NYTD Final Rule

Tuesday,
February 26, 2008

Part II

Department of
Health and Human
Services
Administration for Children and Families

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

45 CFR Part 1356
Chafee National Youth in Transition
Database; Final Rule

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

PO 00000

Frm 00001

Fmt 4717

Sfmt 4717

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

10338

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND
HUMAN SERVICES
Administration for Children and
Families
45 CFR Part 1356
RIN 0970–AC21

Chafee National Youth in Transition
Database
Administration on Children,
Youth and Families (ACYF),
Administration for Children and
Families (ACF), Department of Health
and Human Services (DHHS).
ACTION: Final rule.
AGENCY:

SUMMARY: This final rule adds new
regulations to require States to collect
and report data to ACF on youth who
are receiving independent living
services and on the outcomes of certain
youth who are in foster care or who age
out of foster care. The final rule
implements the data collection
requirements of the Foster Care
Independence Act of 1999 (Pub. L. 106–
169) as incorporated into the Social
Security Act.
DATES: Effective Date: April 28, 2008.
Compliance Date: A State must
implement and comply with this rule no
later than October 1, 2010.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Kathleen McHugh, Director of Policy,
Children’s Bureau, Administration on
Children, Youth and Families, 202/401–
5789 or by e-mail at
[email protected].

The
preamble to this final rule is organized
as follows:

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background
A. Legislative History
B. Rule Development
II. The National Youth in Transition Database
(NYTD)
A. Overview of Changes and Regulatory
Provisions
B. Implementation Timeframes
C. Discussion of Non-Regulated Issues
III. Section-by-Section Discussion of Final
Rule
IV. Impact Analysis

I. Background

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

A. Legislative History
Each year thousands of young people
are discharged from State foster care
systems because they reach the age at
which they are no longer eligible for
out-of-home placement services. During
the early 1980s, research and anecdotal
evidence indicated that many young
people who emancipated from foster
care experienced numerous difficulties

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

in their attempts to achieve selfsufficiency. Rather than making a
successful transition to living on their
own, a significant percentage of these
youth experienced homelessness,
unemployment, victimization, and
dependence on various types of public
assistance.
In response to this problem, in 1986
President Reagan signed into law the
Title IV–E Independent Living Initiative
(Pub. L. 99–272). The law provided
States with funding to make
independent living services available to
youth in foster care between the ages of
16 and 21. Several improvements were
made to this law by the Foster Care
Independence Act of 1999 (Pub. L. 106–
169) signed by President Clinton on
December 14, 1999. This law
established the John H. Chafee Foster
Care Independence Program (CFCIP) at
section 477 of the Social Security Act
(the Act). Compared to Public Law 99–
272, the Foster Care Independence Act
provides States with greater funding and
flexibility to carry out programs to assist
youth in making the transition from
foster care to self-sufficiency. The
legislation provides States with funding
to identify and make available
independent living services to youth
‘‘who are likely to remain in foster care’’
until at least age 18—thus removing the
minimum age requirements for the
receipt of independent living services.
Public Law 106–169 also requires States
to provide assistance and services to
youth who age out of foster care, until
age 21, and allows States to use part of
their funding to provide room and board
assistance to these youth. On January
17, 2002, President Bush signed into
law the Promoting Safe and Stable
Families Amendments of 2001 (Pub. L.
107–133), which provided States with
funding specifically for post-secondary
education and training vouchers for
youth who are eligible for CFCIP
services.
The Foster Care Independence Act of
1999 requires ACF to develop and
implement a data collection system, in
consultation with various stakeholders,
to perform two functions: (1) Track the
independent living services States
provide to youth; and, (2) develop
outcome measures that may be used to
assess State performance in operating
their independent living programs. With
regard to services, the Act requires us to
identify data elements to track the
number and characteristics of children
receiving services under section 477 of
the Act and the type and quantity of
services States provide. With regard to
outcomes, section 477(f)(1) of the Act
requires that we develop outcome
measures, including measures of

