FRA PRA Information Collection Comment Deadline June 22, 2026
Summary
The FRA is requesting public comment on an Information Collection Request (ICR) for a generic clearance to gather qualitative feedback on agency service delivery, covering surveys, comment cards, interviews, focus groups, and web-based technologies. The collection applies to individuals, households, businesses, organizations, and government entities, with an estimated 5,750 annual responses and 475 total annual burden hours. Comments are due on or before June 22, 2026, and should be submitted to regulations.gov under Docket No. FRA-2026-0038.
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What changed
This 60-day PRA notice extends an existing generic clearance for qualitative feedback collection without changes to burden hours or response estimates. The collection involves surveys, comment cards, interviews, focus groups, and web-based technologies across FRA's Administrator Railroad Safety, Research Data and Innovation, Railroad Development, and Chief Financial Officer offices.
Affected public respondents (individuals, households, businesses, organizations, and state/local/tribal governments) may submit comments to regulations.gov by June 22, 2026. The voluntary collection focuses on service quality, timeliness, and delivery improvement and does not raise policy decisions or require statistically generalizable results.
Archived snapshot
Apr 24, 2026GovPing captured this document from the original source. If the source has since changed or been removed, this is the text as it existed at that time.
Content
ACTION:
Notice of information collection; request for comment.
SUMMARY:
Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) and its implementing regulations, FRA seeks approval of the Information Collection
Request (ICR) summarized below. Before submitting this ICR to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval, FRA
is soliciting public comment on specific aspects of the activities identified in the ICR.
DATES:
Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before June 22, 2026.
ADDRESSES:
Written comments and recommendations for the proposed ICR should be submitted on https://www.regulations.gov to Docket No. FRA-2026-0038. All comments received will be posted without change to the docket, including any personal information
provided. Please refer to the assigned OMB control number (2130-0593) in any correspondence submitted. FRA will summarize
comments received in response to this notice in a subsequent notice, made available to the public, and include them in its
information collection submission to OMB for approval.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Ms. Joanne Swafford, Information Collection Clearance Officer, at email: joanne.swafford@dot.gov or telephone: (757) 897-9908.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
The PRA, 44 U.S.C. 3501-3520, and its implementing regulations, 5 CFR part 1320, require Federal agencies to provide 60 days'
notice to the public to allow comment on information collection activities before seeking OMB approval of the activities. See 44 U.S.C. 3506, 3507; 5 CFR 1320.8 through 1320.12. Specifically, FRA invites interested parties to comment on the following
ICR regarding: (1) whether the information collection activities are necessary for FRA to properly execute its functions,
including whether the activities will have practical utility; (2) the accuracy of FRA's estimates of the burden of the information
collection activities, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used to determine the estimates; (3) ways
for FRA to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information being collected; and (4) ways for FRA to minimize
the burden of information collection activities on the public, including the use of automated collection techniques or other
forms of information technology. See 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A); 5 CFR 1320.8(d)(1).
FRA believes that soliciting public comment may reduce the administrative and paperwork burdens associated with the collection
of information that Federal regulations mandate. In summary, comments received will advance three objectives: (1) reduce reporting
burdens; (2) organize information collection requirements in a “user-friendly” format to improve the use of such information;
and (3) accurately assess the resources expended to retrieve and produce information requested. See 44 U.S.C. 3501.
The summary below describes the ICR that FRA will submit for OMB clearance as the PRA requires:
Title: Generic Clearance for the Collection of Qualitative Feedback on Agency Service.
OMB Control Number: 2130-0593.
Abstract: This collection of information is necessary to enable FRA to garner customer and stakeholder feedback in an efficient and
timely manner, consistent with its commitment to improving service delivery. The information collected from FRA's customers
and stakeholders will help ensure users have an effective, efficient, and satisfying experience with FRA's programs. This
feedback will provide insights into customer and stakeholder perceptions, experiences, and expectations; provide an early
indicator of issues with service; and focus attention on areas where communication, training, or changes in operations might
improve delivery of products or services. This collection will allow ongoing, collaborative, and actionable communications
between FRA and its customers and stakeholders. It also allows feedback to contribute directly to the improvement of program
management. If this information is not collected, vital feedback from customers and stakeholders on FRA's services will be
unavailable.
Improving FRA's programs requires ongoing assessment of service delivery. FRA will collect, analyze, and interpret information
gathered through this generic clearance to identify strengths and weaknesses of current services and make improvements to
service delivery
based on feedback. The solicitation of feedback will target areas such as timeliness, appropriateness, information accuracy,
courtesy, service delivery efficiency, and issue resolution. FRA will assess responses to plan and inform efforts seeking
to improve the quality of service offered to customers and stakeholders, including the public. FRA will only submit a collection
for approval under this generic clearance under the following conditions:
- The information gathered is only used internally for general service improvement and program management purposes and is not intended for public release;
- The information gathered is not used to inform substantially significant policy decisions;
- The information gathered will yield qualitative information. FRA will not design the collection or expect it to yield statistically reliable results or use it as though the results are generalizable to the study population;
- Participation in the collection is voluntary;
- The collection is low-burden for respondents (based on considerations of total burden hours, total number of respondents, or burden hours per respondent) and is low-cost for both the respondents and the Federal Government;
- The collection is non-controversial and does not raise issues of concern to other Federal agencies;
- The collection is directed to the solicitation of opinions from respondents who have experience with the program or may have experience with the program soon after receiving the collection; and
- With the exception of information needed to provide remuneration for focus group participants and cognitive laboratory studies, personally identifiable information (PII) is collected only to the extent necessary and is not retained by FRA. In this 60-day notice, FRA made no changes to the previously approved burden hours or responses.
Type of Request: Extension without change of a currently approved collection.
Affected Public: Individuals and Households; Businesses and Organizations; State, Local or Tribal Governments.
Form(s): N/A.
Respondent Universe: 5,750.
Frequency of Submission: Once per request.
| Information collection description | Office | Annual
responses | Frequency | Average
time per response (minutes) | Total annual
burden hours |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| (A) | | (B) | (C = A * B) |
| Surveys, comment cards, interviews, focus groups, and web-based technologies for Customer Service Satisfaction and Delivery | Administrator
Railroad Safety | 350
350 | Annual, Periodically
Annual, Periodically | 10
10 | 59
59 |
| | Research, Data, and Innovation | 350 | Annual, Periodically | 10 | 59 |
| | Railroad Development | 350 | Annual, Periodically | 10 | 59 |
| | Chief Financial Officer | 350 | Annual, Periodically | 10 | 59 |
| Web-based technologies for Customer Service Satisfaction and Delivery related to the improvement of webinar-based stakeholder
engagement | Railroad Development | 3,500 | Annual, Periodically | 1 | 58 |
| Surveys, comment cards, interviews, focus groups, and web-based technologies for Customer Service Satisfaction and Delivery
related to the improvement of stakeholder capacity building and training resources | Railroad Development | 500 | Annual, Periodically | 15 | 125 |
| Totals | | 5,750 | 475 |
Total Estimated Annual Responses: 5,750.
Total Estimated Annual Burden: 475 hours.
FRA informs all interested parties that it may not conduct or sponsor, and a respondent is not required to respond to, a collection
of information that does not display a currently valid OMB control number.
(Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3501-3520.)
Christopher S. Van Nostrand, Deputy Chief Counsel. [FR Doc. 2026-07888 Filed 4-22-26; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4910-06-P
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