201505-2900-001_Awars & ROI SS. OMB (MO 9.10.15)

Department of Veterans Affairs
Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization
OMB 2900- NEW (Awards & ROI)

A. Justification

1. Explain the circumstances that make the collection of information necessary. Identify legal or administrative requirements that necessitate the collection of information.

As part of the 2014 National Veterans Small Business Engagement (NVSBE) after action report, and in preparation for the 2015 NVSBE, that will take place November 17 to 19, 2015 the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) has measured the return on investment (ROI) attendees received as a result of their participation to this engagement. The ROI has been measured through the incidence of being awarded federal and commercial contracts and sub-contracts, which recipients perceive they received as a result of attending the 2014 NVSBE, and the benefits received by connecting with decision makers during the engagement.

The 2014 NVSBE ROI was measured through the Awards & ROI information collection instrument that was cleared through the OMB Fast-track or generic process. OSDBU is now requesting the regular clearance, so the main findings can be shared with the general public to encourage their support and participation to the 2015 NVSBE.

The collection instruments were internally tested on VA OSDBU employees before been deployed, and the duration was approximately three minutes to complete. The actual median response times from the 2013 and 2014 Awards and ROI information collections were evaluated and displayed an average time of four minutes. A 30-day Federal Register Notice (Vol. 80, No. 157) was posted showing an estimated average burden per respondent of three minutes and an estimated annual burden of 30 hours for small business and 10 hours for large business. The hour burden of the collection was recalculated presenting four minutes and 53.3 hours. 

2. Indicate how, by whom, and for what purposes the information is to be used; indicate actual use the agency has made of the information received from current collection.

VA will share this information with the general public to encourage VA staff, other federal agencies, small and large business attendees, to include commercial corporations and prime contractors to support this event. Survey information was collected after the 2014 NVSBE, when the instrument was cleared by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) through the fast track/generic process. OSDBU now wants to get a regular OMB clearance and to share its quantitative aspect with potential attendees; this will allow them to make informed decisions regarding their participation and role at NVSBE.

3. Describe whether, and to what extent, the collection of information involves the use of automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g. permitting electronic submission of responses, and the basis for the decision for adopting this means of collection. Also describe any consideration of using information technology to reduce burden.

An electronic survey will be emailed to all NVSBE attendees. The email message will include a link to the survey, which will be in compliance with the Rehabilitation Act, Section 508. An electronic submission of responses was selected due to the fact that it is the fastest and most cost-effective way to gather the required information. Electronic submissions allow attendees to submit responses at their convenience, from all over the nation. Over 90 percent of the questions are close-ended, which reduces the burden to participants.

4. Describe efforts to identify duplication. Show specifically why any similar information already available cannot be used or modified for use for the purposes described in Item 2 above.

As the NVSBE is an annual effort, OSDBU needs to collect information after each event in order make improvements for the following year’s event. No information regarding the incidence of being awarded federal or commercial contracts as a result of attending the NVSBE has ever been disseminated among potential participants.

5. If the collection of information impacts small businesses or other small entities, describe any methods used to minimize burden.

The burden consists of the collection of information which is essential to determine the impact that attending to the NVSBE has on the procurement and contracting opportunities received by small and large business attendees. In order to minimize the burden, respondents will be contacted via email and asked to volunteer on this collection.

6. Describe the consequences to Federal program or policy activities if the collection is not conducted or is conducted less frequently as well as any technical or legal obstacles to reducing burden.

OSDBU needs to collect this information to determine the impact that attending to the NVSBE has on the procurement and contracting opportunities received by small and large business attendees. Also, OSDBU needs to communicate it to potential attendees, vendors and buyers, to alert them about the ROI they may experience if attending next year’s event.

7. Explain any special circumstances that would cause an information collection to be conducted more often than quarterly or require respondents to prepare written responses to a collection of information in fewer than 30 days after receipt of it; submit more than an original and two copies of any document; retain records, other than health, medical, government contract, grant-in-aid, or tax records for more than three years; in connection with a statistical survey that is not designed to produce valid and reliable results that can be generalized to the universe of study and require the use of a statistical data classification that has not been reviewed and approved by OMB.

There are no special circumstances that require the collection of information to be conducted in a manner that is inconsistent with the guidelines in 5 CFR 1320.6.

8. a. If applicable, provide a copy and identify the date and page number of publication in the Federal Register of the sponsor’s notice, required by 5 CFR 1320.8(d), soliciting comments on the information collection prior to submission to OMB. Summarize public comments received in response to that notice and describe actions taken by the sponsor in responses to these comments. Specifically address comments received on cost and hour burden.

