[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 29 (Tuesday, February 13, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6736-6737]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 07-632]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Children and Families


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

    Title: Identifying Promising Temporary Assistance for Needy 
Families (TANF) Diversion Practices.
    OMB No.: New Collection.
    Description: The Identifying Promising TANF Diversion Practices 
study is designed to understand States' and local offices' TANF 
diversion policies and practices. Since the passage of the Personal 
Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, a 
majority of States have implemented formal diversion programs that 
provide assistance to families and/or impose program requirements on 
them when they apply for TANF in order to reduce the number of families 
who enroll in the program. These programs can send a strong signal to 
applicants that TANF is a work-oriented program and/or prevent 
applicants' need to use time-limited welfare benefits. States have 
implemented three types of formal diversion programs: (1) Lump-sum 
payment programs targeted to work-ready applicants to help them through 
short-term crises; (2) ``up-front'' program requirements, such as 
mandatory participation in a program orientation or job search as a 
condition of eligibility; and (3) hybrid programs that provide short-
term cash assistance and impose up-front requirements. The 
Administration for Children and Families has contracted with 
Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. to learn more about States' 
implementation of these programs and to identify best practices.
    The study consists of a survey of States and in-depth visits to 
local sites. The survey of States will be administered in four stages: 
(1) A State survey to the TANF director in all 50 States and the 
District of Columbia to obtain a profile of States' diversion policies 
and practices; (2) a semi-structured, one-hour followup telephone 
interview with the State TANF director or designee in an estimated 35 
States with current diversion programs to gather additional information 
about these programs; (3) a semi-structured, 20-minute telephone 
interview with the State TANF director or designee in other States 
without current diversion programs to learn about future plans for 
diversion programs; and (4) a semi-structured, one-hour telephone 
interview with local TANF administrators from 30 selected local offices 
in States that provide local flexibility in administering diversion 
policies to learn about their practices.
    To further understand the local implementation of diversion 
policies and practices, the study includes site visits to two local 
offices in each of three States with promising diversion programs. In 
each office, interviews will be conducted with one TANF administrator, 
an average of two supervisors or mid-level management staff members, an 
average of three line staff members, and an average of two staff 
members from partner organizations. Site visitors also will observe 
selected activities, such as intake, orientation, and job search.
    Respondents: State TANF directors and administrators and local TANF 
administrators and line staff.

[[Page 6737]]



                                             Annual Burden Estimates
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                                                                     Number of    Average burden
                   Instrument                        Number of     responses per     hours per     Total burden
                                                    respondents     respondent       response          hours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                Survey of States
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Stage 1: State Survey...........................              51               1        0.333333            17.0
Stage 2: Interview State TANF Director with                   35               1             1.0            35.0
 Diversion Program..............................
Stage 3: Interview State TANF Director without                16               1             0.3             4.8
 Diversion Program..............................
Stage 4: Interview Local TANF Administrator.....              30               1             1.0            30.0
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                              Site Visit Protocols
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Administrator...................................               6               1             1.5             9.0
Supervisor......................................              12               1             1.0            12.0
Line Staff......................................              18               1             1.0            18.0
Partner Organization............................              12               1             1.0            12.0
Observation.....................................              12               1  ..............  ..............
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours:........  ..............  ..............  ..............           137.8
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Additional Information: Copies of the proposed collection may be 
obtained 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.
    OMB Comment: OMB is required to make a decision concerning the 
collection of information between 30 and 60 days after the publication 
of this document in the Federal Register. Therefore, a comment is best 
assured of having its full effect if OMB receives it within 30 days of 
publication. Written comments and recommendations for the proposed 
information collection should be sent directly to the following: Office 
of Management and Budget, Paperwork Reduction Project, Fax: 202-395-
6974, Attn: Desk Officer for the Administration for Children and 
Families.

    Dated: February 7, 2007.
Robert Sargis,
Reports Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 07-632 Filed 2-12-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-01-M