FINAL2008 Supporting Statement

Grant Reviewer Recruitment Form

SUPPORTING STATEMENT

A. Justification

1. Circumstances of Information Collection

This is an extension request by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Division of Independent Review to continue using the Grant Reviewer Recruitment Form under OMB No. 0915-0295. The current expiration date is February 29, 2008. This form is used to update and enhance the Division of Independent Review’s grant and cooperative agreement reviewer database.

HRSA's Division of Independent Review is responsible for carrying out independent and objective reviews of all eligible applications and cooperative agreements submitted to HRSA. The Division of Independent Review ensures that the independent review process is efficient, effective, economical, and complies with statutes, regulations and policies. The review of applications is performed by experts knowledgeable in the field of endeavor for which funding support is requested.

The Division of Independent Review's process is in accordance with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' (DHHS) Grants Policy Directive (GPD) 2.04 "Awarding Grants", the DHHS Awarding Agency Grants Administration Manual (AAGAM), Chapter 2.04.104C "Objective Review of Grant Applications, and the Public Health Service (PHS) Act, Sections 799(f) and 806(e).

2. Purpose and Use of Information

To streamline the collection, selection and assignment of expert grant reviewers to objective review committees, HRSA utilizes a web-based data collection Grant Reviewer Recruitment Form to gather critical reviewer information. The Grant Reviewer Recruitment Form standardizes pertinent categories of reviewer information such as areas of expertise, occupations, work settings, and reviewer education and experience. This standardized information is automatically entered into a centralized database that the Division of Independent Review uses to determine suitability and select appropriate reviewers for objective review committees that judge the merits of grant applications and cooperative agreements.

Standardizing this information and automatically entering it into a centralized database has played an important role in the process of composing objective review committees and continues to contribute to the reduction in HRSA's turnaround time between application receipt and grant award issuance. In addition, this process has enhanced the diversity of the HRSA reviewer pool. A diverse reviewer pool is required by the legislation and policy described previously.

This submission contains minor deletions to the form: (1) deletion of the last four digits of the Social Security Number as this information is not needed; and (2) deletion of the date of birth entry as this information is not necessary. These minor deletions will make the form easier to complete.

3. Use of Improved Information Technology

The submission of this data via a web-based form is designed to reduce the burden to the respondent by removing the need to mail or fax similar information thereby resulting in a speedier process. The data from this submission is in a central computerized domain so that the same information may be used by multiple staff members to compose objective review committees. This also ensures that there is not duplication of information collected from potential reviewers.

In addition, the form maximizes the use of drop-down menus to simplify the data collection process. For existing reviewers, the amount of time required to complete the Grant Reviewer Recruitment Form is abbreviated since HRSA will pre-populate the form with previously collected personal information. Existing reviewers will strictly update changes (e.g. addresses, employer, expertise, occupation), and add any missing information to their profile.

3. Efforts to Identify Duplication

HRSA has no other web-based vehicle for potential grant reviewers to submit information about themselves in a standardized fashion. While other agencies have web- based reviewer information collection forms, they are tailored specifically to particular programs. In addition, it is necessary for the Division of Independent Review to collect data that is not included in these forms in order to create objective review committees that are suitable for particular HRSA programs. Therefore, the web-based reviewer information collection forms of other agencies are unsuitable for HRSA's needs.

3. Involvement of Small Entities

Individuals who apply to serve as HRSA grant reviewers may be affiliated with small entities. However, the information requested is the minimum needed to identify well- qualified applicants and the burden to applicants is not significant.

6. Consequences if Information is Collected Less Frequently

A respondent enters the system once. If a respondent is selected to serve for a particular review, as part of that process, they will be asked to validate the information in the database and make any changes. Each year, usually in January, the Division of Independent Review sends an e-mail alert to reviewers who have not reviewed their information during the previous calendar year. This e-mail asks them to review and update the information on file or to indicate if they no longer are interested in serving as a HRSA reviewer. Follow-up is performed if the reviewer does not respond to these e-mails, and the Division of Independent Review works with HRSA Bureaus and Offices to locate non-responsive reviewers. Reviewers are marked as "inactive" if they are no longer interested in serving as a HRSA reviewer, if there is no response to the several requests for information validation, or if the effort to locate a reviewer is unsuccessful.

