[Federal Register: October 25, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 206)]
[Notices]
[Page 62429-62431]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr25oc06-35]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-OPP-2006-0616; FRL-8083-6]
Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection;
Comment Request; Submission of Unreasonable Adverse Effects Information
Under FIFRA Section 6(a)(2); EPA ICR No. 1204.10, OMB Control No. 2070-
0039
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44
U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that EPA is planning to
submit a request to renew an existing approved Information Collection
Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). This ICR,
entitled: ``Submission of Unreasonable Adverse Effects Information
Under Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA)
Section 6(a)(2)'' and identified by EPA ICR No. 1204.10 and OMB Control
No.2070-0039, is scheduled to expire on May 31, 2007. Before submitting
the ICR to OMB for review and approval, EPA is soliciting comments on
specific aspects of the proposed information collection.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before December 26, 2006.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by docket identification
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2006-0616, by one of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
Mail: Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) Regulatory Public
Docket (7502P), Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania
Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-0001.
Delivery: OPP Regulatory Public Docket (7502P),
Environmental Protection Agency, Rm. S-4400, One Potomac Yard (South
Building), 2777 S. Crystal Drive, Arlington, VA. Deliveries are only
accepted during the Docket's normal hours of operation (8:30 a.m. to 4
p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays). Special
arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed information. The
Docket telephone number is (703) 305-5805.
Instructions: Direct your comments to docket ID number EPA-HQ-OPP-
2006-0616. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included
in the docket without change and may be made available on-line at
http://www.regulations.gov/, including any personal information
provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose
disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you
consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through regulations.gov or e-
mail. The Federal regulations.gov website is an ``anonymous access''
system, which means EPA will not know your identity or contact
information unless you provide it in the body of your comment. If you
send an e-mail comment directly to EPA without going through
regulations.gov, your e-mail address will be automatically captured and
included as part of the comment that is placed in the docket and made
available on the Internet. If you submit an electronic comment, EPA
recommends that you include your name and other contact information in
the body of your comment and with any disk or CD-ROM you submit. If EPA
cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties and cannot
contact you for clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your
comment. Electronic files should avoid the use of special characters,
any form of encryption, and be free of any defects or viruses.
Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the docket index.
Although listed in the index, some information is not publicly
available, e.g., CBI or other information whose disclosure is
restricted by statute. Certain other
[[Page 62430]]
material, such as copyrighted material, is not placed on the Internet
and will be publicly available only in hard copy form. Publicly
available docket materials are available either in the electronic
docket at http://www.regulations.gov/, or, if only available in hard
copy, at the OPP Regulatory Public Docket in Rm. S-4400, One Potomac
Yard (South Building), 2777 S. Crystal Drive, Arlington, VA. The hours
of operation of this Docket Facility are from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.,
Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The Docket telephone
number is (703) 305-5805.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kathryn Boyle, Field and External
Affairs Division (7506P), Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental
Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460-
0001; telephone number: (703) 305-6304; fax number: (703) 305-5884 e-
mail address: boyle.kathryn@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. What Information is EPA Particularly Interested In?
Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, EPA specifically
solicits comments and information to enable it to:
1. 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.
2. Evaluate the accuracy of the Agency's estimates of the burden of
the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used.
3. Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to
be collected.
4. 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. In particular, EPA is requesting comments from
very small businesses (those that employ less than 25) on examples of
specific additional efforts that EPA could make to reduce the paperwork
burden for very small businesses affected by this collection.
II. What Should I Consider When I Prepare My Comments for EPA?
You may find the following suggestions helpful for preparing your
comments:
1. Explain your views as clearly as possible and provide specific
examples.
2. Describe any assumptions that you used.
3. Provide copies of any technical information and/or data you used
that support your views.
4. If you estimate potential burden or costs, explain how you
arrived at the estimate that you provide.
5. Provide specific examples to illustrate your concerns.
6. Offer alternative ways to improve the collection activity.
7. Make sure to submit your comments by the deadline identified
under DATES.
8. To ensure proper receipt by EPA, be sure to identify the docket
ID number assigned to this action in the subject line on the first page
of your response. You may also provide the name, date, and Federal
Register citation.
III. What Information Collection Activity or ICR Does This Action Apply
To?
Affected entities: Entities potentially affected by this action are
anyone who holds or ever held a registration for a pesticide product
issued under FIFRA section 3 or 24(c). The North American Industrial
Classification System (NAICS) code is 325320 (Pesticide and Other
Agricultural Chemical Manufacturing).
Title: Submission of Unreasonable Adverse Effects Information Under
FIFRA Section 6(a)(2).
ICR numbers: EPA ICR No. 1204.10, OMB Control No. 2070-0039.
ICR status: This ICR is currently scheduled to expire on May 31,
2007. 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 title 40 of the CFR, after appearing in the Federal
Register when approved, are listed in 40 CFR part 9, are displayed
either by 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 in certain EPA
regulations is consolidated in 40 CFR part 9.
Abstract: Section 6(a)(2) of FIFRA requires pesticide registrants
to submit information to the Agency which may be relevant to the
balancing of the risks and benefits of a pesticide product. The statute
requires the registrant to submit any factual information that it
acquires regarding adverse effects associated with its pesticidal
products, and it is up to the Agency to determine whether or not that
factual information constitutes an unreasonable adverse effect.
Responses to this collection are mandatory. The authority for this
information collection is section 6(a)(2) of FIFRA. Compliance
regulations are contained in 40 CFR part 159. CBI submitted to EPA in
response to this information collection is protected from disclosure
under FIFRA section 10.
Burden statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping
burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 97.3
hours per registrant (respondent). 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 which have subsequently changed; 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.
The ICR provides a detailed explanation of this estimate, which is
only briefly summarized here:
Estimated total number of potential respondents: 1,720 registrants.
Frequency of response: As needed.
Estimated total average number of responses for each respondent:
For submission of studies: Less than 1. For submission of incident
reports: 1 to 3, since incidents are usually reported as aggregate
statistics.
Estimated total annual burden hours: 167,316 hours.
Estimated total annual costs: $9,809,591. There are no capital
expenditures or operation and maintenance costs associated with this
information collection activity.
IV. Are There Changes In the Estimates from the Last Approval?
This ICR renewal request reflects an increase of approximately
11,677 burden hours to an annual respondent burden of 167,316 hours at
a cost of $9,809,591 (in 2006 dollars). Thus, the costs decreased. The
change in burden reflects a number of adjustments. First, for this
renewal ICR, there are now fewer registrants of active products (1,720
versus 1,877) and therefore fewer employees to be trained (17,200
versus
[[Page 62431]]
18,770) than reflected in the existing ICR.
The hours used to calculate total burden hours and costs are
unchanged from the existing ICR. Total burden hour estimates associated
with studies are reduced because the estimated number of study
submissions is reduced from 325 studies to 240. Burden estimates
associated with the number of incident reports, however, are increased
because of the increased volume of incident reporting (17%). Overall,
considering both the decrease in studies and the increase in incidents,
the total burden hours increased minimally from 155,639 to 167,316.
V. What is the Next Step in the Process for This ICR?
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 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 the ICR to OMB and the opportunity to submit
additional comments to OMB. If you have any questions about this ICR or
the approval process, please contact the person listed under FOR
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
List of Subjects
Environmental protection, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.
Dated: October 5, 2006.
James B. Gulliford,
Assistant Administrator, Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic
Substances.
[FR Doc. E6-17763 Filed 10-24-06; 8:45 am]
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