Collection of Information Under Review by Office of Management and Budget; OMB Control Number: 1625-0089, 48357-48359 [2010-19632]

Download as PDF Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 153 / Tuesday, August 10, 2010 / Notices Dated: August 4, 2010. Leslie Kux, Acting Assistant Commissioner for Policy. [FR Doc. 2010–19637 Filed 8–9–10; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4160–01–S DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY Coast Guard [USCG–2010–0231] Collection of Information Under Review by Office of Management and Budget; OMB Control Number: 1625– 0089 Coast Guard, DHS. Thirty-day Notice requesting comments; correction. AGENCY: ACTION: The U.S. Coast Guard is issuing a correction to a Federal Register Notice published on July 9, 2010 to extend the comment period for ten (10) additional days, and address previous comments received on this collection of information: 1625–0089, National Recreational Boating Survey. The Notice stated that no comments were received from the public when in fact we received four. The comment period for the Notice, which closes August 9, 2010, is now extended to August 19, 2010. All comments and related material must either be submitted to our online docket via https://www.regulations.gov on or before August 19, 2010, or reach the Docket Management Facility (DMF) by that date. SUMMARY: Please submit comments on or before August 19, 2010. ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Coast Guard docket number [USCG–2010–0231] to the DMF at the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) or to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA). To avoid duplicate submissions, please use only one of the following means: (1) Online: (a) To Coast Guard docket at https://www.regulation.gov. (b) To OIRA by e-mail via: oira_submission@omb.eop.gov. (2) Mail or Hand delivery. (a) DMF (M–30), DOT, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12–140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590– 0001. Hand deliver between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The telephone number is 202–366–9329. (b) To OIRA, 725 17th Street, NW., Washington, DC 20503, attention Desk Officer for the Coast Guard. sroberts on DSKB9S0YB1PROD with NOTICES DATES: VerDate Mar<15>2010 16:26 Aug 09, 2010 Jkt 220001 (3) Fax. (a) To DMF, 202–493–2251. (b) To OIRA at 202–395–5806. To ensure your comments are received in a timely manner, mark the fax, attention Desk Officer for the Coast Guard. The DMF maintains the public docket for this Notice. Comments and material received from the public, as well as documents mentioned in this Notice as being available in the docket, will become part of the docket and will be available for inspection or copying at room W12–140 on the West Building Ground Floor, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. You may also find the docket on the Internet at https:// www.regulations.gov. A copy of the ICR is available through the docket on the Internet at https:// www.regulations.gov. Additionally, copies are available from: Commandant (CG–611), ATTN Paperwork Reduction Act Manager, U.S. Coast Guard, 2100 2nd St., SW., Stop 7101, Washington, DC 20593–7101. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Arthur Requina, Office of Information Management, telephone 202–475–3523, or fax 202–475–3929, for questions on these documents. Contact Ms. Renee V. Wright, Program Manager, Docket Operations, 202–366–9826, for questions on the docket. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Coast Guard is issuing this correction to an earlier Notice published on July 9, 2010, (75 FR 39552) in order to extend ten (10) additional days to the comment period and address previous comments received on this collection of information: 1625–0089, National Recreational Boating Survey. Comments to Coast Guard or OIRA must contain the OMB Control Number of the ICR. They must also contain the docket number of this request, [USCG– 2010–0231]. For your comments to OIRA to be considered, it is best if they are received on or before August 19, 2010. Public participation and request for comments: We encourage you to respond to this request by submitting comments and related materials. We will post all comments received, without change, to https:// www.regulations.gov. They will include any personal information you provide. We have an agreement with DOT to use their DMF. Please see the ‘‘Privacy Act’’ paragraph below. Submitting comments: If you submit a comment, please include the docket number [USCG–2010–0231], indicate the specific section of the document to which each comment applies, providing PO 00000 Frm 00056 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 48357 a reason for each comment. You may submit your comments and material online (via https://www.regulations.gov) or by fax, mail, or hand delivery, but please use only one of these means. If you submit a comment online via www.regulations.gov, it will be considered received when you successfully transmit the comment. If you fax, hand deliver, or mail your comment, it will be considered received by the Coast Guard when it is received at the DMF. We recommend you include your name, mailing address, an e-mail address, or other contact information in the body of your document so that we can contact you if we have questions regarding your submission. To submit your comment