[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 104 (Wednesday, May 31, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28419-28423]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-13220]



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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Office of the Secretary


Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation; 
Linking State Administrative Data

AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, 
HHS.

ACTION: Request for applications for grants to support State efforts to 
link case-level administrative data across multiple low-income 
assistance programs.

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SUMMARY: Recent state efforts to link longitudinal, administrative data 
across programs have proven extremely successful. Linked databases have 
provided a more thorough understanding of many aspects of both program 
participation and the characteristics of individuals who receive 
benefits from multiple anti-poverty programs. State-supported efforts 
have also provided valuable insight into both inter- and intra-state 
variations in program participation. Much of this information would not 
have been accessible through national panel data.
    While the efforts of individual states have been extremely 
valuable, they have been limited to relatively few states. Factors such 
as prohibitive cost, lack of necessary staff expertise, and 
insufficient time and computational resources have precluded many 
interested states from linking their administrative data. Total funding 
of up to $200,000 is available to provide one to two interested states 
with resources needed to successfully link administrative data and use 
it for program management, research and scholarly analysis. It is not 
expected that the funding available in this grant will be sufficient 
for any state to complete a project that links micro-level 
administrative data. Rather, this grant is intended to assist those 
states which are interested in linking their administrative data, but 
currently lack the resources to successfully complete the project on 
their own.

Part I. Linking State Administrative Data

A. Background:

    In the last five years, several states have begun assembling 
administrative data from income-maintenance and other programs targeted 
toward low-income individuals and families for use in policy research 
and program evaluation. Most notably, administrative data that has been 
linked from a variety of anti-poverty programs has been used to study 
characteristics of program participation, multi-service usage, and 
caseload dynamics. The results from many of these research initiatives 
have provided an extremely useful insight into the characteristics of 
program participants, the patterns of multi-service utilization, and 
the interactions between multiple programs that provide assistance to 
low-income families.
    Administrative data also offer more possibilities for in-depth 
analysis than do other forms of data, such as national panel data. Many 
national studies do not give reliable state-level estimates, 
particularly in smaller states with relatively few sampling points. As 
a result, it is generally quite difficult to estimate the state-level 
effects of national anti-poverty programs. State administrative data 
offer the opportunity to study inter- and intra-state comparisons of 
government programs, and to examine the extent to which variations in 
state anti-poverty programs are successful in serving various client 
populations.
Usefulness of Project
    The research that has been conducted to date has illustrated the 
efficacy in using linked administrative data for research and 
evaluation. In the vast majority of states, however, the use of linked 
data still remains either untouched or far below what is technically 
possible. A study funded by the Department surveyed fifteen states and 
determined that, for the majority of the states surveyed, linked 
administrative data is a potentially rich source of information about 
programs targeted toward low-income populations.
    Despite the potential of state administrative data, the 
Department's previous findings indicate that linked, state-level 
program data still remains a vastly under-utilized source of 
information. Many states have both the interest and raw administrative 
data necessary to produce longitudinally-linked files at the case or 
client level. However, as the process of linking data across programs 
and over time is an expensive, iterative process that requires 
significant time and expertise, many states lack the capacity to link 
their data. Some states lack the computer hardware, software, disk 
space, and memory necessary to actually perform the process of linking 
data. Other states lack the expertise and staff-time to devote energy 
to a research project. Many states face both of these obstacles.
    This grant will help the selected states overcome the obstacles 
that hinder the process of linking administrative data. For example, 
states with limited data- [[Page 28420]] linking experience and 
capacity could add the hardware and software needed to link and store 
data. States with more experience (such as those which currently 
operate linked, research data bases) could use the funds to add 
administrative data from additional anti-poverty programs.

