

assumption used; (c) ways to enhance 

the quality, utility and clarity of the 

information to be collected; and (d) 

ways to minimize the burden of the 

collection of information on those who 

are to respond, including through the 

use of appropriate automated, 

electronic, mechanical, or other 

technological collection techniques on 

other forms of information technology. 

Comments may be sent to: Joyce 

McNeil, Program Development and 

Regulatory Analysis, Rural Utilities 

Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 

1400 Independence Ave., SW., Room 

5166-South, STOP 1522, Washington, 

DC 20250–1522. Fax: (202) 720–8435. Email: Joyce.mcneil@wdc.usda.gov. 

Title: 7 CFR 1726, Electric System 

Construction Policies and Procedures. 

OMB Control Number: 0572–0107. 

Type of Request: Extension of a 

previously approved collection. 

Abstract: In order to facilitate the 

programmatic interest of the Rural 

Electrification Act of 1936, 7 U.S.C. 901 

et seq. (RE Act), and, in order to assure 

that loans made or guaranteed by RUS 

are adequately secured, RUS, as a 

secured lender, has established certain 

standards and specifications for 

materials, equipment, and construction 

of electric systems. The use of standard 

forms, construction contracts, and 

procurement procedures helps assure 

RUS that appropriate standards and 

specification are maintained; RUS’ loan 

security is not adversely affected; and 

the loan and loan guarantee funds are 

used effectively and for the intended 

purposes. 

Estimate of Burden: Public reporting 

burden for this collection of information 

is estimated to average 1.5 minutes per 

response. 

Respondents: Businesses or other for 

profits; Not-for-profit institutions. 

Estimated Number of Respondents: 

697. 

Estimated Number of Responses per 

Respondent: 5. 

Estimated Total Annual Burden on 

Respondents: 71 hours. 

Copies of this information collection, 

and related form and instructions, can 

be obtained from Joyce McNeil, Program 

Development and Regulatory Analysis, 

at (202) 720–0812. 

All responses to this notice will be 

summarized and included in the request 

for OMB approval. All comments will 

also become a matter of public record. 

Dated: January 24, 2008. 

James M. Andrew, 

Administrator, Rural Utilities Service. 

[FR Doc. E8–1892 Filed 1–31–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–15–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

Submission for OMB Review; 

Comment Request 

The Department of Commerce (DOC) 

will submit to the Office of Management 

and Budget (OMB) for clearance the 

following proposal for collection of 

information under the provisions of the 

Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 

Chapter 35). 

Agency: Bureau of Economic Analysis 

(BEA). 

Title: Expenditures Incurred by 

Recipients of Biomedical Research 

Awards from the National Institutes of 

Health (NIH). 

OMB Control Number: None. 

Form Number: None. 

Type of Review: Regular submission. 

Burden Hours: 1,650. 

Number of Respondents: 150. 

Average Hours Per Response: 11. 

Needs and Uses: The survey to obtain 

the distribution of expenditures 

incurred by recipients of biomedical 

research awards from the National 

Institutes of Health Research (NIH) will 

provide information on how the NIH 

award amounts are expended across 

several major categories. This 

information, along with wage and price 

data from other published sources, will 

be used to generate the Biomedical 

Research and Developmental Price 

Index (BRDPI). The Bureau of Economic 

Analysis (BEA) of the Department of 

Commerce develops this index for the 

National Institutes of Health (NIH) 

under reimbursable contract. The BRDPI 

is an index of prices paid for the labor, 

supplies, equipment, and other inputs 

required to perform the biomedical 

research the NIH supports in its 

intramural laboratories and through its 

awards to extramural organizations. The 

BRDPI is a vital tool for planning the 

NIH research budget and analyzing 

future NIH programs. A survey of award 

recipient entities is currently the only 

means for updating the expenditure 

categories that are used to prepare the 

BRDPI. 

Affected Public: Business or other forprofit organizations, and not-for-profit 

institutions. 

Frequency: Annually. 

Respondent’s Obligations: Voluntary. 

Legal Authority: 45 CFR Subpart C, 

Post-Award Requirements, Sections 

74.21 and 74.53; 42 U.S.C. 282; 

Economy Act (31 U.S.C. 1535 and 1536); 

15 U.S.C. 1525; and 15 U.S.C. 1527a. 

OMB Desk Officer: Paul Bugg, (202) 

395–3093. 

Copies of the above information 

collection proposal can be obtained by 

calling or writing Diana Hynek, 

Departmental Paperwork Clearance 

Officer, (202) 482–0266, Office of the 

Chief Information Officer, Department 

of Commerce, Room 6625, 14th Street 

and Constitution Avenue, NW., 

Washington DC 20230, or via the 

Internet at dHynek@doc.gov. 

Send comments on the proposed 

information collection within 30 days of 

publication of this notice to Paul Bugg, 

OMB Desk Officer, via the Internet at 

pbugg@omb.eop.gov or by fax (202) 

395–7245. 

Dated: January 29, 2008. 

Gwellnar Banks, 

Management Analyst, Office of the Chief 

Information Officer. 

[FR Doc. E8–1831 Filed 1–31–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–06–P 

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