online, go to https://www.regulations.gov, click on the ‘‘submit a comment’’ box, which will then become highlighted in blue. In the ‘‘Document Type’’ drop down menu, select ‘‘Notices’’ and insert ‘‘USCG– 2010–0231’’ in the ‘‘Keyword’’ box. Click ‘‘Search’’ then click on the balloon shape in the ‘‘Actions’’ column. If you submit your comments by mail or hand delivery, submit them in an unbound format, no larger than 81⁄2 by 11 inches, suitable for copying and electronic filing. If you submit them by mail and would like to know that they reached the Facility, please enclose a stamped, self-addressed postcard or envelope. We will consider all comments and material received during the comment period and address them accordingly. Viewing comments and documents: Go to https://www.regulations.gov to view documents mentioned in this Notice as being available in the docket. Click on the ‘‘read comments’’ box, which will then become highlighted in blue. In the ‘‘Keyword’’ box insert ‘‘USCG–2010–0231’’ and click ‘‘Search.’’ Click the ‘‘Open Docket Folder’’ in the ‘‘Actions’’ column. You may also visit the DMF in room W12–140 on the West Building Ground Floor, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. To find out OIRA’s decision on this ICR, visit https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/ PRAMain after the comment period. An OMB notice of action on this request will become available on that Web site through a hyperlink in the OMB Control Number: 1625–0089. Privacy Act: Anyone can search the electronic form of all comments received in dockets by the name of the individual submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review the Privacy Act statement regarding our public dockets in the E:\FR\FM\10AUN1.SGM 10AUN1 48358 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 153 / Tuesday, August 10, 2010 / Notices January 17, 2008 issue of the Federal Register (73 FR 3316). Previous Request for Comments The Coast Guard published the 60-day Notice (75 FR 19413, April 14, 2010) as required by 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2). That Notice elicited four comments from the public. We diligently reviewed each of the comments received, and made changes to our survey’s supporting statement where deemed appropriate. The present document provides a summary of public comments, our responses thereto, and changes made to the supporting statement. i. General Supportive Comments All comments supported the National Recreational Boating Survey’s broad goals, and reiterated the importance of collecting more targeted data in response to the elements included in the National Recreational Boating Safety (NRBS) Program’s strategic plan. This Plan calls for the collection of participation/exposure data to develop reliable national and state level measures of the risk incidental to recreational boating. Valid comparisons of injury or fatality rates across States or other geographic entities, which have always been of interest, require the use of participation/exposure data as common base for calculating rates’ denominators. This survey will make exposure data available to the boating community, in addition to collecting various other boating participation data broken down by various boat characteristics including type and length. sroberts on DSKB9S0YB1PROD with NOTICES ii. The Survey and the Strategic Plan Objectives One commenter indicated that the current survey does not account for the more recent developments in the NRBS strategic planning efforts. While it is accurate that the NRBS strategic plan is undergoing some changes, the Coast Guard had to base the design of its survey on the latest version of the Plan that was adopted by the National Boating Safety Advisory Council. However, it is expected that subsequent iterations of the survey will be updated as new versions of the Plan are adopted. iii. Survey Costs A number of comments raised a concern that the cost for conducting this survey was unduly high, suggesting the questionnaires could be trimmed substantially to the point of collecting only information that is critical to the implementation of the NRBS strategic plan. It is accurate that government surveys are increasingly expensive, VerDate Mar<15>2010 16:26 Aug 09, 2010 Jkt 220001 especially when conducted by mail/ telephone. But the definitive costs of the 2011 survey have not yet been determined, and will ultimately be negotiated with the Coast Guard’s contractor ICF–Macro. The Coast Guard will negotiate the lowest price possible for each survey iteration without significantly altering data requirements as specified by its boating partners from States, academia, and industry. To reduce survey costs, the Coast Guard will encourage survey participants to take the web version of the survey whenever possible. Another option for reducing cost is not to produce statelevel statistics for those not providing registration data to the Coast Guard. Collecting data in States with legislation that precludes them from releasing boat registration to the Coast Guard will increase data collection costs dramatically. However, it appears essential to the Coast Guard to satisfy all its boating partners who put in the effort to express their data needs. reasons why boaters do not wear lifejackets, or the reasons why they wear them when they do. ♦ A comment was made regarding the estimated time to complete the different survey questionnaires that may be understated. While survey questionnaires were field-tested by our contractor, times reported on the Supporting Statement are estimated averages across questionnaires and across survey respondents. It is understood that some survey questionnaires will take longer to complete than others. Moreover, even respondents taking the same survey will spend varying amounts of time depending on the information being reported. It is anticipated that some respondents with limited involvement in boating may take less than five minutes to complete a questionnaire that may take 15 to 20 minutes for respondents who are heavy boaters. iv. Collection of 2010 Data Some comments indicated that Coast Guard’s effort to collect 2010 data in the first survey cycle, where participants will have to recall a year’s worth of information will result in poor data quality. It is accurate that in addition to collecting the 2011 data on a monthly basis, the Coast Guard will ask questions regarding the 2010 boating season. While accurate 2010 exposure data will be difficult to obtain, the Coast Guard expects to be able to collect accurate and useful 2010 information on boat ownership and demographic data on the boating population. This data will be compiled and made available much faster than the 2011 data which will be collected until the beginning of 2012. Title: National Recreational Boating Survey. OMB Control Number: 1625–0089. Type of Request: Re-instatement with change. Respondents: Recreational boating participants/owners of recreational boaters/vessels. Abstract: The Federal Boat Safety Act of 1971 determines the framework of the Coast Guard Recreational Boating Safety Program. This Program, as set forth in 46 U.S.C., Chapter 131, requires the Coast Guard to ‘‘encourage greater State participation and uniformity in boating safety efforts, and particularly to permit the States to assume a greater share of boating safety education, assistance, and enforcement activities.’’ (See 46 U.S.C. 13102.) The Coast Guard Office of Boating Safety achieves these goals by providing timely and relevant information on subject activities that occur in each respective jurisdiction. The boating information provided by the Coast Guard enables each State agency to tailor and implement safety initiatives addressing specific needs of boaters in local jurisdictions. The primary objective of this collection is to provide the Coast Guard with the required information in a format suitable to effectively manage the Program. Forms: None. Burden Estimate: This is a biennial requirement. In the year the survey is conducted, the burden is estimated to be 10,880 hours. v. Miscellaneous ♦ A commenter pointed out the difficulty most boaters have in identifying life jacket types they use. The Coast Guard’s contractor discovered this problem during the pilot test. The decision was made to eliminate the lifejacket type question from the telephone survey. However, this question will remain on the web version of the trip survey, where respondents will be able to visualize the different lifejacket types. ♦ Another comment questioned the need to ask boaters whether lifejackets were worn during the outing, when the Coast Guard’s observational study collects the same information. This survey is not duplicating other Coast Guard information collection efforts. The objective here is to understand the PO 00000 Frm 00057 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 Information Collection Request Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. Chapter 35, as amended. E:\FR\FM\10AUN1.SGM 10AUN1 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 153 / Tuesday, August 10, 2010 / Notices Dated: August 3, 2010. R.E. Day, Rear Admiral, U.S. Coast Guard, Assistant Commandant for Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Information Technology. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR [FR Doc. 2010–19632 Filed 8–9–10; 8:45 am] DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Indiana Bat; Notice of Intent To Prepare an Environmental Impact Statement on a Proposed Habitat Conservation Plan and Incidental Take Permit Office of the Secretary AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service [FWS–R3–ES–2010–N140; 30120–1113– 0000–F6] BILLING CODE 9110–04–P sroberts on DSKB9S0YB1PROD with NOTICES Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor Commission: Notice of Meeting Notice is hereby given in accordance with Section 552b of Title 5, United States Code, that a meeting of the John H. Chafee Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor Commission will be held on Thursday, September 16, 2010. The Commission was established pursuant to Public Law 99–647. The purpose of the Commission is to assist federal, state and local authorities in the development and implementation of an integrated resource management plan for those lands and waters within the Corridor. The meeting will convene on September 16, 2010 at 9 a.m. at Slater Mill Historic Site located at 67 Roosevelt Avenue, Pawtucket, RI for the following reasons: 1. Approval of Minutes. 2. Chairman’s Report. 3. Executive Director’s Report. 4. Financial Budget. 