Part II. Awardee Responsibilities

    Due to the substantial variation among states in the level of 
experience and expertise in working with linked administrative data, we 
fully expect a wide range of proposals to be submitted. Proposals from 
states which currently have linked administrative databases will 
obviously differ dramatically from proposals submitted by states with 
which have never worked with linked data. Given this, the specific 
responsibilities of the awardees may vary. Each state will, however, be 
expected to follow the following guidelines:
    1. Each applicant must develop the computer systems and technical 
capacity necessary to produce longitudinal, linked administrative 
micro-level data. The focus of the data may be on cases, households, 
clients, filing units, etc., or any combination thereof. For those 
applicants which currently have linked data bases, it is expected that 
this grant will provide the resources necessary to significantly 
enhance their current data systems.
    2. Each applicant must link administrative data from at least two 
programs that primarily benefit low-income individuals or families. The 
states that currently operate linked, administrative research databases 
began by focusing on data from the AFDC, Medicaid and Food Stamps 
computer systems, largely because these data operating systems for 
these programs were fairly compatible due to the interactions between 
the programs. States in the early stages of data linking may choose to 
focus on these programs, but links between other programs are also 
strongly encouraged. Other administrative data that states may choose 
to link include: Child welfare and foster care, child support 
enforcement, unemployment insurance, vital statistics, disability, SSI 
and income tax data. Linkages between these programs are especially 
encouraged, as they will likely provide fresh insight into the 
interactions over time among these programs.
    3. Each applicant must develop the capacity and knowledge necessary 
to prepare and standardize data for program management and scholarly 
analysis. The data resulting from this grant should be able to support 
policy research and program evaluation, and should provide insight into 
a variety of policy relevant concerns. Data-sets should support 
research into questions concerning (but not limited to) multi-program 
participation and usage, interactions between various anti-poverty 
programs, caseload dynamics, recidivism, fraud and abuse, and the 
demographic, economic and social characteristics of multi-program 
participants.
    4. In addition to preparing the data in a manner suitable for 
program administration and scholarly research, applicants must 
demonstrate an ability to actually utilize the data analytically. 
Linked administrative data allow for a great variety of analysis. For 
example, files linked longitudinally can be studied with event-history 
and survivor analysis, methods which are used to understand caseload 
dynamics and determine how the sequence of service events affects a 
client's outcomes. Additionally, since administrative data typically 
have more complete and detailed information than panel data, 
administrative data analysis can more accurately assess the demographic 
and social characteristics of multi-service users. Administrative data 
can also be used to do detailed geographic analysis, which is helpful 
in studying whether there are significant variations in service usage 
across different administrative regions or across neighborhoods.
    It is necessary for applicants to detail exactly how their linked 
data can be used for scholarly analysis. States with larger social 
service departments may have researchers on staff who possess the 
skills necessary to fully explore the data. Other states may wish to 
combine their efforts with an academic or policy research organization 
with expertise in data analysis. Both of these alternatives, as well as 
others, would be acceptable. It is not our intent to limit the 
analytical choices of applicants, but rather to ensure that the data 
sets created under this grant are used to their full potential.
    5. Applicants must obtain written agreements with all state or 
county social service departments that will supply the source data. The 
agreement should clearly indicate the responsibilities of both the 
applicants and the state or county agency, and the willingness of the 
parties to work cooperatively. Applicants must also include a plan 
which ensures that the resulting linked Data ensure client 
confidentiality.
    6. Applicants must demonstrate an ongoing commitment to the 
project. A principal use of these data is to study current policy 
relevant questions about programs for low-income populations. Data for 
answering current questions are most useful when they capture current 
effects of such programs. Consistent with their on-going commitment to 
data linking and analysis, applicants must ensure that both recent 
historical data and new case data will be added after the Federal 
funding for this project expires.

Part III. Prerequisites, Content of Application, Review Process, 
and Evaluation Criteria

A. Prerequisites

    Who may apply? We will only accept applications from state 
agencies, large urban county agencies, or universities working with 
them. This announcement is aimed primarily at states that can link 
statewide data bases. Applications will also be considered from large 
urban county governments that can clearly demonstrate the ability to 
link administrative databases in a way that could provide data of 
national policy relevance. University-based research teams that are 
working with state agencies to develop linked data bases may apply but 
must provide assurances from the state that they are intimately 
involved in developing and utilizing the data base for policy purposes.
    What data bases? Applicants must clearly demonstrate the ability to 
link at least two micro (person, family, or case) files and at least be 
in the midst of analyzing data for policy research or evaluation 
purposes. Examples of files that have been linked in other situations 
are: AFDC, Medicaid, Child Welfare and Foster care, Unemployment 
Insurance, Child Support, Individual Income Tax, Vital Statistics, and 
Juvenile Courts. At a minimum, linked data bases must allow for at 
least three years of longitudinal analysis.
    On-going commitment? The state agency responsible for establishing 
the linked data system must provide evidence of an on-going commitment 
to developing the data base and using it to understand poverty, program 
utilization, caseload dynamics, program effectiveness, and other 
important aspects of administration of anti-poverty, employment, and 
welfare programs. Applicants that do not provide assurances that all 
three of these prerequisites will be fulfilled will be unacceptable.

