The Rural Housing Service (RHS) and other agencies under the U.S. Department of Agriculture are seeking to revise an existing information collection to ensure they comply with civil rights laws. This involves gathering data on the people served by RHS programs to verify that they receive benefits without discrimination based on race, color, or national origin. The information collected is used for internal monitoring and is shared with other federal agencies and Congress. The public is invited to comment on whether this collection is necessary, its burden, and ways to improve or reduce the burden, with comments due by March 15, 2021.
Simple Explanation
The Rural Housing Service wants to update how they collect information to make sure they're fair to everyone who uses their services, like checking that nobody is left out because of their skin color or where they come from. They also want people to say if this information collecting is okay or if it needs to be easier by March 15, 2021.