Doe-887 Ss A 2009

DOE CUSTOMER SURVEYS
SUPPORTING STATEMENT
DOE-887, OMB No. 1901-0302

Introduction:
The Department of Energy (DOE) requests a three-year extension from the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) of the generic clearance to conduct customer surveys. The
focus will be to contact users of DOE products or other services and individuals or
businesses in partnership agreements with the Department to determine their needs, and how
the Department can improve its products and services to better meet these needs. The
surveys will be conducted by various components of the Department with support from the
Energy Information Administration. Customer information is needed to make DOE products
and services more effective, efficient, and less costly. Both quantitative and qualitative
studies will be undertaken. The objective of quantitative studies is to ask "questions
concerning satisfaction with timeliness, courtesy, accuracy and other particular aspects of the
agency's operations." Examples of qualitative studies are "a focus group of customers
assembled to discuss a specific set of questions" and "a cognitive laboratory experiment that
asks volunteer subjects to tell what they think about a product or service."
The OMB Manual, “Resource Manual for Customer Surveys,” was used as a guide in
preparing this Supporting Statement and for reference during development of the customer
surveys. Both Executive Order 12862 and the Manual are referenced during development of
the Department’s customer surveying efforts and the Department’s activities are conducted
consistent with the guidelines set forth in each.
DOE provides the framework for a comprehensive and balanced national energy plan
through the coordination and administration of the energy functions of the Federal
Government. The Department is responsible for long-term, high-risk research and
development of energy technologies; the marketing of Federal power; energy conservation;
the nuclear weapons program; energy regulatory programs; and a central energy data
collection and analysis program. In partnership with our customers, the Department is
entrusted to contribute to the welfare of the Nation by providing the technical information
and scientific and educational foundation for technology, policy, and institutional leadership
necessary to achieve efficiency in energy use; diversity in energy sources; a more productive
and competitive economy; improved environmental quality; and a secure national defense.
DOE is customer-oriented:
 Our decisions and actions are responsive to the customers’ needs.
 We foster a participatory manner of doing business where the opinions and input of
diverse stakeholders are sought and considered early in the decision-making process.
 Programs and solutions to major issues are developed in a proactive way with our
customers and stakeholders.
A. Justification

1. Legal Authority
The authority for the voluntary customer surveys is P.L. No. 103-62, Government
Performance and Results Act of 1993. “The purposes of this Act are to:(3) Improve
Federal program effectiveness and public accountability by promoting a new focus on
results, service quality, and customer satisfaction; and (4) Help Federal managers improve
service delivery, by requiring that they plan for meeting program objectives and by providing
them with information about program results and service quality.
In addition, Executive Order 12862, "Setting Customer Service Standards," signed
September 11, 1993, was aimed at:
"Ensuring that the Federal Government provides the highest quality service possible to the
American people." The Executive Order establishes an explicit goal for the quality of
service--"Customer service equal to the best in business." That is--"The highest quality of
service delivered to customers by private organizations providing a comparable or analogous
service."
The activities conducted under this clearance are designed to gather and measure
customer satisfaction of the Department’s programs and services and satisfy the
requirements and the spirit of the Executive Order.
2. Uses of Data
If the customer surveys were not conducted, the Department would not be able to meet the
requirements of Executive Order 12862 nor would the Department have information essential
to providing excellent services to the American public.
Surveys will be conducted in an effort to provide additional details on ‘who’ customers
are, what kind and quality of services they desire, and their level of satisfaction with our
current products and services. During the past 3 years, DOE used telephone surveys,
world-wide web surveys, and questionnaires to collect data on customer satisfaction.
Customer comments receive management attention and are given high priority. DOE has
developed service standards which have been published. The customer surveys serve to
develop benchmarks to measure our customer service performance.
The data are used to assist the Department in satisfying its customers' needs. The
information collected is analyzed to determine areas important to our customers, assess our
performance in these areas, and to develop strategies to better meet customer expectations.
As a customer and performance-driven organization, the data EIA derived from the customer
surveys are being used in the strategic planning process and by the Performance Measures
Committee to see how we are doing. Results are shared throughout the Department, with
other agencies in seminars, and through presentations at meetings, such as the American
Statistical Association's Committee on Energy Statistics.

The data from the customer surveys are used in conjunction with data from other sources,
surveys of employees, input from management, agency audits, performance reviews, and
complaint and suggestion systems. Management has been and continues to be very
supportive of our customer service efforts. Management continues to focus on the 12 Steps
outlined in the Resource Manual and attempts are made to meet each one. Attachment A
contains examples of DOE Customer Surveys conducted during the past three years.
For each information collection that the Department undertakes under this generic clearance,
we will notify OMB, at least two weeks in advance, and provide officials with a summary of
objectives, specific burden estimates, and all final or near final survey instruments (focus
group scripts, test questions, etc.) covered by the generic clearance for inclusion in the OMB
public docket prior to their use. DOE will wait for approval from OMB before conducting a
survey, with anticipation of approval within a two-weeks time period.
Before any proposal is forwarded to OMB, an adequate internal review will be conducted to
ensure that the Paperwork Reduction Act rules are carried out, along with an evaluation of
the proposed survey. Energy Information Administration (EIA) program specialists will be
provided copies of the proposed survey for review and comment. EIA will verify that the
material submitted to OMB is accurate, timely, and complete. Copies will be provided to
appropriate contacts throughout the Department for their review and comment.
EIA's Statistics and Methods Group will prepare an annual progress report summarizing
actual burden, reporting results achieved, and any problems or revisions needed to the basic
clearance agreement.
3. Technological Considerations to Reduce Burden
Improved information technology will be used when possible to reduce the burden on the
public. One of the goals of this effort is to obtain the information required with a minimum
amount of burden on the public. The information will be gathered through personal or
telephone interviews, focus groups, mail questionnaires, and using the Internet. In the past
three years, the number of DOE customers obtaining information by electronic means
(world-wide-web) continued to increase. EIA staff are involved continually with Census and
BLS staff and in conferences discussing how the agencies can implement new technologies
to improve surveying techniques.
In addition, the Government Paperwork Elimination Act (GPEA) requires agencies to allow
individuals, or entities that deal with the agencies, the option to submit information or
transact with the agency electronically and to maintain records electronically, when
practicable. This option will provide us an opportunity to improve customer service and
government efficiency through the use of information technology.

