0060 Supporting Statement

SUPPORTING STATEMENT

United States Patent and Trademark Office

National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nomination Application

OMB CONTROL NUMBER 0651-0060

(February 2015)

A. JUSTIFICATION

1. Necessity of Information Collection

The National Medal of Technology and Innovation is the highest honor awarded by the President of the United States to America’s leading innovators. Established by an Act of Congress in 1980, the Medal of Technology was first awarded in 1985. The Medal is awarded annually to individuals, teams (up to four individuals), and companies or divisions of companies for their outstanding contributions to the Nation’s economic, environmental and social well-being through the development and commercialization of technology products, processes and concepts, technological innovation, and development of the Nation’s technological manpower.

The purpose of the National Medal of Technology is to recognize those who have made lasting contributions to America’s competitiveness, standard of living, and quality of life through technological innovation, and to recognize those who have made substantial contributions to strengthening the Nation’s technological workforce. By highlighting the national importance of technological innovation, the Medal also seeks to inspire future generations of Americans to prepare for and pursue technical careers to keep America at the forefront of global technology and economic leadership.

The National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nomination Evaluation Committee, a distinguished independent committee appointed by the Secretary of Commerce, reviews and evaluates the merit of all candidates nominated through an open, competitive solicitation process. The committee makes its recommendations for Medal candidates to the Secretary of Commerce who, in turn, makes recommendations to the President for final selection. The National Medal of Technology and Innovation Laureates are announced by the White House and the Department of Commerce once the Medalists are notified of their selection.

Table 1 identifies the proposed statutory and regulatory provisions that require the USPTO to collect this information:

Table 1: Information Requirements for the National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nomination Application

Requirement	Statute	Rule
National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nomination Application (includes six letters of recommendation)	15 U.S.C. § 3711	N/A

2. Needs and Uses

The public uses the National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nomination Application to recognize through nomination an individual’s or company’s extraordinary leadership and innovation in technological achievement. The application must be accompanied by six letters of recommendation or support from individuals who have first-hand knowledge of the cited achievement(s).

The Information Quality Guidelines from Section 515 of Public Law 106-554, Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2001, apply to this information collection and this information collection and its supporting statement comply with all applicable information quality guidelines, i.e., OMB and specific operating unit guidelines.

This proposed collection of information will result in information that will be collected, maintained, and used in a way consistent with all applicable Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and USPTO Information Quality Guidelines.

Table 2 outlines how this information is used by the public and by the USPTO:

Table 2: Needs and Uses for the National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nomination Application

Form and Function	Form #	Needs and Uses
National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nomination Application (includes six letters of recommendation)	No PTO form number associated	Used by the public to recognize through nomination an individual’s or company’s extraordinary leadership and innovation in technological achievement. Used by the USPTO to assist in the administration of the nomination process.

3. Use of Information Technology

Information about the program, nomination guidelines, and instructions are electronically posted on the USPTO Web site. Interested parties can review criteria and informational requirements at their convenience. The nomination form is a fillable Word document, can be downloaded from the USPTO Web site, and is available for electronic submission to the USPTO via e-mail at http://www.uspto.gov/nmti/index.html. Alternatively, letters of recommendation may be sent by electronic mail, fax, or overnight delivery.

4. Efforts to Identify Duplication

This information is collected for an annual award event. It does not duplicate information or collection of data found elsewhere.

5. Minimizing the Burden to Small Entities

This collection of information does not impose a significant economic impact on small entities. The same information is required of every individual entering a nomination and is not available from any other source.

6. Consequences of Less Frequent Collection

This information is collected annually and only as required to enter a nomination for that year’s National Medal of Technology and Innovation. It is not collected elsewhere. Therefore, this collection of information could not be conducted less frequently. If this information were not collected, the National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nomination Evaluation Committee, a distinguished, independent committee appointed by the Secretary of Commerce, would not be able to review and evaluate the merit of all candidates and the President would not be able to bestow the honor upon the recipients.

7. Special Circumstances in the Conduct of Information Collection

There are no special circumstances associated with this collection of information.

8. Consultation Outside the Agency

The 60-Day Notice was published in the Federal Register on December 2, 2014 (79Fed. Reg. 71399). The public comment period ended on February 2, 2015. No public comments were received.

The USPTO collects this information and provides administrative support to this program. The National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nomination Evaluation Committee, a distinguished, independent committee appointed by the Secretary of Commerce, reviews and evaluates the merit of all candidates nominated through an open, competitive solicitation process. The Committee makes its recommendations for Medal candidates to the Secretary of Commerce, who in turn makes recommendations to the President for final selection. The National Medal of Technology and Innovation Laureates are announced by the White House and the Department of Commerce once the Medalists are notified of their selection.

9. Payment or Gifts to Respondents

This information collection does not involve a payment or gift to any respondent.

10. Assurance of Confidentiality

This collection contains information of a confidential (personal) nature, which is subject to the Privacy Act. A System of Records Notice, “COMMERCE/PAT-TM-21 National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nominations,” was published in the Federal Register on January 28, 2008 [73 Fed. Reg. 4850].