B. Applicant Content

    The application shall include the following elements:
1. Abstract
    A one page abstract of the project and its 
objectives. [[Page 28421]] 
2. Goals and Justification for Project
    This section will discuss why the agency wishes to undertake the 
project and what the short and long-term goals of the project are. The 
applicant should discuss the background of what it has been doing to 
support linking administrative data bases, the current status of data 
base development, and what it expects to accomplish with this project. 
It should discuss what analysis will be completed given completion of 
the project, the analytical report that will be produced, and what 
policy relevance it will have. States should also present their plans, 
if any, to produce a public use dataset as a result of this project.
    Linking two or more administrative data bases for analytical 
purposes is a complicated and difficult endeavor. It often can take 
several iterations of refinement to produce a data base that supports 
analysis of more than simple descriptive statistics about the caseload. 
This section should discuss where the agency is in the evolution of the 
linking and embedding policy analysis in the administrative management 
of the programs involved. It should contain a discussion of how the 
agency will carry on after this funding is exhausted. For applicants 
who are not currently linking databases, they should clearly 
demonstrate their knowledge of the process, as well as their plans to 
obtain the necessary expertise to successfully carry out their proposed 
project.
3. Project Design and Approach
    In this section, the applicant will discuss what, if any, data are 
currently linked, what will be added through this grant, and how it 
will be accomplished. This section should describe what variables are 
available and will be added, what length of time period is covered, 
what kind of data analysis currently can be done, and what analytical 
capability will be added by this project. The discussion should make it 
clear to the reader what is the structure of the data, what are the 
building blocks (individuals, families, households, cases, filing 
units, etc.), the universe of state population covered, the types of 
variables (demographic, program participation, program dynamics, costs, 
etc.) that can be used for analysis. The applicant should also clearly 
specify how the micro-level data will be linked and how the 
retrospective case files will be assembled. Does a unique identifier 
exist that will allow data to be easily linked across programs? If not, 
what variable or record-matching technique will be employed? It also 
should make clear what information is not available, and the 
limitations this poses for policy-relevant analysis.
    If applicants are not currently linking any administrative data, 
then they should assure reviewers that they have adequate access to at 
least three years of recent historical administrative data. Applicants 
should also convince reviewers that they have the expertise needed to 
complete the project, and also have the commitment to continue linking 
administrative data for research, analysis, and program management 
purposes.
    The treatment of confidentiality and proper disclosure is a very 
important issue related to linking data and analyzing it. The 
applicants will discuss how they will protect data from improper 
disclosure, and how they will facilitate analytical use of sensitive 
data. This section will discuss the time table to accomplish this 
project. Who will do what, when, and how? It also will discuss what 
will be the end product of this project. What sort of report will be 
produced? What policy relevance will it have to the state and to DHHS?
4. Organization and Staffing
    The application will describe the organization applying for the 
grant. If the applicant is a state agency, where does it fit in the 
state organization? What are its responsibilities? What are its 
capabilities and limitations? How can it assure that this project will 
be embedded in the state's policy analysis system?
    The applicant will discuss the staffing for the project. Who will 
be the project leader? What are the qualifications of the staff and who 
will be involved? What are their time commitments to the project and 
what other time commitments do they have that might interfere with 
successful completion of the project? Personal vita and job 
descriptions should be attached as an appendix to the application.
    If a university group is involved in the project, the application 
will clearly delineate what the responsibilities of the group will be 
and how the state agency will exercise control over their work. It will 
describe the mechanism (subcontract, etc.) used to procure the 
university group services.
5. Budget
    This section will include a budget summary and narrative which 
describes how the budget supports the research plan. It should show the 
financial contribution made or expected by other funding sources, and 
the share of total project costs covered by ASPE's grant. It will 
discuss how the overall funding level and federal contribution relate 
to the successful completion of the project. The actual budget will be 
presented on the forms and in accordance with the requirements 
discussed in the section entitled ``Components of a Complete 
Application.''
6. Commitment of State
    Applicants should use this section to completely describe the 
resources the state has already committed to the project. If the state 
has not yet established support for the project, then applicants should 
discuss any future involvement expected of the state. Resources 
contributed by the state could include any financial assistance (and 
whether it is an outright cash grant or is targeted for a specific 
purchase such as computing equipment), allocation of staff or computing 
time, technical assistance, and any other relevant contribution.

