FRA shall
continue progress on a regulation to facilitate small railroads'
keeping records electronically.
Inventory as of this Action
Requested
Previously Approved
09/30/2017
36 Months From Approved
10/31/2014
27,687,317
0
27,703,668
3,514,805
0
3,529,267
26,000
0
132,500
The Hours of Service Act specifies the
maximum hours and conditions of proper rest for employees engaged
in one or more critical categories of work. FRA uses the
information collected to both monitor compliance with and to
enforce these safety regulations. In August 2011, FRA amended its
Hours of Service recordkeeping regulations to add substantive Hours
of Service reuglations, including maximum on-duty periods, minimum
off-duty periods, and other limitations for train employees (e.g.,
locomotive engineers and conductors) providing commuter and
intercity rail passenger transportation.
The burden for this collection
of information has decreased by 14,462 hours from the last approved
submission. The change in burden is due solely to adjustments. The
adjustments are reflected in the table included in the answer to
question number 15 of the attached Supporting Justification.
Adjustments shown in the provided table decreased the burden by a
total of 14,462 hours and decreased the number of responses by a
total of 16,351. The current OMB inventory for this information
collection shows a total burden of 3,529,267 hours, while the
present submission reflects a total burden of 3,514,805 hours.
Hence, there is a burden decrease of 14,462 hours. The cost to
respondents exhibits a decrease of $106,500 from the previous
submission. This decrease in costs is solely the result of
adjustments. Specifically, the first year cost for programming
modifications for computer software (based on the FAST model) for
the biomathematical model of fatigue that railroads used for
employee work schedules of $75,000 and initial program training
cost of $50,000 have already been incurred. Thus, there remain the
ongoing costs of $15,000 for training and support ($7,500 for
training and $7,500 for support) plus $11,000 in costs for
maintenance of the IT electronic database for the Hours of Duty
Records ($10,000) and for postage/miscellaneous expenses ($1,000).
The previous submission shows a total cost to respondents of
$132,500 while the present submission displays a total cost to
respondents of $26,000. Hence, there is decrease in costs of
$106,500.
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.