Submission of Study Package to Office of Management and Budget; Opportunity for Public Comment

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

Submission of Study Package to Office of Management and Budget;

Opportunity for Public Comment

AGENCY: Department of the Interior; National Park Service; and Acadia

National Park.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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ABSTRACT: The National Park Service (NPS) Visitor Services Project and

Acadia National Park propose to conduct visitor surveys to learn about

visitor demographics and visitor opinions about services and facilities

in Acadia National Park. The results of the surveys will be used by

park managers to improve the services they provide to visitors while

better protecting park natural and cultural resources. A study package

that includes the proposed survey questionnaire for the proposed Acadia

National Park study has been submitted to the Office of Management and

Budget for review.

SUMMARY: Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

and 5 CFR part 1320, Reporting and Record Keeping Requirements, the NPS

invites public comment on the proposed information collection request

(ICR). Comments are invited on: (1) The need for the information

including whether the information has practical utility; (2) the

accuracy of the reporting burden estimate; (3) ways to enhance the

quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and

(4) ways to minimize the burden of the information collection on

respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or

other forms of information technology. The purpose of the proposed ICR

is to document the demographics of visitors to Acadia National Park, to

learn about the motivations and expectations these visitors have for

their park visit, and to obtain their opinions regarding services

provided by the park and the suitability of the visitor facilities

maintained in the park. This information will be used by park planners

and managers to plan, develop, and operate visitor services and

facilities in ways that maximize use of limited park financial and

personnel resources to meet the expectations and desires of park

visitors.

There were no public comments received as a result of publishing in

the Federal Register a 60 day notice of intention to request clearance

of information collection for this survey.

DATES: Public comments will be accepted on or before May 11, 1998.

SEND COMMENTS TO: Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs of OMB,

Attention Desk Officer for the Interior Department, Office of

Management and Budget, Washington, DC 20530; and also to: Margaret

Littlejohn; Cooperative Park Studies Unit; Department of Forest

Resources; College of Forestry, Wildlife and Range Sciences; University

of Idaho; Moscow, ID 83844-1133.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION OR A COPY OF THE STUDY PACKAGE SUBMITTED FOR

OMB REVIEW, CONTACT:

Margaret Littlejohn, phone: 208-885-7863, fax: 208-885-4261, or email:

[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

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Title: National Park Service (NPS) Visitor Services Project Visitor

Survey at Acadia National Park.

Form: Not applicable.

OMB Number: To be assigned.

Expiration Date: To be assigned.

Type of Request: Request for new clearance.

Description of Need: The National Park Service needs information

concerning visitor demographics and visitor opinions about the services

and facilities that the National Park Service provides in Acadia

National Park.

The proposed information to be collected regarding visitors in this

park is not available from existing records, sources, or observations.

Automated Data Collection: At the present time, there is no

automated way to gather this information, since it includes asking

visitors to evaluate services and facilities that they used during

their park visit. The intrusion on visitors to the park is minimized by

only contacting visitors during one 7-9 day period.

Description of Respondents: A sample of visitors to Acadia National

Park.

Estimated Average Number of Respondents: 864.

Estimated Average Number of Responses: Each respondent will respond

only one time, so the number of responses will be the same as the

number of respondents.

Estimated Average Burden Hours Per Response: 12 minutes.

Frequency of Response: One time per respondent.

Estimated Annual Reporting Burden: 173 hours.

Diane M. Cooke,

Information Collection Clearance Officer, WASO Administrative Program

Center, National Park Service.

[FR Doc. 98-9483 Filed 4-9-98; 8:45 am]

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