[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 82 (Thursday, April 29, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22633-22635]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-9942]
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RECOVERY ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY BOARD
Proposed Information Collection
ACTION: Notice of submission to OMB and 30-day public comment period.
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SUMMARY: Under provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44
U.S.C. 3507(a)(1)(D)) and 5 CFR Part 1320, the Recovery Accountability
and Transparency Board (Board) invites public comments on a revision of
a currently approved collection of information (OMB number 0430-0004).
[[Page 22634]]
DATES: Public comments on this Information Collection Request (ICR)
will be accepted on or before June 1, 2010.
ADDRESSES: Send all comments to Sharon Mar, Desk Officer for the
Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board, Office of Management
and Budget, New Executive Office Building, Washington, DC 20503; fax
202-395-5167; or e-mail to [email protected].
Comments Received on the 60-Day Federal Register Notice
On June 18, 2009, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) through
its emergency review process approved the Board's ICR titled ``Section
1512 Data Standards.'' On August 7, 2009, the Board published a 60-Day
Notice to solicit comments on the ICR in the Federal Register (74 FR
39605). Due to subsequent changes in the data elements requested
pursuant to OMB Guidance (M-09-21, June 22, 2009), on August 27, 2009,
the Board submitted to OMB a revised ICR titled ``Section 1512 Data
Elements--Federal Financial Assistance,'' requesting approval. On
September 10, 2009, OMB, through its emergency review process, approved
the ICR. On October 8, 2009, the Board published in the Federal
Register another 60-Day Notice to solicit comments on the revised ICR
(74 FR 51884). The comment period closed on December 7, 2009.
On December 18, 2009, OMB issued new Recovery Act guidance (M-10-
08). This guidance, in part, included a new methodology that recipients
were to use in calculating the jobs data requested by section 1512 of
the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act).
Accordingly, the Board revised its ICR, and OMB approved the revised
ICR on December 31, 2009. OMB further advised that another 60-Day
Notice for the ICR would not be required. Instead, the Board is
submitting the ICR to OMB and opening the 30-day public notice and
comment period.
The Board received four comments in response to its 60-Day Federal
Register Notices. One commenter, a hospital, stated it anticipates that
the level of detail required to be reported and the frequency
(quarterly) of required reporting will be overly burdensome. This
commenter suggested that the reporting requirements be limited to not
more than twice a year, that sub-recipient participation be minimized,
and that no information be requested on vendors. The commenter further
suggested that only basic information from prime recipients on their
sub-recipients should be reported (DUNS, location, amount of award,
amount expensed); that information on the most highly compensated
officers of non-profit institutions should be eliminated from
reporting; and that information on research supplies paid to vendors is
excessively burdensome and should be eliminated. These suggestions are
beyond the statutory or regulatory authority of the Board, which
oversees the reporting mandated by Congress, as implemented by OMB.
A second comment was received requesting that OMB allow the
Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to grant a waiver to
Project-Based Section 8 owners from the Section 1512 reporting
requirements. The Board understands that OMB, through HUD, has granted
this request on the grounds that the Project-Based Rental Assistance
Program is tantamount to an individual benefits program.
A third comment was submitted by an association of 180 research
universities and their affiliated academic medical centers and research
institutions concerning the annual and quarterly burden associated with
section 1512 reporting. The association states that it performed an
analysis to estimate the burden associated with section 1512 reporting,
focusing on those research institutions which may receive hundreds of
Recovery Act awards. The association concluded that the burden
associated with each Recovery Act award would be approximately 11.5
hours per quarter. The association's quarterly estimation included time
devoted to ``accumulating data, analyzing data quality, data entry into
FederalReporting.gov, etc.'' Given the implementation of a copy-forward
feature on the data submitted into FederalReporting.gov, however, it is
likely that little data--aside from jobs reporting and project status
updates--will need to be accumulated or entered into
FederalReporting.gov on a quarterly basis. The Board did take into
account the association's note that, of Recovery Act recipients who
receive upwards of 15 awards, some will be major research institutions
that receive hundreds of awards. As of the date the 60-Day Notice
comment period had closed, of the recipients who received 15 or more
Recovery Act awards, the average number of awards was approximately 70
per recipient. The Board therefore revised its estimates to account for
these larger institutions.
The association also commented on ``ways for the Board to enhance
the quality, utility, and clarity of the information being collected,''
concluding that administrative cost relief for colleges and
universities similar to that provided to the States would help those
recipients meet the monitoring and reporting requirements of the
Recovery Act. The Board believes that the administrative cost issues
are more properly addressed to OMB, as the Board lacks authority to
effect changes in that regard.
A fourth comment letter was submitted by a university grants
office. A number of the university's comments dealt with the frequency
and depth of reporting and would therefore be more appropriately
addressed to OMB or Congress rather than the Board. The university did
raise the matter of time burdens, stating that ``[f]or the initial set-
up, organization and work flow design, [it] spent in excess of 400
hours for the initial 162 awards'' received. (This comes out to
approximately 2.5 hours spent per award for the initial entry of each
award.) As noted by the association in its comments referenced above,
the university stated that it had received more than 100 Recovery
awards. As explained above, the Board has accordingly revised its
estimates to incorporate the heavier time burden experienced by
entities receiving numerous awards.
