80 FR 31061 - Proposed Information Collection; Wildlife and Sport Fish Grants and Cooperative Agreements

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service

Federal Register Volume 80, Issue 104 (June 1, 2015)

Page Range		31061-31063
FR Document		2015-13089

We (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) published a notice on May 11, 2015, announcing our intention to ask the Office of Management to renew approval for the information collection (IC) described below. We are revising that notice to: (1) Provide the estimated date for States to begin entering information into the new electronic system (Wildlife Tracking and Reporting Actions for the Conservation of Species); (2) revise the burden for reporting the information; and (3) extend the comment period. As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and as part of our continuing efforts to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, we invite the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on this IC. This IC is scheduled to expire on September 30, 2015. We may not conduct or sponsor and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number.

Federal Register, Volume 80 Issue 104 (Monday, June 1, 2015)

[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 104 (Monday, June 1, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31061-31063]
From the Federal Register Online [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2015-13089]

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Fish and Wildlife Service

[FW-HQ-WSFR-2015-N110; FVWF941009000007B-XXX-FF09W11000;
FVWF51100900000-XXX-FF09W11000]

Proposed Information Collection; Wildlife and Sport Fish Grants
and Cooperative Agreements

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice; revision and request for comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: We (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service) published a notice on May
11, 2015, announcing our intention to ask the Office of Management to
renew approval for the information collection (IC) described below. We
are revising that notice to: (1) Provide the estimated date for States
to begin entering information into the new electronic system (Wildlife
Tracking and Reporting Actions for the Conservation of Species); (2)
revise the burden for reporting the information; and (3) extend the
comment period. As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and
as part of our continuing efforts to reduce paperwork and respondent
burden, we invite the general public and other Federal agencies to take
this opportunity to comment on this IC. This IC is scheduled to expire
on September 30, 2015. We may not conduct or sponsor and a person is
not required to respond to a collection of information unless it
displays a currently valid OMB control number.

DATES: To ensure that we are able to consider your comments on this IC,
we must receive them by July 31, 2015.

ADDRESSES: Send your comments on this IC to the Information Collection
Clearance Officer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS BPHC, 5275
Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803 (mail); or hope_grey@fws.gov
(email). Please include ``1018-0109'' in the subject line of your
comments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request additional information
about this IC, contact Hope Grey at hope_grey@fws.gov (email) or 703-
358-2482 (telephone).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program (WSFR), U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service, administers the following financial assistance
programs in whole or in part. We award most financial assistance as
grants, but cooperative agreements are possible if the Federal
Government will be substantially involved in carrying out the project.
You can find a description of most programs in the Catalog of Federal
Domestic Assistance (CFDA).

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Program CFDA No. Authority Implementing regulations
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Clean Vessel Act.................. 15.616.......... 16 U.S.C. 777g(c)........ 50 CFR 85.
Coastal Wetlands Planning, 15.614.......... 16 U.S.C. 3951-3956...... 50 CFR 84.
Protection, and Restoration Act.
Cooperative Endangered Species 15.615.......... 16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.... 50 CFR 81.
Conservation Fund.
Everglades Restoration *.......... None............ Pub. L. 104-127; 16 None.
U.S.C. 460 l-4 thru l-11.
Fish and Wildlife Coordination and 15.664.......... ......................... None.
Assistance Programs (Generic).
Fisheries Restoration and None............ 16 U.S.C. 777............ None.
Irrigation Mitigation *.
Highlands Conservation Program.... 15.667.......... ......................... None.
Hunter Education and Safety....... 15.626.......... 16 U.S.C. 669h-1......... 50 CFR 80.
Landowner Incentive *............. 15.633.......... Pub. L. 110-5............ None.
Multistate Conservation Grants.... 15.628.......... 16 U.S.C. 669h-2; 16 None.
U.S.C. 777m.
National Outreach and 15.653.......... 16 U.S.C. 777g(d)........ None.
Communication.
Research Grants (Generic)......... 15.650.......... 16 U.S.C. 753a; 16 U.S.C. None.
460 (l-4-thru l-11); 16
U.S.C. 1531-1543.
Service Training and Technical 15.649.......... 16 U.S.C. 661 and 16 None.
Assistance (Generic Training). U.S.C. 742f.
Sport Fish Restoration............ 15.605.......... 16 U.S.C. 777-777n 50 CFR 80.
(except 777e-1).
Sportfishing and Boating Safety 15.622.......... 16 U.S.C. 777g and g-1... 50 CFR 86.
Act (Boating Infrastructure
Grants).
State Wildlife Grants............. 15.634.......... Pub. L. 110-329.......... None.
Tribal Landowner Incentive *...... 15.638.......... Pub. L. 110-5............ None.
Tribal Wildlife Grants............ 15.639.......... Pub. L. 110-329.......... None.
Wildlife Conservation and 15.625.......... 16 U.S.C. 669b and 669c.. None.
Restoration *.
Wildlife Restoration.............. 15.611.......... 16 U.S.C. 669-669k....... 50 CFR 80.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Program has open grants, but no new funding.

