[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 220 (Wednesday, November 16, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68794-68796]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-24899]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

[Docket No. DOT-OST-2022-0130]


Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology 
(OST-R); Agency Information Collection Activities: Comment Request; 
Data Security Requirements for Accessing Confidential Data

AGENCY: Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) Office of the 
Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology (OST-R), DOT.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) within the 
Department of Transportation (DOT) invites the general public and other 
Federal agencies to comment on a proposed information collection. BTS 
plans to collect information from the public to fulfill its data 
security requirements when providing access to restricted use microdata 
for the purpose of evidence building. BTS's data security agreements 
and other paperwork along with the corresponding security protocols 
allow BTS to maintain careful controls on confidentiality and privacy, 
as required by law. The purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days 
of public comment on the proposed data security information collection, 
prior to submission of the information collection request (ICR) to the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

DATES: Written comments on this notice must be received by January 17, 
2023 to be assured of consideration. Comments received after that date 
will be considered to the extent practicable. Send comments to the 
address below.
    Comments: Comments are invited on (a) whether the proposed 
collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of 
the functions of BTS, including whether the information will have 
practical utility; (b) the accuracy of BTS's estimate of the burden of 
the proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the 
quality, use, and clarity of the information on respondents, including 
through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of 
information technology; 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Clara Reschovsky, BTS Confidentiality 
Officer, BTS, OST-R, Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Ave. 
SE, Room E36-324, Washington, DC 20590, (202) 768-4994, Office hours 
are from 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., E.T., Monday through Friday, except 
Federal holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Foundations for Evidence-Based 
Policymaking Act of 2018 mandates that the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) establish a Standard Application Process (SAP) for 
requesting access to certain confidential data assets. While the 
adoption of the SAP is required for statistical agencies and units 
designated under the Confidential Information Protection and 
Statistical Efficiency Act (CIPSEA), it is recognized that other 
agencies and organizational units within the Executive branch may 
benefit from the adoption of the SAP to accept applications for access 
to confidential data assets. The SAP is to be a process through which 
agencies, the Congressional Budget Office, State, local, and Tribal 
governments, researchers, and other individuals, as appropriate, may 
apply to access confidential data assets held by a federal statistical 
agency or unit for the purposes of developing evidence. With the 
Interagency Council on Statistical Policy (ICSP) as advisors, the 
entities upon whom this requirement is levied are working with the SAP 
Project Management Office (PMO) and with OMB to implement the SAP. The 
SAP Portal is to be a single web-based common application for the 
public to request access to confidential data assets from federal 
statistical agencies and units. The National Center for Science and 
Engineering Statistics (NCSES), within the National Science Foundation 
(NSF), submitted a Federal Register Notice in September 2022 announcing 
plans to collect information through the SAP Portal (87 FR 53793).
    Once an application for confidential data is approved through the 
SAP Portal, BTS will collect information to meet its data security 
requirements. This collection will occur outside of the SAP Portal.
    Title of collection: Data Security Requirements for Accessing 
Confidential Data
    OMB Control Number: DOT-OST-2022-0130
    Expiration Date of Current Approval: Not Applicable.
    Type of Request: Intent to seek approval to collect information 
from the public to fulfill BTS security requirements allowing 
individuals to access confidential data assets for the purposes of 
building evidence.
    Abstract: Title III of the Foundations for Evidence-Based 
Policymaking Act of 2018 (hereafter referred to as the Evidence Act) 
mandates that OMB establish a Standard Application Process (SAP) for 
requesting access to certain confidential data assets. Specifically, 
the Evidence Act requires OMB to establish a common application process 
through which agencies, the Congressional Budget Office, State, local, 
and Tribal governments, researchers, and other individuals, as 
appropriate, may apply for access to confidential data assets 
collected, accessed, or acquired by a statistical agency or unit. This 
new process will be implemented while maintaining stringent controls to 
protect confidentiality and privacy, as required by law.
    Data collected, accessed, or acquired by statistical agencies and 
units is vital for developing evidence on conditions, characteristics, 
and behaviors of the public and on the operations and outcomes of 
public programs and policies. This evidence can benefit the 
stakeholders in the programs, the broader public, as well as 
policymakers and program managers at the local, State, Tribal, and 
National levels. The many benefits of access to data for evidence 
building notwithstanding, BTS is required by law to maintain careful 
controls that allow it to minimize disclosure risk while protecting 
confidentiality and privacy. The fulfillment of BTS's data security 
requirements places a degree of burden on the public, which is outlined 
below.
    The SAP Portal is a web-based application for the public to request 
access to confidential data assets from

[[Page 68795]]

federal statistical agencies and units. The objective of the SAP Portal 
is to increase public access to confidential data for the purposes of 
evidence building and reduce the burden of applying for confidential 
data. Once an individual's application in the SAP Portal has received a 
positive determination, the data-owning agency(ies) or unit(s) will 
begin the process of collecting information to fulfill their data 
security requirements.
    The paragraphs below outline the SAP Policy, the steps to complete 
an application through the SAP Portal, and the process for agencies to 
collect information fulfilling their data security requirements.

The SAP Policy

    At the recommendation of the ICSP, the SAP Policy establishes the 
SAP to be implemented by statistical agencies and units and 
incorporates directives from the Evidence Act. The policy is intended 
to provide guidance as to the application and review processes using 
the SAP Portal, setting forth clear standards that enable statistical 
agencies and units to implement a common application form and a uniform 
review process. The SAP Policy was submitted to the public for comment 
in January 2022 (87 FR 2459). The policy is currently under review and 
has not yet been finalized.

