[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 32 (Wednesday, February 16, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8864-8866]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-03305]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Fish and Wildlife Service
[FWS-HQ-NWRS-2021-N210; FXRS12630900000-212-FF09R81000; OMB Control
Number 1018-0102]
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the
Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; National
Wildlife Refuge Special Use Permit Applications and Reports
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice of information collection; request for comment.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, we,
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), are proposing to revise
an existing collection of information.
DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before
March 18, 2022.
ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed
information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of
this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular
information collection by selecting ``Currently under Review--Open for
Public Comments'' or by using the search function. Please provide a
copy
[[Page 8865]]
of your comments to the Service Information Collection Clearance
Officer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, MS: PRB (JAO/3W), 5275
Leesburg Pike, Falls Church, VA 22041-3803 (mail); or by email to
Info_Coll@fws.gov. Please reference OMB Control 1018-0102 in the
subject line of your comments.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Madonna L. Baucum, Service Information
Collection Clearance Officer, by email at Info_Coll@fws.gov, or by
telephone at (703) 358-2503. Individuals who are hearing or speech
impaired may call the Federal Relay Service at 1-800-877-8339 for TTY
assistance. You may also view the Information Collection Request (ICR)
at http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with the PRA and 5 CFR
1320.8(d)(1), we provide the general public and other Federal agencies
with an opportunity to comment on new, proposed, revised, and
continuing collections of information. This helps us assess the impact
of our information collection requirements and minimize the public's
reporting burden. It also helps the public understand our information
collection requirements and provide the requested data in the desired
format.
On July 13, 2021, we published a notice in the Federal Register (86
FR 36762) announcing our intent to revise this information collection.
We solicited public comment for 60 days, ending on September 13, 2021.
We received one comment in response to the notice; however, the
commenter did not address the information collection requirements. No
response is required.
As part of our continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent
burdens, we are again soliciting comments from the public and other
Federal agencies on the proposed ICR that is described below. We are
especially interested in public comment addressing the following:
(1) Whether or not the collection of information is necessary for
the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including
whether or not the information will have practical utility;
(2) The accuracy of our estimate of the burden for this 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) How might the agency 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 response.
Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of
public record. 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.
Abstract: The National Wildlife Refuge System Administration Act of
1966 (Administration Act; 16 U.S.C. 668dd-668ee), as amended by the
National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997, consolidated
all refuge units into a single National Wildlife Refuge System
(system). It also authorized us to offer visitor and public programs,
including those facilitated by commercial visitor and management
support services, on lands of the system when we find that the
activities are appropriate and compatible with the purpose(s) for which
the refuge was established and the system's mission. The Refuge
Recreation Act of 1962 (Recreation Act; 16 U.S.C. 460k-460k-4) allows
the use of refuges for public recreation when it is not inconsistent or
does not interfere with the primary purpose(s) of the refuge. The
Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA; 16 U.S.C. 3101
et seq.) provides specific authorization and guidance for the
administration and management of national wildlife refuges within the
State of Alaska. Its provisions provide for the issuance of permits
under certain circumstances.
We issue special use permits for a specific period as determined by
the type and location of the management activity or visitor service
provided. These permits authorize activities such as:
Agricultural activities (haying and grazing, 50 CFR 29.1
and 50 CFR 29.2).
Beneficial management tools that we use to provide the
best habitat possible on some refuges (50 CFR 30.11, 50 CFR 31.14, 50
CFR 31.16, and 50 CFR 36.41).
Special events, group visits, and other one-time events
(50 CFR 25.41, 50 CFR 25.61, 50 CFR 26.36, and 50 CFR 36.41).
Recreational visitor service operations (50 CFR 25.41, 50
CFR 25.61, and 50 CFR 36.41).
Guiding for fishing, hunting, wildlife education, and
interpretation (50 CFR 25.41 and 50 CFR 36.41).
Commercial filming (43 CFR 5, 50 CFR 27.71) and other
commercial activities (50 CFR 29.1 and 50 CFR 36.41).
Building and using cabins to support subsistence or
commercial activities (in Alaska) (50 CFR 26.35 and 50 CFR 36.41).
Research, inventory and monitoring, and other
noncommercial activities (50 CFR 26.36 and 50 CFR 36.41).
We use three forms to collect applicant information:
FWS Form 3-1383-G (General Activities Special Use Permit
Application).
FWS Form 3-1383-C (Commercial Activities Special Use
Permit Application).
FWS Form 3-1383-R (Research and Monitoring Special Use
Permit Application).
The information we collect helps ensure that: (1) Applicants are
aware of the types of information that may be needed for permit
issuance; (2) requested activities are appropriate and compatible with
the purpose(s) for which the refuge was established and the system's
mission; and (3) the applicant is eligible or is the most qualified
applicant to receive the special use permit.
