Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP)

AGENCY:

Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, USDA.

ACTION:

Interim final rule and request for comments.

SUMMARY:

This interim final rule establishes the process and procedures for designating veterinarian shortage situations, specifically for the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP) authorized by the National Veterinary Medical Service Act (NVMSA) and administered by the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. CSREES will designate geographic and practice areas that have a shortage of food supply veterinarians in order to carry out the VMLRP goals of strengthening the nation's animal health infrastructure and supplementing the Federal response during animal health emergencies. CSREES will carry out NVMSA by entering into educational loan repayment agreements with veterinarians who agree to provide veterinary services in veterinarian shortage situations for a determined period of time. CSREES is establishing Subpart A for the designation of the veterinarian shortage situations and Subpart B for the administration of the VMLRP.

DATES:

This rule is effective July 9, 2009. The Agency must receive comments by September 8, 2009 for them to be considered in the final rule.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments, identified by RIN 0524-AA43, by any of the following methods:

Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.

E-mail: vmlrp@csrees.usda.gov. Include Regulatory Information Number (RIN) number 0524-AA43 in the subject line of the message.

Fax: 202-401-7752.

Mail: Paper, disk or CD-ROM submissions should be submitted to Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service; U.S. Department of Agriculture, STOP 2299, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20250-2299.

Hand Delivery/Courier: Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Room 2258, Waterfront Centre, 800 9th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20024.

Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name and the RIN for this rulemaking. All comments received will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov,, including any personal information provided.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Gary Sherman, National Program Leader, Veterinary Science, Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, STOP 2220, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20250-2220; Voice: 202-401-4952; Fax: 202-401-6156; e-mail: gsherman@csrees.usda.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background and Purpose

In January 2003, the National Veterinary Medical Service Act (NVMSA) was passed into law, adding section 1415A to the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1997 (NARETPA). This law established a new Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (7 U.S.C. 3151a) authorizing the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out a program of entering into agreements with veterinarians under which they agree to provide veterinary services in veterinarian shortage situations. In November 2005, the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2006 (Pub. L. 109-97) appropriated $495,000 for CSREES to implement the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program and represented the first time funds had been appropriated for this program. In February 2007, the Revised Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2007 (Pub. L. 110-5) appropriated an additional $495,000 to CSREES for support of the program, and in December 2007, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008 appropriated an additional $868,875 to CSREES for support of this program. On March 11, 2009, the Omnibus Appropriations Act, 2009 (Pub. L. 111-8) was enacted, providing an additional $2,950,000 for the VMLRP. Consequently, there is a cumulative total of approximately $4.8 million available for CSREES to administer this program. Funding for future years will be based on annual appropriations and balances from prior years, and will likely vary from year to year.

Section 7105 of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008, Public Law 110-246 (FCEA) amended section 1415A to revise the determination of veterinarian shortage situations to consider (1) geographical areas that the Secretary determines have a shortage of veterinarians; and (2) areas of veterinary practice that the Secretary determines have a shortage of veterinarians, such as food animal medicine, public health, epidemiology, and food safety. This section also added that priority should be given to agreements with veterinarians for the practice of food animal medicine in veterinarian shortage situations.

NARETPA section 1415A requires the Secretary, when determining the amount of repayment for a year of service by a veterinarian, to consider the ability of USDA to maximize the number of agreements from the amounts appropriated and to provide an incentive to serve in veterinary service shortage areas with the greatest need. This section also provides that loan repayments may consist of payments of the principal and interest on government and commercial loans received by the individual for the attendance of the individual at an accredited college of veterinary medicine resulting in a degree of Doctor of Veterinary Medicine or the equivalent. Please note that this program is not authorized to provide repayments for any government or commercial loans incurred during the pursuit of another degree, such as an associate or bachelor degree and, consequently, any consolidated loans (e.g., combined loans for bachelor and Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degrees). Loans eligible for repayment include educational loans made for one or more of the following: Loans for tuition expenses; other reasonable educational expenses, including fees, books, and laboratory expenses, incurred by the individual; and reasonable living expenses as determined by the Secretary. In addition, the Secretary is directed to make such additional payments to participants as the Secretary determines appropriate for the purpose of providing reimbursements to participants for individual tax liability resulting from participation in this program. Finally, this section requires USDA to promulgate regulations within 270 days of the enactment of FCEA (i.e., June 18, 2008). The Secretary delegated the authority to carry out this program to CSREES.