[[Page 31062]]

Authorities and implementing regulations establish the purposes of
the grant programs and the types of projects to be funded. Some list
eligibility criteria as well as activities ineligible for funding. The
authorities and implementing regulations for the competitive programs
establish preferences or ranking factors for the selection of projects
to be funded. These legal requirements make it essential for an
awarding agency to have certain information so that it funds only
eligible projects, and, in the case of competitive programs, to select
those projects that will result in the greatest return on the Federal
investment.
Some grants are mandatory and receive funds according to a formula
set by law or policy. Other grants are discretionary, and we award them
based on a competitive process. Mandatory grant recipients must give us
specific, detailed project information during the application process
so that we can ensure that projects are eligible for the mandatory
funding, are substantial in character and design, and comply with all
applicable Federal laws. All grantees must submit financial and
performance reports that contain information necessary for us to track
costs and accomplishments.
In February 2014, OMB approved our request to use a new electronic
system (Wildlife Tracking and Reporting Actions for the Conservation of
Species (Wildlife TRACS)) to collect application and performance
reporting information on our grant programs. OMB assigned OMB Control
No. 1018-0156, which expires February 28, 2017. Wildlife TRACS allows
us to take advantage of newer technology and gives applicants direct
access to enter project information that can be used to submit an
application through http://www.grants.gov. Grantees can also report
performance accomplishments in Wildlife TRACS. We are including the use
of Wildlife TRACS and the collection of additional information in this
revision to OMB Control No. 1018-0109. If OMB approves this revision,
we will discontinue OMB Control No. 1018-0156.
We may require all States to directly enter project information and
performance reporting into Wildlife TRACS by October 1, 2016. We
continue to offer training and support to States on entering
information into the new system. When States fully engage in directly
entering all application and project performance reporting into
Wildlife TRACS, we expect there will be a reduction in the burden to
report the information. States will become more adept with experience,
and efficiencies of the electronic system will be realized starting in
the second full year of use. A majority of WSFR-administered projects
are continuations of similar actions and/or at the same locations.
Wildlife TRACS is designed to ease the administrative burden of
applying for and reporting on grants for projects that fall into these
parameters. The table below reflects the burden reduction that we
expect over the next 3 years. Not all grantees will directly enter
information into Wildlife TRACS. We will enter information when we
determine the grantee or the program is such that it is not efficient
or in the best interest of the program to have grantees enter
information.
To apply for financial assistance funds, you must submit an
application that describes in substantial detail project locations,
benefits, funding, and other characteristics. Materials to assist
applicants in formulating project proposals are available on
Grants.gov. We use the application to determine:
Eligibility.
Scale of resource values or relative worth of the project.
If associated costs are reasonable and allowable.
Potential effect of the project on environmental and
cultural resources.
How well the proposed project will meet the purposes of
the program's establishing legislation.
If the proposed project is substantial in character and
design.
For competitive programs, how the proposed project
addresses ranking criteria.
Persons or entities receiving grants must submit periodic
performance reports that contain information necessary for us to track
costs and accomplishments.
In addition to the information currently collected under OMB
Control No. 1018-0109, we will collect the following additional
information currently approved under OMB Control No. 1018-0156:
For mandatory grant program applications and amendments:
Geospatial entry of project location.
Project status (active, completed, etc.).
Project leader contact information.
Partner information.
Objectives, including output measures and desired future
values.
Plan information (for projects connected to plans).
For all WSFR grant program projects and reports:
The information above, as applicable to the approved
grant.
Public description.
Action status (active, completed, etc.).
Summary trend information, as applicable.
Estimated costs, by action (non-auditable).
Effectiveness measures (initially for State Wildlife
Grants).
For real property acquisition projects, information related to:
Transactions, such as dates, method of transfer, title
holder, and seller.
Identifiers, such as State and Federal Record ID, parcel
number, and property name.
Values such as appraised value, purchase price and other
cost information, and acres or acre feet.
Encumbrances.
Partners.

