83 FR 10828 - Information Collection: Generic Clearance for Social Science and Economics Data Collections on Goods, Services, and Jobs Provided by Forests and Natural Areas

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Forest Service

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 49 (March 13, 2018)

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Forest Service is seeking comments from all interested individuals and organizations on a new generic information collection request, Social Science and Economics Data Collections on Goods, Services, and Jobs Provided by Forests and Natural Areas.

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 49 (Tuesday, March 13, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10828-10829]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-05006]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Forest Service


Information Collection: Generic Clearance for Social Science and 
Economics Data Collections on Goods, Services, and Jobs Provided by 
Forests and Natural Areas

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice; request for comment.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the 
Forest Service is seeking comments from all interested individuals and 
organizations on a new generic information collection request, Social 
Science and Economics Data Collections on Goods, Services, and Jobs 
Provided by Forests and Natural Areas.

DATES: Comments must be received in writing on or before May 14, 2018 
to be assured of consideration. Comments received after that date will 
be considered to the extent practicable.

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Kenli Kim, National Program Leader 
for Social Science Research, 1400 Independence Ave. SW, Mailstop 1114, 
Washington, DC 20250-1114, or by electronic mail to 
[email protected], with ``PRA comment on Goods, Services, and 
Jobs'' in the subject line. If comments are sent by electronic mail, 
the public is requested not to send duplicate written comments via 
regular mail. Please confine written comments to issues pertinent to 
the information collection request, explain the reasons for any 
recommended changes, and, where possible, reference the specific 
section or paragraph being addressed.
    All timely submitted comments, including names and addresses when 
provided, are placed in the record and are available for public 
inspection and copying. The public may inspect comments received on 
this information collection at the USDA Forest Service Headquarters, 
201 14th St. SW, Washington, DC 20250 between the hours of 10:00 a.m. 
to 5:00 p.m. on business days. Those wishing to inspect comments should 
contact Kenli Kim ([email protected]) to facilitate an appointment and 
entrance to the building.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kenli Kim, National Program Leader for 
Social Science Research at the Forest Service ([email protected]). 
Individuals who use telecommunication devices for the deaf (TDD) may 
call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339 twenty-four 
hours a day, every day of the year, including holidays.

[[Page 10829]]


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: Generic Clearance for Social Science and Economics Data 
Collections on Goods, Services, and Jobs Provided by Forests and 
Natural Areas.
    OMB Number: 0596--NEW.
    Expiration Date of Approval: NEW.
    Type of Request: NEW.
    Abstract: The USDA Forest Service is seeking Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) approval to collect information that will help the 
Forest Service sustainably manage and provide guidance to others about 
managing the wide range of goods, services, jobs, and other values that 
people get from forests, grasslands, parks, and other natural areas.
    In rural, suburban, and urban parts of the country, forests, 
grasslands, and other natural areas provide jobs through: Logging, 
sawmills, and extraction of non-timber forest products; guide services, 
hotels, restaurants, and equipment sales that support outdoor 
recreation; and natural area restoration and management activities. 
Innovative forest products such as wood-based nano-technologies and 
laminated timbers are critical to the modern economies of communities 
large and small. Forests and natural areas provide important ecosystem 
services such as clean water and natural flood control and influence 
other critical economic factors like home and land values. Time spent 
in or with a view of trees, forests, and green spaces can have indirect 
economic impacts and provide community benefits by improving mental and 
physical health and well-being.
    In addition to the products and services derived from forests, 
grasslands, or natural areas, people may also value and appreciate the 
natural environment itself when they experience it directly. These 
experiences can have meaningful and direct impacts on quality of life, 
sense of self, and sense of community. While such values are sometimes 
hard for people to express or to quantify, they play an important role 
in how people respond to natural resource management proposals and 
actions, and can often be at the root of conflict over land management 
policies and practices.
    Understanding people's views on these goods, services, and values 
is critical to managing forests, grasslands, and other natural areas to 
meet the needs of American citizens--to provide the ``greatest good to 
the greatest number of people for the longest time'' as Gifford 
Pinchot, Founding Chief of the Forest Service, described it. Surveys, 
interviews, focus groups, and related methods administered under this 
Generic Clearance will collect information from individuals and groups 
who seek or benefit from a wide variety of goods, services, and other 
values from forests, grasslands, and other natural areas. Any specific 
study conducted under this Generic ICR will be posted for public 
comment in The Federal Register for 30 days by the USDA Forest Service.
    Estimate of Annual Burden on Respondents: 9,440 hours/year.
    Type of Respondents: Participants/respondents will be individuals, 
not specific entities.
    Estimated Annual Number of Respondents: 60,420 year.
    Estimated Annual Number of Responses per Respondent: 1 response/
respondent is anticipated.

Comment is Invited

    Comment is invited on: (1) Whether this collection of information 
is necessary for the stated purposes and the proper performance of the 
functions of the Agency, including whether the information will have 
practical or scientific utility; (2) the accuracy of the Agency's 
estimate of the burden of the 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 
respondents, including the use of automated, electronic, mechanical, or 
other technological collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology. The Forest Service will consider the comments received and 
amend the ICR as appropriate. The final ICR package will then be 
submitted to OMB for review and approval.
    All comments received in response to this notice, including names 
and addresses when provided, will be a matter of public record. 
Comments will be summarized and included in the submission request for 
final Office of Management and Budget approval.

    Dated: February 15, 2018.
Monica Lear,
Associate Deputy Chief, Research & Development.
[FR Doc. 2018-05006 Filed 3-12-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3411-15-P