2010-11620. Agency Information Collection Activities: State Water Resources Research Institute Program Annual Application and Reporting

AGENCY:

United States Geological Survey (USGS), Interior.

ACTION:

Notice of a new collection.

SUMMARY:

To comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), we are notifying the public that we have submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) an information collection request (ICR). This notice provides the public an opportunity to comment on the paperwork burden of this collection. We 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.

DATES:

You must submit comments on or before June 16, 2010.

ADDRESSES:

Please submit written comments on this information collection directly to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Attention: Desk Officer for the Department of the Interior via e-mail to [e-mail] or fax at 202-395-5806; and identify your submission as 1028-NEW. Please also submit a copy of your written comments to Phadrea Ponds, USGS Information Collection Clearance Officer, 2150-C Centre Avenue, Fort Collins, CO 80526-8118 (mail); 970-226-9230 (fax); or [e-mail] (e-mail). Use OMB Control Number 1028-NEW in the subject line.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

John E. Schefter, Chief, Office of External Research, U.S. Geological Survey, 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, MS 424, Reston, Virginia 20192 (mail) at [phone] (Phone); or [e-mail] (e-mail).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

The Water Resources Research Act of 1984, as amended (42 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.), authorizes a water resources research institute or center in each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa. There are currently 54 such institutes, one in each state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam. The institute in Guam is a regional institute serving Guam, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Each of the 54 institutes submits an annual application for an allotment grant and provides an annual report on its activities under the grant. The State Water Resources Research Institute Program issues an annual call for applications from the institutes to support plans to promote research, training, information dissemination, and other activities meeting the needs of the States and Nation. The program also encourages regional cooperation among institutes in research into areas of water management, development, and conservation that have a regional or national character. The U.S. Geological Survey has been designated as the administrator of the provisions of the Act.

II. Data

OMB Control Number: None. This is a new collection.

Title: State Water Resources Research Institute Program Annual Application and Reporting.

Type of Request: New.

Affected Public: The state water resources research institutes authorized by the Water Resources Research Act of 1983, as amended, and listed at http://water.usgs.gov/​wrri/​institutes.html.

Respondent's Obligation: Required to obtain benefits.

Frequency of Collection: Annually.

Estimated Number of Annual Respondents: We expect to receive 54 applications and award 54 grants per year.

Estimated Annual Total Responses: 54.

Estimated Time per Response: 160 hours. This includes 80 hours per applicant to prepare and submit the annual application; and 80 hours (total) per grantee to complete the annual reports.

Annual Burden Hours: 8,640.

III. Request for Comments

On December 29, 2009, we published a Federal Register notice (74 FR 68860) announcing that we would submit this ICR to OMB for approval and soliciting comments. The comment period closed on March 1, 2010. We did not receive any comments in response to that notice.

We again invite comments concerning this ICR on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the agency to perform its duties, including whether the information is useful; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, usefulness, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden on the respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of public record. Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment, including your personal identifying information, may be made publicly available at anytime. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

Dated: May 10, 2010.

John E. Schefter,

Water Resources Research Act Program Coordinator.