E8-13428. Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

Proposed Projects

Title: Generic Clearance to Conduct Qualitative Data Collections.

OMB No.: New Collection.

Description: The Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation (OPRE), Administration for Children and Families (ACF), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), intends to request approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for a generic clearance that will allow OPRE to conduct a variety of qualitative data collections. Over the next three years, OPRE anticipates undertaking a variety of new research projects in the fields of cash welfare, employment and self-sufficiency, Head Start, child care, healthy marriage and responsible fatherhood, and child welfare. In order to inform the development of OPRE research, to maintain a research agenda that is rigorous and relevant, and to ensure that research products are as current as possible, OPRE will engage in a variety of qualitative data collections in concert with researchers and practitioners throughout the field. OPRE envisions using a variety of techniques including semi-structured discussions, focus groups, telephone interviews, and in-person observations and site visits, in order to integrate the perspectives of program operators, policy officials and members of the research community.

Following standard Office of Management and Budget (OMB) requirements, OPRE will submit a change request to OMB individually for every group of data collection activities undertaken under this generic clearance. OPRE will provide OMB with a copy of the individual instruments or questionnaires (if one is used), as well as other materials describing the project.

Respondents: Administrators or staff of State and local agencies or programs in the relevant fields; academic researchers; and policymakers at various levels of government.

Annual Burden Estimates

Instrument	Number of respondents	Number of responses per respondent	Average burden hours per response	Total annual burden hours
Semi-Structured Discussion and Information-Gathering Protocol	600	1	.5	300
Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours				300

Additional Information:

Copies of the proposed collection may be obtained by writing to the Administration for Children and Families, Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW., Washington, DC 20447, Attn: ACF Reports Clearance Officer. E-mail address: [e-mail]. All requests should be identified by the title of the information collection.

OMB Comment:

OMB is required to make a decision concerning the collection of information between 30 and 60 days after publication of this document in the Federal Register. Therefore, a comment is best assured of having its full effect if OMB receives it within 30 days of publication. Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be sent directly to the following:

Office of Management and Budget, Paperwork Reduction Project. FAX: [phone]. Attn: Desk Officer for ACF.

Dated: June 9, 2008.

Brendan C. Kelly,

OPRE Reports Clearance Officer.