[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 140 (Friday, July 20, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 42743-42744]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-17641]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Children and Families


Proposed Information Collection Activity: Comment Request

    Title: Innovative Strategies for Increasing Self-Sufficiency: 
Follow-Up Data Collection.
    OMB No.: 0970-0397.
    Description: The Administration for Children and Families (ACF), 
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), is proposing a data 
collection activity as part of the Innovative Strategies for Increasing 
Self-Sufficiency (ISIS) demonstration and evaluation. The ISIS project 
will test a range of promising career pathways strategies to promote 
education, employment, and self-sufficiency. The major goals of the 
ISIS project include increasing the empirical knowledge about the 
effectiveness of a variety of programs for low-income individuals and 
families to achieve educational credentials, attain employment and 
advance to positions that enable self-sufficiency, as well as producing 
useful findings for both policymakers and program administrators.
    This proposed information collection activity focuses on collecting 
follow-up data elements approximately one year after program 
enrollment. (Baseline data elements were previously collected at the 
time of program enrollment. A baseline information form captured basic 
identification, demographic, and contact information from program 
participants; a self-administered questionnaire captured additional 
information about participants related to the project goals; and 
baseline implementation data collection interviews collected 
information from knowledgeable informants about the service context for 
each evaluation site using a baseline implementation guide. These 
instruments were previously approved under OMB No. 0970-0397).
    The purpose of this information collection effort is to follow up 
with study participants, document the experiences of program 
participants, examine differences in service receipt and educational 
experiences between program and control group members, describe the 
intervention as it was implemented in each site and assess the extent 
to which it was implemented as intended, and assess the implications 
for intervention scalability and sustainability.
    Specifically, this data will be collected using the following 
instruments: (a) A follow-up survey which will be administered to all 
study participants approximately one year following enrollment in the 
study; (b) tracking letters which will be sent every four months to all 
study participants requesting an update of their contact information; 
(c) a modification to the Baseline Information Form requesting some 
basic information about all of the study participant's children (if 
applicable); (d) interview guides for the in-person visits to the 
intervention sites to structure discussions with program leadership/
managers, instructional staff, case managers/advisors, partners and 
employers; (e) a brief survey for instructional staff; (f) a brief 
survey for case managers/advisors; and (g) in-depth interviews with a 
sample of study participants.
    Respondents: Individuals enrolled in the ISIS demonstration 
programs, control group members, ISIS program/partner staff (including 
program leadership, case managers and instructional staff), and other 
local informants.

[[Page 42744]]



                                             Annual Burden Estimates
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                                                  Annual  number     Number of        Average
                   Instrument                           of         responses per   burden hours    Total annual
                                                    respondents     respondent     per response    burden hours
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
12 Month Follow-up Survey.......................           3,600               1           0.833           2,999
Tracking Letters................................          10,800               3           0.083           2,689
Baseline Information Form (Modification)........           3,500               1           0.05              175
Program Leadership/Managers Interview Guide.....              13               1           2                  26
Instructional Staff Interview Guide.............              21               1           2                  42
Case Managers/Advisors Interview Guide..........              16               1           2                  32
Partners Interview Guide........................              16               1           2                  32
Employers Interview Guide.......................              19               1           1                  19
Instructional Staff Survey......................              26               1           0.5                13
Case Managers/Advisors Survey...................              24               1           0.5                12
Study Participant Interview Guide...............              80               1           1                  80
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    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 6,119.
    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. Email 
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.

Robert Sargis,
Reports Clearance Officer, Administration for Children and Families.
[FR Doc. 2012-17641 Filed 7-19-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-09-P