[Federal Register: August 19, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 160)]
[Notices]
[Page 51462-51464]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr19au04-54]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[OARM-2004-0001, FRL-7809-9]
Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection;
Comment Request; General Administrative Requirements for Assistance
Programs, EPA ICR Number 0938.09, OMB Control Number 2030-0020
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
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 a
proposed Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB). This is a request for a new collection.
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 October 18, 2004.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, referencing docket ID number OARM-
2004-0001, to EPA online using EDOCKET (our preferred method), by e-
mail to oei.docket@epa.gov, or by mail to: EPA Docket Center,
Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Environmental Information
Docket-Mail Code 2822IT, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC
20460.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Marguerite Pridgen, Office of Grants
and Debarment, Mail Code 3903R, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200
Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202)
564-5308; fax number: (202) 565-2470; e-mail address:
pridgen.marguerite@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: EPA has established a public docket for this
ICR under Docket ID number OARM-2004-0001, which is available for
public viewing at the Office of Environmental Information 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 Reading Room is (202) 566-
1744, and the telephone number for the Office of Environmental
Information Docket is (202) 566-1752. An electronic version of the
public docket is available through
[[Page 51463]]
EPA Dockets (EDOCKET) at http ://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 within
60 days of this notice. 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 comments 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 statue, 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
non-profit organizations applying for EPA assistance awards, including
grants and cooperative agreements.
Title: General Administrative Requirements For Assistance Programs.
Abstract: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is establishing
procedures for assessing administrative capability of non-profit
organizations applying for EPA assistance agreements. Under the new
procedures, EPA will require non-profit applicants recommended for
award to complete a checklist entitled ``EPA Administrative Capability
Questionnaire'' and return it to EPA with supporting documentation. The
responses to the form will be a basis for assessing administrative
capability and deciding whether to make awards to the non-profit
applicant. Applicants that provide information that demonstrates they
are administratively capable will be ``certified'' for a specified
period (e.g., four years) and therefore, would not have to resubmit the
questionnaire and supporting documents during that time unless
administrative management issues arise before the certification period
has ended. This Notice invites comments on the proposed data collection
effort.
In applying for a non-construction, discretionary grant from EPA,
each applicant is currently required to complete and submit Standard
Form (SF) series forms SF 424, SF 424A, and SF 424B. By signing the SF
424B, ``Assurances--Non-Construction Programs,'' the applicant is
assuring compliance with various statutory and regulatory requirements
(40 CFR Part 30--Grants and Agreements with Institutions of Higher
Education, Hospitals, and other Non-Profit Organizations) and is
assuring that it ``[h]as the * * * institutional, managerial and
financial capability (including funds sufficient to pay the non Federal
share of project cost) to ensure proper planning, management and
completion of the project described in this application.'' Despite this
assurance of administrative and programmatic capability, EPA's Office
of the Inspector General and Office of Grants and Debarment within
EPA's Office of Administration and Resources Management have documented
numerous instances of non-profit recipients that have inadequate
administrative systems to manage EPA funds or lack the capability to
successfully perform the project scope of work.
Recognizing that it is preferable to address such issues before,
rather than after an assistance agreement is awarded, EPA is
prescribing uniform pre-award procedures for evaluating the
administrative and programmatic capability of non-profit applicants.
Specifically, EPA will require that non-profit applicants recommended
for award complete a checklist entitled ``EPA Administrative Capability
Questionnaire'' and return it to the designated EPA office with
supporting documentation. Note that much of the information to be
collected in the proposed questionnaire is currently being collected
from assistance agreement recipients during EPA's post-award monitoring
activities (ref.: OMB 2030-0020, Expiration date 12/31/05). In
addition, 40 CFR Part 30 currently requires non-profit organizations
that receive EPA assistance agreements to maintain documentation
supporting their administrative capability.
For purposes of this Notice, EPA uses the term ``administrative
capability'' to mean the capability of an applicant to develop and
implement administrative systems required by 40 CFR Part 30, including
systems related to financial management, property management,
procurement standards and financial reporting and record-keeping.
As part of its pre-award procedures, EPA is considering whether to
collect information on programmatic capability from non-profit
organizations that apply for non-competitive grants. For purposes of
this Notice, EPA uses the term ``programmatic capability'' to mean the
technical capability of an applicant to successfully carry out a
project, taking into account factors such as past performance on
similar projects, prior experience, timely progress reporting, the
qualifications of key personnel and allocation of roles and
responsibilities for proper project management, and the adequacy of
equipment, resources and facilities.
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 in 40 CFR are listed in 40 CFR Part 9.
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 EPA estimates the average annual reporting
burden for non-profit applicants recommended for award to complete the
``Administrative Capability Questionnaire'' to be 2 hours. In the first
year of the new pre-award procedures, EPA will only require non-profit
applicants recommended for new assistance awards of greater than
$100,000 to provide this information. The estimated applicant pool for
these awards is 210, which results in a burden of 420 hours (210 x 2
hours). In subsequent years, EPA may require all non-profit applicants
recommended for new awards to provide this information. Based on a
total non-profit applicant
[[Page 51464]]
pool of approximately 700, the resultant burden would be 1400 hours
(700 X 2).
The EPA estimates the average annual reporting burden for non-
profit applicants recommended for award to provide programmatic
capability information to be 6 hours. The Agency also estimates that
35% of the 700 new awards to non-profit organizations--245 awards--
would be made non-competitively. The resultant burden would be 1470
hours (245 x 6 hours).
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: August 13, 2004.
Howard Corcoran,
Acting Assistant Administrator, Office of Administration and Resources
Management.
[FR Doc. 04-19049 Filed 8-18-04; 8:45 am]
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