Notice2022-15672
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; State Digital Equity Planning Grant Program
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
July 22, 2022
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentNational Telecommunications and Information Administration
Abstract
The Department of Commerce, following the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), invites the public and other Federal agencies to comment on proposed and continuing information collections, which helps us assess the impact of our information collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden. This Notice of Information Collection is for the State Digital Equity Planning Grant Program Semi- Annual Performance (Technical) Report and a Public Annual Report. The purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment preceding the submission of the collection to OMB.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 87 Issue 140 (Friday, July 22, 2022)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 140 (Friday, July 22, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43795-43796]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2022-15672]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
National Telecommunications and Information Administration
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment
Request; State Digital Equity Planning Grant Program
AGENCY: National Telecommunications and Information Administration
(NTIA), Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of information collection, request for comment.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce, following the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995 (PRA), invites the public and other Federal agencies to
comment on proposed and continuing information collections, which helps
us assess the impact of our information collection requirements and
minimize the public's reporting burden. This Notice of Information
Collection is for the State Digital Equity Planning Grant Program Semi-
Annual Performance (Technical) Report and a Public Annual Report. The
purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment
preceding the submission of the collection to OMB.
DATES: To ensure consideration, comments regarding this proposed
information collection must be received on or before September 20,
2022.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments to
Teri Caswell, Broadband Program Specialist, Grants Management and
Compliance, at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#7c081f1d0f0b1910103c1208151d521b130a"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="9febfcfeece8faf3f3dff1ebf6feb1f8f0e9">[email protected]</span></a>. Please reference SDEPG Data
Collection in the subject line of your comments. Do not submit
Confidential Business Information or otherwise sensitive or protected
information.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or
specific questions related to collection activities should be directed
Teri Caswell, Broadband Program Specialist, Grants Management and
Compliance, Office of internet Connectivity and Growth, National
Telecommunication and Information Administration, U.S. Department of
Commerce, 1401 Constitution Avenue NW, Room 4826, Washington, DC 20230,
or by email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#1a7868757b7e787b747e6f697b5a746e737b347d756c"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="80e2f2efe1e4e2e1eee4f5f3e1c0eef4e9e1aee7eff6">[email protected]</span></a> or via telephone at (202) 482-
2048.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Abstract
The State Digital Equity Planning Grant Program (SDEPG), authorized
by Section 60304(c) of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of
2021, Public Law 117-58, 135 Stat. 429 (November 15, 2021)
(Infrastructure Act or Act), provides new federal funding for grants to
eligible applicants for the purpose of developing State Digital Equity
Plans. Through these Plans, each State will, among other things,
identify barriers to digital equity in the State and strategies for
overcoming those barriers. Further, U.S. territories and possessions
(other than Puerto Rico), Indian Tribes, Alaska Native entities, and
Native Hawaiian organizations may also seek grants, cooperative
agreements, or contracts to develop their own digital equity plans and,
in the case of Tribal entities, to provide input into the digital
equity plans of the States in which they are located. The purpose of
SDEPG is to promote the achievement of digital equity, support digital
inclusion activities, and build capacity for efforts by States relating
to the adoption of broadband by residents of those States.
On May 13, 2022, NTIA published the program's Notice of Funding
Opportunity (NOFO) on <a href="http://internetforall.gov">internetforall.gov</a> to describe the requirements
under which it will award grants for the SDEPG.\1\ The NOFO required
award recipients to submit financial reports, performance (technical)
reports, and annual reports to the NTIA Federal Program Officer and the
NIST Grants Officer and Grants Specialist. Award recipients must follow
the reporting requirements described in Sections A.01, Reporting
Requirement, of the Department of Commerce Financial Assistance
Standard Terms and Conditions (dated November 12, 2020). Additionally,
in accordance with 2 CFR part 170, all recipients of a federal award
made on or after October 1, 2010, must comply with reporting
requirements under the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency
Act of 2006 (Pub. L. 109-282).
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\1\ See State Digital Equity Planning Grant Program (DE) Notice
of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) (May 13, 2022), <a href="https://www.internetforall.gov/program/digital-equity-act-programs">https://www.internetforall.gov/program/digital-equity-act-programs</a>.
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NTIA will use the information collected from each award recipient
to effectively administer and monitor the grant program to ensure the
achievement of Digital Equity program purposes and account for the
expenditure of federal funds to deter waste, fraud, and abuse.
II. Method of Collection
State Digital Equity Planning Grant Program
Award recipients will submit financial and performance reports on a
semi-annual basis for the periods ending March 31st and September 30th
of each year, and an annual report no later than one year after
receiving grant funds and until they have expended all funds. NTIA will
collect data through electronic submission.
III. Data
OMB Control Number: 0660-XXXX.
Form Number(s): TBD.
Type of Review: New information collection.
Affected Public: Grant award recipients consisting of States,
territories or possessions of the United States, Indian Tribes, Alaska
Native entities, and Native Hawaiian organizations.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 606.
Estimated Time per Response: 33.22.
Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 60,393.96.
Estimated Total Annual Cost to Public: $2,882,603.71.
Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.
Legal Authority: Section 60304(c) of the Infrastructure Investment
and Jobs Act of 2021, Public Law 117-58, 135 Stat. 429 (November 15,
2021).
IV. Request for Comments
We are soliciting public comments to permit the Department/Bureau
to:
(a) Evaluate whether the proposed information collection is
necessary for the proper functions of the Department, including whether
the information will have practical utility.
(b) Evaluate the accuracy of our estimate of the time and cost
burden for this proposed collection, including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used.
(c) Evaluate ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of
the information to be collected.
(d) Minimize the reporting burden on those who are to respond,
including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of
information technology.
Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of
public record. We will include or summarize each comment in our request
to OMB to approve this ICR. Before including your address, phone
number, email address, or other personal identifying information in
your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment--including
your personal identifying information--may be made publicly available
at any time. While you may ask us in your comment to withhold your
personal identifying information from public review, we
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cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Chief Information
Officer, Department of Commerce.
[FR Doc. 2022-15672 Filed 7-21-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-60-P
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