[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 118 (Monday, June 20, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35915-35918]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-15297]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Office of Disability Employment Policy


Proposed Information Collection Request

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. 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 Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) of the 
Department of Labor (DOL) is soliciting comments concerning the 
proposed collection of information for the Evaluation of the Employment 
and Training Administration/Office of Disability Employment Policy 
Disability Employment Initiative (DEI).
    A copy of the proposed information collection request (ICR) can be 
obtained by contacting the office listed below in the ADDRESSES section 
of this notice.

DATES: Submit comments on or before August 19, 2011.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments to the Office of Disability 
Employment Policy, Room S-1303, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20210, Attention: Richard Horne, Director, Division of 
Policy Planning and Research.
    Telephone number: (202) 693-7880.
    Fax: (202) 693-7888.
    E-mail: [email protected].
    Instructions: Please submit one copy of your comments by only one 
method. All submissions received must include the agency name and 
collection name identified above for this information collection. 
Because we continue to experience delays in receiving mail in the 
Washington, DC area, commenters are strongly encouraged to transmit 
their comments electronically via e-mail or to submit them by mail 
early. Comments, including any personal information provided, become a 
matter of public record. They will be summarized and/or included in the 
request for Office of Management and Budget approval of the information 
collection request.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Richard Horne, Director, Division of 
Policy Planning & Research, Office of Disability Employment Policy, 
U.S. Department of Labor, Room S-1303, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., 
Washington, DC 20210; telephone (202) 693-7880 (this is not a toll free 
number). Copies of this notice may be obtained in alternative formats 
(Large print, Braille, Audio Tape, or Disc), upon request by calling 
(202) 693-7880 (this is not a toll-free number). TTY/TTD callers may 
dial (202) 693-7881 to obtain information or to request materials in 
alternative formats.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    The Combined Appropriation Act of 2010, Division D of Public Law 
111-117, includes $12 million in funds to DOL's Employment and Training 
Administration (ETA) and $12 million to ODEP to develop and implement a 
plan for improving effective and meaningful participation of persons

[[Page 35916]]

with disabilities in the workforce and to evaluate the impact of the 
DEI. At present, the employment rate of people with disabilities is 
just 21 percent, compared with a rate of 70 percent among individuals 
without disabilities (DOL, Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2010). The DEI 
is designed to reduce this discrepancy by helping states: (1) Improve 
educational, training, and employment opportunities and outcomes of 
youth and adults with disabilities who are unemployed, underemployed, 
and/or receiving Social Security disability benefits; and (2) help 
individuals with disabilities find a path to the middle class through 
exemplary and model service delivery by the public workforce system 
(DOL, 2010).
    In September 2010, Alaska, Arkansas, Delaware, Illinois, Kansas, 
Maine, New Jersey, New York and Virginia received three-year grants to 
implement the DEI in randomly assigned local workforce investment areas 
(LWIAs). The DEI grantees are required to implement five program 
requirements: (1) Hire a State DEI Project Lead; (2) hire a Disability 
Resource Coordinator (DRC) at each DEI site; (3) maintain One-Stop 
Career Center accessibility; (4) have each DEI site participate in the 
Ticket to Work program as an Employment Network; and (5) plan for 
sustaining DEI activities after the three-year grant period. In 
addition, grantees are required to incorporate at least two of the 
following seven program design strategies: (1) Integrated resource 
teams; (2) integrated resources; (3) customized employment; (4) self-
employment; (5) implementation of the Guideposts for Success; (6) asset 
development strategies; and (7) partnerships and collaboration.
    The purpose of the DEI evaluation is to understand and assess DEI 
program start-up and implementation, DEI program efforts to create 
system change in the workforce development system, and measures of DEI 
program impact and customer outcomes. DEI evaluation findings will be 
shared with ODEP, ETA, and other entities within DOL; DEI grantees; and 
other organizations involved in disability employment policy and 
practice to help them: (1) Make ``mid-stream'' adjustments during the 
grant period; (2) replicate successful program strategies and 
approaches used by DEI grantees; and (3) support improvements in the 
workforce development system nationwide. DEI evaluation findings will 
also be used to improve program activities and services to customers 
and support DEI grantees and their partners in the development of 
systems that increase access and availability to employment and 
employment preparation services for customers with disabilities, 
including Ticket to Work participants and other Social Security 
disability beneficiaries.
    Data collection for this evaluation includes two types of data 
collection activities: (1) Annual site visits to the nine DEI grantees 
and (2) implementation of the DEI data system. For the Annual Site 
Visits, the DEI Evaluation Team will make two visits to each of the 
nine DEI grantees, one in 2012 and one in 2013. Interviews will be 
conducted with the DEI state lead, Disability Resource Coordinators, 
Workforce Investment Board (WIB) directors, One-Stop Career Center 
managers, One-Stop staff members, and agency partners and employers. 
Additionally, eight to ten One-Stop customers will be asked to 
participate in a customer focus group. The domains to be investigated 
include: The current status at baseline and change in grantees' 
workforce development system at follow-up; grantee customer 
characteristics; implementation of the five grant requirements; 
implementation of the grantee's selected program design strategies; 
program implementation challenges; and systems change. The second data 
collection activity, the DEI data system, is designed to collect 
information not contained in the Workforce Investment Act Standardized 
Record Data (WIASRD) and Wagner-Peyser administrative data systems, 
including additional demographic, outcome and service utilization data. 
Data for the DEI data system will be collected according to each 
grantee's preferred mode of data collection and reporting, and will be 
integrated with their usual data collection processes. Uploading of DEI 
data system data from DEI grantees will occur on a quarterly basis.

