SUPPORTING STATEMENT
U.S. Department of Commerce
National Institute of Standards and Technology
SURF Fellow Housing Survey
OMB Control No. 0693-XXXX
A. JUSTIFICATION
1. Explain the circumstances that make the collection of information necessary.
The purpose of this collection is to gather information requested on behalf of the NIST Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Program for both Gaithersburg and Boulder locations. Students participating in the program receive a fellowship which includes lodging arranged by the agency. To coordinate the lodging, information is submitted by accepted students who require lodging during the program dates. The student information is utilized for roommate matching based on gender and common interests.
2. Explain how, by whom, how frequently, and for what purpose the information will be used. If the information collected will be disseminated to the public or used to support information that will be disseminated to the public, then explain how the collection complies with all applicable Information Quality Guidelines.
To coordinate the lodging over a period of 9 to 11 weeks in the summer, information is submitted by accepted students which require lodging during the program dates. The student information is utilized by the Program Office (NIST federal employees) for roommate matching based on sex and common interests. The information will be collected electronically. Accepted students will receive a link to the Housing Application administered on Google Documents (NIST approved platform). The application must be completed by a required deadline. The provided link will be inactive after the deadline.
3. Describe whether, and to what extent, the collection of information involves the use of automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological techniques or other forms of information technology.
The information will be collected electronically. Accepted students will receive a link to the Housing Application administered on Google Documents (NIST approved platform).
4. Describe efforts to identify duplication.
Not applicable.
5. If the collection of information involves small businesses or other small entities, describe the methods used to minimize burden.
Not applicable.
6. Describe the consequences to the Federal program or policy activities if the collection is not conducted or is conducted less frequently.
The program will not be able to coordinate lodging for participants annually. Lodging which is coordinated by NIST is an incentive to apply to the program.
7. Explain any special circumstances that require the collection to be conducted in a manner inconsistent with OMB guidelines.
Not Applicable. The collection of information will be conducted according to all OMB guidelines.
8. Provide information of the PRA Federal Register Notice that solicited public comments on the information collection prior to this submission. Summarize the public comments received in response to that notice and describe the actions taken by the agency in response to those comments. Describe the efforts to consult with persons outside the agency to obtain their views on the availability of data, frequency of collection, the clarity of instructions and recordkeeping, disclosure, or reporting format (if any), and on the data elements to be recorded, disclosed, or reported.
The 60-day FRN posted on February 8, 2019 (Vol. 84, No. 27, pp. 2819-2820). No comments were received.
The 30-day FRN posted on April 15, 2019 (Vol. 84 No. 72, pg. 15183).
9. Explain any decisions to provide payments or gifts to respondents, other than remuneration of contractors or grantees.
10. Describe any assurance of confidentiality provided to respondents and the basis for assurance in statute, regulation, or agency policy.
Because some personally identifiable information will be collected and stored in a system of records, appropriate notice in the form of a Privacy Act Notice and SORN notification will be given.
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.
In order to provide appropriate housing options, some personally identifiable information (such as sex) as well as other potential pertinent private information (such as allergies, preferences in general) will be collected. As stated in question 10, appropriate privacy notice will be provided in the form of Privacy Act Statement. Information is covered under NIST SORN 1: NIST Associates.
The Privacy Act Statement reads:
Authority: 15 U.S.C. § 278g-1(a)
Purpose: The National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) hosts the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) which provides an opportunity for the NIST laboratories to encourage outstanding undergraduate students to pursue careers in science and technology. This information collection will serve as the housing application for the program.
Routine Uses: NIST will use the information collected to perform the requisite reviews of the applications to determine eligibility, and to meet programmatic requirements. Disclosure of this information is also subject to all the published routine uses as identified in the Privacy Act System of Records Notices: NIST-1: NIST Associates.
Disclosure: Furnishing this information is voluntary. When you submit the form, you are indicating your voluntary consent for NIST to use of the information you submit for the purpose stated.
12. Provide an estimate in hours of the burden of the collection of information.
220 respondents / 30 minutes to complete the survey. Burden hours is equal to 110 hours.
13. Provide an estimate of the total annual cost burden to the respondents or record-keepers resulting from the collection (excluding the value of the burden hours in
Question 12 above).
There is no cost to the respondent.
14. Provide estimates of annualized cost to the Federal government.
The cost for lodging is factored into the fellowship. Each participant receives up to $4500 annually for lodging in their fellowship. If all participants were to receive lodging for the program, the total cost is $990K/year.
15. Explain the reasons for any program changes or adjustments.
Not applicable. This is a new information collection.
16. For collections whose results will be published, outline the plans for tabulation and publication.
Not applicable. There are no statistical results associated with this collection.
17. If seeking approval to not display the expiration date for OMB approval of the information collection, explain the reasons why display would be inappropriate.
The OMB approval and expiration date will be appropriately displayed.
18. Explain each exception to the certification statement.
Not applicable. There are no exceptions to this information collection.
| File Type | application/msword |
| File Modified | 0000-00-00 |
| File Created | 0000-00-00 |