[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 212 (Thursday, November 1, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54943-54945]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-23703]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB 
Review; Comment Request, Evaluation of the American Apprenticeship 
Initiative, New Collection

AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy, Chief Evaluation 
Office, Department of Labor.

ACTION: Notice of Information Collection; request for comment.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Labor (DOL), as part of its continuing 
effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a 
preclearance consultation program to provide the general public and 
federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or 
continuing collections of

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information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 
(PRA95). This program helps to ensure that requested data can be 
provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and financial 
resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, 
and the impact of collection requirements on respondents is properly 
assessed. Currently, the Department of Labor is soliciting comments 
concerning the collection of data about the Evaluation of Strategies 
Used in America's Promise Job Driven Grant Program Evaluation. A copy 
of the proposed Information Collection Request (ICR) can be obtained by 
contacting the office listed below in the addressee section of this 
notice.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the 
addressee section below on or before December 31, 2018.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either one of the following 
methods:
    Email: [email protected]; Mail or Courier: Megan Lizik, 
Chief Evaluation Office, OASP, U.S. Department of Labor, Room S-2312, 
200 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20210. Instructions: Please 
submit one copy of your comments by only one method. All submissions 
received must include the agency name and OMB Control Number identified 
above for this information collection. Comments, including any personal 
information provided, become a matter of public record. They will also 
be summarized and/or included in the request for OMB approval of the 
information collection request.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Megan Lizik by email at 
[email protected], or call 202-430-1255.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    I. Background: The Chief Evaluation Office (CEO) of the U.S. 
Department of Labor (DOL) intends to design and conduct an evaluation 
to assess the success of the America's Promise Job Driven Grant Program 
(America's Promise). The goal of this project is to build knowledge 
about the effectiveness and implementation of the program. The 
evaluation of America's Promise includes two components: (1) An impact 
evaluation to measure the effects of America's Promise on participant 
outcomes and (2) an implementation evaluation to understand program 
implementation and partnership development for all 23 grantees. The 
implementation evaluation includes more detailed focus on program 
implementation in 12 grantees and a measurement of partnerships and 
systems change in six grantees. This request is part of a larger study 
which has had other components, a grantee survey and partner network 
survey, submitted for approval in an earlier clearance request. A 60-
day notice to solicit public comments on that package was published in 
the Federal Register, 82 FR 32204 on July 12, 2017.
    This Federal Register Notice provides the opportunity to comment on 
proposed data collection instruments that will be used in the 
implementation evaluation: Semi-structured program stakeholder 
interview protocols, participant focus group protocols, and semi-
structured telephone interview protocols
    1. Semi-structured program stakeholder interview protocols. Site 
visits to approximately 12 grantees will occur in fall 2019. These 
visits will last two and a half days each. During these site visits, we 
will conduct one-on-one or small-group semi-structured interviews with 
a broad range of stakeholders, including grantee staff, partner staff, 
employers, training and education providers, and community 
stakeholders. We will also observe program activities to help us 
describe key program components, assess the quality of program 
delivery, and understand participant needs. The observations will not 
involve additional burden.
    2. Participant focus group protocols. Also during the site visits, 
we will conduct one focus group per site with approximately five 
program participants.
    3. Semi-structured telephone interview protocols. For approximately 
11 sites that do not receive in-person visits, we will conduct about 
two-hour in-depth telephone interviews with grantee managers and 
partners to cover a subset of the information collected in the site 
visits. The information requested from these phone calls may be 
tailored to the circumstances of each grantee.
    II. Desired Focus of Comments: Currently, the Department of Labor 
is soliciting comments concerning the above data collection for the 
Evaluation of Strategies Used in the America's Promise Job Driven Grant 
Program Evaluation. DOL is particularly interested in comments that do 
the following:
    [cir] Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance functions of the agency, including 
whether the information will have practical utility;
    [cir] evaluate the accuracy of the agency's burden estimate of the 
proposed information collection, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions;
    [cir] enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information 
to be collected; and
    [cir] minimize the burden of the collection of information on those 
who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology--for example, permitting 
electronic submissions of responses.
    III. Current Actions: At this time, the Department of Labor is 
requesting clearance for the semi-structured program stakeholder 
interview protocols, participant focus group protocols, and semi-
structured telephone interview protocols.
    Type of Review: New information collection request.
    OMB Control Number: 1290-0NEW.
    Affected Public: America's Promise Job Driven Grant Program 
Evaluation grantees, partners and participants.
    Comments submitted in response to this request will be summarized 
and/or included in the request for Office of Management and Budget 
approval of the information collection request; they will also become a 
matter of public record.

                                                              Estimated Annual Burden Hours
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                                                                                  Number of                          Average  burden
           Type of instrument  (form/activity)                 Number of        responses per     Total  number of      time  per      Estimated  burden
                                                              respondents         respondent         responses      response  (hours)        hours
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Semi-structured program stakeholder interview protocol...             \1\ 40                  1                 40                1.5                 60
Participant focus group protocol.........................             \2\ 20                  1                 20                1.5                 30

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Semi-structured telephone interview protocol.............             \3\ 15                  1                 15                  2                 30
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    Total................................................                 75  .................                 75  .................                120
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\1\ Assumes approximately 10 semi-structured interview participants during each site visit at approximately 12 grantees: 5 program staff members and 5
  program partners over the three-year clearance period.
\2\ Assumes approximately 5 program participants at each focus group for approximately 12 grantees over the three-year clearance period.
\3\ Assumes approximately 4 telephone participants per approximately 11 grantees: 2 program staff members and 2 program partners over the three-year
  clearance period.


Molly Irwin,
Chief Evaluation Officer, U.S. Department of Labor.
[FR Doc. 2018-23703 Filed 10-31-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4510-HX-P