1140-0052 supporting statement A 2024.de

Office of Strategic Management Environmental Assessment Outreach 

OMB Control Number 1140-0052 

OMB Expiration Date: 05/31/2025 

Department of Justice

Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF)

Information Collection Request

OMB 1140-0052

Office of Strategic Management Environmental Assessment Outreach

SUPPORTING STATEMENT

1. JUSTIFICATION

1. Explain the circumstances that make the information collection necessary.

Under the provisions of the Government Performance and Results Modernization Act of 2010 (GPRA Modernization Act of 2010), section 4, Annual Performance Plans and Reports, Federal agencies are directed to improve their effectiveness and public accountability by continued focus on results, service quality, and customer satisfaction. The Act requires that personnel from all agencies update and revise their strategic plans every four years. As a major part of strategic plan development, agencies should identify key external factors that could significantly affect their ability to achieve strategic goals and objectives. For this purpose, ATF’s Office of Strategic Management (OSM) conducts outreach to ATF stakeholders, using OMB 1140-0052 (ATF’s Office of Strategic Management Environmental Assessment Outreach), as part of the Bureau’s quadrennial environmental assessment process.

2. Indicate how, by whom, and for what purpose the information is to be used.

OSM will use the information collected through the questionnaire to help identify and validate the agency’s internal strengths and weaknesses and external opportunities and risks.

3. Describe whether, and to what extent, the information collection 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.

The questionnaire is electronically fillable and is sent to respondents electronically via email. Respondents submit their completed questionnaire to ATF via an online survey tool, which transmits the responses to ATF for processing and consideration.

4. Describe efforts to identify duplication.

This information is not duplicative and there is no other source for the information. Directorates provide OSM with a list of respondents (stakeholders who have interacted with ATF during the past couple of years and can thus provide feedback -- e.g., licensees, federal, state, and local law enforcement, and public interest organizations). OSM combines these lists and provides the combined list and the questionnaire to an online survey tool, which administers the questionnaire. The online survey tool automatically identifies any duplicate email addresses, so only one email will be sent to each unique email address. ATF uses a uniform subject classification system for forms to identify duplication and to ensure that any similar information already available cannot be used or modified to use for the purpose of this information collection.

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

This information collection does not have a significant impact on small entities.

6. Describe the consequence 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.

Without this information collection, which provides valuable input to ATF’s strategic planning process, OSM would be unable to respond to the level and kind of service performance that our stakeholders require and would lose a valuable source of input to the agency’s strategic planning.

7. Explain any special circumstances that would cause this information collection to be conducted in a manner inconsistent with 5 CFR 1320.6.

There are no special circumstances associated with this collection, which is conducted in a manner consistent with 5 CFR 1320.6.

8. If applicable, provide a copy and identify the date and page number of publication in the Federal Register of the agency's notice, required by 5 CFR 1320.8(d), soliciting comments on the information collection prior to submission to OMB.

The 60-Day Notice was published in the Federal Register on January 2, 2025 (90 FR 116). The comment period ended on March 3, 2025. ATF received no comments.

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

No payment or gift is associated with this information collection. 

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

This information collection does not collect protected information, and ATF has not assured respondents of confidentiality. The requested information is collected for internal use only. Although respondents may choose to include their name or their organization’s name, this is optional. Otherwise, respondents do not provide any identifying information other than the kind of organization or group through which they interacted with ATF programs.

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.

This information collection does not ask questions or require information of a sensitive nature.

12. Provide estimates of the information collection’s hour burden.

There are 47 respondents, from which there were seven total responses associated with this information collection. Each respondent completes the form once, so the total number of responses is also seven. ATF estimates that it takes 18 minutes (0.3 hours) to complete the questionnaire. Therefore, the total time burden associated with this collection is two hours (7 respondents * 0.3 hours).

Table. Estimated Annualized Respondent Cost and Hour Burden

Activity	Number of respondents	Frequency	Total annual responses	Time per response	Total annual burden (hours)
Respond to questionnaire	47	1	47	0.3 hours	2

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

There are no additional costs associated with this information collection.

14. Provide estimates of the annualized cost to the federal government.

There are no costs to the federal government associated with this collection.

15. Explain the reasons for any program changes or adjustments.

The estimated burdens have been adjusted due to a decrease in the number of respondents over time, from 1,500 to 47, and a change in calculating the burden to respondents from using the full set of those who receive the questionnaire to using only those who respond, further reducing the number of respondents from 47 to 7 and reducing the collective hour burden from 450 to 2 hours.

16. Information collections whose results will be published, outline plans for tabulations and publication.

ATF will not publish the results of this collection.

17. If seeking approval to not display the expiration date for OMB approval of the information collection, explain the reasons that display would be inappropriate.

ATF intends to display the OMB expiration date for this information collection. 

18. Explain each exception to the certification statement.

This information collection does not include any exceptions to the certification statement.

B. COLLECTIONS OF INFORMATION EMPLOYING STATISTICAL METHODS.

This information collection does not employ statistical methods. However, because the questionnaire is done through an online survey tool (though no survey or statistical analysis is involved), ATF is also submitting a part B supporting statement separately.