[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 129 (Wednesday, July 8, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32648-32649]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-16047]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Employment and Training Administration


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Information 
Collection Request for the Evaluation of the Access Point Initiative

AGENCY: Employment and Training Administration.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to 
reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a pre-clearance 
consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies 
with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing 
collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995 (PRA95) [44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)]. This program helps to 
ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, 
reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, 
collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of 
collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. 
Currently, the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) is 
soliciting comments concerning the collection of data about the Access 
Point Initiative.
    A copy of the proposed information collection request (ICR) can be 
obtained by contacting the office listed below in the addressee section 
of this notice.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the 
ADDRESSES section below on or before September 8, 2009.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments to Kevin Thompson, Room S-4231, 
Employment and Training Administration, 200 Constitution Avenue NW., 
Washington, DC 20210. Telephone number: 202-693-2925 (this is not a 
toll-free number). Fax: 202-693-3015; or by e-mail at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    I. Background: This information collection is intended to collect 
data with which to evaluate the ETA's Access Point Initiative. Access 
Points are employment information centers and satellites to DOL-funded 
One Stop Career Centers. While One Stop Centers provide employment-
related services to a large number and wide array of job seekers, some 
of the individuals on the margins of the labor market, such as high 
school dropouts, ex-offenders, and persons with low occupational skill 
levels in high-poverty neighborhoods, have still not been reached by 
the One Stop system. To reach them and to provide them with employment 
services in a cost-effective manner, the Department of Labor started 
the Access Point initiative, providing funds for training in how to 
establish Access Points. Access Points are set up and run by local 
Faith-Based and Community Organizations (FBCOs) as a volunteer effort. 
They are located in areas that include a relatively large number of 
unemployed individuals with few of the resources needed to find stable 
employment. Access Points provide job seekers from their neighborhoods 
with job-search information, some services, and referrals to One Stops 
and other service providers.
    A two-stage training process is used to establish Access Points: 
First, contractors train local coordinators (called SHARE Network 
coordinators); and second, the SHARE Network coordinators train FBCO 
personnel in how to establish and run Access Points. SHARE Networks are 
statewide computerized networks that provide employment-related 
information at the local level. SHARE Networks include non-profit FBCOs 
(including all Access Points), for-profit organizations, and government 
agencies that provide employment services and choose to participate in 
the network.
    Three related surveys are proposed to collect data for an 
evaluation report to ETA:
    (1) A SHARE Network Coordinator Survey that assesses training 
received and relations with Access Points;
    (2) An Access Point POC (Point-of-Contact) Survey that provides 
data on the implementation and functioning of Access Points; and
    (3) A One Stop Director Survey that provides an assessment of 
Access Points and their relation to the local workforce system.
    These three surveys are electronic and will be conducted via E-mail 
and a link to a centralized server.
    II. Review Focus: The Department of Labor is particularly 
interested in comments which:
    * Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility;
    * Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of 
the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used;
    * Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to 
be collected; and
    * Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who 
are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic 
submissions of responses.
    III. Current Actions:
    Type of Review: New collection.
    Agency: Employment and Training Administration.
    Title: Evaluation of the Access Point Initiative.
    OMB Number: 1205-0NEW.
    Affected Public: Not-for-profit institutions; State, local, or 
tribal government.
    Form: None.
    Total Respondents: Exhibit 1 shows the annual number of respondents 
for all three surveys, together with the anticipated response rate, the 
average time required to complete each survey, the cost per respondent 
per survey, and the total cost per survey. The time estimates and 
hourly costs are derived from pretests with nine respondents for each 
survey. All three surveys are population surveys; statistical sampling 
will not be used.

[[Page 32649]]



                                Exhibit 1--Access Point Evaluation Respondents, Burden Hours, and Cost for Three Surveys
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                                                                             Response
                           Survey                              Population     rates        Total       Hours per   Total hours    Pay rate    Total cost
                                                                             percent    respondents    response
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SHARE Network Coordinators*.................................          230           75          173          0.17           29       $20.00         $587
Access Point POCs*..........................................          300           75          225          0.28           63        19.00        1,197
One Stop Center Directors*..................................           80           75           60          0.1             6        36.00          216
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* One-time surveys.

    The SHARE Network Coordinator, Access Point POC, and One Stop 
Director Surveys are one-time 2009 data collections. The total 
population to be surveyed is therefore 230 + 300 + 80 = 610.
    The total hours requested: 98.
    Frequency: Three one-time surveys are to be administered in 2009--
the SHARE Network Coordinator, Access Point POC, and One Stop Director 
Surveys.
    Total Responses: 458.
    Average Time per Response, based on pretests: Access Point POC 
Survey--17 minutes (0.28 hours) SHARE Network Coordinator Survey--10 
minutes (0.17 hours) One Stop Director Survey--6 minutes (0.10 hours)
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: 98.
    Total Burden Cost (operating/maintaining): Per-hour costs are 
estimated from pretest survey data as follows: SHARE Network 
Coordinator $20/hr.; Access Point POCs $19/hr; One Stop Center Director 
$36/hr. Access Point customers are unemployed but are assigned a 
minimum-wage cost of $7.25/hr., which takes effect in July, 2009. The 
costs for 2009 are:

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SHARE Network Coordinator Survey...........................         $587
Access Point POC Survey....................................         1197
One Stop Director Survey...................................          216
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    Total..................................................         2000
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    Comments submitted in response to this comment request will be 
summarized and/or included in the request for Office of Management and 
Budget approval of the information collection request; they will also 
become a matter of public record.

    Dated: At Washington, DC on June 30, 2009.
Gay M. Gilbert,
Administrator, Office of Workforce Investment, Employment and Training 
Administration.
[FR Doc. E9-16047 Filed 7-7-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-30-P