FINAL OMB SUPPORTING STATEMENT
FOR
NRC FORM 241
REPORT OF PROPOSED ACTIVITIES IN NON-AGREEMENT STATES,
AREAS OF EXCLUSIVE FEDERAL JURISDICTION, OR OFFSHORE WATERS
(3150-0013)
---
EXTENSION REQUEST WITH BURDEN REVISION
Description of the Information Collection
Section 274 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, authorizes the Nuclear Regulatory NRC (NRC) to enter into an agreement with the Governor of any State, providing a discontinuance of certain regulatory authority of the NRC. A State that has signed such an agreement with the NRC is referred to as an “Agreement State,” and it is allowed to regulate the use of radioactive material within that State. In addition, under NRC's regulations in 10 CFR Part 150, "Exemptions and Continued Regulatory Authority in Agreement States and in Offshore Waters Under Section 274,” the NRC refrains from exercising certain licensing authority in Agreement States and exempts licensees in those States from certain NRC licensing requirements.
Under the reciprocity provisions of 10 CFR Part 150, any Agreement State licensee who engages in activities (such as the use of radioactive byproduct material) in non-Agreement States, areas of exclusive Federal jurisdiction, or offshore waters is required to file, with the NRC regional administrator for the region in which the Agreement State that issues the specific license is located, NRC Form 241, a copy of the Agreement State specific license, and the appropriate fee as prescribed in Section 170.31 at least 3 days before engaging in each such activity. This form includes information on locations and dates of activities. The 3 day time schedule permits the NRC regional office time to schedule inspections of these activities.
A. JUSTIFICATION
1. Need for and Practical Utility of the Collection of Information
10 CFR 150.20 establishes a general license through which NRC authorizes any Agreement State licensee with a specific license to conduct the same activity in non-Agreement States, areas of exclusive Federal jurisdiction, or offshore waters for a period not to exceed 180 days in any calendar year. Any Agreement State licensee operating under the general license is required to file with the NRC regional office NRC Form 241, a copy of the Agreement State specific license, and the appropriate fee as prescribed in Section 170.31 at least 3 days before performing work. However, the regional administrator of the NRC regional office may authorize an Agreement State licensee to commence activity based on a telephone notification by the licensee, provided that the licensee files NRC Form 241 within three days of the telephone notification.
Receipt of the information on NRC Form 241 is necessary to make NRC aware of Agreement State licensee’s work in non-Agreement States, areas of exclusive Federal jurisdiction, or offshore waters. NRC can then determine whether the work is conducted in accordance with NRC requirements for protection of the public health and safety.
2. Agency Use of the Information
The report informs NRC of the locations and dates of activities conducted in non-Agreement States, areas of exclusive Federal jurisdiction, or offshore waters by Agreement State licensees under the general license. This notification permits the NRC regional office to schedule inspections of the activities to determine whether the activities are conducted in accordance with NRC requirements for protection of the public health and safety.
3. Reduction of Burden Through Information Technology
There are no legal obstacles to reducing the burden associated with this information collection. The NRC encourages respondents to use information technology when it would be beneficial to them. NRC issued a regulation on October 10, 2003 (68 FR 58791), consistent with the Government Paperwork Elimination Act, which allows its licensees, vendors, applicants, and members of the public the option to make submissions electronically via CD-ROM, e-mail, special Web-based interface, or other means. NRC estimates that no licensees will submit their forms electronically.
4. Effort to Identify Duplication and Use Similar Information
No sources of similar information are available. There is no duplication of requirements. NRC has in place an ongoing program to examine all information collections with the goal of eliminating all duplication and/or unnecessary information collections.
The Agreement State licensees do not routinely submit information to the NRC. Therefore, there is no similar information available to NRC that can be used to keep track of the Agreement State licensees' activities conducted in non-Agreement States, areas of exclusive Federal jurisdiction, or offshore waters under the general license provided for in 10 CFR 150.20.
5. Effort to Reduce Small Business Burden
Some of the Agreement State licensees who use byproduct material in non-Agreement States, areas of exclusive Federal jurisdiction, or offshore waters are small businesses. However, because the health and safety consequences of improper handling or use of byproduct material are the same for large and small entities, it is not possible to reduce the burden on small businesses by less frequent or less complete reporting.
6. Consequences to Federal Program or Policy Activities if the Collection Is Not Conducted or Is Conducted Less Frequently
If the information on NRC Form 241 is not collected, the NRC will not be aware of work performed by Agreement State licensees in non-Agreement States, areas of exclusive Federal jurisdiction, or offshore waters. The forms are submitted only as the specified uses occur. NRC Form 241 must be submitted prior to each such activity, but the NRC regional office may waive the requirement for filing additional forms during the remainder of the calendar year following the receipt of the initial NRC Form 241 from the Agreement State licensee.
7. Circumstances Which Justify Variation from OMB Guidelines
This information collection is consistent with OMB Guidelines.
