Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to OMB for Review and Approval; Comment Request; Chemical-Specific Rules, Toxic Substances Control Act Section 8(a), EPA ICR No. 1198.07, OMB No. 2070-0067

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), this document announces that the following Information Collection Request (ICR) has been forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval: Chemical-Specific Rules, Toxic Substances Control Act Section 8(a) (EPA ICR No. 1198.07, OMB No. 2070-0067). This is a request to renew an existing approved collection. This ICR is scheduled to expire on April 30, 2004. Under OMB regulations, the Agency may continue to conduct or sponsor the collection of information while this submission is pending at OMB. This ICR describes the nature of the information collection and its estimated cost.

DATES:

Additional comments may be submitted on or before May 14, 2004.

ADDRESSES:

Submit your comments, referencing docket ID Number OPPT-2003-0066, to (1) EPA online using EDOCKET (our preferred method), by e-mail to oppt.ncic@epa.gov or by mail to: Document Control Office (DCO), Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT), Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 7407T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460, and (2) OMB at: Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Attention: Desk Officer for EPA, 725 17th Street, NW., Washington, DC 20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Barbara Cunningham, Acting Director, Environmental Assistance Division, Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics, Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 7408, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460; telephone number: 202-554-1404; e-mail address: TSCA-Hotline@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

EPA has submitted the following ICR to OMB for review and approval according to the procedures prescribed in 5 CFR 1320.12. On December 15, 2003, EPA sought comments on this renewal ICR (68 FR 69680) pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.8(d). EPA received no comments during the comment period. Any additional comments related to this ICR should be submitted to EPA and OMB within 30 days of this notice using the methods described under the ADDRESSES section of this document.

EPA has established a public docket for this ICR under Docket ID No. OPPT-2003-0066, which is available for public viewing at the Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT) Docket in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room B102, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The EPA Docket Center Public Reading Room is open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Reading Room is 202-566-1744, and the telephone number for the OPPT Docket is 202-566-0280. An electronic version of the public docket is available through EDOCKET at http://www.epa.gov/edocket . Use EDOCKET to submit or view public comments, access the index listing of the contents of the public docket, and to access those documents in the public docket that are available electronically. Once in the system, select “search,” then key in the docket ID number identified above.

EPA's policy is that public comments, whether submitted electronically or in paper, will be made available for public viewing in EDOCKET as EPA receives them and without change, unless the comment contains copyrighted material, CBI, or other information whose public disclosure is restricted by statute. When EPA identifies a comment containing copyrighted material, EPA will provide a reference to that material in the version of the comment that is placed in EDOCKET. The entire printed comment, including the copyrighted material, will be available in the public docket. Although identified as an item in the official docket, information claimed as CBI, or whose disclosure is otherwise restricted by statute, is not included in the official public docket, and will not be available for public viewing in EDOCKET. For further information about the electronic docket, see EPA's Federal Register notice describing the electronic docket at 67 FR 38102 (May 31, 2002), or go to www.epa.gov/edocket .

ICR Title: Chemical-Specific Rules, Toxic Substances Control Act Section 8(a).

Abstract: Section 8(a) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) authorizes the Administrator of the EPA to promulgate rules that require persons who manufacture, import or process chemical substances and mixtures, or who propose to manufacture, import, or process chemical substances and mixtures, to maintain such records and submit such reports to EPA as may be reasonably required. Any chemical covered by TSCA for which EPA or another Federal agency has a reasonable need for information and which cannot be satisfied via other sources is a proper potential subject for a chemical-specific TSCA section 8(a) rulemaking. Information that may be collected under TSCA section 8(a) includes, but is not limited to, chemical names, categories of use, production volume, byproducts of chemical production, existing data on deaths and environmental effects, exposure data, and disposal information. Generally, EPA uses chemical-specific information under TSCA section 8(a) to evaluate the potential for adverse human health and environmental effects caused by the manufacture, importation, processing, use or disposal of identified chemical substances and mixtures. Additionally, EPA may use TSCA section 8(a) information to assess the need or set priorities for testing and/or further regulatory action. To the extent that reported information is not considered confidential, environmental groups, environmental justice advocates, state and local government entities and other members of the public will also have access to this information for their own use.

Responses to the collection of information are mandatory (see 40 CFR part 704). Respondents may claim all or part of a notice as CBI. EPA will disclose information that is covered by a CBI claim only to the extent permitted by, and in accordance with, the procedures in 40 CFR part 2.

An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The OMB control numbers for EPA's regulations in title 40 of the CFR, after appearing in the Federal Register, are listed in 40 CFR part 9 and included on the related collection instrument or form, if applicable.

Burden Statement: The annual public reporting and recordkeeping burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 68.8 hour per response. Burden means the total time, effort or financial resources expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain or disclose or provide information to or for a Federal agency. This includes the time needed to review instructions; develop, acquire, install and utilize technology and systems for the purposes of collecting, validating and verifying information, processing and maintaining information, and disclosing and providing information; adjust the existing ways to comply with any previously applicable instructions and requirements; train personnel to be able to respond to a collection of information; search data sources; complete and review the collection of information; and transmit or otherwise disclose the information.

Respondents/Affected Entities: Companies that manufacture, process or import, or propose to manufacture, process or import, chemical substances and mixtures.

Frequency of Collection: On occasion.

Estimated No. of Respondents: 4.

Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 275 hours.

Estimated Total Annual Burden Costs: $11,702.

Changes in Burden Estimates: There are no changes in burden estimates from the last approval.