[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 87 (Monday, May 5, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24602-24603]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-9788]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration


Agency Information Collection Activities: Submission for OMB 
Review; Comment Request

    Periodically, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services 
Administration (SAMHSA) will publish a summary of information 
collection requests under OMB review, in compliance with the Paperwork 
Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35). To request a copy of these 
documents, call the SAMHSA Reports Clearance Officer on (240) 276-1243.

Project: Community Mental Health Services Block Grant Application 
Guidance and Instructions, FY 2009-2011 (OMB No. 0930-0168)--Revision

    Sections 1911 through 1920 of the Public Health Service Act (42 
U.S.C. 300x through 300x-9) provide for annual allotments to assist 
States to establish or expand an organized, community-based system of 
care for adults with serious mental illnesses and children with serious 
emotional disturbances. Under these provisions of the law, States may 
receive allotments only after an application is submitted and approved 
by the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.
    On January 28, 2008, SAMHSA published a request for public comment 
on its proposed guidance and instructions to the States to guide 
development of comprehensive State applications/plans and 
implementation reports for FY 2009-2011. Proposed revisions to the 
guidance included:
    (1) Streamlining the process for reporting States' use of the block 
grant to support mental health transformation, including narrowing from 
20 to 6 the number of transformation categories for which States are 
asked to provide the amount of funding that will be used to support 
specific transformation activities and limiting reporting to block 
grant funds only.
    (2) Reorganizing and consolidating sections of the guidance to 
improve readability and clarity and to reduce redundancy.
    (3) Eliminating Table 18 from the Uniform Reporting System (URS) 
tables that States must submit.
    (4) Eliminating the requirement that States complete a State-Level 
Reporting Capacity Checklist for submission to the State Data 
infrastructure Coordinating Center.
    SAMHSA received formal comments from seven commenters. Most of the 
comments supported the changes described below, and several commended 
SAMHSA for appointing a Federal-State working group to address concerns 
raised by the States regarding the FY 2008 guidance and instructions. A 
summary of the comments and SAMHSA's response is provided below.
    Request for clarification regarding reporting transformation 
expenditures under Table C. Two commenters noted that, while they 
supported the proposed revisions to streamline the reporting of 
transformation expenditures, their State fiscal processes did not 
support tracking and reporting expenditures in this manner. One 
commenter requested clarification that a State would ``not be held'' to 
expenditure estimates provided in the application.
    The transformation expenditures requested under Table C are an 
essential component of the application guidance, as they provide 
important information to SAMHSA regarding States' use of the block 
grant to support mental health transformation. SAMHSA clarifies that 
the transformation expenditures requested to be reported under Table C 
of the application may be reported as estimates if the State cannot 
provide actual expenditures and that States are not obligated to expend 
funds in the categories indicated or to track and justify their 
expenditures consistent with these estimates. No change to the guidance 
is needed to provide this clarification.

[[Page 24603]]

    Request for clarification regarding allowable uses of the block 
grant for research and evaluation. As published in the January 28, 2008 
Federal Register, Table C requested that States estimate their 
expenditures to support the transformation goal ``Research is 
Accelerated.'' One commenter accurately noted that research is not an 
allowable expenditure under the block grant statute, and requested that 
this goal be revised to read ``Program Evaluation is Accelerated.'' 
SAMHSA incorporated this revision in the guidance submitted for OMB 
review.
    Request for clarification regarding the difference between the 
State Transformation Outcome Measure and other Outcome Measures 
requested in the application guidance. As stated in the proposed 
guidance, each State is required to submit a Transformation Outcome 
Measure in addition to all required National Outcome Measures (NOMS). 
The Transformation Outcome Measure is selected by the State to reflect 
its own priorities. However, the Transformation Outcome Measure may be 
the same measure as one of the NOMS. No change to the guidance is 
needed to provide this clarification.
    Request that the submission date for the application be changed 
from September 1 to December 1 to coincide with submission of the State 
Implementation Report. As the commenter acknowledged, the submission 
dates for the application and Implementation Report are established in 
statute, and cannot be changed through the administrative process of 
revising the application guidance and instructions. Thus, no changes to 
the guidance are incorporated to address this concern.
    Request for clarification regarding whether States should report 
the number of clients or the percent of clients receiving Evidence 
Based Practices (EBPs). One commenter notes a discrepancy in the 
application regarding whether the number or percent of clients 
receiving EBPs should be reported. Appendix I was revised to clarify 
that the percent of clients receiving EBPs should be reported. 
Additional clarifying revisions were made to Appendix I regarding the 
specific numerators and denominators that States should use to 
calculate NOMS.
    With the streamlining of information regarding State mental health 
transformation activities, elimination of URS Table 18 as a requirement 
for reporting, and other improvements to the MHBG guidance, it was 
determined that the annual burden for the revised application was 
reduced by 15 hours per State. The following table summarizes the 
annual burden for the revised application.

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                                                                                      Burden
                   Application                       Number of      Responses/       response      Total burden
                                                    respondents     respondent         (hrs)           hours
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1 Yr. Plan......................................              44               1             175           7,700
2 Yr. Plan......................................               6               1             145             870
3 Yr. Plan......................................               9               1             105             945
Implementation Report...........................              59               1              70           4,130
URS Tables......................................              59               1              35           2,065
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................              59  ..............  ..............          15,710
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    Written comments and recommendations concerning the proposed 
information collection should be sent by June 4, 2008 to: SAMHSA Desk 
Officer, Human Resources and Housing Branch, Office of Management and 
Budget, New Executive Office Building, Room 10235, Washington, DC 
20503; due to potential delays in OMB's receipt and processing of mail 
sent through the U.S. Postal Service, respondents are encouraged to 
submit comments by fax to: 202-395-6974.

    Dated: April 28, 2008.
Elaine Parry,
Acting Director, Office of Program Services.
[FR Doc. E8-9788 Filed 5-2-08; 8:45 am]
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