[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 19 (Wednesday, January 29, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4504-4505]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-1998]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request

    In compliance with Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995 concerning opportunity for public comment on proposed 
collections of information, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health 
Services Administration will publish periodic summaries of proposed 
projects. To request more information on the proposed projects or to 
obtain a copy of the information collection plans, call the SAMHSA 
Reports Clearance Officer on (301) 443-7978.
    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collections of 
information are 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.
    Proposed Project: The Family Treatment Drug Court Evaluation--New--
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration's (SAMHSA) Center 
for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT) will conduct an evaluation of 
Family Treatment Drug Courts. The Family Treatment Drug Court 
Evaluation will examine the effectiveness of family treatment drug 
courts in four settings: Suffolk County, New York; Washoe County, 
Nevada; San Diego County, California; and Santa Clara County, 
California. The study will employ a multi-method, quasi-experimental 
research design to investigate several key child welfare outcomes for 
family treatment drug courts as compared to traditional case 
processing, including whether the time to permanency for children is 
different in a family treatment drug court program than in traditional 
case processing.
    In addition, the study will investigate rates of reunification and 
termination of parental rights; types, frequency, and length of out-of-
home placements; and child welfare recidivism. The study will 
investigate the key mediators of program success, including the effect 
of family treatment drug courts on treatment access, treatment 
completion, parent motivation, and family well-being, among other key 
mediators.
    The project consists of an outcome evaluation that includes 
administrative data collection and client interviews with a sample of 
treatment and comparison participants. The target population for the 
family treatment drug court consists of substance abusing parents who 
have a current child abuse or neglect case. The outcome evaluation will 
document whether family treatment

[[Page 4505]]

drug courts are more effective than traditional court settings in 
decreasing the time needed to reach permanent placements for children; 
increasing the frequency of successful parent-child reunifications and 
decreasing the frequency of terminations of parental rights; decreasing 
the time children spend in foster care; and reducing child welfare 
recidivism.
    An intent-to-treat sampling model will be used for the treatment 
groups at each site during a 2.5-year recruitment window. The expected 
number of treatment group subjects varies by site based on program 
capacity, as illustrated in the table below. Comparison groups will be 
recruited in three of the four sites, with equal numbers of comparison 
group participants at each site; no comparison group will be used in 
San Diego because that county has implemented a system-wide reform. 
Interview data will be sought from all persons included in the 
administrative datasets.
    Interview participants will take part in a baseline interview 
within one month of their dispositional hearing and three follow-up 
interviews. Follow-up One will take place six months later, Follow-Up 
Two will take place 12 months after baseline, and Follow-Up Three will 
take place 24 months after baseline. The interview tool will assess 
participants' perceptions of the services they are receiving and their 
interactions with the court, treatment, and child welfare systems; 
their understanding of what they need to do in order to be reunified 
with their children; and their feelings of empowerment and control over 
the process. Each interview will last approximately one hour. 
Administrative data, including child welfare and treatment data, will 
be collected annually to ascertain the type, frequency, and timeliness 
of services received and to capture the crucial child welfare outcomes 
of interest, including the timing and type of permanency plans for 
children, the length of time children spend in foster care, and 
subsequent involvement in the child welfare system.
    The project is scheduled over a four-year time period. Therefore, 
the estimates in the table below are annualized based on planned 
activities for the entire four years.

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                                                      No. of        Responses/                     Total burden
                                                    respondents     respondent    Hours/response       hrs.
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Client Interviews...............................           1,295               4            1.0            5,180
Tracking telephone calls........................           1,295               3            0.17             220
Total...........................................           1,295  ..............  ..............           5,400
4-yr. Annual Average............................           1,295  ..............  ..............           1,350
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    Send comments to Nancy Pearce, SAMHSA Reports Clearance Officer, 
Room 16-105, Parklawn Building, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20857. 
Written comments should be received within 60 days of this notice.

    Dated: January 23, 2003.
Richard Kopanda,
Executive Officer, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services 
Administration.
[FR Doc. 03-1998 Filed 1-28-03; 8:45 am]
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