If these changes are not recorded, then it will be difficult for HRSA to contact the appropriate reviewers for any particular objective review committee. This difficulty would significantly increase the amount of time between the receiving applications and issuing grant awards, and could affect the quality of the objective review process. Also, this process ensures that a reviewer who does not want to be a reviewer, is not responsive to requests for information validation, or cannot be located, is not bothered with requests to serve as a HRSA reviewer.

7. Consistency With the Guidelines in 5 CFR 5(d)(2) This application is fully consistent with 5 CFR 0.5(d)(2).

8. Comments in Response to the Federal Register Notice and Consultation Outside the Agency

The notice required in 5 CFR 1320.8(d) was published in the Federal Register on September 25, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 185, Pages 54447-54448). No comments were received.

HRSA contacted 14 current users of the form and queried them by email on the continued need and efficacy of the form. Six reviewers replied and all indicated that the form continues to meet its intended purpose with no recommended changes.

Specific individuals consulted include:

Name	Title or Organizational Affiliation	Phone
Derryl E. Block	University of Wisconsin, Green Bay	920-405-0835
Jennell P. Charles	Associate Professor/ Alexandria Neighborhood Health Services, Inc.	404-355-4598
Dennis J. Cheek	Texas Christian University	817-516-0390
Lynette Dickson	Center for Rural Health, University of North Dakota	701-777-6049
Eileen R. Chasen	School of Nursing, University of Pittsburgh	412-624-9380
Chris Tilden	Office of Local/Rural Health Kansas Department of Health	785-296-7439

9. Remuneration of Respondents

There will be no payment to respondents for submitting an application.

9. Assurance of Confidentiality

Information will be maintained through the HRSA Electronic Handbooks system. All data from the Grant Reviewer Recruitment Form will continue to be stored in a database within the HRSA Electronic Handbooks system (EHBs). This system has completed a Privacy Impact Assessment and has been certified and accredited for security by the agency Chief Information Officer.

When the user enters the system, there is a link to HRSA’s User Acknowledgement (attached) which requires acceptance by the respondent to enter the system. The user must electronically sign an "Acceptable User Policy" statement, which binds the respondent against unauthorized use, and notifies them of the Privacy Policy (attached).

11. Questions of a Sensitive Nature

There are no questions of a sensitive nature.

12. Estimates of Annualized Hour Burden

Grant Recruitment Form	Number of respondents	Responses per respondent	Total responses	Hours per response	Total burden hours
New Reviewer	2,200	1	2,200	45 min	1650 hrs
Updating Reviewer Information Existing reviewer	250	1	250	20 min	84 hrs
Total	2,450		2,450		1,734 hrs

13. Estimates of Annualized Cost Burden to Respondents

There are no capital or startup costs and no operation and maintenance of services costs to respondents associated with this application.

13. Estimates of Annualized Cost to the Government

The use of a web-based mechanism for collecting and organizing self-nominated reviewer information continues to produce economic and business process efficiencies. In its current web-based environment, no FTE hours will be utilized for system administrative activities as the grant reviewer portal continues as an adjunct of HRSA's Electronic Handbooks, an application already managed by HRSA's system administrator. Program staff time dedicated to management of the system is 10% of a GS-12 FTE (approximately $8,000).

15. Changes in Burden

The OMB inventory for this activity currently contains approval for a total of 2,750 hours. This current request is for 1,734 total burden hours, a program adjustment of a decrease in 1,016 hours. Therefore, approval for a decreased burden level is being requested. Our last submission included the initial activity of existing reviewers (3,700) that had previously served as HRSA reviewers registering in what was then the new database. Now that the majority of existing reviewers have registered, there is a decrease in the estimated number of existing reviewers (250) that are anticipated to update their information.

15. Time Schedule, Publication and Analysis Plans

There are no plans for publication or analysis of any information collected from the grant reviewer form.

17. Exemption for Display of Expiration Date

The expiration date will be displayed.

18. Certifications

This information collection fully complies with 5 CFR 1320.9. The necessary certifications are included in the package.

Attachments

Grant Reviewer Recruitment Form

Grant Reviewer Instructions

Acceptable User Policy

DHHS Privacy Policy Notice