2020-29183. Proposed Information Collection Activity; Pre-Testing of Evaluation Data Collection Activities (OMB #0970-0355)

AGENCY:

Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, HHS.

ACTION:

Request for public comment.

SUMMARY:

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) proposes to extend the existing overarching generic clearance for Pre-testing of Evaluation Data Collection Activities (Office of Management and Budget (OMB) #0970-0355) with no changes.

DATES:

Comments due within 60 days of publication. In compliance with the requirements of Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, ACF is soliciting public comment on the specific aspects of the information collection described above.

ADDRESSES:

Copies of the proposed collection of information can be obtained and comments may be forwarded by emailing [e-mail]. Alternatively, copies can also be obtained by writing to the Administration for Children and Families, Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, 330 C Street SW, Washington, DC 20201, Attn: OPRE Reports Clearance Officer. All requests, emailed or written, should be identified by the title of the information collection.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Description: The ACF Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation (OPRE), at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) intends to request approval from OMB to renew a generic clearance to pre-test data collection instruments with more than nine participants to identify and resolve any question or procedural problems in survey administration.

OPRE studies ACF programs, and the populations they serve, through rigorous research and evaluation projects. These include evaluations of existing programs, evaluations of innovative approaches to helping low-income children and families, research syntheses, and descriptive and exploratory studies. To improve the development of its research and evaluation surveys, OPRE uses the pre-testing of evaluation surveys generic clearance to employ a variety of techniques including cognitive and usability laboratory and field techniques, behavior coding, exploratory interviews, respondent debriefing questionnaires, split sample experiments, focus groups, and pilot studies/pre-tests. These activities allow OPRE to identify if and when a survey may be simplified for respondents, respondent burden may be reduced, and other possible improvements. Following standard OMB requirements, OPRE will submit a change request for each individual data collection activity under this generic clearance. Each request will include the individual instrument(s), a justification specific to the individual information collection, and any supplementary documents. OMB should review within 10 days of receiving each change request.

The information collected in this effort will not be the primary subject of any published ACF reports; however, information may be made public through methodological appendices or footnotes, reports on instrument development, instrument user guides, descriptions of respondent behavior, and other publications or presentations describing findings of methodological interest. When necessary, results will be labeled as exploratory in nature. The results of this pre-testing research may be prepared for presentation at professional meetings or publication in professional journals.

Respondents: Participants in ACF programs being evaluated; participants in ACF demonstrations; recipients of ACF grants and individuals served by ACF grantees; comparison group members; and other relevant populations, such as individuals at risk of needing ACF services.

Annual Burden Estimates

Instrument	Estimated total number of respondents	Number of responses per respondent	Average burden hours per response	Annual burden hours
Survey development field tests, respondent debriefing questionnaires, cognitive interviews, split sample experiments, focus groups	3,825	1	1	3,825

Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 3,825.

Comments: The Department specifically requests comments on (a) whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information; (c) the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology. Consideration will be given to comments and suggestions submitted within 60 days of this publication.

Authority: Social Security Act, Sec. 1110 [42 U.S.C. 1310].

Mary B. Jones,

ACF/OPRE Certifying Officer.