[Federal Register: May 30, 2008 (Volume 73, Number 105)]
[Notices]
[Page 31087-31088]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr30my08-42]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
[EPA-HQ-OAR-2002-0094; FRL-8573-1]
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to OMB for
Review and Approval; Comment Request; Reporting Requirements Under
EPA's Climate Leaders Partnership (Renewal); EPA ICR No. 2100.03, OMB
Control No. 2060-0532
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 request ICR
to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval.
This ICR is scheduled to expire on October 30, 2008. 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: Additional comments may be submitted on or before June 30, 2008.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, referencing Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-
2002-0094, to (1) EPA online using http://www.regulations.gov
(preferred method), by e-mail to a-and-r-docket@epamail.epa.gov, or by
mail to: EPA Docket Center, Environmental Protection Agency, Air and
Radiation Docket and Information Center, MC 6102T, 1200 Pennsylvania
Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460, and (2) OMB by mail to: Office of
Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget
(OMB), Attention: Desk Officer for EPA, 725 17th Street, NW.,
Washington, DC 20503.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Manuel J. Oliva, Climate Protection
Partnerships Division, Office of Atmospheric Programs, 6202J,
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW.,
Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 343-9094; fax number:
(202) 565-2134; e-mail address oliva.manuel@epa.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: EPA has submitted the following ICR to OMB
for review and approval according to the procedures prescribed in 5 CFR
1320.12. On June 1, 2006 (71 FR 31177), EPA sought comments on this ICR
pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.8(d). EPA received no comments. Any additional
comments on this ICR should be submitted to EPA and OMB within 30 days
of this notice.
EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under Docket ID
No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2002-0094, which is available for online viewing at
http://www.regulations.gov, or in person viewing at the Air and
Radiation Docket and Information Center in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/
DC), EPA West Building, Room B102, 1301 Constitution Avenue, 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 Air and Radiation Docket is 202-566-1742.
Use EPA's electronic docket and comment system at http://
www.regulations.gov, to submit or view public comments, access the
index listing of the contents of the docket, and to access those
documents in the docket that are available electronically. Once in the
system, select ``docket search,'' then key in the docket ID number
identified above. Please note that EPA's policy is that public
comments, whether submitted electronically or in paper, will be made
available for public viewing at http://www.regulations.gov as EPA
receives them and without change, unless the comment contains
copyrighted material, CBI, or other information whose public disclosure
is restricted by statute. For further information about the electronic
docket, go to http://www.regulations.gov.
Title: Reporting Requirements Under EPA's Climate Leaders
Partnership (Renewal).
ICR numbers: EPA ICR No. 2100.03, OMB Control No. 2060-0532.
ICR Status: This ICR is scheduled to expire on October 30, 2008.
Under OMB regulations, the Agency may continue to conduct or sponsor
the collection of information while this submission is pending at OMB.
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, and included on the related
collection instrument or form, if applicable.
Abstract: In an effort to aid implementation of U.S. commitments in
the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the
President announced a Climate Change Strategy on February 14, 2002,
wherein he set a national U.S. GHG intensity goal of 18 percent by
2012. Part of that
[[Page 31088]]
strategy challenges companies to set GHG reduction goals by working
with EPA through the voluntary Climate Leaders program. EPA has
developed this renewal ICR to ensure that the program remains credible
by obtaining continued authorization to collect information from
Climate Leaders Partners to ensure that Partners are meeting their GHG
goals. Companies that join Climate Leaders voluntarily agree to the
following: completing and submitting a Partnership Agreement;
negotiating a corporate GHG reduction goal; submitting a GHG inventory
management plan; participating in an onsite review of the inventory
management plan, and reporting to EPA, on an annual basis, the
company's GHG emissions inventory, and progress toward their GHG
reduction goal via Climate Leaders Annual GHG Inventory Summary and
Goal Tracking Form. The information contained in the inventories of the
companies that join Climate Leaders may be considered confidential
business information and is maintained as such. EPA uses the data
obtained from the companies to assess the success of the program in
achieving its GHG reduction goals. Responses to the information
collection are voluntary.
Burden Statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping
burden for this collection of information is estimated to equal 19,636
hours and to average 87.27 hours per year per respondent. The average
number of annual burden hours on first year partners for each type of
one-time response is: 9 hours to complete and submit a Partnership
Agreement, 47 hours for documenting and submitting an Inventory
Management Plan, 22 hours participating in an on-site verification of
the Inventory Management Plan, 42 hours for negotiating and setting a
GHG reduction goal, 117.25 hours for establishing a base year
inventory, and 4.25 hours to submit a company profile that is posted on
the Web. For all other partners who have been part of the program for
longer than one year, the average number of annual burden hours is 62
hours for verifying and updating the Annual GHG Inventory Summary and
Goal Tracking Form one time per year.
Partners may also submit voluntary updates of company profiles or
contact information, via the Climate Leaders Web site or e-mail. These
updates are estimated to take not more than 2 hours per response. All
of these activities are included in the annual burden estimate.
There are no capital or start-up costs associated with this
information collection. The average annual operation and maintenance
cost resulting for this collection of information is $3 for each first
time respondent. The average annual labor cost is $8,212 per
respondent. The resulting total annual cost averaged over the three
year period is $1,847,771.
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.
Respondents/Affected Entities: Climate Leaders Partner
Corporations.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 225.
Frequency of Response: Annually, on occasion, one-time.
Estimated Total Annual Hour Burden: 19,636.
Estimated Total Annual Cost: $1,847,721, includes $0 annualized
capital/startup costs, $105 annualized Operating and Maintenance (O&M)
costs and $1,847,616 annualized labor costs. Changes in the Estimates:
There is an increase of 7,681 hours in the total estimated burden
compared with that identified in the ICR currently approved by OMB.
Although the reporting requirements of the Climate Leader Partnership
have been streamlined to reduce the individual burden for each
reporter, the increase in overall costs are due to the continued growth
in the number of companies participating in the Partnership. EPA has
collaborated with partners to develop these revised reporting
requirements, which are better suited for establishing and tracking
progress of corporate GHG reduction goals. This change is result of a
more interactive program approach between EPA and Climate Leaders
partners and a larger number of partners in the program since the
currently approved ICR.
Dated: May 22, 2008.
Kathleen Hogan,
Director, Climate Protection Partnership Division.
[FR Doc. E8-12092 Filed 5-29-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P