II. Data

OMB Control Number: 1018-0109.
Title: Wildlife and Sport Fish Grants and Cooperative Agreements,
50 CFR 80, 81, 84, 85, and 86.
Service Form Number: None.
Type of Request: Revision of a currently approved collection.
Description of Respondents: States; the Commonwealths of Puerto
Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands; the District of Columbia; the
territories of Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands, and American Samoa; federally
recognized tribal governments; institutions of higher education; and
nongovernmental organizations.
Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain a benefit.
Frequency of Collection: We require applications annually for new
grants. We require amendments on occasion when key elements of a
project change. We require quarterly and final performance reports in
the National Outreach and Communication Program and annual and final
performance reports in the other programs. We may require more frequent
reports under the conditions stated at 2 CFR 200.205 and 2 CFR 200.207.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Completion
Activity Number of Number of time per Total annual
respondents responses response burden hours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Initial application (project narrative)......... 200 2,500 37 92,500

[[Page 31063]]

Revision of Award Terms (Amendment)............. 150 1,500 3 4,500
Performance Reports............................. 200 3,500 8 28,000
---------------------------------------------------------------
Totals...................................... 550 7,500 .............. 125,000
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

III. Comments

We invite comments concerning this information collection on:
Whether or not the collection of information is necessary,
including whether or not the information will have practical utility;
The accuracy of our estimate of the burden for this
collection of information;
Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
Ways to minimize the burden of the collection of
information on respondents.
Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of
public record. We will include or summarize each comment in our request
to OMB to approve this IC. Before including your address, phone number,
email address, or other personal identifying information in your
comment, you should be aware that your entire comment, including your
personal identifying information, may be made publicly available at any
time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal
identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we
will be able to do so.

Dated: May 27, 2015.
Tina A. Campbell,
Chief, Division of Policy, Performance, and Management Programs, U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service.
[FR Doc. 2015-13089 Filed 5-29-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-55-P

31062 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 104 / Monday, June 1, 2015 / Notices

