2018-04695. Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

AGENCY:

National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).

ACTION:

Notice of a request for comments regarding a new information collection.

SUMMARY:

We are proposing a new generic information collection request (generic ICR) entitled Generic Clearance for NARA Public and Education Program Registration. This notice announces that we have submitted this generic ICR plan to OMB for approval under the Paperwork Reduction Act and solicits comments on specific aspects of the collection plan. We will use this to collect information from individuals registering for an education or other programs at NARA.

DATES:

We must receive written comments on or before April 9, 2018.

ADDRESSES:

Written comments may be submitted to Mr. Nicholas A. Fraser, Desk Officer for NARA, Office of Management and Budget, New Executive Office Building, Washington, DC 20503; fax [phone]; or electronically mailed to [e-mail].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

To request additional information, please contact Tamee Fechhelm by telephone at 301-837-1694 or fax at 301-837-0319.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13), we invite comments on: (a) Whether collecting this information is necessary for proper performance of the agency's functions, including whether the information will have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of our estimate of the information collection's burden on respondents; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information we propose to collect; (d) ways to minimize the burden on respondents of collecting the information, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology; and (e) estimates of capital or start-up costs and costs of operation, maintenance, and purchase of services to provide information. Burden means the total time, effort, or financial resources people need to provide the information, including time to review instructions, process and maintain the information, search data sources, and respond.

Explanation of Generic ICRs

A generic ICR is a request for OMB to approve a plan for conducting more than one information collection using very similar methods when (1) we can evaluate the need for and the overall practical utility of the data in advance, as part of the review of the proposed plan, but (2) we cannot determine the details of the specific individual collections until a later time. Most generic clearances cover collections that are voluntary, low-burden (based on a consideration of total burden, total respondents, or burden per respondent), and uncontroversial. This notice, for example, describes a general plan to gather registration information from members of the public who wish to participate in programs at NARA, through a series of registration forms used for a variety of current and future education programs at different facilities. As part of this plan, we construct, distribute, and use the registration forms in a similar manner, but customize each one for the type and location of the program involved.

Because we seek public comment on the plan, we do not need to seek public comment on each specific information collection that falls within the plan when we later develop the individual information collection. This saves the Government time and burden, and it streamlines our ability to gather registration information so we can provide more responsive programs. However, we still submit each specific information collection (e.g., each form) to OMB for review, in accordance with the terms of clearance set upon approval of the plan. OMB assesses the individual forms for PRA requirements, ensures that they fit within the scope of this generic ICR plan, and includes the specific forms in the PRA public docket prior to our use of them.

The Agency received one comment in response to the 60-day notice published in the Federal Register of December 29, 2017 (82 FR 61798).

Specifics on This Information Collection

Title: Generic Clearance for NARA Public and Education Program Registration

Description: This generic information collection request allows us to gather information from those members of the public who wish to register for public events, education programs, tours, and training sponsored by NARA. We will not use these forms for quantitative information collections designed to yield reliably actionable results, such as monitoring trends over time or documenting program performance.

Purpose: Collecting this information allows us to register participants for NARA's public, education, and training programs throughout the agency's locations, and to collect and process credit card payments. The information is also used to develop mailing lists for distribution of education-related information and special NARA training events, based on the request or expressed interest of the person registering. Advance registration allows NARA offices to schedule the tours, training, and events to maximize the participants' time and to accommodate the participants in the space. The information collected from registrants will help ensure that users have an effective, efficient, and satisfying experience with our programs, in compliance with E.O. 12862. Without the ability to collect this information, NARA would not be able to effectively organize events, resulting in possibly turning away members of the public from events that might be overbooked.

Conditions: We will submit a specific information collection for approval under this generic clearance only if it meets the following conditions:

• The collection is voluntary;
• The collection is low-burden for respondents (based on considerations of total burden hours, total number of respondents, or burden-hours per respondent) and is low-cost for both the respondents and the Federal Government;
• The collection is non-controversial and does not raise issues of concern to other Federal agencies;
• Personally identifiable information (PII) is collected only to the extent necessary and is retained only for the period of time required by NARA records schedules;
• Information gathered will be used only internally for program management purposes and is not intended for release outside of the agency;
• Information gathered will not be used for the purpose of substantially informing influential policy decisions; and
• Information gathered will yield qualitative information; the collections will not be designed or expected to yield statistically reliable results or used as though the results are generalizable to the population of study.

As a general matter, information collections under this generic collection request will not result in any new system of records containing privacy information and will not ask questions of a sensitive nature, such as sexual behavior and attitudes, religious beliefs, and other matters that are commonly considered private. In this notice, NARA solicits comments concerning the following information collection:

Title: Generic Clearance for NARA Public and Education Program Registration.

OMB number: 3095-00XX.

Agency form numbers: N/A.

Type of review: Regular.

Projected affected public: Individuals or households, business or other for-profit, not-for-profit institutions, schools, Federal, state, local, or tribal government organizations.

Projected average estimates for the next three years:

Average expected annual number of forms: 6.

Average projected number of respondents per form: 1.

Estimated number of respondents in total: 1,500.

Estimated time per response: 10 minutes.

Frequency of response: On occasion.

Estimated total annual burden hours: 250 hours.

Abstract: We offer a variety of education programs, public programs, tours, training, and events throughout the country. In order to register participants, we use various online and paper registration forms. Advance registration allows NARA offices to schedule the tours, training, and events to maximize the participants' time and to accommodate the participants in the space.

Swarnali Haldar,

Executive for Information Services/CIO.