PO 00000

Frm 00002

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

educational attainment, receipt of a high
school diploma, employment, avoidance
of dependency, homelessness, nonmarital childbirth, incarceration, and
high-risk behaviors, and the data
elements to track States’ performance on
the outcome measures. The law also
requires that ACF impose a penalty in
an amount that ranges from one to five
percent of the State’s annual allotment
on any State that fails to comply with
the reporting requirements. ACF must
base a State’s penalty amount on the
degree of noncompliance (section
477(e)(2) and (3) of the Act).
B. Rule Development
In developing the rule we engaged in
an extensive consultation process on the
information that would comprise the
NYTD. Our consultation included
national discussion groups with child
welfare agency administrators and
independent living coordinators at the
State, Tribal, and local levels; public
and private agency youth service
providers; technical assistance
providers; child welfare advocates;
group home staff and administrators;
and current and former foster youth and
foster parents. We also held conference
calls with independent living
coordinators and information
technology managers from several
States. Finally, we conducted a pilot test
of the draft data elements in seven
States and one Indian Tribe and formed
a work group of national associations,
resource centers and State and Tribal
representatives to analyze the results of
the pilot test.
After gathering the information from
consultation and conducting further
internal deliberations, we published a
notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM)
on July 14, 2006 (71 FR 40346–40382)
that outlined the National Youth in
Transition Database proposal. During
the 60-day comment period, we
received 67 substantive and
unduplicated letters containing
approximately 225 comments and
questions on the proposal. The
commenters included representatives
from 38 State child welfare agencies and
14 national child welfare organizations,
associations or advocacy groups, among
others.
We received widespread support for
many of the general concepts of the
NYTD, particularly the variety of service
and outcomes data elements.
Commenters had a number of
suggestions for minor modifications or
clarifications that they believed would
enhance the rule and the NYTD.
Commenters also raised a number of
questions on matters that are beyond the
scope of the NYTD proposal and final

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations
rule. Most concerns from commenters
centered around the timeframe for
implementing the NYTD, the parameters
of the reporting populations, cost and
burden issues generally and particularly
with regard to tracking youth who are
no longer in foster care and the effect of
penalties on State services and youth.
II. The National Youth in Transition
Database

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

A. Overview of Changes and Regulatory
Provisions
We did not significantly change the
final NYTD from the proposal in most
areas. Although many of the thoughtful
comments led us to reconsider aspects
of our proposals and make numerous
technical revisions, we found
compelling reasons to retain key
elements of the NYTD. We were
convinced to make changes in two
major areas: (1) To extend the time
States have to develop their information
systems and internal procedures to be
able to collect and report data to the
NYTD, and (2) to exclude education and
training vouchers from the Federal
funds that are subject to a penalty if a
State does not comply with the NYTD
requirements. These major changes,
along with all other changes, are
discussed in more detail throughout the
preamble. A final overview of the NYTD
follows.
States will report to NYTD four types
of information about youth: services
provided to youth, youth characteristics,
outcomes, and basic demographics. In
terms of services, States will identify the
type of independent living services or
financial assistance that the State
provides to youth. There are 11 broad
service categories:
• Independent living needs
assessment.
• Academic support.
• Post-secondary educational
support.
• Career preparation.
• Employment programs or
vocational training.
• Budget and financial management.
• Housing education and home
management training.
• Health education and risk
prevention.
• Family support and healthy
marriage education.
• Mentoring.
• Supervised independent living.
The State also will identify the
characteristics of each youth receiving
independent living services, such as
their education level and tribal
membership.
In terms of outcomes, States must
collect and report information on youth

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

who are or were in foster care that we
can use to measure the collective
outcomes of these youth and potentially
assess the State’s performance in this
area. We will collect data on six general
outcomes:
• Increase youth financial selfsufficiency.
• Improve youth educational
(academic or vocational) attainment.
• Increase youth connections with
adults.
• Reduce homelessness among youth.
• Reduce high-risk behavior among
youth.
• Improve youth access to health
insurance.
The States must survey young people
who are or were previously in foster
care regarding their outcomes
information. States will collect
information on these youth at three
specific intervals: On or about the
youth’s 17th birthday while the youth is
in foster care; two years later on or
about the youth’s 19th birthday; and
again on or about the youth’s 21st
birthday. States must report on 19- and
21-year-olds who participated in data
collection at age 17 while in foster care,
even if they are no longer in the State’s
foster care system or receiving
independent living services at ages 19
and 21. States will collect outcome
information on a new baseline
population of youth (17-year-olds in
foster care) every three years.
Finally, States will identify basic
demographic information, such as sex
and race of each youth in each of the
reporting populations.
States will report all four types of
information (services, characteristics,
outcomes if applicable in that year, and
basic demographics) to the NYTD semiannually on a Federal fiscal year basis.
ACF will evaluate a State’s data file
against file submission and data
compliance standards designed to
ensure that we have quality data on
youth. States that fail to achieve any of
the compliance standards for a reporting
period will be given an opportunity to
submit to us corrected data. If a State’s
corrected data does not comply with the
data standards, the State will be subject
to a penalty in an amount that ranges
from one to five percent of the State’s
annual CFCIP funding, depending on
the level of noncompliance. The funds
subject to a penalty will not include the
State’s education and training voucher
allotment.
B. Implementation Timeframe
Implementation of the NYTD will
occur on October 1, 2010. This means
that a State must begin to collect data on
October 1, 2010 (Federal fiscal year