We may collect the necessary information in a non-form format
(through discussions in person or over the phone, over the internet, by
email, or by letter). In some instances, respondents will be able to
provide information verbally. Often, a simple email or letter
describing the activity will suffice. For activities that might have a
large impact on refuge resources (e.g., commercial visitor services,
research, etc.), we may require applicants to provide more detail on
operations, techniques, and locations. Because of the span of
activities covered by special use permits and the different management
needs and resources at each refuge, respondents may not be required to
answer all questions. Depending on the requested activity, refuge
managers have the discretion to ask for less information than appears
on the forms. However, refuge managers must not ask for more or
different information.
We issue permits for a specific period as determined by the type
and location of the use or service provided. We use these permits to
ensure that the
[[Page 8866]]
applicant is aware of the requirements of the permit and his/her legal
rights. Refuge-specific special conditions may be required for the
permit. We identify conditions as an addendum to the permit. Most of
the special conditions pertain to how a permitted activity may be
conducted and do not require the collection of information. However,
some special conditions, such as activity reports, before and after
site photographs, or data sharing, would qualify as an information
collection, and we have included the associated burden below.
We also use FWS Form 3-1384, ``Bid Sheet--National Wildlife Refuge
System,'' to streamline collection of the necessary pre-award
information from applicants during bidding processes to conduct
economic uses on Service lands, such as livestock, harvesting hay and
stock feed, or removing timber (50 CFR 29.21). This form simplifies the
pre-award selection/bidding process for bidders and for refuge staff by
enabling them to understand what information the refuge needs in order
to select bids for economic use, and, therefore, reduces the time and
burden for the public and Service staff in the pre-award selection
bidding process. This form is customizable to the individual economic
use being awarded. We will use the Commercial Special Use Permit (FWS
Form 3-1383-C) as the actual award document that will outline the terms
and conditions of the economic use on Service lands.
Proposed Revisions to This Information Collection
With this submission, we are proposing the following revisions to
the existing information collection:
Activity Reports/Associated Document Requirements
In addition to the previously approved activity report criteria,
the Service will also collect data associated with client use days and
their fees. The Service has also updated the reporting rate for permits
issued for both Commercial Use and Research to reflect current
requirements.
ePermits Initiative
The Service's new ``ePermits'' initiative is an automated permit
application system that will allow the agency to move towards a
streamlined permitting process to reduce public burden. Public burden
reduction is a priority for the Service; the Assistant Secretary for
Fish, Wildlife, and Parks; and senior leadership at the Department of
the Interior. The intent of the ePermits initiative is to fully
automate the permitting process to improve the customer experience and
to reduce time burden on respondents. This new system will enhance the
user experience by allowing users to enter data from any device that
has internet access, including PCs, tablets, and smartphones. It will
also link the permit applicant to the Pay.gov system for payment of the
associated permit application fee. We anticipate including the
following Service forms in the ePermits system: 3-1383-G, 3-1383-C, 3-
1383-R, and 3-1384.
Once these forms are automated in the new ePermits system, we
anticipate a reduction in the amount of time necessary for an applicant
to apply for a permit and perform regular actions related to that
permit (e.g., amend, renew, report). Through the ePermits account
registration, we will track and be able to more accurately report the
number of small business applicants, along with the type of business
(for-profit, farm, not-for profit). This information will allow the
Service to be more responsive in identifying the possibility of
additional burden reduction on small businesses.
We also plan to eliminate the necessity for physical mail-in
applications (though this will remain an option for those who either
don't have access to the internet or prefer to use mail-in
applications), thus further reducing public burden. With ePermits, an
applicant will be able to establish an account and apply for multiple
permits through a single interface. The system allows the applicant to
track all their applications, permits and permit-related actions, as
well as all communications between Service staff and the permittee/
applicant within the same interface, significantly reducing the burden
on the government to process these applications and manage permit-
related actions. The decrease in submissions of paper-based forms is
expected to reduce the government cost of administering and processing
permit applications.
Amendments and Renewals
Through our review of the special use permitting process in
preparation for automation in the ePermits system, we discovered that
we need to account for amendments to and renewals of special use
permits separately from the initial applications, because amendments/
renewals have time burdens that are different from those of the initial
submissions. The revised burden table below includes our initial
estimates for amendments and renewals.
Title of Collection: National Wildlife Refuge Special Use Permit
Applications and Reports, 50 CFR 25, 26, 27, 29, 30, 31, 32, & 36.
OMB Control Number: 1018-0102.
Form Number: FWS Forms 3-1383-G, 3-1383-C, 3-1383-R, and 3-1384.
Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection.
Respondents/Affected Public: Individuals and households; businesses
and other for-profit organizations; nonprofit organizations; farms; and
State, local, or tribal governments.
Total Estimated Number of Annual Respondents: 13,903.
Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 13,903.
Estimated Completion Time per Response: Varies from 25 minutes to 5
hours, depending on activity.
Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 21,446.
Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain or retain a benefit.
Frequency of Collection: On occasion for applications; annually or
on occasion for reports.
Total Estimated Annual Nonhour Burden Cost: $337,500 for fees
associated with applications for commercial use activities ($100.00 x
an estimated 3,375 applications (individuals and private sector
respondents only)).
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.
The authority for this action is the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).
Madonna Baucum,
Information Collection Clearance Officer, U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service.
[FR Doc. 2022-03305 Filed 2-15-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4333-15-P