Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB Review; Proposed Collection; Comment Request for a Modified OGE Form 201 Request an Individual's Ethics Documents, 11443-11445 [2023-03713]
Download as PDF
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 36 / Thursday, February 23, 2023 / Notices
the power to vote shares of a bank or
bank holding company and all of the
banks and nonbanking companies
owned by the bank holding company,
including the companies listed below.
The public portions of the
applications listed below, as well as
other related filings required by the
Board, if any, are available for
immediate inspection at the Federal
Reserve Bank(s) indicated below and at
the offices of the Board of Governors.
This information may also be obtained
on an expedited basis, upon request, by
contacting the appropriate Federal
Reserve Bank and from the Board’s
Freedom of Information Office at
https://www.federalreserve.gov/foia/
request.htm. Interested persons may
express their views in writing on the
standards enumerated in the BHC Act
(12 U.S.C. 1842(c)).
Comments regarding each of these
applications must be received at the
Reserve Bank indicated or the offices of
the Board of Governors, Ann E.
Misback, Secretary of the Board, 20th
Street and Constitution Avenue NW,
Washington, DC 20551–0001, not later
than March 27, 2023.
A. Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
(Holly A. Rieser, Senior Manager) P.O.
Box 442, St. Louis, Missouri 63166–
2034. Comments can also be sent
electronically to
Comments.applications@stls.frb.org:
1. HNB Bancorp, Inc., Hannibal,
Missouri; to merge with Northeast
Missouri Bancshares, Inc., and thereby
indirectly acquire The Mercantile Bank
of Louisiana, Missouri, both of
Louisiana, Missouri.
immediate inspection at the Federal
Reserve Bank(s) indicated below and at
the offices of the Board of Governors.
This information may also be obtained
on an expedited basis, upon request, by
contacting the appropriate Federal
Reserve Bank and from the Board’s
Freedom of Information Office at
https://www.federalreserve.gov/foia/
request.htm. Interested persons may
express their views in writing on the
standards enumerated in paragraph 7 of
the Act.
Comments regarding each of these
applications must be received at the
Reserve Bank indicated or the offices of
the Board of Governors, Ann E.
Misback, Secretary of the Board, 20th
Street and Constitution Avenue NW,
Washington, DC 20551–0001, not later
than March 10, 2023.
A. Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas
City (Jeffrey Imgarten, Assistant Vice
President) 1 Memorial Drive, Kansas
City, Missouri 64198.
1. Charles McGinn, Anselmo,
Nebraska; to acquire voting shares of
CFSB Holding Co., and thereby
indirectly acquire voting shares of
Custer Federal State Bank, both of
Broken Bow, Nebraska.
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve
System.
Michele Taylor Fennell,
Deputy Associate Secretary of the Board.
[FR Doc. 2023–03752 Filed 2–22–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6210–01–P
OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT ETHICS
[FR Doc. 2023–03754 Filed 2–22–23; 8:45 am]
Agency Information Collection
Activities; Submission for OMB
Review; Proposed Collection;
Comment Request for a Modified OGE
Form 201 Request an Individual’s
Ethics Documents
BILLING CODE P
AGENCY:
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve
System.
Michele Taylor Fennell,
Deputy Associate Secretary of the Board.
Office of Government Ethics
(OGE).
Notice of request for agency and
public comments.
ACTION:
FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
Change in Bank Control Notices;
Acquisitions of Shares of a Bank or
Bank Holding Company
The notificants listed below have
applied under the Change in Bank
Control Act (Act) (12 U.S.C. 1817(j)) and
§ 225.41 of the Board’s Regulation Y (12
CFR 225.41) to acquire shares of a bank
or bank holding company. The factors
that are considered in acting on the
applications are set forth in paragraph 7
of the Act (12 U.S.C. 1817(j)(7)).
The public portions of the
applications listed below, as well as
other related filings required by the
Board, if any, are available for
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:12 Feb 22, 2023
Jkt 259001
After this second round
notice and public comment period, the
U.S. Office of Government Ethics (OGE)
plans to submit a proposed modified
OGE Form 201, Request an Individual’s
Ethics Documents (OGE Form 201) to
the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) for review and approval of a
three-year extension under the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. The
OGE Form 201 is used by persons
requesting access to executive branch
public financial disclosure reports and
other covered records.
DATES: Written comments by the public
and agencies on this proposed extension
SUMMARY:
PO 00000
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11443
are invited and must be received by
April 24, 2023.
