Fast Track Template

CERTIFICATION

Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of Routine Customer Feedback” (OMB Control Number: 0579-0377)

TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: Animal Welfare Act Facilities Emergency Planning

PURPOSE:

The purpose of this information collection is to develop guidance for facilities regulated under the Animal Welfare Act (i.e. exhibitors, commercial dealers, and researchers). This guidance will assist facility owners and managers in complying with new regulation on emergency/contingency planning that requires facility owners to create and document emergency plans for their animals. The materials developed will be provided as best practices.

The project has two parts. In part 1, facility owners, managers, and animal handlers will be interviewed to understand what they know and believe about animal emergencies and the pending regulation. In Part 2, other facility owners, managers and animal handlers will be interviewed to confirm that the proposed tools are:

• easy to use

• easy to understand

• help people comply with the new regulations

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS:

Respondents will be selected from facilities regulated under the Animal Welfare Act. Regulated facilities include exhibitors, commercial pet dealers, and research facilities. The size of these operations vary from small (less than 10 animals) to very larger (hundreds of animals of multiple species).

Interviews will focus on organizations that need the most help in both parts one and two of the process. Less time will be spent interviewing people at research institutions who are likely to have sophisticated emergency plans or who are also regulated by other bodies (e.g., University Internal Review Boards or funding agencies.) More time will be spent with people who may have little or no knowledge of the need for or steps involved in developing an emergency plan, such as dog breeders and small mixed-animal zoos. Focusing on the groups that need the most help allows us to tailor the tools and guidance to the level of knowledge needed.

TYPE OF COLLECTION: (Check one)

[ ] Customer Comment Card/Complaint Form [ ] Customer Satisfaction Survey

[ ] Usability Testing (e.g., Website or Software) [ ] Small Discussion Group

[ ] Focus Group [X] Other: _Interviews

CERTIFICATION:

I certify the following to be true:

1. The collection is voluntary.

2. The collection is low-burden for respondents and low-cost for the Federal Government.

3. The collection is non-controversial and does not raise issues of concern to other federal agencies.

4. The results are not intended to be disseminated to the public.

5. Information gathered will not be used for the purpose of substantially informing influential policy decisions.

6. The collection is targeted to the solicitation of opinions from respondents who have experience with the program or may have experience with the program in the future.

Name: Alan Hogue

To assist review, please provide answers to the following question:

Personally Identifiable Information:

1. Is personally identifiable information (PII) collected? [ ] Yes [X ] No

2. If Yes, will any information that is collected be included in records that are subject to the Privacy Act of 1974? [ ] Yes [ ] No

3. If Yes, has an up-to-date System of Records Notice (SORN) been published? [ ] Yes [ ] No

Gifts or Payments:

Is an incentive (e.g., money or reimbursement of expenses, token of appreciation) provided to participants? [ ] Yes [X] No

BURDEN HOURS

Category of Respondent	No. of Respondents	Participation Time	Burden
Private Sector	60	1 hr./person	60 hours
Totals	60		60 hours

FEDERAL COST: The estimated annual cost to the Federal government is:

The cost to the federal government for the information collection is a one-time charge of approximately $44,000 that is included in a contract for the development of guidance materials.

If you are conducting a focus group, survey, or plan to employ statistical methods, please provide answers to the following questions:

The selection of your targeted respondents

1. Do you have a customer list or something similar that defines the universe of potential respondents and do you have a sampling plan for selecting from this universe? [x ] Yes [ ] No

If the answer is yes, please provide a description of both below (or attach the sampling plan)? If the answer is no, please provide a description of how you plan to identify your potential group of respondents and how you will select them?

APHIS does not intend to employ statistical methods in the selection of focus groups. However, APHIS does want to ensure that we include representation of the wide diversity of facilities regulated under the Animal Welfare Act. Focus groups will be balanced by activity (i.e. exhibition, commercial sale, and research); geography (area of the country); and size (i.e. small with less than 10 regulated animals to very large with hundreds of animals of multiple species). APHIS will use the Animal Care ACIS database to select a sample of facilities that represent the range of variables identified (activity, geography, and size).

Administration of the Instrument

1. How will you collect the information? (Check all that apply)

[ ] Web-based or other forms of Social Media

[ X ] Telephone

[ X] In-person

[ ] Mail

[ ] Other, Explain

Most of the interviews will be conducted by telephone with perhaps a few face to face interview.

2. Will interviewers or facilitators be used? [ X ] Yes [ ] No

Please make sure that all instruments, instructions, and scripts are submitted with the request.

Instructions for completing Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of Routine Customer Feedback”

TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: Provide the name of the collection that is the subject of the request. (e.g. Comment card for soliciting feedback on xxxx)

PURPOSE: Provide a brief description of the purpose of this collection and how it will be used. If this is part of a larger study or effort, please include this in your explanation.

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS: Provide a brief description of the targeted group or groups for this collection of information. These groups must have experience with the program.

TYPE OF COLLECTION: Check one box. If you are requesting approval of other instruments under the generic, you must complete a form for each instrument.

CERTIFICATION: Please read the certification carefully. If you incorrectly certify, the collection will be returned as improperly submitted or it will be disapproved.

Personally Identifiable Information: Provide answers to the questions. Note: Agencies should only collect PII to the extent necessary, and they should only retain PII for the period of time that is necessary to achieve a specific objective.

Gifts or Payments: If you answer yes to the question, please describe the incentive and provide a justification for the amount.

BURDEN HOURS:

Category of Respondents: Identify who you expect the respondents to be in terms of the following categories: (1) Individuals or Households;(2) Private Sector; (3) State, local, or tribal governments; or (4) Federal Government. Only one type of respondent can be selected per row.

No. of Respondents: Provide an estimate of the Number of respondents.

Participation Time: Provide an estimate of the amount of time required for a respondent to participate (e.g. fill out a survey or participate in a focus group)

Burden: Provide the Annual burden hours: Multiply the Number of responses and the participation time and divide by 60.

FEDERAL COST: Provide an estimate of the annual cost to the Federal government.

If you are conducting a focus group, survey, or plan to employ statistical methods, please provide answers to the following questions:

The selection of your targeted respondents. Please provide a description of how you plan to identify your potential group of respondents and how you will select them. If the answer is yes, to the first question, you may provide the sampling plan in an attachment.

Administration of the Instrument: Identify how the information will be collected. More than one box may be checked. Indicate whether there will be interviewers (e.g. for surveys) or facilitators (e.g., for focus groups) used.

Submit all instruments, instructions, and scripts are submitted with the request.

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