Pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.5, OMB is disapproving this collection as submitted for the following reasons: (1) OMB is concerned about the purpose (see OMB's Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 Implementation Guidance, February 3, 1997, pp. 37-38) and practical utility of this ICR pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.5(d)(1)(iii). EPA recently provided OMB with a clarified statement of purpose for this collection--that is, 'to give EPA and the States the information they need to set priorities and target limited resources.' This statement is sufficient provided that such uses are consistent with the quality of the data collected by this ICR and, as outlined below, recognize the limitations of the information collected through this ICR. In the ICR supporting statement (p. 5), EPA indicates that this collection will be 'limited to identifying and cataloging the compliance information and conducting a preliminary analysis.' EPA will then forward the results to the EPA and State managers of the data, planning, and targeting systems 'for further consideration or potential follow-up actions' (Ibid.). EPA should elaborate upon what the Agency means by 'potential follow-up actions,' and clearly and fully describe the range of potential actions to be undertaken, explicitly and directly addressing the limitations of the data. OMB believes that this focus-group data should only be used to generate hypotheses for re-examining information already in existing databases and/or designing statistical studies of randomly generated samples. However, OMB encourages EPA to specify any other appropriate uses of the data and carefully weigh the practical utility of each of those uses. In addition, EPA acknowledges that the information is not adequate or sufficiently reliable for formal statistical analysis or for the generation of compliance rates and, therefore, will not be used for those purposes. Since the identification of compliance trends, forecasting, and profiling are forms of statistical analysis and are inappropriate uses of anecdotal information, EPA should re-evaluate the practical utility of any survey questions regarding compliance trends, predictions, or indicators of facility compliance or noncompliance. Finally, to protect against disclosing information about specific persons, facilities, or cases not in the public record, EPA intends to (a) request that respondents only refer to persons, facilities, or cases already in the public record in discussions or writing and (b) give respondents an opportunity to delete any inappropriate references from the minutes of panel discussions and from the final report before it is released to the public. However, OMB is concerned that the implementation of this approach--that is, distinguishing between those who are in the public record and those who are not--will be difficult to administer. Therefore, if EPA submits a revised version of the ICR for review, OMB encourages EPA to re-evaluate the current approach and to consider an alternative approach that would exclude all references to specific persons, facilities, or cases. In doing so, EPA should consider the extent to which explicit references to persons, facilities, or cases contribute to the practical utility of this information collection and offset the additional burden of identifying persons, facilities, or cases not already identified in the public record. If EPA chooses to retain its current approach, EPA should explain the practical utility of collecting references to specific persons, facilities, or cases that are in the public record. (2) OMB is concerned that the information to be collected may not be necessary for the proper performance of the Agency's functions pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.5(e). EPA has not demonstrated that the Agency cannot fully and appropriately perform its compliance and enforcement duties without this information. EPA has also not addressed how the information to be collected would improve EPA's ability to perform those functions. (3) OMB is concerned about the burden associated with this collection pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.5(d)(1)(i). EPA intends to make this collection voluntary. However, given EPA's continuing relationship with the States, OMB is concerned that States may feel obligated to comply with this information request. It is, therefore, especially important for EPA to ensure that the survey instrument and each survey question impose the least amount of burden that is consistent with its purpose on the respondents. For these reasons, OMB cannot approve this submission at this time. However, OMB encourages EPA to resubmit this collection once the above concerns have been addressed and looks forward to working with EPA in expeditiously reviewing the revised ICR.
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Inventory as of this Action
Requested
Previously Approved
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The purpose of the CIP is to test creative new strategies for identifying compliance information which, to date, EPA or the States may have failed to capture or utilize. Sources of such information may include unutilized studies or reports, produced by States, private parties, or other government agencies, and observations by field personnel which, for one reason or another, escape our traditional methods for collecting and documenting information.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that the collection of information encompassed by this request complies with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding the proposed collection of information, that the certification covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.
Compliance Information Project