Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 201 / Thursday, October 16, 2008 / Notices 61417 

listening session that was held on 

August 18 (73 FR 43932). Submitted 

public comments may be accessed at 

http://www.regulations.gov under 

Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–ORD–2008– 

0461. EPA intends to forward public 

comments submitted in accordance with 

the June 26, 2008, Federal Register 

notice to the NAS for consideration by 

the external peer review panel prior to 

the November 13, 2008, meeting. In 

finalizing the draft document, EPA will 

consider public comments and 

recommendations from the expert panel. 

NAS invites the public to register to 

attend this peer review panel meeting as 

observers. In addition, NAS invites the 

public to give oral and/or provide 

written comments at the meeting 

regarding the draft document under 

review. Space is limited, and 

reservations will be accepted on a firstcome, first-served basis. A time limit for 

presentations will be specified by the 

NAS based on the number of registrants. 

DATES: The peer-review panel meeting 

will be held on November 13, 2008, 

beginning at 1 p.m. and ending at 4 p.m. 

ADDRESSES: The peer-review panel 

meeting will be held at the NAS’s Keck 

Center, 500 Fifth St., NW., Washington, 

DC 20001, in Room 201. For details 

about registering for and attending the 

meeting, please see the NAS’s Web site 

at http://www8.nationalacademies.org/ 

cp/projectview.aspx?key=48697. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Questions regarding information, 

registration, access or services for 

individuals with disabilities, or logistics 

for the external peer-review panel 

meeting should be directed to NAS. For 

further information, please see the 

NAS’s Web site http:// 

www8.nationalacademies.org/cp/ 

projectview.aspx?key=48697. For 

technical information about the 

document, please contact the 

Information Management Team, NCEA; 

telephone: 703–347–8561; facsimile: 

703–347–8691; e-mail 

nceadc.comment@epa.gov. 

Dated: October 8, 2008. 

Peter Preuss, 

Director, National Center for Environmental 

Assessment. 

[FR Doc. E8–24595 Filed 10–15–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 

AGENCY 

[FRL–8729–8] 

State Innovation Grant Program, 

Notice of Availability of Solicitation for 

Proposals for 2009 Awards 

AGENCY: Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA). 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental 

Protection Agency, National Center for 

Environmental Innovation (NCEI) is 

giving notice of the availability of its 

solicitation for proposals for the 2009 

grant program to support innovation by 

state environmental regulatory 

agencies—the ‘‘State Innovation Grant 

Program.’’ 

The solicitation is available at the 

Agency’s State Innovation Grant 

website: http://www.epa.gov/ 

innovation/stategrants/ 

solicitation2009.pdf, or may be 

requested from the Agency by e-mail to: 

innovation_state_grants@epa.gov , 

telephone, or by mail. State principal 

environmental agencies, as well as 

regional, county, or municipal agencies 

with delegated or re-delegated authority 

for federal environmental permitting 

programs are eligible to receive these 

grants. In each state, each agency with 

one or more primary delegations for 

federal environmental permitting 

programs from EPA, or a re-delegated 

authority from a state agency with one 

or more primary delegations from EPA 

may submit one pre-proposal under this 

solicitation, but may appear on multiple 

team pre-proposals. 

Any agency with a re-delegated 

authority for a federal environmental 

permitting program from a state 

environmental agency must have that 

principal state environmental regulatory 

agency as an active member of the 

project team. 

DATES: Eligible applicants will have 

until December 10, 2008 to respond 

with a pre-proposal, budget, and project 

summary. The environmental regulatory 

agencies from the fifty (50) States; 

Washington, DC, and four (4) territories 

were notified of the solicitation’s 

availability by fax and email 

transmittals on October 9, 2008. 

ADDRESSES: Copies of the solicitation 

can be downloaded from the Agency’s 

Web site at: http://www.epa.gov/ 

innovation/stategrants or may be 

requested by telephone (202–566–2186), 

or by e-mail 

(innovation_state_grants@epa.gov). You 

can request a solicitation application 

package be sent to you by fax or by mail 

by contacting NCEI as indicated below. 

Applicants are requested to apply 

online using the grants.gov website with 

an electronic signature. Applicants are 

encouraged to submit their preproposals early. For those applicants 

who lack the technical capability to 

apply electronically via http:// 

www.grants.gov, please contact Sherri 

Walker by phone at: (202) 566–2186 and 

/ or by e-mail to: 

innovation_state_grants@epa.gov for 

alternative submission procedures. 

