Proposed Agency Information Collection Request; Comment Request; Servicing of Motor Vehicle Air Conditioners (Renewal)

Cynthia A. Newberg
Environmental Protection Agency
6 June 2018

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 109 (Wednesday, June 6, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26283-26284]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-12163]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-HQ-OAR-2018-0118; FRL-9978-96-OAR]


Proposed Agency Information Collection Request; Comment Request; 
Servicing of Motor Vehicle Air Conditioners (Renewal)

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency is planning to submit an 
information collection request (ICR), ``Servicing of Motor Vehicle Air 
Conditioners (Renewal)'' (EPA ICR No. 1617.09, OMB Control No. 2060-
0247) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and 
approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act. Before doing 
so, EPA is soliciting public comments on specific aspects of the 
proposed information collection as described below. This is a proposed 
extension of the ICR, which is currently approved through December 31, 
2018. 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.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before August 6, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, referencing Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-
2018-0118, online using www.regulations.gov (our preferred method), by 
email to a-and-r-docket@epa.gov, or by mail to: EPA Docket Center, 
Environmental Protection Agency, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania 
Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460.
    EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included in the 
public docket without change including any personal information 
provided, unless the comment includes profanity, threats, information 
claimed to be Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other 
information whose disclosure is restricted by statute.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Christina Thompson, Stratospheric 
Protection Division, Office of Atmospheric Programs (Mail Code 6205T), 
Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, 
DC 20460; telephone number: (202) 564-0983; fax number: (202) 343-2362; 
email address: thompson.christina@epa.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Supporting documents which explain in detail 
the information that the EPA will be collecting are available in the 
public docket for this ICR. The docket can be viewed online at 
www.regulations.gov or in person at the EPA Docket Center, WJC West, 
Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, DC. The telephone 
number for the Docket Center is 202-566-1744. For additional 
information about EPA's public docket, visit http://www.epa.gov/dockets.
    Pursuant to section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA, EPA is soliciting 
comments and information to enable it to: (i) 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; (ii) 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; (iii) enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (iv) 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. EPA 
will consider the comments received and amend the ICR as appropriate. 
The final ICR package will then be submitted to OMB for review and 
approval. At that time, EPA will issue another Federal Register notice 
to announce the submission of the ICR to OMB and the opportunity to 
submit additional comments to OMB.
    Abstract: Section 609 of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 (Act) 
provides general guidelines for the servicing of motor vehicle air 
conditioners (MVACs). It states that ``no person repairing or servicing 
motor vehicles for consideration may perform any service on a motor 
vehicle air conditioner involving the refrigerant for such air 
conditioner without properly using approved refrigerant recycling 
equipment and no such person may perform such service unless such 
person has been properly trained and certified.'' In 1992, EPA 
developed regulations under section 609 that were published in 57 FR 
31240, and codified at 40 CFR Subpart B (Section 82.30 et seq.). The 
information required to be collected under the section 609 regulations 
is: Approved refrigerant handling equipment; approved independent 
standards testing organizations; technician training and certification; 
and certification, reporting and recordkeeping.
    Form Numbers: None.
    Respondents/affected entities: The following is a list of NAICS 
codes for organizations potentially affected by the information 
requirements covered under this ICR. It is meant to include any 
establishment that may service or maintain motor vehicle air 
conditioners.

4411 Automobile Dealers
4413 Automotive Parts, Accessories, and Tire Stores
44711 Gasoline Stations with Convenience Stores
8111 Automotive Repair and Maintenance
811198 All Other Automotive Repair and Maintenance

    Other affected groups include independent standards testing 
organizations and organizations with technician certification programs.
    Respondent's obligation to respond: Mandatory (40 CFR 82.36, 82.38, 
82.40, 82.42).
    Estimated number of respondents: 45,902 (per year).
    Frequency of response: On occasion, biennially, only once.
    Total estimated burden: 4,130 hours (per year). Burden is defined 
at 5 CFR 1320.03(b).
    Total estimated cost: $218,009 (per year), includes $0 annualized 
capital or operation & maintenance costs.
    Changes in Estimates: There is a decrease of 34 hours in the total 
estimated respondent burden compared with the ICR currently approved by

[[Page 26284]]

OMB. This decrease is due in part to a decrease in the number of new 
technician certifications and the time allotted for maintenance of the 
technician certification records. In this ICR EPA estimates the number 
of new technician certifications to be 40,000 per year, a decrease from 
the 50,000 estimated in the previous ICR, based on information provided 
by the largest technician certification program. The maintenance of 
these records is estimated to require 0.067 clerical work hours per 
certification, a decrease from 0.08 hours in the previous ICR, 
recognizing the move towards electronic recordkeeping which may be more 
efficient. Another reason for the burden decrease is a decrease in the 
market for small containers of CFC-12 refrigerant. In this ICR, EPA 
estimates that the number of purchases for resale only by uncertified 
purchasers of small cans will be 50% less than in the previous ICR, or 
approximately 69 purchases, because EPA estimates that there has been 
at least a 50% reduction in the CFC-12 vehicle fleet since 2015.

    Dated: May 23, 2018.
Cynthia A. Newberg,
Director, Stratospheric Protection Division.
[FR Doc. 2018-12163 Filed 6-5-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P