The SAP Portal

    The SAP Portal is an application interface connecting applicants 
seeking data with a catalog of data assets owned by the federal 
statistical agencies and units. The SAP Portal is not a new data 
repository or warehouse; confidential data assets will continue to be 
stored in secure data access facilities owned and hosted by the federal 
statistical agencies and units. The Portal will provide a streamlined 
application process across agencies, reducing redundancies in the 
application process. This single SAP Portal will improve the process 
for applicants, tracking and communicating the application process 
throughout its lifecycle. This reduces redundancies and burden on 
applicants that request access to data from multiple agencies. The SAP 
Portal will automate key tasks to save resources and time and will 
bring agencies into compliance with the Evidence Act statutory 
requirements.

Data Discovery

    Individuals begin the process of accessing restricted use data by 
discovering confidential data assets through the SAP data catalog, 
maintained by federal statistical agencies at www.researchdatagov.org. 
Potential applicants can search by agency, topic, or keyword to 
identify data of interest or relevance. Once they have identified data 
of interest, applicants can view metadata outlining the title, 
description or abstract, scope and coverage, and detailed methodology 
related to a specific data asset to determine its relevance to their 
research.
    While statistical agencies and units shall endeavor to include 
metadata in the SAP data catalog on all confidential data assets for 
which they accept applications, it may not be feasible to include 
metadata for some data assets (e.g., potential curated versions of 
administrative data). A statistical agency or unit may still accept an 
application through the SAP Portal even if the requested data asset is 
not listed in the SAP data catalog.

SAP Application Process

    Individuals who have identified and wish to access confidential 
data assets will be able to apply for access through the SAP Portal 
when it is released to the public in late 2022. Applicants must create 
an account and follow all steps to complete the application. Applicants 
begin by entering their personal, contact, and institutional 
information, as well as the personal, contact, and institutional 
information of all individuals on their research team. Applicants 
proceed to provide summary information about their proposed project, to 
include project title, duration, funding, timeline, and other details 
including the data asset(s) they are requesting and any proposed 
linkages to data not listed in the SAP data catalog, including non-
federal data sources. Applicants then proceed to enter detailed 
information regarding their proposed project, including a project 
abstract, research question(s), literature review, project scope, 
research methodology, project products, and anticipated output. 
Applicants must demonstrate a need for confidential data, outlining why 
their research question cannot be answered using publicly available 
information.

Submission for Review

    Upon submission of their application, applicants will receive a 
notification that their application has been received and is under 
review by the data owning agency or agencies (in the event where data 
assets are requested from multiple agencies). At this point, applicants 
will also be notified that application approval does not alone grant 
access to confidential data, and that, if approved, applicants must 
comply with the data-owning agency's security requirements outside of 
the SAP Portal, which may include a background check.
    In accordance with the Evidence Act and the direction of the ICSP, 
agencies will approve or reject an application within a prompt 
timeframe. In some cases, agencies may determine that additional 
clarity, information, or modification is needed and request the 
applicant to ``revise and resubmit'' their application.
    Data discovery, the SAP application process, and the submission for 
review are planned to take place within the web-based SAP Portal. As 
noted above, the notice announcing plans to collect information through 
the SAP Portal has been published separately (87 FR 53793).

Access to Restricted Use Data

    In the event of a positive determination, the applicant will be 
notified that their proposal has been accepted. The positive or final 
adverse determination concludes the SAP Portal process. In the instance 
of a positive determination, the data-owning agency (or agencies) will 
contact the applicant to provide instructions on the agency's security 
requirements that must be completed to gain access to the confidential 
data. The completion and submission of the agency's security 
requirements will take place outside of the SAP Portal.

Collection of Information for Data Security Requirements

    In the instance of a positive determination for an application 
requesting access to a BTS confidential data asset, BTS will contact 
the applicant(s) to initiate the process of collecting information to 
fulfill their security requirements. These include additional 
requirements necessary for the statistical agency or unit to place the 
applicant(s) in a trusted category that may include the applicant's 
successful completion of a background investigation, confidentiality 
training, nondisclosure, and data use agreements.
    Estimate of Burden: The amount of time to complete the agreements 
and other paperwork that comprise BTS's security requirements will vary 
based on the confidential data assets requested and the access 
modality. To obtain access to BTS confidential data assets, it is 
estimated that the average time to complete and submit BTS's data 
security agreements and other paperwork is 90 minutes. This estimate 
does not include the time needed to complete and submit an application 
within the SAP Portal. All efforts related to SAP Portal applications 
occur prior to and separate from BTS's effort to collect

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information related to data security requirements.
    The expected number of applications in the SAP Portal that receive 
a positive determination from BTS in a given year may vary. Overall, 
per year, BTS estimates it will collect data security information for 
five application submissions that received a positive determination 
within the SAP Portal. BTS estimates that the total burden for the 
collection of information for data security requirements over the 
course of the three-year OMB clearance will be about 22.5 hours and, as 
a result, an average annual burden of 7.5 hours.

    Issued in Washington, DC on the 10th of November 2022.
Cha-Chi Fan,
Director, Office of Data Development and Standards, Bureau of 
Transportation Statistics, Office of the Assistant Secretary for 
Research and Technology.
[FR Doc. 2022-24899 Filed 11-15-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-9X-P


