[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 76 (Tuesday, April 20, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21163-21164]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-8913]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
[Docket No. ICR-1218-0173 (2004)]
Course Evaluation Form; Extension of the Office of Management and
Budget's (OMB) Approval of Information Collection (Paperwork)
Requirements
AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Labor.
ACTION: Request for comment.
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SUMMARY: OSHA solicits comments concerning its request for an extension
of the information collection requirements contained in the Course
Evaluation Form.
DATES: Comments must be submitted by the following dates:
Hard Copy: You comments must be submitted (postmarked or received)
by June 21, 2004.
Facsimile and electronic: Your comments must be submitted
(postmarked or received) by June 21, 2004.
ADDRESSES: I. Submission of Comments. Regular mail, express delivery,
hand-delivery, and messenger service: Submit your comments and
attachments to the OSHA Docket Office, Docket No. ICR-1218-0173 (2004),
Room N-2625, OSHA, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue,
NW., Washington, DC 20210. OSHA Docket Office and Department of Labor
hours of operation are 8:15 a.m. to 4:45 p.m., EST.
Facsimile: If your comments, including any attachments, are 10
pages or fewer, you may fax them to the OSHA Docket Office at (202)
693-1648. You must include the docket number of this document, Docket
No. ICR 1218-0173 (2004), in your comments.
Electronic: You may submit comments, but not attachments, through
the Internet at http://ecomments.osha.gov/.
II. Obtaining Copies of the Supporting Statement for the
Information Collection Request. The Supporting Statement for the
Information Collection Request is available for downloading from OSHA's
Web site at http://www.osha.gov. The supporting statement is available
for inspection and copying in the OSHA Docket Office, at the address
listed above. A printed copy of the supporting statement can be
obtained by contacting Todd Owen at (202) 693-2222.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gail Butler, Division of
Administration and Training Information, OSHA Office of Training and
Education, 2020 South Arlington Heights Road, Arlington Heights,
Illinois 60005; telephone (not toll free) (847) 297-4810; e-mail:
[email protected] or facsimile: (847) 297-4874.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Submission of Comments in This Notice and Internet Access to
Comments and Submissions
You may submit comments in response to this document by (1) hard
copy, (2) fax transmission (facsimile), or (3) electronically through
the OSHA Web page. Please note you cannot attach materials such as
studies or journal articles to electronic comments. If you have
additional materials, you must submit three copies of them to the OSHA
Docket Office at the address above. The additional materials must
clearly identify your electronic comments by name, date, subject and
docket number so that we can attach them to your comments. Because of
security-related problems there may be a significant delay in the
receipt of comments by regular mail. Please contact the OSHA Docket
Office at (202) 693-2350 for information about security procedures
concerning the delivery of material by express delivery, hand delivery
and messenger service.
II. Background
The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce
paperwork and respondent (i.e., employer) burden, conducts a
preclearance consultation program to provide the public with an
opportunity to comment on proposed and continuing information-
collection requirements in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act
of 1995 (PRA-95) (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(q)(A)). This program ensures that
information is in the desired format, reporting burden (time and cost)
is minimal, collection instruments are clearly understood, and OSHA's
estimate of the information-collection burden is correct.
Section 21 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (the
``OSH Act'') (see 29 U.S.C. 670) authorizes the Occupational Safety and
Health Administration (``OSHA'' or the (``Agency'') to conduct training
and employee education. Paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) of section 21
require, respectively, that the Agency: (a) ``[C]onduct, directly or by
grants or contracts, (1) education programs to provide an adequate
supply of qualified personnel to carry out the purposes of this Act,
and (2) informational programs on the importance of and proper use of
adequate safety and health equipment''; (b) ``[C]onduct, directly or by
grants or contracts, short-term training of personnel engaged in work
related to [their] responsibilities under the Act''; and (c) ``(1)
provide for the establishment and supervision of programs for the
education and training of employers and employees in the recognition,
avoidance, and prevention of unsafe and unhealthful working conditions
in employments covered by this Act, and (2) consult with and advise
employers and employees, and organizations representing employers and
employees as to effective means of preventing occupational injuries and
illnesses.''
