Agency Information Collection Activities: Renewed Approval of Information Collection, 73348-73350 [2020-25321]
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73348
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 222 / Tuesday, November 17, 2020 / Notices
consistent. Oregon, for example,
requires employers to provide a 30minute break to employees who work 6
hours or more. See Or. Admin. R. 839–
020–0050(2). No meal period is required
if the shift is less than 6 hours; if the
shift is less than 7 hours, the meal
period must commence between 2 and
5 hours from the beginning of the shift;
and if the shift is longer than seven
hours, the meal period must begin
between 3 and 6 hours from the
beginning of the shift. Id. Nevada, by
contrast, requires employers to provide
a 30-minute break to employees who
work a continuous 8 hours at any point
during that period. See Nev. Rev. Stat.
Ann. § 608.019. And, as described
above, Washington’s MRB rules require
that employers provide a 30-minute
meal break for every 5 hours worked,
which must commence between 2 and
5 hours from the beginning of the shift.
See WAC 296–126–092. In preempting
California’s MRB rules under section
31141, the Agency determined that the
diversity of State regulation of required
meal and rest breaks for CMV drivers
has resulted in a patchwork of
requirements. See 83 FR 67479–80. The
Agency finds that the same holds true
for Washington’s MRB rules. As
described by the commenters, this
diversity of State regulation has
significantly decreased productivity and
increased administrative burdens and
costs.
The Department of Labor and
Industries contended that Washington’s
MRB rules do not contribute to the
multiplicity of varying State meal and
rest break laws. In this regard, it argues
that ‘‘Washington’s break laws do not
apply just because someone drives a
truck through Washington.’’ Citing
Bostain v. Food Exp., Inc., 153 P.3d 846
(Wash. 2007), the Department of Labor
and Industries further asserted, ‘‘The
break laws apply only to Washington
employers of Washington-based
employees.’’ The Teamsters argued that
drivers pass through an assortment of
State or local regulations throughout
their workday, including varying speed
limits, tolling facilities, and
enforcement zones for distracted driving
and DUI; yet those rules do not
constitute an unreasonable burden on
interstate commerce. The Teamsters also
argued that, ‘‘Truck size and weight
restrictions are different on state and
local roads than on the federal highway
system. . . . Yet no one is calling for
the preemption of state size and weight
Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New
Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon,
Rhode Island, Tennessee, Vermont, Washington,
and West Virginia.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:46 Nov 16, 2020
Jkt 253001
rules.’’ The Associations for Justice
argued, ‘‘The trucking and bus
industries have engaged in a strategy of
targeting specific state laws one at a
time for FMCSA preemption.’’
The Agency finds the Department of
Labor and Industries’ argument on the
narrow application of Washington’s
rules unavailing. It is immaterial
whether Washington’s MRB rules apply
only to those drivers based in
Washington. The fact remains that the
disparity in State regulation has resulted
in a multiplicity of requirements that
are burdensome to apply. It may be
difficult to determine whether a
particular driver is ‘‘based in
Washington,’’ and other States’ rules
may purport to regulate even those
drivers that Washington deems
‘‘Washington-based.’’ The Agency is
also unpersuaded by the Teamsters’
traffic regulation analogy. The 1984 Act
explicitly prohibits the Agency from
‘‘prescrib[ing] traffic safety regulations
or preempt[ing] state traffic regulations’’
such as those described. 49 U.S.C.
31147(a). In addition, issues
surrounding State tolling are well
outside the scope of the Agency’s
statutory authority, and CMV size and
weight restrictions on portions of the
Federal-aid highway system are within
the purview of FHWA. See 23 U.S.C.
127, 145; 49 U.S.C. 31111; 49 CFR 1.85.
Therefore, the extent to which the
‘‘assortment of state or local
regulations’’ the International
Brotherhood of Teamsters cite
unreasonably burden interstate
commerce, if at all, as compared to the
MRB Rules is not relevant to the
Agency’s determination. The Agency
also rejects the Associations for Justice’s
argument. Nothing in section 31141
prohibits a petitioner from seeking a
preemption determination concerning
the laws of one State, even where other
States have similar laws.
