Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Office of the Secretary

Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

ACTION: Notice.

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The Department of Defense has submitted to OMB for clearance, the

following proposal for collection of information under the provisions

of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35).

Title and OMB Number: Gulf War Illnesses Related Information

Collections--Generic Clearance; OMB Number 0704-[To be Determined].

Type of Request: New Collection.

Number of Respondents: 3,507.

Responses Per Respondent: 1.

Annual Responses: 3,507.

Average Burden Per Response: 45 minutes.

Annual Burden Hours: 2,630.

Needs And Uses: The information collections addressed by this

notice are necessary to facilitate the investigations of the Office of

the Special Assistant for Gulf War Illnesses into the experiences of

Gulf War veterans during the war that may be related to the illnesses

experienced by some Gulf War veterans. The information collected will

be used to determine which Gulf War veterans may have further

information about potential exposure incidents, to discover if there

are any other observed incidents of exposure, to contribute to a better

understanding of the events during and after the Gulf War, and to

encourage veterans to enroll in a Department of Defense or Veterans

Affairs medical program.

Information collections covered in the proposed collection

Chemical/Biological Incident Survey. Respondents are Gulf War veterans

whose units were in the vicinity of a positive chemical/biological

detection, alarm, or other reported incident. The purpose of this

survey is to develop investigational leads to assist investigators in

their search for confirmation of the presence or use of chemical or

biological agents during the Gulf War.

Possible Weapons Sites. Respondents are Gulf War veterans who

served in units that reported possible storage sites for chemical or

biological weapons agents. The purpose of this survey is to develop

possible investigational leads that may assist investigators in their

search for confirmation of the presence or use of chemical or

biological agents during the Gulf War.

Depleted Uranium. Respondents are Gulf War veterans who served in

units that may have placed them in contact with equipment potentially

contaminated with depleted uranium (DU). Veterans will include

personnel who were in or on U.S. combat vehicles at the time they were

struck by DU munitions fired from U.S. tanks and personnel who were in

contact with equipment either as a member of unit involved in

retrograde operations, or as a member of a battle damage assessment

team.

Pesticide Exposure Survey. Respondents are Gulf War veterans.

Outreach letters will be mailed to Gulf War veterans based on their

unit assignment during the Gulf War and their period of deployment.

Calls will be made to respondents to ask information on experiences

with pesticides during the Gulf War deployment.

Pesticides Use/Application. Gulf War veterans who served as

physicians, environmental science officers, entomologists, preventive

medicine specialists, field sanitation team members, and veterans who

served in logistics and supply positions will be contacted to determine

which pesticides were used (including those purchased locally) and how

they were employed in the Gulf during Operations Desert Shield and

Desert Storm.

Water Contamination. Respondents will be preventive medicine

specialists, field sanitation specialists, and transportation personnel

involved with the maintenance of water transport vehicles who served in

the Gulf War.

Food Contamination. Respondents will be preventive medicine

specialists, field sanitation specialists, and food service personnel

to determine what steps were taken to ensure the safety of the food

provided to Gulf War troops.

Oil Well Fires. Respondents will be Gulf War veterans who reported

contact with oil well fires in calls to the DoD Incident Reporting

Line. Veterans will be contacted to get first hand accounts of their

experience with oil well fire smoke, precautions they took, and the

duration of their exposure under the oil well fire plume.

Retrograde Equipment. Respondents will be Gulf War veterans

involved in vehicle cleaning operations prior to vehicles being shipped

from the Gulf and personnel who accompanied vehicles during their

retrograde shipment.

Armed Services Medical Department Personnel. Respondents will be

medical personnel who served in the Gulf War. These personnel will be

contacted to complete a survey of their experiences with medical

surveillance, vaccine administration, and medical recordkeeping during

the Gulf War deployment.

Combat Stress Control. Respondents will be military chaplains who

served in the Gulf War. These chaplains will be surveyed to understand

their experiences as participants in combat stress control.

Enemy Prisoners of War. Respondents will be Gulf War veterans who

served in military police or medical units that were involved in the

processing and treatment of enemy prisoners of war during the Gulf War

deployment.

Petroleums, Oils, and Lubricants. Respondents will be Gulf War

veterans who served in units during the Gulf War deployment that were

involved in the acquisition, distribution, and use of petroleums, oils,

and lubricants.

Personnel Deployed on Designated Deployments. Respondents will be

former members of the Armed Services (including active and reserve

component) who served during designated deployments. Personnel will be

surveyed about their perceptions and experiences with Medical Force

Protection, Medical Surveillance, and health support during the

designated deployment.

Affected Public: Individuals or Households.

Frequency: On occasion.

Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.

OMB Desk Officer: Ms. Allison Eydt.

Written comments and recommendations on the proposed information

collection should be sent to Ms. Eydt at the Office of Management and

Budget, Desk Officer for DoD, Room 10235, New Executive Office

Building, Washington, DC 20503.

DoD Clearance Officer: Mr. Robert Cushing.

Written requests for copies of the information collection proposal

should be sent to Mr. Cushing, WHS/DIOR, 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway,

Suite 1204, Arlington, VA 22202-4302.

Dated: August 26, 1998.

Patricia L. Toppings,

Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison Officer, Department of Defense.

[FR Doc. 98-23391 Filed 8-31-98; 8:45am]

BILLING CODE 5000-04-M