SSA - Formative for Program Support - Disaster Human Services Program 4.7.23

Feedback from Federal, State, Tribal, Local, and Territorial Human Services Offices on Emergency Preparedness and Response

Formative Data Collections for Program Support

0970 – 0531

Supporting Statement

Part A - Justification

March 2023

Submitted By:

Office of Human Services Emergency Preparedness and Response

Administration for Children and Families

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

4^th Floor, Mary E. Switzer Building

330 C Street, SW

Washington, D.C. 20201

A1. Necessity for the Data Collection

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) seeks approval for collecting feedback from stakeholders to better understand challenges that state, tribal, local and territorial (STLT) human services programs experience during or following a natural disaster, as well as what would help to address these challenges. This feedback will help HHS to achieve its agency priority goal on emergency preparedness.¹ The indicator for achieving this goal is an Emergency Preparedness STLT Playbook for training and technical assistance to STLT human services departments to improve emergency preparedness and response capabilities.

This proposed information collection meets the following goals of ACF’s generic clearance for formative data collections for program support (0970-0531):

• Planning for provision of programmatic training or technical assistance (T/TA); and

• Obtaining feedback about STLT human services program processes and/or practices to inform ACF program development or support.

Background

STLT human services programs are often unprepared and overwhelmed with providing services and addressing the demand for human services during or following a natural disaster. The ACF Office of Human Services Emergency Preparedness and Response (OHSEPR) seeks to identify STLT human services programs’ challenges with service provision and administration during and after a disaster. Through this effort we will engage STLT stakeholders (STLT human service programs, national associations, and researchers) through focus groups in an effort to gather valuable information to inform OHSEPR’s development of preparedness capabilities that are appropriate for STLT human service programs.

Legal or Administrative Requirements that Necessitate the Collection

There are no legal or administrative requirements that necessitate the collection. ACF is undertaking the collection at the discretion of the agency.

A2. Purpose of Survey and Data Collection Procedures

Overview of Purpose and Use

The purpose of these information collections it to learn about STLT human services programs challenges with preparing for and responding to disasters. OHSEPR will use the information from the stakeholders (STLT human service programs, national associations, and researchers) to develop an Emergency Preparedness STLT Playbook with recommendations for STLT human services programs for future disaster response. The Playbook will help STLT human service programs to better prepare for, respond to, and recover from natural disasters.

Processes for Information Collection

STLT Human Service Program Focus Groups

The collection for the STLT human service programs will be conducted via ten focus groups, each approximately 90 minutes long (10 attendees at each focus group). The purpose of these focus groups is to learn directly from STLT human service programs about issues and challenges as well as what works well regarding emergency preparedness and response. This information will help OHSEPR to develop capabilities that are responsive to and appropriate for STLT human service programs. Participants will be engaged using various functions, including polling, chat box, and annotation. In addition, conversation with participants will be facilitated through discussion questions. All responses will be anonymous and will not be attributable to a specific individual. Categorial responses will be aggregated.

National Associations Focus Groups

The collection for the national associations will be conducted via learning sessions with five focus group, approximately 90 minutes long (20 attendees at each focus group). National associations work with a broad array of state and local human service providers. The purpose of these focus groups is to learn more from these national associations about what they have seen as human service programs issues and challenges with emergency preparedness and response. Participants will be engaged using various functions, including polling, chat box, and annotation. In addition, conversation with participants will be facilitated through discussion questions. All responses will be anonymous and will not be attributable to a specific individual. Categorial responses will be aggregated.

Researchers Focus Groups

The collection for the researchers will be conducted via one focus group, approximately 90 minutes long (approximately two – three attendees). These researchers are experts in the field of disaster response and have extensive knowledge regarding STLT human service programs’ challenges with disaster preparedness and response. The purpose of this focus group will be to learn from the experts what are STLT human service programs’ challenges with disaster preparedness and response. Participants will be engaged using various functions, including polling, chat box, and annotation. In addition, conversation with participants will be facilitated through discussion questions. All responses will be anonymous and will not be attributable to a specific individual. Categorial responses will be aggregated.