Solicitation of Stakeholder Input

On August 29, 2008, CSREES published a Federal Register notice [73 FR 50928-50929] announcing a public meeting to be held on Monday, September 15, 2008, at the Waterfront Centre in Washington, DC, to solicit stakeholder input as well as the instructions on how to submit written comments by Tuesday, September 30, 2008, on the implementation of VMLRP.

CSREES received oral and written comments from the following veterinary professional associations and organizations: American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC), American College of Veterinary Microbiologists (ACVM), American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians (AAVLD), American College of Veterinary Pathologists (ACVP), National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA), Texas Cattle Feeders Association (TCFA), and Ohio's Cattlemen Association (OCA) as well as a comprehensive joint statement from AVMA and the AAVMC. In addition, CSREES received 27 comments from individuals, most of whom were students at veterinary colleges. CSREES considered all comments received in the development of this interim rule.

As the trade association of America's cattle farmers and ranchers, the NCBA commented that the implementation of VMLRP would “ease the shortage of veterinarians in rural areas, encourage more veterinarians to go into food animal practice, retain food animal veterinarians in rural practices, and help better protect our nation's livestock herds.” The NCBA further commented that livestock producers rely on their local veterinarian for guidance to ensure herd management, disease control, and food product safety; and that the increased complexity of pharmaceutical and biological product use requires additional veterinarian supervision for producers. The NCBA believes that practicing food animal veterinarians is the veterinarian shortage situation with the greatest need. In addition, NCBA feels strongly that the program must be simple and uncomplicated and that administrative costs must be minimized to maximize the number of agreements executed. The TCFA submitted a comment stating that they agree with and support the NCBA comments.

The OCA urged USDA not to stray from the original intent of the legislation to increase the number of practicing food animal veterinarians in rural areas. OCA also stated that Ohio has a very significant shortage of food animal veterinarians and that this program would provide an incentive for veterinarians to practice in underserved rural areas. OCA encouraged flexibility in determining the veterinarian shortage situation as sometimes the lack of food animal veterinarians actually contributes to a reduced number of livestock in the area. Finally, OCA commented on the important role that food animal veterinarians play in the production of a safe and wholesome food supply.

The ACVM, the AAVLD, and the ACVP commented that there are acute shortages of trained veterinarians in disciplines such as pathology, microbiology, toxicology, and parasitology and that often these specialized disciplines require an additional three years of study which contributes to the student debt load, thus presenting a potential barrier to students wishing to pursue further study in these disciplines. These disciplines contribute to the animal, human, and environmental health and the economic well-being of society by engaging in some of the following objectives and activities: Diagnosing disease in food-producing and companion animals (i.e., pets); ensuring safety in food, pharmaceuticals and biological products; and maintaining vigilance against outbreaks of new and emerging diseases. The AAVLD commented that it has recognized for a number of years a severe shortage of veterinarians to staff its diagnostic laboratories. AAVLD laboratories work with USDA in surveillance for, response to, and recovery from foreign animal diseases, and recognition of emerging diseases, primarily through the National Animal Health Laboratory Network (NAHLN). According to AAVLD, many of its laboratories work closely with the Center for Disease Control (CDC) in the Laboratory Response Network (LRN), or with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the Food Emergency Response Network (FERN). All three organizations commented that they wished the VMLRP would be made available to veterinarians willing to pursue residencies or advanced degrees in the above-mentioned disciplines.

