Notice2024-29026
Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request; Criteria and Non-Criteria Agricultural Clearance Order Forms and H-2A Application for Temporary Employment Certification in States and by Employers Covered by Injunction of the Farmworker Protection
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
December 11, 2024
Issuing agencies
Labor DepartmentEmployment and Training Administration
Abstract
The Department of Labor's (DOL) Employment and Training Administration (ETA) is soliciting comments concerning a proposed extension for the authority to conduct the information collection request (ICR) titled, "Criteria and Non-Criteria Agricultural Clearance Order Forms and H-2A Application for Temporary Employment Certification in States and by Employers Covered by Injunction of the Farmworker Protection Rule" and the related information collection and retention requirements (Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Control Number 1205-0562), which covers Forms ETA-9142A, Application for H-2A Temporary Employment Certification; ETA-9142A, Appendix A, Assurances and Obligations; ETA-9142A, Final Determination: H-2A Temporary Labor Certification Approval; ETA-790, Agricultural Clearance Order; ETA- 790A, H-2A Agricultural Clearance Order; ETA-790/790A, Addendum A, Additional Crops or Agricultural Activities; ETA-790/790A, Addendum B, Additional Worksite and/or Housing Information; ETA-790B, (Non- Criteria) Agricultural Clearance Order; and related form instructions. This comment request is part of continuing Departmental efforts to reduce paperwork and respondent burden in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA).
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 238 (Wednesday, December 11, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 238 (Wednesday, December 11, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 99908-99909]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-29026]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Employment and Training Administration
Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request;
Criteria and Non-Criteria Agricultural Clearance Order Forms and H-2A
Application for Temporary Employment Certification in States and by
Employers Covered by Injunction of the Farmworker Protection
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Labor's (DOL) Employment and Training
Administration (ETA) is soliciting comments concerning a proposed
extension for the authority to conduct the information collection
request (ICR) titled, ``Criteria and Non-Criteria Agricultural
Clearance Order Forms and H-2A Application for Temporary Employment
Certification in States and by Employers Covered by Injunction of the
Farmworker Protection Rule'' and the related information collection and
retention requirements (Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Control
Number 1205-0562), which covers Forms ETA-9142A, Application for H-2A
Temporary Employment Certification; ETA-9142A, Appendix A, Assurances
and Obligations; ETA-9142A, Final Determination: H-2A Temporary Labor
Certification Approval; ETA-790, Agricultural Clearance Order; ETA-
790A, H-2A Agricultural Clearance Order; ETA-790/790A, Addendum A,
Additional Crops or Agricultural Activities; ETA-790/790A, Addendum B,
Additional Worksite and/or Housing Information; ETA-790B, (Non-
Criteria) Agricultural Clearance Order; and related form instructions.
This comment request is part of continuing Departmental efforts to
reduce paperwork and respondent burden in accordance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA).
DATES: Consideration will be given to all written comments received by
February 10, 2025.
ADDRESSES: A copy of this ICR with applicable supporting documentation,
including a description of the likely respondents, proposed frequency
of response, and estimated total burden, may be obtained for free by
contacting Brian Pasternak, Administrator, Office of Foreign Labor
Certification, by telephone at 202-693-8200 (this is not a toll-free
number), TTY 1-877-889-5627 (this is not a toll-free number), or by
email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#5e1b0a1f730e0c1f1e3a313270393128"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="befbeaff93eeecfffedad1d290d9d1c8">[email protected]</span></a>.
Instructions: Submit written comments about, or requests for a copy
of, this ICR by email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#521706137f02001312363d3e7c353d24"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="9fdacbdeb2cfcddedffbf0f3b1f8f0e9">[email protected]</span></a>. To ensure proper
consideration, include the OMB Control number 1205-0562.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Patrice Gibson, by telephone at 202-
693-8200 (this is not a toll-free number) or by email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#5a1f0e1b770a081b1a3e3536743d352c"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="cc89988de19c9e8d8ca8a3a0e2aba3ba">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: DOL, as part of continuing efforts to reduce
paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a pre-clearance consultation
program to provide the general public and Federal agencies an
opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing collections of
information before submitting them to the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) for final approval. This program helps to ensure requested
data can be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and
financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly
understood, and the impact of collection requirements can be properly
assessed.
The information collection is required by secs.
101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(a), 214(c), and 218 of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (INA) (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(a), 1184(c), and
1188), as well as 8 CFR 214.2(h)(5) and 20 CFR part 655, subpart B, and
20 CFR part 653, subpart F, and 29 CFR part 501. The H-2A visa program
enables employers to bring nonimmigrant foreign workers to the United
States to perform agricultural work of a seasonal or temporary nature
as defined in 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(H)(ii)(a). Before an employer can
file a petition with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to
import temporary workers as H-2A nonimmigrants, the INA and DHS
regulations require an employer to first obtain a determination from
DOL certifying whether a qualified U.S. worker is available to fill the
job opportunity described in the employer's petition for a temporary
agricultural worker and whether a foreign worker's employment in the
job opportunity will adversely affect the wages or working conditions
of similarly employed workers in the U.S. 8 U.S.C. 1188, INA sec. 218;
8 CFR 214.2(h)(5)(i), (ii), and (iv)(B). DOL's regulations establish
the processes by which an employer must obtain a temporary labor
certification from DOL and the rights and obligations of workers and
employers. 20 CFR part 655, subpart B; 29 CFR part 501.
