[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 153 (Thursday, August 10, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37421-37423]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-16836]


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ARCHITECTURAL AND TRANSPORTATION BARRIERS COMPLIANCE BOARD

[Docket No. ATBCB-2017-0002]


Proposed Submission of Information Collection for OMB Review; 
Comment Request; Generic Clearance for the Collection of Qualitative 
Feedback on Agency Service Delivery

AGENCY: Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), 
the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (Access 
Board) invites comment on the proposed extension of its existing 
generic clearance for the collection of qualitative feedback on agency 
service delivery, which expires in January 2018 (OMB Control No. 3014-
0011, Expiration: Jan. 31, 2018). This information collection was 
developed as part of a Federal Government-wide effort to streamline the 
process for seeking feedback from the public on service delivery. With 
this notice, the Access Board solicits comments on extension of its 
existing generic clearance, with proposed revisions to the type (and 
number) of information collection activities that reflect the agency's 
anticipated increasing use of customer feedback surveys over the next 
several years to garner qualitative feedback and improve service 
delivery in a timely and effective manner. Following review of comments 
received in response to this 60-day notice, the Access Board intends to 
submit a request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to renew 
its generic clearance for collection of qualitative feedback for 
another three-year term.

DATES: Submit comments by October 10, 2017.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, by any of the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the directions for sending comments.
     Email: board.gov">spiegel@access-board.gov. Include ATBCB-2017-0002 
in the subject line of the message.
     Fax: 202-272-0081.
     Mail or Hand Delivery/Courier: Frances Spiegel, Office of 
General Counsel, U.S. Access Board, 1331 F Street NW., Suite 1000, 
Washington, DC 20004-1111.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name 
and docket number for this Notice (identified by ATBCB-2017-0002). All 
comments received, including any personal information provided, will be 
posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov. For this reason, 
please do not include information of a confidential nature in your 
comments, such as sensitive personal or proprietary information.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Frances Spiegel, Attorney Advisor, 
Office of General Counsel, U.S. Access Board, 1331 F Street NW., Suite 
1000, Washington, DC 20004-1111. Phone: (202) 272-0041 (voice). Email: 
board.gov">spiegel@access-board.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A. Background

    Under the PRA and its implementing regulations (5 CFR part 1320), 
Federal agencies must obtain approval from OMB for each collection of 
information they conduct or sponsor (e.g., contractually-required 
information collection by a third-party). ``Collection of 
information,'' within the meaning of the PRA, includes agency requests 
that pose identical questions to, or impose reporting or record keeping 
obligations on ten or more persons, regardless of whether response to 
such request is mandatory or voluntary. See 5 CFR 1320.3(c); see also 
44 U.S.C. 3502(3). Before seeking clearance from OMB, agencies are 
generally required, among other things, to publish a 60-day notice in 
the Federal Register concerning any proposed information collection--

[[Page 37422]]

including extension of a previously-approved collection--and provide an 
opportunity for comment. See 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A); 5 CFR 
1320.8(d)(1).
    The Access Board initially requested OMB approval of a generic 
clearance for the collection of qualitative feedback on agency service 
delivery in 2011. See Notice and Request for Comments, 76 FR 38355 
(June 30, 2011) (30-day notice); see also 75 FR 80542 (Dec. 22, 2010) 
(government-wide 60-day notice published by OMB). In 2014, we requested 
renewal of this generic clearance for another three-year term. See 
Notice and Request for Comments, 79 FR 61285 (Oct. 10, 2014) (30-day 
notice); Notice and Request for Comments, 79 FR 43709 (July 28, 2014) 
(60-day notice). OMB approved the renewal of our generic clearance, and 
this extension is set to expire at the end of January 2018.

B. Proposed Information Collection Request

    With this notice, the Access Board provides notice of its intent to 
seek renewal of its existing generic clearance for the collection of 
qualitative feedback on agency service delivery. We anticipate seeking 
OMB approval for revisions to the type (and number) of information 
collection activities relative to our existing generic clearance that 
expires in January 2018. In particular, the Access Board intends to 
seek an increase in the number of approved respondents (and burden 
hours) under the generic clearance, primarily because we expect to 
solicit feedback from customers across a broader spectrum of agency 
services relating to technical assistance, training, and other 
education and outreach initiatives. To date, we have found the feedback 
garnered through qualitative customer satisfaction surveys (and similar 
information collections) to be beneficial, by providing useful insights 
in experiences, perceptions, opinions, and expectations regarding 
Access Board services or focusing attention on areas in need of 
improvement. We thus intend to seek approval for expansion of our 
current efforts to solicit qualitative customer feedback by seeking 
input from customers across a broader array of agency programs and 
services. Online surveys will be used unless the customer contacts the 
agency by phone for technical assistance or an individual otherwise 
expresses a preference for another survey format (i.e., fillable form 
in portable document format or paper survey). In addition, paper 
surveys may be used to garner feedback from participants at in-person 
trainings or similar events.
    OMB Control Number: 3014-0011.
    Title: Generic Clearance for the Collection of Qualitative Feedback 
on Agency Service Delivery.
    Type of Review: Extension with revisions.
    Abstract: The proposed information collection activity facilitates 
collection of qualitative customer and stakeholder feedback in an 
efficient, timely manner, in accordance with the Federal Government's 
commitment to improving service delivery. By qualitative feedback we 
mean information collections that provide 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 insight into customer or stakeholder 
perceptions, experiences and expectations, provide an early warning of 
issues with service, or focus attention on areas where communication, 
training, or changes in operations might improve delivery of services. 
These collections will allow for ongoing, collaborative, and actionable 
communications between the Access Board and its customers and 
stakeholders.
    Feedback collected under this generic clearance provides useful 
information, but it does 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 reliably 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 from such 
quantitatively-inclined information collections are likely to have, 
such collections might still be eligible for submission under another 
type of other generic clearance.
    Respondents/Affected Public: Individuals and Households; Businesses 
and Organizations; State, Local or Tribal Government.
    Burden Estimates: In the table below (Table 1), the Access Board 
provides estimates for the annual reporting burden under this proposed 
information collection. (The Access Board does not anticipate incurring 
any capital or other direct costs associated with this information 
collection. Nor will there be any costs to respondents, other than 
their time.)

                                     Table 1--Estimated Annual Burden Hours
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                                                                   Frequency of       Average
               Type of collection                    Number of     response (per   response time   Total burden
                                                    respondents        year)         (minutes)        (hours)
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Customer feedback survey: Training/Webinar......           1,200               1               6             120
Customer feedback survey: Technical Assistance..           2,700               1               3             135
Customer feedback survey: Compliance &                        40               1               4               3
 Enforcement....................................
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Totals......................................           3,940             n/a             n/a             258
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Note: Total burden hours per collection rounded to the nearest full hour.

    Request for Comment: The Access Board seeks comment on any aspect 
of the proposed renewal of its existing generic clearance for the 
collection of qualitative feedback on agency service delivery, 
including (a) whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the Access Board's performance; (b) the accuracy of the 
estimated burden; (c) ways for the Access Board to enhance the quality, 
utility, and clarity of the information collection; and (d) ways that 
the burden could be minimized without reducing the quality of the 
collected information. Comments will be summarized and included in our 
request for OMB's

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approval of renewal of our existing generic clearance.

David M. Capozzi,
Executive Director.
[FR Doc. 2017-16836 Filed 8-9-17; 8:45 am]
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