[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 101 (Tuesday, May 26, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31551-31552]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-11188]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Employment and Training Administration
Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request; IRAP
Program and Performance Reports for Standards Recognition Entities
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Labor's (DOL or Department) Employment and
Training Administration (ETA) is soliciting comments concerning a
proposed authority to conduct the information collection request (ICR)
titled, ``IRAP Program and Performance Reports for Standards
Recognition Entities.'' This comment request is part of continuing
Departmental efforts to reduce paperwork and respondent burden in
accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA).
DATES: Consideration will be given to all written comments received by
July 27, 2020.
ADDRESSES: Comments submitted in response to this notice should be
submitted electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at
http://www.regulations.gov by selecting Docket ID number ETA-2020-0003.
A copy of this ICR with applicable supporting documentation, including
a description of the likely respondents, proposed frequency of
response, and estimated total burden, may be obtained free of charge
from http://www.regulations.gov. Individuals with hearing or speech
impairments may access the telephone number above via TTY by calling
the toll-free Federal Information Relay Service at 1-877-889-5627 (TTY/
TDD).
Comments submitted in response to this comment request will become
a matter of public record and will be summarized and included in the
request for Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval of the final
ICR. In addition, comments regardless of the delivery method will be
posted without change on the http://www.regulations.gov website;
consequently, the Department recommends commenters not include personal
information such as a Social Security Number, personal address,
telephone number, email address, or confidential business information
that they do not want made public. It is the responsibility of the
commenter to determine what to include in the public record.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Contact Stephen Sage by telephone at
(202)693-3221 (this is not a toll-free number) or by email at
[email protected].
Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: DOL, as part of continuing efforts to reduce
paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a pre-clearance consultation
program to provide the general public and Federal agencies an
opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing collections of
information before submitting them to the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) for final approval. This program helps to ensure requested
data can be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and
financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly
understood, and the impact of collection requirements can be properly
assessed.
This information collection is authorized under the National
Apprenticeship Act (29 U.S.C. 50). This data collection includes two
reports for Standards Recognition Entities (SREs): (1) A program report
which is required within 30 days of recognizing a new program or
changing the status of a current program; and (2) a performance report
which is required on an annual basis for each Industry-Recognized
Apprenticeship Program (IRAP) they recognize. The information collected
in these reports is aligned with the amendments to 29 CFR part 29, as
set forth in subpart B. Pursuant to Sec. 29.22(h), SREs are required
to report data that will reflect the outcomes of the IRAPs it has
recognized. Section 29.22(h) also requires SREs to make publicly
available certain data about IRAPs and performance outcomes, which it
must submit to the Department.
The Department's Office of Apprenticeship (OA) will use this
information for quality assurance, data collection, and performance
assessment of SREs to evaluate whether an SRE complies with the
Departmental regulations and standards. Specifically, OA will use the
information gathered to gauge the qualifications, plans, and processes
of an SRE seeking re-recognition to determine whether it meets the
standards described in subpart B. Among the required data are the
industry-recognized credentials attained by apprentices for each IRAP.
[[Page 31552]]
These program and performance reporting requirements help to
demonstrate that the Department is promoting high-quality standards of
apprenticeship, consistent with the directions in the National
Apprenticeship Act, by requiring accountability from SREs. By enhancing
oversight and accountability of SREs, these measures help the
Department ensure that SREs are recognizing apprenticeship programs
that adhere to the standards of high-quality apprenticeship required by
the rule. The Department views these program and performance reports as
ensuring SRE's compliance with Sec. 29.22(a)(4), as required by Sec.
29.21(b)(2) and accountability to the quality-control relationship.
Additionally, Sec. 29.22(j) requires an SRE to make publicly available
the aggregated number of complaints pertaining to each IRAP in a format
and with the frequency prescribed by the Administrator. Further, Sec.
29.24 requires the publication of SREs and IRAPs and that the
Administrator will make publicly available a list of recognized,
suspended, and derecognized SREs and IRAPs. The Department views these
program and performance reports as ensuring overall compliance with
these rules.
This information collection is subject to the PRA. A Federal agency
generally cannot conduct or sponsor a collection of information, and
the public is generally not required to respond to an information
collection, unless it is approved by OMB under the PRA and displays a
currently valid OMB Control Number. In addition, notwithstanding any
other provisions of law, no person shall generally be subject to
penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information that
does not display a valid Control Number. See 5 CFR 1320.5(a) and
1320.6. Interested parties are encouraged to provide comments to the
contact shown in the ADDRESSES section. Comments must be written to
receive consideration, and they will be summarized and included in the
request for OMB approval of the final ICR. In order to help ensure
appropriate consideration, comments should mention 1205-0NEW.
Submitted comments will also be a matter of public record for this
ICR and posted on the internet, without redaction. DOL encourages
commenters not to include personally identifiable information,
confidential business data, or other sensitive statements/information
in any comments.
DOL is particularly interested in comments that:
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;
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;
Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
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).
Agency: DOL-ETA.
Type of Review: New.
Title of Collection: IRAP Program and Performance Reports for
Standards Recognition Entities.
Reports:
IRAP Program Report for Standards Recognition Entities
Annual Performance Report for Standards Recognition Entities
OMB Control Number: 1205-0NEW.
Affected Public: State and Local Governments; Private Sector--
businesses or other for-profits and not-for-profit institutions.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 3,794.
Frequency: Annually and 30 days upon recognizing, derecognizing or
suspending an IRAP Sponsor.
Total Estimated Annual Responses: 12,447.
Estimated Average Time per Response: The Department estimates that
it will take an SRE 6 hours and 3.75 minutes to provide the
Administrator with information on its IRAP Sponsors. The Department
estimates that it will take an IRAP 25 hours to provide performance
information to its SRE, so the total burden is estimated at 89,525
hours (= 3,581 IRAPs x 25 hours).
Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 111,118 hours.
Total Estimated Annual Other Cost Burden: $0.
John Pallasch,
Assistant Secretary for Employment and Training.
[FR Doc. 2020-11188 Filed 5-22-20; 8:45 am]
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