The university also noted that ``[t]here is a considerable amount
of one time and static information required to be reported that could
be requested once. This information could then be used to automatically
populate the actual award spreadsheet.'' This suggestion is a good one,
and, as explained, the Board has implemented such a solution with the
copy-forward feature added to FederalReporting.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title of Collection: Section 1512 Data Elements--Federal Financial
Assistance.
OMB Control No.: 0430-0004.
Description: The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
(Pub. L. 111-5, 123 Stat. 115 (2009)) (Recovery Act) established the
Board and required that the Board establish and maintain a public-
facing Web site to track covered funds. Section 1512 of the Recovery
Act requires recipients of Federal financial assistance--namely,
grants, cooperative agreements, contracts and loans--to report on the
use of funds. These reports are to be submitted to
FederalReporting.gov, and certain information from these reports will
later be posted on the public-facing Web site Recovery.gov. More
specifically, prime recipients, sub-recipients, and vendors who receive
Recovery Act funds are required to submit section 1512 data
[[Page 22635]]
elements as set forth in the Recipient Reporting Data Dictionary
(available electronically at https://www.federalreporting.gov/federalreporting/downloads.do). On June 22, 2009, OMB issued the
following reporting guidance in its ``Implementing Guidance for the
Reports on Use of Funds Pursuant to the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act of 2009'' (M-09-21):
Prime Recipients: The prime recipient is ultimately responsible for
the reporting of all data required by section 1512 of the Recovery Act
and the OMB Guidance, including the Federal Funding Accountability and
Transparency Act (FFATA) data elements for the sub-recipients of the
prime recipient required under section 1512(c)(4). In addition, the
prime recipient must report three additional data elements associated
with any vendors receiving funds from the prime recipient for any
payments greater than $25,000. Specifically, the prime recipient must
report the identity of the vendor by reporting the DUNS number, the
amount of the payment, and a description of what was obtained in
exchange for the payment. If the vendor does not have a DUNS number,
then the name and zip code of the vendor's headquarters will be used
for identification.
Sub-Recipients of the Prime Recipient: The sub-recipients of the
prime recipient may be required by the prime recipient to report the
FFATA data elements required under section 1512(c)(4) for payments from
the prime recipient to the sub-recipient. The reporting sub-recipients
must also report one data element associated with any vendors receiving
funds from that sub-recipient. Specifically, the sub-recipient must
report, for any payments greater than $25,000, the identity of the
vendor by reporting the DUNS number, if available, or otherwise the
name and zip code of the vendor's headquarters.
Required Data: The specific data elements to be reported by prime
recipients and sub-recipients are included in the Recipient Reporting
Data Dictionary. Below are the basic reporting requirements to be
reported on prime recipients, recipient vendors, sub-recipients, and
sub-recipient vendors. Where noted, the information is not entered by
the recipient but rather is derived from another source:
Prime Recipient
1.. Funding Agency Code
2. Awarding Agency Code
3. Program Source (TAS)
4. Award Number
5. Order Number
6. Recipient DUNS Number
7. Parent DUNS (derived from CCR)
8. Recipient Type (derived from CCR)
9. CFDA Number
10. Government Contracting Office Code
11.. Recipient Congressional District
12. Recipient Account Number
13. Final Report (not FFATA)
14. Award Type
15. Award Date
16. Award Description
17. Project Name or Project/Program Title
18. Quarterly Activities/Project
19. Project Status
20. Activity Code (NAICS) or NTEE-NPC)
21. Number of Jobs
22. Descriptions of Jobs Created/Retained
23. Amount of Award
24. Total Federal Amount ARRA Funds Received/Invoiced
25. Total Federal Amount of ARRA Expenditure
26. Total Federal ARRA Infrastructure Expenditure
27. Infrastructure Purpose and Rationale
28. Infrastructure Contact Information
29. Recipient Primary Place of Performance
30. Recipient Officer Names and Compensation (if applicable)
31. Total Number of Sub-Awards to Individuals
32. Total Amount of Sub-Awards to Individuals
33. Total Number of Payments to Vendors Less Than $25,000/Award
34. Total Amount of Payments to Vendors Less Than $25,000/Award
35. Total Number of Sub-Awards Less Than $25,000/Award
36. Total Amount of Sub-Awards Less Than $25,000/Award
Sub-Recipient
1. Sub-Recipient DUNS
2. Sub-Award Number
3. Sub-Recipient Name and Address (derived from CCR)
4. Sub-Recipient Congressional District
5. Amount of Subward
6. Total Subaward Funds Disbursed
7. Sub-Award Date
8. Sub-Recipient Place of Performance
9. Sub-Recipient Officer Names and Compensation (if applicable)
Vendor
1. Award Number--Prime Recipient Vendor
2. Subaward Number--Sub-Recipient Vendor
3. Vendor DUNS Number
4. Vendor HQ Zip Code + 4
5. Vendor Name
6. Product and Service Description
7. Payment Amount
Affected Public: Recipients, as defined in section 1512(b)(1) of
the Recovery Act, of Recovery funds (specifically, Federal financial
assistance).
Total Estimated Number of Respondents: 80,000.
Frequency of Responses: Quarterly.
Total Estimated Annual Burden Hours: 2,720,000.
Ivan Flores,
Paralegal Specialist, Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board.
[FR Doc. 2010-9942 Filed 4-28-10; 8:45 am]
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