2018-21274. Proposed Collection; Comment Request

AGENCY:

Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, DoD.

ACTION:

Information collection notice.

SUMMARY:

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness announces a proposed public information collection and seeks public comment on the provisions thereof. Comments are invited on: Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical utility; the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed information collection; ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and ways to minimize the burden of the information collection on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

DATES:

Consideration will be given to all comments received by November 30, 2018.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments, identified by docket number and title, by any of the following methods:

Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.

Mail: Department of Defense, Office of the Chief Management Officer, Directorate for Oversight and Compliance, 4800 Mark Center Drive, Mailbox #24, Suite 08D09, Alexandria, VA 22350-1700.

Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name, docket number and title for this Federal Register document. The general policy for comments and other submissions from members of the public is to make these submissions available for public viewing on the internet at http://www.regulations.gov as they are received without change, including any personal identifiers or contact information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

To request more information on this proposed information collection or to obtain a copy of the proposal and associated collection instruments, please write to Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, Military Community and Family Policy, ATTN: Casualty Affairs, 1500 Defense Pentagon, Washington, DC 20301-4000 or call [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Title; Associated Form; and OMB Number: Mortuary Affairs Forms; Statement of Disposition of Military Remains, DD Form 3045; Disposition of Remains Election Statement Initial Notification of Identified Partial Remains, DD Form 3046; Disposition of Remains Election Statement Notification of Subsequently Identified Partial Remains, DD Form 3047; Disposition of Organs Retained for Extended Examination, DD Form 3048; Advanced Restorative Art of Remains, DD Form 3049; Election for Air Transportation of Remains of Casualties Dying in a Theater of Combat Operations, DD Form 3050; OMB Control Number 0704-XXXX.

Needs and Uses: The information collection requirement is necessary to obtain the selection (as applicable) of the Person Authorized to Direct Disposition (PADD) or the Person Authorized to Effect Disposition (PAED) of the remains of the decedent. These forms were directed by the Secretary of Defense for transparency and standardization of the mortuary procedures as part of the Final Report of the Dover Port Mortuary Independent Review Subcommittee Implementation Plan and 180-day study. The applicable form(s) is included in the individual case file of the decedent.

Affected Public: Business or Other For-Profit; Individuals or Households.

Annual Burden Hours: 225.

Number of Respondents: 900.

Responses per Respondent: 1.

Annual Responses: 900.

Average Burden per Response: 15 minutes.

Frequency: On occasion.

The respondents are the PADD or PAED of the decedent and the witness to that selection. The PADD or PAED document their election, sign the applicable form to formalize this process and document the election of the PADD or PAED as applicable. These forms become a part of the Official Individual Deceased Personnel File. If the PADD or PAED do not sign these forms, then the Department cannot provide mortuary and transportation services as requested by the PADD or PAED. Currently, there is a lack of standardization across the Military Services as each Service currently utilizes different forms for these elections and they do not all capture the same information even on similar forms. Standardizing the information collected is essential in maintaining the transparency and integrity of the mortuary affairs process.

Dated: September 26, 2018.

Shelly E. Finke,

Alternate OSD Federal Register, Liaison Officer, Department of Defense.