5. Public Input. It is anticipated that about thirty people will be able to attend the session in addition to the Commission members. Interested persons may make oral or written presentations to the Commission or file written statements. Such requests should be made prior to the meeting to: Jan H. Reitsma, Executive Director, John H. Chafee, Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor Commission, One Depot Square, Woonsocket, RI 02895, Tel.: (401) 762–0250. Further information concerning this meeting may be obtained from Jan H. Reitsma, Executive Director of the Commission at the aforementioned address. Jan H. Reitsma, Executive Director, BRVNHCC. [FR Doc. 2010–19616 Filed 8–9–10; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4310–RK–P VerDate Mar<15>2010 16:26 Aug 09, 2010 Jkt 220001 Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior. ACTION: Notice of intent; request for comments. We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), intend to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on a proposed Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) and Incidental Take Permit (ITP) for the Indiana Bat (Myotis sodalis) at a wind power project in Adair, Sullivan, and Putnam Counties, Missouri (Project). Construction and operation of the Project has the potential to cause the take of Indiana bat, an endangered species, protected by the Endangered Species Act (ESA). We provide this notice to advise other agencies, tribes, and the public of our intentions, and to obtain suggestions and information on the scope of review under NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act), as well as issues to consider during the planning process. DATES: We will consider comments we receive on or before September 9, 2010. ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by one of the following methods: U.S. mail or hand-delivery: Ms. Jane Ledwin, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 101 Park DeVille Drive, Suite A, Columbia, MO 65203. E-mail: jane_ledwin@fws.gov. Facsimile: (573) 234–2181 (Attention: Jane Ledwin). FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Jane Ledwin, (573) 234–2132. Individuals who are hearing impaired or speech impaired may call the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877–8337 for TTY assistance. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: SUMMARY: Public Comments We request data, comments, new information, or suggestions from the public, other concerned governmental agencies, the scientific community, tribes, industry, or any other interested party on this notice. We will consider all comments we receive in complying with the requirements of NEPA and in the development of an HCP, NEPA document, and potential ITP. PO 00000 Frm 00058 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 48359 You may submit your comments and materials considering this notice by one of the methods listed in the ADDRESSES section. Comments and materials we receive, as well as supporting documentation we use in preparing the NEPA document, will be available for public inspection by appointment, during normal business hours, at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Ecological Services Missouri Field Office (see FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section). You may obtain copies of this notice by mail from the Ecological Services Missouri Field Office, or on the Internet at: https://www.fws.gov/midwest/ Endangered/permits/hcp/r3hcps.html. Background The Indiana Bat was added to the list of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants on March 11, 1967 (32 FR 4001). It is currently listed as an endangered species under the ESA (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) The population has declined as a result of pesticides, agricultural development, and loss of forest habitat affecting the summer range. Impacts to caves used for hibernation have also contributed to population declines. White-nose syndrome (Geomyces destructans), a fungus causing infected bats to rouse from hibernation early and attempt to hunt for food, is now believed to be a cause of death in Indiana bats. The range of the Indiana bat extends from eastern Vermont, western Oklahoma, southern Wisconsin, and northern Florida. Indiana bats migrate between their summer forested ranges and winter hibernacula, which typically are climatically stable caves and mines. During summer months, they forage for insects along streams, in riparian forests and floodplains, and in upland forests and low open areas. Males roost individually or in small groups throughout the range, preferring areas near hibernacula. Females, forming larger maternity colonies of 50 to 100, roost in dead or dying trees or living trees with broken and flaking bark. There are no known hibernacula in the Project area or nearby. However, maternity roosts and maternity colonies have been identified proximate to and within the Project area. The Service and the Applicant have determined that the development and operation of the Project, in proximity to summer maternity colonies and spring and fall migratory flight paths, may affect the Indiana bat and their habitat, possibly resulting in the involuntary take of Indiana bats. Shuteye, LLC continues to develop an HCP and plans to request issuance of an E:\FR\FM\10AUN1.SGM 10AUN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 153 (Tuesday, August 10, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48357-48359]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-19632]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Coast Guard