Proposals submitted in response to this 

solicitation, or questions concerning the 

solicitation should be sent to: 

State Innovation Grant Program, 

National Center for Environmental 

Innovation, Office of the Administrator, 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 

(MC 1807T), 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., 

NW., Washington, DC 20460, (202) 566– 

2186, (202) 566–2220 FAX, 

innovation_state_grants@epa.gov . 

For courier delivery only: 

Sherri Walker, State Innovation Grant 

Program, U.S. EPA, EPA West Building, 

Room 4214D, 1301 Constitution Ave., 

NW., Washington, DC 20005. 

Proposal responses or questions may 

also be sent by fax to (202–566–2220), 

addressed to the ‘‘State Innovation 

Grant Program,’’ or by e-mail to: 

innovation_state_grants@epa.gov . We 

encourage e-mail responses. If you have 

questions about responding to this 

notice, please contact EPA at this e-mail 

address or fax number, or you may call 

Sherri Walker at 202–566–2186. EPA 

will acknowledge all responses it 

receives to this notice. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The U.S. 

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 

is soliciting pre-proposals for an 

assistance agreement program (the 

‘‘State Innovation Grant Program’’) in an 

effort to support innovation by State 

environmental regulatory agencies. In 

April 2002, EPA issued its plan for 

future innovation efforts, published as 

Innovating for Better Environmental 

Result: A Strategy to Guide the Next 

Generation of Innovation at EPA (EPA 

100–R–02–002; http://www.epa.gov/ 

innovation/pdf/strategy.pdf). This 

assistance agreement program 

strengthens EPA’s partnership with the 

States by supporting state innovation 

compatible with EPA’s Innovation 

Strategy. EPA wants to encourage states 

to build on previous experience (theirs 

and others) to undertake strategic 

innovation projects that promote largerscale models for ‘‘next generation’’ 

environmental protection and promise 

better environmental outcomes and 

other beneficial results. EPA is 

interested in funding projects that: (i) 

Go beyond a single facility experiment 
61418 Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 201 / Thursday, October 16, 2008 / Notices 

and provide change that is ‘‘systemsoriented;’’ (ii) provide better results 

from a program, process, or sector-wide 

innovation; and (iii) promote integrated 

(multi-media) environmental 

management with a high potential for 

transfer to other states, U.S. territories, 

and tribes. 

‘‘Innovation in permitting’’ is the 

theme for the 2009 solicitation. Under 

this theme, EPA is interested in preproposals that: 

• Support the development and 

implementation of state Environmental 

Results Programs (ERPs); 

• Test various forms of permitting 

integration; 

• Test ways to help facilities 

practicing lean manufacturing better 

address environmental permit 

requirements and other environmental 

and energy considerations; or 

• Advance implementation of 

performance-based environmental 

leadership programs similar to the 

National Environmental Performance 

Track (PT) program, particularly 

including the development and 

implementation of incentives. 

EPA continues to interpret 

‘‘innovation in permitting’’ broadly to 

include permitting programs, pesticide 

licensing programs, and other 

alternatives or supplements to 

permitting programs. EPA is interested 

in creative approaches for both: (1) 

Achieving mandatory federal and state 

standards; and (2) encouraging 

performance and addressing 

environmental issues above and beyond 

minimum requirements. EPA’s focus on 

a small number of topics within this 

general subject area effectively 

concentrates the limited resources 

available for greater strategic impact. 

EPA may contemplate a very limited 

number of projects not linked to these 

focus areas, but otherwise related to the 

general theme of innovation in 

permitting, in particular as they address 

EPA regional and state environmental 

permitting priorities. 

This solicitation begins the seventh 

State Innovation Grant competition. To 

date, the program has supported 

projects primarily in three strategic 

focus areas: application of the 

Environmental Results Programs (ERP) 

model, the National Environmental 

Performance Track (PT) Program and 

similar state performance-based 

environmental leadership programs, and 

demonstrations of various types of 

permitting integration, including the 

integration of Environmental 

Management Systems (EMS) into permit 

requirements. Thirty-eight awards to 

States have been made from the six 

prior competitions (2002, 2004, 2005, 

2006, 2007, 2008). These projects 

awarded nearly 7.5 million dollars in 

assistance to States. Some of the projects 

funded previously fit into more than 

one category (e.g., combination projects 

of ERP with EMS, or ERP with PT). 

