2014 Fire Shelter Survey Submission template

Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of Routine Customer Feedback” (OMB Control Number: 0596-0226)

TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION:

2014 Type 2 IA & Type 2 Crew Utilization and Fire Shelter Design Surveys

PURPOSE:

Wildland firefighter handcrews are classified by type. The highest qualified crew type is the Type 1 Interagency Hotshot Crew. Type 2 IA crews are the next level followed by Type 2 crews. These hand crews perform the majority of fire suppression duties on large wildland fires. The different crew types are utilized for different operational and tactical missions, depending on their qualifications. These crews typically carry a fire shelter during their deployment.

During busy fire seasons there are times when the demand for crews exceeds the number of crews that are available.

In recent years more orders are placed for Type 1 crews then Type 2 IA and Type 2. This eventually leads over-utilization and fatigue management issues for Type 1 crews and crew orders being unfilled when the need is greatest. Additionally neither Federal agencies nor cooperators are able to keep sufficient numbers of Type 2 IA and Type 2 crews qualified due to the lack of demand. The survey will help us to determine why Type 2 IA and Type 2 crew use by wildland firefighting managers has declined over the past ten years. This information will assist in developing a solution to balance the fire suppression workload amongst the 3 crew types.

Individual wildland firefighters will also be given an opportunity to provide valuable input for the review of fire shelter materials and possible design changes that could affect the equipment they carry every day. The answers provided will be taken into consideration for decisions regarding acceptable design parameters for the fire shelter issued by Forest Service to our wildland firefighters.

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS:

The respondents will include individual wildland firefighters and fire managers from Federal, State, Tribal, and local Agencies. Private or contract fire support personnel may also participate.

TYPE OF COLLECTION: (Check one)

[ ] Customer Comment Card/Complaint Form [X ] Customer Satisfaction Survey

[X ] Usability Testing (e.g., Website or Software) [ ] Small Discussion Group

[ ] Focus Group [X] Other: _Needs assessment___________

CERTIFICATION:

I certify the following to be true:

1. The collection is voluntary.

2. The collection is low-burden for respondents and low-cost for the Federal Government.

3. The collection is non-controversial and does not raise issues of concern to other federal agencies.

4. The results are not intended to be disseminated to the public.

5. Information gathered will not be used for the purpose of substantially informing influential policy decisions.

6. The collection is targeted to the solicitation of opinions from respondents who have experience with the program or may have experience with the program in the future.

Name: George Broyles and Shawn Steber

To assist review, please provide answers to the following question:

Personally Identifiable Information:

1. Is personally identifiable information (PII) collected? [ ] Yes [X] No

2. If Yes, is the information that will be collected included in records that are subject to the Privacy Act of 1974? [ ] Yes [ ] No

3. If Applicable, has a System or Records Notice been published? [ ] Yes [ ] No

Gifts or Payments:

Is an incentive (e.g., money or reimbursement of expenses, token of appreciation) provided to participants? [ ] Yes [X] No

BURDEN HOURS

Category of Respondent	No. of Respondents	Participation Time	Burden Hours
Individual Wildland Firefighters (Fire Shelter Survey)	5,100	3 minutes	255
Individual Wildland Firefighting Managers (Type 2 IA & Type 2 Crew Utilization Survey)	100	15 minutes	25
Totals	5,200		280

FEDERAL COST: The estimated annual cost to the Federal government is $10,576 for the development, implementation, and analysis of the survey results.

If you are conducting a focus group, survey, or plan to employ statistical methods, please provide answers to the following questions:

The selection of your targeted respondents

1. Do you have a customer list or something similar that defines the universe of potential respondents and do you have a sampling plan for selecting from this universe? [] Yes [ X] No

If the answer is yes, please provide a description of both below (or attach the sampling plan)? If the answer is no, please provide a description of how you plan to identify your potential group of respondents and how you will select them?

The universe of potential respondents includes all wildland firefighters and fire managers responsible for wildland firefighting and management.

These surveys will be conducted using the online service Survey Monkey. An invitation to complete the survey containing a link to the survey site will be distributed through a variety of methods such as email distribution lists and website postings. The survey link will be emailed through interagency committee contacts and to existing distribution lists to reach a wide wildland firefighter audience.

The questionnaire will only be active for a short time period in 2014.

Administration of the Instrument

1. How will you collect the information? (Check all that apply)

[X] Web-based or other forms of Social Media

[ ] Telephone

[ ] In-person

[ ] Mail

[ ] Other, Explain

2. Will interviewers or facilitators be used? [ ] Yes [X] No

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