83 FR 54308 - Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 209 (October 29, 2018)

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 209 (Monday, October 29, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54308-54310]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-23525]


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Notices
                                                Federal Register
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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 209 / Monday, October 29, 2018 / 
Notices

[[Page 54308]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

October 24, 2018.
    The Department of Agriculture has submitted the following 
information collection requirement(s) to OMB for review and clearance 
under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13. Comments 
are requested regarding (1) whether the collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility; (2) the 
accuracy of the agency's estimate of burden 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 those who are 
to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques 
and other forms of information technology.
    Comments regarding this information collection received by November 
28, 2018 will be considered. Written comments should be addressed to: 
Desk Officer for Agriculture, Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs, Office of Management and Budget (OMB), New Executive Office 
Building, 725 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20503. Commentors are 
encouraged to submit their comments to OMB via email to: 
[email protected] or fax (202) 395-5806 and to Departmental 
Clearance Office, USDA, OCIO, Mail Stop 7602, Washington, DC 20250-
7602. Copies of the submission(s) may be obtained by calling (202) 720-
8681.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information 
unless the collection of information displays a currently valid OMB 
control number and the agency informs potential persons who are to 
respond to the collection of information that such persons are not 
required to respond to the collection of information unless it displays 
a currently valid OMB control number.

Forest Service

    Title: Generic Clearance Social Science and Economics Data 
Collections on Natural Disasters and Disturbances.
    OMB Control Number: 0596-NEW.
    Summary of Collection: Wildfires, droughts, floods, diseases, 
invasive species, effects of climate change, and other natural 
disasters and disturbances periodically affect ecosystems, causing 
immediate and long-term changes. The frequency, type, duration, and 
intensity of disturbances shape our forests, grasslands, and other 
natural ecosystems and impact people's lives. Social science and 
economics research methods, including surveys, interviews, and focus 
groups, administered under this generic information collection approval 
will be designed to collect information from individuals/households, 
States, Local and Tribal Agencies and groups who are preparing for, 
responding to, and/or recovering from natural disasters and 
disturbances, including but not limited to fires, droughts, floods, 
hurricanes, climate change, high intensity weather systems, and 
invasive species infestations.
    The data collection efforts initiated under this generic 
information approval will be broadly similar in that they will all be 
focused on all individuals, communities, and/or stakeholders preparing 
for, responding to, recovering from, and/or building resilience to 
natural disasters or disturbances. The justification for each 
individual study, in particular the rationale for populations being 
queried, the questions being asked, and the research methods used, will 
be thoroughly described in each individual information collection 
submission that falls under this generic clearance.
    This generic information collection contains a comprehensive but 
not exhaustive range of questions that the individual research teams 
may deploy to successfully answer research questions, and the methods, 
sampling approaches, and data collection questions will be carefully 
determined based on individual, group, and site factors, and will be 
detailed in the individual information collections. Specific studies 
may propose additional questions as needed to provide a rigorous, 
reliable, and valid investigation of the identified knowledge gap.
    Need and Use of the Information: The purpose of this collection is 
to collect information to enable the USDA Forest Service to understand 
how individuals, communities, and organizations prepare for, respond 
and adapt to, recover from, and build resilience to natural 
disturbances and disasters. Given the wide range of people affected by 
natural disasters and disturbances, as well as the significant impacts 
these disturbances have on agriculture, forestry, and rural communities 
providing key food and fiber sources, and the business and employment 
implications related to such topics, the collection of this information 
is of great importance to achieving our Forest Service Strategic Goal 
to deliver benefits to the public as well as the USDA Goal to focus on 
customer service.
    Description of Respondents: Individuals or households; Business or 
other for-profit; Not-for-profit institutions; State, Local or Tribal 
Government.
    Number of Respondents: 78,150.
    Frequency of Responses: On occasion.
    Total Burden Hours: 9,754.

Forest Service

    Title: Generic Information Collection for Social Science and 
Economics Data Collections on Goods, Services, and Jobs Provided by 
Forests and Natural Areas.
    OMB Control Number: 0596-NEW.
    Summary of Collection: Across the country, forests, grasslands and 
other natural areas provide jobs through a range of ways, including 
logging, sawmills, and extraction of non-timber forest products; 
guiding services, hotels, restaurants, and equipment sales that support 
recreation; and natural area restoration and management activities, 
among many others. Innovative forest products such as wood-based 
nanotechnologies and laminated timbers are critical to the modern 
economies of rural and urban communities. Forests and natural areas 
provide important ecosystem services such as clean water and air, 
carbon sequestration, natural flood control, cultural services, and 
recreation opportunities, and influence other critical economic factors 
like home and land values. Furthermore,

[[Page 54309]]

