1625-0089 30-Day FRN

1625-0089 30-Day Federal Register Notice.doc

The National Recreational Boating Survey

1625-0089 30-Day FRN

OMB: 1625-0089

Document [doc]
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[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 104 (Thursday, May 30, 2013)]

[Notices]

[Pages 32408-32410]

From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]

[FR Doc No: 2013-12775]



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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY


Coast Guard


[USCG-2012-1047]



Collection of Information Under Review by Office of Management

and Budget


AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS.


ACTION: Thirty-day notice requesting comments.


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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the

U.S. Coast Guard is forwarding an Information Collection Request (ICR),

abstracted below, to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Office

of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), requesting an extension

of its approval to the following collection of information: 1625-0089,

National Recreational Boating Survey. Before submitting this ICR to

OMB, the Coast Guard is inviting comments as described below.


DATES: Comments must reach the Coast Guard on or before July 1, 2013.


ADDRESSES: To avoid duplicate submissions to the docket [USCG-2012-

1047], please use only one of the following means:

(1) Online: http://www.regulations.gov.

(2) Mail: Docket Management Facility (DMF) (M-30), U.S. Department

of Transportation (DOT), West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200

New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590-0001.

(3) Hand deliver: Same as mail address above, between 9 a.m. and 5

p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The telephone

number is 202-366-9329.

(4) Fax: 202-493-2251.

The DMF maintains the public docket for this Notice. Comments and

material received from the public, as well as documents mentioned in

this Notice as being available in the docket, will become part of the

docket and will be available for inspection or copying at Room W12-140

on the West Building Ground Floor, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE.,

Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday,

except Federal holidays. You may also find the docket on the Internet

at http://www.regulations.gov.

A copy of the ICR is available through the docket on the Internet

at http://www.regulations.gov. Additionally, a copy is available from:

Commandant (CG-612), Attn Paperwork Reduction Act Manager, US Coast

Guard, 2100 2nd St. SW., STOP 7101, Washington DC 20593-7101.


FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Contact Mr. Anthony Smith, Office of

Information Management, telephone 202-475-3532, or fax 202-475-3929,

for questions on these documents. Contact Ms. Barbara Hairston, Program

Manager, Docket Operations, 202-366-9826, for questions on the docket.


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:


[[Page 32409]]


Public Participation and Request for Comments


This Notice relies on the authority of the Paperwork Reduction Act

of 1995; 44 U.S.C. chapter 35, as amended. An ICR is an application to

OIRA seeking the approval, extension, or renewal of a Coast Guard

collection of information (Collection). The ICR contains information

describing the Collection's purpose, the Collection's likely burden on

the affected public, an explanation of the necessity of the Collection,

and other important information describing the Collections. There is

one ICR for each Collection.

The Coast Guard invites comments on whether this ICR should be

granted based on the collection being necessary for the proper

performance of Departmental functions. In particular, the Coast Guard

would appreciate comments addressing: (1) The practical utility of the

collections; (2) the accuracy of the estimated burden of the

collections; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of

information subject to the collection; and (4) ways to minimize the

burden of the collections on respondents, including the use of

automated collection techniques or other forms of information

technology. These comments will help OIRA determine whether to approve

the ICR referred to in this Notice.

We encourage you to respond to this request by submitting comments

and related materials. Comments to Coast Guard or OIRA must contain the

OMB Control Number of the ICR. They must also contain the docket number

of this request, [USCG 2012-1047], and must be received by July 1,

2013. We will post all comments received, without change, to http://www.regulations.gov. They will include any personal information you

provide. We have an agreement with DOT to use their DMF. Please see the

``Privacy Act'' paragraph below.

Submitting comments: If you submit a comment, please include the

docket number [USCG-2012-1047], indicate the specific section of the

document to which each comment applies, providing a reason for each

comment. You may submit your comments and material online (via http://www.regulations.gov), by fax, mail, or hand delivery, but please use

only one of these means. If you submit a comment online via

www.regulations.gov, it will be considered received by the Coast Guard

when you successfully transmit the comment. If you fax, hand deliver,

or mail your comment, it will be considered as having been received by

the Coast Guard when it is received at the DMF. We recommend you

include your name, mailing address, an email address, or other contact

information in the body of your document so that we can contact you if

we have questions regarding your submission.

