Generic Clearance Submission - Customer Service Surveys - 2018 - Illinois Only

Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of Routine Customer Feedback” (OMB Control Number: 0535-0261)

TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: Customer Service Surveys for Illinois Department of Agriculture

PURPOSE:

The project will be mail-only surveys for four separate Illinois Department Of Agriculture (IDOA) Bureaus (Weights and Measures, Ag Products Inspection, Environmental Programs, and Warehouses). These surveys are designed to measure the satisfaction level of customers of the IDOA. The surveys will be returned to NASS and summarized using descriptive statistics (mean) for each bureau. The descriptive statistics will be used internally by IDOA staff.

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS:

The survey will contact customers of the four IDOA Bureaus mentioned above. The IDOA maintains these lists.

• For Warehouses, the universe is primarily grain dealers and warehouses. Surveys will be mailed to all of the businesses on the list (400 to 500).

• For Ag Products Inspection, the universe is feed manufacturers, seed producers, and fertilizer distributors. The sample size will be 1,000 which is suitable for IDOA. The list will be sorted by size, then a systematic sample of 1,000 will be drawn so that a sample will accurately reflect the sampling universe.

• For Environmental Programs, the universe is primarily agricultural producers and agribusiness owners. The sample size will be fixed at 1,000 and that is suitable for IDOA. The list will be sorted by size, then a systematic sample of 1,000 will be drawn so that a sample will accurately reflect the sampling universe.

• For Weights and Measures, the universe consists of gas stations, commercial establishments that use scales, and Registered Service Persons. For years, the sample size has been fixed at 1,000 and that is suitable for the IDOA. The sample size will be fixed at 1,000 and that is suitable for IDOA. The list will be sorted by size, then a systematic sample of 1,000 will be drawn so that a sample will accurately reflect the sampling universe.

Response rate is estimated at 20 percent.

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:_David Hancock, OMB Clearance Officer, United States Department of Agriculture, National Agricultural Statistics Service.

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

3. If Applicable, has a System or Records Notice 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
Responses	700	10 min	117 hrs
Non-responses	2800	2 min	94 hrs
Totals	3500		211 hrs

FEDERAL COST: The estimated annual cost to the Federal government is _Zero_________

This activity is funded entirely by the Illinois Department of Agriculture through a cooperative agreement. There is no 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

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? [X] Yes [ ] 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?

The Illinois Department Of Agriculture (IDOA) provides NASS the customer lists used for the universe.

• For Warehouses, the universe is primarily grain dealers and warehouses. Surveys will be mailed to all of the businesses on the list (400 to 500).

• For Ag Products Inspection, the universe is feed manufacturers, seed producers, and fertilizer distributors. The sample size will be 1,000 which is suitable for IDOA. The list will be sorted by size, then a systematic sample of 1,000 will be drawn so that a sample will accurately reflect the sampling universe.

• For Environmental Programs, the universe is primarily agricultural producers and agribusiness owners. The sample size will be fixed at 1,000 and that is suitable for IDOA. The list will be sorted by size, then a systematic sample of 1,000 will be drawn so that a sample will accurately reflect the sampling universe.

• For Weights and Measures, the universe consists of gas stations, commercial establishments that use scales, and Registered Service Persons. For years, the sample size has been fixed at 1,000 and that is suitable for the IDOA. The sample size will be fixed at 1,000 and that is suitable for IDOA. The list will be sorted by size, then a systematic sample of 1,000 will be drawn so that a sample will accurately reflect the sampling universe.

Respondents will be comprised of all customers who receive a form that choose to complete the survey. The opportunity to complete the survey is described above.

Administration of the Instrument

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

[ ] Web-based or other forms of Social Media

[ ] Telephone

[ ] In-person

[X] Mail

[ ] Other, Explain

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

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

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