ADDRESSES: Written comments and
recommendations for the proposed
information collection should be sent
within 30 days of publication of this
notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/
PRAMain. Find this particular
information collection by selecting
‘‘Currently under 30-day Review—Open
for Public Comments’’ or by using the
search function.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
McEvan Baum at the U.S. Office of
Government Ethics; telephone: 202–
482–9287; TTY: 800–877–8339; Email:
usoge@oge.gov. An electronic copy of
the OGE Form 201 version used to
manually submit access requests to OGE
or other executive branch agencies by
mail or FAX is available in the Forms
Library section of OGE’s website at
https://www.oge.gov. A paper copy may
also be obtained, without charge, by
contacting Mr. Baum.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: OGE Form 201 Request an
Individual’s Ethics Documents.
Agency Form Number: OGE Form
201.
OMB Control Number: 3209–0002.
Type of Information Collection:
Extension with modifications of a
currently approved collection.
Type of Review Request: Regular.
Respondents: Individuals requesting
access to executive branch public
financial disclosure reports and other
covered records.
Estimated Annual Number of
Respondents: 19,000.
Estimated Time per Response: 10
minutes.
Estimated Total Annual Burden:
3,167 hours.
Abstract: The OGE Form 201 collects
information from, and provides certain
information to, persons who seek access
to OGE Form 278 Public Financial
Disclosure Reports, including OGE
Form 278–T Periodic Transaction
Reports, and other covered records. The
form reflects the requirements of the
Ethics in Government Act, subsequent
amendments pursuant to the STOCK
Act, and OGE’s implementing
regulations that must be met by a person
before access can be granted. These
requirements include the address of the
requester, as well as any other person on
whose behalf a record is sought, and
acknowledgement that the applicant is
aware of the prohibited uses of
executive branch public disclosure
financial reports. See 5 U.S.C. 13107(b)
and (c) and 13122(b)(1) and 5 CFR
2634.603(c) and (f). Executive branch
departments and agencies are
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23FEN1
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11444
Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 36 / Thursday, February 23, 2023 / Notices
encouraged to utilize the OGE Form 201
for individuals seeking access to public
financial disclosure reports and other
covered documents. OGE permits
departments and agencies to use or
develop their own forms as long as the
forms collect and provide all of the
required information.
OGE currently has OMB approval for
two versions of the form, a PDF version
and OGE’s online application. The
online version enables the applicant to
electronically fill out, submit, and
receive access to copies of the public
financial disclosure reports certified by
the U.S. Office of Government Ethics.
OGE is proposing several changes to
OGE Form 201, with the goals of (1)
making the form more appropriate for
use throughout the executive branch,
and (2) providing applicants with
clarifying information about the use of
the form. The changes were developed
with feedback from agency ethics
officials across the executive branch,
through a listening session and written
comments. To the extent appropriate,
the comments and feedback from agency
ethics officials have been incorporated
into the proposed revised form. The
proposed changes are summarized
below.
OGE recently made nonsubstantive
changes to the electronic version of the
Form 201, simplifying the name from
‘‘Request to Inspect or Receive Copies of
Executive Branch Personnel Public
Financial Disclosure Reports or Other
Covered Records’’ to ‘‘Request an
Individual’s Ethics Documents.’’ OGE
now proposes to apply the new name to
the PDF version as well, so that all
versions of the form will have the same
name.
OGE proposes adding approximately
two pages of supplemental information
to the PDF version of the form in order
to provide guidance to applicants
regarding the use of the form.
Specifically, the supplemental
information provides guidance on
which documents can be obtained by
request via the form (including a
description of such documents), which
documents can be obtained from OGE as
opposed to an individual’s employing
agency, and when and how to submit a
request using the PDF version of the
form. The changes avoid the use of the
term ‘‘other covered records,’’ which
was a point of confusion for applicants
in the past. Instead, the supplemental
information simply describes all
documents available through use of the
form, including a chart. OGE proposes
to remove section III because that
information will now be found more
easily in the supplemental information.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:12 Feb 22, 2023
Jkt 259001
OGE proposes to make a number of
changes to the PDF version of the form
to align the form with plain language
principles and to improve user
experience. These changes include:
adding the title to the face of the PDF
version of the form; removing OGE’s
name, address, telephone number and
fax number from the top of the form;
adding ‘‘Your’’ in front of the name,
mailing address, occupation, and
telephone number fields; adding
parentheticals containing the word
‘‘required’’ next to required fields;
grouping fields 3 and 3a in section I
together; and reformatting section I in
order to make it easier for applicants to
specify the type of report and time
period in field 5, if applicable, and
provide examples to the applicants in
the instructions. OGE also proposes to
add a continuation page to allow more
space for fields 5 and 5a.
