[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 155 (Wednesday, August 12, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48302-48304]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-19774]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[Docket No. ED-2015-ICCD-0101]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request; 2016-
2017 Federal Student Aid Application

AGENCY: Federal Student Aid (FSA), Department of Education (ED).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 
U.S.C. chapter 3501 et seq.), ED is proposing a revision of an existing 
information collection.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before 
October 13, 2015.

ADDRESSES: To access and review all the documents related to the 
information collection listed in this notice, please use http://wwww.regulations.gov by searching the Docket ID number ED-2015-ICCD-
0101. Comments submitted in response to this notice should be submitted 
electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov by selecting the Docket ID number or via postal 
mail, commercial delivery, or hand delivery. Please note that comments 
submitted by fax or email and those submitted after the comment period 
will not be accepted. Written requests for information or comments 
submitted by postal mail or delivery should be addressed to the 
Director of the Information Collection Clearance Division, U.S. 
Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, LBJ, Room 2E105, 
Washington, DC 20202-4537.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For specific questions related to 
collection activities, please contact the Douglas A. Pineda Robles, 
202-377-4578.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Department of Education (ED), in 
accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 
3506(c)(2)(A)), provides the general public and Federal agencies with 
an opportunity to comment on proposed, revised, and continuing 
collections of information. This helps ED assess the impact of its 
information collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting 
burden. It also helps the public understand the ED's information 
collection requirements and provide the requested data in the desired 
format. ED is soliciting comments on the proposed information 
collection request (ICR) that is described below. ED is especially 
interested in public comments addressing the following issues: (1) Is 
this collection necessary to the proper functions of ED; (2) will this 
information be processed and used in a timely manner; (3) is the 
estimate of burden accurate; (4) how might ED enhance the quality, 
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (5) how 
might ED minimize the burden of this collection on the respondents, 
including through the use of information technology. Please note that 
written comments received in response to this notice will be considered 
public records.
    Title of Collection: 2016-2017 Federal Student Aid Application.
    OMB Control Number: 1845-0001.
    Type of Review: A revision of an existing information collection.
    Respondents/Affected Public: Individuals or households.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 40,135,807.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 20,560,481.
    Abstract: Section 483 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as 
amended (HEA), mandates that the Secretary of Education ``. . . shall 
produce, distribute, and process free of charge common financial 
reporting forms as described in this subsection to be used for 
application and reapplication to determine the need and eligibility of 
a student for financial assistance . . .''.
    The determination of need and eligibility are for the following 
title IV, HEA, federal student financial assistance programs: the 
Federal Pell Grant Program; the Campus-Based programs (Federal 
Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG), Federal Work-Study 
(FWS), and the Federal Perkins Loan Program); the William D. Ford 
Federal Direct Loan Program; the Teacher Education Assistance for 
College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant; and the Iraq and 
Afghanistan Service Grant.
    Federal Student Aid, an office of the U.S. Department of Education 
(hereafter ``the Department''), subsequently developed an application 
process to collect and process the data necessary to determine a 
student's eligibility to receive title IV, HEA program assistance. The 
application process involves an applicant's submission of the Free 
Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA[supreg]). After submission 
of the FAFSA, an applicant receives a Student Aid Report (SAR), which 
is a summary of the data they submitted on the FAFSA. The applicant 
reviews the SAR, and, if necessary, will make corrections or updates to 
their submitted FAFSA data. Institutions of higher education listed by 
the applicant on the FAFSA also receive a summary of processed data 
submitted on the FAFSA which is called the Institutional Student 
Information Record (ISIR).
    The Department seeks OMB approval of all application components as 
a single ``collection of information''. The aggregate burden will be 
accounted for under OMB Control Number 1845-0001. The specific 
application components, descriptions and submission methods for each 
are listed in Table 1.

           Table 1--Federal Student Aid Application Components
------------------------------------------------------------------------
          Component                Description        Submission method
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                       Initial Submission of FAFSA
------------------------------------------------------------------------
FAFSA on the Web (FOTW).....  Online FAFSA that     Submitted by the
                               offers applicants a   applicant via
                               customized            www.fafsa.gov.
                               experience.
FOTW--Renewal...............  Online FAFSA for
                               applicants who have
                               previously
                               completed the FAFSA.
FOTW--EZ....................  Online FAFSA for
                               applicants who
                               qualify for the
                               Simplified Needs
                               Test (SNT) or
                               Automatic Zero
                               (Auto Zero) needs
                               analysis formulas.
FOTW--EZ Renewal............  Online FAFSA for
                               applicants who have
                               previously
                               completed the FAFSA
                               and who qualify for
                               the SNT or Auto
                               Zero needs analysis
                               formulas.

