05-3997. Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to OMB; Comment Request; EPA ICR No. 1759.04/OMB Control No. 2070-0148; Worker Protection Standard Training and Notification

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that the following Information Collection Request (ICR) has been forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval: Worker Protection Standard Training and Notification, EPA ICR No. 1759.04; OMB Control No. 2070-0148. The ICR, which is abstracted below, describes the nature of the information collection activity and its expected burden and costs.

DATES:

Additional comments may be submitted on or before April 1, 2005.

ADDRESSES:

Submit your comments, referencing docket ID number OPP-2004-0310 to (1) EPA online using EDOCKET (our preferred method), by e-mail to [e-mail], or by mail to: Public Information and Records Integrity Branch (PIRIB), Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP), Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 7502C, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460, and (2) OMB at: Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Attention: Desk Officer for EPA, 725 17th Street, NW., Washington, DC 20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Cameo Smoot, Field and External Affairs Division (7506C), Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: [phone]; fax number: [phone]; e-mail address: [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

EPA has submitted the following ICR to OMB for review and approval according to the procedures prescribed in 5 CFR 1320.12. The Federal Register document, required under 5 CFR 1320.8(d), soliciting comments on this collection of information was published on September 30, 2004 (58431). EPA received no comments on this ICR during the 60-day comment period.

EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under Docket ID No. OPP-2004-0310 which is available for public viewing at the Public Information and Records Integrity Branch (PIRIB), Rm. 119, Crystal Mall #2, 1801 Bell St., Arlington, VA. This docket facility is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The docket telephone number is [phone]. An electronic version of the public docket is available through EPA Dockets (EDOCKET) at http://www.epa.gov/​edocket. Use EDOCKET to submit or view public comments, access the index listing of the contents of the public docket, and to access those documents in the public docket that are available electronically. Once in the system, select “search,” then key in the docket ID number identified above.

Any comments related to this ICR should be submitted to EPA and OMB within 30 days of this notice.Please note, EPA's policy is that public comments, whether submitted electronically or on paper, will be made available for public viewing in EDOCKET as EPA receives them and without change, unless the comment contains copyrighted material, CBI, or other information whose public disclosure is restricted by statute. When EPA identifies a comment containing copyrighted material, EPA will provide a reference to that material in the version of the comment that is placed in EDOCKET. The entire printed comment, including the copyrighted material, will be available in the public docket. Although identified as an item in the official docket, information claimed as CBI, or whose disclosure is otherwise restricted by statute, is not included in the official public docket, and will not be available for public viewing in EDOCKET. For further information about the electronic docket, see EPA's Federal Register notice describing the electronic docket at 67 FR 38102 (May 31, 2002), or go to http://www.epa.gov/​edocket.

ICR Title: Worker Protection Standard Training and Notification

ICR Status: This is a request for extension of an existing approved collection that is currently scheduled to expire on February 28, 2005. EPA is asking OMB to approve this ICR for three years. Under 5 CFR 1320.12(b)(2), the Agency may continue to conduct or sponsor the collection of information while the submission is pending at OMB.

Abstract: EPA is responsible for the regulation of pesticides under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). The Worker Protection Standard (WPS), codified at 40 CFR part 170, established requirements to protect agricultural workers and pesticide handlers from hazards of pesticides used on farms, on forests, in nurseries, and in greenhouses. EPA regulations in 40 CFR part 170 contain the standard and workplace practices, which are designed to reduce or eliminate exposure to pesticides and establish procedures for responding to exposure-related emergencies. The practices include prohibitions against applying pesticides in a way that would cause exposure to workers and others; a waiting period before workers can return to areas treated with pesticides (restricted entry interval); basic safety training (and voluntary training verification) and posting of information about pesticide hazards, as well as pesticide application information; arrangements for the supply of soap, water, and towels in case of pesticide exposure; and provisions for emergency assistance. The training verification program facilitates compliance with the training requirements by providing a voluntary method for employers to verify that the required safety information has been provided to workers and handlers. Responses to all other aspects of this information collection activity are mandatory. This renewal ICR estimates the third party response burden from complying with the WPS requirements. Information is exchanged between agricultural employers and employees at farm, forest, nursery and greenhouse establishments to ensure worker safety. No information is collected by the Agency under this ICR.

Burden Statement: The annual “respondent” burden for this ICR is estimated to be 2,293,364 hours. According to the Paperwork Reduction Act, “burden” means the total time, effort, or financial resources expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, or disclose or provide information to or for a Federal agency. This total estimate includes the third party WPS training and notification requirements such as the provisions requiring employers to provide employees with pesticide-specific treatment (application) information in the form of oral or written notification, provisions requiring that employers assure that employees receive basic pesticide safety information or training, a voluntary program to verify training and relief duplication of training, provisions requiring handler notification to employers regarding pesticide treatments (applications) and provision for emergency information on pesticide treatments, and provisions requiring employers to notify employees when an exception/exemption to the WPS is being implemented. The 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 OMB control number for this information collection appear at the beginning and the end of this document. In addition OMB control numbers for EPA's regulations, after initial display in the final rule, are listed in 40 CFR part 9.

The following is a summary of the burden estimates taken from the ICR:

Respondents/affected entities: Agricultural workers, pesticide handlers, employers in farms, nurseries, forestry, and greenhouse establishments.

Estimated total number of potential respondents: 3,245,393.

Frequency of response: As needed.

Estimated total/average number of responses for each respondent: 3.

Estimated total annual burden hours: 2,293,364.

Estimated total annual labor costs: $109,436,947.

Changes in the ICR since the last approval: The total annual burden associated with this ICR has decreased by 1,261 hours, from 2,294,625 hours in the previous ICR to 2,293,364 hours for this ICR. This change reflects a slight program adjustment and is described in the ICR.

Dated: February 20, 2005.

Oscar Morales,

Director, Collection Strategies Division.