4a. Efforts to Identify Duplication

This effort does not duplicate any other survey being done by DOE or other Federal
agencies. Other Federal agencies are conducting customer surveys, but are not soliciting
comments on
the usefulness of DOE products and services. This effort does involve contacts with other
agencies, especially OMB, Commerce Department, and the Social Security Administration.
4b. Analysis of Similar, Existing Information
The National Institute of Standards and Technology provided us with copies of their threeyear clearance package for Customer Satisfaction-related Data Collections. Phyllis Boyd and
Linda Engelmeier at NIST, Commerce, have been very helpful to EIA in the Customer
Service area.
5. Provisions for Reducing Burden on Small Businesses
One of the main purposes of this effort is to gather information needed without putting
significant additional burden on small businesses. Small samples will be used to select
respondents, and the number of questions on the surveys will be kept to a minimum.
However, small businesses, as well as the agency, will benefit by the government’s increased
responsiveness to their needs. The use of the website for conducting customer surveys
should reduce the average respondent cost.
6. Consequences of Less Frequent Reporting
Without this information collection, DOE would not be able to determine the kind and
quality of service customers’ desire, their level of satisfaction, or ways in which to improve
customer service. In addition, the Department would not be able to meet the requirements of
Executive Order 12862.
7. Compliance with 5 CFR 1320.5
The Department will adhere to all the guidelines in 5 CFR 1320.5. Efforts are taken to
make sure surveys conducted under this generic clearance are the least burdensome, are not
duplicative, and have practical utility.
8. Consultations Outside the Agency
DOE has consulted with and/or received relevant materials from several agencies, including
Bureau of Labor Statistics, Office of Management and Budget, Commerce (National
Institute of Standards and Technology); Federal Energy Regulatory Commission,
Department of Justice, and the Social Security Administration. A Federal Register Notice
(74 FR 19547, dated April 29, 2009) was published soliciting comments. No comments were
received.
DOE/EIA staff will continue to review pertinent literature and seek advice from academia,

industry, and others on conducting customer surveys
9. Remuneration
There are no plans to provide any payment or gift to respondents. When focus groups
gather for meetings, or cognitive interview participants come to the lab, they may be paid
for incidental out-of-pocket expenses, but no more than $50. Without this, it would be
difficult to achieve appropriate and adequate participation and response and to obtain
reliable information. Any remuneration plan for a specific collection will be discussed in
the materials sent to OMB for that collection. During the past three years the response
rates for the customer surveys were excellent. In past training, an instructor
acknowledged the benefits of remuneration in some types of surveys. So far,
remuneration is unnecessary, and we have no plans to request OMB approval to pay for
respondent participation.
10. Provisions Regarding Confidentiality
Response to customer surveys is voluntary. The information reported on the customer
surveys Form DOE-887 will be protected and not disclosed to the public to the extent that it
satisfies the criteria for exemption under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C.
§552, the Department of Energy (DOE) regulations, 10 C.F.R. §1004.11, implementing the
FOIA, and the Trade Secrets Act, 18 U.S.C. §1905.
Customer surveys are conducted in various forms (e.g., mail/phone/internet surveys, focus
groups, and even one-on-one interviews). Individual responses are used to generate
statistics on customer satisfaction and the individual responses are also used to identify
specific improvements and changes to be considered for DOE products and services.
Information about the respondents may be used in the analyses (e.g., responses by important
stakeholders may be flagged for special consideration). The statistics, as well as specific
suggestions/comments, are used for agency program planning and management.
11. Questions of a Sensitive Nature
The questions used on the survey will not be of a sensitive nature.
12. Estimate of Respondent Burden (Annualized) and Cost to Respondents
The annual respondent burden is estimated to be 12,500 hours. [50,000 respondents x 1
report x .25 hours (15 min.) = 12,500 burden hours]
13. Total Annual Cost Burden to Respondents
There is no (a) capital and start-up cost component or (b) an operation and maintenance
and purchase of services component associated with the customer surveys.
At 12,500 hours, the cost to all respondents to the customer surveys would be $781,250. At

15 minutes per response and $62.50 per hour, the cost would be $15.63 per respondent.
An average cost per hour of $62.50 is used because that is the average loaded (salary plus
benefits) cost for an EIA employee. EIA assumes that the survey respondent workforce
completing surveys for EIA is comparable with the EIA workforce.
14. Annualized Cost
The cost to the Federal Government is estimated at $200,000.
15. Summary of Changes in Respondent Burden
There is no change in burden.
16. Schedule of Data Collection and Publication
Specific customer surveys will be submitted to OMB for review. DOE will not conduct the
survey without approval (approximately 2 weeks). The results will be used by DOE to
analyze customer satisfaction and to make improvements. Papers may be written and
presented at public meetings or published in service reports or policy guidelines.
17. Expiration Date
There are no plans to request an exemption from OMB to not display the expiration date.
18. Exception to the Certification Statement
DOE is not requesting an exception to the certification requirements.