05-8870. Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to OMB for Review and Approval; Comment Request; General Conformity of Federal Actions to State Implementation Plans (Renewal), EPA ICR Number 1637.06, OMB Control Number 2060-0279

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (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. This ICR is scheduled to expire on April 30, 2005. Under OMB regulations, the Agency may continue to conduct or sponsor the collection of information while this submission is pending at OMB. This ICR describes the nature of the information collection and its estimated burden and cost.

DATES:

Additional comments may be submitted on or before June 3, 2005.

ADDRESSES:

Submit your comments, referencing docket ID number OAR-2005-0115 to (1) EPA online using EDOCKET (our preferred method), by e-mail to [e-mail], or by mail to: Environmental Protection Agency, EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), Air and Radiation Docket and Information Center, 6102T, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20460, and (2) OMB at: 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:

Annie Nikbakht, Ozone Policy and Strategies Group, Mail Drop C539-02, Environmental Protection Agency, 109 T.W. Alexander Drive, RTP, North Carolina 27711; telephone number: [phone]; fax number: [phone]; 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 February 1, 2005 (70 FR 5178), EPA sought comments on this ICR pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.8(d). EPA received no comments.

EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under Docket ID No.OAR-2005-0115, which is available for public viewing at the Air and Radiation Docket and Information Center in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room B102, 1301 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC. The EPA Docket Center Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Reading Room is [phone], and the telephone number for the Air and Radiation Docket is [phone]. An electronic version of the public docket is available through EPA Dockets (EDOCKET) at http://www.epa.gov/​edocket. Use EDOCKET to submit or view public comments, access the index listing of the contents of the public docket, and to access those documents in the public docket that are available electronically. Once in the system, select “search,” then key in the docket ID number identified above.

Any comments related to this ICR should be submitted to EPA and OMB within 30 days of this notice. EPA's policy is that public comments, whether submitted electronically or in paper, will be made available for public viewing in EDOCKET 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. When EPA identifies a comment containing copyrighted material, EPA will provide a reference to that material in the version of the comment that is placed in EDOCKET. The entire printed comment, including the copyrighted material, will be available in the public docket. Although identified as an item in the official docket, information claimed as CBI, or whose disclosure is otherwise restricted by statute, is not included in the official public docket, and will not be available for public viewing in EDOCKET. For further information about the electronic docket, see EPA's Federal Register notice describing the electronic docket at 67 FR 38102 (May 31, 2002), or go to http://www.epa.gov/​edocket.

Title: General Conformity of Federal Actions to State Implementation Plans (40 CFR part 51, subpart W; part 93, subpart B) (Renewal).

Abstract: Before any agency, department, or instrumentality of the Federal government engages in, supports in any way, provides financial assistance for, licenses, permits, or approves any activity, that agency has the affirmative responsibility to ensure that such action conforms to the State Implementation Plan (SIP) for the attainment and maintenance of the national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS).

The Federal government uses information collected to ensure that general Federal actions conform to applicable provisions of the SIP and that the Federal action does not impede the goal of attaining and maintaining the NAAQS throughout the country. The State and local air agencies use the results from conformity determinations to determine applicability of the general conformity requirements, to demonstrate that their actions satisfy both the emissions and air quality criteria stipulated in the regulation, and to demonstrate that their actions conform to applicable provisions of the SIP.

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 40 CFR are listed in 40 CFR part 9 and are identified on the form and/or instrument, if applicable.

Burden Statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 35 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; 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: Entities potentially affected by this action are those which take Federal Actions, or are subject to Federal Actions, and emit pollutants above deminimis levels.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 674.

Frequency of Response: One time, or every five years.

Estimated Total Annual Hour Burden: 9,435 hours.

Estimated Total Annual Cost: $592,763, which includes $0 annualized capital/startup costs, $0 annual O&M costs, and $592,763 annual labor costs.

Changes in the Estimates: There is a decrease of 811 hours in the total estimated burden currently identified in the OMB Inventory of Approved ICR Burdens. This decrease is applicable to the Non-Federal, State, and Local agencies which are the entities more affected. This number is calculated based on Non-Federal, State, and Local agencies only.

Dated: April 26, 2005.

Oscar Morales,

Director, Collection Strategies Division.