Notice2021-13328
Notice of Request for Renewal and Revision of the Currently Approved Information Collection
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
June 24, 2021
Issuing agencies
Agriculture DepartmentFederal Crop Insurance Corporation
Abstract
In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Farm Service Agency (FSA) and Risk Management Agency (RMA) are requesting comments from all interested individuals and organizations on a revision of a currently approved paperwork package associated with the Acreage and Crop Reporting Streamlining Initiative (ACRSI).
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 119 (Thursday, June 24, 2021)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 119 (Thursday, June 24, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33209-33211]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2021-13328]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Federal Crop Insurance Corporation
[Docket No. FCIC-21-0006]
Notice of Request for Renewal and Revision of the Currently
Approved Information Collection
AGENCY: Federal Crop Insurance Corporation, USDA.
ACTION: Renewal and revision of the currently approved information
collection.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the
Farm Service Agency (FSA) and Risk Management Agency (RMA) are
requesting comments from all interested individuals and organizations
on a revision of a currently approved paperwork package associated with
the Acreage and Crop Reporting Streamlining Initiative (ACRSI).
DATES: Written comments on this notice will be accepted until close of
business August 23, 2021.
[[Page 33210]]
ADDRESSES: We invite you to submit comments on this information
collection request. In your comments, include the date, volume, and
page number of this issue of the Federal Register, and the title of
rule. You may submit comments by any of the following methods, although
FCIC prefers that you submit comments electronically through the
Federal eRulemaking Portal:
<bullet> Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">http://www.regulations.gov</a> and search for Docket ID FCIC-21-0006. Follow the
online instructions for submitting comments.
<bullet> Mail: Todd Anderson, United States Department of
Agriculture, FSA, DAFP, PDD, 1400 Independence Ave. SW, Mail Stop 0570,
Washington, DC 20250-0570; or David Zanoni, RMA, United States
Department of Agriculture, P.O. Box 419205, Kansas City, MO 64133-6205.
All comments received, including those received by mail, will be
posted without change and publicly available on <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">http://www.regulations.gov</a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Todd Anderson, United States
Department of Agriculture, FSA, DAFP, PDD, Washington, DC 20250-0570,
(202) 720-9106; or David Zanoni, RMA, United States Department of
Agriculture, P.O. Box 419205, Kansas City, MO 64133-6205, (816) 926-
6142.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: Acreage/Crop Reporting Streamlining Initiative (ACRSI).
OMB Number: 0563-0084.
Expiration Date of Approval: October 31, 2021.
Type of Request: Extension of a currently approved information
collection.
Abstract: The currently approved information collection of OMB
Number 0563-0084 is up for renewal and we are requesting an extension
for 3 years. FSA and RMA are requesting comments from all interested
individuals and organizations on the information collection request
associated with ACRSI. FSA and RMA have established the procedures,
processes, and standards to simplify commodity and acreage reporting by
producers, eliminate or minimize duplication of information collection
by multiple agencies, and reduce the burden on producers, allowing
producers to report this information through FSA county office service
centers, insurance agents, or through precision ag technology
capabilities. FSA and RMA implemented a streamlined reporting solution
to establish a common data collection and reporting capability that
supports USDA's programs.
RMA is continuing to improve the existing Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) approved information collections for RMA, 0563-0053,
Multiple Peril Crop Insurance, acreage information, generally collected
from the respondent during a personal visit to the FSA Service Center
and again from the respondent during a personal visit with the
insurance agent.
The forms are still available to accommodate respondents with no
internet access and those who wish to continue to personally visit the
FSA Service Center and insurance agent to report this common
information.
Information reported to the common data collection and reporting
capability (otherwise known as the Clearinghouse) are shared by both
FSA and RMA, as well as other USDA agencies, such as NRCS and NASS that
have the authority and need for such information. With continued ACRSI
process enhancements, some or all of the commodity and acreage
information in the existing approved information collections are
reported through this solution. Furthermore, the information collected
are the same as the information currently approved. Additionally, the
respondent will continue to report their common information one time
through a single source thereby reducing the respondent's burden of
reporting such common information and eliminating the duplicate
reporting that may be currently required. The information collected
will continue to be the same as the information currently approved and
are used in the same manner it would be used if reported separately to
each agency. The producers are continuing to use their precision-ag
systems, farm management information systems, or download data files to
directly report certain commodity and acreage information needed to
participate in USDA programs.
The information being collected may consist of, but not be limited
to: Producer name, customer/tax ID, state, county, commodity name,
commodity type or variety, intended use, date planted, planted acreage,
and land location (which may include legal description, FSA farm
number, FSA tract number, FSA field number, geospatial as-planted field
boundaries, Resource Land Unit, etc.).
FSA and RMA continues to enhance the ACRSI process. The
effectiveness and lessons learned from each phase informed changes and
expansions in subsequent phases. The first phase was initiated in the
fall of 2011 in Dickenson, Marion, McPherson, and Saline Counties in
Kansas, and only for the collection of information from producers
regarding winter wheat. The second phase was implemented in the spring
of 2015 in 30 counties of Illinois and Iowa covering 9 crops. The third
phase was implemented in the fall of 2015 in all counties of 15 states
covering 9 crops. The fourth phase was implemented in the spring of
2016 in all counties nationwide covering 13 crops and about 90 percent
of reported acreage. The fifth phase was implemented in the fall of
2016 expanding nationwide coverage to 16 crops and about 93 percent of
reported acreage. The sixth phase was implemented in the fall of 2017
expanding nationwide coverage to 25 crops and about 94 percent of
reported acreage. Since that time, ACRSI has continuously added more
crops and types that now covers over 97 percent of insurable acreage.
The program will continue to add crops and types over time to stay
current; however, there are no crops left to cross walk that have major
acreage impacts.
RMA and FSA additionally piloted a process to allow external
providers to submit required data from precision agriculture or farm
management information systems. This 2018 Pilot used planting data from
Nebraska producers that was disseminated to the Agencies through the
ACRSI Clearinghouse process. At that point for FSA, continued post
processing of the data was manually labor intensive. Pilot findings
identified the need for further software development by FSA to continue
to automate the processing of geospatial land location data to further
enhance the ACRSI process to ensure statutory criteria are met for
Federal crop insurance, FSA, and Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC)
programs, the collection of commodity and acreage information is
necessary. This is not a request for a change, addition, or deletion to
the currently approved information collections.
However, the existing approved information collection will be
updated, modified or eliminated, as applicable, to reflect the
reduction in burden on the respondents as the ACRSI process is
enhanced.
Respondents: Producers.
Estimated Annual Number of Respondents Utilizing the Web-Based
Single Source Reporting System and Benefiting From Sharing Information
Between Agencies: 500,000.
Estimated Annual Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.5.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents Utilizing the Web-
Based Single Source Reporting System and Benefiting From Having That
[[Page 33211]]
Information Shared Between Agencies: 187,500 hours.
We are requesting comments on all aspects of this information
collection to help us to:
(1) Evaluate whether the collection of information is necessary for
the proper performance of the functions of the agencies, including
whether the information will have practical utility;
(2) Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of burden
including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used;
(3) Enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the information to
be collected;
(4) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those
who are to respond through use of appropriate automated, electronic,
mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms
to technology.
All comments in response to this notice, including names and
addresses when provided, will be a matter of public record. Comments
will be summarized and included in the request for Office of Management
and Budget (OMB) approval.
Richard Flournoy,
Acting Manager, Federal Crop Insurance Corporation.
[FR Doc. 2021-13328 Filed 6-23-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-08-P
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