there is a significant body of research that demonstrates contact with 
nature can have positive impacts on human health and well-being. In 
addition to the products and services derived from forests, grasslands, 
and other natural areas, people may also value and appreciate the 
natural environment itself when they experience it directly. These 
experiences can have meaningful impacts on quality of life, sense of 
self, and sense of community, and play an important role in how people 
respond to management proposals and actions.
    The information collected under this generic approval links to the 
delivery of high quality customer service. Because the goods, services, 
and experiences of forests, grasslands, and natural areas benefit every 
American in some way, directly or indirectly, it is imperative that the 
views and perspectives of as wide a range of the population as possible 
are included in decision making. Research under this generic 
information collection will assist forest and natural resources 
managers and other public policy makers in understanding tradeoffs and 
synergies, building consensus, and assuring that diverse market and 
non-market information is incorporated in decision-making.
    The data collection efforts initiated under this generic 
information approval will be broadly similar in that they will all be 
focused on all individuals, communities, and/or stakeholders who seek 
or are benefited by a wide variety of services from forests and other 
natural areas. The justification for each individual study, in 
particular the rationale for populations being queried, the questions 
being asked, and the research methods used will be thoroughly described 
in each individual information collection submission that falls under 
this generic clearance.
    This generic information collection contains a comprehensive but 
not exhaustive range of questions that the individual research teams 
may deploy to successfully answer research questions, and the methods, 
sampling approaches, and data collection questions will be carefully 
determined based on individual, group, and site factors, and will be 
detailed in the individual information collections. Specific studies 
may propose additional questions as needed to provide a rigorous, 
reliable, and valid investigation of the identified knowledge gap.
    Need and Use of the Information: The purpose of this collection is 
to collect information that will help the Forest Service sustainably 
manage and provide guidance to others about managing the wide range of 
goods, services, values, and jobs derived from forests, grasslands, and 
other natural areas. Understanding these provisioning services is 
critical to managing the Nation's forests and grasslands, and other 
natural areas to meet the needs of American citizens and to achieving 
the mission of the USDA Forest Service: ``to sustain the health, 
diversity, and productivity of the Nation's forests and grasslands to 
meet the needs of present and future generation.''
    Central to effective policy development and management is better 
understanding the risks, trade-offs, synergies, and values implied by 
alternate decisions. Although market prices reflect social preferences 
and acceptable trade-offs to some degree, they clearly do not encompass 
all values associated with forests and other natural areas. Better and/
or new means are needed to translate society's preferences into 
meaningful goals, objectives, and guidelines for managers to consider 
and incorporate into management, planning, and programming. Utilizing 
such data, which often cannot be quantifiable through market indicators 
alone, will position the Agency for greater efficiency and output 
measures. This effort requires a sound scientific basis and the 
engagement of Forest Service social science and economics researchers 
and varied experts.
    Description of Respondents: Individuals or households; Business or 
other for-profit; Not-for-profit institutions; State, Local or Tribal 
Government.
    Number of Respondents: 78,150.
    Frequency of Responses: On occasion.
    Total Burden Hours: 9,754.

Forest Service

    Title: Generic Information Collection for Social Science and 
Economics Data Collections on Natural Resources Planning and 
Collaborative Conservation.
    OMB Control Number: 0596-NEW.
    Summary of Collection: The USDA Forest Service's motto is ``caring 
for the land and serving people'' and the mission is ``to sustain the 
health, diversity, and productivity of the Nation's forests and 
grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generation.'' This 
includes directly managing National Forests and providing science-based 
guidelines for the management of forests and other natural resources in 
cities and towns, as well as those under management by land trusts, 
neighborhood groups, states, and other entities. In order to fulfill 
this mission, the Agency needs an accurate understanding of the range 
of views and preferences held by stakeholders regarding management and 
conservation of forests and other natural resources. This requires a 
sound scientific basis and the engagement of Forest Service social 
science and economics researchers and experts.
    The data collection efforts initiated under this generic 
information approval will be broadly similar in that they will all be 
focused on individuals and groups who are stakeholders in the 
conservation, management, planning, and restoration of forests and 
other natural resources. The justification for each individual study, 
in particular the rationale for populations being queried, the 
questions being asked, and the research methods used will be thoroughly 
described in each individual information collection submission that 
falls under this generic clearance.
    This generic information collection contains a comprehensive but 
not exhaustive range of questions that the individual research teams 
may deploy to successfully answer research questions, and the methods, 
sampling approaches, and data collection questions will be carefully 
determined based on individual, group, and site factors, and will be 
detailed in the individual information collections. Specific studies 
may propose additional questions as needed to provide a rigorous, 
reliable, and valid investigation of the identified knowledge gap.
    Need and Use of the Information: The purpose of this collection is 
to collect information from a wide range of stakeholders to guide the 
agency in conserving and managing forests and associated natural 
resources. The Forest Service and other public and private land 
managers need to collect information from a wide range of stakeholders 
in order to make informed decisions about natural resource 
conservation, restoration and management, land management amendments 
and planning revisions. Such stakeholders would include individuals/
households, States, local and Tribal Agencies and groups who may 
participate and/or contribute to the National Forest Land Management 
Planning process. To ensure that the Forest Service can meet its 
statutory and regulatory responsibilities and is able to inform 
management of forests and other natural areas, the Forest Service seeks 
to collect information from people who use, live near, manage, make 
policies for, or otherwise have a stake in the management of forests 
and other natural resources.
    The USDA Forest Service Research & Development Social Science 
Program,

[[Page 54310]]

and others as appropriate, will conduct the necessary quality controls 
to ensure that each information collection and its data collection 
instrument conforms to the guidelines of this generic approval, and 
will submit each information collection request to OMB for expedited 
review. Each collection will clearly fit within the overall plan and 
scope of this generic approval and will be well defined in terms of its 
research methods and sample or respondent pool. Standardization of 
methods and content across the country, as appropriate, will help 
provide reliable and consistent information to land managers, policy 
makers, and other decision makers over time.
    Description of Respondents: Individuals or households; Business or 
other for-profit; Not-for-profit institutions; State, Local or Tribal 
Government.
    Number of Respondents: 104,200.
    Frequency of Responses: On occasion.
    Total Burden Hours: 13,226.

Ruth Brown,
Departmental Information Collection Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2018-23525 Filed 10-26-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3411-15-P