Notice of Proposed Renewal of Information Collection

AGENCY:

Office of the Secretary, Take Pride in America Program.

ACTION:

Notice and Request for Comments.

SUMMARY:

In compliance with section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Office of the Secretary of the Department of the Interior announces the proposed extension of a public information collection required by the Take Pride in America Program Act, 16 U.S.C. 4601-4608, “Take Pride in America National Awards Application/Nomination Process,” OMB Control No. 1093-0004, and that it is seeking comments on its provisions. After public review, the Office of the Secretary will submit the information collection to the Office of Management and Budget for review and approval.

DATES:

Consideration will be given to all comments received by December 15, 2009.

ADDRESSES:

Written comments and recommendations on the information collection should be sent to the Office of the Secretary Executive Director of the Take Pride in America Program, Lisa Young, Department of the Interior, 1849 C Street, NW., Mail Stop 3559 MIB, Washington, DC 20240. Comments may also be emailed to lisa_young@ios.doi.gov. Individuals providing comments should reference OMB control number 1093-0004, “Take Pride in America National Awards Application/Nomination Process.”

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

To request more information on this information collection, on its proposed renewal or to receive a copy of the collection instrument, contact Executive Director Lisa Young of the Take Pride in America (TPIA) Program at the mailing or e-mail address provided in the ADDRESSES section immediately above.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations, which implement the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13), require that interested members of the public and affected agencies have an opportunity to comment on information collection and recordkeeping activities (see 5 CFR 1320.8(d)). This notice identifies an information collection activity that the Office of the Secretary will submit to OMB for extension or re-approval. Under the Take Pride in America Program Act (the Act), 16 U.S.C. Sec. 46-01-4608, the Secretary of the Interior is to: (1) “Conduct a national awards program to honor those individuals and entities which, in the opinion of the Secretary * * * have distinguished themselves in activities” under the purposes of the Act, and also to (2) “establish and maintain a public awareness campaign in cooperation with public and private organizations and individuals—(A) To instill in the public the importance of the appropriate use of, and appreciation for Federal, State and local lands, facilities, and natural and cultural resources; (B) to encourage an attitude of stewardship and responsibility towards these lands, facilities, and resources; and (C) to promote participation by individuals, organizations, and communities of a conservation ethic in caring for these lands, facilities, and resources.” The Act states that “[t]he Secretary is authorized * * * generally to do any and all lawful acts necessary or appropriate to further the purposes of the TPIA Program.”

If this information were not collected from the public, Take Pride in America awards would be limited to individuals and organizations nominated by Federal agencies based on projects within their sphere of influence. This would effectively block many worthy individuals and organizations from being considered for these awards. The TPIA Program was launched in April of 2003 with the stated intent of honoring the best in the nation, without restriction. It would reflect poorly on the Department and on the President if only volunteers to Federal agencies could be honored for their service to America.

II. Data

(1) Title: Take Pride in America National Awards; Application/Nomination Process.

OMB Control Number: 1093-0004.

Current Expiration Date: March 31, 2010.

Type of Review: Information Collection Renewal.

Affected Entities: Individuals or households. Businesses and other institutions. State, local and tribal Governments.

Estimated annual number of public respondents: 130.

Frequency of response: On occasion.

(2) Annual reporting and record keeping burden.

 Estimated annual number of public responses: 130.

 Estimated burden per response: 1 hour.

 Total annual reporting: 130 hours.

(3) Description of the need and use of the information: The statutorily-required information is needed to provide the Office of the Secretary with a vehicle to collect the information needed to include individuals and organizations nominated by the public in applicant pools for TPIA National Awards and to recognize them for the valuable contributions that they make in support of the stewardship of America's lands, facilities, and cultural and natural resources.

III. Request for Comments

The Department of the Interior invites comments on:

(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 the burden of the collection and the validity of the methodology and assumptions used;

(c) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and

(d) Ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

Burden means the total time, effort, or financial resources expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, disclose or provide information to or for a Federal agency. This includes the time needed to review instructions; to develop, acquire, install and utilize technology and systems for the purpose of collecting, validating and verifying information, processing and maintaining information, and disclosing and providing information; to train personnel and to be able to respond to a collection of information, to search data sources, to complete and review the collection of information; and to transmit or otherwise disclose the information.

All written comments will be available for public inspection by appointment with the Federal Consulting Group at the contact information given in the Addresses section. The comments, with names and addresses, will be available for public view during regular business hours. If you wish us to withhold your personal information, you must prominently state at the beginning of your comment what personal information you want us to withhold. We will honor your request to extent allowable by law.

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 Office of Management and Budget control number.