Federal Register: December 27, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 249)
DOCID: FR Doc 02-32666
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Reclamation Bureau
NOTICE: NOTICES
ACTION: Agency information collection activities:
DOCUMENT ACTION: Notice of renewal of a currently approved collection (OMB No. 10060005).
SUBJECT CATEGORY:
Agency Information Collection; Proposed Revisions to a Currently Approved Information Collection; Comment Request
DATES: Your written comments must be received on or before February 25, 2003.
DOCUMENT SUMMARY:
In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), the Bureau of Reclamation (we, our, or us) intends to submit a request for renewal (with revisions) of an existing approved information collection to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB): Individual Landholder's and Farm Operator's Certification and Reporting Forms for Acreage Limitation, 43 CFR part 426 and 43 CFR part 428, OMB Control Number: 10060005. This information collection is required under the Reclamation Reform Act of 1982 (RRA), Acreage Limitation Rules and Regulations, 43 CFR part 426, and Information Requirements for Certain Farm Operations In Excess of 960 Acres and the Eligibility of Certain Formerly Excess Land, 43 CFR part 428. We request your comments on the revised RRA forms and specific aspects of the information collection.
SUMMARY:
Proposed collection; comment request,
SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION
Changes to the RRA forms and the instructions to those forms.
We made a few editorial changes to the currently approved RRA forms and the instructions to those forms that are designed to assist the respondents by increasing their understanding of the forms, clarifying the instructions for use when completing the forms, and clarifying the information that is required to be submitted to the districts with the forms. The proposed revisions to the RRA forms will be included starting in the 2004 water year.
In response to landholding situations that have arisen in certain districts that are subject to the acreage limitation provisions where a public entity owns or leases land through a legal entity, a new ``Attachment Sheet for Form 721PE'' (Form 721PEIND) has been developed for approval as part of this information collection. In lieu of modifying the ``Declaration of Public Entities Landholdings'' (Form 721PE) to address the rare instances where a public entity indirectly owns or leases land, the onepage Form 721PEIND will be completed in conjunction with the Form 721PE. There is no increase in burden hours resulting from the addition of this form because (1) the occurrence of public entities that indirectly hold land is isolated at best, and (2) this information is currently required from the applicable public entities on a separate sheet of paper. Therefore, the burden hours applicable to Form 721PEIND are included in those listed below for Form 721PE. The development of Form 721PEIND provides a consistent format in which to gather information that is currently required.
Title: Individual Landholder's and Farm Operator's Certification and Reporting Forms for Acreage Limitation, 43 CFR part 426 and 43 CFR part 428.
Abstract: This information collection requires certain landholders
(direct or indirect landowners or lessees) and farm operators to
complete forms demonstrating their compliance with the acreage
limitation provisions of Federal reclamation law. These forms are
submitted to districts who use the information to establish each
landholder's status with respect to landownership limitations, full
cost pricing thresholds, lease requirements, and other provisions of
Federal reclamation law. In addition, forms are submitted by certain
farm operators to provide information concerning the services they
provide and the nature of their farm operating arrangements. All
landholders whose entire westwide landholdings total 40 acres or less
are exempt from the requirement to submit RRA forms. Landholders who
are ``qualified recipients'' have RRA forms submittal thresholds of 80
acres or 240 acres depending on the district's RRA forms submittal
threshold category where the land is held. Only farm operators who
provide multiple services to more than 960 acres held in trusts or by legal entities are required to submit forms.
Frequency: Annually.
Respondents: Landholders and farm operators of certain lands in our
projects, whose landholdings exceed specified RRA forms submittal thresholds.
Estimated Total Number of Respondents: 19,202.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.02.
Estimated Total Number of Annual Responses: 19,586.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 14,829 hours.
Estimate of Burden for Each Form:
[[Page 79145]]
Burden Annual burden
estimate per Number of Annual number on
Form No. form (in respondents of responses respondents
minutes) (in hours)
Form 72180..................................... 60 5,358 5,465 5,465
Form 72180EZ................................... 45 537 548 411
Form 72181..................................... 78 1,758 1,793 2,331
Form 72184..................................... 45 40 41 31
Form 72190..................................... 60 1,910 1,948 1,948
Form 72190EZ................................... 45 113 115 86
Form 72191..................................... 78 891 909 1,182
Form 72194..................................... 45 4 4 3
Form 721PE..................................... 66 205 209 230
Form 721TRUST.................................. 60 1,331 1,358 1,358
Form 721VERIFY................................. 12 6,452 6,581 1,316
Form 721FC..................................... 30 243 248 124
Form 721XS..................................... 30 164 167 84
Form 721FARMOP................................. 78 196 200 260
Comments.
Comments are invited on:
(a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for
the proper performance of our functions, including whether the information will have practical use;
(b) The accuracy of our burden estimate for the proposed collection of information;
(c) Ways to enhance the quality, usefulness, and clarity of the information to be collected; and
(d) Ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on
respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.
We will summarize all comments received regarding this notice. We will publish that summary in the Federal Register when the information collection request is submitted to OMB for review and approval.
Department of the Interior practice is to make comments, including names and home addresses of respondents, available for public review. Individual respondents may request that we withhold their home address from public disclosure, which we will honor to the extent allowable by law. There also may be circumstances in which we would withhold a respondent's identity from public disclosure, as allowable by law. If you wish us to withhold your name and/or address, you must state this prominently at the beginning of your comment. We will make all submissions from organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying themselves as representatives or officials of organizations or businesses, available for public disclosure in their entirety.
Dated: December 10, 2002.
Elizabeth CordovaHarrison,
Deputy Director, Office of Policy.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
Stephanie McPhee at: (303) 445-2897.