[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 244 (Tuesday, December 20, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 78927-78928]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-32489]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Administration for Children and Families
Proposed Information Collection Activity; Comment Request
Title: Parents and Children Together (PACT) Evaluation.
OMB No.: New Collection.
Description: The Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation
(OPRE), Administration for Children and Families (ACF), U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services (HHS), is proposing data collection
activity as part of the Parents and Children Together (PACT)
Evaluation.
The overall objective of the PACT evaluation is to document and
evaluate Responsible Fatherhood (RF) and Healthy Marriage (HM) grants
that were authorized under the 2010 Claims Resolution Act. This
information will inform decisions related to future investments in this
kind of programming as well as the design and operation of such
services.
To meet the objective of the study, experimental impact studies
with complementary implementation studies will be conducted, along with
separate qualitative studies:
Impact studies, with complementary implementation studies.
The goal of the impact component is to provide rigorous estimates of
the effectiveness of the programs. This component will use an
experimental design. Program applicants who are interested in and
eligible for the RF or HM program will be randomly assigned to either a
program group and be offered participation in the program, or a control
group and not be offered participation in the program. Information will
be collected twice for the impact component. First, baseline
information will be collected from all fathers or couples prior to
random assignment. Second, follow-up data will be collected from sample
members at about 12 months after enrollment in the program. A wide
range of outcomes (e.g., father involvement; parenting and co-
parenting; economic self-sufficiency) will be evaluated. The goal of
the complementary implementation component is to provide a detailed
[[Page 78928]]
description of the programs included in the impact study component--how
they are implemented, their participants, the contexts in which they
are operated, and their promising practices. The detailed descriptions
will assist in interpreting program impacts and identifying program
features and conditions necessary for effective program replication or
improvement. Data collection for this component will include site
visits, Management Information Systems (MIS), and partner organization
surveys.
Qualitative studies. The goal of the qualitative component
is to provide a deeper understanding of the organizations operating RF
and HM programs, as well as the lives of participants--their
relationships, the challenges they face, the influences of the
community in which they live, and how programs touch their lives. Data
collection for this component will include site visits, MIS,
participant characteristics survey, partner organization surveys,
nonparticipant telephone interviews, in-depth in-person conversations
with program participants, and diary studies.
This 60-Day Notice covers (a) instruments for the impact studies'
baseline, (b) site Management Information Systems (MIS) for the impact/
implementation and qualitative studies, (c) program participant
characteristics survey for the qualitative studies, and (d) a request
for OMB to waive subsequent 60-day Federal Register notices pertaining
to the PACT Evaluation.
Respondents
For the baseline, information will be collected from all fathers or
couples prior to random assignment. Program staff will be responsible
for collecting and transferring the information.
For the Management Information Systems (MIS), program staff will be
asked to record information on the services received by study
participants in the impact/implementation and qualitative studies in
the study MIS.
For the program participant characteristics survey in the
qualitative studies, information will be collected from participants.
Program staff will be responsible for collecting and transferring the
information.
Annual Burden Estimates
A discussion guide, to assist in selecting sites for the impact/
implementation and qualitative studies, is currently under review at
OMB. A 60-Day Federal Register Notice for this instrument was published
on August 12, 2011.
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Number of
Instrument Annual number of responses per Average burden per Total annual
respondents respondent response (minutes) burden hours
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Discussion guide for grantees 150 1 60 150
and partner organization staff.
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The following instruments, part of the baseline data collection and
site Management Information Systems (MIS), are proposed for public
comment under this 60-Day Federal Register Notice.
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Number of Average burden
Instrument Annual number of responses per per response Total annual
respondents respondent (minutes) burden hours
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Impact/Implementation Component
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Baseline for program applicants..... 3,000 1 35 1,750
Baseline for grantee staff.......... 30 100 35 1,750
Study MIS for grantee staff......... 30 5,200 2 5,200
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Qualitative Component
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Study MIS for grantee staff......... 15 867 2 434
Program participant characteristics 250 1 25 104
survey.............................
Program participant characteristics 15 16.7 25 104
survey for grantee staff...........
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Total........................... ................. ................. ................. 9,342
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Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours (for instruments currently under review and those associated with this 60-
Day Notice): 9342.
In compliance with the requirements of Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Administration for Children and
Families is soliciting public comment on the specific aspects of the
information collection described above. Copies of the proposed
collection of information can be obtained and comments may be forwarded
by writing to the Administration for Children and Families, Office of
Planning, Research and Evaluation, 370 L'Enfant Promenade SW.,
Washington, DC 20447, Attn: OPRE Reports Clearance Officer. Email
address: [email protected]. All requests should be
identified by the title of the information collection.
The Department specifically requests comments on (a) whether the
proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper
performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the
information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the
agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of
information; (c) the quality, utility, and clarity of the information
to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection
of information on respondents, including through the use of automated
collection techniques or other forms of information technology.
Consideration will be given to comments and suggestions submitted
within 60 days of this publication.
Robert Sargis,
Reports Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2011-32489 Filed 12-19-11; 8:45 am]
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