Solicitation of Letters of Interest To Participate in National Environmental Policy Act Pilot Project, 19309-19310 [2011-8329]
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Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 67 / Thursday, April 7, 2011 / Notices
impact on privacy of individuals, they are
either necessary for carrying out the agency
mission and minimizing waste, fraud, and
abuse, are required by law, or benefit the
subjects of the records. On balance, the needs
of the agency and the benefits to the
individuals of these disclosures justify the
minimal impact on privacy.
All hard copy records are maintained in
secured locked file cabinets in agency offices
which are locked during non-duty hours. All
electronic information is maintained in a
web-based database and stored and backedup on secured servers. Computer access to
information on individuals in the system is
limited to the individual, contractor, and the
system manager. The review of records
retrieved is limited to the individual,
supervisor, approved contractors, and system
manager.
A copy of the form, used to collect the
information from individuals, is attached to
this report. The system of records is not
exempt from any provisions of the Privacy
Act.
[FR Doc. 2011–7722 Filed 4–6–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410–11–P
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service
[Docket No. APHIS–2010–0117]
Solicitation of Letters of Interest To
Participate in National Environmental
Policy Act Pilot Project
Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
The Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service is soliciting letters of
interest from entities subject to the
regulations governing the introduction
of genetically engineered (GE)
organisms in 7 CFR part 340 to
participate in a National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) Pilot Project. The
NEPA Pilot Project will test new
approaches to developing
environmental analyses and documents
required under NEPA to determine the
extent to which these approaches
improve the quality, timeliness, and
cost effectiveness of such analyses and
documents. The pilot project will focus
only on NEPA analyses and documents
associated with petitions for
nonregulated status for GE organisms.
DATES: Letters of interest may be
submitted through April 8, 2013 to the
person listed under FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr.
David Reinhold, Assistant Director,
Environmental Risk Analysis Programs,
BRS, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 146,
Riverdale, MD 20737–1238; (301) 734–
mstockstill on DSKH9S0YB1PROD with NOTICES
SUMMARY:
VerDate Mar<15>2010
19:53 Apr 06, 2011
Jkt 223001
0660; e-mail:
david.reinhold@aphis.usda.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The regulations in 7 CFR part 340,
‘‘Introduction of Organisms and
Products Altered or Produced Through
Genetic Engineering Which Are Plant
Pests or Which There Is Reason to
Believe Are Plant Pests,’’ regulate,
among other things, the introduction
(importation, interstate movement, or
release into the environment) of
organisms and products altered or
produced through genetic engineering
that are plant pests or that there is
reason to believe are plant pests. Such
genetically engineered organisms and
products are considered ‘‘regulated
articles.’’ The regulations in § 340.6(a)
provide that any person may submit a
petition to the Animal and Plant Health
Inspection Service (APHIS) seeking a
determination that an article should not
be regulated under 7 CFR part 340, also
referred to as a request to grant
nonregulated status or to deregulate an
article.
Before APHIS determines whether an
article can be deregulated, APHIS
prepares a plant pest risk assessment
(PPRA) to assess the plant pest risk of
the article. In accordance with The
National Environmental Policy Act of
1969 (NEPA), as amended (42 U.S.C.
4321 et seq.), APHIS also prepares an
environmental assessment (EA) or an
environmental impact statement (EIS) to
examine potential environmental
impacts that may result from an Agency
determination of nonregulated status.
The regulations in § 340.6(c)(1)
through (c)(5) require the petitioner to
submit specific information to meet
regulatory requirements and inform
APHIS’ evaluation of the petition. While
petitioners may submit much of the
necessary information, APHIS retains
primary responsibility for researching
and analyzing all the data necessary to
prepare the environmental documents.
APHIS also evaluates all comments
received on the environmental
documents. APHIS has, on occasion,
used consultants and contractors to
perform some of these functions under
APHIS guidance and oversight. In
APHIS’ experience, the cost of a draft
EA generally ranges from $60,000–
$80,000, and the cost of a complete EIS
can exceed $1,000,000.
To explore ways to enhance APHIS’
NEPA compliance, APHIS is
implementing a NEPA Pilot Project that
will involve working with petitioners
and outside experts to develop highquality environmental analyses and
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
19309
documents in a timelier manner. This
pilot project is part of a larger effort to
improve the petition evaluation process
and is one of the strategies identified in
USDA’s High Priority Performance Goal
for biotechnology regulation in the
President’s Performance Agenda.1
The pilot project will explore two
voluntary mechanisms: (1) A petitionersubmitted environmental report based
upon which APHIS would develop an
EA or an EIS; and (2) an EA or EIS
prepared by a contractor, funded by a
cooperative services agreement between
the petitioner and APHIS.2 This project
is consistent with the Council on
Environmental Quality’s (CEQ)
regulations for implementing NEPA (40
CFR parts 1500–1508), which allow
Federal agencies to obtain relevant
information from applicants for the
purpose of conducting a NEPA analysis
and to contract for services by an
independent contractor (chosen and
directed by the Agency) to prepare
environmental analyses and documents
that are paid for by the petitioners.
