Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Comment Request; Clean Watersheds Needs Survey; ICR No. 0318.11; OMB Control No. 2040-0050, 40148-40149 [E7-14157]

Agencies

• ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 140 (Monday, July 23, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40148-40149]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-14157]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OW-2003-0019; FRL-8444-1]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request; Clean Watersheds Needs Survey; ICR No. 0318.11; OMB 
Control No. 2040-0050

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 
U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that EPA is planning to 
submit a request to renew an existing approved Information Collection 
Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). This ICR is 
scheduled to expire on July 31, 2008. Before submitting the ICR to OMB 
for review and approval, EPA is soliciting comments on specific aspects 
of the proposed information collection as described below.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before September 21, 2007.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-
2003-0019 by one of the following methods:
      https://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line instructions for 
submitting comments.
     E-mail: OW-Docket@epa.gov.
     Mail: Water Docket, Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 
4104T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460.
     Hand Delivery: Docket at Public Reading Room, Room B102, EPA West 
Building, 1301 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC. Such 
deliveries are only accepted during the Docket's normal hours of 
operation, and special arrangements should be made for deliveries of 
boxed information.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-2003-
0019. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in 
the public docket without change and may be made available online at 
www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided, 
unless the comment includes information claimed to be Confidential 
Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is 
restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you consider to 
be CBI or otherwise protected through www.regulations.gov or e-mail. 
The www.regulations.gov Web site is an ``anonymous access'' system, 
which means EPA will not know your identity or contact information 
unless you provide it in the body of your comment. If you send an e-
mail comment directly to EPA without going through www.regulations.gov 
your e-mail address will be automatically captured and included as part 
of the comment that is placed in the public docket and made available 
on the Internet. If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends 
that you include your name and other contact information in the body of 
your comment and with any disk or CD-ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read 
your comment due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you for 
clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic 
files should avoid the use of special characters, any form of 
encryption, and be free of any defects or viruses. For additional 
information about EPA's public docket visit the EPA Docket Center 
homepage at https://www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michael Plastino, Municipal Support 
Division, Office of Wastewater Management, Environmental Protection 
Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460; phone 
number: 202-564-0682; fax number: 202-501-2397; e-mail address: 
plastino.michael@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

How Can I Access the Docket and/or Submit Comments?

    EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under Docket ID 
No. EPA-HQ-OW-2003-0019, which is available for online viewing at 
www.regulations.gov, or in person viewing at the Water Docket in the 
EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution 
Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The EPA/DC Public Reading Room is open from 
8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. 
The telephone number for the Reading Room is 202-566-1744, and the 
telephone number for the Water Docket is 202-566-2426.
    Use www.regulations.gov to obtain a copy of the draft collection of 
information, submit or view public comments, access the index listing 
of the contents of the docket, and to access those documents in the 
public docket that are available electronically. Once in the system, 
select ``search,'' then key in the docket ID number identified in this 
document.

What Information Is EPA Particularly Interested in?

    Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, EPA specifically 
solicits comments and information to enable it to:
    (i) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility;
    (ii) Evaluate the accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the burden 
of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of 
the methodology and assumptions used;
    (iii) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information 
to be collected; and
    (iv) 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, e.g., permitting electronic 
submission of responses. In particular, EPA is requesting comments from 
very small businesses (those that employ less than 25) on examples of 
specific additional efforts that EPA could make to reduce the paperwork 
burden for very small businesses affected by this collection.

What Should I Consider When I Prepare My Comments for EPA?

    You may find the following suggestions helpful for preparing your 
comments:
    1. Explain your views as clearly as possible and provide specific 
examples.
    2. Describe any assumptions that you used.

[[Page 40149]]

    3. Provide copies of any technical information and/or data you used 
that support your views.
    4. If you estimate potential burden or costs, explain how you 
arrived at the estimate that you provide.
    5. Offer alternative ways to improve the collection activity.
    6. Make sure to submit your comments by the deadline identified 
under DATES.
    7. To ensure proper receipt by EPA, be sure to identify the docket 
ID number assigned to this action in the subject line on the first page 
of your response. You may also provide the name, date, and Federal 
Register citation.

What Information Collection Activity or ICR Does This Apply to?