You may submit your comments and material by electronic means,

mail, fax, or delivery to the DMF at the address under ADDRESSES; but

please submit them by only one means. To submit your comment online, go

to http://www.regulations.gov, and type ``USCG-2012-1047'' in the

``Keyword'' box. If you submit them by mail or delivery, submit them in

an unbound format, no larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable for

copying and electronic filing. If you submit them by mail and would

like to know that they reached the Facility, please enclose a stamped,

self-addressed postcard or envelope. We will consider all comments and

material received during the comment period and will address them

accordingly.


Viewing Comments and Documents


To view comments, as well as documents mentioned in this Notice as

being available in the docket, go to http://www.regulations.gov, click

on the ``read comments'' box, which will then become highlighted in

blue. In the ``Keyword'' box insert ``USCG-2012-1047'' and click

``Search.'' Click the ``Open Docket Folder'' in the ``Actions'' column.

You may also visit the DMF in Room W12-140 on the West Building Ground

Floor, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5

p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.

OIRA posts its decisions on ICRs online at http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain after the comment period for each ICR. An OMB Notice

of Action on each ICR will become available via a hyperlink in the OMB

Control Number: [1625-0089].


Privacy Act


Anyone can search the electronic form of all comments received in

dockets by the name of the individual submitting the comment (or

signing the comment, if submitted on behalf of an association,

business, labor union, etc.). You may review the Privacy Act statement

regarding our public dockets in the January 17, 2008 issue of the

Federal Register (73 FR 3316).


Previous Request for Comments


This request provides a 30-day comment period required by OIRA. The

Coast Guard published the 60-day notice (77 FR 74686, December 17,

2012) required by 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2). That Notice elicited three

comments.


1. The first commenter wrote: ``It would be helpful to

recreational boaters if you would take the broadcast from channel 16

and 21 (VHF) as well as DSC distress calls and republish on a

twitter feed. Local boaters could follow the feed for ``there''

[sic] area. (AOR) This is a simple but helpful solution to increase

awareness for boating safety issues. Please contact me if you need

more information. I am also in the CGA. Thanks.

Answer:

Although the proposed initiative could be potentially beneficial

to recreational boaters, it is not within the scope of the National

Recreational Boating Survey. This survey's primary goals include

measuring boating participation and exposure hours. However, the

suggestion made by this commenter will be examined within the

broader scope of the Coast Guard's national recreational boating

safety program.

2. The second commenter wrote: ``we have two federal agencies

gouging american taxpayers for wasted tax dollars the sport fishing

and boating council of the fws and the us coast guard. to me, the

coast guad should be fully in charge of boating. i see absolutely no

reason why taxpayers are being gouged to pay for the lobbying

organization called the sport fishing and boating council, which

obviously should be existing on private dollars and not giouging us

taxpayers and pretending to be a federal agency working for the good

of all americans, when clearly it is working for corporate

profitability. when will the gouging of tax payers stop? when will

we shut down obvioius loggying groups that should not be getting one

cent of american taxpayers dollars like th esport fishing and

boating council of the usfws. the excesses and out of control

spending of this govt is oppressive. l out of 2 americans are living

in poverty and they are being dunned for taxes so a boating council

can operate wastefully, when they have no hope of ever in their

lives getting on a boat. the washington excesses are disgusting and

depraved. make some cuts here. the coast guard we need. take the

money away from the boating council and give it to the coast guard,

who should be defending this country's borders from the leaches

massively sneaking in here.''[sic]

Answer:

The Coast Guard's National Recreational Boating Survey is

presently the only nationwide survey sponsored by the federal

government that focuses entirely on recreational boating. Other

agencies may collect very limited data on recreational boaters,

which does not interfere and is not redundant with the Coast Guard's

data collection efforts.

3. The third commenter wrote: ``BoatUS is the largest

organization of recreational boaters in the United States, with more

than half a million members nationwide. As an active participant in

the U.S. Coast Guard's boating safety efforts, we appreciate the

opportunity to provide our views on the National Recreational

Boating Survey.

The development of an accurate picture of the many facets of

recreational boating is a commendable goal, particularly for the


[[Page 32410]]


government agency that has the day-to-day responsibility for its

regulation. Well reasoned regulations, supported by timely, precise

data, will engender greater support from the regulated community.

