This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains documents other than rules or

proposed rules that are applicable to the

public. Notices of hearings and investigations,

committee meetings, agency decisions and

rulings, delegations of authority, filing of

petitions and applications and agency

statements of organization and functions are

examples of documents appearing in this

section.

Notices Federal Register

35155 

Vol. 74, No. 137 

Monday, July 20, 2009 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Submission for OMB Review; 

Comment Request 

July 14, 2009. 

The Department of Agriculture has 

submitted the following information 

collection requirement(s) to OMB for 

review and clearance under the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 

Public Law 104–13. Comments 

regarding (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 assumptions used; (c) 

ways to enhance the quality, utility and 

clarity of the information to be 

collected; (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 or other forms of information 

technology should be addressed to: Desk 

Officer for Agriculture, Office of 

Information and Regulatory Affairs, 

Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB), 

OIRA_Submission@OMB.EOP.GOV or 

fax (202) 395–5806 and to Departmental 

Clearance Office, USDA, OCIO, Mail 

Stop 7602, Washington, DC 20250– 

7602. Comments regarding these 

information collections are best assured 

of having their full effect if received 

within 30 days of this notification. 

Copies of the submission(s) may be 

obtained by calling (202) 720–8681. 

An agency may not conduct or 

sponsor a collection of information 

unless the collection of information 

displays a currently valid OMB control 

number and the agency informs 

potential persons who are to respond to 

the collection of information that such 

persons are not required to respond to 

the collection of information unless it 

displays a currently valid OMB control 

number. 

Rural Utilities Service 

Title: Request for Approval to Sell 

Capital Assets. 

OMB Control Number: 0572–0020. 

Summary of Collection: The Rural 

Utilities Service (RUS) is a credit agency 

of the U.S. Department of Agriculture 

(USDA). It makes mortgage loans and 

loan guarantees to finance electric, 

telecommunications, and water and 

waste facilities in rural areas. In 

addition to providing loans and loan 

guarantees, one of RUS’ main objectives 

is to safeguard loan security until the 

loan is repaid. Accordingly, RUS 

manages loan programs in accordance 

with the Rural Electrification Act of 

1936, 7 U.S.C. 901 et seq., as amended, 

(RE ACT) and as prescribed by Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) 

Circular A–129, Policies for Federal 

Credit Programs and Non-Tax 

Receivables, which states that agencies 

must, based on a review of a loan 

application, determine that an applicant 

complies with statutory, regulatory, and 

administrative eligibility requirements 

for loan assistance. 

Need and Use of the Information: 

RUS borrower will use form 369, 

Request for Approval to sell capital 

assets, to seek agency permission to sell 

some of its assets. The form is used to 

collect detailed information regarding 

the proposed sale of a portion of the 

borrower’s systems. RUS will collect 

information to determine whether or not 

the agency should approve a sale and 

also to keep track of what property 

exists to secure the loan. If the 

information in Form 369 is not collected 

when capital assets are sold, the capital 

assets securing the Government’s loans 

could be liquidated and the 

Government’s security either eliminated 

entirely or diluted to an undesirable 

level. 

Description of Respondents: Not-forprofit institutions; Business or other forprofit. 

Number of Respondents: 5. 

Frequency of Responses: 

Recordkeeping; Reporting: On occasion. 

Total Burden Hours: 15. 

Rural Utilities Service 

Title: Certification of Authority. 

OMB Control Number: 0572–0074. 

Summary of Collection: The Rural 

Utilities Service (RUS) is a credit agency 

of the U.S. Department of Agriculture 

(USDA). It makes mortgage loans and 

loan guarantees to finance electric, 

telecommunications, and water and 

waste facilities in rural areas. Rural 

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

et seq, as amended, (RE ACT) and as 

prescribed by Office of Management and 

Budget (OMB) Circular A–129, Policies 

for Federal Credit Programs and NonTax Receivables, which states that 

agencies must, based on a review of a 

loan application, determine that an 

applicant complies with statutory, 

regulatory, and administrative eligibility 

requirements for loan assistance. A 

major factor in managing loan programs 

is controlling the advancement of funds. 

RUS Form 675 allows this control to be 

achieved by providing a list of 

authorized signatures against which 

signatures requesting funds are 

compared. 

Need and Use of the Information: 

RUS will collect information to ensure 

that only authorized representatives of 

the borrower sign the lending 

requisition form. Without the 

information RUS would not know if the 

request for a loan advance was 

legitimate or not and so the potential for 

waste, loss, unauthorized use, and 

misappropriation would be increased. 

Description of Respondents: Not-forprofit institutions; Business or other forprofit. 

Number of Respondents: 250. 

Frequency of Responses: Reporting: 

On occasion. 

Total Burden Hours: 25. 

Rural Utilities Service 

Title: 7 CFR 1717 subpart D, Mergers 

and Consolidations of Electric 

Borrowers. 

OMB Control Number: 0572–0114. 

Summary of Collection: The Rural 

Utilities Service (RUS) is a credit agency 

of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It 

makes mortgage loans and loan 

guarantees to finance electric, 

telecommunications, water and waste 

and water facilities in rural areas. Loan 

programs are managed in accordance 

with the Rural Electrification Act (RE 

Act) of 1936, 7 U.S.C. 901 et seq., as 

amended and as prescribed by the 

Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB) Circular A–129, Policies for 

Federal Credit Programs and Non-tax 

Receivables, which states that agencies 


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35156 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 137 / Monday, July 20, 2009 / Notices 

must, based on a review of a loan 

application, determine that an applicant 

complies with statutory, regulatory, and 

administrative eligibility requirements 

for loan assistance. 

