0596-0201 SuptStmtPartB_2016

2016 Supporting Statement – Part B OMB 0596-0201

Role of Communities in Stewardship Contracting Projects

B. Collections of Information Employing Statistical Methods

1. Describe (including a numerical estimate) the potential respondent universe and any sam­pling or other respondent selection method to be used. Data on the number of entities (e.g., establishments, State and local government units, households, or persons) in the universe covered by the collection and in the corre­sponding sample are to be provided in tabular form for the uni­verse as a whole and for each of the strata in the proposed sample. Indicate expected response rates for the collection as a whole. If the collection had been conducted previously, include the actual response rate achieved during the last collection.

Projects for selection are not randomly selected, but are stratified into 5 regions (Northeast/Lake States (CT, DE, IA, IL, IN, MA, ME, MD, MI, MN, MO, NJ, NH, NY, OH, PA, RI, VT, WI, WV), Southeast (AL, AR, FL, GA, KY, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN, VA), Northern Rockies (ID, MT, ND, SD, WY), Southwest (AZ, CO, KS, NE, NM, NV, OK, TX, UT), and Pacific Northwest (AK, CA, HI, OR, WA)), with three projects selected per Region. These are further stratified into large projects (greater than 1,000 acres in size), and small projects (less than 1,000 acres in size). The Pinchot Institute in consultation with the Washington Offoce, Forest Management staff selects three projects per region that will be inteviewed that year for a total of 15 projects per year.

Within those projects, the population is determined by interview question #2 for both the Agency and Non-Agency participants that identifies primary participants in the specific project. For each project selected, at least three people are interviewed, including the agency project manager and two external (to the agencies) participants in the project (ideally one community participant and one contractor involved in implementation of the project). When conducting the phone interview with the agency project manager for a selected project, the Pinchot Institute and its subcontractors ask for a primary list of all community members and contractors involved in the project. These are selected based on the degree to which the participant was involved and is not a random sample.

Analysis of the data is on a project basis and not on a respondent basis. To explain further, the responses to questions provide individual perceptions, such as how participation influenced outcomes. Responses at the project level are validated by repeating the questions to each respondent participating and summarizing results on a project basis. Where similarity or consistency in responses exists on a broader scale, results are summarized at the stewardship program level, providing the information necessary for the report to Congress.

The interview pool consists entirely of individuals who have voluntarily participated in a stewardship contracting project. The interview pool consists of at least three people for each project, the project manager, and two external participants. Non-response of selected participants is expected to be very low. The Pinchot Institute and their Partners are not always able to contact three people per project due to various circumstances (such as a potential interviewee being out-of-town and unavailable during the sampling time period). If a selected individual does not wish to participate in the interview, or an individual cannot be contacted for various reasons, the interviewer selects another participant from the project’s list of primary participants.

2. Describe the procedures for the collection of information including:

• Statistical methodology for stratification and sample selection,

• Estimation procedure,

• Degree of accuracy needed for the pur­pose described in the justification,

• Unusual problems requiring specialized sampling procedures, and

• Any use of periodic (less frequent than annual) data collection cycles to reduce burden.

The form consists of two parts, an agency interview and a non-agency interview. There is not a statistical method for gathering the interview responses. Since the information is needed to write an annual report to Congress, data collection cycles can not be less frequent than annual.

3. Describe methods to maximize response rates and to deal with issues of non-response. The accuracy and reliability of information collected must be shown to be adequate for intended uses. For collections based on sam­pling, a special justification must be provid­ed for any collection that will not yield "reli­able" data that can be generalized to the universe studied.

The phone interview method is used in order to secure a high response rate. The phone interview is conducted at a time convenient for the participant. In addition the potential respondent universe includes only individuals who have chosen to be involved in some manner in a stewardship contracting project; therefore they will be familiar with the information in the interview. However, if there were a selected individual who did not wish to participate in the interview, the interviewer would randomly select another participant from the primary particpants project’s list.

4. Describe any tests of procedures or methods to be undertaken. Testing is encouraged as an effective means of refining collections of information to minimize burden and improve utility. Tests must be approved if they call for answers to identical questions from 10 or more respondents. A proposed test or set of tests may be submitted for approval separate­ly or in combination with the main collection of information.

No tests or procedures are undertaken. This is a revision to a previously reviewed form that had statistical methods. The revised form documents the methodology of a non-statistical interview rather than a statistical survey.

5. Provide the name and telephone number of individuals consulted on statistical aspects of the design and the name of the agency unit, contractor(s), grantee(s), or other person(s) who will actually collect and/or analyze the information for the agency.

The Pinchot Institute for Conservation and their subcontractors will be collecting and analyzing the data. The project manager at Pinchot Institute is Brian Kittler, mailto:[email protected], (503) 836-7880.

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