That, in turn, should result in better compliance with regulations

and an increased level of safety.

The current budget constraints faced by various government

agencies and non-profit groups with a direct interest in boating

safety should also be considered. In reviewing the supporting

documentation for this information request, it is apparent this is

an ambitious undertaking that will require significant, on-going

resources. As this information request is reviewed, we suggest

consideration be given to the impact its funding might have on other

boating safety programs, particularly those administered by the non-

profit sector.

We further believe that The U.S. Coast Guard should review the

scope and methodology of the survey. In our view, gathering safety

related information should be the priority. The breadth of this

survey is too broad given current budget conditions. We also suggest

greater use of the Internet, or other less costly methods to

implement the survey. Given the continuing advances in access to the

Internet by large sections of the United States populations (some 49

million U.S. households have such access) the Coast Guard should

work to make greater use of this economical medium to gather data.

The development of timely, accurate data should be integral to

the Coast Guard's recreational boating safety mission, and we

support that goal. The cost of developing this data, which is funded

by the recreational boating community itself through the Sport Fish

Restoration and Boating Trust Fund, must, however, be carefully

managed. Other crucial boating safety programs should not be

sacrificed in the process of gathering this information. Thoughtful

deployment of these funds to maximize their safety benefit is

crucial to the continued support of the recreational boating

community. Thank you for the opportunity to provide our views on the

proposed survey.''

Answer:

Regarding the scope of the survey, the Coast Guard

priority is to collect data that is pertinent to the safety program

and will reduce redundancy and costs among federal and other

partnering agencies. The Coast Guard will review its survey

questionnaires before it is implemented, and strive to eliminate the

collection of non-essential data. However, reducing the number of

questions asked to survey participants will only have a marginal

effect on the overall cost of the survey. This is due to the small

number of questions that generally apply to the majority of survey

respondents. Consequently, the Coast Guard will explore all cost-

saving strategies to keep the survey costs reasonable.

Regarding the use of the Internet for collecting

information from boaters, the Coast Guard is already using that data

collection mode to a certain extent. In 2012, a substantial amount

of boating trip information was collected with the Internet.

However, the Internet was used primarily as an alternative data

collection mode that was offered to survey participants recruited in

a panel from a previously selected random telephone sample.

The Internet as the primary or sole data gathering tool is not

yet widely used in government surveys, due to concerns that the

Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has expressed about this

approach. In a 2006 Memorandum for the President's Management

Council, entitled ``Guidance on Agency Survey and Statistical

Information Collections,'' OMB indicated the following:


``Recent estimates are that more than 50 percent of households

have Internet access at home. Despite the increasing rate of

Internet access in the U.S., there remain systematic differences in

socio-demographic characteristics between those who have access to

the Internet at home and those who do not. Thus, there are

significant coverage errors in any sampling frame composed only of

those who have access to the Internet, which could lead to biased

estimates when generalizing to the national population.''

Nevertheless, the Coast Guard will continue using the Internet

as an alternative data collection mode for boaters who were

previously selected using well-established sample selection methods.


Information Collection Request


Title: National Recreational Boating Survey.

OMB Control Number: 1625-0089.

Type of Request: Extension of a currently approved collection.

Respondents: Recreational boating participants and owners of

recreational vessels.

Abstract: The Coast Guard National Recreational Boating Survey

collects data on recreational boating participants and exposure to

hazards. The goal is for the Boating Safety Division to draw a general

statistical profile of the U.S. recreational boating population. Of

particular importance will be statistics on the type of boats used,

activities associated with them, boat operators' knowledge of safety

measures, and duration of a typical boating day (referred to as

``exposure''). Exposure data will be used to derive a reliable measure

of the risk associated with recreational boating that can be used in

all jurisdictions.

Forms: None.

Burden Estimate: This is a biennial requirement. The estimated

burden has increased from 10,880 hours to 13,050 hours a year.


Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C.

chapter 35, as amended.


Dated: May 20, 2013.

R.E. Day,

Rear Admiral, U.S. Coast Guard, Assistant Commandant for Command,

Control, Communications, Computers and Information Technology.

[FR Doc. 2013-12775 Filed 5-29-13; 8:45 am]

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