[Federal Register: May 8, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 89)]
[Notices]
[Page 24734-24736]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr08my03-54]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[OW-2003-0027, FRL-7496-3]
Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection;
Comment Request; State Water Quality Program Management Resource
Analysis
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501
et seq.), this document announces that EPA is planning to submit the
following continuing Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office
of Management and Budget (OMB): State Water Quality Program Management
Resource Analysis, ICR Number: 1945.02, OMB Control Number: 2040-0216,
Current Expiration Date: September 30, 2003. Before submitting the ICR
to OMB for review and approval, EPA is soliciting comments on specific
aspects of the proposed information collection as described below.
DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before July 7, 2003.
ADDRESSES: Follow the detailed instructions in SUPPLEMENTARY
INFORMATION.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jane Ephremides, Resources Management
and Evaluation Staff, Office of Wastewater Management, Office of Water,
Mail Code: 4201M, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania
Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 564-0643; fax
number: (202) 501-2399; email address: ephremides.jane@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: EPA has established a public docket for this
ICR under Docket ID number OW-2003-0027, which is available for public
viewing at the Water Docket in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA
West, Room B102, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The EPA
Docket Center Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.,
Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number
for the
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Reading Room is (202) 566-1744, and the telephone number for the Water
Docket is (202) 566-2426. An electronic version of the public docket is
available through EPA Dockets (EDOCKET) at http://www.epa.gov/edocket.
Use EDOCKET to obtain a copy of the draft collection of information,
submit or view public comments, access the index listing of the
contents of the public docket, and to access those documents in the
public docket that are available electronically. Once in the system,
select ``search,'' then key in the docket ID number identified above.
Any comments related to this ICR should be submitted to EPA and OMB
within 60 days of this notice, and according to the following detailed
instructions: (1) Submit your comments to EPA online using EDOCKET (our
preferred method), by email to: ow-docket@epa.gov, or by mail to: EPA
Docket Center, Environmental Protection Agency, Water Docket, Mail
Code: 4101T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460.
EPA's policy is that public comments, whether submitted
electronically or in paper, will be made available for public viewing
in EDOCKET as EPA receives them and without change, unless the comment
contains copyrighted material, CBI, or other information whose public
disclosure is restricted by statute. When EPA identifies a comment
containing copyrighted material, EPA will provide a reference to that
material in the version of the comment that is placed in EDOCKET. The
entire printed comment, including the copyrighted material, will be
available in the public docket. Although identified as an item in the
official docket, information claimed as CBI, or whose disclosure is
otherwise restricted by statute, is not included in the official public
docket, and will not be available for public viewing in EDOCKET. For
further information about the electronic docket, see EPA's Federal
Register notice describing the electronic docket at 67 FR 38102 (May
31, 2002), or go to http://www.epa.gov/edocket.
Affected entities: Entities potentially affected by this action are
State governments.
Title: State Water Quality Program Management Resource Analysis
(OMB Control Number 2040-0216; EPA ICR Number 1945.02 expiring 09/30/
2003.
Abstract: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in partnership
with States, is conducting the State Water Quality Management Resource
Analysis (Gap Analysis) to help enumerate current and future funding
needs and to help identify innovative strategies for reducing resource
gaps. To gather preliminary information in a short time frame, the Gap
Analysis was originally divided into two phases. Phase I consisted of
the development of an initial, national estimate of the resource gap
faced by water quality management programs to provide a general idea of
the magnitude of the resource gap faced by States.
Phase II of the Gap Analysis involved developing a detailed,
activity-based workload model to provide a common framework and
consistent methodology for States and EPA to estimate the cost to the
States to meet the objectives of the Clean Water Act (CWA) over the
next five years. In order to complete the model, EPA's Office of
Wastewater Management (OWM) gathered data from 21 States on current and
future resources needed for water quality management activities.
Phase III of the Gap Analysis will build upon the information
collected in Phase II, which used an estimate of current State
expenditures on water quality activities. Under Phase III, States will
complete a portion of the Phase II modules to update the needs numbers
to reflect regulatory changes or changes to their programs. In
addition, States will be asked to complete an activity-based model for
current expenditures that mirrors the model for needs. This baseline
spending data will allow the States and EPA to more accurately estimate
the gap between expenditures and needed resources.
Phase III of the Gap Analysis is a one-time collection effort by
OWM, and responses to this information collection request (ICR) are
voluntary. The collection is necessary to develop an estimate of the
gap in resources facing water quality management programs, both for
individual States and the nation.
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. The OMB control numbers for EPA's
regulations are listed in 40 CFR part 9 and 48 CFR chapter 15.
EPA is asking States to provide estimates of current spending and
resource needs for water quality management program activities. EPA
will provide the States with integrated modules (the Gap Analysis
model) designed to capture current expenditures, current needs, and
future needs to perform all activities associated with the development,
planning, coordination, management, and implementation of State water
quality management programs.
Each module contains lists of activities in each of the program
areas. The modules will be integrated so that estimates for various
program areas can be combined into a total estimate across all program
areas.
To reduce the burden of the collection, the Gap Analysis model is
designed to maximize State flexibility. It contains default values
developed for the national estimate of the resource needs faced by
State water quality management programs. Respondents can accept the
default values or enter an appropriate value for their State. If the
default value is altered, the change will cascade throughout the rest
of the module.
The EPA would like to solicit comments to:
(i) 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;
(ii) 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;
(iii) enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information
to be collected; and
(iv) 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.
Burden Statement: The total number of respondents for this ICR is
estimated to be twenty State agencies. The total number of responses
for each respondent is one, which averages to 0.33 responses per
respondent annually. EPA estimates the burden to be $1,893 and 61 hours
per respondent for each respondent that chooses to submit information.
For the three-year ICR period, the average annual respondent burden and
cost to States and EPA is estimated at 1,353 hours and $46,068. The
annual burden and cost to State governments is estimated at 1,207 hours
and $37,648. No capital costs, recordkeeping burden, or operation and
maintenance (O&M) costs are associated with this ICR.
State labor costs are estimated by applying an hourly labor rate to
the burden hour estimates. For purposes of calculating State labor
costs, EPA assumed a single average hourly wage rate of $31.20 per hour
for all State activities, which is consistent with other recent OWM ICR
submittals. This rate is based on the average hourly wage for State
employees, as determined by the
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U.S. Department of Labor, and includes benefits. As in previous ICRs,
50 percent overhead costs were added to the average State rate.
Burden means the total time, effort, or financial resources
expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or
provide information to or for a Federal agency. This includes the time
needed to review instructions; develop, acquire, install, and utilize
technology and systems for the purposes of collecting, validating, and
verifying information, processing and maintaining information, and
disclosing and providing information; adjust the existing ways to
comply with any previously applicable instructions and requirements;
train personnel to be able to respond to a collection of information;
search data sources; complete and review the collection of information;
and transmit or otherwise disclose the information.
Dated: May 1, 2003.
James A. Hanlon,
Director, Office of Wastewater Management.
[FR Doc. 03-11475 Filed 5-7-03; 8:45 am]
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