Airborne Hazards and Open
Burn Pit Registry (AHOBPR) Web-accessible
Self-Assessment/Questionnaire (VA Form 10-10066)
Reinstatement with change of a previously approved collection
No
Regular
08/13/2019
Requested
Previously Approved
36 Months From Approved
03/31/2017
50,686
50,000
33,447
33,333
0
0
Public Law 112-260 Section 201,
enacted by President Obama on 10 January 2013, required Department
of Veterans Affairs (VA) to establish and maintain an “Airborne
Hazards and Open Burn Pit Registry (AHOBPR)” no later than one year
from enactment. VA launched the AHOBPR in June 2014. There is no
sunset date identified in the law. The Secretary of Veterans
Affairs may “include any information in such registry that the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs determines necessary to ascertain and
monitor the health effects of the exposure of members of the Armed
Forces to toxic airborne chemicals and fumes caused by open burn
pits.” Currently, VA plans to operate the AHOBPR indefinitely, and
we request approval to continue administering the questionnaire.
Qarmat Ali: This program is a new request for a follow-up
information collection for a subset of Veterans impacted by a
specific airborne hazard. In the spring and summer of 2003,
approximately 700 U.S. Servicemembers may have been impacted by a
specific airborne hazard while serving at a water injection plant
in Qarmat Ali (QA), Iraq. The Department of Defense (DoD) was
unable to determine specific exposure levels near the water
treatment facility. In 2010, in response to DoD’s notification, the
VA offered no-cost medical evaluations and encouraged the cohort to
enroll in a new Qarmat Ali medical surveillance program within the
Gulf War Registry. The QA cohort is also eligible to participate in
the AHOBPR program due to their deployment to Iraq. As part of the
planned 5-year periodic medical follow-up and surveillance program,
self-reported information will be collected through the AHOBPR as
outlined above. Additional information on the Qarmat Ali water
treatment facility can be found at the following link at:
https://phc.amedd.army.mil/PHC%20Resource%20Library/QarmatAliWTPChromiumAssessmentMay2010.pdf.
Information collected is voluntary and is used to provide outreach
and quality health services to AHOBPR participants. Collected data
contributes to VA’s ability to understand the potential health
effects of the exposure to burn pit emissions and other airborne
hazards during deployment, such as particulate matter.
An additional cost burden of
ten minutes, per respondent, is added for the approximately 686
Veterans included in the Qarmat Ali Cohort. All registrants
included with this subset cohort also are eligible for the
AHOBPR.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that
the collection of information encompassed by this request complies
with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR
1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding
the proposed collection of information, that the certification
covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a
benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control
number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of
these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked
and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.