II. Review Focus

    DOL is interested in comments that:
    * Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary, and 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.

III. Current Actions

    Agency: Department of Labor, Office of Disability Employment 
Policy.
    Title: Evaluation of the Employment and Training Administration/
Office of Disability Employment Policy Disability Employment Initiative 
(DEI)

Annual Site Visits

    Total Respondents: Approximately 542. As shown in the table below, 
the number of respondents per grantee depends on the number of LWIAs 
participating in the DEI evaluation. Each DEI State Lead, DRC and WIB 
Director will be interviewed in each state and two One-Stop and 
partners/employers will be interviewed per Local Workforce Investment 
Board (LWIB). In states that have one LWIB, one customer focus group 
will be conducted; in the states with more than one LWIB, three focus 
groups will be conducted.
    Frequency: The DEI Evaluation Team will make two visits to each of 
the nine DEI grantees, one in 2012 and one in 2013.
    Average Time per Response: Partners and employers from small 
entities will participate in interviews that are 45 minutes in 
duration. All other interviews will be 60 minutes in duration.
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: The cumulative hours of burden due to 
the site visits to DEI grantees for the entire project period is 1,228 
for two annual rounds of site visits.

                                                   Estimated Annual Hours of Burden Due to Site Visits
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                                                       DEI state lead                  DRC                 One-stop staff         Partners & employers*
                                                 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                      State                                                                           
                                                    of resp.    Hrs/resp.     of resp.    Hrs/resp.     of resp.    Hrs/resp.     of resp.    Hrs/resp.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alaska..........................................            1            2            5            2            2          0.5            2         0.75
Arkansas........................................            1            2            4            2           16          0.5           16         0.75
Delaware........................................            1            2            4            2            2          0.5            2         0.75
Illinois........................................            1            2            4            2            8          0.5            8         0.75
Kansas..........................................            1            2            2            2            8          0.5            8         0.75

[[Page 35917]]

