Beginning in early 2015, the Consumer
Financial Protection Bureau ("CFPB" or the "Bureau") will launch a
Financial Coaching project to provide direct financial coaching
services to transitioning veterans and economically vulnerable
consumers nationwide. Over three years, it is estimated that ten
thousands of consumers will be served. In order for CFPB to
understand whether the program is effective and for the financial
coaches to be able to deliver efficient services and track clients
over time, CFPB will need to take steps to monitor program
performance and to evaluate the program. This will ultimately
include a process evaluation to examine program implementation and
an outcomes evaluation to examine program effects on clients.
Performance monitoring and the process and outcome evaluations will
involve three key data collection efforts: administrative data
collected about clients by financial coaches for programmatic
purposes; interview data collected by evaluators from key
informants such as coaching clients, financial coaches and program
administrators; and self-reported survey data from coaches and
coaching clients. The information to be collected from clients will
include a combination of personal information (basic contact and
demographic information), performance metrics (outputs),
client-level outcomes (progress towards financial goals or other
relevant outcomes) and programmatic and organizational outcomes.
The current information collection request is specifically for the
administrative data that will be collected by coaches from
financial coaching clients for programmatic and performance
monitoring purposes. Additional requests will be submitted at a
later date for the process and outcomes components of the
evaluation.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that
the collection of information encompassed by this request complies
with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR
1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding
the proposed collection of information, that the certification
covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a
benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control
number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of
these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked
and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.