Appendix D: Respondent Advance Letter

APPENDIX D

respondent advance letter

This page has been left blank for double-sided copying.

Document: Advance letter to State and Local Agency Respondents

Format: FNS letterhead

Enclosure: Frequently asked questions

OMB Control No.: 0584-xxxx

Expiration date: xx/xx/201x

[DATE]

[AGENCY DIRECTOR CONTACT INFORMATION]

Dear [TITLE] [LAST NAME]:

As you know, WIC has historically promoted breastfeeding as the optimal feeding choice with significant health and social benefits for both mothers and infants. On behalf of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), Mathematica Policy Research is conducting a two-part survey called the WIC Local Agency Breastfeeding Policy and Practices Inventory (WIC BPI) of all State, territorial, Indian Tribal Organization, and local WIC agencies. The survey asks about agencies’ breastfeeding promotion policies and practices as well as how they measure, store, and report breastfeeding information such as initiation, duration, exclusivity, and intensity. Information from the WIC BPI will help FNS and WIC agencies learn more about nationwide efforts to promote breastfeeding among WIC participants.

[Mathematica does not have complete contact information for [you/your agency director]. Please contact Mathematica at <<email address>> or [telephone number] so that they can update their records with [missing information].]

In the coming week, Mathematica will email you from [address] with an invitation to complete the first part of the survey. The first part includes questions about breastfeeding policies and practices, and it will take approximately [State: 30/local: 54] minutes to complete. You may save your responses and return to finish the survey at a later time. You may also share responsibility for completing the survey with other members of your staff. Please complete the survey by [date].

About three or four months later, you will receive an email invitation to complete the second part of the survey, which will ask about breastfeeding measurement, reporting, and recent breastfeeding estimates. You will receive more information about the second part of the survey at a later time. As thanks for participating, Mathematica will send your agency a report summarizing its breastfeeding statistics, policies, and practices compared to those of other agencies in your State, FNS region, or the nation.

Under the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 (P.L. 111-296, Sec. 305), participation in the survey is mandatory. Your agency will be identifiable to FNS in the survey data, but neither your agency nor individual respondents will be identified in any publications.

I have enclosed answers to some frequently asked questions about the study. If you have additional questions, feel free to contact the Mathematica study team using the contact information provided in the FAQ. Thank you in advance for your participation.

Sincerely,

[NAME]

[JOB TITLE]

USDA, Food and Nutrition Service

According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB number. The valid OMB control number for this information collection is 0584-XXXX. The time required to complete this information collection is estimated to average 3 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information.