83 FR 44053 - Proposed Data Collection Submitted for Public Comment and Recommendations

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 168 (August 29, 2018)

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as part of its continuing effort to reduce public burden and maximize the utility of government information, invites the general public and other Federal agencies the opportunity to comment on a proposed and/or continuing information collection, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. This notice invites comment on a proposed information collection project titled Epidemiologic Study of Health Effects Associated With Low Pressure Events in Drinking Water Distribution Systems.

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 168 (Wednesday, August 29, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44053-44054]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-18699]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

[60Day-18-0960; Docket No. CDC-2018-0074]


Proposed Data Collection Submitted for Public Comment and 
Recommendations

AGENCY: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Department of 
Health and Human Services (HHS).

ACTION: Notice with comment period.

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SUMMARY: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as part 
of its continuing effort to reduce public burden and maximize the 
utility of government information, invites the general public and other 
Federal agencies the opportunity to comment on a proposed and/or 
continuing information collection, as required by the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995. This notice invites comment on a proposed 
information collection project titled Epidemiologic Study of Health 
Effects Associated With Low Pressure Events in Drinking Water 
Distribution Systems.

DATES: CDC must receive written comments on or before October 29, 2018.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by Docket No. CDC-2018-
0074 by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: Regulations.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail: Jeffrey M. Zirger, Information Collection Review 
Office, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Road 
NE, MS-D74, Atlanta, Georgia 30329.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name 
and Docket Number. CDC will post, without change, all relevant comments 
to Regulations.gov.
    Please note: Submit all comments through the Federal eRulemaking 
portal (regulations.gov) or by U.S. mail to the address listed above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request more information on the 
proposed project or to obtain a copy of the information collection plan 
and instruments, contact Jeffrey M. Zirger, Information Collection 
Review Office, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton 
Road NE, MS-D74, Atlanta, Georgia 30329; phone: 404-639-7570; Email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 
(PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501-3520), Federal agencies must obtain approval from 
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for each collection of 
information they conduct or sponsor. In addition, the PRA also requires 
Federal agencies to provide a 60-day notice in the Federal Register 
concerning each proposed collection of information, including each new 
proposed collection, each proposed extension of existing collection of 
information, and each reinstatement of previously approved information 
collection before submitting the collection to the OMB for approval. To 
comply with this requirement, we are publishing this notice of a 
proposed data collection as described below.
    The OMB is particularly interested in comments that will help:
    1. 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;
    2. 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;

[[Page 44054]]

    3. Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to 
be collected; and
    4. 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 
submissions of responses.
    5. Assess information collection costs.

Proposed Project

    Epidemiologic Study of Health Effects Associated With Low Pressure 
Events in Drinking Water Distribution Systems--Reinstatement With 
Change--National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases 
(NCEZID), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Background and Brief Description

    In the United States (U.S.), drinking water distribution systems 
are designed to deliver safe, pressurized drinking water to our homes, 
hospitals, schools and businesses. However, the water distribution 
infrastructure is 50-100 years old in much of the U.S. and an estimated 
240,000 water main breaks occur each year. Failures in the distribution 
system such as water main breaks, cross-connections, back-flow, and 
pressure fluctuations can result in potential intrusion of microbes and 
other contaminants that can cause health effects, including acute 
gastrointestinal and respiratory illness.
    Approximately 200 million cases of acute gastrointestinal illness 
occur in the U.S. each year, but we lack reliable data to assess how 
many of these cases are associated with drinking water. Further, data 
are even more limited on the human health risks associated with 
exposure to drinking water during and after the occurrence of low 
pressure events (such as water main breaks) in drinking water 
distribution systems. Studies in both Norway and Sweden found that 
people exposed to low pressure events in the water distribution system 
had a higher risk for gastrointestinal illness. A similar study is 
needed in the United States.
    The purpose of this data collection is to conduct an epidemiologic 
study in the U.S. to assess whether individuals exposed to low pressure 
events in the water distribution system are at an increased risk for 
acute gastrointestinal or respiratory illness. This study would be, to 
our knowledge, the first U.S. study to systematically examine the 
association between low pressure events and acute gastrointestinal and 
respiratory illnesses. Study findings will inform the Environmental 
Protection Agency (EPA), CDC, and other drinking water stakeholders of 
the potential health risks associated with low pressure events in 
drinking water distribution systems and whether additional measures 
(e.g., new standards, additional research, or policy development) are 
needed to reduce the risk for health effects associated with low 
pressure events in the drinking water distribution system.
    We will conduct a cohort study among households that receive water 
from seven water utilities across the U.S.
    The water systems will be geographically diverse and will include 
both chlorinated and chloraminated systems. These water utilities will 
provide information about low pressure events that occur during the 
study period using a standardized form (approximately 13 events per 
utility). Utilities will provide address listings of households in 
areas exposed to the low pressure event and comparable households in an 
unexposed area to CDC staff, who will randomly select participants and 
send them an introductory letter and questionnaire. Consenting 
household respondents will be asked about symptoms and duration of any 
recent gastrointestinal or respiratory illness, tap water consumption, 
and other exposures including international travel, daycare attendance 
or employment, animal contacts, and recreational water exposures. Study 
participants may choose between two methods of survey response: A mail-
in paper survey and a web-based survey.
    Participation in this study will be voluntary. No financial 
compensation will be provided to study participants. The study duration 
is anticipated to last 78 months. An estimated 7,900 individuals will 
be contacted and we anticipate 6,320 utility customers (18 years of age 
or older) will consent to participate in this study. The total 
estimated annualized hours associated with this study reinstatement is 
expected to be 199 hours per year. There are no costs to respondents 
other than their time.

                                        Estimated Annualized Burden Hours
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                                                                     Number of    Average burden
      Type of respondents           Form name        Number of     responses per   per response    Total burden
                                                    respondents     respondent      (in hours)      (in hours)
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Water Utility customer........  Paper-based                  240               1         (12/60)              48
                                 questionnaire.
                                Web-based                    160               1         (12/60)              32
                                 questionnaire.
Water utility maintenance       LPE form,                      5               3        (145/60)              36
 worker.                         ultrafilter and
                                 grab samples.
                                LPE form, grab                 5               2         (45/60)               8
                                 samples.
Water Utility Environmental     Line listings...               5               5               2              50
 Engineer.
Water Utility Billing clerk...  Line listings...               5               5               1              25
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    Total.....................  ................  ..............  ..............  ..............             199
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Jeffrey M. Zirger,
Acting Chief, Information Collection Review Office, Office of 
Scientific Integrity, Office of the Associate Director for Science, 
Office of the Director, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
[FR Doc. 2018-18699 Filed 8-28-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4163-18-P