This ICR, OMB Control No. 1205-0562, includes the collection of
information related to the temporary labor certification process and
agricultural clearance order process, which may or may not be connected
to the H-2A program. The information contained in the application Form
ETA-9142A, H-2A Application for Temporary Employment Certification, and
job order Form ETA-790/790A, H-2A Agricultural Clearance Order,
together serve as the basis for the Secretary of Labor's determination
that qualified U.S. workers are not available to perform the services
or labor needed by the employer and that the wages and working
conditions of similarly employed workers in the U.S. will not be
adversely affected by the employment of H-2A workers. Employers use
Appendix A of Form ETA-9142A to attest that they will comply with all
of the terms, conditions, and obligations of the H-2A program. ETA is
seeking a three-year extension, without change, for each of these
forms.
DOL uses Form ETA-9142A and Forms ETA 790/790A to meet its
statutory and regulatory responsibilities for administering the H-2A
program. Similarly, DOL uses Forms ETA 790/790B to administer the
Agricultural Recruitment System (ARS). Employers seeking to use the H-
2A program to employ nonimmigrant workers to perform agricultural
services or labor on
[[Page 99909]]
a temporary or seasonal basis must submit a completed agricultural
clearance order (Forms ETA790/790A) and Application for Temporary
Employment Certification (Form ETA 9142A) electronically through the
Office of Foreign Labor Certification's Foreign Labor Application
Gateway (FLAG) system. Employers seeking to employ U.S. workers through
the ARS intrastate and interstate job clearance system, without also
intending to use the H-2A visa program, must submit a completed
agricultural clearance order (Forms ETA 790/790B) to the applicable
State Workforce Agency.
DOL published an emergency PRA Federal Register Notice that would
allow the Department to retain the current H-2A and ARS forms for use
by the parties subject to the Kansas v. DOL litigation, while also
providing DOL the authority to simultaneously proceed with
implementation of the new H-2A forms under OMB number 1205-0466 that
went into effect under the Farmworker Protection Rule on September 12,
2024, and the new ARS forms under OMB number 1205-0134 that went into
effect on July 11, 2024. The emergency PRA clearance would allow DOL to
utilize prior approved Forms ETA 790, 790A, 790B, and 9142A, which are
necessary to ensure continuity in administering the H-2A program and
the ARS nationwide. See 89 FR 73725. On September 12, 2024, OMB
approved and granted DOL emergency approval of this new OMB Control
number through February 28, 2025, and provided a new OMB Control Number
of 1205-0562 for this new ICR.
This information collection is subject to the PRA. A Federal agency
generally cannot conduct or sponsor a collection of information, and
the public is generally not required to respond to an information
collection, unless it is approved by OMB under the PRA and displays a
currently valid OMB Control Number. In addition, notwithstanding any
other provisions of law, no person shall generally be subject to
penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information that
does not display a valid Control Number. See 5 CFR 1320.5(a) and
1320.6.
Interested parties are encouraged to provide comments to the
contact shown in the ADDRESSES section. Comments must be written to
receive consideration, and they will be summarized and included in the
request for OMB approval of the final ICR. In order to help ensure
appropriate consideration, comments should mention OMB Control Number
1205-0562.
Submitted comments will also be a matter of public record for this
ICR and posted on the internet, without redaction. DOL encourages
commenters not to include personally identifiable information,
confidential business data, or other sensitive statements/information
in any comments.
DOL is particularly interested in comments that:
<bullet> Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency,
including whether the information will have practical utility;
<bullet> Evaluate the accuracy of the Agency's estimate of the
burden of the proposed collection of information, including the
validity of the methodology and assumptions used;
<bullet> Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
<bullet> 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 responses).
Agency: DOL-ETA.
Type of Review: Extension Without Changes.
Title of Collection: Criteria and Non-Criteria Agricultural
Clearance Order Forms and H-2A Application for Temporary Employment
Certification in States and by Employers Covered by Injunction of the
Farmworker Protection Rule.
Forms: ETA-9142A, H-2A Application for Temporary Employment
Certification; ETA-9142A--Appendix A; ETA-9142A--Final Determination:
H-2A Temporary Labor Certification Approval; ETA-790, Agricultural
Clearance Order; ETA-790A, H-2A Agricultural Clearance Order; ETA-790/
790A--Addendum A; ETA-790/790A--Addendum B; ETA-790B (Non-Criteria)
Agricultural Clearance Order.
OMB Control Number: 1205-0562.
Affected Public: Individuals or Households, Private Sector--
businesses or other for-profits, Government, State, Local and Tribal
Governments.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 11,905.
Frequency: On Occasion.
Total Estimated Annual Responses: 141,472.
Estimated Average Time per Response: Varies.
Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 63,906.94 hours.
Total Estimated Annual Other Cost Burden: $0.
Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A).
Jos[eacute] Javier Rodr[iacute]guez,
Assistant Secretary for Employment and Training, Labor.
[FR Doc. 2024-29026 Filed 12-10-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-FP-P
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This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.