Document ID: EPA-HQ-OAR-2003-0067-0001
Agency: epa
Document Type: Supporting & Related Material
Title: 
Posted Date: 2003-04-18T04:00Z

SECTION
I.
PART
A
OF
THE
SUPPORTING
STATEMENT
1.
IDENTIFICATION
OF
THE
INFORMATION
COLLECTION
(
a)
TITLE
OF
THE
INFORMATION
COLLECTION
Information
Requirements
for
Importation
of
Nonconforming
Vehicles,
OMB
Control
Number
2060­
0095,
ICR
#
0010.09.

(
b)
SHORT
CHARACTERIZATION
(
ABSTRACT)

The
Clean
Air
Act
requires
that
motor
vehicles
and
motor
vehicle
engines
imported
into
the
U.
S.
conform
with
applicable
emission
requirements.
This
Information
Collection
Request
(
ICR)
includes
both
motor
vehicles
and
motor
vehicle
engines.
The
ICR
previously
included
nonroad
compression
ignition
engines,
however
those
engines
are
now
instead
incorporated
into
another
ICR,
1673,
OMB
control
number
2060­
0294.

The
Outreach
&
Planning
Group
(
OPG)
in
the
Office
of
Air
and
Radiation
collects
information
and
requires
some
recordkeeping
to
help
ensure
that
nonconforming
vehicles
and
engines
are
brought
into
compliance
with
Federal
emission
requirements,
unless
eligible
for
exemption
or
exclusion.
Also,
the
information
is
used
by
the
U.
S.
Customs
Service
(
Customs),
State
regulatory
agencies,
businesses,
and
individuals
to
verify
whether
or
not
vehicles
are
in
compliance.

Information
collected
includes
vehicle
identification
data
and
U.
S.
Customs
entry
statements
that
such
information
is
correct,
and
emission
test
results.
The
information
is
either
stored
in
a
computer
database,
or
retained
in
document
form.
The
information
is
used
to
monitor
compliance
of
imports
and
respond
to
inquiries
from
the
public
concerning
the
compliance
status
of
specific
imported
vehicles.

a)
EPA
Form
3520­
1
This
form
is
used
by
importers
who
are
applying
for
entry
of
motor
vehicles
or
motor
vehicle
engines,
respectively.

b)
EPA
Form
3520­
8
This
form
is
used
by
independent
commercial
importers
(
ICIs)
to
request
final
admission
of
a
nonconforming
motor
vehicle
or
nonroad
engine
that
has
been
brought
into
compliance
with
Federal
emission
requirements.

c)
EPA
Form
3520­
14
This
form
is
used
by
importers
wishing
to
make
application
to
EPA
for
prior
written
approval
in
order
to
obtain
an
exemption
or
exclusion
from
bringing
vehicles
or
engines
into
compliance
with
Federal
emission
standards.
This
form
was
designed
by
EPA
to
give
importers
a
guide
as
to
what
information
they
should
submit
and
what
exemption
or
exclusion
they
might
be
eligible
for.

The
information
collection
will
involve
13,000
respondents
­
2­

at
an
O&
M
cost
of
$
1,296,000
and
a
labor
cost
of
$
168,000.

2.
NEED
FOR
AND
USE
OF
THE
COLLECTION
(
a)
NEED/
AUTHORITY
FOR
THE
COLLECTION
Joint
EPA
and
Customs
regulations
at
40
CFR
85.1501
et
seq.,
40
CFR
89.601
et
seq.,
19
CFR
12.73
and
19
CFR
12.74
promulgated
under
the
authority
under
the
Clean
Air
Act
(
Sections
203
and
208)
give
authority
for
the
collection
of
information.
The
collection
of
this
information
helps
ensure
the
compliance
of
nonconforming
vehicles
and
engines
with
Federal
emissions
requirements
which
helps
meet
the
Agency
goal
of
reducing
air
pollution.
Without
this
information,
EPA
could
not
confirm
that
vehicles
and
engines
being
imported
conform
to
the
emission
requirements
and
consequently,
would
not
be
able
to
allow
importation
of
these
vehicles
and
engines.

