Agency Information Collection Activities; Notice of Request for Approval of a New Information Collection, 36039-36040 [2015-15371]

Agencies

• Federal Highway Administration
• DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 120 (Tuesday, June 23, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36039-36040]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-15371]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Highway Administration

[Docket No. FHWA-2015-0013]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Notice of Request for 
Approval of a New Information Collection

AGENCY: Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of Request for Approval of a New Information Collection.

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SUMMARY: The FHWA invites public comments about our intention to 
request the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) approval of a new 
information collection that is summarized below.

DATES: Please submit comments by August 24, 2015.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by DOT Docket ID Number 
2015-0013 by any of the following methods:
    Web site: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to the Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting 
comments.
    Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
    Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590.
    Hand Delivery or Courier: U.S. Department of Transportation, West 
Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., 
Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET, Monday through 
Friday, except Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Michael Nesbitt 
(michael.nesbitt@dot.gov), 202-366-1179, Office of Infrastructure, 
Federal Highway Administration, Department of Transportation, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590. Office hours are from 8 a.m. 
to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: National Transportation Performance Management (TPM) 
Implementation Review, TPM Toolbox, and TPM State-of-Practice 
Questionnaires.
    Type of request: New information collection requirement.
    Background: Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-
21) transformed the Federal-aid highway program by establishing new 
requirements for transportation performance management to ensure the 
most efficient investment of Federal transportation funds. 
Transportation performance management increases the accountability and 
transparency of the Federal-aid highway program and provides for a 
framework to support improved investment decision making through a 
focus on performance outcomes for key national transportation goals. 
State transportation agencies (STAs) will be expected to use the 
information and data generated as a result of the new regulations to 
make better informed transportation planning and programming decisions. 
The new performance aspects of the Federal-aid program will allow FHWA 
to better communicate a national performance story and to more reliably 
assess the impacts of Federal funding investments.
    Overview: Under the ``National Transportation Performance 
Management (TPM) Implementation Review, TPM State-of-Practice 
Questionnaires, and TPM Toolbox '' information collection request, the 
FHWA will collect information on the current state of the practice, 
data, methods, and systems used by state, metropolitan, regional, 
local, and/or tribal transportation entities to support their TPM 
processes in accordance with MAP-21 Sec. Sec.  1106, 1112-1113, 1201-
1203; 23 U.S.C. 119, 134-135, and 148-150. This information will also 
be used to develop and deliver existing and future Federal Highway 
Programs through successful partnerships, value-added stewardship, and 
risk-based oversight. Underpinning this effort will be a robust focus 
on improving FHWA and its partners' capacity to implement performance 
provisions. The information collected from these activities will 
translate into having a better skilled workforce, effective supporting 
systems, and clearly articulated programs that are optimally positioned 
and equipped to deliver the FHWA's mission. In general, the components 
of the ``National TPM Implementation Review, TPM State-of-Practice 
Questionnaires, and TPM Toolbox'' will involve questions related to:
    1. TPM and MAP-21 related implementation efforts, programs, and 
activities,
    2. Needs for guidance and policy concerning MAP-21's TPM related 
provisions;
    3. TPM capacity building needs;
    4. Effectiveness implementing performance based planning and 
programming and TPM processes.
    The most consequential activity covered by the ICR is the 
``National TPM Implementation Review,'' which will be conducted twice. 
The first National TPM Implementation Review is scheduled to be 
administered in the spring of 2016 and will establish a baseline to 
assess:
    1. FHWA and its partners progress implementing MAP-21 performance 
provisions and related TPM best practices; and
    2. The effectiveness of performance-based planning and programming 
processes and transportation performance management.
    The second National TPM Implementation Review will be conducted 
several years later and will be used to assess FHWA and its partners' 
progress addressing any gaps or issues identified during the first 
review.
    The findings from the first review will be used in a pair of 
statutory reports to Congress due in 2017 on the effectiveness of 
performance-based planning and programming processes and transportation 
performance management (23 U.S.C. 119, 134(l)(2)-135(h)(2)). The 
findings from the second review will be used in a subsequent follow-up 
report. It is important to note that this is not a compliance review. 
The overall focus of the National TPM Implementation Review is on the 
TPM and performance-based planning processes used by STAs and 
Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs), not the outcomes of those 
processes. Due to the sensitivity of the collected information, FHWA 
will only report aggregated information to the general public and in 
its report to Congress. However, information from individual reviews 
will be made readily available to the respective respondent (i.e., STA, 
MPOs, etc), FHWA staff for internal uses, and a limited number of FHWA 
partners and associations who sign nondisclosure agreements.