In their joint comprehensive set of comments, the AVMA and the AAVMC stated that it is essential for the nation to address the well documented critical workforce shortages in veterinarians pursuing careers in food animal science, food safety, and public health. They continued their veterinary shortage discussion by commenting that the VMLRP will help address the growing disparities in the numbers and types of veterinarians practicing in rural and other underserved locations across the country as well as in areas of veterinary practice with a shortage of veterinarians. According to the statistics provided by the AVMA and the AAVMC, only about 10 percent of the veterinarians practicing in the United States today work in the food animal practice versus 100 percent at the beginning of the last century. In addition, there will continue to be a shortage of veterinarians in food safety and public health. They also cited the significant number of new veterinarians electing to enter companion animal medicine for several reasons, one of which is that the salary level is often higher than in food animal medicine. AVMA and AAVMC also stated that “one of the most daunting obstacles standing in the way of students pursuing a career in food animal medicine is educational debt.” They noted that the average student debt for a veterinary school graduate exceeded $106,000 in 2007 and to repay that sum over a 10-year period would average about $1,200 a month. The AVMA and AAVMC concluded their discussion of the need for the VMLRP by stating that the highest paying jobs in each of the practice categories are typically determined by geography and that jobs in rural areas, where most of the food animal practitioners are in the highest demand, often pay less due to demographics and other economic conditions.

The AVMA and the AAVMC recommended that the loan repayment agreements be for four years with the average annual loan repayment (exclusive of payments for tax liability) ranging from $25,000 to $40,000 per year over the agreement period. They recommended that 90 percent of the agreements be targeted to veterinarians practicing food animal medicine in any underserved area and to food animal medicine veterinarians practicing in rural areas (i.e., with a mixed practice in which at least 30 percent of the practice is devoted to food animals). They further recommended that 10 percent be used to attract and retain veterinarians to critical veterinarian shortage situations in food safety and public health.

The AVMA and the AAVMC recommended that the Secretary, under the guidance of the Federal and state veterinarians, designate the veterinary shortage situations. They felt that these shortage situations are best determined at the state level. With regard to designation of a veterinary shortage situation, the AVMA and the AAVMC recommended that the nominations for these situations address risk, activity, and objective. They recommended CSREES assemble an official review panel of qualified individuals to review the nominations for designation of various shortage situations submitted by the states. In 2007, the AVMA compiled the Food Supply Veterinary Medicine Data Maps which can be found at http://www.avma.org/fsvm/maps/default.asp. As part of their joint comments, AVMA suggested that the data compiled in these maps may be useful in designating veterinarian shortage areas, particularly those related to food animal practices, and they stated that they were committed to keeping this information up-to-date. AVMA and AAVMC also made specific comments on the solicitation, selection criteria, and the administration of these loan repayment agreements, particularly the terms and conditions of these awards. For example, they recommended that eligibility not be limited to recent graduates and that CSREES explore the possibility of entering into an agreement with a service provider to administer the program.

Twenty-three of the 27 comments received were from veterinary medical students who discussed at great length their significant future debt loads after graduation, averaging from $100,000 to more than $300,000 in some cases when combined with the debt incurred during their undergraduate education. Most student respondents would be willing to locate to an underserved rural area or other critical veterinarian shortage situation (e.g., food safety or public health) to practice food animal medicine. They also would be willing on average to agree to serve in that area from three to six years if a significant amount of their student loan debt was repaid through this program, at the rate of $20,000 per year. Many felt that the combined financial commitment by USDA and a time commitment by the veterinarian to practicing in the veterinarian shortage situation would result in the practicing veterinarian making a long-term commitment to the community. Most student respondents either had a desire or a potential interest in practicing food animal medicine full-time or in a mixed animal practice. Most indicated that they would probably continue serving in the community after the expiration of their service agreement. Most indicated that the looming debt and the monthly payments as well as their start-up costs (personal and professional) were driving them to consider other practices and other geographic areas to attain a certain level of income sufficient to make their monthly student loan payments.

One student recommended that the loan repayments be tax free. However, the authorizing act, National Veterinary Medicine Service Act, while not making these payments non-taxable, does include a provision for USDA to pay the tax liability incurred by VMLRP participants as a result of receiving these loan repayments. There was also a suggestion to allow participants to transfer from one shortage situation to another within the period of the service agreement.

