83 FR 40036 - Proposed Information Collection Request; Comment Request; Safe Drinking Water Act State Revolving Fund Program

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 156 (August 13, 2018)

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is planning to submit an information collection request (ICR), ``Safe Drinking Water Act State Revolving Fund Program'' (EPA ICR No. 1803.08, OMB Control No. 2040-0185) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). Before doing so, the EPA is soliciting public comments on specific aspects of the proposed information collection as described in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section. This is a proposed extension of the ICR, which is currently approved through April 30, 2019. An Agency 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 83, Number 156 (Monday, August 13, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40036-40037]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-17372]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OW-2002-0059; FRL-9982-14-OW]


Proposed Information Collection Request; Comment Request; Safe 
Drinking Water Act State Revolving Fund Program

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

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

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is planning to 
submit an information collection request (ICR), ``Safe Drinking Water 
Act State Revolving Fund Program'' (EPA ICR No. 1803.08, OMB Control 
No. 2040-0185) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review 
and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). 
Before doing so, the EPA is soliciting public comments on specific 
aspects of the proposed information collection as described in the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section. This is a proposed extension of the 
ICR, which is currently approved through April 30, 2019. An Agency 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: Comments must be submitted on or before October 12, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, referencing Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-
2002-0059, online using www.regulations.gov (our preferred method), by 
email to [email protected], or by mail to: EPA Docket Center, 
Environmental Protection Agency, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460.
    EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in the 
public docket without change including any personal information 
provided, unless the comment includes profanity, threats, information 
claimed to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other 
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Howard Rubin, Drinking Water 
Protection Division, Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water, 4606M, 
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, 
Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: 202-564-2051; email address: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Supporting documents which explain in detail 
the information that the EPA will be collecting are available in the 
public docket for this ICR. The docket can be viewed online at 
www.regulations.gov or in person at the EPA Docket Center, WJC West, 
Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, DC. The telephone 
number for the Docket Center is 202-566-1744. For additional 
information about EPA's public docket, visit http://www.epa.gov/dockets.
    Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, the EPA is soliciting 
comments and information to enable it to: (i) 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; (ii) 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; (iii) enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (iv) 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. The 
EPA 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. At that time, the EPA will issue another Federal 
Register notice to announce the submission of the ICR to OMB and the 
opportunity to submit additional comments to OMB.
    Abstract: The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) Amendments of 1996 
(Pub. L. 104-182) authorized the creation of the Drinking Water State 
Revolving Fund (DWSRF; the Fund) program in each state and Puerto Rico, 
to assist public water systems in financing the costs of infrastructure 
needed to achieve or maintain compliance with the SDWA requirements and 
to protect public health. The SDWA, section 1452, authorizes the 
Administrator of the EPA to award capitalization grants to the states 
and Puerto Rico which, in turn, provide low-cost loans and other types 
of assistance to eligible drinking water systems. States can also 
reserve a portion of their grants to conduct various set-aside 
activities. The information collection activities will occur primarily 
at the program level through the (1) Capitalization Grant Application 
and Agreement/State Intended Use Plan; (2) Biennial Report; (3) Annual 
Audit; (4) Assistance Application Review; and (5) DWSRF National 
Information Management System and the Projects and Benefits Reporting 
System.
    (1) Capitalization Grant Application and Agreement/State Intended 
Use Plan: The state must prepare a Capitalization Grant Application 
that includes an Intended Use Plan (IUP), outlining in detail how it 
will use all the funds covered by the capitalization grant. The state 
may, as an alternative, develop the IUP in a two-part process, with one 
part identifying the distribution and uses of the funds among the 
various set-asides in the DWSRF program and the other part dealing with 
project assistance from the Fund.
    (2) Biennial Report: The state must agree to complete and submit a 
Biennial Report on the uses of the capitalization grant. The scope of 
the report must cover assistance provided by the Fund and all other 
set-aside activities included under the Capital Grant Agreement. States 
that jointly administer DWSRF and Clean Water State Revolving Fund 
(CWSRF)

[[Page 40037]]

programs, in accordance with the SDWA, section 1452(g)(1), may submit 
reports (according to the schedule specified for each program) that 
cover both programs.
    (3) Annual Audit: A state must comply with the provisions of the 
Single Audit Act Amendments of 1996. Best management practices suggest 
and the EPA recommends that a state conduct an annual independent audit 
of its DWSRF program. The scope of the report must cover the DWSRF and 
all other set-aside activities included in the Capitalization Grant 
Agreement. States that jointly administer DWSRF and CWSRF programs, in 
accordance with the SDWA, section 1452(g)(1), may submit audits that 
cover both programs but which report financial information for each 
program separately.
    (4) Assistance Application Review: Local applicants seeking 
financial assistance must prepare and submit DWSRF loan applications. 
States then review completed loan applications and verify that proposed 
projects will comply with applicable federal and state requirements.
    (5) DWSRF National Information Management System (DWNIMS) and the 
Projects and Benefits Reporting System (PBR): To ensure that funds are 
being used in an expeditious and timely manner for eligible projects 
and expenses, states must annually enter state-level financial data 
into the DWNIMS and quarterly enter project-level data into the PBR.
    Form numbers: None.
    Respondents/affected entities: Entities affected by this action are 
states and local governments.
    Respondent's obligation to respond: Required to obtain or retain a 
benefit per the Safe Drinking Water Act, section 1452(g)(1).
    Estimated number of respondents: 379 state and local respondents 
(total).
    Frequency of response: Varies by requirement (i.e., quarterly, 
semi-annually, and annually).
    Total estimated burden: 88,792.5 hours (per year) for state and 
local respondents. Burden is defined at 5 CFR 1320.03(b).
    Total estimated cost: $3,355,516 (per year) for state and local 
respondents.
    Changes in estimates: The EPA expects a decrease in the total 
estimated respondent burden cost compared with the ICR currently 
approved by OMB. The change in cost is due to moving from contractor-
provided hourly cost rates to Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) provided 
hourly cost rates. Using BLS rates will ensure that the ICR is more 
transparent and replicable. The present BLS rates are lower than 
historical contractor-provided rates.

    Dated: August 2, 2018.
Peter Grevatt,
Director, Office of Ground Water & Drinking Water.
[FR Doc. 2018-17372 Filed 8-10-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6560-50-P