[[Page 36040]]

    In addition to the more formal National TPM Implementation Review, 
FHWA will conduct yearly informal voluntary TPM State-of-Practice 
questionnaires related to TPM policy and guidance, technical 
assistance, and capacity needs. These voluntary information collection 
actions will occur 1 to 2 times per year. The information will be 
collected from state, metropolitan, regional, local, and/or tribal 
transportation agencies via internet-based questionnaires or web 
applications and used to help FHWA:
     Strategically plan to meet ever growing demand for TPM 
technical assistance needs;
     Develop and refine TPM policy and guidance based on 
stakeholder feedback;
     Channel resources to meet capacity development and 
training needs; and
     Identify and prioritize TPM research needs.
    Lastly, as part of FHWA's ongoing technical assistance efforts, a 
TPM Toolbox is being created to help FHWA's partners self-assess and 
benchmark their TPM implementation progress, capabilities, and gaps. 
The TPM Toolbox also helps FHWA streamline the integration and 
administration of all the efforts described above. To maximize the 
effectiveness and efficiency of the TPM Toolbox, FHWA will collect 
business contact and organizational demographic (size of organization, 
location, etc.) information along with the responses submitted as part 
of the TPM Toolbox's self-assessment applications.
    Respondents: The 975 respondents estimate is based on soliciting 
input from all 52 state transportation agencies, 409 MPOS, and a 
sampling of transit agencies, RPOs, and other transportation entities.
    Frequency: Each State, MPO, RPO, and a sampling of transit agencies 
will be solicited to provide information up to 4 times per year. This 
is dependent on whether information is being collected on the National 
Transportation Performance Management Implementation Review and the 
frequency of state-of-practice questionnaires.
    Estimated Average Burden per Response: Up to 2 hours per response 
or 8 hours per year for all responses (4 questionnaires per year times 
up to 2 hours per questionnaire).
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: The total annual burden for 
all respondents is estimated to be 7,800 burden hours per year (8 
burden hours per respondent times 975 respondents). The annual number 
of burden hours (professional and clerical staff) per respondent to 
answer questions on the current state of the practice, data, methods, 
and systems used by state, metropolitan, regional, local, and/or tribal 
transportation entities to support their required TPM processes is 
estimated to be up to 8 (4 questionnaires per year times up to 2 hours 
per questionnaire). This annual burden per respondent consists of the 
staff time of each respondent. The burden was determined as follows:

Professional Staff Time:

    1.5 hour/respondent x 975 respondents x 4 questionnaires per year = 
5850 hours

Clerical staff time:

    0.5 hours/respondent x 975 respondents x 4 questionnaires per year 
= 1,950 hours
    The total annual associated salary cost to respondents is estimated 
to be $257,400 based on an average salary of $38 per hour 
(approximately $79,000 per year) for professional staff and $18 per 
hour (approximately $37,000 year) for clerical staff.

Professional staff cost for preparation of work programs:

    5,850 hours x $38 per hour = $222,300

Clerical staff time:

    1,950 hours x $18 per hour = $35,100

Total annual costs:

    Subtotal Direct Salaries $257,400
    Overhead/fringe benefits at 33%: $84,942
    Total annual respondent cost: $342,342
    Public Comments Invited: You are asked to comment on any aspect of 
this information collection, including: (1) Whether the proposed 
collection of information is necessary for the U.S. DOT's performance, 
including whether the information will have practical utility; (2) the 
accuracy of the U.S. DOT's estimate of the burden of the proposed 
information collection; (3) ways to enhance the quality, usefulness, 
and clarity of the collected information; and (4) ways that the burden 
could be minimized, including the use of electronic technology, without 
reducing the quality of the collected information. The agency will 
summarize and/or include your comments in the request for OMB's 
clearance of this information collection.

    Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. 
chapter 35, as amended; and 49 CFR 1.48.

    Issued On: June 15, 2015.
 Michael Howell,
Information Collection Officer.
[FR Doc. 2015-15371 Filed 6-22-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-22-P