[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 189 (Tuesday, September 29, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 60998-60999]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-21509]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Children and Families


Submission for OMB Review; National Survey of Early Care and 
Education COVID-19 Follow-Up (OMB #0970-0391)

AGENCY: Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration 
for Children and Families, HHS.

ACTION: Request for public comment.

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SUMMARY: The Administration for Children and Families (ACF), U.S. 
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), is proposing a two-wave 
data collection as part of the National Survey of Early Care and 
Education (NSECE) (OMB #0970-0391), which will be conducted October 
2020 through June 2021. The objective of the NSECE COVID-19 Follow-up 
is to document the nation's current supply of early care and education 
(ECE) services that is home-based providers, center-based providers, 
and the center-based provider workforce. In the context of the COVID-19 
pandemic, the NSECE COVID-19 Follow-up will deepen our understanding of 
the state of ECE supply and the ECE workforce following the initial 
period of crisis, including changes in supply or departures from and 
re-entries to the workforce.

DATES: Comments due within 30 days of publication. OMB must make a 
decision about the collection of information between 30 and 60 days 
after publication of this document in the Federal Register. Therefore, 
a comment is best assured of having its full effect if OMB receives it 
within 30 days of publication.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed 
information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of 
this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular 
information collection by selecting

[[Page 60999]]

``Currently under 30-day Review--Open for Public Comments'' or by using 
the search function.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Description: The NSECE COVID-19 Follow-up 
will collect information from center-based ECE providers of care to 
children birth through age 5 (not yet in kindergarten), home-based ECE 
providers that serve children under age 13, as well as the ECE 
workforce providing these services. The proposed collection will 
consist of the following three coordinated nationally representative 
surveys:
    1. A two-wave survey of individuals who provided paid care for 
children under the age of 13 in a residential setting, as of 2019, and 
who participated in the 2019 NSECE (Home-based Provider Interview);
    2. a two-wave survey of providers of care to children ages 0 
through 5 years of age (not yet in kindergarten) in a non-residential 
setting (Center-based Provider Interview), as of 2019, and who 
participated in the 2019 NSECE; and
    3. a two-wave survey conducted with individuals employed in center-
based child care programs working directly with children in classrooms 
(Center-based Classroom Staff [Workforce] Interview), as of 2019, and 
who participated in the 2019 NSECE.
    The NSECE COVID-19 Follow-up will provide urgently needed 
information about the supply of child care and early education 
available to families across all income levels, including providers 
serving low-income families of various racial, ethnic, language, and 
cultural backgrounds, in diverse geographic areas. The study will also 
dramatically extend the available resources for understanding the 
national impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the country's ECE supply 
and workforce, including geographic variation therein. Accurate data on 
the availability and characteristics of ECE programs are essential to 
assess the current and changing landscape of child care and early 
education programs and understand the ability of the nation's supply 
and workforce to meet the needs of parents of young children in the 
post-pandemic economy, and will provide insights to advance policy and 
initiatives in the ECE field.
    Respondents: Home-based providers, as of 2019, serving children 
under 13 years of age (listed and unlisted paid)--regardless of their 
status serving children in 2020-2021; center-based child care 
providers, as of 2019, serving children ages 0 through 5 years of age 
(not yet in kindergarten)--regardless of their status serving children 
in 2020-2021; and classroom-assigned instructional staff members 
working with children ages 0 through 5 years of age (not yet in 
kindergarten) in center-based child care providers, as of 2019, 
regardless of their employment status in 2020-2021.

                                             Annual Burden Estimates
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                                                  Annual  number     Number of        Average
                   Instrument                           of         responses per   burden  hours  Annual  burden
                                                    respondents     respondent     per  response       hours
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Home-based Provider Interview, Waves 1 and 2....           3,375             1.5             .33           1,671
Center-based Provider Interview, Waves 1 and 2..           5,850             1.5             .33           2,896
Center-based Classroom Staff (Workforce)                   3,533             1.5             .33           1,749
 Interview, Waves 1 and 2.......................
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    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 6,316.

    Authority: Child Care and Development Block Grant Act (42 U.S.C. 
9858 et. seq.).

John M. Sweet Jr,
ACF/OPRE Certifying Officer.
[FR Doc. 2020-21509 Filed 9-28-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-23-P