SSNA14027final

Supporting Statement

Microfilm Rental Order Form, NA Form 14127

(OMB Control No. 3095-0059)

1. Circumstances Making the Collection of Information Necessary. The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is the agency of the Federal Government responsible for identifying, preserving, and making available to the public and to Federal, state, local and tribal Governments all forms of Government records not restricted by law that have been determined to have sufficient historical, informational, or evidential value to warrant continued preservation.

These records generally are used in the research rooms found in NARA facilities nationwide. In order to accommodate those researchers who cannot visit our facilities or who request copies of records as a result of visiting a research room, NARA provides reproductions of records for a fee.

Some records that are requested by large numbers of people have been microfilmed to make the records more readily available to researchers. Copies of these microfilm publications are available in NARA research rooms and also may be purchased for use elsewhere. In addition to purchasing copies, however, researchers may rent copies of the microfilm publications of selected records. Census records constitute the majority of records currently available through the rental program; American Revolutionary War service records, pension, and bounty-land-warrant application files are also available. In the past two years, microfilm of the records of the State and local offices of the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands (also known as The Freedmen’s Bureau) were added to the rental collection. The NA Form 14127, NARA Microfilm Rental Program Order Form, is used by customers to request the rental of one or more rolls of a NARA microfilm publication.

2. Purpose and Use of the Information. A third-party contractor is responsible for filling orders and handling the payments received for rentals. The NA Form 14127 ensures that the contractor receives the necessary ordering information in a standard format, which will support timely and cost-effective action on the request.

3. Use of Information Technology and Burden Reduction. NA Form 14127 is posted on our web site so that customers may print and mail it in more expeditiously. The information collected on the form is the minimum needed to allow the contractor to take the order and process the payments received.

4. Efforts to Identify Duplication and Use of Similar Information. This information is collected only when a customer places an order for renting microfilm. Each order is unique.

5. Impact on Small Businesses or Other Small Entities. Customers may rent the microfilm publications directly or through participating local libraries. The collection of the information has been designed to minimize the burden on both types of customers.

6. Consequences of Collecting the Information Less Frequently. The information collection cannot be conducted less frequently since it occurs only when microfilm rolls or microfiche are rented from the third-party contractor. If this information collection is not conducted, the contractor cannot process the rental request.

7. Special Circumstances Relating to the Guidelines of 5 CFR 1320.5. The information collection is conducted in a manner consistent with the guidelines in 5 CFR 1320.5.

8. Comments in Response to the Federal Register Notice and Efforts to Consult Outside Agency. A Request for Comments for the Proposed Collection using the NA Form 14027 was posted in the Federal Register on May 16, 2007, pages 27592 and 27593, inviting comment on the use of the form. No comments were received.

9. Explanation of Any Payment or Gift to respondents. No payment or gifts will be provided to respondents for this information.

10. Assurance of Confidentiality Provided to Respondents. No assurance of confidentiality is provided.

11. Justification for Sensitive Questions. No questions of a sensitive or private nature are asked.

12. Estimates of Hour Burden Including Annualized Hourly Costs. The number of respondents for the NA Form 14127 is estimated to be 390 per year. The estimated total hour burden is 65, based on each form taking no more than 10 minutes to read and complete (390 responses x 0.1667 hours per form). The annualized hourly cost to each respondent is $3.10 ($18.62 hourly salary rate x 0.1667 hours per form). This estimate is based on the average of $18.62 per hour found in the August 2006 report for private industry and State and local government workers in the United States by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, June 2005 (http://www.bls.gov/ncs/ocs/sp/ncbl0832.pdf).

13. Estimate of Other Total Annual Cost Burden to Respondents or Recordkeepers. There is no other cost burden to respondents. Respondents are not required to keep records.

14. Annualized cost to the Federal Government. The estimated annualized cost to the Government for NA Form 14127 is minimal. The Microfilm Rental Order Form is available on the NARA web site and is distributed in a printed flyer by the third-party contractor.

15. Explanation for Program Changes or Adjustments. There is a decrease in burden because most of the microfilm NARA rents are also available on-line, by subscription, through commercial services such as ancestry.com and footnote.com. These companies have and continue to digitize our microfilm publications.

16. Plans for Tabulation and Publication and Project Time Schedule. The information collection is not used for statistical studies or publications.

17. Reason(s) Display of OMB Expiration Date is Inappropriate. The expiration date for OMB approval of this information collection will be displayed on the form.

18. Exceptions to Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions. There are no exceptions to the certification statement identified in Item 19 of OMB Form 83-I, "Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions."

3