[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 55 (Monday, March 23, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13881-13882]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-7437]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Employment and Training Administration
Indian and Native American Welfare-to-Work Grant Program
Proposed Collection; Comment Request
AGENCY: Employment and Training Administration, Labor.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to
reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a preclearance
consultation process to provide the general public and Federal agencies
with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing
collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction
Act of 1995 (PRA95) [44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)]. This process helps to
ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format,
reporting burdens are minimized, collection instruments are clearly
understood, and the impact of collection requirements on respondents
can be properly assessed. Currently, the Employment and Training
Administration (ETA) is soliciting comments concerning the continuation
of the currently-approved reporting system for the Indian and Native
American Welfare-to-Work (INA WtW) Grant Program for three more years
(August 1, 1998 to June 30, 2001), or until the expiration of the
program if sooner. A copy of the currently-approved information
collection request (ICR), especially the reporting forms and completion
instructions, can be obtained by contacting the office listed below in
the address section of this notice.
DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the
addressee section below on or before May 22, 1998.
The Department of Labor is particularly interested in comments
which:
Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency,
including whether the information will have practical utility;
Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's burden estimate for
the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the
methodology and assumptions used;
Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and
Minimize the burden of the collection of information on
those who are to respond, including the use of appropriate automated,
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic
submissions of responses.
ADDRESSES: Thomas M. Dowd, Chief, Division of Indian and Native
American Programs, Employment and Training Administration, U.S.
Department of Labor, Room N-4641, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW,
Washington, DC 20210. Telephone: (202) 219-8502 ext 119(VOICE) or (202)
219-6338(FAX) (these are not toll-free numbers) or INTERNET:
[email protected]
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
The Employment and Training Administration of the Department of
Labor is requesting continuation of its currently-approved reporting
system for the Indian and Native American Welfare-to-Work Grant Program
for three more years (August 1, 1998 to June 30, 2001), or until the
program expires. Current authorization for the INA WtW program expires
on September 30, 1999, but grantees can continue to expend funds for up
to three years ``after the date the funds are so provided''. As this
package was just approved by OMB on February 10, 1998, the Department
has decided that the system does not require any changes at this time.
This position is reached in part because there have as yet not been any
reports submitted under the current clearance authority, so no grantee
experience is available for review and consideration.
II. Current Actions
The proposed ICR will be a continuation of the currently-approved
system that will be used by approximately 80 INA WtW grantees as the
primary reporting vehicle for enrolled individuals, their
characteristics, training and services provided, outcomes, including
job placement and wage data, as well as detailed financial data on
program expenditures. Current paperwork burdens are covered under OMB
Clearance No. 1205-0386 (expiration date 7/31/98), and have been
included in the following burden estimates. For ease of analysis, the
following burden estimate is broken down into the two main components
of INA WtW program operation: (1) Recordkeeping; and (2) reporting.
Type of Review: Extension.
Agency: Employment and Training Administration.
Title: Reporting system for Indian and Native American Welfare-to-
Work Grant Program.
OMB Number: 1205-0386.
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number: 17.254.
Recordkeeping Requirements: Grantees shall retain supporting and
other documents necessary for the compilation and submission of the
subject reports for three years after submission of the final financial
report for the grant in question (29 CFR 97.42 and/or 29 CFR 95.53).
Affected Public: Federally-recognized tribes, Alaska Native
regional non-profit corporations, and/or consortia of any of the above.
Total Estimated Burden: 5,760 hours (reporting); 36,000 hours
(recordkeeping).
Detailed breakdown of the above-estimated burden hour requirements
for the INA WtW program are as follows:
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Total
Required activity INA WtW Form No. Number of Responses Total Hours per burden
Respondents per year responses response hours
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Participant Recordkeeping.... ................ 80 ........... 12,000 3.00 36,000
(Reporting) Financial Status ETA 9069-1...... 80 4 320 9 2,880
Report.
Participation and ETA 9069........ 80 4 320 9 2,880
Characteristics Rpt..
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Totals................. ................ 80 8 12,640 21 41,760
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Note: Recordkeeping estimates are based on the estimated PY 1998
INA WtW caseload times an estimated average of 3.00 hours per
participant record. There is currently no experience with actual INA
WtW performance. Also, this burden estimate does
[[Page 13882]]
not include those INA WtW grantees participating in the
demonstration under Public Law 102-477. Any INA WtW burden
estimate(s) for ``477 grantees'' would be included under OMB
Clearance Number 1076-0135.
The individual time per response (whether plan, record, or report)
varies widely depending on the degree of automation attained by
individual grantees. Grantees also vary according to the numbers of
individuals served in each fiscal year. If the grantee has a fully-
developed and automated MIS, the response time is limited to one-time
programming plus processing time for each response. It is the
Department's desire to see as many INA WtW grantees as possible become
computerized, so that response time for planning and reporting will
eventually sift down to an irreducible minimum with an absolute minimum
of human intervention.
Estimated Grantee Burden Costs: (There are no capital/start-up
costs involved in any INA WtW activities)
Recordkeeping: 36,000 hours times an estimated cost per grantee
hour of $20.00 (including fringes) = $720,000.
Reporting: 5,760 hours times $20.00 = $115,200 per year.
Total estimated burden costs: $835,200 (nationwide).
As noted, these costs will vary widely among grantees, from nearly
no additional cost to some higher figure, depending on the state of
automation attained by each grantee and the wages paid to the staff
actually completing the various forms.
All costs associated with the required submissions outlined above,
whether for recordkeeping or reporting purposes, are allowable grant
expenses.
Comments submitted in response to this comment request will be
summarized and/or included in the request for Office of Management and
Budget continuation of the information collection request; they will
also become a matter of public record.
Signed at Washington, DC, this 17th day of March 1998.
Anna W. Goddard,
Director, Office of Special Targeted Programs.
[FR Doc. 98-7437 Filed 3-20-98; 8:45 am]
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