OGE proposes moving the ‘‘Agency
Use Only’’ box on the PDF version of
the form to the end of section II (‘‘Notice
of Action’’), marking it ‘‘optional,’’ and
expanding it. Moving it to the end of
section II will group together all
portions of the form to be completed by
the applicant, thereby minimizing the
potential for missing information or
omitting a signature that would delay
processing. The proposed additions add
space for information on requests that
are not filled and additional notes in
order to provide more information to
applicants about why a document was
or was not released. Likewise, OGE
proposes to remove the checkbox in
section II indicating that ‘‘Copies of the
report(s) or other covered record(s) you
requested are enclosed’’ as duplicative
of the information in the revised
‘‘Agency Use Only’’ box.
OGE proposes changing the applicant
choices on all versions of the form by
changing ‘‘private citizen’’ to ‘‘member
of the public;’’ combining ‘‘law firm’’
and ‘‘other private organization’’ into
simply ‘‘private organization;’’ and
adding an option for ‘‘other.’’ The
purpose of these changes is to
modernize the language and make
selecting a choice easier for the
applicant.
In the applicant signature section on
all versions of the form, OGE proposes
to broaden language to address all
potential requested records. The revised
language would read: ‘‘I am aware that
in completing this official government
form that any intentionally false or
misleading statement, certification, or
response provided in this form is a
violation of law punishable by a fine or
imprisonment, or both, under 18 U.S.C.
1001.’’
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Sfmt 4703
Finally, on the PDF version of the
form, OGE proposes adding the option
for applicants to provide an email
address in lieu of a mailing address,
while also removing the ‘‘Pick-up’’
option. These changes are based on
agency feedback that almost every
request is filled using email and that
few agencies allow for applicants to
pick up documents. Use of email also
helps with record keeping and cuts
down significantly on processing time,
allowing applicants to receive their
documents quickly. OGE also proposes
to remove the checkbox for the ‘‘Picked
up by’’ from section II, as that option
would be eliminated. The online
application currently requires
applicants to provide an email address
and applicants who use the online
application may only receive a response
via email. OGE now proposes to remove
the unnecessary street address field
from the online application, to reduce
the information burden on applicants.
A Federal Register Notice with a 60day comment period soliciting
comments on this information
collection was published on November
2, 2022 (87 FR 66188). OGE did not
receive any comments in response.
However, after further review OGE
proposes to make additional
nonsubstantive changes to both versions
of the form designed to improve user
experience and readability. The
additional changes are as follows:
• Nonmaterial wording changes to field
descriptions and instructions to
improve readability and consistency
throughout the form (PDF version
only)
• Nonmaterial changes in punctuation
and capitalization to improve
readability and consistency
throughout the form (PDF version
only)
• Update to the Public Burden
Information section to accurately
reflect the location of the OMB
control number
• Changes to buttons and other aspects
of the user interface to make
navigation easier (PDF version only)
• Updates to the Ethics in Government
Act of 1978 citations to accurately
reflect the recent recodification of that
statute
• Update to the penalty amount in the
applicant signature section based on a
recent statutory update
Request for Comments: Agency and
public comment is invited specifically
on the need for and practical utility of
this information collection, the accuracy
of OGE’s burden estimate, the
enhancement of quality, utility and
clarity of the information collected, and
E:\FR\FM\23FEN1.SGM
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Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 36 / Thursday, February 23, 2023 / Notices
the minimization of burden (including
the use of information technology).
Comments received in response to this
notice will be summarized for and
included with the OGE request for
extension of OMB paperwork approval.
The comments will also become a
matter of public record.
Specifically, OGE seeks public
comment on the following:
• What problems do you have using
the form?
• Are there sections of the form or
instructions that are unclear?
• Is there information provided that is
confusing?
• What additional information would
be helpful?
Approved: February 16, 2023.
Emory Rounds,
Director, U.S. Office of Government Ethics.
[FR Doc. 2023–03713 Filed 2–22–23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6345–03–P
Interested parties may
submit written comments on this notice
by mail or email to the Chief
Technology Officer, HHS/ACF Tech,
330 C Street SW, Washington, DC
20024, paris@acf.hhs.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
General questions about the matching
program may be submitted to Kevin
Duvall, Chief Technology Officer, ACF
Tech, 330 C Street SW, Washington, DC
20024, 202–401–5680, or paris@
acf.hhs.gov.