C. Review Process and Evaluation Criteria

    A technical panel of at least three people will review and score 
those applications which are submitted by the deadline, and which meet 
the screening and prerequisite requirements. The review will be based 
on the criteria listed below. The review of the technical proposal and 
budget will be used by the Assistant Secretary in making funding 
decisions. ASPE reserves the option to discuss the application and the 
state agency record of performance with other agencies, Regional Office 
staff, and experts who may have information that could assist the 
selection process.
    The evaluation criteria correspond to the outline for the 
development of the Program Narrative Statement of the application. 
Although not mandatory, it is strongly recommended that applications be 
prepared with the format indicated by this outline.
    Selection of the successful applicant(s) will be based on the 
technical and financial criteria laid out in this announcement. 
Reviewers will determine the strengths and weaknesses of each 
application in terms of the evaluation criteria listed below, provide 
comments and assign numerical scores. The review panel will prepare a 
summary of all applicant scores and strengths/weaknesses and 
recommendations and submit it to the Assistant Secretary for Planning 
and Evaluation for final decisions on the award.
    The point value following each criterion heading indicates the 
maximum numerical weight that each section will be given in the review 
[[Page 28422]] process. An unacceptable rating on any individual 
criterion may render the application unacceptable. Consequently, 
applicants should take care to ensure that all criteria are fully 
addressed in the applications. Applications will be reviewed as 
follows:
    (a) Quality of the goals and Project Justification. (See Part B, 
Type of Application Requested, Section 2.) (15 points) Applications 
will be judged on whether they provide a thoughtful and coherent 
discussion of the need for the project and what it will accomplish. 
Reviewers will judge applicant's past, current, and future commitment 
to linking administrative data for policy analysis, research, and 
evaluation. Particular attention will be given to the agency's 
commitment to scholarly, policy-relevant work, and their commitment to 
producing a public use dataset as a result of this project.
    (b) Quality of the project design and approach. (See Part B, 
Section 3.) (35 points) Reviewers will judge this section on the basis 
of whether the research agenda is scientifically sound and policy 
relevant. They will also consider whether the applicant is likely to 
make a significant contribution to understanding such important issues 
as program utilization and effectiveness, caseload dynamics, types of 
clients, and multiple program participation. Applications will be rated 
on their plans to conduct policy relevant research and interact with 
various levels of government to research and evaluate significant 
government initiatives and policies.
    Reviewers will assess the completeness of the data bases linked, 
population coverage, and the extensiveness of the variables in the data 
base. A proposal with more data bases linked will be rated higher than 
one with only two program databases, all other factors being constant. 
Evidence of data quality control and validity is also extremely 
important. Ratings will consider the thoroughness of the discussion of 
the database strengths and weaknesses. Reviewers will assess whether 
there is appropriate use and protection of sensitive or confidential 
data. The type and quality of end product anticipated from this project 
will be considered and rated. Finally, reviewers will rate the 
feasibility of the workplan and time schedule.
    (c) Quality of the staffing proposal and proposed organizational 
arrangements. (See Part B, Section 4.) (35 points) Reviewers will judge 
applicant's staff on research experience, demonstrated research skills, 
public administration experience, and relevant policy-research and 
policy-making skills. Ratings may consider references on prior research 
projects. Staff time commitments to the project also will be a factor 
in the evaluation. Furthermore, reviewers will rate the applicant's 
pledge and ability to produce a database capable of supporting policy-
relevant analysis.
    Reviewers will evaluate the track record of the lead agency ability 
to support scholarly, policy relevant research that can meet the 
demands of the academic, research, and policy communities.
    If a university group is involved in the project, raters will judge 
the administrative relationships between the group and the state agency 
and whether the administrative arrangements can assure quality data and 
analysis.
    (d) Appropriateness of the budget to carry out the planned staffing 
and activities. (See Part B, Section 5.) (15 points) Ratings will 
consider whether: (a) The budget assures an efficient and effective 
allocation of funds to achieve the objectives of this solicitation and 
(2) the applicant has appropriate financial commitment from the state 
and the university, if one is involved.
    State Single Point of Contact (E.O. No. 12372): The Department of 
Health and Human Services has determined that this program is not 
subject to Executive Order No. 12372, Intergovernmental Review of 
Federal Programs, because it is a program that is national in scope and 
the only impact on State and local governments would be through 
subgrants. Applicants are not required to seek intergovernmental review 
of their applications within the constraints of E.O. No. 12372.
    Deadline for Submission of Applications: The closing date for 
submission of applications under this announcement is July 31, 1995. 
Applications must be postmarked or hand-delivered to the application 
receipt point no later than 4:30 p.m. on July 31, 1995.
    Hand-delivered applications will be accepted Monday through Friday 
prior to and on July 31, 1995 during the hours of 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. 
in the lobby of the Hubert H. Humphrey building located at 200 
Independence Avenue, SW., in Washington, DC. When hand-delivering an 
application, call 690-8794 from the lobby for pick-up. A staff person 
will be available to receive applications.
    An application will be considered as meeting the deadline if it is 
either: (1) Received at, or hand-delivered to, the mailing address on 
or before July 31, 1995, or (2) postmarked before midnight five days 
prior to the deadline date July 31, 1995, and received in time to be 
considered during the competitive review process (within two weeks of 
the deadline date).
    When mailing application packages, applicants are strongly advised 
to obtain a legibly dated receipt from a commercial carrier (such as 
UPS, Federal Express, etc.), or from the U.S. Postal Service as proof 
of mailing by the deadline date. If there is a question as to when an 
application was mailed, applicants will be asked to provide proof of 
mailing by the deadline date. When proof is not provided, an 
application will not be considered for funding. Private metered 
postmarks are not acceptable as proof of timely mailing.
    Applications which do not meet the July 31, 1995, deadline are 
considered late applications and will not be considered or reviewed in 
the current competition. HHS will send a letter to this effect to each 
late applicant.
    HHS reserves the right to extend the deadline for all applications 
due to acts of God, such as floods, hurricanes or earthquakes; due to 
acts of war; if there is widespread disruption of the mail; or if HHS 
determines a deadline extension to be in the best of the Government. 
However, HHS will not waive or extend the deadline for any applicant 
unless the deadline is waived or extended for all applicants.
    Applications forms. See section entitled ``Components of a Complete 
Application.'' All of these documents must accompany the application 
package.
    Length of Application. Applications should be brief and concise as 
possible, but assure successful communication of the applicant's 
proposal to the reviewers. In no case shall an applicant (excluding the 
resume appendix and other appropriate attachments) be longer than 25 
double-spaced pages; it should neither be unduly elaborate not contain 
voluminous supporting documentation.