Among the grant projects: eighteen (18) 

were provided for development of 

Environmental Results Programs, eight 

(8) were to enhance performance-based 

Environmental Leadership Programs, 

nine (9) were related to the application 

of environmental management systems 

in permitting or for ‘‘beyondcompliance’’ improvement, seven (7) 

were awarded for demonstrations of 

other permit integration or streamlining 

approaches including two (2) for 

watershed-based permitting, one (1) to 

support development of an integrated 

regional air quality management plan, 

one (1) to test permit integration across 

various governmental levels, and one (1) 

was for an information technology 

innovation for the application of 

geographic information systems (GIS) 

and a web-based portal to a permitting 

process. For information on prior State 

Innovation Grant Program solicitations 

and awards, please see the EPA State 

Innovation Grants Web site at http:// 

www.epa.gov/innovation/stategrants. 

Dated: October 8, 2008. 

Elizabeth Shaw, 

Director, Office of Environmental Policy 

Innovation. 

[FR Doc. E8–24589 Filed 10–15–08; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6560–50–P 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 

COMMISSION 

Notice of Public Information 

Collection(s) Being Submitted for 

Review to the Office of Management 

and Budget 

October 7, 2008. 

SUMMARY: The Federal Communications 

Commission, as part of its continuing 

effort to reduce paperwork burden 

invites the general public and other 

Federal agencies to take this 

opportunity to comment on the 

following information collection(s), as 

required by the Paperwork Reduction 

Act (PRA) of 1995, 44 U.S.C. 3501–3520. 

An agency may not conduct or sponsor 

a collection of information unless it 

displays a currently valid control 

number. No person shall be subject to 

any penalty for failing to comply with 

a collection of information subject to the 

Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) that 

does not display a valid control number. 

Comments are requested concerning (a) 

Whether the proposed collection of 

information is necessary for the proper 

performance of the functions of the 

Commission, including whether the 

information shall have practical utility; 

(b) the accuracy of the Commission’s 

burden estimate; (c) ways to enhance 

the quality, utility, and clarity of the 

information collected; and (d) ways to 

minimize the burden of the collection of 

information on the respondents, 

including the use of automated 

collection techniques or other forms of 

information technology. 

DATES: Written Paperwork Reduction 

Act (PRA) comments should be 

submitted on or before December 15, 

2008. If you anticipate that you will be 

submitting PRA comments, but find it 

difficult to do so within the period of 

time allowed by this notice, you should 

advise the FCC contact listed below as 

soon as possible. 

ADDRESSES: Direct all PRA comments to 

Nicholas A. Fraser, Office of 

Management and Budget, (202) 395– 

5887, or via fax at 202–395–5167 or via 

internet at 

Nicholas_A._Fraser@omb.eop.gov and 

to Judith-B.Herman@fcc.gov, Federal 

Communications Commission, or an 

e-mail to PRA@fcc.gov. To view a copy 

of this information collection request 

(ICR) submitted to OMB: (1) Go to the 

Web page http://www.reginfo.gov/ 

public/do/PRAMain, (2) look for the 

section of the Web page called 

‘‘Currently Under Review’’, (3) click on 

the downward-pointing arrow in the 

‘‘Select Agency’’ box below the 

‘‘Currently Under Review’’ heading, (4) 

select ‘‘Federal Communications 

Commission’’ from the list of agencies 

presented in the ‘‘Select Agency’’ box, 

(5) click the ‘‘Submit’’ button to the 

right of the ‘‘Select Agency’’ box, and (6) 

when the list of FCC ICRs currently 

under review appears, look for the title 

of this ICR (or its OMB Control Number, 

if there is one) and then click on the ICR 

Reference Number to view detailed 

information about this ICR. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

additional information, contact Judith B. 

Herman at 202–418–0214 or via the 

Internet at Judith-B.Herman@fcc.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

OMB Control Number: 3060–0329. 

Title: Section 2.955, Equipment 

Authorization—Verification (Retention 

of Records). 

Form No.: N/A. 

Type of Review: Extension of a 

currently approved collection. 

Respondents: Business or other forprofit; not-for-profit institutions, and 

state, local or tribal government. 

Number of Respondents: 5,655 

respondents; 5,655 responses.