In response to stakeholder input, CSREES will be awarding VMLRP loan repayment agreements in amounts ranging up to $25,000 for the first three or four years (with a minimum of three years). In addition, CSREES will be paying an amount up to 39 percent of the total amount of loan repayments made in a calendar year to reimburse program participants for the tax liability incurred as a result of their participation in VMLRP. Consequently, for each VMLRP participant, the loan repayment amounts plus the tax liability payments would be reported as income on the form 1099-G, Certain Government Payments, each calendar year.

In addition, CSREES is considering a small pilot program to implement the service in an emergency component of the VMLRP for a limited number of agreements. Potential agreements will be identified during the designation of the veterinary shortage situations. The emergency situations referred to in this Part are emergencies related to pandemics, zoonotic outbreaks, or other food supply emergencies, as determined by the Secretary, and do not include emergencies related to armed conflict. Successful applicants for these annual agreements may receive an additional loan repayment amount of up to $5,000 per year, plus an amount up to 39 percent of the amount of annual loan repayment made under the program, and will be required to serve no more than 60 days per year. Emergency responders will receive a salary for the period of emergency service, as determined by the Secretary, and will be reimbursed for travel and per diem expenses as appropriate for the duration of service. These agreements will be in addition to the primary VMLRP agreement. CSREES will identify which veterinarian shortage situations are eligible for this type of agreement in the Request for Applications (RFA) for the VMLRP loan repayment applications from individual veterinarians.

Based on the stakeholder input received, the available funding for the program at this time, experiences of other Federal loan repayment programs, such as the NIH Division of Loan Repayment extramural programs, and the goals of the VMLRP program, CSREES believes that $25,000, per year in loan repayments for a minimum of three or four years, plus an amount sufficient to cover the additional tax liability, is an adequate incentive for VMLRP participants to relocate to veterinarian shortage situations critical to the security of our Nation's food supply and the health and safety of people, food animals, and the environment. CSREES anticipates that about 40 VMLRP agreements with be executed the first year. This approach will allow individual participants to reduce their qualifying educational debt within a 3- or 4-year time period and meet their additional tax liability while serving in shortage areas with the greatest need.

As recommended by AVMA and AAVMC, CSREES is negotiating with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Division of Loan Repayment (DLR) to provide certain administrative services and support. These services may include the receipt of individual applications, initial administrative review of applications, verification and certification of selected applicants as being eligible to participate, payments to actual loan providers, tax liability payments, and monitoring and reporting functions. CSREES has entered into an interagency agreement with the NIH DLR to determine the feasibility of NIH DLR performing some of these functions for CSREES. The NIH DLR currently manages a portfolio of eight NIH loan repayment programs, five of which are extramural programs, with an annual budget of approximately $75 million. For the NIH extramural programs, the NIH DLR received over 3,000 applications and made over 1,600 awards in fiscal year (FY) 2007. The NIH DLR maintains a state-of-the-art system that manages the entire process from application through close-out. CSREES feels that it is in the best interest of potential applicants and VMLRP participants, as well as the Federal government, for CSREES to work with the NIH DLR on this initiative. Please note that CSREES will still be responsible for the determination of the veterinarian shortage situations, peer review of the individual VMLRP applications, and overall oversight and coordination of the VMLRP. The CSREES Web site for the VMLRP is available at http://wwww.csrees.usda.gov/nea/education/in_focus/vmlrp/html and will be updated, as appropriate. Please note that any VMLRP applicant and participant interfaces will be conducted via the CSREES Web site. Additional information about the NIH DLR is available at http://www.lrp.nih.gov.

Consideration of Stakeholder Input and the Interim Process and Procedures for the Designation of Veterinarian Shortage Situations

CSREES was very appreciative of the stakeholder input that was received during the recent comment period. Based on these comments and other research and analysis conducted, CSREES has determined to issue two subparts for this Part: Subpart A, Designation of Veterinarian Shortage Situations, and Subpart B, Administration of the VMLRP. As recommended by the AVMA and the AAVMC, CSREES will solicit, via a notice (published in the Federal Register and on the CSREES Web site), the veterinarian shortage situations from the State animal health official in each state. Nominators will be requested to submit to a designated e-mail box a Form—CSREES XXXX, VMLRP Veterinarian Shortage Situation Nomination, which will be available on the CSREES Web site at http://www.csrees.usda.gov/nea/education/in_focus/vmlrp.html.

