[Federal Register: June 5, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 107)]
[Notices]
[Page 32340-32342]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr05jn06-50]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[OW-2005-0019, FRL-8179-7]
Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection;
Comment Request; Information Collection Request for Contaminant
Occurrence Data in Support of EPA's Second Six-Year Review of National
Primary Drinking Water Regulations, EPA ICR Number 2231.01., OMB
Control No. 2040.New
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 a new
Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB). 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 August 4, 2006.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-
2005-0019 by one of the following methods:
http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line
instructions for submitting comments.
E-mail: Lassovszky.Peter@epa.gov.
Mail: Water Docket, Environmental Protection Agency,
Mailcode: 4101T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460.
Hand Delivery: Water Docket, EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC),
EPA West, Room B102, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. Such
deliveries are only accepted during the Dockets's normal hours of
operation, and special arrangements should be made for deliveries of
boxed information.
Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-2005-
0019. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in
the public docket without change and may be made available online 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 statue. Do not submit information that you
consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through http://www.regulations.gov or e-mail. The http://www.regulations.gov Web site
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 http://www.regulations.gov your e-mail address will be
automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is
placed in the public 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. For additional information about EPA's public
docket visit the EPA Docket Center homepage at http://www.epa.gov/epahome/dockets.htm
.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Peter Lassovszky, Office of Ground
Water and Drinking Water, Standards and Risk Management Division, Mail
Code 4607M, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave.,
NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 564-4882; e-mail
address: lassovszky.peter@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
How Can I Access the Docket and/or Submit Comments?
EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under Docket ID
No. EPA-HQ-OW-2005-0019, which is available for online viewing at
http://www.regulations.gov, or in person viewing at the Water Docket in
the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room B102, 1301 Constitution
Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The EPA/DC Public Reading Room is open from
8 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 Water Docket is 202-566-2426.
Use http://www.regulations.gov to obtain a copy of the draft
collection of information, submit or view public comments, access the
index listing of the contents of the 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 in this document.
[[Page 32341]]
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:
(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. 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.
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. Offer alternative ways to improve the collection activity.
6. Make sure to submit your comments by the deadline identified
under DATES.
7. 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.
What Information Collection Activity or ICR Does This Apply to?
Affected entities: Entities potentially affected by this action are
the 56 States and territories.
Title: Information Collection Request for Contaminant Occurrence
Data in Support of EPA's Six-Year Review of National Primary Drinking
Water Regulations.
EPA ICR Numbers: 2231.01, OMB Control No. 2040.New.
ICR Status: This ICR is for a new information collection activity.
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, and 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: The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA), as amended in 1996,
requires that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) review
existing National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (NPDWRs) no less
often than every six years. This cyclical evaluation is referred to as
the ``Six-Year Review of National Primary Drinking Water Regulations''
or, simply, the ``Six-Year Review.'' Through the Six-Year Review
process, EPA reviews and assesses risks to human health posed by
regulated drinking water contaminants. EPA completed its first Six-Year
Review cycle (1996-2002), reviewing 68 chemical NPDWRs and the Total
Coliform Rule (TCR), which were promulgated prior to the 1996
Amendments. The occurrence assessments conducted for the first Six-Year
Review were based on compliance monitoring data from 1993 to 1997,
which were provided by States. The results of this review were
published in the July 18, 2003, edition of the Federal Register (68 FR
42907-42929).
EPA's Office of Water is requesting from States, on a voluntary
basis, historical compliance monitoring (contaminant occurrence) data
for community water systems (CWSs) and non-transient non-community
water systems (NTNCWSs). Contaminant occurrence data from 1998 to 2005
is being requested for all regulated chemical and radiological
contaminants, as well as data from the TCR, to support the Agency's
future Six-Year Reviews. The next review cycle is hereafter referred to
as ``Six-Year Review 2. The compliance monitoring records in this
information collection (including all results for analytical detections
and non-detections) provide the data needed to conduct statistical
estimates of national occurrence of each regulated contaminant. These
national occurrence estimates will support EPA's decision whether to
revise existing regulations. In addition, the 1996 SDWA section 1445(g)
requires the Agency to maintain a national drinking water contaminant
occurrence database (i.e., the National Contaminant Occurrence Data
(NCOD)) using occurrence data for both regulated and unregulated
contaminants in public water systems (PWSs). This data collection will
provide new occurrence data on regulated contaminants to maintain the
NCOD.
Burden Statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping
burden for this collection of information over the 3-year ICR period of
2007-2009, is estimated to average 12.2 hours per State annually.
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 the Agency's estimate,
which is only briefly summarized here:
Estimated total number of potential respondents: 56.
Frequency of response: One time only.
Estimated total average number of responses for each respondent: 1.
Estimated total annual burden hours per response: 12.2.
Estimated total annual burden hours: 681 hours.
Estimated total annual costs: $30,608.
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. At that time, 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
[[Page 32342]]
additional comments to OMB. If you have any questions about this ICR or
the approval process, please contact the technical person listed under
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
Dated: May 26, 2006.
Cynthia C. Dougherty,
Director, Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water.
[FR Doc. E6-8660 Filed 6-2-06; 8:45 am]
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