2021-04286. Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; NOAA Customer Surveys

AGENCY:

National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce.

ACTION:

Notice of Information Collection, request for comment.

SUMMARY:

The Department of Commerce, in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), invites the general public and other Federal agencies to comment on proposed, and continuing information collections, which helps us assess the impact of our information collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden. The purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment preceding submission of the collection to OMB.

DATES:

To ensure consideration, comments regarding this proposed information collection must be received on or before May 3, 2021.

ADDRESSES:

Interested persons are invited to submit written comments to Adrienne Thomas, NOAA PRA Officer, at [e-mail]. Please reference OMB Control Number 0648-0342 in the subject line of your comments. Do not submit Confidential Business Information or otherwise sensitive or protected information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Requests for additional information or specific questions related to collection activities should be directed to Adrienne Thomas at [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

This request is for extension of a currently approved generic information collection.

This collection follows the guidelines contained in the OMB Resource Manual for Customer Surveys. In accordance with Executive Order 12862, the National Performance Review, and good management practices, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) offices seek approval to continue to gather customer feedback on services and/or products which can be used in planning for service/product modification and prioritization. Under this generic clearance, individual offices would use approved questionnaires and develop new questionnaires, as needed, by selecting subsets of the approved set of collection questions and tailoring those specific questions to be meaningful for their particular programs. These proposed questionnaires would then be submitted to OMB using a fast-track request for approval process, for which separate Federal Register notices are not required. Surveys currently typically include IT and website satisfaction surveys, Weather Service product surveys, and National Marine Sanctuary participation surveys, among others.

This generic clearance will not be used to survey any bodies NOAA regulates unless precautions are taken to ensure that the respondents believe that they are not under any risk for not responding or for the contents of their responses, e.g., in no survey to such a population will the names and addresses of respondents be required.

Two sets of survey questions are used for generation of program-level questionnaires. Quantitative questions seek to obtain numerical ratings from respondents on their satisfaction with various aspects of the product or service they obtained—satisfaction with the quality of the product, the courtesy of the staff, the format of and documentation for data received, and similar standard types of questions. The offices using such questions are able to determine which aspects of their program need improvement or have improved. Qualitative questions are more focused on who is using the product and service, how it is being used, and the medium or format in which the respondent would like to see data provided.

II. Method of Collection

Information will be collected via email or online survey.

III. Data

OMB Control Number: 0648-0342.

Form Number(s): None.

Type of Review: Regular submission [extension of a current information collection].

Affected Public: Individuals or households; Business or other for-profit organizations; Not-for-profit institutions; State, Local, or Tribal government; Federal government.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 24,000.

Estimated Time per Response: 5-10 minutes per response.

Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 22,500.

Estimated Total Annual Cost to Public: $0.

Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.

Legal Authority:

IV. Request for Comments

We are soliciting public comments to permit the Department/Bureau to: (a) Evaluate whether the proposed information collection is necessary for the proper functions of the Department, including whether the information will have practical utility; (b) Evaluate the accuracy of our estimate of the time and cost burden for this proposed collection, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (c) Evaluate ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) Minimize the reporting burden on those who are to respond, including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of public record. We will include or summarize each comment in our request to OMB to approve this ICR. Before including your address, phone number, email address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment—including your personal identifying information—may be made publicly available at any time. While you may ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

Sheleen Dumas,

Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Chief Information Officer, Commerce Department.