[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 148 (Thursday, August 1, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37655-37656]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-16376]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Health Resources and Services Administration


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Collection: 
Public Comment Request; Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home 
Visiting Program Home Visiting Budget Assistance Tool, OMB No. 0906-
0025--Revision

AGENCY: Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Department 
of Health and Human Services.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the requirement for opportunity for public 
comment on proposed data collection projects of the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995, HRSA announces plans to submit an Information Collection 
Request (ICR), described below, to the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB). Prior to submitting the ICR to OMB, HRSA seeks comments from the 
public regarding the burden estimate, below, or any other aspect of the 
ICR.

DATES: Comments on this ICR must be received no later than September 
30, 2019.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments to [email protected] or mail the HRSA 
Information Collection Clearance Officer, 14N136B, 5600 Fishers Lane, 
Rockville, Maryland 20857.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: To request more information on the 
proposed project or to obtain a copy of the data collection plans and 
draft instruments, email [email protected] or call Lisa Wright-
Solomon, the HRSA Information Collection Clearance Officer at (301) 
443-1984.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: When submitting comments or requesting 
information, please include the information request collection title 
for reference.
    Information Collection Request Title: Maternal, Infant, and Early 
Childhood Home Visiting Program Home Visiting Budget Assistance Tool, 
OMB No. 0906-0025--Revision.
    Abstract: HRSA is requesting continued approval and revision to the 
Home Visiting Budget Assistance Tool (HV-BAT) based on results of the 
previous pilot test. The tool collects information on standardized cost 
metrics from programs that deliver home visiting services, as outlined 
in the HV-BAT. Prior to Fiscal Year (FY) 2021, entities receiving 
Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) formula 
funds that are states, jurisdictions, territories, and nonprofit 
awardees may submit cost data using the HV-BAT to HRSA. HRSA will 
review the data submitted for accuracy and quality control, to test the 
tool's capacity to support state program functions such as program 
planning and budgeting, and to collect data to estimate national 
program costs. Beginning in FY 2021, HRSA will require reporting of HV-
BAT data for one-third of awardees in each year for the purpose of 
informing program planning and budgeting described in awardee 
submissions of the annual formula funding application.
    MIECHV Program, authorized by section 511 of the Social Security 
Act, 42 U.S.C. 711, and administered by HRSA in partnership with the 
Administration for Children and Families, supports voluntary, evidence-
based home visiting services during pregnancy and to parents with young 
children up to kindergarten entry. States, Tribal entities, and certain 
nonprofit organizations are eligible to receive funding from the MIECHV 
Program and have the flexibility to tailor the program to serve the 
specific needs of their communities. Funding recipients may subaward 
grant funds to local implementing agencies (LIAs) in order to provide 
services to eligible families in at-risk communities.
    HRSA revised the intended purpose of the data collection using the 
HV-BAT. Original clearance under this OMB control number was for pilot 
testing the reliability of a standardized cost reporting tool among 
evidence-based home visiting programs. HRSA revised the data collection 
tool to reflect findings and recommendations from the pilot study to 
ensure ease of use among LIAs. Changes were made to instructions and 
definitions based on feedback collected from participants in the pilot 
study. As this revision seeks to continue collection of comprehensive 
home visiting cost data for all LIAs in each state, the data can be 
aggregated to produce state and national cost estimates in addition to 
supporting procurement activities and sub-recipient monitoring. The 
burden increased as the pilot study identified a longer average amount 
of time to complete the tool than was originally estimated.
    Need and Proposed Use of the Information: Immediately following OMB 
clearance, HRSA intends to make the tool available as an optional 
resource for all awardees. If awardees choose to immediately use the 
HV-BAT as an optional tool, awardees will be required to submit the 
data collected with the tool to HRSA. This will allow HRSA to test the 
feasibility of collecting comprehensive cost data at the state level; 
estimate national level costs for use in conducting research and 
analysis of home visiting costs; understand cost variation; assess how 
comprehensive program cost data can inform other policy priorities, 
such as innovative financing strategies; review the data to ensure 
accuracy; and analyze the data for the purpose of federal research.
    Beginning in FY 2021, HRSA will require reporting of HV-BAT data 
for one-third of awardees in each year for the purpose of informing 
program planning and budgeting described in awardee submissions of the 
annual formula funding application. HRSA anticipates that one-third of 
the awardees will participate in this data collection each year and 
HRSA will identify which third of the awardees will be required to 
submit HV-BAT data in that year. This process will ease burden on 
awardees by requiring data collection for each awardee once every 3 
years and allowing HRSA to capture a national data set every three 
years.
    Likely Respondents: MIECHV Program awardees (n=19).
    Burden Statement: Burden in this context means the time expended by 
persons to generate, maintain, retain, disclose or provide the 
information requested. This includes the time needed to review 
instructions; to develop, acquire, install, and utilize technology and 
systems for the purpose of collecting, validating, and verifying 
information, processing and maintaining information, and disclosing and 
providing information; to train personnel and to be able to respond to 
a collection of information; to search data sources; to complete and 
review the collection of information; and to transmit or otherwise 
disclose the information. The total annual burden hours estimated for 
this Information Collection Request are summarized in the table below.
    Total Estimated Annualized burden hours:

[[Page 37656]]



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                                                     Number of                    Average burden
            Form name                Number of     responses per       Total       per response    Total burden
                                    respondents     respondent       responses      (in hours)         hours
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Home Visiting Budget Assistance               19              13             247              11           2,717
 Tool (HV-BAT)..................
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    Total.......................              19  ..............             247  ..............           2,717
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Note: The burden estimate assumes that \1/3\ of all MIECHV awardees will respond in each year. On average
  awardees have 13 LIAs (based on 2018 MIECHV program data) that will complete the HV-BAT, and on average it
  took LIAs 11 hours to complete the HV-BAT in the pilot study (OMB Control No. 0906-0025) of the tool.

    HRSA specifically requests comments on (1) the necessity and 
utility of the proposed information collection for the proper 
performance of the agency's functions, (2) the accuracy of the 
estimated burden, (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity 
of the information to be collected, and (4) the use of automated 
collection techniques or other forms of information technology to 
minimize the information collection burden.

Maria G. Button,
Director, Division of the Executive Secretariat.
[FR Doc. 2019-16376 Filed 7-31-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4165-15-P