[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 60 (Friday, March 27, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17304-17306]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-06466]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
[Docket No. USDA-2020-0005]
Notice of Request for Approval for Generic Clearance To Conduct
Multiple Crop and Pesticide Use Surveys
AGENCY: Office of the Chief Economist, Office of Pest Management
Policy, USDA.
ACTION: Notice and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this
notice announces the intention of USDA's Office of Pest Management
Policy to request approval for a new information collection for
Multiple Crop and Pesticide Use Surveys.
DATES: Comments on this notice must be received by May 26, 2020 to be
assured of consideration.
ADDRESSES: USDA invites interested persons to submit comments on this
notice. Comments may be submitted by one of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: This website provides the
ability to type short comments directly into the comment field on this
web page or attach a file for lengthier comments. Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line instructions at that site for
submitting comments.
Mail, Including CD-ROMs, etc.: Send to Docket Clerk, U.S.
Department of Agriculture, Office of the Chief Economist, Office of
Pest Management Policy, 1400 Independence Avenue SW, Room 3871-South
Building, Mailstop 3817, Washington, DC 20250.
Hand- or Courier-Delivered Submittals: Deliver to 1400
Independence Avenue SW, Room 3871--South Building, Washington, DC
20250. You may also send comments to the Desk Officer for Agriculture,
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and
Budget, Washington, DC 20503.
Instructions: All items submitted by mail or electronic mail must
include the Agency name and Docket No. USDA-2020-0005. Comments
received in response to this docket will be made available for public
inspection and posted without change, including any personal
information, to http://www.regulations.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Elizabeth Hill, Office of the Chief
[[Page 17305]]
Economist, Office of Pest Management Policy, U.S. Department of
Agriculture, 1400 Independence Ave. SW, Washington, DC 20250, (202)
720-3846.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: Generic Clearance to Conduct Multiple Crop and Pesticide Use
Surveys.
OMB Number: 0503-New.
Expiration Date of Approval: Three years from approval date.
Type of Request: New information collection.
Abstract: The Office of Pest Management Policy (OPMP) of the United
States Department of Agriculture (USDA) requests approval from the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for generic clearance that will
allow OPMP to collect information from agricultural entities. The
primary purpose of this information will be to support OPMP's
understanding of agricultural practices pertaining to pest management.
OPMP is undertaking this effort to satisfy legislative requirements
outlined in Title X, Section 10109 of the 2018 Farm Bill, which
mandates that the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Office
of the Chief Economist's Director of OPMP, collect this information.
Pest management information is critical to supporting a key
responsibility of OPMP, i.e., to ``consult with agricultural producers
that may be affected by pest management or pesticide-related activities
or actions of the Department or other agencies,'' as outlined in the
Agricultural Research, Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998.
This request for approval will improve OPMP's ability to better
understand the utilization of pest management tools by agricultural
producers via input from pest management advisors--including Extension
experts and crop consultants, who in addition to being advisors are
often agricultural producers themselves. Data collected are intended to
capture agricultural practices and needs to support Federal activities
that pertain to pest management, which are typically time-sensitive and
necessitate the need for rapid data collection.
In most cases, the turnaround time for these information
collections will be a function of 60-day public comment periods
associated with pesticide licensing actions, making it essential for
OPMP to promptly administer requests and collect responses. Various
factors drive what types of questions OPMP may ask, including the
active ingredient, crop, region, application method, and specific
target pest problems. Examples of questions include inquiries regarding
pesticide usage, the availability and comparative utility of
alternative pest management tactics for target pests, and resistance
management concerns. Further, OPMP often needs to understand niche pest
situations on specific crops and/or regions, which typically is not
information that is readily available. In certain cases, a single
information collection may be administered to pest management advisors
across several active ingredients for a use site. This would avoid
multiple outreach efforts to the same respondents, reducing both
respondent and government burden.
This effort does not intend to duplicate information collection
activities administered by USDA's National Agricultural Statistics
Service (NASS) that pertain to pest management. When needed data are
current and available through NASS collection efforts, it is OPMP's
policy to utilize and recognize such information as Best Available
Data.
These data will be collected under the authority of 7 U.S.C.
