[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 33 (Thursday, February 17, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Page 9091]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-03299]


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OFFICE OF SPECIAL COUNSEL


OSC ADR Surveys

AGENCY: U.S. Office of Special Counsel.

ACTION: Notice of information collection.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC), seeks approval from 
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for use of two surveys used 
by OSC's Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) program to assess its 
efficacy and seek ways to improve the process: An initial survey sent 
to all mediation participants, and a follow-up survey sent to a subset 
of mediation participants who opt into receiving the second survey.

DATES: Written comments should be received on or before March 21, 2022.

ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments by mail to: Office of 
Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, 
Attention: Desk Officer for OSC, New Executive Office Building, Room 
10235, Washington, DC 20503; or by email via: 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Amy Beckett, Senior Litigation 
Counsel, by telephone at (202) 804-7000, or by email at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The initial ADR survey consists of a 
questionnaire containing thirty-four (34) questions about the 
respondent's experience in mediation at OSC, including whether they 
understood how the process would work, their confidentiality 
obligations, the neutrality of the mediator, whether they felt the 
process was adequately resourced, and other matters. The follow-up 
survey is sent approximately six (6) months later to participants who 
opt in, consisting of a new questionnaire containing a maximum of six 
(6) questions or a maximum of four (4), the number of questions 
depending on the outcome of the earlier, concluded mediation.
    OSC invites comments on: (a) The accuracy of OSC's estimate of the 
burden of the proposed collections of information; (b) ways to enhance 
the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; 
and (c) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
respondents.
    OSC is a permanent independent federal investigative and 
prosecutorial agency. OSC's basic authorities come from four federal 
statutes: The Civil Service Reform Act, the Whistleblower Protection 
Act, the Hatch Act, and the Uniformed Services Employment & 
Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). OSC's primary mission is to safeguard 
the merit system by protecting federal employees and applicants from 
prohibited personnel practices, especially reprisal for whistleblowing, 
and to serve as a safe channel for allegations of wrongdoing. The ADR 
Unit offers mediation and conciliation to complainants and agencies in 
selected cases as an alternative process for resolving their dispute. 
Mediation is a facilitated negotiation between parties to the dispute. 
Conciliation is similar to ``shuttle diplomacy'' by telephone. In 
either case, the ADR process is voluntary, confidential, and allows the 
parties to retain control of the outcome of the dispute. Parties who 
participate in mediation and conciliation are able to find and agree to 
solutions that can be crafted in a way that meets their high priority 
needs. The ADR process can also foster better communication skills and 
improve working relationships between parties.
    OSC conducts the two surveys of ADR participants to assess the 
quality of OSC's mediation process.
    OSC will use the questionnaires to survey all persons who use ADR 
services at OSC and a subset of those persons who agree to participate 
in a follow-up survey. The survey questionnaires are available for 
review online at https://osc.gov/Resources/Pages/Reports.aspx#tabGroup07.
    Type of Information Collection Request: Opinion of mediation 
participants about the effectiveness and quality of their OSC mediation 
experience.
    Affected Public: OSC mediation participants, including OSC 
complainants and their attorneys; Federal Agency attorneys; Federal 
Agency settlement officials; and other representatives or support 
persons.
    Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.
    Estimated Annual Number of Survey Form Respondents: 100 per year 
for the initial survey and 75 for the follow-up survey. Number may rise 
if case intake rises.
    Frequency of Survey Form Use: After each mediation is concluded.
    Estimated Average Amount of Time for a Person to Respond to Survey: 
Eight minutes for the initial survey and two minutes for the follow-up 
survey.
    Estimated Annual Survey Burden: 15.8 hours.

    Date: February 10, 2022.
Travis Millsaps,
Deputy Special Counsel for Public Policy.
[FR Doc. 2022-03299 Filed 2-16-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7405-01-P