The petitioner-submitted
environmental reports should contain
information necessary to develop a draft
EA or EIS, including, for example, a
description of the geographic area that
will be affected and potential impacts
on the environment, such as effects on
water quality and sensitive wildlife
species.
Under the contractor-prepared EA or
EIS alternative, petitioners will provide
funds for the environmental analyses
and documents, while APHIS will select
and direct the contractor. In addition,
with this alternative, analyses and
documents may be prepared for the
entire NEPA process or only part of the
process, i.e., for the draft EA or EIS, for
the evaluation of comments, and/or for
the final EA or EIS.
APHIS will independently evaluate
all information and references in the
environmental documents, supplement
the information and analysis in the
environmental reports as necessary, and
make its own evaluation of the
environmental issues and the adequacy
of the analyses of those issues to ensure
that the scope and content of the
environmental analyses meet all
requirements of CEQ’s regulations and
APHIS’ NEPA implementing regulations
(7 CFR part 372).
NEPA compliance is an important
Agency responsibility, and the pilot
project is designed and intended to
1 To learn more about the President’s Performance
Agenda, visit https://www.performance.gov/.
2 APHIS will continue to conduct
environmenanalyses and prepare environmental
documents for regulated entities that are unable or
choose not to participate in the pilot project.
E:\FR\FM\07APN1.SGM
07APN1
19310
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 67 / Thursday, April 7, 2011 / Notices
assist APHIS in developing more
effective methods for the NEPA process.
APHIS intends to create mechanisms for
early and frequent interactions between
APHIS’ Biotechnology Regulatory
Services program staff and participants
in the pilot project to identify and
thoroughly evaluate the potential
environmental impacts pertinent to the
Agency’s NEPA analysis. This pilot will
also include mechanisms to identify
NEPA-related issues early in the process
involving both the petitioners and
interested partners. APHIS also intends
to use the pilot project to develop
guidance for all petitioners that clearly
identifies the information needed to
initiate and complete the required
NEPA analysis.
APHIS will evaluate the overall
results of the pilot project, including the
effectiveness of using environmental
analyses and documents prepared by
petitioners (environmental reports) as
compared to environmental analyses
and documents prepared using an
independent contractor (EAs and EISs),
and a cost analysis of the two
approaches in relationship to the quality
and timeliness of the final product.
APHIS is soliciting letters of interest
from regulated entities interested in
participating in the NEPA Pilot Project;
no limit has been set on the number of
participants. APHIS anticipates that the
pilot project will run for 2 years.
However, APHIS is interested in
advancing the pilot project in the next
few months and therefore encourages
interested entities to submit letters of
interest as soon as possible. Interested
entities may submit letters of interest by
mail or e-mail through April 8, 2013 to
the person listed under FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT. APHIS will
promptly contact all entities that submit
letters of interest to discuss their
participation in the NEPA Pilot Project.
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 7701–7772 and 7781–
7786; 31 U.S.C. 9701; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and
371.3.
Done in Washington, DC, this 1st day of
April 2011.
Kevin Shea,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant
Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2011–8329 Filed 4–6–11; 8:45 am]
mstockstill on DSKH9S0YB1PROD with NOTICES
BILLING CODE 3410–34–P
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Farm Service Agency
Information Collection; Certified State
Mediation Program
AGENCY:
Farm Service Agency, USDA.
VerDate Mar<15>2010
19:53 Apr 06, 2011
Jkt 223001
ACTION:
Notice; request for comments.
In accordance with the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the
Farm Service Agency (FSA) is seeking
comments from all interested
individuals and organizations on an
extension of a currently approved
information collection that supports the
Certified State Mediation Program. The
information collection is necessary to
ensure the grant program is being
administered properly. The collection of
information by mail, phone, fax, in
person, and by the internet is utilized by
FSA initially to determine whether the
State meets the eligibility criteria to be
a recipient of grant funds. Lack of
adequate information to make these
determinations could result in the
improper administration and
appropriation of Federal grant funds.
DATES: We will consider comments that
we receive by June 6, 2011.