As authorized by section 21 of the Act, the OSHA Training Institute
(the ``Institute'') provides basic, intermediate, and advanced training
and education in occupational safety and health for Federal and State
compliance officers, Agency professionals and technical-support
personnel, employers, employees, organizations representing employees
and employers, educators who develop curricula and teach occupational
safety and health courses, and representatives of professional safety
and health groups. This program includes courses on occupational safety
[[Page 21164]]
and health provided by the Institute at its national training facility
in Arlington Heights, Illinois. The Institute also administers a
program whereby several institutions in various locations throughout
the United States have been authorized as OSHA Training Institute
Education Centers. These Education Centers conduct various OSHA courses
that are geared for private sector and other Federal Agency personnel.
The goal of the Education Center program is to expand the accessibility
of high-quality OSHA training courses.
All students completing training courses at the Institute and the
Education Centers are requested to complete the Course Evaluation Form
(OSHA Form 49, 08-98 edition) on the last day of class. Students may be
Federal, State, private sector, local or tribal government employees.
The Course Evaluation Form contains ten closed-ended questions. It
requests participant feedback on ten elements of the program to assess
communication and accomplishment of learning objectives, course
content, training environment, relevance of topics in job,
effectiveness of exercises, workshops, laboratories, field trips and
audiovisuals, usefulness of course materials and handouts, and overall
rating of the course. The feedback provides an overall impression of
the student's training experience for the course. Students may provide
more detailed feedback in the narrative sections of the form. The
Course Evaluation Form provides a standardized tool for collecting
quality data that OSHA uses to determine program successes and
shortcomings. Data from this form has also assisted the Training
Institute in directing resources where they can do the most good.
All Course Evaluation Forms are reviewed by the course chairperson,
instructors, the Institute Director and the supervisor responsible for
that course. Ratings provide baseline data from which to draw
conclusions about the effectiveness and quality of the training courses
and to assess the level of student satisfaction with the course.
Evaluation data is used to determine which courses may need
improvement. Problem areas are noted and the supervisor discusses them
with the course chairperson. Courses needing further improvement are
scheduled for a more comprehensive follow-up course evaluation with
recommendations for improvement. Revised courses are closely monitored
to determine if problem areas have been resolved.
III. Special Issues for Comment
OSHA has a particular interest in comments on the following issues:
<> Whether the proposed information-collection
requirements are necessary for the proper performance of the Agency's
functions, including whether the information is useful;
<> The accuracy of OSHA's estimate of the burden
(time and cost) of the information-collection requirements, including
the validity of the methodology and assumptions used;
<> The quality, utility, and clarity of the
information collected; and
<> Ways to minimize the burden on employers who
must comply; for example, by using automated or other technological
information-collection and -transmission techniques.
IV. Proposed Actions
OSHA is proposing to extend OMB's previous approval of the
recordkeeping (paperwork) requirement specified in the Course
Evaluation Form. The Agency will summarize the comments submitted in
response to this notice, and will include this summary in its request
to OMB to extend the approval of this information-collection
requirement.
Type of Review: Extension of currently approved information-
collection requirements.
Title: Course Evaluation.
OMB Number: 1218-0173.
Affected Public: Individuals; business or other for-profit
organizations; Federal Government; State, local, or tribal governments.
Number of Respondents: 20,900.
Frequency of Response: On occasion.
Total Responses: 20,900.
Average Time per Response: 10 minutes.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 3,483.
Estimated Cost (Operation and Maintenance): $0.
V. Authority and Signature
John L. Henshaw, Assistant Secretary of labor for Occupational
Safety and Health, directed the preparation of this notice. The
authority for this notice is the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44
U.S.C. 3506) and Secretary of Labor's Order No. 5-2002 (67 FR 65008).
Signed at Washington, DC, on April 14, 2004.
John L. Henshaw,
Assistant Secretary of Labor.
[FR Doc. 04-8913 Filed 4-19-04; 8:45 am]
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