8. Consultations Outside the NRC
Opportunity for public comment on the information collection requirements for this clearance package has been published in the Federal Register on March 19, 2008 (73 FR 14848). No comments were received.
9. Payment or Gift to Respondents
Not applicable.
10. Confidentiality of the Information
Confidential and proprietary information is protected in accordance with NRC regulations at 10 CFR 9.17(a) and 10 CFR 2.390(b). However, no information normally considered confidential or proprietary is requested.
11. Justification for Sensitive Questions
This information collection does not involve sensitive questions.
12. Estimated Burden and Burden Hour Cost
Based on the average number of submissions for the past three years, the NRC estimates that it will receive 2,188 NRC Forms 241 annually from 140 Agreement State licensees – approximately 140 initial submittals; 412 revisions; and 1,636 clarifications from Agreement State licensees who engage in activities (use of radioactive byproduct material) in non-Agreement States.
NRC estimates that initial submissions require 30 minutes to complete, whereas both revisions and clarifications require 15 minutes to complete.
The total burden for the NRC Form 241 is 582 hours. This includes 70 hours for initial submissions (140 x 30 minutes); 103 hours for revisions (412 x 15 minutes); and 409 hours for clarifications (1,636 x 15 minutes). The estimated cost to licensees is $138,516 (582 hours x $238/hour). See Table 1 for a breakdown of the number of forms submitted, burden hours, and costs.
13. Estimate of Other Additional Costs
This requirement only involves submitting Form 241 to the NRC. There are no recordkeeping requirements and no additional costs.
14. Estimated Annualized Cost to the Federal Government
It is estimated that the annual cost to the government for review and acknowledgment for forms, deficiency requests, and further dissemination of each NRC Form 241 is 2.5 hours annually for each of the 140 initial reciprocity requests, for a cost of $83,300 (350 hours x $238/hr); 1 hour/response for each of the 412 revisions, for a cost of $98,056 (412 hours x $238/hr); and 15 minutes/response for each of the 1,636 clarifications, for a cost of $97,342 (409 hours x $238/hr). Therefore, the total estimated annualized cost to the Federal government is 1,171 hours or $278,698 (1,171 hours/year x $238/hr). This cost is fully recovered through license fees charged to NRC licensees pursuant to 10 CFR Parts 170 and/or 171. See Table 2 for a breakdown of costs to the Federal Government.
15. Reasons for Changes in Burden or Cost
The NRC reviewed the actual number of responses received during the last 3 years in order to estimate the number of forms that will be submitted during the clearance period. From 2005 to 2008, an average of 2,188 forms were filed annually. The previous estimate was 3,963 forms (based on a review of the actual number of forms received from 2002 to 2005), an overall reduction of 1,775 forms. The number of initial submissions decreased from 167 to 140 (a reduction of 27 forms and 14 hours); the number of revisions decreased from 600 to 412 (a reduction of 188 forms and 47 hours); and the number of clarifications decreased from 3,196 to 1,636 (a reduction of 1,560 forms and 390 hours).
As a result of the reduction in the estimated number of forms filed annually, the overall burden estimate has decreased from 1,033 to 582 hours, a net reduction of 451 hours.
The NRC believes that some individuals are deciding to apply for licenses rather than continually file for reciprocity based on the frequency of doing business across State borders.
In addition, the hourly rate increased from $156/hour to $238/hour.
16. Publication for Statistical Use
This information will not be published for statistical use.
17. Reason for Not Displaying the Expiration Date
The expiration date is displayed on NRC Form 241.
18. Exceptions to the Certification Statement
There are no exceptions.
B. COLLECTIONS OF INFORMATION EMPLOYING STATISTICAL METHODS
Not applicable.
TABLE 1
Annual Reporting Burden
|
Number of Responses |
Burden Hours per Response |
Total Burden Hours |
Cost at $238/Hr |
Initial Submittals |
140 |
0.50 |
70 |
$16,660 |
Revisions |
412 |
0.25 |
103 |
$24,514 |
Clarifications |
1,636 |
0.25 |
409 |
$97,342 |
Total |
2,188 |
|
582 |
$138,516 |
Total Number of Respondents: 140
Total Number of Responses: 2,188
Total Reporting Burden: 582 hours ($138,516)
TABLE 2
Federal Government Costs
|
Number of Forms Received |
Hours per Form |
Total Hours |
Cost at $238/Hr |
Initial Submittals |
140 |
2.50 |
350 |
$83,300 |
Revisions |
412 |
1.00 |
412 |
$98,056 |
Clarifications |
1,636 |
0.25 |
409 |
$97,342 |
Total |
2,188 |
|
1,171 |
$278,698 |
| File Type | application/msword |
| File Title | DRAFT OMB SUPPORTING STATEMENT |
| Author | KXK2 |
| Last Modified By | keb1 |
| File Modified | 2008-10-22 |
| File Created | 2008-05-28 |