E7-19124. Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to OMB for Review and Approval; Comment Request; Title IV of the Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002: Drinking Water Security and Safety (...

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 an Information Collection Request (ICR) has been forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. This is a request to renew an existing approved collection. The ICR, which is abstracted below, describes the nature of the information collection and its estimated burden and cost.

DATES:

Additional comments must be submitted on or before October 29, 2007.

ADDRESSES:

Submit your comments, referencing Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-2003-0013, to (1) EPA online using http://www.regulations.gov (our preferred method), by e-mail to [e-mail], or by mail to: EPA Docket Center, Water Docket, Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 2822T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460, and (2) OMB by mail to: 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:

Tara Johnson, Water Security Division, Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water, Mailcode: 4608T, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: 202-564-6186; fax number: 202-566-0055; 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. On July 25, 2007 (72 FR 40851), EPA sought comments on this ICR pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.8(d). EPA received no comments during the comment period. Any additional comments on this ICR should be submitted to EPA and OMB within 30 days of this notice.

EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OW-2003-0013, which is available for online viewing at http://www.regulations.gov,, or in person viewing at the Water Docket in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The EPA/DC Public Reading Room is open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Reading Room is 202-566-1744, and the telephone number for the Water Docket is 202-566-2426.

Use EPA's electronic docket and comment system at http://www.regulations.gov,, to submit or view public comments, access the index listing of the contents of the docket, and to access those documents in the docket that are available electronically. Once in the system, select “docket search,” then key in the docket ID number identified above. Please note that EPA's policy is that public comments, whether submitted electronically or in paper, will be made available for public viewing at http://www.regulations.gov as EPA receives them and without change, unless the comment contains copyrighted material, Confidential Business Information (CBI), or other information whose public disclosure is restricted by statute. For further information about the electronic docket, go to http://www.regulations.gov.

Title: Title IV of the Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002: Drinking Water Security and Safety (Renewal).

ICR numbers: EPA ICR No. 2103.03, OMB Control No. 2040-0253.

ICR Status: This ICR is scheduled to expire on September 30, 2007. Under OMB regulations, the Agency may continue to conduct or sponsor the collection of information while this submission is pending at OMB. An 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 numbers for EPA's regulations in title 40 of the CFR, after appearing in the Federal Register when approved, are listed in 40 CFR part 9, are displayed either by publication in the Federal Register or by other appropriate means, such as on the related collection instrument or form, if applicable. The display of OMB control numbers in certain EPA regulations is consolidated in 40 CFR part 9.

Abstract: The Bioterrorism Act requires each community water system serving a population of more than 3,300 people to conduct a vulnerability assessment of its water system and to prepare or revise an emergency response plan that incorporates the results of the vulnerability assessment. These requirements are mandatory under the statute. EPA will use the information collected under this ICR to determine whether community water systems have conducted vulnerability assessments and prepared or revised emergency response plans in compliance with that Act. EPA is required to protect all vulnerability assessments and all information derived from them from disclosure to unauthorized parties and has established an Information Protection Protocol describing how that will be accomplished.

Burden Statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 237 hours per response. 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 includes the time needed to review instructions; develop, acquire, install, and utilize technology and systems for the purposes of collecting, validating, and verifying information, processing and maintaining information, and disclosing and providing information; adjust the existing ways to comply with any previously applicable instructions and requirements which have subsequently changed; train personnel to be able to respond to a collection of information; search data sources; complete and review the collection of information; and transmit or otherwise disclose the information.

Respondents/Affected Entities: Community Water Systems serving a population of more than 3,300 people.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 80.

Frequency of Response: Once.

Estimated Total Annual Hour Burden: 8,994.

Estimated Total Annual Cost: $710,460, including $294 in annual O&M costs.

Changes in the Estimates: There is a decrease of 2,904,935 hours in the total estimated respondent burden compared with that identified in the OMB Inventory of Approved Burdens. This decrease reflects EPA's need to collect documents that were included in the original estimate, but still remain to be submitted to the Agency.

Dated: September 21, 2007

Joseph A. Sierra,

Acting Director, Collection Strategies Division.