Proposed Information Collection Request; Comment Request; Clean Water Act State Revolving Fund Program, 19173-19174 [2016-07667]
Download as PDF
mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 64 / Monday, April 4, 2016 / Notices
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 for certain EPA
regulations is consolidated in 40 CFR
part 9.
Abstract: This information collection
activity provides the EPA with
notification of supplemental registration
of distributors of pesticide products.
EPA is responsible for the regulation of
pesticides as mandated by the Federal
Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide
Act (FIFRA), as amended. Section 3(e)
of FIFRA (see 7 U.S.C. 136a (e), allows
pesticide registrants to distribute or sell
a registered pesticide product under a
different name instead of or in addition
to the name under the original
registration. Such distribution and sale
is termed ‘‘supplemental distribution’’
and the product is termed a ‘‘distributor
product.’’ EPA requires the pesticide
registrant to submit a supplemental
statement (EPA Form 8570–5, Notice of
Supplemental Distribution of a
Registered Pesticide Product) when the
registrant has entered into an agreement
with a second company that will
distribute the registrant’s product under
the second company’s name and
product name.
Burden statement: The annual public
reporting and recordkeeping burden for
this collection of information is
estimated to average 0.32 hours per
response. The ICR, a copy of which is
available in the docket, provides a
detailed explanation of this estimate,
which is only briefly summarized here:
Estimated total number of potential
respondents: 1,885.
Frequency of response: On occasion.
Estimated total average number of
responses for each respondent: 1.
Estimated total annual burden hours:
603 hours.
Estimated total annual costs: $54,463.
This includes an estimated burden cost
of $ 54,463 and an estimated cost of $
0 for non-burden hour paperwork costs,
e.g., investment or maintenance and
operational costs.
Changes in the estimates from the last
approval: The renewal of this ICR will
result in an overall increase of 216
hours in the total estimated respondent
burden identified in the currently
approved ICR. This increase reflects the
increase in the number of applications
the Agency expects to receive in the
next 3 years. EPA had expected to
receive about 1,451 notice submissions
annually over the past three years.
Based on the number of submissions
received annually over that period, the
Agency now expects to receive about
1,885 notice submissions annually over
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:03 Apr 01, 2016
Jkt 238001
the next 3 years. This change is an
adjustment.
III. What is the next step in the process
for this ICR?
EPA will consider the comments
received and amend the ICRs as
appropriate. The final ICR package will
then be submitted to OMB for review
and approval pursuant to 5 CFR
1320.12. EPA will issue another Federal
Register notice pursuant to 5 CFR
1320.5(a)(1)(iv) to announce the
submission of this ICR to OMB and the
opportunity for the public to submit
additional comments for OMB
consideration. If you have any questions
about this ICR or the approval process
in general, please contact the person
listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
CONTACT.
Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.
Dated: March 25, 2016.
James Jones,
Assistant Administrator, Office of Chemical
Safety and Pollution Prevention.
[FR Doc. 2016–07490 Filed 4–1–16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
AGENCY
[EPA–HQ–OW–2004–0015; FRL–9944–45–
OW]
Proposed Information Collection
Request; Comment Request; Clean
Water Act State Revolving Fund
Program
Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
AGENCY:
The U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) is planning to
submit a request to renew an existing
information collection request (ICR),
‘‘Clean Water State Revolving Fund
Program’’ (EPA ICR No. 1391.10, OMB
Control No. 2040–0118), to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) for
review and approval in accordance with
the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA).
Before doing so, EPA is soliciting public
comments on specific aspects of the
proposed information collection as
described below. This is a proposed
extension of the ICR, which is currently
approved through July 31, 2016. 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.
DATES: Comments must be submitted on
or before June 3, 2016.
SUMMARY:
PO 00000
Frm 00062
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
19173
Submit your comments,
referencing Docket ID No. EPA–HQ–
OW–2004–0015, online using
www.regulations.gov (our preferred
method), by email to ow-docket@
epa.gov, or by mail to: EPA Docket
Center, Environmental Protection
Agency, Mail Code 28221T, 1200
Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington,
DC 20460.
EPA’s policy is that all comments
received will be included in the public
docket without change, including any
personal information provided, unless
the comment includes profanity, threats,
information claimed to be Confidential
Business Information (CBI) or other
information whose disclosure is
restricted by statute.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Mark Mylin, Municipal Support
Division, Office of Wastewater
Management, 4204M, Environmental
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania
Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460;
telephone number: 202–564–0607;
email address: mylin.mark@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Supporting documents which explain in
detail the information that the EPA will
be collecting are available in the public
docket for this ICR, docket number
EPA–HQ–OW–2004–0015. The docket
can be viewed online at
www.regulations.gov or in person at the
EPA Docket Center, WJC West, Room
3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW.,
Washington, DC. The telephone number
for the Docket Center is 202–566–1744.
