Supporting Statement
0704-0425
Application for Department of Defense Impact Aid for Children with Severe Disabilities
JUSTIFICATION
Need for Information Collection
The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2001, P.L. 106-398, Section 363, authorized the Secretary of Defense to make payments to each local educational agency (LEA) eligible to receive funding for high costs of educating qualifying military dependent children with severe disabilities. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006, Section 573, P.L. 109-163, provided funding in FY 2006 for this program. This information collection is needed to determine those qualified LEAs who are eligible to receive payment.
Use of Information
The purpose of this information collection is to determine eligibility and calculate payments for eligible LEAs who have high costs for educating military dependent children with severe disabilities. In order for a local education agency (LEA) to be determined eligible to receive payment for costs incurred in providing a free appropriate public education to each child described in subparagraph (A)(ii), (B), (D)(i) or (D)(ii) of section 8003(a)(1) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1956, as amended (20 U.S.C. 7703(a)(1)), the LEA must provide educational and related services to two or more children with severe disabilities, and satisfy certain criteria. Payments will be made by the Department of Defense (DoD) to LEAs only on behalf of each such child whose individual educational or related services cost exceed either (a) five times the national or State average per pupil expenditure (whichever is lower) for a program that is located outside of boundaries of the school district of the LEA that pays for the special education (SPED) program of the student, or (b) three times the State average per pupil expenditure for a SPED program offered by the district, or within the boundaries of the school district served by the LEA.
The Department will begin by obtaining background eligibility information from the Department of Education (ED), which ED receives from the LEAs through the Federal Impact Aid Program administered by ED. It is anticipated that ED will provide a list of approximately 410 LEAs that have qualified for Federal Impact Aid and have verified that they educate military dependent students with disabilities. The SD Form 816, "Application for Department of Defense Impact Aid for Children with Severe Disabilities" and SD Form 816C, "Continuation Page for Application for Department of Defense Impact Aid for Children with Severe Disabilities," is available electronically, and guidelines for applying is forwarded by the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Military Community and Family Policy), to those LEAs identified by ED to collect the relevant data. Of these approximately 410 LEAs, DoD estimates that about 50 will be eligible for funds for the Impact Aid for Children with Severe Disabilities program. The information from the SD Form 816 and SD Form 816C will be used by the Department to calculate the payment that each LEA is eligible to receive. The SD Form 816C is available for those LEAs who have multiple categories of special education coasts and require additional payment determination sections of the SD Form 816. Once the payment is determined, the Department will forward the authorized payment amount (not the information collected) through the Department of Defense Education Activity to Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) officials to make electronic payments to the qualifying LEAs.
This information collection is based on an annual appropriation of funds. Process for the Department cannot start until funds have been appropriated and received.
This information collected from the SD Form 816 and SD Form 816C has been used to determine which LEAs are eligible for funding under the Department of Defense Impact Aid for Children with Severe Disabilities program, and to determine how much assistance each LEA should receive.
3. Improved Information Technology.
The SD Form 816 and SD Form 816C are available to the LEAs electronically on-line from the Department of Defense forms website (http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/infomgt/forms/formsprogram.htm) in both fillable ADOBE Acrobat PDF format. For respondents who have access to computerized information technology, the forms can be completed on-line before printing for signature. At this time, there is no practical or cost-effective way to completely implement the requirements of the Government Paperwork Elimination Act. It does not appear that the electronic signature is practical to use for the respondent’s limited submission of the SD Form 816 and SD Form 816C. There is an ongoing initiative within the Department of Defense to enable the PDF forms, but the Department currently has limited reader extension licenses which allow the user to fill, sign, save, and send the form at no cost to the respondent. Without the reader extension the respondent would have to purchase the full ADOBE Acrobat product which would be an additional cost burden on the respondent. In the future, when the Department obtains additional licenses, these forms will be considered for applying reader extensions. Until then, each LEA can transmit the form electronically, but will be required to fax only the signature page of the form.
4. Efforts to Identify Duplication
The specific information sought by the SD Form 816 and SD Form 816C application is not available from any other source. The Department has full responsibility to review the application, determine eligibility, and disburse the funds.
5. Methods Used to Minimize Burden on Small Entities
The Collection of information does not involve small businesses or other small entities.
6. Consequences of Not Collecting the Information
This collection of information is conducted only once a year in fiscal years when the specific funds are appropriated. If the information is not collected, the Secretary of Defense will not be able to comply with the Congressional mandate, and the LEAs will not receive the appropriated funds.
Special Circumstances
There are no special circumstances. This collection will be conducted in a manner consistent with guidelines contained in 5 CFR 1320.5(d)(2).
8. Agency 60-Day Federal Register Notice and Consultations Outside the Agency
This information collection was published in the Federal Register. No comments were received.
9. Payments to Respondents
No payment or gifts will be made to respondents.
10. Assurance of Confidentiality
The data being collected does not involve personal information. Therefore, no assurances of confidentiality are being made.
11. Sensitive Questions
This application is not considered sensitive and it does not involve any information of a personal nature.
12. Estimates of Annual Response Burden and Labor Cost for Hour Burden to the Respondent for Collection of Information
Annual Response Burden:
SD Form 816 and SD 816C (combined)
Total annual respondents: 50
Frequency of response: 1
Total annual responses: 50
Burden per response: 8 hours
Total Burden hours: 400 hours
*Assuming funds are appropriated each year.
b. Explanation of How Burden was Estimated.
The Estimates of response burden are based on information requested of selected LEAs on how many hours they expect this response may take them.
Labor Cost to Respondent
Special Education Coordinator/
Personnel: 4 hrs. @ $47.00 per 1 hr = $ 188.00
Transportation Coordinator 4 hrs @ $40.00 per 1 hr = $ 160.00
Business Manager/ Personnel: 5 hrs @ $29.00 per 1 hr = $ 145.00
Admin Office Manager: 75 hrs @ $19.00 per 1 hr = $1425.00
Total labor burden per respondent: = $1918.00
Total labor Burden for 50 LEAs =$95,900.00
13. Estimates of Other Cost Burden for the Respondent for Collection of Information
Total Capital and Start-up Cost
There are no capital or start-up costs associated with this information collection. Respondent will not need to purchase equipment or services to respond to this collection.
Operation and Maintenance Cost
There are no operation or maintenance costs associated with this information collection.
14. Estimates of Cost to the Federal Government
SD Form 816 and SD Form 816C (combined)
Initial review and processing:
YA-2, Program Analyst
Hourly cost YA-2 ($35.25/hr.) X 522 hrs = $ 18,416
Processing:
YA-2, Finance Clerk, DoDEA
Hourly cost YA-2 ($73.96/hr.) X 80 hrs. = $ 5,916
Total Annual Cost to Federal Government: $24,332
15. Changes in Burden
There are no changes in burden to this information collection.
Publication Plans/ Time Schedule
The results of the collection of this information will not be published for statistical use.
17. Approval Not to Display Expiration Date
Approval not to display the expiration date is not being sought.
18. Exceptions to the Certification Statement
No exception to the certification statement is being sought.
B. COLLECTION OF INFORMATION EMPLOYING STATISTICAL METHODS
Statistical methods are not employed for collection of this information.
| File Type | application/msword |
| File Title | Supporting Statement |
| Author | mossburm |
| Last Modified By | pltoppings |
| File Modified | 2011-03-09 |
| File Created | 2006-08-23 |