[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 247 (Thursday, December 26, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 70928-70929]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-27775]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

December 19, 2019.
    The Department of Agriculture has submitted the following 
information collection requirement(s) to Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) for review and clearance under the Paperwork Reduction Act 
of 1995, Public Law 104-13. Comments are requested regarding: Whether 
the collection of information is necessary for the proper performance 
of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will 
have practical utility; the accuracy of the agency's estimate of burden 
including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; ways to 
enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the information to be 
collected; ways to 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.
    Comments regarding this information collection received by January 
27, 2020 will be considered. Written comments should be addressed to: 
Desk Officer for Agriculture, Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs, Office of Management and Budget (OMB), New Executive Office 
Building, 725 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20502. Commenters are 
encouraged to submit their comments to OMB via email to: 
[email protected] or fax (202) 395-5806 and to Departmental 
Clearance Office, USDA, OCIO, Mail Stop 7602, Washington, DC 20250-
7602. Copies of the submission(s) may be obtained by calling (202) 720-
8958.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information 
unless the collection of information displays a currently valid OMB 
control number and the agency informs potential persons who are to 
respond to the collection of information that such persons are not 
required to respond to the collection of information unless it displays 
a currently valid OMB control number.

[[Page 70929]]

30-Day Federal Register Notice

Rural Utility Service

    Title: Rural Energy Savings Program.
    OMB Control Number: 0572-0151.
    Summary of Collection: The Rural Utilities Service (RUS), a Rural 
Development agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, provides 
Rural Energy Saving Program (RESP) loans to eligible entities that 
agree to, in turn, make loans to qualified consumers for energy 
efficiency measures, including cost effective energy and renewable 
energy systems. Since its inception in 2016, the RESP has evolved. New 
and clarifying authorities have been added to the program including 
changes made by the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (Pub L. 115-
334) which reauthorized the implementation of the RESP. Title VI, 
subtitle C, Section 6303 of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 
introduced several amendments to Section 6407 of the Farm Security and 
Rural Investment Act of 2002 (7 U.S.C. 8107a).
    Need and Use of the Information: The application process consists 
of two steps. Step 1: An applicant seeking financing must submit a 
Letter of Intent to apply in an electronic Portable Document Format 
(pdf). The Letter of Intent contains the tax identification number, 
legal name and organization status; verification of rural status 
(counties to be served and populations); financial status; point of 
contact; description of program; implementation plan; and a list of 
eligible energy efficiency measures to be implements. Step 2: RESP 
application--after review of the letter of intent, RUS notifies the 
eligible entity if it is invited to submit the loan application. 
Required application information is used to determine a borrower's 
ability to meet financial obligations, includes analyses and document 
review of the applicant's historical, current, and projected costs, 
revenues, cash flows, assets, and other factors that may be relevant on 
a case by case basis. The collection of information is essential to the 
mission of the agency and the RESP, and is necessary so that RUS can 
establish applicant and project eligibility.
    Description of Respondents: Businesses or other for-profit; Not-
for-profit institutions.
    Number of Respondents: 17.
    Frequency of Responses: Reporting: On occasion.
    Total Burden Hours: 1,046.

Ruth Brown,
Departmental Information Collection Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2019-27775 Filed 12-23-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3410-15-P