(
b)
USE/
USERS
OF
THE
DATA
The
Outreach
&
Planning
Group
(
OPG)
receives
the
information
either
directly
from
the
importers
or
indirectly
from
the
importers
through
Customs.
The
information
is
used
by
Agency
enforcement
personnel
to
verify
that
all
Federal
emission
requirements
concerning
imported
nonconforming
motor
vehicles
are
met.
The
information
is
also
used
to
identify
and
prosecute
violators
of
the
regulations
and
to
monitor
the
program
in
achieving
the
objectives
of
the
regulations.

3.
NONDUPLICATION,
CONSULTATIONS,
AND
OTHER
COLLECTION
CRITERIA
(
a)
NONDUPLICATION
A
search
of
the
Government
Information
Locator
System
(
GILS)
found
no
other
program
or
agency
collecting
this
information.
Because
much
of
the
information
is
so
highly
specific
(
e.
g.,
emission
test
results
on
a
particular
vehicle)
to
the
EPA
Imports
Program,
the
information
would
not
be
duplicated
by
other
programs.

(
b)
PUBLIC
NOTICE
A
Federal
Register
notice
has
been
published,
soliciting
public
comment
for
this
ICR
on
5/
31/
2000
(
65
FR
25324);
no
comments
were
received.

(
c)
CONSULTATIONS
Consultations
have
been
made
with
Customs
headquarters
and
ICIs
to
discuss
form
revisions
and
to
obtain
accurate
burden
and
cost
estimates.
The
following
ICIs
were
contacted:
­
3­

Champagne
Imports
Inc.
200
West
5th
Street
Lansdale,
PA
19446
Rep:
Mr.
Joe
Marino
Phone:
(
215)
361­
1304
J.
K.
Motorcars,
Inc.
3500
Sweet
Air
Street
Baltimore,
MD
21211
Rep:
Mr.
Jonathan
Weisheit
Phone:
(
410)
366­
6332
Wallace
Environmental
Testing
Laboratories
2140
Wirtcrest
Houston,
TX
77055
Rep:
Mr.
Les
Weaver
Phone:
(
713)
956­
7705
(
d)
EFFECTS
OF
LESS
FREQUENT
COLLECTION
Since
reporting
is
done
only
at
the
time
of
entry
and
compliance,
the
effects
of
less
frequent
collection
would
be
to
seriously
undermine
the
Agency's
ability
to
whether
vehicles
being
imported
meet
applicable
emission
requirements.
Consequently,
the
Agency
would
not
be
able
to
allow
entry
of
vehicles
being
imported.
Therefore,
less
frequent
collection
is
not
feasible.

(
e)
GENERAL
GUIDELINES
This
ICR
requires
that
ICIs
notify
EPA
when
requesting
final
admission
for
vehicles
(
form
3520­
8)
and
this
may
occasionally
result
in
reporting
more
often
than
quarterly.
This
requirement
is
necessary
for
EPA
to
inspect
vehicles
prior
to
release
from
the
ICI.
If
EPA
only
required
quarterly
reports,
either
the
ICI
would
have
to
hold
vehicles
and
release
them
on
a
quarterly
basis
or
EPA
would
not
likely
have
the
opportunity
to
inspect
vehicles
imported
by
the
ICI.

Additionally,
EPA's
regulations
require
that
ICIs
retain
records
for
a
period
equal
to
the
vehicle's
or
engine's
useful
life
plus
one
year
(
40
CFR
85.1507).
Also,
the
emissions
warranty
needs
to
be
valid
for
the
same
period.
For
example
the
Clean
Air
Act
requires
that
light
duty
vehicles
meet
Federal
emission
standards
throughout
their
useful
lives
which
is
defined
by
the
Clean
Air
Act
to
be
5
years
or
50,000
miles.
The
Imports
regulations
further
specify
that
the
useful
life
period
starts
from
the
date
that
the
vehicle
is
delivered
to
the
owner
by
the
ICI.
Therefore,
because
of
this
requirement,
compliance
documentation
must
ordinarily
be
maintained
six
years
from
the
date
of
entry.
­
4­

(
f)
CONFIDENTIALITY
Any
information
submitted
to
the
Agency
for
which
a
claim
of
confidentiality
is
made
will
be
safeguarded
according
to
policies
set
forth
in
Title
40,
Chapter
1,
Part
2,
Subpart
B
­
Confidentiality
of
Business
Information
(
see
CFR
2).
The
public
is
not
permitted
access
to
information
containing
personal
or
organizational
identifiers.
This
collection
complies
with
the
Privacy
Act
of
1974
and
OMB
Circular
A­
130.

