One Pager - Boat Ramp Exit Interview

Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of Routine Customer Feedback” (OMB Control Number: 0704-0553)

T ITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION:

Boat Ramp Exit Survey to Determine Recreational Boater Perceptions of Boating Conditions on Peak Use Days.

PURPOSE:

USACE, Fort Worth District, has an important outdoor recreation and public safety mission at its 25 operational lakes. Many of these lakes provide very popular boating opportunities and are heavily used by boaters during the peak recreation season of approximately May through August. The purpose of the Boat Ramp Exit Survey is to obtain firsthand the perceptions, concerns, needs, and characteristics of boaters related to recreational boating safety and enjoyment as they exit the lake after a day of boating. Boat ramp users typically trailer their boats to the lake, and are, in general, the largest group of boaters at any given lake compared to marina tenants or private boathouse owners. The survey results will be contrasted with the survey results from the Marina Tenant Survey and Stakeholder Survey, as well as boating count results described below to provide a complete picture of the state of recreational boating at the lake. This information will in turn result in better decision making regarding proposals that would increase or decrease direct access to the water such as additional boat ramps and parking lots, or wet or dry boat storage slips at marina concessions and private docks. The survey is lake specific and will be conducted as part of a larger effort to revise the master plan or shoreline management plan of a given lake. The boating counts mentioned above will determine the number of boats on the water surface, number of empty wet slips at marinas and number of empty boat trailers parked at boat ramps and in campgrounds on the days that the Boat Ramp Exit Survey is conducted. Having these counts will enable USACE to draw a correlation between boaters’ perceptions and the amount of boat traffic on the lake, as well as a reliable estimate of where the boat traffic is originating from (i.e. boat ramps, marinas, or private docks). Fort Worth District has a need to conduct the survey at five lakes during the period 2016-2019.

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS:

Recreational Boaters:

Responding boaters will be primarily recreational boaters that reside within a few miles of each lake, with the majority of boaters traveling less than 50 miles.

TYPE OF COLLECTION: (Check one)

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

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

[ ] Focus Group [ ] Other: ____________________

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: Michael S. McInnis, Chief, Natural Resources and Recreation Management Branch, Operations Division, Fort Worth District

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

3. If Yes, has an up-to-date System of Records Notice (SORN) 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
Individuals	400	10 minutes each	67 hours
Totals	400	10 minutes each	67 hours

FEDERAL COST:

Assuming that the survey will be conducted at two lakes each year, and that contractors will be used to conduct the boat ramp exit interviews, the total annual Federal cost per year is estimated to be $200K.

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?

Answer: Recreational boaters will be interviewed as they exit the lake at select boat ramps. Times and dates of exit interviews will include 3-4 weekend days and/or national holidays during the peak use season of May-August, and during peak use hours of approximately 11:00 am thru 6:00 pm. Weather conditions are monitored to insure that interviews are conducted only on days when boating conditions are satisfactory.

Administration of the Instrument

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

[ ] Web-based or other forms of Social Media

[ ] Telephone

[ X ] In-person

[ ] Mail (to include e-mail)

[ ] Other, Explain

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

Please make sure that all instruments, instructions, and scripts are submitted with the request.

Instructions for completing Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of Routine Customer Feedback”

TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: Provide the name of the collection that is the subject of the request. (e.g. Comment card for soliciting feedback on xxxx)

PURPOSE: Provide a brief description of the purpose of this collection and how it will be used. If this is part of a larger study or effort, please include this in your explanation.

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS: Provide a brief description of the targeted group or groups for this collection of information. These groups must have experience with the program.

TYPE OF COLLECTION: Check one box. If you are requesting approval of other instruments under the generic, you must complete a form for each instrument.

CERTIFICATION: Please read the certification carefully. If you incorrectly certify, the collection will be returned as improperly submitted or it will be disapproved.

Personally Identifiable Information: Provide answers to the questions. Note: Agencies should only collect PII to the extent necessary, and they should only retain PII for the period of time that is necessary to achieve a specific objective.

Gifts or Payments: If you answer yes to the question, please describe the incentive and provide a justification for the amount.

BURDEN HOURS:

Category of Respondents: Identify who you expect the respondents to be in terms of the following categories: (1) Individuals or Households;(2) Private Sector; (3) State, local, or tribal governments; or (4) Federal Government. Only one type of respondent can be selected per row.

No. of Respondents: Provide an estimate of the Number of respondents.

Participation Time: Provide an estimate of the amount of time required for a respondent to participate (e.g. fill out a survey or participate in a focus group)

Burden: Provide the Annual burden hours: Multiply the Number of responses and the participation time and divide by 60.

FEDERAL COST: Provide an estimate of the annual cost to the Federal government.

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. Please provide a description of how you plan to identify your potential group of respondents and how you will select them. If the answer is yes, to the first question, you may provide the sampling plan in an attachment.

Administration of the Instrument: Identify how the information will be collected. More than one box may be checked. Indicate whether there will be interviewers (e.g. for surveys) or facilitators (e.g., for focus groups) used.

Submit all instruments, instructions, and scripts with the Request for Approval.

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