JSA - OMB Supporting Statement Part B - Final

SUPPORTING STATEMENT B FOR INFORMATION COLLECTION FOR THE

JOB SEARCH ASSISTANCE

STRATEGIES (JSA) EVALUATION

Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation

Administration for Children and Families

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW

Washington, DC 20447

August 2013

B. COLLECTIONS OF INFORMATION EMPLOYING STATISTICAL METHODS

This document presents Part B of the Supporting Statement for preliminary data collection activities for the Job Search Assistance Strategies Evaluation (hereafter, JSA Evaluation). This request is for a new collection. This submission seeks OMB approval for three data collection instruments that will be used as part of the field assessment and site selection process:

• Discussion Guide for Researchers and Policy Experts

• Discussion Guide for State and Local TANF Administrators

• Discussion Guide for Program Staff

These discussion guides are designed to collect baseline information as the JSA Evaluation study design is finalized. OPRE will submit additional information collection requests as part of this evaluation. This section provides supporting statements for each of the five points outlined in Part B of the OMB guidelines for the collection of baseline information in study sites in the JSA Evaluation.

1. Respondent Universe and Sampling Methods

Respondents will be identified through several means. State and local TANF program data and documents will be reviewed to determine what types of JSA services agencies are providing and the scale at which they are providing them. This will serve the basis for determining which State and local TANF agencies to include in the field assessment. Within each agency, the study will interview the administrator, as well as one to three program staff who provide JSA services. For the researchers and experts, literature reviews and other research will be consulted to determine who the primary experts in this area are. Members of constituent groups (e.g. American Public Human Services Association, National Association for Welfare Research and Statistics) and national organizations (e.g. National Association of State TANF Administrators) will be important stakeholders from the practitioner and policy communities.

2. Procedures for Collection of Information

Informal discussions with the field assessment participants will be conducted by telephone and in-person. Discussions will be conducted commencing with the receipt of OMB clearance or award of the JSA Evaluation contract (expected September 30, 2013), whichever comes later, and will occur most heavily in the first eighteen months, but may extend up to two years. Discussions will be conducted by senior members of the selected evaluation contractor.

Contractor staff will use the approved instruments to guide the discussion and help ensure that appropriate topics are covered, given the type of stakeholder being interviewed. Contractor staff will take notes during the discussion, obtain relevant written materials that are readily available, and prepare written summaries of each discussion and group of discussions for submission to ACF.

We anticipate that the discussions will vary depending on the respondent and that not more than 100 respondents will be interviewed over two years (i.e. 50 respondents per year).

Exhibit B2.1 - Estimated Response Time
Instrument	Number of Respondents over Two Years	Average Burden Hours Per Response
Discussion Guide for Use with Researchers and Policy Experts	15	1
Discussion Guide for use with State and Local TANF Administrators	35	2.5
Discussion Guide for Use with Program Staff	50	2
Total	100	-

3. Methods to Maximize Response Rates and Deal with Nonresponse

We expect to obtain a very high response rate (95 percent) among stakeholders who will be interviewed. Several factors will help ensure a high rate of cooperation among respondents. First, senior staff members of the study team who are familiar with the issues will conduct the discussions. Second, it is expected that staff conducting the discussions will personally know many of the respondents through their professional connections. Finally, the stakeholders who will be interviewed are all heavily invested in the issues surrounding moving TANF clients to employment and thus will be interested in contributing to the development of the interventions to be tested in the study.

4. Tests of Procedures or Methods to be Undertaken

The discussion guides are similar to discussion protocols that have been used successfully in prior studies, including the Subsidized and Transitional Employment Demonstration (OMB #0970-0413) and the Assets for Independence Evaluation (OMB #0970-0414).

5. Individuals Consulted on Statistical Aspects and Individuals Collecting and/or Analyzing Data

The information will be collected by the contractor selected to conduct the JSA Evaluation, and its subcontractors, on behalf of the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration for Children and Families (ACF). With ACF oversight and approval, the contractor will be responsible for finalizing the study design, data collection, analysis, and report preparation. Key input to the current data collection instruments was received from the following individuals:

Department of Health and Human Services

Administration for Children and Families

Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation

• Erica Zielewski, Social Science Research Analyst

• Mark Fucello, Division Director

• Naomi Goldstein, Director

Inquiries regarding statistical aspects of the study design should be directed to:

Erica Zielewski

Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation

Administration for Children and Families

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

370 L'Enfant Promenade, S.W.

Washington, DC 20477

202-401-5995

Ms. Zielewski is the project officer and has overseen the design of the data collection instruments.