PO 00000

Frm 00003

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

10339

(FFY) 2011) and submit the first report
period data to us by May 15, 2011, in
accordance with the NYTD
requirements in this final rule. This
later implementation date is in direct
response to comments raised by
stakeholders in response to the NPRM.
In the NPRM preamble, we indicated
that States would have at least a year
between issuance of a final rule and the
implementation date of the NYTD. We
did not establish a specific
implementation date at that time.
However, a large number of commenters
who represented the perspectives of
States, advocates and other
stakeholders, believed that a year was
not enough time to comply with the
NYTD requirements for a number of
reasons. We carefully considered the
information provided to us through
comment, and reviewed our rationale
for the one-year implementation
timeframe. We found that the
commenters raised issues to us that we
had not fully considered in developing
our original estimates of how long States
would need to comply with this rule
and we agree that a change is warranted.
Most commenters stated that
implementing the NYTD would require
changes to a State’s Statewide
Automated Child Welfare Information
System (SACWIS). These changes
would take more time than we
originally suggested because the NYTD
provisions which relate to youth who
are still in foster care or who are
receiving independent living services
must be incorporated into a State’s
SACWIS in accordance with existing
SACWIS rules in 45 CFR
1355.53(b)(5)(iii) and ACF–OISM–001
(1995). Forty-four States are in some
stage of SACWIS development or
operation and would thus need to make
these changes in their SACWIS.
SACWIS changes often require a State
to develop and award contracts to
implement new programming and
design features and secure new funding.
The commenters pointed out that tight
State budgets and long lead times
needed to secure State appropriations
mean that States are not guaranteed
funding or legislative approval to
implement the NYTD quickly. These
combined issues can lead to a protracted
period before the State has in hand final
approval to even start developing a
system, let alone begin the work
required to change data systems to
accommodate the new data
requirements. We agree with these
points as our own experiences
interacting with States that are
attempting to secure funding for
SACWIS confirm that internal State
processes for obtaining funding for

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

10340

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

information system changes, and then
implementing system changes take a
significant amount of time.
In addition to concerns about
SACWIS or development of other
information system capability,
commenters registered significant
uncertainty about States’ ability to
comply with the outcomes component
of the NYTD in the suggested timeframe.
This was of particular concern to States,
given their inexperience with
administering an outcomes survey over
an extended time to youth who have left
foster care. We have acknowledged
throughout the NPRM and final rule
process that the outcomes component is
one of the most challenging aspects of
the NYTD. As such, we believe that we
must give States a sufficient opportunity
to conduct planning activities and take
advantage of technical assistance.
Most commenters suggested that a
two to three year implementation
timeframe is more reasonable. We agree
that a minimum of two years to
implement the requirements of the
NYTD is justified and have set the
compliance date as October 1, 2010
accordingly. Providing less time than
two years will not serve us or the States
well in our mutual goals to understand
and serve youth better. The later
implementation date is designed to
ensure that States are prepared and able
to submit quality data on youth
independent living services and youth
outcomes. In the first year of start-up
activities, ACF plans to provide
intensive technical assistance to support
States as they assess their system design
and development needs. During the
second year of start-up activities, we
plan to continue technical assistance,
release technical documents on file and
transmission procedures, and support
States as they conduct voluntary tests of
their systems.
All compliance standards and the
associated penalties will take effect
during the first year of implementation
and will not be delayed further as some
commenters suggested. We do, however,
hope to encourage States to submit data
to us voluntarily prior to the required
implementation date. Doing so could
mean that States are able to test their
systems prior to the compliance date,
and we in turn can begin providing
technical assistance based on States’
actual experiences. We intend to issue
guidance on whether and how we may
be able to accept voluntary data
submissions prior to the compliance
date.
C. Discussion of Non-Regulated Issues
We received a number of comments
and questions on topics that are outside