[USCG-2010-0231]


Collection of Information Under Review by Office of Management 
and Budget; OMB Control Number: 1625-0089

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.

ACTION: Thirty-day Notice requesting comments; correction.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The U.S. Coast Guard is issuing a correction to a Federal 
Register Notice published on July 9, 2010 to extend the comment period 
for ten (10) additional days, and address previous comments received on 
this collection of information: 1625-0089, National Recreational 
Boating Survey. The Notice stated that no comments were received from 
the public when in fact we received four. The comment period for the 
Notice, which closes August 9, 2010, is now extended to August 19, 
2010. All comments and related material must either be submitted to our 
online docket via https://www.regulations.gov on or before August 19, 
2010, or reach the Docket Management Facility (DMF) by that date.

DATES: Please submit comments on or before August 19, 2010.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by Coast Guard docket 
number [USCG-2010-0231] to the DMF at the U.S. Department of 
Transportation (DOT) or to the Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs (OIRA). To avoid duplicate submissions, please use only one of 
the following means:
    (1) Online: (a) To Coast Guard docket at https://www.regulation.gov. 
(b) To OIRA by e-mail via: oira_submission@omb.eop.gov.
    (2) Mail or Hand delivery. (a) DMF (M-30), DOT, West Building 
Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 
20590-0001. Hand deliver between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday 
through Friday, except Federal holidays. The telephone number is 202-
366-9329. (b) To OIRA, 725 17th Street, NW., Washington, DC 20503, 
attention Desk Officer for the Coast Guard.
    (3) Fax. (a) To DMF, 202-493-2251. (b) To OIRA at 202-395-5806. To 
ensure your comments are received in a timely manner, mark the fax, 
attention Desk Officer for the Coast Guard.
    The DMF maintains the public docket for this Notice. Comments and 
material received from the public, as well as documents mentioned in 
this Notice as being available in the docket, will become part of the 
docket and will be available for inspection or copying at room W12-140 
on the West Building Ground Floor, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., 
Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays. You may also find the docket on the Internet 
at https://www.regulations.gov.
    A copy of the ICR is available through the docket on the Internet 
at https://www.regulations.gov. Additionally, copies are available from: 
Commandant (CG-611), ATTN Paperwork Reduction Act Manager, U.S. Coast 
Guard, 2100 2nd St., SW., Stop 7101, Washington, DC 20593-7101.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Arthur Requina, Office of 
Information Management, telephone 202-475-3523, or fax 202-475-3929, 
for questions on these documents. Contact Ms. Renee V. Wright, Program 
Manager, Docket Operations, 202-366-9826, for questions on the docket.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Coast Guard is issuing this correction 
to an earlier Notice published on July 9, 2010, (75 FR 39552) in order 
to extend ten (10) additional days to the comment period and address 
previous comments received on this collection of information: 1625-
0089, National Recreational Boating Survey.
    Comments to Coast Guard or OIRA must contain the OMB Control Number 
of the ICR. They must also contain the docket number of this request, 
[USCG-2010-0231]. For your comments to OIRA to be considered, it is 
best if they are received on or before August 19, 2010.
    Public participation and request for comments: We encourage you to 
respond to this request by submitting comments and related materials. 
We will post all comments received, without change, to https://www.regulations.gov. They will include any personal information you 
provide. We have an agreement with DOT to use their DMF. Please see the 
``Privacy Act'' paragraph below.
    Submitting comments: If you submit a comment, please include the 
docket number [USCG-2010-0231], indicate the specific section of the 
document to which each comment applies, providing a reason for each 
comment. You may submit your comments and material online (via https://www.regulations.gov) or by fax, mail, or hand delivery, but please use 
only one of these means. If you submit a comment online via 
www.regulations.gov, it will be considered received when you 
successfully transmit the comment. If you fax, hand deliver, or mail 
your comment, it will be considered received by the Coast Guard when it 
is received at the DMF. We recommend you include your name, mailing 
address, an e-mail address, or other contact information in the body of 
your document so that we can contact you if we have questions regarding 
your submission.
    To submit your comment online, go to https://www.regulations.gov, 
click on the ``submit a comment'' box, which will then become 
highlighted in blue. In the ``Document Type'' drop down menu, select 
``Notices'' and insert ``USCG-2010-0231'' in the ``Keyword'' box. Click 
``Search'' then click on the balloon shape in the ``Actions'' column. 
If you submit your comments by mail or hand delivery, submit them in an 
unbound format, no larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable for 
copying and electronic filing. If you submit them by mail and would 
like to know that they reached the Facility, please enclose a stamped, 
self-addressed postcard or envelope. We will consider all comments and 
material received during the comment period and address them 
accordingly.
    Viewing comments and documents: Go to https://www.regulations.gov to 
view documents mentioned in this Notice as being available in the 
docket. Click on the ``read comments'' box, which will then become 
highlighted in blue. In the ``Keyword'' box insert ``USCG-2010-0231'' 
and click ``Search.'' Click the ``Open Docket Folder'' in the 
``Actions'' column. You may also visit the DMF in room W12-140 on the 
West Building Ground Floor, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC, 
between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays. To find out OIRA's decision on this ICR, visit https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain after the comment period. An OMB 
notice of action on this request will become available on that Web site 
through a hyperlink in the OMB Control Number: 1625-0089. Privacy Act: 
Anyone can search the electronic form of all comments received in 
dockets by the name of the individual submitting the comment (or 
signing the comment, if submitted on behalf of an association, 
business, labor union, etc.). You may review the Privacy Act statement 
regarding our public dockets in the

