[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 184 (Monday, September 23, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 77496-77497]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-21629]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Office of the Secretary

[Docket ID: DoD-2024-OS-0078]


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

AGENCY: Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and 
Readiness (OUSD (P&R)), Department of Defense (DoD).

ACTION: 30-Day information collection notice.

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SUMMARY: The DoD has submitted to the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) for clearance the following proposal for collection of 
information under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act.

DATES: Consideration will be given to all comments received by October 
23, 2024.

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

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Reginald Lucas, (571) 372-7574, 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The DoD Civilian Employee Workplace and 
Gender Relations Survey (WGRC) will assess the attitudes and opinions 
of DoD civilian employees on gender issues including their experiences 
of and the climate surrounding sexual harassment, gender 
discrimination, and unwanted sexual contact in the DoD civilian 
workplace. These indicators provide primary data on estimated 
prevalence rates of unwanted gender-related experiences and 
historically provide the ability to evaluate the impact of policies and 
programs with regard to DoD civilian employees. The surveys are 
benchmarks by which senior DoD officials can track trends over time.
    All Workplace and Gender Relations surveys are Congressionally-
mandated to estimate rates of gender-based assaults, assess the 
effectiveness of policies and programming to prevent sexual harassment 
and sexual assault, and assess the overall gender relations climate 
within the Department in accordance with 10 U.S.C. 481. Historically, 
these surveys have been conducted with military members only, with the 
first congressionally mandated Workplace and Gender Relations survey 
conducted in 2002 for active-duty service members and 2004 for Reserve 
component members. Section 1073 of the FY 2015 NDAA extended this 
requirement to DoD Civilian employees as well, including an amendment 
that inserted Section 481a into 10 U.S.C. 481 outlining the survey 
requirement. The first administration of the WGRC was in FY 2016 per 
these statutory requirements and was administered to appropriated fund 
(APF) civilian employees only. The second administration of the WGRC 
was in 2018 and expanded the target population to include 
nonappropriated fund (NAF) civilian employees.
    Title; Associated Form; and OMB Number: Department of Defense 
Civilian Employee Workplace and Gender Relations Survey; OMB Control 
Number 0704-0614.
    Type of Request: Revision.
    Number of Respondents: 91,286.
    Responses per Respondent: 1.
    Annual Responses: 91,286.
    Average Burden per Response: 30 minutes.
    Annual Burden Hours: 45,643.
    Needs and Uses: The WGRC fulfills the Congressional mandate 
outlined in 10 U.S.C. 481a for a biennial survey assessment of gender 
relations in the DoD civilian workplace. The mandate requires that the 
survey (1) provides indicators of positive and negative trends for 
professional and personal relationships between male and female 
employees; (2) estimates the prevalence of unwanted gender-related 
behaviors for DoD civilian employees within the preceding fiscal year; 
(3) examines the effectiveness of policies designed to improve 
professional relationships between male and female employees; and (4) 
examines the effectiveness of current processes for complaints and 
investigations concerning unwanted gender-related behaviors, including 
sexual assault, sexual harassment, and gender discrimination. The legal 
requirements for the WGRC can be found in the following:
     FY15 NDAA, Section 1073.
     10 U.S.C. 481a.
     10 U.S.C. 136.
     10 U.S.C. 2358.
     Public Law (Pub. L.) 111-383, Sections 1602 and 1631; 113-
291, Section 1073.
    These legal requirements mandate that the WGRC solicit information 
on gender issues, including issues relating to sexual assault, sexual 
harassment, and gender discrimination, as well as the climate in the 
Department for forming professional relationships between male and 
female employees. They also give the Department authority to conduct 
such surveys under the guidance of the USD(P&R).
    Overall, the results of the survey will assess progress, identify 
shortfalls, and revise policies and programs as needed related to 
issues directly affecting DoD civilian employees. Data from this survey 
will be presented to the OUSD(P&R), and DoD policy and program offices 
to assess and improve policies, programs, practices, and training 
related to gender relations in the DoD informed by current and 
statistically reliable information. Analysis will include OPA's 
standard products: a results and trends report (a set of relative 
frequency distributions of each question, and cross-tabulations of 
survey questions by key stratifying variables), briefing slides, 
reports highlighting key findings, and a statistical methodology 
report. Ad hoc analyses requested by the policy office sponsors and 
other approved organizations may be conducted as needed and based on 
available staff.
    Affected Public: Individuals or households.
    Frequency: Biennially.
    Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.
    OMB Desk Officer: Ms. Jasmeet Seehra.
    You may also submit comments and recommendations, identified by 
Docket ID number and title, by the following method:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency 
name, Docket ID number, and title for this Federal Register document. 
The general policy for comments and other submissions from members of 
the public is to make these submissions available for public viewing on 
the internet at http://www.regulations.gov as they are received without 
change, including any personal identifiers or contact information.
    DOD Clearance Officer: Mr. Reginald Lucas.
    Requests for copies of the information collection proposal should 
be sent to Mr. Lucas at [email protected].


[[Page 77497]]


    Dated: September 17, 2024.
Aaron T. Siegel,
Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison Officer, Department of Defense.
[FR Doc. 2024-21629 Filed 9-20-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6001-FR-P