Authorities and implementing directly entering all application and • Project leader contact information.
regulations establish the purposes of the project performance reporting into • Partner information.
grant programs and the types of projects Wildlife TRACS, we expect there will be • Objectives, including output
to be funded. Some list eligibility a reduction in the burden to report the measures and desired future values.
criteria as well as activities ineligible for information. States will become more • Plan information (for projects
funding. The authorities and adept with experience, and efficiencies connected to plans).
implementing regulations for the of the electronic system will be realized For all WSFR grant program projects
competitive programs establish starting in the second full year of use. and reports:
preferences or ranking factors for the A majority of WSFR-administered • The information above, as
selection of projects to be funded. These projects are continuations of similar applicable to the approved grant.
legal requirements make it essential for actions and/or at the same locations. • Public description.
an awarding agency to have certain Wildlife TRACS is designed to ease the • Action status (active, completed,
information so that it funds only eligible administrative burden of applying for etc.).
projects, and, in the case of competitive and reporting on grants for projects that • Summary trend information, as
programs, to select those projects that fall into these parameters. The table applicable.
will result in the greatest return on the below reflects the burden reduction that • Estimated costs, by action (non-
Federal investment. we expect over the next 3 years. Not all auditable).
Some grants are mandatory and grantees will directly enter information • Effectiveness measures (initially for
receive funds according to a formula set into Wildlife TRACS. We will enter State Wildlife Grants).
by law or policy. Other grants are information when we determine the For real property acquisition projects,
discretionary, and we award them based grantee or the program is such that it is information related to:
on a competitive process. Mandatory not efficient or in the best interest of the • Transactions, such as dates, method
grant recipients must give us specific, program to have grantees enter of transfer, title holder, and seller.
detailed project information during the information. • Identifiers, such as State and
application process so that we can To apply for financial assistance Federal Record ID, parcel number, and
ensure that projects are eligible for the funds, you must submit an application property name.
mandatory funding, are substantial in that describes in substantial detail • Values such as appraised value,
character and design, and comply with project locations, benefits, funding, and purchase price and other cost
all applicable Federal laws. All grantees other characteristics. Materials to assist information, and acres or acre feet.
must submit financial and performance applicants in formulating project • Encumbrances.
reports that contain information proposals are available on Grants.gov. • Partners.
necessary for us to track costs and We use the application to determine:
accomplishments. • Eligibility. II. Data
In February 2014, OMB approved our • Scale of resource values or relative OMB Control Number: 1018–0109.
request to use a new electronic system worth of the project. Title: Wildlife and Sport Fish Grants
(Wildlife Tracking and Reporting • If associated costs are reasonable and Cooperative Agreements, 50 CFR
Actions for the Conservation of Species and allowable. 80, 81, 84, 85, and 86.
(Wildlife TRACS)) to collect application • Potential effect of the project on Service Form Number: None.
and performance reporting information environmental and cultural resources. Type of Request: Revision of a
on our grant programs. OMB assigned • How well the proposed project will currently approved collection.
OMB Control No. 1018–0156, which meet the purposes of the program’s Description of Respondents: States;
expires February 28, 2017. Wildlife establishing legislation. the Commonwealths of Puerto Rico and
TRACS allows us to take advantage of • If the proposed project is the Northern Mariana Islands; the
newer technology and gives applicants substantial in character and design. District of Columbia; the territories of
direct access to enter project • For competitive programs, how the Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands, and
information that can be used to submit proposed project addresses ranking American Samoa; federally recognized
an application through http:// criteria. tribal governments; institutions of
www.grants.gov. Grantees can also Persons or entities receiving grants higher education; and nongovernmental
report performance accomplishments in must submit periodic performance organizations.
Wildlife TRACS. We are including the reports that contain information Respondent’s Obligation: Required to
use of Wildlife TRACS and the necessary for us to track costs and obtain or retain a benefit.
collection of additional information in accomplishments. Frequency of Collection: We require
this revision to OMB Control No. 1018– In addition to the information applications annually for new grants.
0109. If OMB approves this revision, we currently collected under OMB Control We require amendments on occasion
will discontinue OMB Control No. No. 1018–0109, we will collect the when key elements of a project change.
1018–0156. following additional information We require quarterly and final
We may require all States to directly currently approved under OMB Control performance reports in the National
enter project information and No. 1018–0156: Outreach and Communication Program
performance reporting into Wildlife For mandatory grant program and annual and final performance
TRACS by October 1, 2016. We continue applications and amendments: reports in the other programs. We may
to offer training and support to States on • Geospatial entry of project location. require more frequent reports under the
• Project status (active, completed,
Lhorne on DSK2VPTVN1PROD with NOTICES

entering information into the new conditions stated at 2 CFR 200.205 and
system. When States fully engage in etc.). 2 CFR 200.207.

Completion
Number of Number of Total annual
Activity time per
respondents responses burden hours
response

Initial application (project narrative) ................................................................. 200 2,500 37 92,500

VerDate Sep<11>2014 14:50 May 29, 2015 Jkt 235001 PO 00000 Frm 00066 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 E:\FR\FM\01JNN1.SGM 01JNN1

Document Created: 2015-12-15 15:19:12
Document Modified: 2015-12-15 15:19:12

Category		Regulatory Information
Collection		Federal Register
sudoc Class		AE 2.7: GS 4.107: AE 2.106:
Publisher		Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration
Section		Notices
Action		Notice; revision and request for comments.
Dates		To ensure that we are able to consider your comments on this IC, we must receive them by July 31, 2015.
Contact		To request additional information about this IC, contact Hope Grey at [email protected] (email) or 703- 358-2482 (telephone).
FR Citation		80 FR 31061

80 FR 31061 - Proposed Information Collection; Wildlife and Sport Fish Grants and Cooperative Agreements

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIORFish and Wildlife Service

Federal Register Volume 80, Issue 104 (June 1, 2015)

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service