    Affected entities: Entities potentially affected by this action are 
state governments and publicly owned wastewater treatment facilities.
    Title: Clean Watersheds Needs Survey.
    ICR numbers: EPA ICR No. 0318.11, OMB Control No. 2040-0050.
    ICR status: The current ICR (EPA ICR No. 0318.10) is scheduled to 
expire on July 31, 2008. The effective date of this ICR renewal (EPA 
ICR No. 0318.11) is January 22, 2008--at which point EPA ICR No. 
0318.10 will be superseded by EPA ICR No. 0318.11. 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 in title 
40 of the CFR, after appearing in the Federal Register when approved, 
are listed in 40 CFR part 9, are displayed either by publication in the 
Federal Register or by other appropriate means, such as on the related 
collection instrument or form, if applicable. The display of OMB 
control numbers in certain EPA regulations is consolidated in 40 CFR 
part 9.
    Abstract: The Clean Watersheds Needs Survey (CWNS) is required by 
Sections 205(a) and 516(b)(1) of the Clean Water Act (https://
www.epa.gov/cwns). It is a periodic inventory of existing and proposed 
publicly owned wastewater treatment works (POTWs) and other water 
pollution control facilities in the United States, as well as an 
estimate of how many POTWs need to be built. The CWNS is a voluntary, 
joint effort of EPA and the States. The Survey records cost and 
technical data associated with POTWs and other water pollution control 
facilities, existing and proposed, in the United States. The State 
respondents who provide this information to EPA are State agencies 
responsible for environmental pollution control. No confidential 
information is used, nor is sensitive information protected from 
release under the Public Information Act. EPA achieves national 
consistency in the final results through the application of uniform 
guidelines and validation techniques.
    Burden Statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping 
burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1.46 
hours per response. 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 which have subsequently changed; 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.
    The ICR will provide a detailed explanation of the Agency's 
estimate, which is only briefly summarized here:
    Estimated total number of potential respondents: 56 State (States, 
District of Columbia, and U.S. Territories) respondents, approximately 
5,400 water pollution control facilities.
    Frequency of response: Every 4 Years.
    Estimated total average number of responses for each State 
respondent: 322, of which approximately 100 are estimated to involve 
State interaction with water pollution control facilities.
    Estimated total annual burden hours: 8,807.
    Estimated total annual costs: $296,000. This includes an estimated 
burden cost of $296,000 and an estimated cost of $0 for capital 
investment or maintenance and operational costs.

Are There Changes in the Estimates From the Last Approval?

    There is an overall increase of 1,136 annual hours in the total 
estimated respondent burden compared with that identified in the ICR 
approved by OMB for the 2004 Survey under EPA ICR No. 0318.09 (the 
currently active EPA ICR No. 0318.10 only covers infrequent updates, 
made by States solely for their own State's benefit, in the period 
between the 2004 and 2008 Surveys).
    Feedback received from States following the 2004 survey indicated 
that the total burden to the 56 respondents was approximately 893 
annual hours greater than the 7,672 annual hours estimated in EPA ICR 
No. 0318.09. Additionally, State feedback indicated approximately 1,713 
annual burden hours for POTWs to interact with States on State's 
responses to the 2004 Survey. Taken together, the 893 additional annual 
state hours and the 1,713 POTW hours add to 2,605 annual hours expended 
in 2004 beyond what was estimated in EPA ICR No. 0318.09.
    EPA, in partnership with States, is in the process of completing 
several activities that will decrease the total annual burden hours. 
The development of a new web-based data entry system, in conjunction 
with reduced data element requirements and several streamlined methods 
for assuring data quality, are estimated to reduce reporting burden by 
2,536 annual hours.
    The projected increase in the number of facilities for which States 
submit needs (due to greater availability of substantiating 
documentation and needs estimation techniques) correlates with an 
increase of approximately 1,066 annual hours.

What is the Next Step in the Process for This ICR?

    EPA will consider the comments received and amend the ICR as 
appropriate. The final ICR package will then be submitted to OMB for 
review and approval pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.12. At that time, EPA will 
issue another Federal Register notice pursuant to 5 CFR 
1320.5(a)(1)(iv) to announce the submission of the ICR to OMB and the 
opportunity to submit additional comments to OMB. If you have any 
questions about this ICR or the approval process, please contact the 
technical person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.

    Dated: July 17, 2007.
James A. Hanlon,
Director, Office of Wastewater Management.
 [FR Doc. E7-14157 Filed 7-20-07; 8:45 am]
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