(
g)
SENSITIVE
QUESTIONS
There
are
no
sensitive
questions
asked.

4.
THE
RESPONDENTS
AND
THE
INFORMATION
REQUESTED
(
a)
RESPONDENTS/
SIC
CODES
The
Vehicle
Compliance
Programs
Group
(
VCPG)
collects
information
from
individual
importers
and
both
small
and
large
companies
who
import,
or
import
and
manufacture,
vehicles
or
engines.
The
SIC
code
for
respondents
is
371.

(
b)
INFORMATION
REQUESTED
(
i)
Data
Items
The
data
requested
in
reports
include:

­
vehicle
identification
number
­
vehicle
make
­
vehicle
model
­
model
year
of
the
vehicle
­
port
of
entry
­
date
of
entry
­
entry
number
­
importer
name,
address
and
telephone
number
­
owner
name,
address,
telephone
number
and
SSN
or
EIN
­
emission
test
results
­
applicable
EPA
certificate
of
conformity
­
fuel
economy
­
test
date
­
modification
date
­
name
of
emissions
test
laboratory
­
vehicle
storage
location
­
justification
for
an
exclusion
or
exemption,
if
applicable
and
records
are
maintained
on:

­
documents
related
to
certification,
modification,
importation,
storage,
registration
or
emission
testing
­
5­

­
bills
of
sale,
invoices,
or
purchase
agreements
­
documents
providing
parts
identification
data
associated
with
the
emission
control
system
­
documents
providing
evidence
of
the
initiation
of
the
"
hold
period"

(
ii)
Respondent
Activities
To
complete
the
collection,
the
respondent
would:

­
read
form
instructions
­
collect
data
and
complete
forms
­
emission
testing
(
ICIs
only)

INFORMATION
REQUIREMENTS
FOR
IMPORTATION
OF
NONCONFORMING
MOTOR
VEHICLES
AND
MOTOR
VEHICLE
ENGINES
40
CFR
PART
85
SUBPARTS
P
and
R
INFORMATION
REQUIREMENTS
CITATION
I.
ICI
requirements
Reporting
­
Application
for
final
admission
85.1505(
a)
(
certified)

­
Reasonable
assistance
during
inspection,
85.1506(
c),(
g)(
4)
including
copies
of
records
or
documents
85.1506(
b)(
2)

­
Application
for
final
admission
85.1509(
b)
(
modification/
test)

­
Repair
and
retest
85.1509(
g)

­
Maintenance
instructions,
attestation,
85.1510(
a)
parts
list
­
Altitude
compensator
instructions,
attestation
85.1510(
b)

­
Emission
warranties,
attestation
85.1510(
c)

­
Emission
labeling,
attestation
85.1510(
d)

­
Fuel
economy
labeling,
attestation
85.1510(
e)

­
Gas
guzzler
tax
forms,
attestation
85.1510(
f)
­
6­

­
Reply
to
notice
of
suspension
or
85.1513(
f)(
3)(
ii),
revocation
85.1513(
f)(
3)(
iv)
85.1513(
f)(
6)

­
Request
for
hearing
85.1513(
f)(
3)(
iii)

Recordkeeping
­
Certification,
modification,
test,
purchase,
85.1507
sale,
storage,
registration,
importation
­
Owners
or
ultimate
purchasers
85.1508(
b)

­
Maintenance
instructions,
parts
list,
85.1510
altitude
compensator
instructions,
emission
warranties,
emission
labeling,
fuel
economy
labeling
II.
Requirements
applying
to
all
importers
­
Notification
of
conditional
admission
85.1504(
a)