Respondents will be required to identify the geographic location of the veterinarian shortage situation, as well as the area of practice. The area of practice includes private food animal science medicine (at least 80 percent of the practice), private mixed animal medicine (at least 30 percent of the practice dedicated to food animal medicine), food safety (identify employer and position), epidemiology (identify employer and position), public health (identify employer and position), and other (identify practice, employer, and position). The practice of private mixed animal medicine will only be considered for a veterinarian shortage situation in a rural area as defined in 7 CFR 3431.3. For the purposes of the VMLRP, CSREES is adopting the definition of rural area found in section 343(a) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1991(a)(13)(A)). Respondents will then be requested to address four additional questions about the objectives, activities, and risk associated with the situation/position not being secured or retained as well as past efforts to recruit for and/or retain this position. Finally, respondents will be asked to identify if, how, and why this position may be considered for a secondary loan repayment agreement for service in an emergency.

CSREES intends to solicit these nominations for a 60-day period. Shortly thereafter, CSREES will convene a panel of food supply veterinary medicine experts from Federal and state agencies, as well as institutions receiving Animal Health and Disease Research Program funds under section 1433 of NARETPA, who will review the nominations and make recommendations to the CSREES Program Manager. CSREES explored the possibly of including experts from professional organizations for this process, but under the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act (NARETPA) section 1409A(e), panelists for the purposes of this process are limited to Federal and State agencies and cooperating state institutions (i.e., NARETPA section 1433 recipients).

The VMLRP Program Manager will then review the recommendations and designate the VMLRP shortage situations. The list of shortage situations will be published in the Federal Register and will be made available on the CSREES Web site at http://csrees.usda.gov/nea/education/in_focus/vmlrp.html.

Upon designation of the veterinarian shortage situations, CSREES will publish in the Federal Register and on the Agency's Web site a Request for Applications (RFA) for the VMLRP with applications due within 90 days. This is the same length of time that the NIH provides applicants under its loan repayment programs. Applicants would then submit an application through the CSREES VMLRP Web site. A loan repayment service provider will work with the CSREES Office of Extramural Programs (OEP), the office responsible for administration and payment of all CSREES Federal assistance awards, throughout the application and administration of the VMLRP. Ineligible applicants will be notified. Applications from eligible applicants will be forwarded to CSREES. CSREES will submit the applications to a peer review panel comprised of food supply veterinary medicine experts from the Federal and state agencies, colleges and universities, professional organizations, and other interested stakeholders. This peer review panel will review and evaluate applications from individual veterinarians and make recommendations to the VMLRP Program Manager. After the VMLRP Program Manager prepares the final list of potential awardees for each shortage situation, a second level review is conducted to ensure fairness and integrity of the process. This final list of potential awardees is forwarded to OEP for a final administrative review and execution of the VMLRP loan repayment agreements. As noted previously, Subpart B of this Part will provide the policies and procedures from the RFA through the closeout of the agreement, such as tax liability payments, reporting, payment schedule, and terms and conditions for the agreements.

For the purposes of this regulation, CSREES is adopting the definition of “food supply veterinary medicine” from the Food Supply Veterinary Medicine (FSVM) Coalition Report entitled “Estimating FSVM Demand and Maintaining the Availability of Veterinarians for Careers in Food Supply Related Disciplines in the United States and Canada,” and the “practice of veterinary medicine” from the Model Veterinary Practice Act (Approved by the AVMA Executive Board, November 2003, revised April 2007, November 2007). CSREES developed a definition of “practice of food supply veterinary medicine” to include the practices contributing to the production of a safe and wholesome food supply and to animal, human, and environmental health. This definition incorporates the legislative intent of VMLRP and the adopted definition of “food supply veterinary medicine.” CSREES also adopted a definition of “food animal” for the purposes of this regulation so that it was clear to the public what is a “food animal,” while providing flexibility to the Secretary to consider other “food animals,” if appropriate.