Having concluded that Washington’s
MRB rules unreasonably burden
interstate commerce, the Agency further
determines that the cumulative effect of
other States’ similar laws would
increase the burden.
Preemption Decision
As described above, FMCSA
concludes that: (1) Washington’s MRB
rules are State laws or regulations ‘‘on
commercial motor vehicle safety,’’ to the
extent they apply to drivers of propertycarrying CMVs subject to FMCSA’s HOS
rules; (2) Washington’s MRB rules are
additional to or more stringent than
FMCSA’s HOS rules; (3) Washington’s
MRB rules have no safety benefit; (4)
Washington’s MRB rules are
incompatible with FMCSA’s HOS rules;
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
and (5) enforcement of Washington’s
MRB rules would cause an unreasonable
burden on interstate commerce.
Accordingly, FMCSA grants WTA’s
petition for preemption and determines
that Washington’s MRB rules are
preempted pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 31141.
Effective the date of this decision,
Washington may no longer enforce the
MRB rules with respect to drivers of
property-carrying CMVs subject to
FMCSA’s HOS rules.
James W. Deck,
Deputy Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2020–25155 Filed 11–16–20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Office of the Secretary
[Docket No. DOT–OST–2020–0232]
Agency Information Collection
Activities: Renewed Approval of
Information Collection
AGENCY:
Office of the Secretary (OST),
DOT.
60-Day notice and request for
comments.
ACTION:
The Department of
Transportation (DOT) invites public
comments on our intention to request
Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) approval for an information
collection in accordance with the
requirements of the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995. The collection is
necessary for administration of the
‘‘Discretionary Grants for Nationally
Significant Freight and Highway
Projects (FASTLANE/INFRA) Program’’.
FASTLANE/INFRA grants support
surface transportation infrastructure
projects that have a significant local or
regional impact.
DATES: Written comments should be
submitted by January 19, 2021.
ADDRESSES: To ensure that you do not
duplicate your docket submissions,
please submit them by only one of the
following means:
• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to
https://www.regulations.gov and follow
the online instructions for submitting
comments.
• Mail: Docket Management Facility,
U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200
New Jersey Ave. SE, West Building
Ground Floor, Room W12–140,
Washington, DC 20590–0001.
• Hand Delivery: West Building
Ground Floor, Room W–12–140, 1200
New Jersey Ave. SE, between 9 a.m. and
5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except
SUMMARY:
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Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 222 / Tuesday, November 17, 2020 / Notices
Federal holidays. The telephone number
is 202–366–9329.
Instructions: To ensure proper
docketing of your comment, please
include the agency name and docket
number DOT–OST–2020–0232 at the
beginning of your comments. All
comments received will be posted
without change to https://
www.regulations.gov, including any
personal information provided.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
further information regarding this
notice, please contact the Office of the
Secretary via email at INFRAgrants@
dot.gov, or call Paul Baumer at (202)
366–1092.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: New
Collection. OMB number will be issued
after the collection is approved.
Title: Discretionary Grants for
Nationally Significant Freight and
Highway Projects (FASTLANE/INFRA)
Program.
Form Numbers: None.
Type of Review: New Information
Collection Request (ICR).
Background: The Office of the
Secretary (OST) within the Department
of Transportation (DOT) provides
financial assistance to State and local
Governments, including U.S. territories,
tribal Governments, transit agencies,
port authorities, metropolitan planning
organizations (MPOs), and other
political subdivisions of State or local
Governments through the Nationally
Significant Freight and Highway
Projects Program, which was established
in the Fixing American’s Surface
Transportation Act of 2015 (‘‘FAST
ACT’’), Public Law 1105. These
discretionary grants were previously
referred to by the DOT as ‘‘Fostering
Advancements in Shipping and
Transportation for the Long-Term
Achievement of National Efficiencies’’,
or ‘‘FASTLANE’’ Discretionary Grants,
and are now referred to as
‘‘Infrastructure for Rebuilding America’’
or ‘‘INFRA’’ Discretionary Grants. The
Office of the Secretary of Transportation
(‘‘OST’’) is referring to these grants as
‘‘FASTLANE’’ or ‘‘INFRA’’
Discretionary Grants, depending on the
year of award. The purpose of each
program is to advance projects that will
have a significant impact on the Nation,
metropolitan area or a region.