The notice of Proposed Information Collection Activity was published at 80 FR 29159 on May 20, 2015; no comments were received.

b. Describe efforts to consult with persons outside the agency to obtain their views on the availability of data, frequency of collection, clarity of instructions and recordkeeping instructions, recordkeeping, disclosure or reporting format, and on the data elements to be recorded, disclosed or reported. Explain any circumstances, which preclude consultation every three years with representatives of those from whom information is to be obtained.

VA OSDBU collected this information after the 2013 NVSBE; however, feedback from attendees is needed after each event. This will allow VA and attendees to compare the performance throughout the years.

9. Explain any decision to provide any payment or gift to respondents, other than remuneration of contractors or grantees.

No payments or gifts will be provided to respondents.

10. Describe any assurance of confidentiality provided to respondents and the basis for the assurance in statue, regulation, or agency policy.

The survey is anonymous, which is explained at the beginning of the questionnaire. No personally identifiable information (PII) is collected. A space is provided for companies that voluntarily want to provide their Dun & Bradstreet’s DUNS number. It is explained that this information will be used for companies’ demographic analyses and that no PII will be associated to the responses.  

11. Provide additional justification for any questions of a sensitive nature, such as sexual behavior and attitudes, religious beliefs, and other matters that are commonly considered private; include specific uses to be made of the information, the explanation to be given to persons from whom the information is requested, and any steps to be taken to obtain their consent.

There are no questions of a sensitive nature.

12. Estimate of the hour burden of the collection of information:

Number of respondents is estimated at	800
Frequency of response is annually	1
Average estimated response time is	4 minutes
Annual burden is estimated at	53.3 hours

b. If this request for approval covers more than one form, provide separate hour burden estimates for each form and aggregate the hour burdens in Item 13 of OMB 83-I.

This request for approval covers two forms.

a. Small Business-Awards & ROI

Number of respondents is estimated at	600
Frequency of response is annually	1
Average estimated response time is	4 minutes
Annual burden is estimated at	40 hours

b. Large Business-Awards & ROI

Number of respondents is estimated at	200
Frequency of response is annually	1
Average estimated response time is	4 minutes
Annual burden is estimated at	13.3 hours

c. Provide estimates of annual cost to respondents for the hour burdens for collections of information. The cost of contracting out or paying outside parties for information collection activities should not be included here. Instead, this cost should be included in Item 14.

The cost to the respondents for completing this form is $1,180 (53.3 hours x $22.13 per hour-rounded). Source: Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, http://www.bls.gov/news.release/ecec.nr0.htm).

13. Provide an estimate of the total annual cost burden to respondents or record-keepers resulting from the collection of information. (Do not include the cost of any hour burden shown in Items 12 and 14).

a. There is no capital, start-up, operation, maintenance costs, or costs associated to the request to provide information.

b. Cost estimates are not expected to vary widely.

14. Provide estimates of annual cost to the Federal Government. Also, provide a description of the method used to estimate cost, which should include quantification of hours, operation expenses (such as equipment, overhead, printing, and support staff), and any other expense that would not have been incurred without this collection of information. Agencies also may aggregate cost estimates from Items 12, 13, and 14 in a single table.

VA has a fixed cost contract for survey services. The table below shows the annual costs for collecting, analyzing and reporting results.

Description	Yearly Cost
Survey Vendor Cost per - 5 Hours	$ 531
VA Administrative Cost -3 hours	$ 135
Total Annual Cost	$ 666

15. Explain the reason for any program changes or adjustments reported in Items 13 or 14 of OMB 83-I

This is a new information collection.

16. For collections of information whose results will be published, outline plans for tabulation and publication. Address any complex analytical techniques that will be used. Provide the time schedule for the entire project, including beginning and ending dates of the collection of information, completion of report, publication dates, and other actions.

Frequency and cross tabulations are the analysis planned to be conducted. Some information will be posted at the 2015 NVSBE website ( http://nvsbe.com/) in October 2015, when the registration for this year’s NVSBE will open. The following are examples of the information to be published: the percentage of attendees that were awarded federal or commercial contracts or subcontracts, the ROI received from connections made at the NVSBE, and the dollar amount received on these contracts.

Only frequencies and cross tabulations analysis will be shared with the public. No other analytical technique or statistical analysis will be published. The 2014 Awards & ROI survey was conducted in May 2015. The 2015 Awards & ROI is scheduled to be sent out in June 20, 2016. Reminders will be sent on June 27 and 30, 2016.

17. If seeking approval to omit the expiration date for OMB approval of the information collection, explain the reasons that display would be inappropriate.

VA will include the expiration date for OMB approval on the form.

18. Explain each exception to the certification statement identified in Item 19, “Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions,” of OMB 83-I.

There are no such exceptions.