­
Request
for
prior
approval
(
exemption),
85.1511(
b),(
g)
request
for
extension
of
exemption
­
Request
for
prior
approval
(
exclusion)
85.1511(
c),(
d),
(
e),(
f),(
g)

­
Attestations,
copy
of
paid
invoice
85.1512(
f)

­
Claim
of
confidentiality
85.1514
5.
THE
INFORMATION
COLLECTED­­
AGENCY
ACTIVITIES,
COLLECTION
METHODOLOGY,
AND
INFORMATION
MANAGEMENT
(
a)
AGENCY
ACTIVITIES
OPG
receives
the
information
as
required
from
Customs,
individuals
and
businesses.
After
receiving
the
information,
EPA
uses
the
information
to
determine
whether
vehicles
meet
EPA
requirements
and
retains
the
information
in
order
to
respond
to
public,
State
government,
and
Federal
government
inquires.

(
b)
COLLECTION
METHODOLOGY
AND
MANAGEMENT
­
7­

Both
Customs
and
OPG
use
the
information
to
determine
if
vehicles
meet
EPA
requirements.
OPG
retains
information
in
a
computer
database
or
document
form
in
order
to
respond
to
public,
State
government,
and
Federal
government
inquires,
which
are
handled
by
OPG
staff.

(
c)
SMALL
ENTITY
FLEXIBILITY
Small
entities
(
e.
g.
ICIs)
which
are
required
to
submit
certain
information
to
EPA
have
been
providing
information
to
EPA
by
completing
and
submitting
EPA
forms.
EPA
regulations
provide,
as
an
alternative,
for
the
small
entities
to
submit
the
data
electronically
(
e.
g.
40
CFR
85.1505(
a),
85.1509(
b)
&
(
c)).

(
d)
COLLECTION
SCHEDULE
The
information
is
not
subject
to
a
collection
schedule,
but
is
collected
at
the
time
of
vehicle
entry
and
when
the
vehicle
is
ready
for
final
admission
by
EPA.

6.
ESTIMATING
THE
BURDEN
AND
COST
OF
THE
COLLECTION
6(
a)
ESTIMATING
RESPONDENT
BURDEN
Motor
vehicles
and
motor
vehicle
engines
I.
Reporting
Burden
Burden
Est.
Est.
#
of
Est.
of
forms/
yr
Burden
(
hrs)
a)
Form
3520­
1
.5
20,000
10,000
b)
Form
3520­
8
(
ICI)
.5
200
100
c)
Form
3520­
14
.5
1,000
500
10,600
II.
Recordkeeping
Burden
ICIs
1
hr/
vehicle
*
200
vehicles
=
200
hrs
(
form
3520­
8
&
other
required
ICI
records
(
see
4(
b))

III.
Testing
Burden
ICIs
18
hrs/
vehicle
*
200
vehicles
=
3,600
hrs
TOTAL
BURDEN
=
14,400
hrs
­
8­

(
b)
ESTIMATING
RESPONDENT
COST
Motor
vehicles
and
motor
vehicle
engines
Costs:
Estimated
Capital/
Units
Labor
Start­
up
O&
M
I.
Reporting
21,200
forms
$
636,000
@$
30
per
form
II.
Recordkeeping
200
vehicles
$
6,000
x
1
hr/
veh.
x
$
30/
hr
III.
Testing
200
vehicles
$
162,000
$
660,000
x
18
hrs/
veh.
x
$
45/
hr
&
x
$
3,300/
vehicle
TOTAL
COST
=
$
168,000
$
1,296,000
(
i)
Labor
Costs
Labor
costs
were
calculated
based
on
an
average
of
responses
received
from
the
ICIs
contacted.
Estimated
labor
costs
total
$
168,000
for
activities
covered
by
this
ICR.

(
ii)
Capital/
Start­
up
Costs
Capital/
start­
up
costs
are
predominantly
incurred
by
ICIs
during
the
required
certification
process,
which
is
covered
by
another
ICR.
Some
small
portion
of
residual
capital/
start­
up
costs
may
be
included
within
the
operations
and
maintenance
costs
provided
to
us
in
consultations
with
ICIs.
However,
ICIs
were
unable
to
separate
non­
certification
capital/
start­
up
costs
for
us
from
the
overall
operations
and
maintenance
costs
provided,
and
we
have
no
other
basis
for
estimating
the
costs.
Estimated
capital/
start­
up
costs
for
this
ICR
are
therefore
zero.

(
iii)
Operations
and
Maintenance
Costs
Operations
and
maintenance
costs
were
calculated
based
on
an
average
of
responses
received
from
the
ICIs
contacted.
The
Operations
and
maintenance
cost
for
reporting
ordinarily
involves
a
purchase
of
services
from
brokers
who
complete
a
package
of
importation
forms
(
including
those
of
other
agencies)
and
file
them
with
Customs.
This
cost
is
estimated
as
a
component
of
overall
broker
activities
to
import
a
vehicle
or
engine,
and
incorporates
a
negligible
recordkeeping
cost
for
broker
form
retention
indistinguishable
from
overall
broker
activities.
Additional
costs
are
incurred
when
an
ICI
tests
a
vehicle
or
engine
to
verify
compliance
with
Federal
emission
requirements.
Estimated
operations
and
maintenance
costs
total
$
1,296,000
for
­
9­

activities
covered
by
this
ICR.

6(
c)
ESTIMATING
AGENCY
BURDEN
AND
COST
The
Imports
program
is
administered
by
EPA's
Outreach
&
Planning
Group
(
OPG).
Four
Full
Time
Equivalent
employees
and
three
Senior
Environmental
Employment
Program
employees
are
allocated
to
Imports
activities,
at
an
estimated
total
agency
cost
of
$
500,000
per
year.

6(
d)
REASONS
FOR
CHANGE
IN
BURDEN
The
reason
for
the
increase
in
the
burden
is
improved
information
based
upon
consultations
with
respondents,
used
to
estimate
burdens
and
costs.

6(
e)
BURDEN
STATEMENT
Public
reporting
burden
for
this
collection
is
estimated
to
average
30
minutes
per
response
[
and
to
average
30
minutes
per
response
recordkeeping
(
form
3520­
8
only)].
Burden
means
the
total
time,
effort,
or
financial
resources
expended
by
persons
to
generate,
maintain,
retain,
or
disclose
or
provide
information
to
or
for
a
Federal
agency.
This
includes
the
time
needed
to
review
instructions;
develop,
acquire,
install,
and
utilize
technology
and
systems
for
the
purposes
of
collecting,
validating,
and
verifying
information,
processing
and
maintaining
information,
and
disclosing
and
providing
information;
adjust
the
existing
ways
to
comply
with
any
previously
applicable
instructions
and
requirements;
train
personnel
to
be
able
to
respond
to
a
collection
of
information;
search
data
sources;
complete
and
review
the
collection
of
information;
and
transmit
or
otherwise
disclose
the
information.
An
agency
may
not
conduct
or
sponsor,
and
a
person
is
not
required
to
respond
to,
a
collection
of
information
unless
it
displays
a
currently
valid
OMB
control
number.
The
OMB
control
numbers
for
EPA's
regulations
are
listed
in
40
CFR
Part
9
and
48
CFR
Chapter
15.

Send
comments
on
the
Agency's
need
for
this
information,
the
accuracy
of
the
provided
burden
estimates,
and
any
suggested
methods
for
minimizing
respondent
burden,
including
through
the
use
of
automated
collection
techniques
to
the
Director,
Collection
Strategies
Division,
U.
S.
Environmental
Protection
Agency
(
2822),
1200
Pennsylvania
Ave.,
NW,
Washington,
D.
C.
20460;
and
to
the
Office
of
Information
and
Regulatory
Affairs,
Office
of
Management
and
Budget,
725
17th
Street,
NW,
Washington,
DC
20503,
Attention:
Desk
Officer
for
EPA.
Include
EPA
ICR
number
0010.09
and
OMB
control
number
2060­
0095
in
any
correspondence.