This notice seeks comments on the
proposed information collection, which
will collect information necessary to
support the ongoing oversight and
administration of previous awards, the
evaluation and selection of new
applications, and the funding agreement
negotiation stage for new awards.
The reporting requirements for the
program is as follows:
To be considered to receive a
FASTLANE/INFRA grant, a project
sponsor must submit an application to
DOT containing a project narrative, as
detailed in the Notice of Funding
Opportunity. The project narrative
should include the information
necessary for the Department to
determine that the project satisfies
eligibility requirements as warranted by
law.
73349
Following the announcement of a
funding award, the recipient and DOT
will negotiate and sign a funding
agreement. In the agreement, the
recipient must describe the project that
DOT agreed to fund, which is the
project that was described in the
FASTLANE/INFRA application or a
reduced-scope version of that project.
The agreement also includes a project
schedule and budget.
During the project monitoring stage,
grantees will submit reports on the
financial condition of the project and
the project’s progress. Grantees will
submit progress and monitoring reports
to the Government on a quarterly basis
until completion of the project. The
progress reports will include an SF–425,
Federal Financial Report, and other
information determined by the
administering DOT Operating
Administration. This information will
be used to monitor grantees’ use of
Federal funds, ensuring accountability
and financial transparency in the
FASTLANE/INFRA program.
For the purposes of estimating the
information collection burden below for
new applicants and awardees, the
Department is assuming that for each
year 2021–2023, the Department will
review approximately 200 applications
in Year 1, negotiate 20 funding
agreements in Year 2, and begin
quarterly project monitoring for 20
projects in Year 3. For a new applicant
in 2021, their burden will be 100 hours
in 2020, 4 hours in 2022, and 20 hours
in 2023. See Table 1 below:
TABLE 1
Year 1 (2021)
Respondent
2021
2021
2021
2022
2022
2022
2023
2023
2023
Applicant (200) ....
Awardee (20) ......
Recipient (20) .....
Applicant (200) ....
Awardee (20) ......
Recipient (20) .....
Applicant (200) ....
Awardee (20) ......
Recipient (20) .....
Year 3 (2023)
Hours
Frequency
Hours
Frequency
Hours
Frequency
100
........................
........................
100
........................
........................
100
........................
........................
1
........................
........................
1
........................
........................
1
........................
........................
........................
4
........................
........................
4
........................
........................
........................
........................
........................
1
........................
........................
1
........................
........................
........................
........................
........................
........................
5
........................
........................
........................
........................
........................
........................
........................
........................
4
........................
........................
........................
........................
........................
........................
This Notice is separately estimating
the information collection burden for
projects awarded from 2016–2020.
Approximately 60 of these projects are
in the project monitoring phase in Year
1, while 40 projects are still negotiating
funding agreements. In Year 2,
VerDate Sep<11>2014
Year 2 (2022)
19:46 Nov 16, 2020
Jkt 253001
approximately 30 of these projects will
begin project monitoring, while
approximately 20 projects will cease
reporting once their projects are
completed. In Year 3, 10 projects will
begin project monitoring while 20
projects will cease reporting. The
PO 00000
Frm 00092
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Total
20000
80
400
20000
80
20000
individual burden for a project awarded
from 2016–2020 will depend on when
they were selected, when they
completed negotiation of their funding
agreement, and when their project
reaches completion. See Table 2 below:
E:\FR\FM\17NON1.SGM
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73350
Federal Register / Vol. 85, No. 222 / Tuesday, November 17, 2020 / Notices
Year 1
Respondent
Number
2016–2020 Awardee
2016–2020 Recipient
2016–2020 Project
Closed ...................