A3. Improved Information Technology to Reduce Burden

All focus groups will be conducted in small groups via an online platform.

A4. Efforts to Identify Duplication

The information we are seeking to gain through this collection does not currently exist.

A5. Involvement of Small Organizations

Not applicable. No small businesses will be involved with this information collection.

A6. Consequences of Less Frequent Data Collection

Not applicable. This is a one-time data collection.

A7. Special Circumstances

There are no special circumstances for the proposed data collection efforts.

A8. Federal Register Notice and Consultation

Federal Register Notice and Comments

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13) and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations at 5 CFR Part 1320 (60 FR 44978, August 29, 1995), ACF published a notice in the Federal Register announcing the agency’s intention to request an OMB review of this information collection request to extend approval of the umbrella generic with minor changes. The notice was published on January 28, 2022, (87 FR 4603), and provided a sixty-day period for public comment. ACF did not receive any comments on the first notice. A second notice was published, allowing a thirty-day period for public comment, in conjunction with submission of the request to OMB. ACF did not receive any comments on the second notice.

Consultation with Outside Experts

Consultations have taken place with the HHS Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) which has experience developing interview protocols and capabilities for human services programs. .

A9. Tokens of Appreciation for Respondents

No tokens of appreciation for respondents are proposed for this information collection.

A10. Privacy of Respondents

Information collected will be kept private to the extent permitted by law. Respondents will be informed of all planned uses of data, that their participation is voluntary, and that their information will be kept private to the extent permitted by law.

A11. Sensitive Questions

There are no sensitive questions in this data collection.

A12. Estimation of Information Collection Burden

Burden Estimates

The annual burden for each of the four groups is as follows:

• We expect to conduct ten focus groups that will average about 1.5 hours in length with a total of 100 staff from STLT human service programs.

• We expect to conduct five focus groups that will average about 1.5 hours in length with a total of 100 staff from national associations.

• We expect to conduct one focus group that will average about 1.5 hours in length with a total of three researchers.

Cost Estimates

The cost to human services program and national association respondents was calculated using the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) job code for Social Workers, Other [21-1029] and wage data from May 2021, which is $30.29 per hour. To account for fringe benefits and overhead the rate was multiplied by two which is $60.58.

https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_stru.htm

The cost to researcher respondents was calculated using the BLS job code for Social Sciences Teachers, Postsecondary [25-1069] and wage data from May 2021, which is $41.98 per hour. To account for fringe benefits and overhead the rate was multiplied by two which is $ 83.96.

Instrument	Total Number of Respondents	Total Number of Responses Per Respondent	Average Burden Hours Per Response	Total Burden Hours	Average Hourly Wage	Total Annual Cost
Focus Group: State Human Services Programs	100	1	1.5	150	$60.58	$9,087
Focus Group: National Associations	100	1	1.5	150	$60.58	$9,087
Focus Group: Researchers	3	1	1.5	4.5	$83.96	$377.91
Total Burden:				304.5	Total Annual Cost:	$18,551.91

A13. Cost Burden to Respondents or Record Keepers

There are no additional costs to respondents.

A14. Estimate of Cost to the Federal Government

The total cost for the data collection activities under this current request will be $22,611.60.

This estimate is developed based on a $50/hourly rate for five contractors for 60 hours of work each ($15,000), in addition to four federal employees, estimated at GS-14, Step 1 ($63.43/hour), for 30 hours of work each ($7,611.60).

A15. Change in Burden

This is for an individual information collection under the umbrella formative generic clearance for program support (0970-0531).

A16. Plan and Time Schedule for Information Collection, Tabulation and Publication

The information collection will occur following OMB approval over about two months. The information will be compiled and shared among the project team and federal staff. The results will not be published.

A17. Reasons Not to Display OMB Expiration Date

All instruments will display the expiration date for OMB approval.

A18. Exceptions to Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions

No exceptions are necessary for this information collection.

1 https://assets.performance.gov/APG/files/2023/january/FY2022_January_HHS_Progress_Emergency_Preparedness.pdf

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