2204(a). Individually identifiable data collected under this authority
are governed by section 1770 of the Food Security Act of 1985, 7 U.S.C.
2276. This Notice is submitted in accordance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-113) and OMB's regulations at 5 CFR
part 1320 (60 FR 44978, August 29, 1995).
Estimate of Burden: Public reporting burden for this collection of
information is estimated to average 15 minutes per response. Outside of
upfront demographic questions, no more than 10 questions will be asked
per response.
Type of Respondents: American Society of Agronomy Certified Crop
Advisors (CCAs), Crop Consultants associated with the National Alliance
of Independent Crop Consultants (NAICC), and university agricultural
specialists (including Extension experts) that work with or on behalf
of agriculturalists, such as farmers, ranchers, nursery operators,
animal operations (cattle, chickens, catfish, etc.), foresters,
beekeepers, farm managers, farm contractors, extermination and pest
control operators, postharvest crop packing and/or processing
activities, and/or cotton ginning.
Estimated Number of Respondents: Given that it is impossible to
predict the number of impactful Federal actions that pertain to pest
management in any given year, the entire universe of specialists
employed in the areas outlined above could be considered as possible
respondents. Realistically, however, only a small subset of these
individuals is expected to respond or even be requested to participate
in providing information. Using estimates provided by the American
Society of Agronomy and NAICC, as of June 2019 there were 11,695 CCAs
in the United States and approximately 800 NAICC independent crop
consultants. Although some individuals are both CCAs and independent
crop consultants, at most the total universe of crop advisors/
consultants is 12,495 respondents. Of these respondents, NASS survey
methodologists estimate a response rate of 15 percent should be
expected until further empirical data is available, or 1,874
respondents if crop consultants across all agricultural systems were
surveyed.
Of the institutions represented under the North American Industry
Classification System (NAICS) code ``Universities, and Professional
Schools'' (NAICS 6113), respondents are limited to land grant
universities housing agricultural experts and/or Extension specialists.
Typically, only one expert/specialist from a land grant university has
the knowledge to respond to the types of questions that would be
included in the proposed information collection, with an estimate of
130 such entities existing according to the Association of Public and
Land-Grant Universities. This would result in 20 respondents assuming a
15 percent response rate. In all, across crop advisors/consultants and
university specialists, the number of respondents per request is likely
no greater than 1,894. The actual number of respondents for any given
information request is expected to be far less than this, as requests
will be for specific crops, regions, and/or pest management needs.
Estimated Number of Responses: It is not possible to precisely
predict the number of significant actions or activities that would
necessitate OPMP conducting an information collection request. From
2016 to 2019, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) made
approximately 40 requests to OPMP for information across a total of
more than 85 crops. Additionally, as of June 2019, EPA had 73
Preliminary Interim Decisions (PIDs) and 55 Draft Risk Assessments
(DRAs) scheduled for completion in Fiscal Year 2019 (FY19), which is
likely representative of the number of PID and DRA actions on an annual
basis for the foreseeable future. OPMP does not plan to seek additional
information for all actions and each action typically only applies to a
subset of crops grown in the United States. Historically, for most
actions that necessitate OPMP input, individual inquiries typically
address one to five
[[Page 17306]]
crops, although in some cases inquiries may target the same crop and
could result in the target population being contacted more than once
annually. This is a function of more than one EPA action out for public
comment in a given year being registered for use on the same crop. EPA
actions are posted to the docket in quarterly batches which allows OPMP
to limit contacting individual respondents to four or fewer times
annually, as OPMP will be able to combine questions across multiple
crops onto one survey. For this new collection request, 1,894
respondents could be contacted four times annually, or 7,576 responses
per year.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: Respondents will be
contacted no more than four times annually, i.e., on a quarterly basis.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 3,166 burden hours
annually, or 9,498 hours over the 3-year life of the approved
collection. [As stated in 13c of the Form OMB 83-1.]
Comments are invited on: (1) 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) 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; (3) ways to enhance the quality,
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways
to minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who
are to respond, including the use of appropriate automated, electronic,
mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms
of information technology.
All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the
request for OMB approval. All comments will become a matter of public
record.
Robert Johansson,
Chief Economist.
[FR Doc. 2020-06466 Filed 3-26-20; 8:45 am]
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