[[Page 48303]]

 
FAFSA on the Phone (FOTP)...  The Federal Student   Submitted through
                               Aid Information       www.fafsa.gov for
                               Center (FSAIC)        applicants who call
                               representatives       1-800-4-FED-AID.
                               assist applicants
                               by filing the FAFSA
                               on their behalf
                               through FOTW.
FOTP--EZ....................  FSAIC
                               representatives
                               assist applicants
                               who qualify for the
                               SNT or Auto Zero
                               needs analysis
                               formulas by filing
                               the FAFSA on their
                               behalf through FOTW.
FAA Access..................  Online tool that a    Submitted through
                               financial aid         www.faaacess.ed.gov
                               administrator (FAA)   by a FAA on behalf
                               utilizes to submit    of an applicant.
                               a FAFSA.
FAA Access--Renewal.........  Online tool that a
                               FAA can utilize to
                               submit a Renewal
                               FAFSA.
FAA Access--EZ..............  Online tool that a
                               FAA can utilize to
                               submit a FAFSA for
                               applicants who
                               qualify for the SNT
                               or Auto Zero needs
                               analysis formulas.
FAA Access--EZ Renewal......  Online tool that a
                               FAA can utilize to
                               submit a FAFSA for
                               applicants who have
                               previously
                               completed the FAFSA
                               and who qualify for
                               the SNT or Auto
                               Zero needs analysis
                               formulas.
Electronic Other............  This is a submission  The FAA may be using
                               done by a FAA, on     their mainframe
                               behalf of the         computer or
                               applicant, using      software to
                               the Electronic Data   facilitate the EDE
                               Exchange (EDE).       process.
PDF FAFSA or Paper FAFSA....  The paper version of  Mailed by the
                               the FAFSA printed     applicant.
                               by the Department
                               for applicants who
                               are unable to
                               access the Internet
                               or the online
                               version of the
                               FAFSA for
                               applicants who can
                               access the Internet
                               but are unable to
                               complete the form
                               using FOTW.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Correcting Submitted FAFSA Information and Reviewing FAFSA Information
------------------------------------------------------------------------
FOTW--Corrections...........  Any applicant who     Submitted by the
                               has a Federal         applicant via
                               Student Aid ID (FSA   www.fafsa.gov.
                               ID)--regardless of
                               how they originally
                               applied--may make
                               corrections using
                               FOTW Corrections.
Electronic Other--            With the applicant's  The FAA may be using
 Corrections.                  permission,           their mainframe
                               corrections can be    computer or
                               made by a FAA using   software to
                               the EDE.              facilitate the EDE
                                                     process.
Paper SAR--This is a SAR and  The full paper        Mailed by the
 an option for corrections.    summary that is       applicant.
                               mailed to paper
                               applicants who did
                               not provide an e-
                               mail address and to
                               applicants whose
                               records were
                               rejected due to
                               critical errors
                               during processing.
                               Applicants can
                               write corrections
                               directly on the
                               paper SAR and mail
                               for processing.
FAA Access--Corrections.....  An institution can    Submitted through
                               use FAA Access to     www.faaacess.ed.gov
                               correct the FAFSA.    by a FAA on behalf
                                                     of an applicant.
Internal Department           The Department will   There is no burden
 Corrections.                  submit an             to the applicants
                               applicant's record    under this
                               for system-           correction type as
                               generated             these are system-
                               corrections.          based corrections.
FSAIC Corrections...........  Any applicant, with   These changes are
                               their Data Release    made directly in
                               Number (DRN), can     the CPS system by a
                               change the            FSAIC
                               postsecondary         representative.
                               institutions listed
                               on their FAFSA or
                               change their
                               address by calling
                               FSAIC.
SAR Electronic (eSAR).......  The eSAR is an        Cannot be submitted
                               online version of     for processing.
                               the SAR that is
                               available on FOTW
                               to all applicants
                               with a PIN.
                               Notifications for
                               the eSAR are sent
                               to students who
                               applied
                               electronically or
                               by paper and
                               provided an e-mail
                               address. These
                               notifications are
                               sent by e-mail and
                               include a secure
                               hyperlink that
                               takes the user to
                               the FOTW site.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    This information collection also documents an estimate of the 
annual public burden as it relates to the application process for 
federal student aid. The Applicant Burden Model (ABM), measures 
applicant burden through an assessment of the activities each applicant 
conducts in conjunction with other applicant characteristics and in 
terms of burden, the average applicant's experience. Key determinants 
of the ABM include:
     The total number of applicants that will potentially apply 
for federal student aid;
     How the applicant chooses to complete and submit the FAFSA 
(e.g., by paper or electronically via FOTW[supreg]);
     How the applicant chooses to submit any corrections and/or 
updates (e.g., the paper SAR or electronically via FOTW Corrections);
     The type of SAR document the applicant receives (eSAR, SAR 
acknowledgment, or paper SAR);
     The formula applied to determine the applicant's expected 
family contribution (EFC) (full need analysis formula, Simplified Needs 
Test or Automatic Zero); and
     The average amount of time involved in preparing to 
complete the application.
    The ABM is largely driven by the number of potential applicants for 
the application cycle. The total application projection for 2016-2017 
is based upon two factors--estimating the growth rate of the total 
enrollment into post-

[[Page 48304]]

secondary education and applying the growth rate to the FAFSA 
submissions. The ABM is also based on the application options available 
to students and parents. The Department accounts for each application 
component based on web trending tools, survey information, and other 
Department data sources.
    For 2016-2017, the Department is reporting a net burden decrease of 
-3,522,674 hours. This decrease is considered to be an adjustment in 
burden hours from the 2015-2016 FAFSA.

    Dated: August 7, 2015.
Stephanie Valentine,
 Acting Director, Information Collection Clearance Division, Office of 
the Chief Privacy Officer, Office of Management.
[FR Doc. 2015-19774 Filed 8-11-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4000-01-P