[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 85 (Monday, May 4, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24524-24525]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-11697]
========================================================================
Notices
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules
or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings
and investigations, committee meetings, agency decisions and rulings,
delegations of authority, filing of petitions and applications and agency
statements of organization and functions are examples of documents
appearing in this section.
========================================================================
Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 85 / Monday, May 4, 1998 / Notices
[[Page 24524]]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Commodity Credit Corporation
Request for an Approval of a New Information Collection
AGENCY: Commodity Credit Corporation, USDA.
ACTION: Notice and request for comments.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) is seeking approval
from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to establish procedures
for determining the computing capabilities of vendors, contractors, and
other potential electronic commerce trading partners. Participants
would include, but not be limited to: Contractors that supply bids to
supply commodities for use under export donation programs; vendors that
supply bids for transportation of commodities; and contractors that
supply bids to store commodities.
An Electronic Commerce Capability Survey will provide for
submission of computing capability information from the trade.
Currently there is no procedure in place to allow for the collection of
computing capability information. The new procedure will allow CCC to
collect the information needed to target specific labor and paper
intensive processes for migration towards electronic commerce.
DATES: Comments on this notice must be received on or before July 6,
1998 to be assured consideration.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Timothy P. Mehl, Chief, Planning and
Analysis Division, Kansas City Commodity Office, 9200 Ward Parkway,
Kansas City, Missouri 64114, telephone (816) 926-3536, fax (816) 926-
6767.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: Electronic Commerce Capability Survey.
OMB Number: New submission.
Type of Request: Approval of a new information collection.
Abstract: CCC conducts a variety of programs under which
information is submitted and manually entered by CCC. A brief
description of each of these programs is explained below.
The Dairy and Domestic Operations Division (D&DOD) issues
invitations for purchase of commodities for domestic and dairy programs
on a monthly, multi-month, quarterly and yearly basis. Vendors respond
by making offers using the form KC-327, Domestic Offer Form. D&DOD
verifies that the KC-327 is responsive and manually enters the
information on the form into the bid evaluation program. The keypunched
data is then uploaded into the Processed Commodities Inventory
Management System (PCIMS). As an alternative to keypunch, bids are
entered manually by using PCIMS bid input screens.
Export Operations Division (EOD) issues invitations to purchase or
process commodities for food donation programs monthly. Special
invitations, however, are issued throughout the month. Steamship lines
currently respond to these invitations with offers for transportation
via hard copy form KC-324, Steamship Line Service Offer. Responsive
offers are analyzed by Traffic Management Division; the lowest U.S. and
foreign flag offers for each U.S. port and foreign discharge port are
recorded on form KC-149, Ocean Rates. Form KC-149's are reviewed for
accuracy and form KC-148, Commodity Requests, is attached. Ocean rate
forms and commodity request forms are forwarded to Information
Management Processing Division (IMPD) for data entry and proof lists
are printed for review.
Bulk Grain Division (BGD) issues invitations as needed for purchase
of grains for use in export donation programs. Grain export companies
respond to these invitations for offers on form KC-331, Procurement
Offer Form, which is a part of each invitation. At the same time BGD
issues the invitation, EOD communicates with the Private Volunteer
Organization (PVO) booking agent, to issue a freight tender for ocean
freight. Once the steamship line's bid for ocean freight is received
from the booking agent, the offers are manually recorded on a spread
sheet. When the grain offers are evaluated, they are combined with the
ocean freight received from the booking agent to determine lowest
landed cost to destination. Data entry requires dual bid entry for
verification purposes.
CCC conducts a program to provide storage adequate to fulfill its
program needs by contracting with commercial warehouses to store grain
in country, sub-terminal, and terminal locations. CCC contracts for the
use of privately owned facilities in carrying out this program. Grain,
cotton, and processed commodity warehouse operators interested in
storing and/or handling CCC-interest commodities are required to have
entered into a Uniform Storage Agreement with CCC. Warehouse operators
must meet certain standards and complete documents prior to receiving
CCC approval. Information which is provided by warehouse operators is
entered into the Grain Inventory Management System (GIMS) which is in
turn used by numerous other Agency entities. CCC uses this data to
develop policy and implement program operations.
The current keypunching processes require entering handwritten data
and then verifying the results. This information collection will enable
CCC to analyze the computing capability of its trading partners and
move processes towards electronic commerce in a logical and orderly
fashion.
Estimate of Burden: Public reporting burden for collecting
information under this notice is estimated to average 15 minutes per
response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching
existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and
completing and reviewing the collection of information.
Respondents: Business and other for profit organizations.
Respondents: 3,750.
Estimated Number of Annual Responses per Respondent: 1.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 937 hours.
Proposed topics for comment include: (a) whether the collection of
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of
the agency, including whether the information will have practical
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of burden including
the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (c) ways to
enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the information collected;
or (d) ways to
[[Page 24525]]
minimize the burden of the collection of the 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. Comments regarding this
information collection requirement may be directed to the Office of
Information and Regulatory Affairs of OMB, Attention: Desk Officer for
USDA, Washington, DC 20503, and to Timothy P. Mehl, Chief, Planning and
Analysis Division, Kansas City Commodity Office, 9200 Ward Parkway,
Kansas City, Missouri 64114, telephone (816) 926-3536, fax (816) 926-
6767.
All comments will become a matter of public record.
Signed at Washington, DC, April 24, 1998.
Keith Kelly,
Executive Vice President, Commodity Credit Corporation.
[FR Doc. 98-11697 Filed 5-1-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-05-P