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

the scope of this rulemaking. Such
comments addressed general topics
such as technical assistance requests,
performance standards, ongoing
consultation between various
stakeholders on the CFCIP program and
NYTD, technical questions about
modifying SACWIS and strategies for
tracking youth. The proper forum for
these requests is through the ACF
regional offices and our technical
assistance providers.
III. Section-by-Section Discussion of
Final Rule
Section 1356.80

Scope

This section requires the State agency
that administers or supervises the
administration of the Chafee Foster Care
Independence Program under section
477 of the Social Security Act to comply
with the data collection and reporting
requirements in this final rule. We did
not receive comments on this section.
We made a minor modification to the
section to include State agencies that
‘‘supervise the administration’’ of the
CFCIP in addition to those that directly
administer the program in the scope of
these NYTD requirements. This
modification brings the scope statement
in line with the statutory requirements
for an administrating or supervisory
State agency in section 477(b)(2) of the
Act.
Section 1356.81

Reporting Population

This section describes the three
reporting populations of youth on
whom States must obtain services and
outcomes information to report to the
NYTD: The served, baseline and followup populations.
Served Population
In paragraph (a), we describe the
served population as youth who receive
an independent living service paid for
or provided by the State agency during
a six-month report period.
Comment: A number of commenters
sought clarity on which youth comprise
the served population and asked
whether specific subgroups were a part
of the population. Specifically,
commenters asked whether tribal youth,
youth involved with the juvenile justice
system, youth who receive services
through the staff of a group home or
child care institution, and youth no
longer in foster care would fall within
the served population.
Response: In general, a youth is in the
served population if during the report
period, the youth received at least one
independent living service paid for or
provided by the State agency. We are
making a minor amendment to the final

PO 00000

Frm 00004

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

rule to remove the reference to
‘‘services’’ as only one independent
living service is required during the
report period for the youth to be a part
of the served population. An
independent living service is provided
by the State agency if it is delivered by
State agency staff or an agent of the
State, including a foster parent, group
home staff, child care institution staff or
the service is provided pursuant to a
contract between the State agency and a
provider, agency or any other entity
regardless of whether the contract
includes funding for the particular
service. Independent living services that
are paid for or provided by the State
agency can be delivered in a variety of
formats. The served population is not
limited on the Federal level by age,
foster care status or placement type,
although State eligibility rules for their
independent living programs may
restrict which youth receive
independent living services. Therefore,
tribal youth, youth involved with the
juvenile justice system, youth who
receive services through foster care
providers and youth no longer in foster
care are a part of the served population
if they receive an independent living
service paid for or provided by the State
agency during the report period.
Comment: Some commenters
suggested that we gather data in some
way on youth who do not receive
independent living services. Some
commenters suggested that we require
States to identify and explain why
subgroups of youth do not receive
services, such as youth who were
eligible for independent living services
in the State and/or youth who are
referred to independent living. Other
commenters suggested that we capture
information on youth who do not
receive independent living services
outside of the NYTD.
Response: In developing the NPRM,
we considered and rejected an approach
to require States to identify and explain
why youth do not receive independent
living services. We explained in the
NPRM that the statute’s mandate is
limited to collecting data on
independent living services that youth
receive (section 477(f)(1)(B)(i) of the
Act). We believe that gathering
information on why youth do not
receive independent living services is
better suited to research or evaluation
activities and therefore we are not
making a change to the final rule in this
regard. We want to be clear, however,
that we have designed the outcomes
component of the NYTD to look at the
outcomes of youth whether or not they
receive independent living services that
are paid for or provided by the State

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations
agency. This outcomes information can
be used in conjunction with information
from the Adoption and Foster Care
Analysis and Reporting System
(AFCARS) to tell us more about youth
who do not receive independent living
services and how they fare.
Comment: Some commenters urged us
to expand the served population to
include youth who receive independent
living services that are brokered or
arranged by the State agency through an
agreement with other public or private
agencies, rather than just those
independent living services that are
paid for or provided by the State agency.
Commenters believed that broadening
the scope of the served population
would be in keeping with CFCIP State
plan requirements to coordinate services
with other Federal, State and local
programs serving youth. Further,
commenters suggested that including
services that are arranged, brokered, or
offered through collaboration would
better reflect the range of independent
living services youth may receive.
Response: We carefully considered
the issues raised by commenters but are
not convinced that the suggestions to
expand the served population, for
example, to include those youth served
through collaborations, agreements or
other State agency arrangements that are
neither paid for nor provided by the
State agency, offers a significant
improvement to the NYTD. We
recognize that States collaborate with
community partners in a variety of ways
to benefit youth as required under the
CFCIP State plan. However, including
youth served as a result of those
collaborations or otherwise arranged or
brokered by the State agency in the
served population is too far removed
from the statutory mandate to collect
data on youth served under the CFCIP.
Further, we believe that expanding the
served population to include youth who
receive independent living services in
their community that are neither paid
for nor provided by the State agency
would distort what we can learn about
the services provided under the CFCIP.
Rather, we are interested in a State
collecting and reporting information on
youth who receive an independent
living service due to the State agency’s
commitment of funds or resources to
provide the service. Therefore, an
independent living service is provided
by the State agency if it is delivered by
State agency staff or an agent of the
State, including a foster parent, group
home staff, or child care institution
staff. The service is also provided by the
State agency if it is provided to the
youth pursuant to a contract for such
services between the State agency and a

