[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 165 (Monday, August 28, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40778-40779]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-18195]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

National Institutes of Health


Proposed Collection; 60-Day Comment Request: Generic Clearance 
for the Collection of Qualitative Feedback on Agency Service Delivery 
(NICHD)

AGENCY: National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human 
Services.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and 
Human Development, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork 
and respondent burden, invites the general public to take this 
opportunity to comment on the ``Generic Clearance for the Collection of 
Qualitative Feedback on Agency Service Delivery '' for approval under 
the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). This collection was developed as 
part of a Federal Government-wide effort to streamline the process for 
seeking feedback from the public on service delivery. This notice 
announces our intent to submit this collection to OMB for approval and 
solicits comments on specific aspects for the proposed information 
collection.

DATES: Comments regarding this information collection are best assured 
of having their full effect if received within 60 days of the date of 
this publication.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To obtain a copy of the data 
collection plans and instruments, submit comments in writing, or 
request more information on the proposed project, contact: Dr. Jennifer 
Guimond, Project Clearance Liaison, Office of Science Policy, 
Reporting, and Program Analysis, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National 
Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of 
Health, 31 Center Drive, Room 2A18, Bethesda, Maryland 20892 or call 
non-toll-free number (301) 496-1877 or Email your request, including 
your address to: [email protected]. Formal requests for 
additional plans and instruments must be requested in writing.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995 requires: Written comments and/or suggestions 
from the public and affected agencies are invited to address one or 
more of the following points: (1) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the function of 
the agency, including whether the information will have practical 
utility; (2) The accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used; (3) Ways to enhance the quality, 
utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) Ways 
to minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who 
are to respond, including the use of appropriate automated, electronic, 
mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms 
of information technology.
    Proposed Collection Title: Generic Clearance for the Collection of 
Qualitative Feedback on Agency Service Delivery (NICHD), 0925-0643, 
Expiration Date 10/31/2014, EXTENSION, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National 
Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), National 
Institutes of Health (NIH).
    Need and Use of Information Collection: There are no changes being 
requested for this submission. The proposed information collection 
activity provides a means to garner qualitative customer and 
stakeholder feedback in an efficient, timely manner, in accordance with 
the Administration's commitment to improving service delivery. By 
qualitative feedback we mean 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 information about the NICHD's 
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 products or services. These collections will allow 
for ongoing, collaborative and actionable communications between the

[[Page 40779]]

NICHD and its customers and stakeholders. It will also allow feedback 
to contribute directly to the improvement of program management.
    The solicitation of feedback will target areas such as: Timeliness, 
appropriateness, accuracy of information, courtesy, efficiency of 
service delivery, and resolution of issues with service delivery. 
Responses will be assessed to plan and inform efforts to improve or 
maintain the quality of service offered to the public. If this 
information is not collected, vital feedback from customers and 
stakeholders on the NICHD's services will be unavailable.
    The NICHD will only submit a collection for approval under this 
generic clearance if it meets the following conditions:
     The collections are voluntary;
     The collections are low-burden for respondents (based on 
considerations of total burden hours, total number of respondents, or 
burden-hours per respondent) and are low-cost for both the respondents 
and the Federal Government;
     The collections are non-controversial and do not raise 
issues of concern to other Federal agencies;
     Any collection is targeted to the solicitation of opinions 
from respondents who have experience with the program or may have 
experience with the program in the near future;
     Personally identifiable information (PII) is collected 
only to the extent necessary and is not retained;
     Information gathered will be used only internally for 
general service improvement and program management purposes and is not 
intended for release outside of the agency;
     Information gathered will not be used for the purpose of 
substantially informing influential policy decisions; and
     Information gathered will yield qualitative information; 
the collections will not be designed or expected to yield statistically 
reliable results or used as though the results are generalizable to the 
population of study.
    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 are likely 
to have, such collections may still be eligible for submission for 
other generic mechanisms that are designed to yield quantitative 
results.
    As a general matter, information collections will not result in any 
new system of records containing privacy information and will not ask 
questions of a sensitive nature, such as sexual behavior and attitudes, 
religious beliefs, and other matters that are commonly considered 
private.
    OMB approval is requested for 3 years. There are no costs to 
respondents other than their time. The total estimated annualized 
burden hours are 4,950.

                                        Estimated Annualized Burden Hours
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                                                                                      Average
                                                     Number of       Number of      burden per     Total annual
               Type of collection                   respondents    responses per   response (in    burden hours
                                                                    respondent        hours)
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Conference/Training--Pre and Post Surveys.......             100               1           15/60              25
Usability Testing...............................             100               1           30/60              50
Focus Groups....................................             750               1               1             750
Customer Satisfaction Survey....................          13,500               1           15/60           3,375
In-depth Interviews or Small Discussion Group...             750               1               1             750
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................          15,200          15,200  ..............           4,950
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    Dated: August 23, 2017.
Jennifer Guimond,
Project Clearance Liaison, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of 
Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health.
[FR Doc. 2017-18195 Filed 8-25-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4140-01-P