ADDRESSES:
The
Privacy Act of 1974, as amended (5
U.S.C. 552a), provides certain
protections for individuals applying for
Administration for Children & Families and receiving Federal benefits. The law
Privacy Act of 1974; Matching Program governs the use of computer matching
by Federal agencies when records in a
AGENCY: Administration for Children &
system of records (meaning, Federal
Families, Department of Health and
agency records about individuals
Human Services.
retrieved by name or other personal
identifier) are matched with records of
ACTION: Notice of a new matching
other Federal or non-Federal agencies.
program.
The Privacy Act requires agencies
SUMMARY: In accordance with subsection involved in a matching program to the
(e)(12) of the Privacy Act of 1974, as
following:
amended, the Department of Health and
1. Obtain approval of a Computer
Human Services, Administration for
Matching Agreement, prepared in
Children & Families, Office of the Chief
accordance with the Privacy Act, by the
Technology Officer (HHS/ACF/OCTO),
Data Integrity Board of each Federal
is providing notice of a re-established
agency that is a source, or recipient of
matching program between the
data used in the matching program. 5
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and U.S.C. 522a(o)(1), (u)(3)(A) and (u)(4).
State Public Assistance Agencies
2. Provide adequate advance notice of
(SPAAs) participating in the Public
the matching program, including a copy
Assistance Reporting System (PARIS)
of the agreement, to Congress and the
Program. The matching program
Office of Management and Budget
provides the SPAAs with VA’s
(OMB). 5 U.S.C. 552a(o)(2)(A)(i) and (r).
compensation and pension data on a
3. Publish advance notice of the
periodic basis to use in determining
matching program in the Federal
public assistance applicants’ and
Register. 5 U.S.C. 552a(e)(12).
recipients’ eligibility for certain public
4. Make the Computer Matching
assistance benefits. HHS/ACF/OPRE
Agreement available to the public. 5
facilitates the matching program, and
U.S.C. 552a(o)(2)(A)(ii).
the Department of Defense, Defense
5. Notify the individuals whose
Manpower Data Center (DoD/DMDC)
information will be used in the
conducts the matches of SPAA and VA
matching program that the information
data and provides associated support.
they provide is subject to verification
through matching, as required by 5
DATES: The deadline for comments on
U.S.C. 552a(o)(1)(D).
this notice is March 27, 2023. The re6. Verify match findings before
established matching program will
commence not sooner than 30 days after suspending, terminating, reducing, or
making a final denial of an individual’s
publication of this notice, provided no
benefits or payments, or taking other
comments are received that warrant a
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND
HUMAN SERVICES
lotter on DSK11XQN23PROD with NOTICES1
change to this notice. The matching
program will be conducted for an initial
term of 18 months (from approximately
March 2023 through September 2024),
and within three months of expiration
may be renewed for one additional year
if the parties make no change to the
matching program and certify that the
program has been conducted in
compliance with the matching
agreement.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
17:12 Feb 22, 2023
Jkt 259001
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
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11445
adverse action against the individual, as
required by 5 U.S.C. 552a(p).
7. Provide an annual report of the
matching program activities to Congress
and OMB, and make the report available
to the public. 5 U.S.C. 552a(u)(3)(D).
This matching program meets these
requirements.
Kevin M. Duvall,
Chief Technology Officer, ACF.
Participating Agencies
The Department of Veterans Affairs
(VA) is the source agency, and State
Public Assistance Agencies (SPAAs) are
non-Federal agencies.
Authority for Conducting the Matching
Program
Sections 402, 1137, and 1903(r) of the
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. secs.
602(a), 1320b–7, and 1396b(r)).
Purpose(s)
The matching program will provide
participating SPAAs with VA’s
compensation and pension data on a
periodic basis to use in determining
public assistance applicants’ and
recipients’ eligibility for benefits under
the Medicaid, Temporary Assistance to
Needy Families (TANF), Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP),
and general assistance programs, and to
use in helping relevant veterans to
better understand similar benefits
available through the VA that may be
better alternatives. The matching
program helps ensure fair and equitable
treatment in the delivery of benefits
attributable to funds provided by the
Federal Government.
Categories of Individuals
The categories of individuals involved
in the matching program are the
following:
• Individuals applying for or
receiving Medicaid, TANF, SNAP, and/
or general assistance benefits (public
assistance clients); and
• Individuals receiving VA pay or
pension benefits.