[[Page 48358]]

January 17, 2008 issue of the Federal Register (73 FR 3316).

Previous Request for Comments

    The Coast Guard published the 60-day Notice (75 FR 19413, April 14, 
2010) as required by 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2). That Notice elicited four 
comments from the public. We diligently reviewed each of the comments 
received, and made changes to our survey's supporting statement where 
deemed appropriate. The present document provides a summary of public 
comments, our responses thereto, and changes made to the supporting 
statement.

i. General Supportive Comments

    All comments supported the National Recreational Boating Survey's 
broad goals, and reiterated the importance of collecting more targeted 
data in response to the elements included in the National Recreational 
Boating Safety (NRBS) Program's strategic plan. This Plan calls for the 
collection of participation/exposure data to develop reliable national 
and state level measures of the risk incidental to recreational 
boating. Valid comparisons of injury or fatality rates across States or 
other geographic entities, which have always been of interest, require 
the use of participation/exposure data as common base for calculating 
rates' denominators. This survey will make exposure data available to 
the boating community, in addition to collecting various other boating 
participation data broken down by various boat characteristics 
including type and length.

ii. The Survey and the Strategic Plan Objectives

    One commenter indicated that the current survey does not account 
for the more recent developments in the NRBS strategic planning 
efforts. While it is accurate that the NRBS strategic plan is 
undergoing some changes, the Coast Guard had to base the design of its 
survey on the latest version of the Plan that was adopted by the 
National Boating Safety Advisory Council. However, it is expected that 
subsequent iterations of the survey will be updated as new versions of 
the Plan are adopted.