USDA appreciates the efforts of the AVMA in compiling the Food Supply Veterinary Medicine Data Maps which can be found at http://www.avma.org/fsvm/maps/default.asp and will be encouraging States to use the data contained in these maps to justify their veterinarian shortage situation.

Consideration of Stakeholder Input and Administration of the VMLRP

CSREES considered and included many of the recommendations of the AVMA and the AAVMC in the development of the administrative provisions for the VMLRP. USDA is initially capping annual loan repayment of principal and interest of qualifying loans to $25,000 and the payments for the additional tax liability incurred to no more than 39 percent of the annual loan repayments. This will allow CSREES to maximize the number of service agreements in accordance with the authorizing program legislation, while providing sufficient debt relief to attract potential VMLRP participants committed to serve in veterinarian shortage situations. However, these interim regulations allow the Secretary of Agriculture to adjust the cap under § 3431.13(b), if appropriate. Any changes in the caps will be addressed in the RFA.

Please note that the solicitation for veterinary shortage situations and the VMLRP RFA will provide more specific details on the administration of the program. In addition, CSREES will establish a dedicated set of Web pages to the VMLRP similar to the Web pages established for the NIH loan repayment programs.

Timeline for Implementing the Program

This regulation is being published as “final interim” to allow CSREES to implement the program immediately. CSREES felt confident that this was the best approach for all given the delays in program implementation; the statutory requirement to promulgate regulations within 270 days of the enactment of the FCEA; the consideration and adoption of the stakeholder input received during the public meeting and comment period; the adoption, to the extent practical, of the NIH DLR best business practices for loan repayment programs; and the potential partnering of CSREES with the NIH DLR on this effort. However, CSREES is soliciting comments to consider and incorporate in the final rule.

CSREES anticipates soliciting for the veterinarian shortage situations via a Federal Register notice in September 2009 (open for 60 days) after the conclusion of the comment period for the associated information collection and approval by OMB of this information collection. At the same time, CSREES will continue to work with the NIH DLR on adapting the NIH DLR application forms for use by VMLRP as well as developing the other associated business processes (e.g., reporting, payments). CSREES anticipates soliciting for VMLRP participants in late fall 2009 or early winter 2010 (open for 90 days).

Although this interim regulation addresses most of the policies associated with this program, CSREES plans to create informational Web pages (providing detailed information and procedures) for the program similar to the pages created for the NIH DLR programs.

Administrative Requirements for the Interim Rulemaking

Executive Order 12866

The Office of Management and Budget has reviewed this interim rule because while it is not economically significant, it partially implements the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP). This interim rule will not materially alter the budgetary impact of entitlements, grants, user fees, or loan programs; nor will it have an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more; nor will it adversely affect the economy, a sector of the economy, productivity, competition, jobs, the environment, public health or safety, or State, local, or tribal governments or communities in a material way. Furthermore, it does not raise a novel legal or policy issue arising out of legal mandates, the President's priorities or principles set forth in the Executive Order.

Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980

This interim rule has been reviewed in accordance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, as amended by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996, 5 U.S.C. 601-612. The Department concluded that the rule does not involve regulatory and informational requirements regarding businesses, organizations, and governmental jurisdictions subject to regulation.

Paperwork Reduction Act

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501, et seq.) and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) implementing regulations (5 CFR part 1320), this notice announces the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service's (CSREES) intention to request approval to establish an information collection for the purposes of submitting a nomination for the designation of a veterinarian shortage situation in response to a solicitation requesting nominations from the animal health official in each state.

Written comments on this notice must be received by September 8, 2009 to be assured of consideration. Comments received after that date will be considered to the extent practicable.

You may submit comments, identified by Docket ID# CSREES-2009-0004, by any of the following methods: Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments. E-mail: jhitchcock@csrees.usda.gov; Mail: Jason Hitchcock, Information Systems and Technology Management, USDA/CSREES, STOP 2216, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20250-2216; Hand Delivery/Courier: Jason Hitchcock, Information Systems and Technology Management, USDA/CSREES, 800 9th Street, SW., Room 4217, Waterfront Centre, Washington, DC 20024; Fax: 202-720-0857.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Jason Hitchcock, (202) 720-4343. Information is also available at http://www.csrees.usda.gov/nea/education/in_focus/vmlrp.html.

