Request for Approval under the Generic Clearance for the Colleciton of Routine Customer Feedback

OMB Control # 2010-0042 Expiration Date: 3/31/2021

Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of Routine Customer Feedback” (OMB Control Number: 2010-0042)

TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: Focus Groups with Farmworkers – Evaluating Draft Worker Safety Posters and Icons

PURPOSE: EPA is planning to conduct a series of focus groups to evaluate several Worker Protection Standard (WPS) posters and visual graphics under development to ensure that the information conveyed to farmworkers is presented in a clear and effective manner. To accomplish this, EPA is proposing to solicit farmworker participation in focus groups to view these materials and to share their understanding of the content under development.

Objectives of these focus groups will be to:

1. Better understand how communication vehicles are shared with agricultural workers

2. Evaluate content and uncover potential clarifications that may be necessary to ensure the communication message is clear, motivating, and informative.

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS: Respondents will be farmworkers that consist largely of seasonal workers, and perhaps some migratory workers. The respondents will be recruited from several agricultural establishments with a mix of crops produced. Potential respondents will also include a mix of age ranges and various language levels of English and Spanish. A proposed breakdown of groups is as follows:

• Group 1: Young Workers (ages 18-25)/English.

• Group 2: Medium Age Workers (ages 30-45)/Spanish.

• Group 3: Older Workers (ages 48-60)/Spanish.

TYPE OF COLLECTION: (Check one)

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

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

[X] 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: Ryne Yarger | [email protected]

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 [X] No

3. If Yes, has an up-to-date System of Records Notice (SORN) been published? [ ] Yes [X] No

Gifts or Payments:

Is an incentive (e.g., money or reimbursement of expenses, token of appreciation) provided to participants? [X] Yes [ ] No

• Since the proposed focus groups will be held during a weekend and run approximately 100 minutes each, an incentive in the form of a $50 gift card will be provided to participants for their voluntary participation.

BURDEN HOURS

Category of Respondent	No. of Respondents	Participation Time	Burden
Individuals	27	100 minutes	45 hours
Totals	27	100 minutes	45 hours

FEDERAL COST: The estimated annual cost to the Federal government is $24,263.60. The budget parameters are, as follows:

• Recruiting Fee: $1,650.00 (to recruit up to 30 participants and seat at least 27 (9 individuals per group)

• Participant Incentives: $1,485.00. (9 participants per group @ $50/person).

• Facility Rental: $275.00 (groups will likely be held in a library or community center).

• Transportation: $500.00 (to shuttle participants to and from center).

• Interpreter: $250.00 (Spanish to English translations for client observers).

• Audio recording; $75.00

• Researcher/Moderator/PPT Report: $7,262.45 (65 hours @ $111.73).

• Account Executive: $2,638.65 (35 hours @ $75.39).

• Account Director:  $ 9,377.50 (55 hours @ $170.50).

• Travel/Lodging: $750.00 (estimate for travel and 2 nights in North Carolina).  

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?

• SAMPLING PLAN

Participants will be farmworkers recruited from the Kinston community in Lenoir County, North Carolina. Specifically, group composition will consist largely of seasonal workers, and perhaps some migratory workers. The breakdown of the 3 proposed groups is, as follows:

- Group 1: Young Workers (ages 18-25)/English.

- Group 2: Medium Age Workers (ages 30-45)/Spanish.

- Group 3: Older Workers (ages 48-60)/Spanish.

The EPA contractor will work with an individual who is based in North Carolina and has extensive experience working with farmworkers in the Kinston, NC community. Participation will be voluntary. Participants will be asked if they are interested in participating in a focus group to review and provide feedback on developmental worker safety materials that will take approximately one hour and 40 minutes on a Friday or Saturday. A $50 gift card will be offered as an incentive for their participation. Approximately 9 individuals per group (approximately 27 total) will be selected from agricultural establishments where the primary crops are tobacco, sweet potatoes, cucumbers, chilies, watermelons, cantaloupes and tomatoes.

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

[ ] 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.

Paperwork Reduction Act Notice:

This collection of information is approved by OMB under the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq. (OMB Control No. 2010-0042). An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. The public reporting and recordkeeping burden for this collection of information is estimated to be 1.67 hours per response. Send comments on the Agency’s need for this information, the accuracy of the provided burden estimates and any suggested methods for minimizing respondent burden including through the use of automated collection techniques to the Director, Regulatory Support Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2821T), 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, D.C. 20460.  Include the OMB control number in any correspondence.  Do not send the completed form to this address.

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 are submitted with the request.

OMB Form # 7100-001 Page 7 of 7