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

provider, public or private agency or
any other entity, regardless of whether
the contract includes funding for the
particular service. Services that are paid
for directly or indirectly by the State
agency are included as well. We believe
this definition of the served population
is sufficiently broad, and, as such, are
retaining the served population
description as stated in the NPRM.
Comment: A commenter thought the
served population definition was too
broad and suggested that we limit it to
foster care youth and former foster care
youth who are 17 years old and
receiving independent living services.
Response: As we discussed in the
NPRM, the statute is clear that we are
to collect data on all youth who receive
independent living services under the
CFCIP and does not carve out youth in
foster care or former foster care youth of
a certain age. Further, narrowing the
reporting population in such a way may
limit the information we can learn about
how States are serving youth through
the CFCIP. As such, we are not making
the suggested change to the served
population.
Comment: Several commenters sought
clarification on how the served
population was distinct from or related
to the baseline and follow-up
population.
Response: The NYTD has two
separate but related components:
independent living services and youth
outcomes. The reporting populations are
separate for each component, although
not mutually exclusive.
States are to collect and report
independent living services information
on youth who fall within the served
population. The served population is
made up of youth who have received at
least one independent living service that
is paid for or provided by the State
agency during a six-month report
period. The youth’s age and foster care
status is not relevant to whether he or
she is in the served population.
States are to collect and report
outcomes information on youth who are
in the baseline and follow-up
populations. The baseline population is
comprised of all 17-year-olds in foster
care during a year in which such
outcomes data is due (beginning in FFY
2011), regardless of whether the youth
receives any services. The follow-up
population is a subgroup of the baseline
population: Youth who participated in
the outcomes data collection when they
were 17 years old, but who are now 19
or 21 years old. A few simple examples
(that do not address sampling) illustrate
how the reporting populations may
overlap or diverge:

PO 00000

Frm 00005

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

10341

• Example 1. In December 2010, a
youth turns 17 years old while in foster
care and takes a budgeting class that is
paid for by the State agency in January
2011. This youth would be part of the
served population for the first report
period of FFY 2011 (October 1, 2010
through March 31, 2011) and reported
as receiving the ‘‘budget and financial
management’’ service. The same youth
would also be a part of the baseline
population for whom the State must
administer the outcomes survey. This is
because FFY 2011 is a year in which the
States must collect data on the baseline
population, which is comprised of those
youth in foster care who reach their
17th birthday in the FFY.
• Example 2. In November 2011, a
different 17-year-old in foster care takes
a budgeting class that is paid for by the
State agency. This youth would be part
of the served population for the first
report period of FFY 2012. However
there is no outcomes data collection due
in FFY 2012, therefore, the youth is not
in the baseline population.
• Example 3. In December 2012, the
same youth from example 1 reaches 19
years old. By the end of March 2013,
this youth had not received any
independent living services that were
paid for or provided by the State agency
during the first report period (October 1,
2012 through March 31, 2013), so the
youth is not a part of the served
population. However, two years ago,
this youth completed the outcomes
survey as part of the baseline
population. Therefore, the youth is a
part of the follow-up population and the
State is required to collect and report
outcomes data for this youth.
Baseline Population
In paragraph (b), we describe the
baseline population for the purpose of
collecting outcome information as a
youth who is in foster care as defined
in 45 CFR 1355.20 and reaches his or
her 17th birthday in FFY 2011, or
reaches 17 in every third fiscal year
following FFY 2011.
Comment: Some commenters raised
questions and concerns about the lack of
clarity in the description of the baseline
population. Commenters requested
specific guidance on whether the
baseline population included youth in
juvenile justice facilities, youth in
placements of a short duration, youth
placed in shelter care, youth in tribal
custody, youth on trial home visits,
youth in unlicensed, unapproved or
unpaid placements, and youth who
have run away from their foster care
settings.
Response: We defined the baseline
population as 17-year-olds in foster care