Year 2
Hrs
Freq
Freq
Number
Hrs
Freq
Total
4
5
1
4
10
70
4
5
1
4
0
60
4
5
1
4
0
0
0
20
0
0
40
0
0
Application Stage
To be considered to receive a
FASTLANE or INFRA grant, a project
sponsor must submit an application to
DOT containing a project narrative, as
detailed in the Notice of Funding
Opportunity. The project narrative
should include the information
necessary for the Department to
determine that the project satisfies
eligibility requirements.
Applications must be submitted
through www.Grants.gov. Instructions
for submitting applications can be found
at https://www.transportation.gov/
buildamerica/infragrants. The
application must include the Standard
Form 424 (Application for Federal
Assistance), Standard Form 424C
(Budget Information for Construction
Programs), cover page, and the Project
Narrative.
19:46 Nov 16, 2020
Hrs
40
60
The Department’s estimated burden
for this information collection is as
follows:
New Applications:
Expected Number of Respondents:
Approximately 200 per year.
Frequency: Once.
Estimated Average Burden per
Response: 100 hours for each new
Application;
For Funding Agreements:
Expected Number of Respondents:
Approximately 30 in Year 1 and 2, 20
in Year 3.
Frequency: Once.
Estimated Average Burden per
Response: 4 hours for each new Funding
Agreement.
For Project Monitoring:
Expected Number of Respondents:
Estimated 60 in Year 1, 70 in Year 2, 80
in Year 3.
Frequency: Quarterly.
Estimated Average Burden per
Response: 5 hours for each request for
Quarterly Progress and Monitoring
Report;
Estimated Total 3-year Burden on
Respondents: 64,560 hours. (New
Applicants [60,000 hrs], New Awardees/
Recipients [560 hrs] + Prior Awardees/
Recipients [4000 hrs]).
The following is detailed information
and instructions regarding the specific
reporting requirements for each report
identified above:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
Number
Year 3
Jkt 253001
The application should include a
table of contents, maps, and graphics, as
appropriate, to make the information
easier to review. The Department
recommends that the application be
prepared with standard formatting
preferences (i.e., a single-spaced
document, using a standard 12-point
font such as Times New Roman, with 1inch margins). The project narrative
may not exceed 25 pages in length,
excluding cover pages and table of
contents. The only substantive portions
that may exceed the 25-page limit are
documents supporting assertions or
conclusions made in the 25-page project
narrative. If possible, website links to
supporting documentation should be
provided rather than copies of these
supporting materials. If supporting
documents are submitted, applicants
should clearly identify within the
project narrative the relevant portion of
the project narrative that each
supporting document supports. At the
applicant’s discretion, relevant
materials provided previously to a
modal administration in support of a
different USDOT financial assistance
program may be referenced and
described as unchanged.
OST estimates that it takes
approximately 100 person-hours to
compile an application package for a
FASTLANE/INFRA application. Since
OST expects to receive 200 applications
per funding round, the total hours
required are estimated to be 20,000
hours (100 hours × 200 applications =
20,000 hours) on a one-time basis, per
funding round.
Funding Agreement Stage
DOT enters a funding agreement with
each recipient. In the agreement, the
recipient describes the project that DOT
agreed to fund, which is typically the
project that was described in the
FASTLANE/INFRA application or a
reduced-scope version of that project.
The agreement also includes the project
schedule and budget.
OST estimates that it takes
approximately 4 person-hours to
respond to provide the information
necessary for funding agreements. Based
on previous rounds of FASTLANE/
INFRA awards, OST estimates that there
will likely be 20 agreements negotiated
PO 00000
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Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
200
3800
per additional funding round. The total
hours required are estimated to be 40 (4
hours × 40 agreements = 40 hours) on
a one-time basis, per funding round.
Project Monitoring Stage
OST requires each recipient to submit
quarterly reports during the project to
ensure the proper and timely
expenditure of Federal funds under the
grant.