iii. Survey Costs

    A number of comments raised a concern that the cost for conducting 
this survey was unduly high, suggesting the questionnaires could be 
trimmed substantially to the point of collecting only information that 
is critical to the implementation of the NRBS strategic plan. It is 
accurate that government surveys are increasingly expensive, especially 
when conducted by mail/telephone. But the definitive costs of the 2011 
survey have not yet been determined, and will ultimately be negotiated 
with the Coast Guard's contractor ICF-Macro. The Coast Guard will 
negotiate the lowest price possible for each survey iteration without 
significantly altering data requirements as specified by its boating 
partners from States, academia, and industry. To reduce survey costs, 
the Coast Guard will encourage survey participants to take the web 
version of the survey whenever possible. Another option for reducing 
cost is not to produce state-level statistics for those not providing 
registration data to the Coast Guard. Collecting data in States with 
legislation that precludes them from releasing boat registration to the 
Coast Guard will increase data collection costs dramatically. However, 
it appears essential to the Coast Guard to satisfy all its boating 
partners who put in the effort to express their data needs.

iv. Collection of 2010 Data

    Some comments indicated that Coast Guard's effort to collect 2010 
data in the first survey cycle, where participants will have to recall 
a year's worth of information will result in poor data quality. It is 
accurate that in addition to collecting the 2011 data on a monthly 
basis, the Coast Guard will ask questions regarding the 2010 boating 
season. While accurate 2010 exposure data will be difficult to obtain, 
the Coast Guard expects to be able to collect accurate and useful 2010 
information on boat ownership and demographic data on the boating 
population. This data will be compiled and made available much faster 
than the 2011 data which will be collected until the beginning of 2012.

v. Miscellaneous

    [diams] A commenter pointed out the difficulty most boaters have in 
identifying life jacket types they use. The Coast Guard's contractor 
discovered this problem during the pilot test. The decision was made to 
eliminate the lifejacket type question from the telephone survey. 
However, this question will remain on the web version of the trip 
survey, where respondents will be able to visualize the different 
lifejacket types.
    [diams] Another comment questioned the need to ask boaters whether 
lifejackets were worn during the outing, when the Coast Guard's 
observational study collects the same information. This survey is not 
duplicating other Coast Guard information collection efforts. The 
objective here is to understand the reasons why boaters do not wear 
lifejackets, or the reasons why they wear them when they do.
    [diams] A comment was made regarding the estimated time to complete 
the different survey questionnaires that may be understated. While 
survey questionnaires were field-tested by our contractor, times 
reported on the Supporting Statement are estimated averages across 
questionnaires and across survey respondents. It is understood that 
some survey questionnaires will take longer to complete than others. 
Moreover, even respondents taking the same survey will spend varying 
amounts of time depending on the information being reported. It is 
anticipated that some respondents with limited involvement in boating 
may take less than five minutes to complete a questionnaire that may 
take 15 to 20 minutes for respondents who are heavy boaters.

Information Collection Request

    Title: National Recreational Boating Survey.
    OMB Control Number: 1625-0089.
    Type of Request: Re-instatement with change.
    Respondents: Recreational boating participants/owners of 
recreational boaters/vessels.
    Abstract: The Federal Boat Safety Act of 1971 determines the 
framework of the Coast Guard Recreational Boating Safety Program. This 
Program, as set forth in 46 U.S.C., Chapter 131, requires the Coast 
Guard to ``encourage greater State participation and uniformity in 
boating safety efforts, and particularly to permit the States to assume 
a greater share of boating safety education, assistance, and 
enforcement activities.'' (See 46 U.S.C. 13102.) The Coast Guard Office 
of Boating Safety achieves these goals by providing timely and relevant 
information on subject activities that occur in each respective 
jurisdiction. The boating information provided by the Coast Guard 
enables each State agency to tailor and implement safety initiatives 
addressing specific needs of boaters in local jurisdictions. The 
primary objective of this collection is to provide the Coast Guard with 
the required information in a format suitable to effectively manage the 
Program.
    Forms: None.
    Burden Estimate: This is a biennial requirement. In the year the 
survey is conducted, the burden is estimated to be 10,880 hours.

     Authority:  The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. 
Chapter 35, as amended.


[[Page 48359]]


    Dated: August 3, 2010.
R.E. Day,
Rear Admiral, U.S. Coast Guard, Assistant Commandant for Command, 
Control, Communications, Computers and Information Technology.
[FR Doc. 2010-19632 Filed 8-9-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9110-04-P
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