Disposition of Applications.

    1. Approval, disapproval, or deferral. On the basis of the review 
of an application, the ASPE will either (a) approve the application in 
whole, as revised, or in part for such amount of funds and subject to 
such conditions as are deemed necessary or desirable for the initiation 
and operation of the data linking project; (b) disapprove the 
application; or (c) defer action on the application for such reasons as 
lack of funds or a need for further review.
    2. Notification of disposition. The ASPE will notify the applicants 
of the disposition of their application. A signed notification of award 
will be [[Page 28423]] issued to notify the applicant of the approved 
application.
    Components of a Complete Application. A complete application 
consists of the following items in this order:
    1. Application for Federal Assistance (Standard Form 424, Revised 
4-88);
    2. Budget Information--Non-construction Programs (Standard Form 
424A, Revised 4-88);
    3. Assurances--Non-construction Programs (Standard Form 424B, 
Revised 4-88);
    4. Table of Contents;
    5. Budget Justification for Section B--Budget Categories;
    6. Proof of non-profit status, if appropriate;
    7. Copy of the applicant's approved indirect cost rate agreement if 
necessary;
    8. Project Narrative Statement, organized in five sections 
addressing the following topics:
    (a) Understanding of the Effort,
    (b) Project Approach,
    (c) Staffing Utilization, Staff Background, and Experience,
    (d) Organizational Experience, and
    (e) Budget Narrative;
    9. Any appendices/attachments;
    10. Certification Regarding Drug-Free Work place;
    11. Certification Regarding Debarment, Suspension and Other 
Responsibility Matters; and
    12. Certification and, if necessary, Disclosure Regarding Lobbying;
    13. Supplement to Section II--Key Personnel; and
    14. Application for Federal Assistance Checklist.

    Dated: May 22, 1995.
David T. Ellwood,
Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation.
[FR Doc. 95-13220 Filed 5-30-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4151-04-M