The requirements comply with 2 CFR
part 200 and are restated in the funding
agreement. During the project
monitoring stage, the grantee will
complete Quarterly Progress Reports to
allow DOT to monitor the project budget
and schedule.
OST estimates that it takes
approximately 5 person-hours to
develop and submit a quarterly progress
report. OST expects approximately 20
projects to be awarded per funding
round, while grants awarded in prior
years will reach completion during the
year and would no longer need to
submit these reports. OST expects
recipients and awardees from 2016–
2020 will require 3800 hours to submit
project monitoring reports while new
recipients and awardees will require
560 hours from 2021–2023.
Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act
of 1995; 44 U.S.C. Chapter 35, as amended;
and 49 CFR 1:48.
Issued in Washington, DC, on November
12, 2020.
John Augustine,
Director of the Office of Infrastructure
Finance and Innovation, Office of the Under
Secretary for Transportation Policy.
[FR Doc. 2020–25321 Filed 11–16–20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910–9X–P
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Bureau of Transportation Statistics
[Docket Number RITA–2008–0002]
Agency Information Collection
Activity; Notice To Continue To
Collect: Confidential Close Call Transit
Data for the Washington Metropolitan
Area Transit Authority (WMATA)
Bureau of Transportation
Statistics (BTS), Office of the Assistant
Secretary for Research and Technology
AGENCY:
E:\FR\FM\17NON1.SGM
17NON1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 222 (Tuesday, November 17, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73348-73350]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-25321]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Office of the Secretary
[Docket No. DOT-OST-2020-0232]
Agency Information Collection Activities: Renewed Approval of
Information Collection
AGENCY: Office of the Secretary (OST), DOT.
ACTION: 60-Day notice and request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Department of Transportation (DOT) invites public comments
on our intention to request Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
approval for an information collection in accordance with the
requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. The collection is
necessary for administration of the ``Discretionary Grants for
Nationally Significant Freight and Highway Projects (FASTLANE/INFRA)
Program''. FASTLANE/INFRA grants support surface transportation
infrastructure projects that have a significant local or regional
impact.
DATES: Written comments should be submitted by January 19, 2021.
ADDRESSES: To ensure that you do not duplicate your docket submissions,
please submit them by only one of the following means:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and follow the online instructions for submitting
comments.
Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, West Building Ground Floor,
Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
Hand Delivery: West Building Ground Floor, Room W-12-140,
1200 New Jersey Ave. SE, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through
Friday, except
[[Page 73349]]
Federal holidays. The telephone number is 202-366-9329.
Instructions: To ensure proper docketing of your comment, please
include the agency name and docket number DOT-OST-2020-0232 at the
beginning of your comments. All comments received will be posted
without change to https://www.regulations.gov, including any personal
information provided.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information regarding this
notice, please contact the Office of the Secretary via email at
[email protected], or call Paul Baumer at (202) 366-1092.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: New Collection. OMB number will be issued
after the collection is approved.
Title: Discretionary Grants for Nationally Significant Freight and
Highway Projects (FASTLANE/INFRA) Program.
Form Numbers: None.
Type of Review: New Information Collection Request (ICR).
Background: The Office of the Secretary (OST) within the Department
of Transportation (DOT) provides financial assistance to State and
local Governments, including U.S. territories, tribal Governments,
transit agencies, port authorities, metropolitan planning organizations
(MPOs), and other political subdivisions of State or local Governments
through the Nationally Significant Freight and Highway Projects
Program, which was established in the Fixing American's Surface
Transportation Act of 2015 (``FAST ACT''), Public Law 1105. These
discretionary grants were previously referred to by the DOT as
``Fostering Advancements in Shipping and Transportation for the Long-
Term Achievement of National Efficiencies'', or ``FASTLANE''
Discretionary Grants, and are now referred to as ``Infrastructure for
Rebuilding America'' or ``INFRA'' Discretionary Grants. The Office of
the Secretary of Transportation (``OST'') is referring to these grants
as ``FASTLANE'' or ``INFRA'' Discretionary Grants, depending on the
year of award. The purpose of each program is to advance projects that
will have a significant impact on the Nation, metropolitan area or a
region.