Need and Use of the Information: 

RUS will collect information to 

streamline procedures and allow 

borrowers the flexibility to meet new 

business challenges and opportunities. 

The information is necessary for RUS to 

conduct business with successor entity 

while protecting the security of 

Government loans and avoiding defaults 

and to grant merger approval when 

required. 

Description of Respondents: Business 

or other for-profit. 

Number of Respondents: 12. 

Frequency of Responses: Reporting: 

On occasion. 

Total Burden Hours: 170. 

Rural Utility Service 

Title: 7 CFR part 1755, 

Telecommunications Standards and 

Specifications. 

OMB Control Number: 0572–0132. 

Summary of Collection: 7 CFR part 

1755 establishes Agency policy that 

materials and equipment purchased by 

telecommunications borrowers or 

accepted as contractor-furnished 

material must conform to performance 

specifications where they have been 

established and, if included in IP 344– 

02, ‘‘List of Materials Acceptable for Use 

on Telecommunications Systems of RUS 

Borrowers’’, must be selected from that 

list or must have received technical 

acceptance from the Rural Utility 

Service (RUS). To protect the security of 

loans and to ensure that the 

telecommunications services provided 

to rural Americans are comparable to 

those offered in urban and suburban 

areas, RUS establishes the minimum 

acceptable performance criteria for 

materials and equipment to be 

employed on telecommunications 

system financed by the 

Telecommunications Program. 

Manufacturers, wishing to sell their 

products to Telecommunications 

borrowers, request consideration for 

acceptance of their products and submit 

data demonstrating their products’ 

compliance with—Telecommunications 

performance specifications or—selected 

industry specifications. 

Need and Use of the Information: 

RUS will evaluate the data to determine 

that the quality of the products is 

acceptable and that their use will not 

jeopardize loan security. The 

information is closely reviewed to be 

certain that test data, product 

dimensions and product material 

compositions fully comply with RUS 

performance specifications or that have 

been established for the particular 

product. 

Description of Respondents: Business 

or other for-profit; Not-for-profit 

institutions. 

Number of Respondents: 47. 

Frequency of Response: Reporting: On 

occasion. 

Total Burden Hours: 1,700. 

Rural Utility Service 

Title: Telecommunications Field 

Trials. 

OMB Control Number: 0572–0133. 

Summary of Collection: Title 7 CFR 

part 1755.3 prescribes the conditions 

and provision of a field trial. Field trials 

are contractual obligations that a 

manufacturer and Rural Utility Service 

(RUS) telecommunications borrower 

enter into. They consist of limited field 

installation of a qualifying product in 

closely monitored situations designed to 

determine, to RUS’ satisfaction, the 

products’ effectiveness under actual 

field conditions. RUS will use field 

trials as a means for determining the 

operational effectiveness of a new or 

revised product where such experience 

does not already exist. Field trial 

process allows: Manufacturers a means 

of immediate access to the RUS 

borrower market, RUS borrowers 

opportunity to immediately utilize 

advance products, and provides for RUS 

a means to safely obtain necessary 

information on technically advanced 

products which will address the 

products’ suitability for use in the harsh 

environment of rural America. 

Need and Use of the Information: 

RUS will use various forms to enter into 

contractual obligations, to establish an 

agreement by RUS, the manufacturer 

and a borrower, or identify the 

product(s) that are under field trial. 

Telecommunication borrowers who 

participate in field trials do so on a 

voluntary basis. The information is 

closely reviewed to determine that the 

products comply with the established 

RUS standards and specifications and 

that the products are otherwise 

acceptable for use on rural 

telecommunications systems. Without 

this information, RUS has no means of 

determining the acceptability of 

advanced technology in a manner that is 

timely enough for RUS borrowers to 

take advantage of the improved benefits 

and promise that such products may 

provide for rural America. 

Description of Respondents: Business 

or other for-profit; Not-for-profit 

institutions. 

Number of Respondent: 14. 

Frequency of Responses: Reporting: 

On occasion. 

Total Burden Hours: 378. 

Charlene Parker, 

Departmental Information Collection 

Clearance Officer. 

[FR Doc. E9–17114 Filed 7–17–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–15–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Submission for OMB Review; 

Comment Request 

July 15, 2009. 

The Department of Agriculture has 

submitted the following information 

collection requirement(s) to OMB for 

review and clearance under the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 

Public Law 104–13. Comments 

regarding (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 assumptions used; (c) 

ways to enhance the quality, utility and 

clarity of the information to be 

collected; (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 or other forms of information 

technology should be addressed to: Desk 

Officer for Agriculture, Office of 

Information and Regulatory Affairs, 

Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB), 

OIRA_Submission@OMB.EOP.GOV or 

fax (202) 395–5806 and to Departmental 

Clearance Office, USDA, OCIO, Mail 

Stop 7602, Washington, DC 20250– 

7602. Comments regarding these 

information collections are best assured 

of having their full effect if received 

within 30 days of this notification. 

Copies of the submission(s) may be 

obtained by calling (202) 720–8681. 

An agency may not conduct or 

sponsor a collection of information 

unless the collection of information 

displays a currently valid OMB control 

number and the agency informs 

potential persons who are to respond to 

the collection of information that such 

persons are not required to respond to 

the collection of information unless it 

displays a currently valid OMB control 

number. 

Agricultural Marketing Service 

Title: Regulations Governing 

Inspection, Certification, and Standards 

for Fresh Fruit, Vegetables and Other 

Products—Audit Services. 


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