Request for a Medical Exception to the COVID-19 Vaccination Requirement

Forms and Documents

Forms and supporting documents for this ICR

Document	Type	Status	Availability
Form FERC Form No. 1000 REQUEST FOR A MEDICAL EXCEPTION TO THE COVID-19 VACCINATION REQUIREMENT	Form and Instruction	New	Repair queued
Medical exception supporting statement 11 8 2021.docx	Supporting Statement A	Uploaded 2021-11-10	Repair queued
1000_EO13164_00-19323.pdf	Supplementary Document	Uploaded 2021-11-10	Repair queued
1000_29USC791.docx	Supplementary Document	Uploaded 2021-11-10	Missing upstream
1000_eCFR __ 29 CFR Part 1614 -- Federal Sector Equal Employment Opportunity.pdf	Supplementary Document	Uploaded 2021-11-10	Available
1000_2021-01766_EO maskwearing1-20-21.pdf	Supplementary Document	Uploaded 2021-11-10	Missing upstream
1000_Executive Order on Requiring Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination for Federal Employees _ The White House.pdf	Supplementary Document	Uploaded 2021-11-10	Missing upstream
Letter seeking emergency processing 11 8 2021.pdf	Supplementary Document	Uploaded 2021-11-08	Repair queued

IC Document Collections

Information collection document groups

IC ID	Collection	Type	Status	Form
250289	REQUEST FOR A MEDICAL EXCEPTION TO THE COVID-19 VACCINATION REQUIREMENT	Form and Instruction	New

ICR Details

OMB Control No:	ICR Reference No: 202111-1902-002
Status: Received in OIRA	Previous ICR Reference No:
Agency/Subagency: FERC	Agency Tracking No: FERC-1000
Title: Request for a Medical Exception to the COVID-19 Vaccination Requirement
Type of Information Collection: New collection (Request for a new OMB Control Number)	Common Form ICR:  No
Type of Review Request: Emergency	Approval Requested By: 11/12/2021
Date Submitted to OIRA: 11/10/2021

table that charts list comparision

	Requested	Previously Approved
Expiration Date	6 Months From Approved
Responses	24	0
Time Burden (Hours)	4	0
Cost Burden (Dollars)	0	0

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Abstract: The purpose of this emergency request of Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) clearance is to allow the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or Commission) to collect information from individuals applying for a medical exemption to the COVID-19 Mandatory Vaccinations as specified in Part 2 of FERC Form No. 1000. Given the critical role of the collection of information to meeting our commitments as outlined in Executive Order 14043 of September 9, 2021, Requiring Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination for Federal Employees and the Safer Federal Workforce Task Force guidance, the Commission cannot reasonably comply at present with the normal clearance procedures.

Emergency Justfication: Consistent with guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), guidance from the Safer Federal Workforce Task Force established pursuant to Executive Order 13991 of January 20, 2021, Protecting the Federal Workforce and Requiring Mask-Wearing, and Executive Order 14043 of September 9, 2021, Requiring Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination for Federal Employees, the request for this collection of information is essential to implement the Commission’s health and safety measures regarding the federal employee medical exemptions to the COVID-19 mandatory vaccinations. The Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, requires Federal Agencies to provide reasonable accommodations to qualified employees with disabilities unless that reasonable accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the employee’s Agency. See 29 U.S.C. 791; 29 C.F.R. Part 1614; see also 20 C.F.R. Part 1630 and Executive Order 13164 of July 26, 2000, Requiring Federal Agencies to Establish Procedures to Facilitate the Provision of Reasonable Accommodation. Section 2 of E.O. 14043 mandates that each agency “implement, to the extent consistent with applicable law, a program to require COVID-19 vaccination for all of its Federal employees, with exceptions only as required by law.” This medical exemption form is necessary for the Commission to determine legal exemptions to the vaccine requirement under the Rehabilitation Act. Government agencies have an urgent need to request medical exemption information with input from medical providers from federal employees. Applying regular Paperwork Reduction Act clearance procedures is likely to cause harm because of the threat of COVID-19 exposure and transmission (5 C.F.R § 1320.13(c)). FERC requests an OMB decision by 11/12/2021.