This notice seeks comments on the proposed information collection,
which will collect information necessary to support the ongoing
oversight and administration of previous awards, the evaluation and
selection of new applications, and the funding agreement negotiation
stage for new awards.
The reporting requirements for the program is as follows:
To be considered to receive a FASTLANE/INFRA grant, a project
sponsor must submit an application to DOT containing a project
narrative, as detailed in the Notice of Funding Opportunity. The
project narrative should include the information necessary for the
Department to determine that the project satisfies eligibility
requirements as warranted by law.
Following the announcement of a funding award, the recipient and
DOT will negotiate and sign a funding agreement. In the agreement, the
recipient must describe the project that DOT agreed to fund, which is
the project that was described in the FASTLANE/INFRA application or a
reduced-scope version of that project. The agreement also includes a
project schedule and budget.
During the project monitoring stage, grantees will submit reports
on the financial condition of the project and the project's progress.
Grantees will submit progress and monitoring reports to the Government
on a quarterly basis until completion of the project. The progress
reports will include an SF-425, Federal Financial Report, and other
information determined by the administering DOT Operating
Administration. This information will be used to monitor grantees' use
of Federal funds, ensuring accountability and financial transparency in
the FASTLANE/INFRA program.
For the purposes of estimating the information collection burden
below for new applicants and awardees, the Department is assuming that
for each year 2021-2023, the Department will review approximately 200
applications in Year 1, negotiate 20 funding agreements in Year 2, and
begin quarterly project monitoring for 20 projects in Year 3. For a new
applicant in 2021, their burden will be 100 hours in 2020, 4 hours in
2022, and 20 hours in 2023. See Table 1 below:
Table 1
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Year 1 (2021) Year 2 (2022) Year 3 (2023)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Respondent Hours Frequency Hours Frequency Hours Frequency Total
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2021 Applicant (200).................... 100 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. 20000
2021 Awardee (20)....................... .............. .............. 4 1 .............. .............. 80
2021 Recipient (20)..................... .............. .............. .............. .............. 5 4 400
2022 Applicant (200).................... 100 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. 20000
2022 Awardee (20)....................... .............. .............. 4 1 .............. .............. 80
2022 Recipient (20)..................... .............. .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
2023 Applicant (200).................... 100 1 .............. .............. .............. .............. 20000
2023 Awardee (20)....................... .............. .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
2023 Recipient (20)..................... .............. .............. .............. .............. .............. ..............
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This Notice is separately estimating the information collection
burden for projects awarded from 2016-2020. Approximately 60 of these
projects are in the project monitoring phase in Year 1, while 40
projects are still negotiating funding agreements. In Year 2,
approximately 30 of these projects will begin project monitoring, while
approximately 20 projects will cease reporting once their projects are
completed. In Year 3, 10 projects will begin project monitoring while
20 projects will cease reporting. The individual burden for a project
awarded from 2016-2020 will depend on when they were selected, when
they completed negotiation of their funding agreement, and when their
project reaches completion. See Table 2 below:
[[Page 73350]]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Year 1 Year 2 Year 3
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Respondent Number Hrs Freq Number Hrs Freq Number Hrs Freq Total
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2016-2020 Awardee......................... 40 4 1 10 4 1 0 4 1 200
2016-2020 Recipient....................... 60 5 4 70 5 4 60 5 4 3800
2016-2020 Project Closed.................. 0 0 0 20 0 0 40 0 0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Department's estimated burden for this information collection
is as follows:
New Applications:
Expected Number of Respondents: Approximately 200 per year.
Frequency: Once.
Estimated Average Burden per Response: 100 hours for each new
Application;
For Funding Agreements:
Expected Number of Respondents: Approximately 30 in Year 1 and 2,
20 in Year 3.
Frequency: Once.