Categories of Records
The categories of records used in the
matching program are identifying
information, compensation, and pension
data.
On an approximately quarterly basis,
VA will provide DoD/DMDC with a file
containing VA benefit record data for
most VA benefit and compensation
recipients. SPAAs will also provide
DoD/DMDC with a non-Federal file
containing identifying information,
including Social Security Numbers
(SSNs), about public assistance clients.
DoD/DMDC will compare the SSNs in
E:\FR\FM\23FEN1.SGM
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Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 36 (Thursday, February 23, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11443-11445]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-03713]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT ETHICS
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB
Review; Proposed Collection; Comment Request for a Modified OGE Form
201 Request an Individual's Ethics Documents
AGENCY: Office of Government Ethics (OGE).
ACTION: Notice of request for agency and public comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: After this second round notice and public comment period, the
U.S. Office of Government Ethics (OGE) plans to submit a proposed
modified OGE Form 201, Request an Individual's Ethics Documents (OGE
Form 201) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and
approval of a three-year extension under the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995. The OGE Form 201 is used by persons requesting access to
executive branch public financial disclosure reports and other covered
records.
DATES: Written comments by the public and agencies on this proposed
extension are invited and must be received by April 24, 2023.
ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed
information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of
this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular
information collection by selecting ``Currently under 30-day Review--
Open for Public Comments'' or by using the search function.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: McEvan Baum at the U.S. Office of
Government Ethics; telephone: 202-482-9287; TTY: 800-877-8339; Email:
[email protected]. An electronic copy of the OGE Form 201 version used to
manually submit access requests to OGE or other executive branch
agencies by mail or FAX is available in the Forms Library section of
OGE's website at https://www.oge.gov. A paper copy may also be obtained,
without charge, by contacting Mr. Baum.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: OGE Form 201 Request an Individual's Ethics Documents.
Agency Form Number: OGE Form 201.
OMB Control Number: 3209-0002.
Type of Information Collection: Extension with modifications of a
currently approved collection.
Type of Review Request: Regular.
Respondents: Individuals requesting access to executive branch
public financial disclosure reports and other covered records.
Estimated Annual Number of Respondents: 19,000.
Estimated Time per Response: 10 minutes.
Estimated Total Annual Burden: 3,167 hours.
Abstract: The OGE Form 201 collects information from, and provides
certain information to, persons who seek access to OGE Form 278 Public
Financial Disclosure Reports, including OGE Form 278-T Periodic
Transaction Reports, and other covered records. The form reflects the
requirements of the Ethics in Government Act, subsequent amendments
pursuant to the STOCK Act, and OGE's implementing regulations that must
be met by a person before access can be granted. These requirements
include the address of the requester, as well as any other person on
whose behalf a record is sought, and acknowledgement that the applicant
is aware of the prohibited uses of executive branch public disclosure
financial reports. See 5 U.S.C. 13107(b) and (c) and 13122(b)(1) and 5
CFR 2634.603(c) and (f). Executive branch departments and agencies are
[[Page 11444]]
encouraged to utilize the OGE Form 201 for individuals seeking access
to public financial disclosure reports and other covered documents. OGE
permits departments and agencies to use or develop their own forms as
long as the forms collect and provide all of the required information.
OGE currently has OMB approval for two versions of the form, a PDF
version and OGE's online application. The online version enables the
applicant to electronically fill out, submit, and receive access to
copies of the public financial disclosure reports certified by the U.S.
Office of Government Ethics.
OGE is proposing several changes to OGE Form 201, with the goals of
(1) making the form more appropriate for use throughout the executive
branch, and (2) providing applicants with clarifying information about
the use of the form. The changes were developed with feedback from
agency ethics officials across the executive branch, through a
listening session and written comments. To the extent appropriate, the
comments and feedback from agency ethics officials have been
incorporated into the proposed revised form. The proposed changes are
summarized below.
OGE recently made nonsubstantive changes to the electronic version
of the Form 201, simplifying the name from ``Request to Inspect or
Receive Copies of Executive Branch Personnel Public Financial
Disclosure Reports or Other Covered Records'' to ``Request an
Individual's Ethics Documents.'' OGE now proposes to apply the new name
to the PDF version as well, so that all versions of the form will have
the same name.