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Authorizing Statute(s): US Code: 29 USC 791 Name of Law: Rehabilitation Act
   EO: EO 14043 Name/Subject of EO: Requiring COVID-19 vaccination for federal employees
  

Citations for New Statutory Requirements: None

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Associated Rulemaking Information
RIN:	Stage of Rulemaking:	Federal Register Citation:	Date:
	Not associated with rulemaking

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Federal Register Notices & Comments

Did the Agency receive public comments on this ICR? No

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Number of Information Collection (IC) in this ICR: 1

table that charts list of burden

IC Title	Form No.	Form Name
REQUEST FOR A MEDICAL EXCEPTION TO THE COVID-19 VACCINATION REQUIREMENT	FERC Form No. 1000	REQUEST FOR A MEDICAL EXCEPTION TO THE COVID-19 VACCINATION REQUIREMENT

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ICR Summary of Burden

table that charts list of burden

	Total Request	Previously Approved	Change Due to New Statute	Change Due to Agency Discretion	Change Due to Adjustment in Estimate	Change Due to Potential Violation of the PRA
Annual Number of Responses	24	0	0	24	0	0
Annual Time Burden (Hours)	4	0	0	4	0	0
Annual Cost Burden (Dollars)	0	0	0	0	0	0

Burden increases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: Yes

Burden Increase Due to: Miscellaneous Actions

Burden decreases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: No

Burden Reduction Due to:

Short Statement: Consistent with guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), guidance from the Safer Federal Workforce Task Force established pursuant to Executive Order 13991 of January 20, 2021, Protecting the Federal Workforce and Requiring Mask-Wearing, and Executive Order 14043 of September 9, 2021, Requiring Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination for Federal Employees, the request for this collection of information is essential to implement the Commission’s health and safety measures regarding the federal employee medical exemptions to the COVID-19 mandatory vaccinations. The Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, requires Federal Agencies to provide reasonable accommodations to qualified employees with disabilities unless that reasonable accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the employee’s Agency. See 29 U.S.C. 791; 29 C.F.R. Part 1614; see also 20 C.F.R. Part 1630 and Executive Order 13164 of July 26, 2000, Requiring Federal Agencies to Establish Procedures to Facilitate the Provision of Reasonable Accommodation. Section 2 of E.O. 14043 mandates that each agency “implement, to the extent consistent with applicable law, a program to require COVID-19 vaccination for all of its Federal employees, with exceptions only as required by law.” This medical exemption form (new FERC Form No. 1000) is necessary for the Commission to determine legal exemptions to the vaccine requirement under the Rehabilitation Act. Government agencies have an urgent need to request medical exemption information with input from medical providers from federal employees. Applying regular Paperwork Reduction Act clearance procedures is likely to cause harm because of the threat of COVID-19 exposure and transmission (5 C.F.R § 1320.13(c)).

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Annual Cost to Federal Government: $10,007

Does this IC contain surveys, censuses, or employ statistical methods? No

Does this ICR request any personally identifiable information (see OMB Circular No. A-130 for an explanation of this term)? Please consult with your agency's privacy program when making this determination.     Yes

Does this ICR include a form that requires a Privacy Act Statement (see 5 U.S.C. §552a(e)(3))? Please consult with your agency's privacy program when making this determination.     Yes

Is this ICR related to the Affordable Care Act [Pub. L. 111-148 & 111-152]? No

Is this ICR related to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, [Pub. L. 111-203]? No

Is this ICR related to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA)? No

Is this ICR related to the Pandemic Response? Yes

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Common Form ICR:  No

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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:

(a) It is necessary for the proper performance of agency functions;

(b) It avoids unnecessary duplication;

(c) It reduces burden on small entities;

(d) It uses plain, coherent, and unambiguous language that is understandable to respondents;

(e) Its implementation will be consistent and compatible with current reporting and recordkeeping practices;

(f) It indicates the retention periods for recordkeeping requirements;

(g) It informs respondents of the information called for under 5 CFR 1320.8 (b)(3) about:

(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;

(h) It was developed by an office that has planned and allocated resources for the efficient and effective management and use of the information to be collected.

(i) It uses effective and efficient statistical survey methodology (if applicable); and

(j) It makes appropriate use of information technology.

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.

Certification Date: 11/10/2021

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