Estimated Average Burden per Response: 4 hours for each new Funding
Agreement.
For Project Monitoring:
Expected Number of Respondents: Estimated 60 in Year 1, 70 in Year
2, 80 in Year 3.
Frequency: Quarterly.
Estimated Average Burden per Response: 5 hours for each request for
Quarterly Progress and Monitoring Report;
Estimated Total 3-year Burden on Respondents: 64,560 hours. (New
Applicants [60,000 hrs], New Awardees/Recipients [560 hrs] + Prior
Awardees/Recipients [4000 hrs]).
The following is detailed information and instructions regarding
the specific reporting requirements for each report identified above:
Application Stage
To be considered to receive a FASTLANE or INFRA grant, a project
sponsor must submit an application to DOT containing a project
narrative, as detailed in the Notice of Funding Opportunity. The
project narrative should include the information necessary for the
Department to determine that the project satisfies eligibility
requirements.
Applications must be submitted through www.Grants.gov. Instructions
for submitting applications can be found at https://www.transportation.gov/buildamerica/infragrants. The application must
include the Standard Form 424 (Application for Federal Assistance),
Standard Form 424C (Budget Information for Construction Programs),
cover page, and the Project Narrative.
The application should include a table of contents, maps, and
graphics, as appropriate, to make the information easier to review. The
Department recommends that the application be prepared with standard
formatting preferences (i.e., a single-spaced document, using a
standard 12-point font such as Times New Roman, with 1-inch margins).
The project narrative may not exceed 25 pages in length, excluding
cover pages and table of contents. The only substantive portions that
may exceed the 25-page limit are documents supporting assertions or
conclusions made in the 25-page project narrative. If possible, website
links to supporting documentation should be provided rather than copies
of these supporting materials. If supporting documents are submitted,
applicants should clearly identify within the project narrative the
relevant portion of the project narrative that each supporting document
supports. At the applicant's discretion, relevant materials provided
previously to a modal administration in support of a different USDOT
financial assistance program may be referenced and described as
unchanged.
OST estimates that it takes approximately 100 person-hours to
compile an application package for a FASTLANE/INFRA application. Since
OST expects to receive 200 applications per funding round, the total
hours required are estimated to be 20,000 hours (100 hours x 200
applications = 20,000 hours) on a one-time basis, per funding round.
Funding Agreement Stage
DOT enters a funding agreement with each recipient. In the
agreement, the recipient describes the project that DOT agreed to fund,
which is typically the project that was described in the FASTLANE/INFRA
application or a reduced-scope version of that project. The agreement
also includes the project schedule and budget.
OST estimates that it takes approximately 4 person-hours to respond
to provide the information necessary for funding agreements. Based on
previous rounds of FASTLANE/INFRA awards, OST estimates that there will
likely be 20 agreements negotiated per additional funding round. The
total hours required are estimated to be 40 (4 hours x 40 agreements =
40 hours) on a one-time basis, per funding round.
Project Monitoring Stage
OST requires each recipient to submit quarterly reports during the
project to ensure the proper and timely expenditure of Federal funds
under the grant.
The requirements comply with 2 CFR part 200 and are restated in the
funding agreement. During the project monitoring stage, the grantee
will complete Quarterly Progress Reports to allow DOT to monitor the
project budget and schedule.
OST estimates that it takes approximately 5 person-hours to develop
and submit a quarterly progress report. OST expects approximately 20
projects to be awarded per funding round, while grants awarded in prior
years will reach completion during the year and would no longer need to
submit these reports. OST expects recipients and awardees from 2016-
2020 will require 3800 hours to submit project monitoring reports while
new recipients and awardees will require 560 hours from 2021-2023.
Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C.
Chapter 35, as amended; and 49 CFR 1:48.
Issued in Washington, DC, on November 12, 2020.
John Augustine,
Director of the Office of Infrastructure Finance and Innovation, Office
of the Under Secretary for Transportation Policy.
[FR Doc. 2020-25321 Filed 11-16-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-9X-P
