[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 169 (Thursday, August 30, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Page 52708]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-21445]


=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Bonneville Power Administration


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection; 
Comment Request; Generic Clearance for the Collection of Qualitative 
Feedback on Agency Service Delivery

AGENCY: Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), DOE.

ACTION: 30-Day notice of submission of information collection approval 
from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and request for 
comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: As part of a Federal Government-wide effort to streamline the 
process to seek feedback from the public on service delivery, the 
Bonneville Power Administration has submitted a Generic Information 
Collection request (Generic ICR): ``Generic Clearance for the 
Collection of Qualitative Feedback on Agency Service Delivery'' to the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval under the Paperwork 
Reduction Act (PRA) (44 U.S.C. et seq.).

DATES: Comments must be submitted by September 30, 2012.

ADDRESSES: Written comments may be submitted to: DOE Desk Officer, 
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and 
Budget, New Executive Office Building, Room 10102, 735 17th Street NW., 
Washington, DC 20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request additional information: 
Information Collection Clearance Officer, Christopher M. Frost, 
Governance and Internal Controls, DGC-7, Bonneville Power 
Administration, 905 NE. 11th Avenue, Portland, Oregon 97232.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: Generic Clearance for the Collection of Qualitative Feedback 
on agency Service Delivery.
    Abstract: The information collection activity will garner 
qualitative customer and stakeholder feedback in an efficient, timely 
manner in accordance with the Administration's commitment to improving 
service delivery. Qualitative feedback means information that provides 
useful insights on perceptions and opinions, but are not statistical 
surveys that yield quantitative results that can be generalized to the 
population of study. This feedback will provide insights into customer 
or stakeholder perceptions, experiences and expectations, provide an 
early warning of issues with service, or focus attention on areas where 
training or changes in operations might improve delivery of products or 
services. These collections will allow for ongoing, collaborative and 
actionable communications between the Agency and its customers and 
stakeholders. It will also allow feedback to contribute directly to the 
improvement of program management.
    Feedback collected under this generic clearance will provide useful 
information, but it will not yield data that can be generalized to the 
overall population. This type of generic clearance for qualitative 
information will not be used for quantitative information collections 
that are designed to yield reliable actionable results, such as 
monitoring trends over time or documenting program performance. Such 
data uses require more rigorous designs that address: The target 
population to which generalizations will be made, the sampling frame, 
the sample design (including stratification and clustering), the 
precision requirements or power calculations that justify the proposed 
sample size, the expected response rate, methods for assessing 
potential non-response bias, the protocols for data collection, and any 
testing procedures that were or will be undertaken prior to fielding 
the study. Depending on the degree of influence the results are likely 
to have, such collections may still be eligible for submission for 
other generic mechanisms that are designed to yield qualitative 
results.
    The 60-day notice was published in the Federal Register of December 
22, 2010 (75 FR 80542).
    Below we provide the BPA projected average estimates for the next 
three years: \1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ The 60-day notice included the following estimate of the 
aggregate burden hours for this generic clearance Federal-wide:
    Average Expected Annual Number of Activities: 25,000.
    Average Number of Respondents per Activity: 200.
    Average Responses: 5,000,000.
    Frequency of Responses: Once per request.
    Average Minutes per Response: 30.
    Burden hours: 2,500,000.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Current Actions: New collection of information.
    Type of Review: New Collection.
    Affected Public: Individuals and Households, Businesses and 
Organizations, State, Local, or Tribal Government.
    Average Expected Annual Activities: 5.
    Respondents: 500.
    Annual Responses: 2,500.
    Frequency of Responses: Once per request.
    Average Minutes per Response: 30.
    Burden Hours: 1,250.
    An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required 
to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a 
currently valid Office of Management and Budget control number.

    Issued in Portland, Oregon, on August 23, 2012.
John L. Hairston,
Chief Compliance Officer, Agency Governance and Compliance.
[FR Doc. 2012-21445 Filed 8-29-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE P