2020-27605. Notice of Proposed Information Collection Requests: 2022-2024 IMLS Native American Library Services Basic Grant Program Notice of Funding Opportunity

AGENCY:

Institute of Museum and Library Services, National Foundation for the Arts and the Humanities.

ACTION:

Submission for OMB Review, comment request.

SUMMARY:

The Institute of Museum and Library Services announces that the following information collection has been submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act. 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. The purpose of this Notice is to solicit comments about this assessment process, instructions, and data collections. A copy of the proposed information collection request can be obtained by contacting the individual listed below in the ADDRESSES section of this notice.

DATES:

Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section below on or before January 14, 2021.

OMB is particularly interested in comments that help the agency to:

• 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;
• 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 collection techniques or other forms of information technology (e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses).

ADDRESSES:

Comments should be sent to Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Attn.: OMB Desk Officer for Education, Office of Management and Budget, Room 10235, Washington, DC 20503, 202-395-7316.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Connie Bodner, Ph.D., Director of Grants Policy and Management, Office of Grants Policy and Management, Institute of Museum and Library Services, 955 L'Enfant Plaza North SW, Suite 4000, Washington, DC 20024-2135. Dr. Bodner can be reached by telephone at 202-653-4636 or by email at [e-mail]. Office hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., E.T., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

 

The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of federal support for the nation's libraries and museums. We advance, support, and empower America's museums, libraries, and related organizations through grant making, research, and policy development. Our vision is a nation where museums and libraries work together to work together to transform the lives of individuals and communities. To learn more, visit www.imls.gov.

Current Actions: The purpose of this collection is to assist Native American tribes in improving core library services for their communities, particularly as they relate to the following goals in the Museum and Library Services Act (20 U.S.C. 9141).

1. Expanding services for learning and access to information and educational resources in a variety of formats (including new and emerging technology), in all types of libraries, for individuals of all ages in order to support such individuals' need for education, lifelong learning, workforce development, economic and business development, health information, critical thinking skills, digital library skills, and financial literacy and other types of literacy skills.

2. Establishing or enhancing electronic and other linkages and improved coordination among and between libraries and entities, as described in 20 U.S.C. 9134(b)(6), for the purpose of improving the quality of and access to library and information services.

3. Providing training and professional development, including continuing education, to enhance the skills of the current library workforce and leadership, and advance the delivery of library and information services; and enhancing efforts to recruit future professionals, including those from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds, to the field of library and information services.

4. Developing public and private partnerships with other agencies, tribes, and community-based organizations.

5. Targeting library services to individuals of diverse geographic, cultural, and socioeconomic backgrounds, to individuals with disabilities, and to individuals with limited functional literacy or information skills.

6. Targeting library and information services to persons having difficulty using a library and to underserved urban and rural communities, including children (from birth through age 17) from families with incomes below the poverty line (as defined by the Office of Management and Budget and revised annually in accordance with 42 U.S.C. 9902(2)) applicable to a family of the size involved.

7. Developing library services that provide all users access to information through local, State, regional, national, and international collaborations and networks.

8. Carrying out other activities consistent with the purposes of the Library Services and Technology subchapter of the IMLS statute (20 U.S.C. 9121).

Nonprofit organizations that primarily serve and represent Native Hawaiians (as the term is defined in 20 U.S.C. 7517) are eligible to apply for funding under the Naïve Hawaiian Library Program.

This action is to renew the forms and instructions for the Notice of Funding Opportunities for the next three years. The 60-day notice for the 2022-2024 IMLS Native American Library Services Basic Grant Program Notice of Funding Opportunity was published in the Federal Register on October 9, 2020, (85 FR 64170-64171). No comments were received.

Agency: Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Title: 2022-2024 IMLS Native American Library Services Basic Grant Program Notice of Funding Opportunity.

OMB Number: 3137-0093.

Frequency: Once per year.

Affected Public: Federally recognized tribes.

Number of Respondents: 200.

Estimated Average Burden per Response: 10 hours.

Estimated Total Annual Burden: 2,000 hours.

Total Annualized capital/startup costs: n/a.

Total Annual costs: $59,540.00.

Total Federal costs: $9,558.40.

Public Comments Invited: Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized and/or included in the request for OMB's clearance of this information collection.

Dated: December 10, 2020.

Kim Miller,

Senior Grants Management Specialist, Institute of Museum and Library Services.