For additional information about EPA’s
public docket, visit https://www.epa.gov/
dockets.
Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of
the PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), EPA
is soliciting comments and information
to enable it to:
• 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;
• 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;
• enhance the quality, utility and
clarity of the information to be
collected; and
• 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.
ADDRESSES:
E:\FR\FM\04APN1.SGM
04APN1
19174
Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 64 / Monday, April 4, 2016 / Notices
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. At that time, EPA will
issue another Federal Register notice to
announce the submission of the ICR to
OMB and the opportunity to submit
additional comments to OMB.
Abstract: The Clean Water State
Revolving Funds (CWSRF) were
established by the 1987 amendments to
the Clean Water Act (CWA) as a
financial assistance program for a wide
range of wastewater infrastructure and
other water quality projects. The 1987
amendments added Title VI to the CWA,
enabling EPA to provide grants to all 50
states and Puerto Rico to capitalize
CWSRFs. The CWSRFs can provide
loans and other forms of assistance for
a wide array of projects, including
construction of wastewater treatments
facilities, green infrastructure projects,
agricultural best management practices,
and other water quality projects. Eligible
borrowers of CWSRF funding range
from municipalities to nonprofit
organizations and other private entities.
Recently, Title VI of the CWA was
amended in 2014 by the Water
Resources Reform and Development Act
(WRRDA). Additional information about
the CWSRFs is available at https://
www.epa.gov/cwsrf/learn-about-cleanwater-state-revolving-fund-cwsrf.
This ICR renews the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB)
Number 2040–0118 CWSRF ICR and
provides updated estimates of the
reporting burden associated with the
information collection activities. The
updated estimates are based on EPA’s
most recent public consultation and
capture the estimated impact of the
WRRDA amendments.
The individual information
collections covered under this ICR are
briefly described as follows:
mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES
Capitalization Grant Agreement/
Intended Use Plan
The Capitalization Grant Agreement is
the principal instrument by which a
CWSRF commits to manage its
revolving fund program in conformity
with the requirements of the Clean
Water Act. The grant agreement
contains or incorporates by reference
the intended use plan, application
materials, required certifications, and
other documentation required by EPA.
The intended use plan describes how a
CWSRF program intends to use its funds
for the upcoming year to meet the
objectives of the Clean Water Act
(CWA).
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:03 Apr 01, 2016
Jkt 238001
Annual Report
The annual report indicates how the
CWSRF has met its goals and objectives
of the previous state fiscal year as stated
in the grant agreement and, more
specifically, in the intended use plan.
The report provides information on loan
recipients, loan amounts, loan terms,
project categories of eligible costs, and
similar data on other forms of
assistance.
Annual Audit
The CWA requires a CWSRF to
undergo an annual audit. Though an
audit conducted under the Single Audit
Act meets this requirement, EPA still
recommends that a CWSRF also
undergo a separate independent audit as
a best management practice. The audit
must contain an opinion on the
financial condition of the CWSRF
program, a report on its internal
controls, and a report on compliance
with applicable laws and the CWA.
Clean Water National Information
Management System (CWNIMS) and
CWSRF Benefits Reporting (CBR)
To meet the CWA objective of
‘‘promoting the efficient use of fund
resources,’’ states must enter financial
data, including project disbursements,
into the CWNIMS database on an annual
basis. This publicly available
information is used by the EPA to assess
compliance with the CWSRFs’ mandate
to use all funds in an ‘‘expeditious and
timely’’ manner and achieve the
objectives of the CWA. Project level data
is collected on a quarterly basis using
the CBR System to record projected
environmental results from CWSRF
projects.
Public Awareness Policy
Per EPA Grants Policy Issuance (GPI)
14–02: Enhancing Public Awareness of
EPA Assistance Agreements, CWSRF
borrowers must publicize the EPA’s
involvement in project funding only up
to the funding amount in each year’s
capitalization grant. The CWSRFs have
various options to meet this
requirement.
