The Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995 requires federal agencies and government-owned, contractor-operated facilities to obtain approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) before collecting information from the general public, which includes contractors.  This ensures each organization will maximize the utility of information created, collected, maintained, and used.  The coordination with OMB also integrates management policies that improve the quality and use of federal information while reducing information collection burdens on the public and minimizing the cost to the federal government.   Solicitation of information can be verbal, written, and/or electronic.

DOE's Chief Information Officer(CIO) is the Senior Official responsible for DOE PRA compliance. The Information Collection Management (ICM) program, IM-22, within the Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO), is responsible for the review and approval of DOE Information Collection Requests (ICR).  All ICRs, with the exception of statistical collections which are handled by the Energy Information Administration, must be submitted to the ICM.  The ICM program works directly with OMB to ensure all PRA requirements are met.

PRA requirements and implementation guidance: