[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 132 (Wednesday, July 12, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32180-32181]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-14578]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Office of the Secretary

[Docket ID: DOD-2016-OS-0057]


Proposed Collection; Comment Request

AGENCY: Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and 
Readiness, DoD.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the 
Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness 
announces a proposed public information collection and seeks public 
comment on the provisions thereof. Comments are invited on: 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; the accuracy of the agency's 
estimate of the burden of the proposed information collection; ways to 
enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the information to be 
collected; and ways to minimize the burden of the information 
collection on respondents, including through the use of automated 
collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

DATES: Consideration will be given to all comments received by 
September 11, 2017.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by docket number and 
title, by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail: Department of Defense, Office of the Deputy Chief 
Management Officer, Directorate for Oversight and Compliance, 
Regulatory and Advisory Committee Division, 4800 Mark Center Drive, 
Mailbox #24, Suite 08D09B, Alexandria, VA 22350-1700.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency 
name, docket number and title for this Federal Register document. The 
general policy for comments and other submissions from members of the 
public is to make these submissions available for public viewing on the 
Internet at http://www.regulations.gov as they are received without 
change, including any personal identifiers or contact information.
    Any associated form(s) for this collection may be located within 
this same electronic docket and downloaded for review/testing. Follow 
the instructions at http://www.regulations.gov for submitting comments. 
Please submit comments on any given form identified by docket number, 
form number, and title.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request more information on this 
proposed information collection or to obtain a copy of the proposal and 
associated collection instruments, please write to the Office of the 
Assistant Secretary of Defense for Readiness, Force Education and 
Training, Voluntary Education, ATTN: Ms. Dawn Bilodeau, Pentagon, Room 
2E573, Washington, DC 20301-1500 or send email to project officer at: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: President Barack Obama signed Executive 
Order 13607 on April 27, 2012 to address the problem of aggressive and 
deceptive targeting of Service members, veterans, and their families by 
some educational institutions. Section 4 of the Executive Order 
specifically calls for the creation of a robust, centralized complaint 
process for students receiving Federal military and veterans' 
educational benefits.
    DoD, along with the participating Federal agencies identified in 
the Executive Order have determined that this complaint process, in 
addition to taking in complaints about abusive or deceptive practices 
by schools, must create an opportunity for schools to resolve those 
complaints, and must ensure that complaint data is accessible both to 
the relevant components at the Departments of Defense, Veterans 
Affairs, and Education that review schools for compliance and program 
eligibility, as well as the relevant law enforcement agencies that will 
prosecute any illegal practices. Beyond creation of this complaint 
process, the agencies seek to prevent abusive, deceptive, and 
fraudulent marketing practices through the following mechanisms: 
Establishment of risk-based program reviews; limits on access to 
military installations by educational institutions; and the use of 
intellectual property and other legal protections to ensure Web sites 
and programs are not deceptively suggesting military affiliation or 
endorsement.
    The centralized complaint system will provide a resource for 
students receiving military and veteran educational benefits to 
effectively submit complaints against institutions they feel have acted 
deceptively or fraudulently. The first step is to make it easier for 
prospective and current military students and spouse-students to raise 
these concerns.
    Title; Associated Form; and OMB Number: DoD Postsecondary Education 
Complaint Intake Form, DD Form 2961; OMB Control Number 0704-0501.
    Needs and Uses: The information collection requirement is necessary 
to obtain, document, and respond to egregious complaints, questions, 
and other information concerning actions post-secondary education 
programs and services provided to military service members and spouse-
students. The DoD Postsecondary Education Complaint Intake form will 
provide pertinent information such as: The content of the complaint, 
the educational institution the student is attending, the level of 
study, the education program the student is enrolled in, the type of 
education benefits being used, the branch of the military service, and 
the preferred contact information.
    Affected Public: Individuals or households; business or other for-
profits; not-for-profit institutions.
    Annual Burden Hours: 16.
    Number of Respondents: 63.
    Responses per Respondent: 1.
    Annual Responses: 63.
    Average Burden per Response: 15 minutes.
    Frequency: On Occasion.
    Respondents are military spouses who submit complaints via the 
Department of Defense (DoD) Postsecondary Education Complaint Intake 
form. The PECS Intake form is used to record

[[Page 32181]]

complaints concerning educational institutions that military spouses 
feel have acted deceptively, aggressively or fraudulently towards them. 
The Intake form documents information such as the level of study of the 
student, the educational institution the student is attending, the type 
of education benefits being used, the branch of the military service 
the spouses' sponsor, the content of the complaint, and the preferred 
contact information for the person making the contact. Complaint Case 
Managers use information from the Intake form to track and manage cases 
and to coordinate a resolution with educational institutions, and to 
provide feedback to the respondent throughout the process and once a 
resolution has been reached.

    Dated: July 7, 2017.
Aaron Siegel,
Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison Officer, Department of Defense.
[FR Doc. 2017-14578 Filed 7-11-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 5001-06-P