With the exception of the public
awareness policy, the respondents for
the information collection activities are
the state environmental departments,
and/or finance agencies responsible for
operating the CWSRFs. The public
awareness policy directly impacts
CWSRFs borrowers that are designated
as recipients of federal funds. The
burden associated with the public
awareness policy may have an impact
on small entities. However, this impact
is mitigated by the fact that the CWSRFs
have flexibility in determining which
PO 00000
Frm 00063
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 9990
borrowers must comply with this
requirement.
Form Numbers: None.
Respondents/affected entities: Entities
affected by this action are state
environmental departments, and/or
finance agencies responsible for
operating the CWSRFs and eligible
CWSRF borrowers.
Respondent’s obligation to respond:
Required to obtain or retain a benefit per
Title VI of CWA as amended by
WRRDA.
Estimated number of respondents: 51
state environmental departments and/or
finance agencies (per year); 393 eligible
CWSRF borrowers (per year).
Frequency of response: Varies by
requirement (i.e., quarterly, semiannually and annually).
Total estimated burden: 57,376 hours
(per year). Burden is defined at 5 CFR
1320.03(b).
Total estimated cost: $6,074,741 (per
year).
Changes in Estimates: This renewal
adds two information collections
activities not included in the previous
version of the ICR. Specifically, the
renewal includes the additional burden
associated with the EPA requirement
that the CWSRFs submit data into the
CWNIMS and CBR databases on a
recurring basis. The renewal also
reflects the additional burden related to
the recently released public awareness
policy, directing CWSRF borrowers that
receive federal funds to publicize EPA’s
role in funding the projects.
Though these information collection
activities add additional burden, the
total estimated reporting burden under
this renewal is significantly lower
compared to the previously approved
ICR. The estimate of the annual burden
has been decreased by 748,471 hours
while the total annual cost burden has
been decreased by $17,744,006. This
significant revision is due to the
removal of the burden associated with
CWSRF applications and ongoing ARRA
reporting.
Dated: March 25, 2016.
Sheila E. Frace,
Acting Director, Office of Wastewater
Management.
[FR Doc. 2016–07667 Filed 4–1–16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560–50–P
E:\FR\FM\04APN1.SGM
04APN1
Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 64 (Monday, April 4, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19173-19174]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-07667]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-OW-2004-0015; FRL-9944-45-OW]
Proposed Information Collection Request; Comment Request; Clean
Water Act State Revolving Fund Program
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is planning to
submit a request to renew an existing information collection request
(ICR), ``Clean Water State Revolving Fund Program'' (EPA ICR No.
1391.10, OMB Control No. 2040-0118), to the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act (PRA). Before doing so, EPA is soliciting public comments
on specific aspects of the proposed information collection as described
below. This is a proposed extension of the ICR, which is currently
approved through July 31, 2016. 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.
DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before June 3, 2016.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, referencing Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-
2004-0015, online using www.regulations.gov (our preferred method), by
email to ow-docket@epa.gov, or by mail to: EPA Docket Center,
Environmental Protection Agency, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania
Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460.
EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in the
public docket without change, including any personal information
provided, unless the comment includes profanity, threats, information
claimed to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mark Mylin, Municipal Support
Division, Office of Wastewater Management, 4204M, Environmental
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460;
telephone number: 202-564-0607; email address: mylin.mark@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Supporting documents which explain in detail
the information that the EPA will be collecting are available in the
public docket for this ICR, docket number EPA-HQ-OW-2004-0015. The
docket can be viewed online at www.regulations.gov or in person at the
EPA Docket Center, WJC West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW.,
Washington, DC. The telephone number for the Docket Center is 202-566-
1744. For additional information about EPA's public docket, visit
https://www.epa.gov/dockets.
Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA (44 U.S.C. 3501 et
seq.), EPA is soliciting comments and information to enable it to:
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;
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;
enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
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.
[[Page 19174]]
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. At that time, EPA will issue another Federal
Register notice to announce the submission of the ICR to OMB and the
opportunity to submit additional comments to OMB.
Abstract: The Clean Water State Revolving Funds (CWSRF) were
established by the 1987 amendments to the Clean Water Act (CWA) as a
financial assistance program for a wide range of wastewater
infrastructure and other water quality projects. The 1987 amendments
added Title VI to the CWA, enabling EPA to provide grants to all 50
states and Puerto Rico to capitalize CWSRFs. The CWSRFs can provide
loans and other forms of assistance for a wide array of projects,
including construction of wastewater treatments facilities, green
infrastructure projects, agricultural best management practices, and
other water quality projects. Eligible borrowers of CWSRF funding range
from municipalities to nonprofit organizations and other private
entities. Recently, Title VI of the CWA was amended in 2014 by the
Water Resources Reform and Development Act (WRRDA). Additional
information about the CWSRFs is available at https://www.epa.gov/cwsrf/learn-about-clean-water-state-revolving-fund-cwsrf.