ADDRESSES: We invite you to submit
comments on this notice. In your
comments, include date, volume, and
page number of this issue of the Federal
Register. You may submit comments by
any of the following methods:
• Mail: Carol Wagner, Certified State
Mediation Program Manager, USDA,
FSA, Appeals and Litigation Staff, 1400
Independence Avenue, SW., Ag Stop
0570, Washington, DC 20250–0570.
• E-mail:
Carol.Wagner@wdc.usda.gov.
• Fax: (202) 690–3003.
You may also send comments to the
Desk Officer for Agriculture, Office of
Information and Regulatory Affairs,
Office of Management and Budget,
Washington, DC 20503. Copies of the
information collection may be requested
by contacting Carol Wagner at the above
addresses.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Carol Wagner, FSA, Appeals and
Litigation Staff, telephone (202) 720–
4966.
SUMMARY:
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: Certified State Mediation
Program.
OMB Control Number: 0560–0165.
Expiration Date of Approval: August
31, 2011.
Type of Request: Extension.
Abstract: This information is needed
for FSA to effectively administer the
Certified State Mediation Program in
accordance with Subtitles A and B of
Title V of the Agricultural Credit Act of
1987 (7 U.S.C. 5106). FSA requires some
of the collected information to be
reported in a standard manner.
Although other institutions, public and
private, generally require and collect
information similar to that requested by
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Frm 00004
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 9990
FSA, there is a wide diversity in
reporting practices.
The information to be collected
includes an application for certification,
re-verification for subsequent annual
approval, SF–424, SF–424A, and SF–
424B Application for Federal
Assistance, financial management
systems and reporting requirements,
and audit reports. The information
collection request has not changed since
the last OMB approval.
The information requested is reported
annually and is necessary for the FSA
to determine eligibility and administer
the mediation grant program in an
equitable and cost-effective manner.
Estimated of Annual Burden: The
public reporting burden for this
information collection is estimated to
average 34 hours per respondent.
Respondents: State Agencies.
Estimated Number of Respondents:
35.
Estimated Number of Responses per
Respondent: 5.
Estimated Total Annual of Reponses:
175.
Estimated Total Annual Burden
hours: 1190 hours.
We are requesting comments on all
aspects of this information collection to
help us to:
(1) Evaluate 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;
(2) Evaluate the accuracy of the
agency’s estimate of burden including
the validity of the methodology and
assumptions used;
(3) Enhance the quality, utility and
clarity of the information to be
collected;
(4) 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.
All comments in response to this
notice, including names and addresses
when provided, will be a matter of
public record. Comments will be
summarized and included in the request
for OMB approval.
Signed at Washington DC, on April 1,
2011.
Carolyn B. Cooksie,
Acting Administrator, Farm Service Agency.
[FR Doc. 2011–8320 Filed 4–6–11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410–05–P
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07APN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 67 (Thursday, April 7, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19309-19310]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-8329]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
[Docket No. APHIS-2010-0117]
Solicitation of Letters of Interest To Participate in National
Environmental Policy Act Pilot Project
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is soliciting
letters of interest from entities subject to the regulations governing
the introduction of genetically engineered (GE) organisms in 7 CFR part
340 to participate in a National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Pilot
Project. The NEPA Pilot Project will test new approaches to developing
environmental analyses and documents required under NEPA to determine
the extent to which these approaches improve the quality, timeliness,
and cost effectiveness of such analyses and documents. The pilot
project will focus only on NEPA analyses and documents associated with
petitions for nonregulated status for GE organisms.
DATES: Letters of interest may be submitted through April 8, 2013 to
the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. David Reinhold, Assistant
Director, Environmental Risk Analysis Programs, BRS, APHIS, 4700 River
Road Unit 146, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238; (301) 734-0660; e-mail:
david.reinhold@aphis.usda.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The regulations in 7 CFR part 340, ``Introduction of Organisms and
Products Altered or Produced Through Genetic Engineering Which Are
Plant Pests or Which There Is Reason to Believe Are Plant Pests,''
regulate, among other things, the introduction (importation, interstate
movement, or release into the environment) of organisms and products
altered or produced through genetic engineering that are plant pests or
that there is reason to believe are plant pests. Such genetically
engineered organisms and products are considered ``regulated
articles.'' The regulations in Sec. 340.6(a) provide that any person
may submit a petition to the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
(APHIS) seeking a determination that an article should not be regulated
under 7 CFR part 340, also referred to as a request to grant
nonregulated status or to deregulate an article.
Before APHIS determines whether an article can be deregulated,
APHIS prepares a plant pest risk assessment (PPRA) to assess the plant
pest risk of the article. In accordance with The National Environmental
Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), APHIS
also prepares an environmental assessment (EA) or an environmental
impact statement (EIS) to examine potential environmental impacts that
may result from an Agency determination of nonregulated status.