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

10342

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

consistent with our regulatory definition
of foster care in 45 CFR 1355.20 during
a Federal fiscal year in which such data
is required based on the implementation
schedule. This means, that a youth will
be in the baseline population if the
youth is in foster care and 17 years old
in FFYs 2011, or is in foster care and 17
years old in each third fiscal year
following FFY 2011 (i.e., 2014, 2017,
etc.). We made a minor change to the
rule to specify the beginning fiscal year
in which this data is required and the
timetable upon which data on a new
cohort of youth is due.
The baseline population includes 17year-old youth who are in 24-hour
substitute care under the State’s
placement and care responsibility who
are in foster family homes (whether the
foster parents are relatives of or
unrelated to the child), group homes,
shelter care and child care institutions,
regardless of whether such homes or
institutions are licensed, approved or
paid. The baseline population includes
children who may have run away from
their foster care setting but who are still
in the State agency’s placement and care
responsibility. The baseline population
also includes youth who receive title
IV–E foster care maintenance payments
in the placement and care of another
public agency (e.g., a juvenile justice
agency or tribal agency) pursuant to a
title IV–E agreement under section
472(a)(2)(B)(ii) of the Act.
The baseline population excludes
youth in detention facilities, forestry
camps, training schools and facilities
primarily for the detention of youth
adjudicated delinquent. The definition
also excludes youth who are in the
placement and care responsibility of a
tribal agency unless the conditions
specified above regarding title IV–E
agreements apply. Youth who are at
home but in the placement and care
responsibility of the State agency also
are excluded from the baseline reporting
population, whether the State considers
this a trial home visit, at-home
supervision, after care or some other
status. Since these youth are excluded
from the baseline population, they are
not in the follow-up population either.
We anticipate providing more detail
through technical assistance and other
guidance documents on how States may
ensure that they are accurately
including children in the baseline
population.
Comment: Some commenters
requested consistency between the
NYTD baseline reporting population
and the AFCARS foster care reporting
population. One such commenter was
concerned that an inconsistency would

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

diminish our ability to analyze data
across the two databases.
Response: We do not believe that
complete consistency between the
NYTD baseline reporting population
and the AFCARS foster care reporting
population is necessary. AFCARS exists
for a purpose separate and distinct from
the NYTD. The AFCARS reporting
population includes all children in
foster care as defined in 45 CFR 1355.20
as does the NYTD, but extends slightly
broader in specific circumstances, such
as youth in detention and youth that are
at home temporarily (see the ACF Child
Welfare Policy Manual Section 2.7 at
http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb).
We are staying consistent with the
definition of foster care for the NYTD to
reflect part of the population of youth a
State must serve under its CFCIP: Youth
in foster care who are likely to age out
of foster care. Further, one of the
original reasons we chose the baseline
reporting population was because it
represents a readily accessible
population of youth to whom States can
administer the survey.
Finally, we do not agree that the slight
differences between the AFCARS foster
care and the NYTD baseline reporting
populations diminish the analytic value
of the NYTD. Since every youth
reported in the baseline population will
also be reported to AFCARS and the
youth will be identified in the same way
in both databases, we will have the
necessary foundation for analysis of the
foster care experiences of youth who are
reported for their outcomes in the
NYTD.
Comment: One commenter suggested
that we specify that in order to be
included in the baseline population a
youth must have been in foster care for
a minimum length of time to ensure that
the youth had benefited from available
independent living services.
Response: As we stated in the
preamble to the NPRM, we decided not
to require a minimum length of time in
foster care because that approach overly
complicated the data collection without
a measurable benefit or a clear basis on
which to determine the appropriate
minimum length of time. We did not
receive information that convinced us to
change our approach and have not made
this change to the final rule.
Comment: A commenter asked
whether youth had to be in foster care
on their 17th birthday to be included in
the baseline population.
Response: A youth does not need to
have his or her 17th birthday while in
foster care, but consistent with the data
collection rule in section 1356.82(a)(2),
the youth must have been in foster care
within 45 days following his or her 17th