This ICR renews the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Number
2040-0118 CWSRF ICR and provides updated estimates of the reporting
burden associated with the information collection activities. The
updated estimates are based on EPA's most recent public consultation
and capture the estimated impact of the WRRDA amendments.
The individual information collections covered under this ICR are
briefly described as follows:
Capitalization Grant Agreement/Intended Use Plan
The Capitalization Grant Agreement is the principal instrument by
which a CWSRF commits to manage its revolving fund program in
conformity with the requirements of the Clean Water Act. The grant
agreement contains or incorporates by reference the intended use plan,
application materials, required certifications, and other documentation
required by EPA. The intended use plan describes how a CWSRF program
intends to use its funds for the upcoming year to meet the objectives
of the Clean Water Act (CWA).
Annual Report
The annual report indicates how the CWSRF has met its goals and
objectives of the previous state fiscal year as stated in the grant
agreement and, more specifically, in the intended use plan. The report
provides information on loan recipients, loan amounts, loan terms,
project categories of eligible costs, and similar data on other forms
of assistance.
Annual Audit
The CWA requires a CWSRF to undergo an annual audit. Though an
audit conducted under the Single Audit Act meets this requirement, EPA
still recommends that a CWSRF also undergo a separate independent audit
as a best management practice. The audit must contain an opinion on the
financial condition of the CWSRF program, a report on its internal
controls, and a report on compliance with applicable laws and the CWA.
Clean Water National Information Management System (CWNIMS) and CWSRF
Benefits Reporting (CBR)
To meet the CWA objective of ``promoting the efficient use of fund
resources,'' states must enter financial data, including project
disbursements, into the CWNIMS database on an annual basis. This
publicly available information is used by the EPA to assess compliance
with the CWSRFs' mandate to use all funds in an ``expeditious and
timely'' manner and achieve the objectives of the CWA. Project level
data is collected on a quarterly basis using the CBR System to record
projected environmental results from CWSRF projects.
Public Awareness Policy
Per EPA Grants Policy Issuance (GPI) 14-02: Enhancing Public
Awareness of EPA Assistance Agreements, CWSRF borrowers must publicize
the EPA's involvement in project funding only up to the funding amount
in each year's capitalization grant. The CWSRFs have various options to
meet this requirement.
With the exception of the public awareness policy, the respondents
for the information collection activities are the state environmental
departments, and/or finance agencies responsible for operating the
CWSRFs. The public awareness policy directly impacts CWSRFs borrowers
that are designated as recipients of federal funds. The burden
associated with the public awareness policy may have an impact on small
entities. However, this impact is mitigated by the fact that the CWSRFs
have flexibility in determining which borrowers must comply with this
requirement.
Form Numbers: None.
Respondents/affected entities: Entities affected by this action are
state environmental departments, and/or finance agencies responsible
for operating the CWSRFs and eligible CWSRF borrowers.
Respondent's obligation to respond: Required to obtain or retain a
benefit per Title VI of CWA as amended by WRRDA.
Estimated number of respondents: 51 state environmental departments
and/or finance agencies (per year); 393 eligible CWSRF borrowers (per
year).
Frequency of response: Varies by requirement (i.e., quarterly,
semi-annually and annually).
Total estimated burden: 57,376 hours (per year). Burden is defined
at 5 CFR 1320.03(b).
Total estimated cost: $6,074,741 (per year).
Changes in Estimates: This renewal adds two information collections
activities not included in the previous version of the ICR.
Specifically, the renewal includes the additional burden associated
with the EPA requirement that the CWSRFs submit data into the CWNIMS
and CBR databases on a recurring basis. The renewal also reflects the
additional burden related to the recently released public awareness
policy, directing CWSRF borrowers that receive federal funds to
publicize EPA's role in funding the projects.
Though these information collection activities add additional
burden, the total estimated reporting burden under this renewal is
significantly lower compared to the previously approved ICR. The
estimate of the annual burden has been decreased by 748,471 hours while
the total annual cost burden has been decreased by $17,744,006. This
significant revision is due to the removal of the burden associated
with CWSRF applications and ongoing ARRA reporting.
Dated: March 25, 2016.
Sheila E. Frace,
Acting Director, Office of Wastewater Management.
[FR Doc. 2016-07667 Filed 4-1-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P