Notice2023-25915
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; USA National Phenology Network-The Nature's Notebook Plant and Animal Observing 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
November 24, 2023
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentGeological Survey
Abstract
In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is proposing to extend an information collection.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 225 (Friday, November 24, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 225 (Friday, November 24, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 82396-82397]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-25915]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Geological Survey
[GX23BA000AD0100; OMB Control Number 1028-0103]
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the
Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; USA National
Phenology Network--The Nature's Notebook Plant and Animal Observing
Program
AGENCY: U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior.
ACTION: Notice of information collection; request for comment.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA),
the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is proposing to extend an information
collection.
DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before
December 26, 2023.
ADDRESSES: Send written comments on this information collection request
(ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget's Desk Officer for the
Department of the Interior by email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#c18e8893809e92b4a3aca8b2b2a8aeaf81aeaca3efa4aeb1efa6aeb7"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="7e31372c3f212d0b1c13170d0d1711103e11131c501b110e50191108">[email protected]</span></a>; or
via facsimile to (202) 395-5806. Please provide a copy of your comments
to the USGS, Information Collections Clearance Officer, 12201 Sunrise
Valley Drive MS 159, Reston, VA 20192; or by email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#5a3d297733343c3505393536363f392e333534291a2f293d29743d352c"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="5b3c287632353d3404383437373e382f323435281b2e283c28753c342d">[email protected]</span></a>. Please reference OMB Control Number 1028-
0103 Nature's Notebook in the subject line of your comments.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request additional information
about this ICR, contact Melanie J. Steinkamp by email at
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#cda0beb9a8a4a3a6aca0bd8db8beaabee3aaa2bb"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="69041a1d0c000702080419291c1a0e1a470e061f">[email protected]</span></a> or by telephone at 703-261-3128.You may also view
the ICR at <a href="http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain">http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain</a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In accordance with the PRA, (44 U.S.C. 3501
et seq.) and 5 CFR 1320.8(d)(1), all information collections require
approval. We may not conduct or sponsor, nor are you required to
respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently
valid OMB control number.
A Federal Register notice with a 60-day public comment period
soliciting comments on this collection of information was published on
August 4, 2023 (88 FR 51851). No comments were received.
As part of our continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent
burdens, we invite the public and other federal agencies to comment on
new,
[[Page 82397]]
proposed, revised, and continuing collections of information. This
helps us assess the impact of our information collection requirements
and minimize the public's reporting burden. It also helps the public
understand our information collection requirements and provide the
requested data in the desired format.
We are especially interested in public comment addressing the
following:
(1) Whether or not the collection of information is necessary for
the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including
whether or not the information will have practical utility;
(2) The accuracy of our estimate of the burden for this collection
of information, including the validity of the methodology and
assumptions used;
(3) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
(4) How the agency might minimize the burden of the collection of
information on those who are to respond, including through the use of
appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological
collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g.,
permitting electronic submission of response.
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 personally identifiable information
(PII) in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment--
including your PII--may be made publicly available at any time. While
you can ask us in your comment to withhold your PII from public review,
we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
Abstract: The USA-National Phenology Network is a program sponsored
by the USGS that uses standardized forms for tracking plant and animal
activity as part of a project called Nature's Notebook. The Nature's
Notebook forms are used to record phenology (e.g., the timing of the
leafing or flowering of plants and the reproduction or migration of
animals) as part of a nationwide effort to understand and predict how
plants and animals respond to environmental variation and changes in
weather and climate. Contemporary data collected through Nature's
Notebook are quality-checked, described, and made publicly available;
data are used to inform decision-making in a variety of contexts,
including agriculture, drought monitoring, and wildfire risk
assessment. Phenological information is also critical for the
management of wildlife, invasive species, and agricultural pests, and
for understanding and managing risks to human health and welfare,
including allergies, asthma, and vector-borne diseases. Participants
may contribute phenology information to Nature's Notebook through a
browser-based web application or via mobile applications for iPhone and
Android operating systems, meeting Government Paperwork Elimination Act
(GPEA) and Privacy Act requirements. The web application interface
consists of several components: User registration; a searchable list of
1,756 plant and animal species that can be observed; a ``profile'' for
each species that contains information about the species including its
description and the appropriate monitoring protocols; a series of
interfaces for registering as an observer, registering an observation
site, and registering plants and animals at an observation site;
generating datasheets to take to the field, and a data entry page that
mimics the datasheets.
Title of Collection: USA NATIONAL PHENOLOGY NETWORK--THE NATURE'S
NOTEBOOK PLANT AND ANIMAL OBSERVING PROGRAM.
OMB Control Number: 1028-0103.
Form Number: None.
Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.
Respondents/Affected Public: Members of the public registered with
Nature's Notebook, State Cooperative Extension employees, and Tribal
members.
Total Estimated Number of Annual Respondents: 6,598.
Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 4,102,388.
Estimated Completion Time per Response: Upon joining the program,
each of the 6,598 respondents is expected to spend 13 minutes to
register and read guidelines for an annual burden of 1,430 hours. New
and existing respondents are expected to spend about two minutes on
each observation and submission of a phenophase status record. Given a
projection of 4,102,388 phenophase status responses each year, annual
burden of observation and submission of records is 136,746 hours. Thus,
the Total Estimated Annual Burden is 138,176 hours.
Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.
Frequency of Collection: On occasion; depends on the seasonal
activity of plants and animals.
Non-hour burden costs may be incurred for optional items such as
clipboards, pencils, flags, markers, stakes, tags and/or popsicle
sticks. We estimate that only 20% of users (i.e., 1,320) will incur
these costs, at an estimated cost of $2.52 per user, for a Total
Estimated Annual Non-hour Burden cost of $3,327.
An agency may not conduct or sponsor, nor is a person required to
respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently
valid OMB control number.
The authority for this action is the PRA of 1995.
Melanie J. Steinkamp,
Species Management Research Program Coordinator, Ecosystems Mission
Area, U.S. Geological Survey.
[FR Doc. 2023-25915 Filed 11-22-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4338-11-P
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