[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 8 (Monday, January 13, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1616-1617]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-645]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

[60Day-03-34]


Proposed Data Collections Submitted for Public Comment and 
Recommendations

    In compliance with the requirement of section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 for opportunity for public comment on 
proposed data collection projects, the Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention (CDC) will publish periodic summaries of proposed projects. 
To request more information on the proposed projects or to obtain a 
copy of the data collection plans and instruments, call the CDC Reports 
Clearance Officer on (404) 498-1210.
    Comments are invited on: (a) 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; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways 
to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, 
including through the use of automated collection techniques or other 
forms of information technology. Send comments to Seleda Perryman, CDC 
Assistant Reports Clearance Officer, 1600 Clifton Road, MS-D24, 
Atlanta, GA 30333. Written comments should be received within 60 days 
of this notice.
    Proposed Project: School Associated Violent Death Surveillance 
System--New--National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC), 
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The Division of 
Violence Prevention (DVP), National Center for Injury Prevention and 
Control (NCIPC) proposes to develop a system for the surveillance of 
school-associated homicides and suicides. The system will rely on 
existing public records and interviews with law enforcement officials 
and school officials. The purpose of the system is to (1) estimate the 
rate of school-associated violent death in the United States and (2) 
identify common features of school-associated violent deaths. The 
proposed system will contribute to the understanding of fatal violence 
associated with schools, guide further research in the area, and help 
direct ongoing and future prevention programs.
    Violence is the leading cause of death among young people, and 
increasingly recognized as an important public health and social issue. 
In 1998, over 3,500 school aged children (5 to 18 years old) in the 
United States died violent deaths due to suicide, homicide, and 
unintentional firearm injuries. The vast majority of these fatal 
injuries were not school associated. However, whenever a homicide or 
suicide occurs in or around school, it becomes a matter of particularly 
intense public interest and concern. NCIPC conducted the first 
scientific study of school-associated violent deaths during the 1992-99 
academic years to establish the true extent of this highly visible 
problem.
    Despite the important role of schools as a setting for violence 
research and prevention interventions, relatively little scientific or 
systematic work has been done to describe the nature and level of fatal 
violence associated with schools. Until NCIPC conducted the first 
nationwide investigation of violent deaths associated with schools, 
public health and education officials had to rely on limited local 
studies and estimated numbers to describe the extent of school-
associated violent death.
    The proposed system will draw cases from the entire United States 
in attempting to capture all cases of school-associated violent deaths 
that have occurred. Investigators will review public records and 
published press reports concerning each school-associated violent 
death. For each identified case, investigators will also interview an 
investigating law enforcement official (defined as a police officer, 
police chief, or district attorney), and a school official (defined as 
a school principal, school superintendent, school counselor, school 
teacher, or school support staff) who are knowledgeable about the case 
in question. Researchers will request information on both the victim 
and alleged offender(s)--including demographic data, their academic and 
criminal records, and their relationship to one another. They will also 
collect data on the time and location of the death; the circumstances, 
motive, and method of the fatal injury; and the security and violence 
prevention activities in the school and community where the death 
occurred, before and after the fatal injury event. There are no costs 
to the respondents.

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                                                                     Number of     Avg. burden/    Total annual
                   Respondents                       Number of      responses/     response  (in    burden  (in
                                                    respondents     respondent         hrs.)           hrs.)
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School Officials................................              35               1               1              35
Police Officials................................              35               1               1              35
                                                 -----------------
    Total.......................................  ..............  ..............  ..............              70
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[[Page 1617]]

    Dated: January 3, 2003.
Nancy E. Cheal,
Acting Associate Director for Policy, Planning and Evaluation, Centers 
for Disease Control and Prevention.
[FR Doc. 03-645 Filed 1-10-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4163-18-P