 
Maine...........................................            1            2            4            2            6          0.5            6         0.75
New Jersey......................................            1            2            6            2           16          0.5           16         0.75
New York........................................            1            2           20            2           40          0.5           40         0.75
Virginia........................................            1            2            8            2           18          0.5           18         0.75
                                                 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................            9           18           57           18          116          4.5          116         6.75
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                                             Estimated Annual Hours of Burden Due to Site Visits (Continued)
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                                                                   WIB director                    Focus groups
                                                         ----------------------------------------------------------------   Total hours     Cumulative
                          State                             of                     of                      per year      total over 2
                                                               resp.         Hrs/resp.         resp.         Hrs/resp.                         years
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alaska..................................................               1               1               9             1.5              29              58
Arkansas................................................               8               1              24             1.5              74             148
Delaware................................................               1               1               9             1.5              27              54
Illinois................................................               4               1              24             1.5              60             120
Kansas..................................................               4               1              24             1.5              56             112
Maine...................................................               3               1              24             1.5            56.5             113
New Jersey..............................................               8               1              24             1.5              78             156
New York................................................              20               1              24             1.5             148             296
Virginia................................................               9               1              24             1.5            85.5             171
                                                         -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total...............................................              58               9             186            13.5             614           1,228
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DEI Data System

    Total Respondents: To determine the number of customers with 
disabilities from whom data will be collected via the DEI data system, 
the numbers of FY 2009 WIASRD and Wagner-Peyser services users were 
obtained from the DEI grant applications for the LWIAs selected to 
participate in the DEI evaluation. These numbers were then reduced by 
11 percent (based on information reported in Livermore & Coleman 2010) 
to obtain an approximate unduplicated count of customers with 
disabilities, for a total of 43,756 respondents.
    Frequency: Because the DEI evaluation includes baseline and follow-
up data collection, burden on customers and staff will occur twice.
    Average Time per Response: For each data collection point, 
customers with disabilities and staff will spend on average 4.8 minutes 
completing the DEI data collection form per point of contact (baseline 
or follow-up), as determined by a pilot test with 9 One-Stop customers.
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: The burden estimate for the DEI data 
system for the entire study period is 12,352 hours.

                                                            DEI Data System Burden Estimates
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                                                                                                              Time to
                                                            of                                    complete the
                                                          customers with   2 CWD contact      2 staff        DEI data       Total hours     Total hours
                          State                            disabilities       points      contact points     system at      burden per      burden per
                                                            (CWD) in FY                                      intake &          year        study period
                                                               2009                                           outcome
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alaska..................................................           5,471               2               2            4.82             193             387
Arkansas................................................             893               2               2            4.82              32              63
Delaware................................................             317               2               2            4.82              11              22
Illinois................................................           3,465               2               2            4.82             122             245
Kansas..................................................             997               2               2            4.82              35              70
Maine...................................................           3,098               2               2            4.82             110             219
New Jersey..............................................           3,950               2               2            4.82             140             279
New York................................................          17,835               2               2            4.82             630           1,261
Virginia................................................           7,730               2               2            4.82             273             546
                                                         -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total...............................................          45,756  ..............  ..............  ..............           1,547           3,093
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* The 11% assumption is based on a comparison of unduplicated and total counts of Social Security disability program beneficiaries who used WIA and
  Wagner Peyser services in 2005 and 2006 in three states, as shown in Livermore, Gina, and Silvie Colman. ``Use of One-Stops by Social Security
  Disability Beneficiaries in Four States Implementing Disability Program Navigator Initiatives.'' Washington, DC: Mathematica Policy Research, May
  2010.

    Frequency: Twice.
    Total Responses: 43,756 respondents.
    Average Time per Response: 4.8 minutes.
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: 12,352 hours.
    Total Burden Cost: $0.
    Note that, due to rounding, the numbers for the totals may differ 
from the sum of the component numbers.

[[Page 35918]]

    Comments submitted in response to this Notice will be summarized 
and/or included in the request for Office of Management and Budget 
approval of the ICR; they will also become a matter of public record.


    Signed: at Washington, DC, this 26th day of May, 2011.
Kathleen Martinez,
Assistant Secretary, Office of Disability Employment Policy.
[FR Doc. 2011-15297 Filed 6-17-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-27-P