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DOCUMENTATION FOR THE GENERIC CLEARANCE

FOR THE COLLECTION OF QUALITATIVE RESEARCH AND ASSESSMENT

TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION:

Trafficking Victim Assistance Program Assessment—Key Informant Interviews and Focus Groups

[X] INTERVIEWS

[ ] SMALL DISCUSSION GROUPS

[X] FOCUS GROUPS

[ ] QUESTIONNAIRES

[ ] OTHER (EXPLAIN:)

DESCRIPTION OF THIS SPECIFIC COLLECTION

1. Intended Purpose

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (HHS/ASPE), in partnership with the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), is seeking approval from the Office of Management and Budget for a new information collection request. In collaboration with ASPE and ACF, a contractor is conducting this assessment funded by ACF’s Office on Trafficking in Persons (OTIP) of the Trafficking Victim Assistance Program (TVAP). In order to document and describe the relative strengths and weaknesses of the current and alternative grant and funding structures for trafficking services, this study will consist of (1) key informant interviews with a sample of fiscal year 2016 TVAP grantees and subrecipients and (2) focus groups with TVAP subrecipients with extensive knowledge of trafficking-related grants or funding allocation models. Grantee and subrecipient key informants will vary based on their role in their organization (e.g., grant administrators, case managers, and service referral contacts) and have extensive knowledge of funding models for trafficking services (e.g., per capita).

2. Need for the Collection

To our knowledge, there is no information that has been or is currently being collected similar to these data. An assessment of the implementation of TVAP has not been conducted previously, and no data exists to address the goals of this assessment.

3. Planned Use of the Data

Data will be collected and used for documenting perceptions and experiences related to the current regional grant structure and per capita funding model and identifying alternative approaches for funding trafficking services. In addition, a social network survey, for which we will be submitting a separate full Information Collection Request package, will be used to examine the estimated cost of services as well as the type and extent of the relationship between grantees, subrecipients, and other service providers operating in subrecipient areas, including service referrals and service coordination. The 60 day notice published on March 5, 2018 (Vol 83 #43, pages 9325-9326) for that information collection request.

4. Date(s) and Location(s)

Data collection through the interviews and focus groups will begin in April 2018 and continue no later than September 2018.

5. Collection Procedures

We have developed two semi structured interview protocols (not more than 1 hour in length) that will be administered in person during site visits at grantee locations, when convenient, or virtually to key informant staff at grantee and subrecipient organizations. The staff selected will include case managers, service referral contacts, and grant administrators and will represent their organization and provide information about their organization in their professional capacity. Although we will collect key informant names and contact information for the purposes of recruiting participants and scheduling interviews, we will not ask for additional personally identifying or sensitive information. We anticipate a sample of up to 50 key staff to be selected for interviews, including 9 key staff from the 3 grantee organizations and approximately 41 key staff from subrecipient organizations. At each of the three grantee organizations, we will seek to interview three types of key grantee staff: grant administrator, lead case manager, and lead service referral contact. At each subrecipient organization, we will seek to interview the lead case manager.

Topics for both grantee and subrecipient interviews are related to the TVAP funding model and include (1) funding and regional structure of TVAP; (2) meeting the needs of different types of victims; (3) challenges and successes related to the program; (4) alternative funding models; and (5) information and resources. Each interview will be tailored to incorporate specific discussions based on the individual’s experiences with TVAP and their organization’s role in the program (i.e., grantee or subrecipient).

We have developed a semi structured focus group protocol that will be administered to two different audiences: (1) 12 participants from large (i.e., more than five clients served per year) TVAP subrecipients; and (2) 12 participants from small (i.e., less than five clients served per year) TVAP subrecipients. Selected staff will represent their organization and provide information about their organization. Although we will collect key informant names and contact information for the purposes of recruiting participants and scheduling focus groups, we will not ask for additional personally identifying or sensitive information. We anticipate a total sample of 24 TVAP subrecipient staff to be selected for participation in the two focus groups. Participants will be those who serve in an oversight role, e.g. program manager, program coordinator, or grant administrator.

The focus group protocol includes the following topics: (1) perceptions of TVAP per capita funding (e.g., ability to meet needs of different types of victims, flexibility of funding model, challenges of the model, unmet needs resulting from funding model); (2) perceptions of other types of funding; and (3) general questions and suggestions for TVAP. Each focus group will be tailored to incorporate specific discussions based on the participants’ experiences with TVAP or other funding models.

We have also developed a social network survey to measure the type and extent of connections between TVAP grantees and subrecipient organizations. The survey will be administered online using an online survey tool. We will seek approval for this social network survey through a separate Information Collection Request package (ICR). The notice for this ICR published on March 5, 2018, as noted above.

6. Number of Collections (e.g., focus groups, surveys, sessions)

We anticipate a sample of approximately 50 key grantee and subrecipient staff (i.e., 9 key grantee staff and 41 key subrecipient staff) to be selected for in-depth, semi structured interviews and a sample of 24 staff from current TVAP subrecipients (i.e., 12 staff from TVAP subrecipients with a large caseload and 12 staff from TVAP subrecipients with a small caseload) to be selected for 2 focus groups.

7. Description of Respondents/Participants

Respondents will serve in a variety of roles in their organization (e.g., grant administrators, case managers, and service referral contacts) and have extensive knowledge of funding models for trafficking services (e.g., TVAP).

8. Description of How Results Will Be Used

Results will be used to document perceptions and experiences related to the current grant structure and per capita funding model, potential alternative funding approaches for trafficking services, and challenges related to funding trafficking services.

9. Description of How Results Will/Will Not Be Disseminated and Why or Why Not

We will not publish the results of the interviews or focus groups or share them publicly. Results are intended to inform potential administrative program design decisions.

AMOUNT OF ANY PROPOSED STIPEND OR INCENTIVE

There is no proposed stipend or incentive for either interview or focus group participants.

BURDEN HOUR COMPUTATION (Number of responses (X) estimated response or participation time in minutes (/60) = annual burden hours):

Type of Respondent	No. of Respondents	No. of Responses per Respondent	Average Burden per Response	Total Burden Hours	Hourly Wage Rate	Total Respondent Costs
TVAP grantees (interviews)	9	1	60/60	9	$57.11	$513.99
TVAP subrecipients (interviews)	41	1	60/60	41	$57.11	$2,341.51
TVAP subrecipients (focus groups)	24	1	60/60	24	$57.11	$1,370.64
TOTALS	74			74		$4,226.14

BURDEN COST COMPUTATION

Staff (FTE)	Average Hours per Collection	Average Hourly Rate	Average Cost
Social Science Analyst, GS 11	200	33.00	$6,600
Social Science Analyst, GS 15	160	76.00	$12,160
Estimated Total Cost of Information Collection			$18,760

OTHER SUPPORTING INFORMATION

REQUESTED APPROVAL DATE: April 16, 2018

NAME OF CONTACT PERSON: Amanda Benton, Contracting Officer’s Representative, Social Science Analyst, HHS/ASPE

TELEPHONE NUMBER: 202–690–7290; Amanda.Benton@hhs.gov

DEPARTMENT/OFFICE/BUREAU: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Assistant Secretary of Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), Human Services Policy (HSP)

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