2012-5151. Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; Comment Request

In compliance with Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 concerning opportunity for public comment on proposed collections of information, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) will publish periodic summaries of proposed projects. To request more information on the proposed projects or to obtain a copy of the information collection plans, call the SAMHSA Reports Clearance Officer on [phone].

Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collections of information are 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) ways to enhance 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.

Proposed Project: National Mental Health Services Survey (N-MHSS) (OMB No. 0930-0119)—Revision

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality (CBHSQ), is requesting approval for a revision to the National Mental Health Services Survey (N-MHSS) (OMB No. 0930-0119), which expires on February 28, 2013. The N-MHSS provides national and state-level data on the number and characteristics of mental health treatment facilities in the United States.

An immediate need under N-MHSS in 2012 is to update the information about facilities on SAMHSA's online Mental Health Facility Locator (see: http://store.samhsa.gov/​mhlocator), which was last updated with information from the 2010 N-MHSS. A full N-MHSS is anticipated within about two years, and a separate request for OMB approval will be submitted for that collection. However, until then, an abbreviated version of the N-MHSS will be conducted to collect only the information needed to update the Locator, such as the facility name and address, specific services offered, and special client groups served. The data on the Locator are becoming outdated and need an update method. Other fields in the full N-MHSS not needed for updating the Locator, such as client counts and client demographics, will not be collected in the Locator survey. In addition to the data collection for updating facilities on the Locator, a data collection in conjunction with adding new facilities to the Locator is being requested. Both activities will use the same abbreviated N-MHSS-Locator instrument.

This requested revision seeks to change the content of the currently approved full-scale N-MHSS survey instrument into an abbreviated survey instrument, henceforth referred to as the N-MHSS-Locator, to accommodate two related N-MHSS activities:

(1) Collection of information from the full N-MHSS universe of mental health treatment facilities during 2012, 2013, and 2014. This abbreviated subset of N-MHSS data will update and expand SAMHSA's existing online Mental Health Facility Locator (see: http://store.samhsa.gov/​mhlocator), which was last updated with information from the 2010 N-MHSS; and

(2) Collection of information on newly identified facilities throughout the year, as they are identified, so that new facilities can quickly be added to the Locator.

The survey mode for both data collection activities will be web with telephone follow-up.

The database resulting from the 2012 N-MHSS-Locator will be used to update SAMHSA's online Mental Health Facility Locator and to produce a 2012 compact disk (CD) directory of facilities, both for use by consumers and service providers. In addition, a data file derived from the survey will be used to produce an annual report providing state and national data on the number and types of treatment facilities and services. The annual report and a public-use data file to be released in conjunction with the report will be used by researchers, mental health professionals, State governments, the U.S. Congress, and the general public.

The following table summarizes the estimated response burden for the two survey activities:

Estimated Total Response Burden for the N-MHSS

Type of respondent	Number of respondents	Responses per respondent	Average hours per response	Total hour burden
Facilities in annual N-MHSS-Locator universe	15,000	1	.42	6,300
Newly identified facilities 1	1,500	1	.42	630
Total Facilities	16,500			6,930
1 Collection of information on newly identified facilities throughout the year, as they are identified, so that new facilities can quickly be added to the Locator.

Send comments to Summer King, SAMHSA Reports Clearance Officer, Room 8-1099, One Choke Cherry Road, Rockville, MD 20857 or email a copy to [e-mail]. Written comments must be received before 60 days after the date of the publication in the Federal Register.

Summer King,

Statistician.