2015-27860. Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection; Public Comment Request

AGENCY:

Office of the Secretary, HHS.

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

In compliance with section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Office of the Secretary (OS), Department of Health and Human Services, announces plans to submit a new Information Collection Request (ICR), described below, to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Prior to submitting the ICR to OMB, OS seeks comments from the public regarding the burden estimate, below, or any other aspect of the ICR.

DATES:

Comments on the ICR must be received on or before January 4, 2016.

ADDRESSES:

Submit your comments to [e-mail] or by calling [phone].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Information Collection Clearance staff, [e-mail] or [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

When submitting comments or requesting information, please include the document identifier HHS-OS-4040-New-60D for reference.

Information Collection Request Title: DATA Act Sec. 5. “Simplifying Federal Award Reporting” Grants Pilot.

Abstract: Public Law 113-101, The Digital Accountability and Transparency Act of 2014 (DATA Act) expands the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 by increasing accountability and transparency in Federal spending. Section 5 of the DATA Act (“Sec. 5. Simplifying Federal Award Reporting”) tasks the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to establish a pilot program (Sec. 5 (b)).

OMB has designated the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as the executing agent of the pilot program. Within HHS, the DATA Act Program Management Office (PMO) (DAP) has been established under the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Financial Resources (ASFR) in order to implement this pilot program. ASFR/DAP, in coordination with Grants.gov, is requesting a generic clearance for the purpose of conducting tests under the pilot program to obtain qualitative and quantitative data and gain an understanding of the burden imposed on Federal recipients.

The DAP has designed several test models to evaluate recipient burden and assess quality of data. The goal of these test models is to determine whether new technology, data standards, processes, and forms aid in reducing recipient burden and increase the accuracy and quality of the data submitted. Under this clearance, a variety of methods (surveys, focus groups, etc.) could be used to collect data, with the exact nature of the questions currently undetermined. DAP expects these questions to include, but not be limited to, topics pertaining to the Standard Form (SF) 424, the Consolidated Federal Financial Reports, and the expanded Single Audit form (SF-SAC). If this data is not collected, the requirements of the DATA Act Section 5 pilot will not be met. The types of collections that this generic clearance covers include, but are not limited to:

• Surveys,
• Focus Groups,
• Other qualitative methods such as interviews, small discussion groups, and case studies.

Likely Respondents: Recipients of Federal contracts, grants, and sub-awards.

Total Estimated Annualized Burden—Hours

Estimated annual reporting burden
Type of collection	Number of respondents	Annual frequency per response	Hours per response	Total hours
Surveys, Focus Groups, and other qualitative methods	300	1	56.25	16,875
Total	300			16,875

OS specifically requests comments on (1) the necessity and utility of the proposed information collection for the proper performance of the agency's functions, (2) the accuracy of the estimated burden, (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected, and (4) the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology to minimize the information collection burden.

Darius Taylor,

Information Collection Clearance Officer.