[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 79 (Wednesday, April 23, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21957-21958]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-8625]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Children and Families


Proposed Information Collection Activity; Comment Request

    Title: Generic Clearance to Conduct Pre-Testing of Surveys.
    OMB No.: New Collection.
    Description: The Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation 
(OPRE), Administration for Children and Families (ACF), U.S. Department 
of Health and Human Services (HHS), intends to request approval from 
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for a generic clearance that 
will allow OPRE to conduct a variety of data-gathering activities aimed 
at identifying questionnaire and procedural problems in survey 
administration. Over the next three years, OPRE anticipates undertaking 
a variety of new surveys as part of research projects in the fields of 
cash welfare, employment and self-sufficiency, Head Start, child care, 
healthy marriage and responsible fatherhood, and child welfare, among 
others. In order to improve the development of its research and 
evaluation surveys, OPRE envisions using a variety of techniques 
including field tests, respondent debriefing questionnaires, cognitive 
interviews, and focus groups in order to identify questionnaire and 
procedural problems, suggest solutions, and measure the relative 
effectiveness of alternative survey solutions.
    Following standard OMB requirements, OPRE will submit a change 
request to OMB individually for every data collection activity 
undertaken under this generic clearance. OPRE will provide OMB with a 
copy of the individual instrument or questionnaire, as well as other 
materials describing the project and specific survey pre test.
    Respondents: The respondents will be identified at the time that 
each change request is submitted to OMB. Generally, they will be 
individuals who are

[[Page 21958]]

representative of the target groups for the public assistance research 
or evaluation project in question.

                                             Annual Burden Estimates
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                  Number of      Average burden
                 Instrument                      Number of      responses per      hours per       Total annual
                                                respondents       respondent        response       burden hours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Survey Development Field Tests, Respondent             1,000                1                1            1,000
 Debriefing Questionnaires, Cognitive
 Interviews and Focus Groups................
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 1,000.
    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 
Planning, Research and Evaluation, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW., 
Washington, DC 20447, Attn: OPRE 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 comments and suggestions submitted 
within 60 days of this publication.

    Dated: April 14, 2008.
Brendan C. Kelly,
OPRE Reports Clearance Officer.
 [FR Doc. E8-8625 Filed 4-22-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-01-M