Master PRA Supporting Statement (7-13-15)

SUPPORTING STATEMENT FOR
PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT SUBMISSION

LOCAL U.S. CITIZEN SKILLS/RESOURCES SURVEY
OMB Number 1405-0188
DS-5506

A. JUSTIFICATION

1. Approximately five to six million U.S. citizens reside abroad. At any given time, U.S. citizens overseas may face crises such as natural disasters (hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, etc.), war, civil unrest, famine, epidemics, and other emergencies. Given the provisions of 22 CFR 71.1 and 71.6, and recognizing that U.S. citizens overseas may possess resources useful in a crisis, Department of State policy is that U.S embassies and consulates should solicit U.S. citizens for information on skill sets (such as foreign language abilities and specialized expertise) and resources (such as radios, food, or shelter) they could provide in case of an emergency. The Local U.S. Citizen Skills/Resources Survey would accomplish this objective through a systematic data collection that is consistent with 31 U.S.C. 1342 and 22 U.S.C. 4802(b), and which would allow for a proactive response in the event of emergencies. Posts would incorporate survey results into their emergency action plans to assist U.S. citizens in times of crises.

2. U.S. citizens voluntarily complete the form for submission at nearby U.S. embassies or consulates. Consular officers will use the information to determine how to strategically allocate the resources and skills throughout the areas affected by the crisis.

3. A U.S. citizen who chooses to complete the form will have two options for filling it out. The form may be completed on-line and then printed, or the form may be downloaded, printed, and filed out manually. The information will be collected on-site at a U.S. Embassy/Consulate, by mail, fax, or e-mail. The citizen will be able to sign the form, scan it, and then submit the scanned form by e-mail. The form is available on the following websites: http://www.state.gov/m/a/dir/forms/c21447.htm and http://travel.state.gov/.

4. The information in this form is not duplicative of information maintained elsewhere or otherwise available.

5. The information collection does not involve small businesses or other small entities.

6. The absence of a survey form would significantly hinder the ability of U.S. embassies and consulates to find U.S. citizens (near the area of a crisis) who have the critical skills and resources necessary to assist other affected U.S. citizens. Trying to collect this information during the actual time of a crisis would be impractical.

7. No special circumstances exist.

8. The Department of State published a 60-day notice in the Federal Register on August 18, 2015 (80 FR 50066). There were no public comments.

9. No payment or gift is provided to respondents.

10. Respondents are notified on the form that the information they provide is subject to the Privacy Act. There are no other assurances of confidentiality.

11. No sensitive questions are asked.

12. The number of respondents that would submit the Local U.S. Citizen Skills/Resources Survey form is estimated to be 2,400 per year. After testing the DS-5506, we found that the average length of time it will take respondents to complete the form, including the time it takes to gather the necessary information, is 15 minutes. The total estimated burden is 600 hours per year (2,400 responses x 0.25 hours). The respondent voluntarily submits the Local U.S. Citizen Skills/Resources Survey form to a U.S. consulate or U.S. embassy consular section.

The annualized cost to all respondents for the hour burden for collections of information, based on appropriate wage rate categories, is $18,756. This annualized cost was determined by taking the average mean hourly civilian earnings of $22.33/hr., multiplying by 1.4 to get a weighted hourly wage of $31.26/hr., then multiplying by 600 burden hours.

13. Some respondents may incur an additional cost to submit the form. It is assumed that of the 2,400 respondents, 1,680, or 70 percent, will submit the form by e-mail and will not incur additional costs. It is assumed that ten percent of respondents, or 240, will send the application by postage mail to the U.S. embassy/consulate handling the case. The average cost to the respondents to mail the form by postage mail is approximately 45 cents. Multiplying 240 applicants by 45 cents gives an estimated total cost for postage mail equal to $108.00.

It is assumed that 20 percent of respondents, or 480, will incur travel costs to a U.S. embassy/consulate. It is further assumed that all such travel will be by vehicle and that the distance driven will vary. Mileage costs for traveling by vehicle will vary based on how far the person has to travel. If the travel is ten miles, the overall total cost based on 160 respondents assumed to drive that distance is $912.00. If the travel is 25 miles, the overall total cost based on 160 respondents assumed to drive that distance is $2,280.00. If the travel is 50 miles, the overall total cost based on an assumed 160 respondents is $4,560.00. The grand total mileage cost is $7,752.00 based on a total of 480 respondents that traveled by vehicle.

The estimated grand total cost for all respondents is $7,860.00 ($ 7,752.00+$108.00=$7,860.00).

14. The average annual cost to the federal government related to this service is $121,632.

The basis of the projected fiscal year cost is calculated by using the recurring costs in the Bureau of Budget and Planning New Position Cost Model (NPCM) for overseas Foreign Service positions. For the three year span of FY 2015 to FY 2017, this is $202.73 per hour. Overseas Citizens Services believes that this form will be processed by Foreign Service Officers overseas and that it takes approximately 15 minutes to process one form. Fifteen minutes costs $50.68 based on the NPCM cost of a Foreign Service Officer position. The $50.68 is then multiplied by the projected number of respondents (2,400) for a total cost of $121,632. 

15. The costs to the government have increased because the method for estimating the cost to the government is now based on cost estimates consistent with methodology used throughout the Department of State, particularly the Bureau of Budget and Planning’s New Position Cost Model and the Bureau of Consular Affairs’ Cost of Service Model.

Content changes that were made to the DS-5506 are as follows:

• Removed all of the Latin based languages and added a line to say Latin-based Languages (please specify) which one(s) in the LANGUAGE SKILL portion of the form.

• Removed all of the Asian based languages and added a line to say Asian-based Languages (please specify) which one(s) in the LANGUAGE SKILL portion of the form.

• Updated the PRA address to say CA/OCS/PMO, U.S. Department of State SA-17, 10^th Floor, Washington, DC 20522-1707.

Cost to respondents has increased because these costs were not included in the last submission.

16. There will be no statistical information published from this information collection.

17. The OMB expiration date will be displayed.

18. No exceptions are requested.

B. STATISTICAL METHODS

This collection does not employ statistical methods.