OGE proposes adding approximately two pages of supplemental
information to the PDF version of the form in order to provide guidance
to applicants regarding the use of the form. Specifically, the
supplemental information provides guidance on which documents can be
obtained by request via the form (including a description of such
documents), which documents can be obtained from OGE as opposed to an
individual's employing agency, and when and how to submit a request
using the PDF version of the form. The changes avoid the use of the
term ``other covered records,'' which was a point of confusion for
applicants in the past. Instead, the supplemental information simply
describes all documents available through use of the form, including a
chart. OGE proposes to remove section III because that information will
now be found more easily in the supplemental information.
OGE proposes to make a number of changes to the PDF version of the
form to align the form with plain language principles and to improve
user experience. These changes include: adding the title to the face of
the PDF version of the form; removing OGE's name, address, telephone
number and fax number from the top of the form; adding ``Your'' in
front of the name, mailing address, occupation, and telephone number
fields; adding parentheticals containing the word ``required'' next to
required fields; grouping fields 3 and 3a in section I together; and
reformatting section I in order to make it easier for applicants to
specify the type of report and time period in field 5, if applicable,
and provide examples to the applicants in the instructions. OGE also
proposes to add a continuation page to allow more space for fields 5
and 5a.
OGE proposes moving the ``Agency Use Only'' box on the PDF version
of the form to the end of section II (``Notice of Action''), marking it
``optional,'' and expanding it. Moving it to the end of section II will
group together all portions of the form to be completed by the
applicant, thereby minimizing the potential for missing information or
omitting a signature that would delay processing. The proposed
additions add space for information on requests that are not filled and
additional notes in order to provide more information to applicants
about why a document was or was not released. Likewise, OGE proposes to
remove the checkbox in section II indicating that ``Copies of the
report(s) or other covered record(s) you requested are enclosed'' as
duplicative of the information in the revised ``Agency Use Only'' box.
OGE proposes changing the applicant choices on all versions of the
form by changing ``private citizen'' to ``member of the public;''
combining ``law firm'' and ``other private organization'' into simply
``private organization;'' and adding an option for ``other.'' The
purpose of these changes is to modernize the language and make
selecting a choice easier for the applicant.
In the applicant signature section on all versions of the form, OGE
proposes to broaden language to address all potential requested
records. The revised language would read: ``I am aware that in
completing this official government form that any intentionally false
or misleading statement, certification, or response provided in this
form is a violation of law punishable by a fine or imprisonment, or
both, under 18 U.S.C. 1001.''
Finally, on the PDF version of the form, OGE proposes adding the
option for applicants to provide an email address in lieu of a mailing
address, while also removing the ``Pick-up'' option. These changes are
based on agency feedback that almost every request is filled using
email and that few agencies allow for applicants to pick up documents.
Use of email also helps with record keeping and cuts down significantly
on processing time, allowing applicants to receive their documents
quickly. OGE also proposes to remove the checkbox for the ``Picked up
by'' from section II, as that option would be eliminated. The online
application currently requires applicants to provide an email address
and applicants who use the online application may only receive a
response via email. OGE now proposes to remove the unnecessary street
address field from the online application, to reduce the information
burden on applicants.
A Federal Register Notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting
comments on this information collection was published on November 2,
2022 (87 FR 66188). OGE did not receive any comments in response.
However, after further review OGE proposes to make additional
nonsubstantive changes to both versions of the form designed to improve
user experience and readability. The additional changes are as follows:
Nonmaterial wording changes to field descriptions and
instructions to improve readability and consistency throughout the form
(PDF version only)
Nonmaterial changes in punctuation and capitalization to
improve readability and consistency throughout the form (PDF version
only)
Update to the Public Burden Information section to accurately
reflect the location of the OMB control number
Changes to buttons and other aspects of the user interface to
make navigation easier (PDF version only)
Updates to the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 citations to
accurately reflect the recent recodification of that statute
Update to the penalty amount in the applicant signature
section based on a recent statutory update
Request for Comments: Agency and public comment is invited
specifically on the need for and practical utility of this information
collection, the accuracy of OGE's burden estimate, the enhancement of
quality, utility and clarity of the information collected, and
[[Page 11445]]
the minimization of burden (including the use of information
technology). Comments received in response to this notice will be
summarized for and included with the OGE request for extension of OMB
paperwork approval. The comments will also become a matter of public
record.
Specifically, OGE seeks public comment on the following:
What problems do you have using the form?
Are there sections of the form or instructions that are
unclear?
Is there information provided that is confusing?
What additional information would be helpful?
Approved: February 16, 2023.
Emory Rounds,
Director, U.S. Office of Government Ethics.
[FR Doc. 2023-03713 Filed 2-22-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6345-03-P