01-29505. Proposed Information Collection Request Submitted for Public Comment and Recommendations; Attestations by Employers Using Alien Crewmembers for Longshore Activities at Locations in the State of Alaska

AGENCY:

Employment and Training Administration, Labor.

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden conducts a preclearance consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA95), 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A). This program helps to ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. Currently, the Employment and Training Administration is soliciting comments concerning the proposed extension to the collection of information on the Attestation by Employers Using Alien Crewmembers to Perform Longshore Work at Locations in the State of Alaska. A copy of the proposed information collection request (ICR) can be obtained by contacting the office listed below in the addressee section of this notice.

DATES:

Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the addressee section below on or before January 28, 2002.

ADDRESSES:

Comments and questions regarding the collection of information on Form ETA 9033-A, Attestation by Employers Using Alien Crewmembers for Longshore Activities in the State of Alaska, should be directed to Dale Ziegler, Chief, Division of Foreign Labor Certifications, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Room C-4318, Washington, DC 20210 ([phone] (this is not a toll-free number)).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

The information collection is required due to amendments to section 258 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.) (INA). The amendments created an Alaska exception to the general prohibition on the performance of longshore work by alien crewmembers in U.S. ports. Under the Alaska exception, before any employer may use alien crewmembers to perform longshore work in the State of Alaska, it must submit an attestation to ETA containing the elements prescribed by the INA.

The INA further requires that the Department make available for public examination in Washington, DC, a list of employers which have filed attestations, and for each such employer, a copy of the employer's attestation and accompanying documentation it has received.

II. Desired Focus of Comments

The Department of Labor is particularly interested in comments which:

• Evaluate whether the proposed information collection is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will have practical utility;
• 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;
• Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and
• 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 collections techniques or other forms of information, e.g., permitting electronic submissions of responses.

III. Current Actions

In order for the Department to meet its statutory responsibilities under the INA there is a need for an extension of an existing collection of information pertaining to employers' seeking to use alien crewmembers to perform longshore activities at locations in the State of Alaska.

Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection without change.

Agency: Employment and Training Administration, Labor.

Title: Attestations by Employers Using Alien Crewmembers for Longshore Activities at Locations in the State of Alaska.

OMB Number: 1205-0352.

Affected Public: Businesses or other for-profit.

Form: Form ETA 9033-A.

Total Respondents: 350.

Frequency of Response: Annually.

Total Responses: 350.

Average Burden Hours Per Response: 3.

Estimate Total Annual Burden Hours: 1,050.

Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized and/or included in the request for Office of Management and Budget approval of the information collection request; they will also be become a matter of public record.

Signed at Washington, DC this 20th day of November, 2001.

Grace A. Kilbane,

Administrator, Office of Workforce Security.