The regulations in Sec. 340.6(c)(1) through (c)(5) require the
petitioner to submit specific information to meet regulatory
requirements and inform APHIS' evaluation of the petition. While
petitioners may submit much of the necessary information, APHIS retains
primary responsibility for researching and analyzing all the data
necessary to prepare the environmental documents. APHIS also evaluates
all comments received on the environmental documents. APHIS has, on
occasion, used consultants and contractors to perform some of these
functions under APHIS guidance and oversight. In APHIS' experience, the
cost of a draft EA generally ranges from $60,000-$80,000, and the cost
of a complete EIS can exceed $1,000,000.
To explore ways to enhance APHIS' NEPA compliance, APHIS is
implementing a NEPA Pilot Project that will involve working with
petitioners and outside experts to develop high-quality environmental
analyses and documents in a timelier manner. This pilot project is part
of a larger effort to improve the petition evaluation process and is
one of the strategies identified in USDA's High Priority Performance
Goal for biotechnology regulation in the President's Performance
Agenda.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ To learn more about the President's Performance Agenda,
visit https://www.performance.gov/.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The pilot project will explore two voluntary mechanisms: (1) A
petitioner-submitted environmental report based upon which APHIS would
develop an EA or an EIS; and (2) an EA or EIS prepared by a contractor,
funded by a cooperative services agreement between the petitioner and
APHIS.\2\ This project is consistent with the Council on Environmental
Quality's (CEQ) regulations for implementing NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500-
1508), which allow Federal agencies to obtain relevant information from
applicants for the purpose of conducting a NEPA analysis and to
contract for services by an independent contractor (chosen and directed
by the Agency) to prepare environmental analyses and documents that are
paid for by the petitioners.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ APHIS will continue to conduct environmenanalyses and
prepare environmental documents for regulated entities that are
unable or choose not to participate in the pilot project.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The petitioner-submitted environmental reports should contain
information necessary to develop a draft EA or EIS, including, for
example, a description of the geographic area that will be affected and
potential impacts on the environment, such as effects on water quality
and sensitive wildlife species.
Under the contractor-prepared EA or EIS alternative, petitioners
will provide funds for the environmental analyses and documents, while
APHIS will select and direct the contractor. In addition, with this
alternative, analyses and documents may be prepared for the entire NEPA
process or only part of the process, i.e., for the draft EA or EIS, for
the evaluation of comments, and/or for the final EA or EIS.
APHIS will independently evaluate all information and references in
the environmental documents, supplement the information and analysis in
the environmental reports as necessary, and make its own evaluation of
the environmental issues and the adequacy of the analyses of those
issues to ensure that the scope and content of the environmental
analyses meet all requirements of CEQ's regulations and APHIS' NEPA
implementing regulations (7 CFR part 372).
NEPA compliance is an important Agency responsibility, and the
pilot project is designed and intended to
[[Page 19310]]
assist APHIS in developing more effective methods for the NEPA process.
APHIS intends to create mechanisms for early and frequent interactions
between APHIS' Biotechnology Regulatory Services program staff and
participants in the pilot project to identify and thoroughly evaluate
the potential environmental impacts pertinent to the Agency's NEPA
analysis. This pilot will also include mechanisms to identify NEPA-
related issues early in the process involving both the petitioners and
interested partners. APHIS also intends to use the pilot project to
develop guidance for all petitioners that clearly identifies the
information needed to initiate and complete the required NEPA analysis.
APHIS will evaluate the overall results of the pilot project,
including the effectiveness of using environmental analyses and
documents prepared by petitioners (environmental reports) as compared
to environmental analyses and documents prepared using an independent
contractor (EAs and EISs), and a cost analysis of the two approaches in
relationship to the quality and timeliness of the final product.
APHIS is soliciting letters of interest from regulated entities
interested in participating in the NEPA Pilot Project; no limit has
been set on the number of participants. APHIS anticipates that the
pilot project will run for 2 years. However, APHIS is interested in
advancing the pilot project in the next few months and therefore
encourages interested entities to submit letters of interest as soon as
possible. Interested entities may submit letters of interest by mail or
e-mail through April 8, 2013 to the person listed under FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT. APHIS will promptly contact all entities that
submit letters of interest to discuss their participation in the NEPA
Pilot Project.
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 7701-7772 and 7781-7786; 31 U.S.C. 9701; 7
CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.3.
Done in Washington, DC, this 1st day of April 2011.
Kevin Shea,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2011-8329 Filed 4-6-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P