PO 00000

Frm 00006

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

birthday during the specified reporting
year. More detailed guidance on the
reporting populations will be
forthcoming in technical assistance and
policy documents, as needed.
Follow-up Population
Paragraph (c) defines the follow-up
population as youth who turn 19 or 21
years old in a certain fiscal year who
participated in the State’s outcomes data
collection as part of the baseline
population at 17 years old.
Comment: Some commenters
requested more clarity regarding the
follow-up population or made
statements that indicated their
confusion about who was included in
the population. A few other commenters
asked specifically whether youth who
remained in foster care at ages 19 and
21 would be in the follow-up
population. Other commenters asked
whether youth in the follow-up
population at age 19 had to have
participated in the outcomes data
collection to be a part of the follow-up
population at age 21.
Response: The follow-up population
is comprised solely of youth who are
either 19 or 21 years old who
participated in the outcomes data
collection as part of the baseline
population at age 17. A youth is
considered to have participated at age
17 if he or she provided at least one
valid answer to a question in the
outcomes survey. A youth who
participated in the data collection at age
17, but not at age 19 for a reason other
than being deceased remains a part of
the follow-up population at age 21. A
youth is in the follow-up population as
described regardless of the youth’s
foster care status at ages 19 or 21 and
regardless of whether the youth ever
received independent living services.
Comment: A number of commenters
wanted outcomes data collection to
continue beyond age 21 to age 23 or
older for a number of reasons. These
commenters were concerned that we
will get an incomplete view of college
attendance and educational attainment,
employment, marriage and other
outcomes that are influenced by age if
we stop collecting data at age 21.
Alternatively, a commenter urged us not
to extend the follow-up population of
youth to age 23 unless there was
demonstrable evidence that collecting
such data was feasible.
Response: We appreciate the
arguments in favor of an extended
follow-up data collection activity and
acknowledge that the system as
designed may result in limited
information on some of the more agesensitive outcomes. However, as we

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

stated in the NPRM, we believe that
adults who are 23 years old are even
more likely to decline to participate in
data collection and States are more
likely to lose contact with much older
youth. We received many comments
that echoed these same concerns for 19and 21-year olds. We believe that
requiring States to collect outcomes
information on an even older
population is unreasonable and better
suited for research or evaluation
activities. Therefore, we are not adding
an older follow-up population to the
final rule.
Section 1356.82 Data Collection
Requirements
This section specifies the data
collection requirements for the served,
baseline and follow-up populations.
In paragraph (a)(1), we require the
State agency to collect information for
the data elements specified in section
1356.83(b) and (c) for youth in the
served population for as long as the
youth receives services.
Comment: A couple of commenters
supported the ongoing collection of
client-level data on youth who receive
independent living services.
Response: We agree that this is a
valuable feature of the NYTD and are
not making changes to the final rule.
In paragraph (a)(2), we require the
State agency to collect information for
the data elements specified in section
1356.83(b) and (d) for the baseline
population. The State agency must
collect this information on a new
baseline population every three years
and must collect this data within certain
timeframes using specific survey
questions.
Comment: A number of commenters
supported the general concept of
collecting outcomes information based
on a staggered schedule with a new
cohort of the baseline population (17year-olds in foster care) beginning every
three years. Two commenters suggested
that we require States to reduce the time
between the new cohorts of youth. Their
concern was that the three-year span
would lead to gaps in the data and
would not be representative of youth
receiving services or aging out of foster
care.
Response: As we stated in the
preamble to the NPRM, we chose this
schedule in order to avoid imposing an
unnecessary burden on States.
Participants in the consultation process
pointed out that youth outcomes
generally do not change sufficiently to
justify collecting the data annually, and
collecting outcome data every three
years should be sufficient to document
trends and address the statutory

