Justification for Change

SUBJECT: Change Request, OMB No. 0535-0218

We are submitting this change request for the Agricultural Resource Management Survey (ARMS), Fruit and Vegetable Chemical Use Surveys, and Post-harvest Chemical Use Survey information collection, OMB Control Number 0535-0218, to address minor ARMS Phase III questionnaire changes.

ARMS is the only annual, national-level, representative survey of American farm operators and their households, covering the 48-contiguous states, 15-plus major commodities, and farms of all sizes and types. In ARMS, farmers report on a wide variety of topics, ranging from production practices to household finances. The coverage of geographic regions and variety of farm types and sizes, coupled with the extensive data collected, make ARMS the Department of Agriculture’s primary source of information about the financial condition, production practices, resource use, and economic well-being of farms and farm households.

Several new questions have been added to the ARMS Phase III Costs and Returns version for the upcoming, current year collection. Questions related to Bees (Section 15, Questions 3, 4, and 5), Migrant farm workers (Section 27, Question 2), and Ethanol production (Section 32, Questions 1n and 1o) are important due their relevance to current practices and issues. Questions related to farm dwellings (Section 28, Questions 1a(i), 1b(i), and 1c(i) are important for determining the true value of farm assets. None of these additions have resulted in sampling or scope changes for the ARMS III and should not result in substantive changes to burden.