SOI-451 Field Assistance Focus Groups

OMB # 1545-1349

Supporting Statement

Approval Request to Conduct Focus Group Research

(OMB #1545-1349)

IRS W&I Field Assistance Focus Groups 2013

1. JUSTIFICATION

1. Circumstances Making the Collection of Information Necessary

Executive Order 12862 directs Federal agencies to provide service to the public that matches or exceeds the best service available in the private sector. In order to work continuously to ensure that our programs are effective and meet our customers’ needs, we seek to obtain OMB approval.

This collection of information is necessary to enable W&I to garner customer feedback in an efficient, timely manner, in accordance with our commitment to improving service delivery. The information collected from our customers and stakeholders will help ensure that users have an effective, efficient, and satisfying experience with the W&I’s customer service programs. This feedback will provide insights into customer or stakeholder perceptions, experiences and expectations, provide an early warning of issues with service, or focus attention on areas where communication, training or changes in operations might improve delivery of products or services. These collections will allow for ongoing, collaborative and actionable communications between the IRS and its customers and stakeholders.

The qualitative data obtained from focus group respondents will assist in evaluating various aspects of their experience and to provide input as to establishing the areas of the process that need improvement. The focus group feedback received will not institute new policy, yet will enable the Service to effectively meet taxpayer needs. 

2. Purpose and Use of the Information Collection

Improving service to taxpayers requires ongoing assessment of service delivery, by which we mean conducting customer-based research in addition to evaluating internal operations. W&I Research will collect, analyze, and interpret information gathered through this clearance to identify strengths and weaknesses of new services provided at local IRS offices and make improvements in service delivery based on feedback. The solicitation of feedback will target virtual service delivery (VSD) and facilitated self assistance (FSA) options. Responses will be assessed to plan and inform efforts to improve or maintain the quality of service offered to the public. If this information is not collected, vital feedback from customers and stakeholders on W&I’s services will be unavailable.

3. Consideration Given to Information Technology

The Focus Groups will be conducted via telephone conference calls.

4. Duplication of Information

No similar data are gathered or maintained by W&I or are available from other sources known to W&I.

5. Reducing the Burden on Small Entities

Small business or other small entities are not involved in this research effort.

6. Consequences of Not Conducting Collection

Without these types of feedback, W&I will not have information to adjust its services to meet individual taxpayer needs.

7. Special Circumstances

There are no special circumstances. The information collected will be voluntary and will not be used for statistical purposes.

8. Consultations with Persons Outside W&I Field Assistance

Not applicable.

9. Payment or Gift

W&I plans to provide a stipend of $50 per participant, an industry-standard amount for participating in this form of research.

10. Confidentiality

No PII will be collected during the focus groups. Moderator will indicate that no names will be used in the final report. Also, the data returned to IRS will have no identifying information relating specific records to individual taxpayers. Nonetheless, IRS will ensure that privacy to extent allowed by law and security of the aggregated results will receive the utmost attention. Public and official access to the information will be tightly controlled. The computer files containing this tabulated information will remain password protected at all times. Data security approaching level C-2 will be accomplished using the Windows XP operating system. Audiotapes used to record testing sessions will be destroyed when the project is completed and there is no further need for the data. We will apply fair information and record-keeping practices to ensure protection of all taxpayers. The criterion for disclosure laid out in the Privacy Act, the Freedom of Information Act, and section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code, provides for the protection of taxpayer information as well as its release to authorized recipients.

11. Sensitive Nature

No questions will be asked that are of a personal or sensitive nature.

12. Burden of Information Collection

Sign-up sheets will be used as instruments to collect information from respondents at selected Taxpayer Assistance Centers (TACs). It is estimated that 1000 TAC customers (50 hours) will sign-up. Of those, 360 customers (30 hours) will be recruited to determine if these individuals the types of customers are researched and are available for the designated date and time. The response rate is estimated to be 5% based on the expected 18 confirmed participants (18/360=.05). The annual burden hours requested (98 hours total) are based on the number of collections we expect to conduct over the requested period for this clearance. There will be three telephone focus groups with six participants in each focus group. No travel is required.

Category of Respondent	No. of Respondents	Participation Time	Burden
Sign-up sheet time	1000	3,000 minutes (1,000 x 3 minutes each)	50 hrs.
Participant recruiting time	360	1,800 minutes (360 x 5 minutes each)	30 hrs.
Focus group participation time (three telephone focus groups with 6 participants in each focus group)	18	1,080 minutes (18 x 60 minutes each)	18 hrs.
Totals		5,880 minutes	98 hrs.

13. Costs to Respondents

No costs are anticipated.

14. Costs to Federal Government

The anticipated cost to the Federal Government is approximately $10,396.71 annually. These costs are comprised of: focus group recruiting costs, costs to moderate the sessions, create a summary, telephone conference call costs, and participation incentive fees.

15. Reason for Change

Not applicable.

16. Tabulation of Results, Schedule, Analysis Plans

Feedback collected provides useful information, but it does not yield data that can be generalized to the overall population. Findings will be used for general service improvement, but are not for publication or other public release.

Although the W&I does not intend to publish its findings, W&I will disseminate the findings when appropriate, strictly following "Guidelines for Ensuring the Quality of Information Disseminated to the Public.", and will include specific discussion of the limitation of the qualitative results discussed above.

17. Display of OMB Approval Date

We are requesting no exemption.

18. Exceptions to Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions

These activities comply with the requirements in 5 CFR 1320.9.

19. Dates collection will begin and end

Data collection will begin in April 2013 and end in May 2013.

B. STATISTICAL METHODS

Data collection methods and procedures will consist of three telephone focus groups with 6 participants in each focus group; however, the primary purpose of these collections will be for internal management purposes; there are no plans to publish or otherwise release this information.

1. Universe and Respondent Selection

The activities under this clearance involve samples of self-selected customers selected to cover a broad range of customers or to include specific characteristics related to certain products or services. Results will not be used to make statements representative of the universe of study, to produce statistical descriptions (careful, repeatable measurements), or to generalize the data beyond the scope of the sample.

2. Procedures for Collecting Information

Focus group participants will self-identify interest in participating in future research by writing their names and telephone numbers on a sign-up sheet that will be posted at select IRS offices. To ensure that participants are representative of the universe of local IRS office visitors, the sign-up sheets will be posted at IRS offices that cover all five areas nationwide. Pacific Consulting Group will manage the actual recruitment of participants to gain cooperation to participate at the sessions during specific dates and times. W&I expects to use telephone data collection methods, both for recruiting and for conducting the focus groups. The focus groups will be moderated by professional moderators at Pacific Consulting Group.

3. Methods to Maximize Response

Information collected will not yield generalizable quantitative findings; it can provide useful customer input, but it does not yield data about customer opinions that can be generalized.

4. Testing of Procedures

No pretest is necessary for these focus groups as W&I has evidence from previous research that the research procedures to be used for this task are successful.

5. Contacts for Statistical Aspects and Data Collection

Elaine Chan | Direct: 650-223-8222 | Main: 650-327-8108 | Fax: 650-326-6768 Pacific Consulting Group | 200 S. California Avenue, Suite 200, Palo Alto, CA 94306 | www.pcgfirm.com<http://www.pcgfirm.com>

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