11. Justification for Sensitive Questions

None of the required information is considered to be of a sensitive nature.

12. Estimate of Hour and Cost Burden to Respondents

Table 3 calculates the anticipated burden hours and costs of this information collection to the public, based on the following factors:

• Respondent Calculation Factors

The USPTO estimates that it will receive 50 responses per year.

• Burden Hour Calculation Factors

The USPTO estimates that it will take the public approximately 40 hours to download the information from the USPTO Web site, prepare the nomination form, complete the contact information for the letters of recommendation or support, and submit the information to the USPTO via electronic mail or, alternatively, by fax or overnight delivery.

• Cost Burden Calculation Factors

The USPTO expects that private sector individuals of various occupations and professions will complete this information. The hourly rate for these individuals is estimated to be $37.50.

Table 3: Burden Hour/Burden Cost to Respondents for the National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nomination Application

Item	Hours (a)	Responses (yr) (b)	Burden (hrs/yr) (a) x (b) (c)	Rate ($/hr) (d)	Total Cost ($/hr) (c) x (d) (e)
National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nomination Form	40	50	2000	$37.50	$75,000.00
TOTAL	- - - - -	50	2,000	- - - - -	$75,000.00

13. Total Annualized Cost Burden

Although it is possible for the public to submit the nominations through regular or express mail, to date no submissions have been received in this manner. The majority of recent submissions have been through electronic mail. Therefore, we estimate one mailing per year within the next 3 years at a rate of 49 cents for a total postage cost of $1.47.

14. Annual Cost to the Federal Government

The USPTO estimates that it takes a GS-13, step 10, 6 hours to process the items in this collection. The hourly rate for a GS-13, step 10, is currently $56.57 according to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management’s (OPM’s) wage chart, including locality pay for the Washington, DC area. When 30% is added to account for a fully loaded hourly rate (benefits and overhead), the rate per hour for a GS-13, step 10, is $73.54 ($56.57 + $16.97).

Table 4 calculates the processing hours and costs of this information collection to the Federal Government:

Table 4: Burden Hour/Burden Cost to the Federal Government for the National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nomination Application

Item	Hours (a)	Responses (yr) (b)	Burden (hrs/yr) (a) x (b) (c)	Rate ($/hr) (d)	Total Cost ($/hr) (c) x (d) (e)
National Medal of Technology and Innovation Nomination Form	6.0	50	300	$73.54	$22,062.00
TOTAL	- - - -	50	300	- - - -	$22,062.00

15. Reason for Change in Burden

Summary of Changes Since the Previous Renewal

• Increase in estimated responses, from 40 in the previous renewal to 50 in this renewal.

• Increase in estimated burden hours, from 1,600 in the previous renewal to 2,000 in this renewal.

• Increase in respondent cost burden, from $60,000 in the previous renewal to $75,000 in this renewal.

• Increase in non-hourly cost burden, from $0 in the previous renewal to $1.47 in this renewal.

Change in Respondent Cost Burden

The respondent cost burden increased from $60,000 to $75,000 due to a change in the estimated burden hours, which increased from 1,600 to 2,000 for the private sector respondents. This increase in estimated burden hours stems from an increase in the number of estimated responses, which rose from 40 in the 2012 renewal to 50 in this renewal.

Change in Non-hourly Cost Burden

This collection renewal contains a non-hourly cost burden of $1.47, which is based on one mailed submission per year over the next three years at a postage rate of $0.49 per submission. The previous renewal of this collection contained no non-hourly costs, so this renewal has a $1.47 increase over the previous collection.

Change in Federal Government Cost Burden

The 2012 renewal of this collection estimated that it would take a GS-13, step 1, 240 hours to process the items in that collection, which at a fully-loaded hourly rate (normal rate plus 30% to account for benefits and overhead) of $55.46/hr produced a total estimated federal cost burden of $13,310. In this renewal, the individual(s) responsible for the processing of the collection items are at the GS-13, step 10, wage level, which at the 2015 fully-loaded wage rate of $73.54/hr for the 300 hours estimated to process all the items in the collection produces a total estimated federal cost burden of $22,062. This increase in GS-13 step level along with the increase in hourly rates for that position led to an overall increase of $8,752 in federal cost burden from the previous renewal to this renewal.

16. Project Schedule

There is no plan to publish this information for statistical use. No special publication of the items discussed in this justification statement is planned. The National Medal of Technology and Innovation Laureates are announced by the White House and the Department of Commerce once the Medalists are notified of their selection.

17. Display of Expiration Date of OMB Approval

The form in this information collection will display the OMB Control Number and expiration date.

18. Exception to the Certificate Statement

This collection of information does not include any exceptions to the certificate statement.

B. COLLECTIONS OF INFORMATION EMPLOYING STATISTICAL METHODS

This collection of information does not employ statistical methods.