[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 97 (Friday, May 20, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29317-29318]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-10125]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Children and Families


Proposed Information Collection Activity; Comment Request

Proposed Projects

    Title: Evaluation of the Refugee Social Service (RSS) and Targeted 
Assistance Formula Grant (TAB) Programs: Data Collection.
    OMB No.: New Collection.
    Description: The Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) within the 
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) funds the Refugee 
Social Services (RSS) and Targeted Assistance Formula Grant (TAG) 
programs, which are designed to help refugees achieve economic success 
quickly following their arrival in the U.S. through employment 
services, English-language instruction, vocational training, and other 
social services. ORR is sponsoring a project to (1) conduct a 
comprehensive evaluation of the effectiveness of ORR employability 
services through RSS and TAG, and (2) propose options for 
institutionalizing ongoing evaluation and performance assessment into 
the programs.
    ORR is requesting OMB clearance for three methods of information 
collection: (1) Interviews with state and local refugee program 
administrators and service providers in three sites to learn about 
service delivery and organizational arrangements, and with a small 
number of local employers who work with RSS- and TAG-funded service 
providers to learn about their experiences with the programs; (2) A 
sample of 1,125 refugees to collect data on refugees' employment and 
earnings outcomes; (3) Two to three focus groups with seven to ten 
program clients in each of the three sites to obtain customer 
perspectives of the services they received and their adjustment 
experiences.
    Respondents: (1) Interviews will be conducted with three state 
refugee coordinators, voluntary agency (VOLAG) and Mutual Assistance 
Association (MAA) staff, local RSS and TAG service providers, and 
employers who employ significant numbers of refugees. (2) The 
respondents of the survey are refugees who have been in the United 
States for fewer than five years, and, thus, are eligible for RSS and 
TAG services. The survey relies on a mixed-mode data collection method 
that involves both telephone and in-person interviews. If individuals 
cannot be reached by phone, an attempt will be made to contact them in 
person. Approximately 900 of the 1,125 refugees sampled will complete 
the survey over a nine-week period.
    (3) Respondents of the focus groups will include refugees who have 
received RSS-and TAG-funded services. Approximately 70 refugees will 
participate in the focus groups.

                                             Annual Burden Estimates
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                                                                     Number of        Average
                   Instrument                        Number of    responses  per   burden hours    Total burden
                                                    respondents     respondent     per response        hours
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Interviews with program staff...................              60               1               1              60
Interviews with employers.......................              12               1               2              24
Survey of refugees..............................             900               1             0.5             450
Focus group with program clients................              70               1               2             140
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    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 674.
    In compliance with the requirements of Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Administration for Children and 
Families is soliciting public comment on the specific aspects of the 
information collection described above. Copies of the proposed 
collection of information can be obtained and comments may be forwarded 
by writing to the Administration for Children and Families, Office of 
Administration, Office of Information Services, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, 
SW., Washington, DC 20447, Attn: ACF Reports Clearance Officer. E-mail 
address: [email protected]. All requests should be identified by 
the title of the information collection.
    The Department specifically requests comments 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) 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. 
Consideration will be given to

[[Page 29318]]

comments and suggestions submitted within 60 days of this publication.

    Dated: May 16, 2005.
Robert Sargis,
Reports Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 05-10125 Filed 5-19-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-01-M