2021-05349. Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission to OMB for Review and Approval; Public Comment Request; Voluntary Partner Surveys To Implement Executive Order 12862 in the Health Resources and Services Administration

AGENCY:

Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Department of Health and Human Services.

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, HRSA submitted an Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. Comments submitted during the first public review of this ICR will be provided to OMB. OMB will accept further comments from the public during the review and approval period. OMB may act on HRSA's ICR only after the 30 day comment period for this notice has closed.

DATES:

Comments on this ICR should be received no later than April 15, 2021.

ADDRESSES:

Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice to www.reginfo.gov/​public/​do/​PRAMain. Find this particular information collection by selecting “Currently under Review—Open for Public Comments” or by using the search function.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

To request a copy of the clearance requests submitted to OMB for review, email Lisa Wright-Solomon, the HRSA Information Collection Clearance Officer at [e-mail] or call [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Information Collection Request Title: Voluntary Partner Surveys to Implement Executive Order 12862 in the Health Resources and Services Administration, OMB No. 0915-0212—Extension.

Abstract: In response to Executive Order 12862, HRSA is proposing to conduct voluntary customer surveys of its partners to assess strengths and weaknesses in program services and processes. HRSA partners are typically state or local governments, health care facilities, health care consortia, health care providers, and researchers. HRSA is requesting continued approval of a generic clearance from OMB to conduct the partner surveys.

Partner surveys to be conducted by HRSA might include, for example, mail, electronic, and/or telephone surveys of grantees to determine satisfaction with grant processes or technical assistance provided by a contractor, or in-class or virtual evaluation forms completed by providers who receive training from HRSA grantees to measure satisfaction with the training experience. Results of these surveys will be used to plan and redirect resources and efforts as needed to improve services and processes.

Focus groups may also be used to gain partner input that will inform the design of mail, electronic and/or telephone surveys. Focus groups, in-class evaluation forms, mail surveys, electronic surveys, and telephone surveys are expected to be the preferred data collection methods for this information collection.

A generic approval allows HRSA to conduct a limited number of partner surveys without a full-scale OMB review of each survey. If this generic information collection request receives continued approval, information on each individual partner survey will not be published in the Federal Register.

A 60-day notice published in the Federal Register on December 15, 2020, vol. 85, No. 241; pp. 81210-11. There were no public comments.

Burden Statement: Burden in this context means the time expended by persons to generate, maintain, retain, disclose, or provide the information requested. This includes the time needed to review instructions; to develop, acquire, install and utilize technology and systems for the purpose of collecting, validating and verifying information, processing and maintaining information, and disclosing and providing information; to train personnel and to be able to respond to a collection of information; to search data sources; to complete and review the collection of information; and to transmit or otherwise disclose the information. The total annual burden hours estimated for this ICR are summarized in the table below.

Total Estimated Annualized Burden—Hours

Form name	Number of respondents	Number of responses per respondent	Total responses	Average burden per response (in hours)	Total burden hours
In-class evaluations	40,000	1	40,000	.05	2,000
Mail/Telephone surveys	12,000	1	12,000	.25	3,000
Focus groups	250	1	250	1.50	375
Total	52,250		52,250		5,375

HRSA specifically requests comments on (1) the necessity and utility of the proposed information collection for the proper performance of the agency's functions, (2) the accuracy of the estimated burden, (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected, and (4) the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology to minimize the information collection burden.

Maria G. Button,

Director, Executive Secretariat.