2024-17209. Proposed Collection; Comment Request

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Department of Defense

Office of the Secretary

1. [Docket ID: DoD-2024-OS-0091]

AGENCY:

Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness (OUSD(P&R)), Department of Defense (DoD).

ACTION:

60-Day information collection notice.

SUMMARY:

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the OUSD(P&R) announces a proposed public information collection and seeks public comment on the provisions thereof. Comments are invited on: whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical utility; the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed information collection; ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and ways to minimize the burden of the information collection on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

DATES:

Consideration will be given to all comments received by October 7, 2024.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments, identified by docket number and title, by any of the following methods:

Federal eRulemaking Portal:http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.

Mail: Department of Defense, Office of the Assistant to the Secretary of Defense for Privacy, Civil Liberties, and Transparency, Regulatory Directorate, 4800 Mark Center Drive, Mailbox #24, Suite 05F16, Alexandria, VA 22350-1700.

Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name, docket number and title for this Federal Register document. The general policy for comments and other submissions from members of the public is to make these submissions available for public viewing on the internet at http://www.regulations.gov as they are received without change, including any personal identifiers or contact information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

To request more information on this proposed information collection or to obtain a copy of the proposal and associated collection instruments, please write to Rachel Lipari, [phone], 4800 Mark Center Dr., Suite 06E22, Alexandria, VA 22311 or [e-mail].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

At the direction of President Biden, the Secretary of Defense ordered a 90-Day Independent Review Commission (IRC) on Sexual Assault in the Military. The IRC recommended that the DoD establish a “pulse survey” tool that would enable unit-level commanders to collect real-time climate data from Service members in their units between required administrations of the Defense Organizational Climate Survey (DEOCS), the command climate assessment tool used by the DoD. A subsequent September 2021 memo from the Secretary of Defense directed the OUSD(P&R) to develop the survey tool to augment the DEOCS command climate assessment program required under Section 572 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013. OUSD(P&R) developed the Defense Organizational Climate Pulse (DOCP) to meet this directive and launched the DOCP survey in early 2024.

The DOCP provides DoD leaders in active duty and reserve component units and DoD civilian personnel organizations an annual opportunity to assess concerns identified in the DEOCS and/or to support a change of command. Also included in the DOCP population are active duty and reserve component members of the Coast Guard and foreign national employees working for the DoD. The survey is web-based and is a census of the commander's unit. The survey includes core demographic questions and up to 16 questions selected from a curated bank of survey items that include topics related to (1) unit experiences, (2) ratings of leadership, and (3) personal experiences and/or behaviors. OUSD(P&R) will be updating curated set of questions for the 2025 DEOCS (planned fielding in early 2025).

Title; Associated Form; and OMB Number: Defense Organizational Climate Pulse (DOCP); OMB Control Number 0704-0669.

Needs and Uses: The DOCP is fielded in response to a September 2021 memo from Secretary of Defense directing the OUSD (P&R) to develop the survey pulse tool. The information gathered from DOCP surveys will be used by commanders, integrated primary prevention workforce personnel, equal opportunity officers, survey administrators, and other leaders to assess changes in the unit's command climate, gather additional information related to risk and protective factors measured on the DOECS and/or other outcomes of interest ( e.g., sexual assault, gender issues, race/ethnic issues, suicide, readiness, retention, retaliation,). The DOCP requirements were further codified in December 2022 in the DoD Instruction 6400.11, which specified that unit commanders may optionally field only one DOCP annually, and not within 90 days of fielding a DEOCS. Based on the DOCP results; commanders, leaders, and their survey administrators will refine the action plans developed after the administration of a DEOCS to positively impact their organization's leadership climate. The survey results are provided to the commander/leader and their survey administrator. Survey responses could also be used in future analyses.

Affected Public: Individuals and households.

Annual Burden Hours: 18,540.

Number of Respondents: 158,910.

Responses per Respondent: 1.

Annual Responses: 158,910.

Average Burden per Response: 7 minutes.

Frequency: As required.

Unit commanders and organizational leaders may choose to administer a DOCP, 90 days before or after their most recent DEOCS. The DEOCS is a required administration for unit commanders. In contrast, the DOCP is a voluntary data collection unit commanders may request. The DOCP will be a confidential data collection.

Dated: July 31, 2024.

Aaron T. Siegel,

Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison Officer, Department of Defense.