Title: VMLRP Veterinarian Shortage Situation Nomination.

OMB Number: 0524-00XX.

Type of Request: Intent to request approval to establish an information collection.

Abstract: CSREES is establishing the process and procedures for designating veterinarian shortage situations for the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP) as authorized under section 1415A of the National Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 (NARETPA). This information collection applies to Subpart A of 7 CFR part 3431.

Need and Use of the Information: CSREES will be requesting the animal health official in each state to submit the VMLRP Veterinarian Shortage Situation Nomination Form, for each situation or position for which there is a critical shortage of practicing veterinarians. CSREES plans to publish a solicitation for these veterinarian shortage situations, requesting that State animal health officials provide nominations by submitting this form. This form will be available at the CSREES Web site as a PDF-fillable document (to be e-mailed, faxed, or mailed), and includes questions requiring check boxes or text with a word limitation to minimize the burden. These nomination forms will be reviewed and evaluated by a panel according to the criteria identified in the published solicitation. From these evaluations, the VMLRP Program Director may designate the most highly recommended shortage situations according to criteria identified in the solicitation. These situations will later be identified in the Request for Applications (RFA) for VMLRP loan repayment applications (from individual veterinarians).

Estimate of Burden: It is estimated that it will take approximately two hours to complete this PDF-fillable form with checkboxes and text-limiting fields to minimize the overall burden.

Respondents: Animal Health Official in each State.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 57 respondents.

Estimated Number of Responses: 114 responses (average of 2 per State).

Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 228 hours.

Comments: Comments are invited on: (a) 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; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to 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.

Obtaining a Copy of the Information Collection: A copy of the information collection and related instructions may be obtained free of charge by contacting Jason Hitchcock by telephone, (202) 720-4343, or by e-mail, jhitchcock@csrees.usda.gov. Information also is available at http://www.csrees.usda.gov/nea/education/in_focus/lvmlrp.html. When the VMLRP application forms and participant reporting requirements (i.e., the information collection requirements under Subpart B) are finalized, CSREES intends to publish another Federal Register notice announcing its intent to seek OMB approval for the information collection requirements under Subpart B.

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance

This interim regulation applies to the following Federal assistance program administered by CSREES, Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) No. 10.313, Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP).

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 and Executive Order 13132

The Department has reviewed this interim rule in accordance with the requirements of Executive Order No. 13132, 64 FR 43225 (August 10, 1999) and the Unfunded Mandates Act of 1995, 2 U.S.C. 1501 et seq., and has found no potential or substantial direct effects on the States, on the relationship between the national government and the States, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities among the various levels of government. As there is no Federal mandate contained herein that could result in increased expenditures by State, local tribal governments or by the private sector, the department has not prepared a budgetary impact statement.

Executive Order 13175: Consultation and Coordination With Indian Tribal Governments

The Department has reviewed this interim rule in accordance with Executive Order 13175, 65 FR 67249 (Nov. 9, 2000), and has determined that it does not have “tribal implications.” The interim rule does not “have substantial direct effects on one or more Indian tribes, on the relationship between the Federal government and Indian Tribes, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities between the Federal government and Indian tribes.”

Clarity of This Regulation

Executive Order 12866, 58 FR 51735 (September 30, 1993), and the President's memorandum of June 1, 1998, require each agency to write all rules in plain language. The Department invites comments on how to make this interim rule easier to understand.

List of Subjects in Part 3431

• Administrative practice and procedure; Agricultural research, education, extension; Veterinarians; Federal assistance

For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service amends Chapter XXXIV of Title 7 of the Code of Federal Regulations to add Part 3431 to read as follows.

PART 3431—VETERINARY MEDICINE LOAN REPAYMENT PROGRAM

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 3151a; Public Law 106-107 (31 U.S.C. 6101 note).

Subpart B—Administration of the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program