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OMB Control No: 1615-0152	ICR Reference No: 202005-1615-002
Status: Historical Active	Previous ICR Reference No:
Agency/Subagency: DHS/USCIS	Agency Tracking No: Form ATT-H2B
Title: Attestation for Employers Seeking to Employ H-2B Nonimmigrant Workers Essential to the U.S. Food Supply Chain
Type of Information Collection: New collection (Request for a new OMB Control Number)	Common Form ICR: No
Type of Review Request: Emergency	Approval Requested By: 05/14/2020
OIRA Conclusion Action: Approved without change	Conclusion Date: 05/14/2020
	Date Received in OIRA: 05/14/2020
Terms of Clearance: This information collection is associated with a temporary final rule, which will expire. This information collection is only approved for the time period during which the rule is in effect.

	Inventory as of this Action	Requested	Previously Approved
Expiration Date	11/30/2020	6 Months From Approved
Responses	10,000	0	0
Time Burden (Hours)	1,670	0	0
Cost Burden (Dollars)	37,500	0	0

Abstract: As of the effective date of the H-2B COVID-19 rule, employers who submitted or are submitting Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, to request an extension of stay with a change of employer and/or an H-2B extension of stay beyond the 3 year maximum pursuant to 8 CFR 214.2(h)(23), will be able to submit Form ATT-H2B to affirm that the workers named in the petition will be performing work that is essential to the U.S. food supply chain as required by 8 CFR 214.2(h)(23)(i). Receipt of the form by USCIS triggers the flexibilities under the rule because the H-2B worker will perform services or labor essential to the U.S. food supply chain.

Emergency Justfication: In order to urgently address the needs of employers and U.S. agents for a legal workforce to provide services or labor essential to the U.S. food supply chain, USCIS is seeking emergency processing under 5 CFR 1320.13 of the new Attestation for Employers Seeking to Employ H-2B Nonimmigrant Workers Essential to the U.S. Food Supply Chain. This Attestation, signed under penalty of perjury under the laws of the United States of America, is required evidence under the H-2B COVID-19 rule and is being submitted by H-2B petitioners to demonstrate that the petitioner and H-2B worker qualify for the flexibilities under the rule because the H-2B worker will perform services or labor essential to the U.S. food supply chain. Therefore, the receipt of the Attestation triggers those flexibilities both for petitioners submitting the Attestation with their I-129 petitions on or after the effective date of the temporary final rule, and for those whose I-129 petitions were filed on or after March 1, 2020, and are pending on or after the effective date of the temporary final rule, and who submit the Attestation thereafter. The Attestation is a separate document from the Form I-129, and its use will only be authorized during the effective period of the H-2B COVID-19 rule, i.e. 120 days after the date of publication of the H-2B COVID-19 rule in the Federal Register. Instructions regarding when and under what circumstances the Attestation must be submitted are included on the Attestation itself and USCIS is not modifying the I-129 form or instructions as a result of the changes made by the temporary final rule. Therefore, this Attestation would receive a new OMB control number and would not be captured within OMB Control number 1615-0009, which covers the Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker. The H-2B COVID-19 rule, which requires the submission of the Attestation, does not have a delayed effective date that would allow USCIS to complete the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) form revision process before accepting attestations from employers seeking to hire H-2B workers essential to the U.S. food supply chain. The provisions of the H-2B COVID-19 rule will be effective immediately. In addition, the H-2B COVID-19 rule will allow employers with pending H-2B petitions as of the effective date of this rule to also take advantage of the flexibilities by submitting the attestation to USCIS.

Authorizing Statute(s): None

Citations for New Statutory Requirements: None

Associated Rulemaking Information
RIN:	Stage of Rulemaking:	Federal Register Citation:	Date:
	Not associated with rulemaking

Federal Register Notices & Comments
Did the Agency receive public comments on this ICR? No

Number of Information Collection (IC) in this ICR: 1

IC Title	Form No.	Form Name
Attestation for Employers Seeking to Employ H-2B Nonimmigrant Workers Essential to the U.S. Food Supply Chain	Form ATT-H2B

ICR Summary of Burden

	Total Approved	Change Due to Agency Discretion
Annual Number of Responses	10,000	10,000
Annual Time Burden (Hours)	1,670	1,670
Annual Cost Burden (Dollars)	37,500	37,500

Burden increases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: Yes

Burden Increase Due to: Changing Regulations

Burden decreases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: No

Burden Reduction Due to:

Short Statement: As of the effective date of the H-2B COVID-19 rule, employers who submitted or are submitting Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, to request an extension of stay with a change of employer and/or an H-2B extension of stay beyond the 3 year maximum pursuant to 8 CFR 214.2(h)(23), will be able to submit Form ATT-H2B to affirm that the workers named in the petition will be performing work that is essential to the U.S. food supply chain as required by 8 CFR 214.2(h)(23)(i). Receipt of the form by USCIS triggers the flexibilities under the rule because the H-2B worker will perform services or labor essential to the U.S. food supply chain. USCIS is reporting an estimated annual time burden to respondents of 1,670 hours as a result of this new information collection. USCIS is reporting an estimated cost burden to respondents of $37,500 as a result of this new information collection.

Annual Cost to Federal Government: $0

Does this IC contain surveys, censuses, or employ statistical methods? No

Does this ICR request any personally identifiable information (see OMB Circular No. A-130 for an explanation of this term)? Please consult with your agency's privacy program when making this determination. Yes

Does this ICR include a form that requires a Privacy Act Statement (see 5 U.S.C. §552a(e)(3))? Please consult with your agency's privacy program when making this determination. No

Is this ICR related to the Affordable Care Act [Pub. L. 111-148 & 111-152]? No

Is this ICR related to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, [Pub. L. 111-203]? No

Is this ICR related to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA)? No

Is this ICR related to the Pandemic Response? No

Agency Contact: Kerstin Jager 214 489-8022 kerstin.a.jager@uscis.dhs.gov

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