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

requirements. As such, no changes to
the final rule are warranted.
Comment: A few commenters
disagreed with the requirement to
collect information on youth in the
baseline population within 45 days
following the youth’s 17th birthday as
required by section 1356.82(a)(2)(i) and
(ii). One such commenter believed more
time was needed to engage youth who
may be resistant, who had run away,
were institutionalized or incarcerated at
the time of their 17th birthday. The
commenters requested either a 90-day
timeframe or the entire six-month report
period to obtain the outcomes data from
the youth.
Response: As stated in the preamble
to the NPRM, we chose the 45-day
timeframe as a compromise between
requiring data collection to occur on the
youth’s 17th birthday and a longer
timeframe which could lead to a less
comparable baseline population. We
still believe that the 45-day timeframe is
responsive to the real-life scheduling
constraints and does not create an
unreasonable burden. We are, therefore,
retaining the 45-day timeframe.
We would like to note, however, that
youth who are incarcerated or are
institutionalized in a psychiatric facility
or hospital would not be a part of the
baseline population because they are
not in foster care according to the
definition in 45 CFR 1355.20 (see earlier
discussion on the baseline population).
Youth who have run away from their
foster care setting for the 45-day time
span following their 17th birthday
would be a part of the baseline
population, but a State could report the
youth as having run away in the
outcomes reporting status element
(section 1356.83(g)(34)) to explain why
that youth’s information was not
collected.
In paragraph (a)(3), we require the
State agency to collect information for
the data elements specified in section
1356.83(b) and (e) for the follow-up
population of 19- and 21-year-olds.
Comment: A number of commenters
suggested that ACF should collect the
outcome data and track the older youth
rather than the States. In their view, this
approach would resolve other concerns
raised related to the State’s burden to
collect data and penalties for State noncompliance with the data collection,
and could create consistency in
outcomes data collection across the
country.
Response: The statute mandates that
we develop data collection requirements
and impose penalties on States that do
not comply with those requirements
(section 477(e)(2) and (f) of the Act). As
such, the statute creates an obligation

PO 00000

Frm 00007

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

10343

for States to meet the data collection
requirements and not the Federal
government.
Comment: A number of commenters
asked practical questions about
obtaining contact information for older
youth. Specific inquiries included how
to contact older youth who move out of
State, using administrative databases to
locate youth, or who would be the best
individuals to administer the outcomes
survey.
Response: We will provide States
with policy guidance and/or technical
assistance to address these issues. We
do not believe that it is appropriate to
address these concerns in regulation.
Comment: Some commenters were
concerned that we did not regulate the
method by which States must
administer the outcomes survey to
youth (e.g., in person, via the internet or
over the phone). The concern was that
this variability could impede data
quality and limit the conclusions we
could draw from the data.
Response: We acknowledge that the
method a survey is administered may
impact the quality of the data. However,
we believe that States are too different
to offer a single approach to this data
collection and we are not in a position
to regulate the best way to gather the
data at this time. Further, we have set
file and data standards for the data,
including standards for youth
participation, such that States will have
an incentive to gather the best data
possible (see discussion in section
1356.85). We hope to overcome any
remaining challenges associated with
survey variability through technical
assistance rather than prescriptive rules.
For these reasons, we are not regulating
a specific data collection methodology
in response to these comments.
Comment: A commenter was
concerned about privacy rights or
confidentiality issues that will make it
difficult to track youth over time to
complete the survey. Although
information may be available about the
youth through other systems, e.g., child
support, the commenter asserts that the
State cannot access that information
because of confidentiality restrictions.
The commenter requested that we
address these issues.
Response: We do not believe that
there are privacy or confidentiality
concerns raised by the NYTD. The
youth outcome survey is voluntary for
the youth to complete, and it is up to
the youth how much detailed contact
information he or she will provide in
order to be located upon exit from foster
care. We understand that there may be
information available to a State to locate
the youth that can only be accessed with

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

10344

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

the youth’s permission. We will provide
technical assistance to States to assist
them in developing appropriate
methods to track youth and garner
youth participation.
In paragraph (b), we permit States to
select a sample of 17-year-olds who
participated in the outcomes data
collection as a part of the baseline
population to follow over time rather
than the entire baseline population of
youth who participated in the data
collection in that State. When a State
samples youth at age 17, the sample
becomes the follow-up population and
no further sampling of this population
at ages 19 or 21 is permitted. Also in
this paragraph we require a State to
identify those youth in the follow-up
population who are not in the sample.
Comment: A commenter believed that
States should not use sampling but
attempt to gather outcomes data from all
19- and 21-year-olds in the follow-up
population. The commenter believed
that this was a reasonable suggestion
given that States were required to
collect outcomes data on a staggered
schedule.
Response: As stated in the preamble
to the NPRM, we are providing States
the option to sample in direct response
to feedback we received during the
consultation process. States requested
that any outcomes survey of youth who
had left foster care utilize sampling to
mitigate the burden of tracking these
youth. Nothing in the NYTD prohibits
States that could track a subgroup of
their follow-up population through
sampling from collecting outcomes
information on more youth or on the
entire follow-up population. We are not
making any changes to the final rule in
response to this comment, however, we
have made a change in paragraph
1356.82(b) to require States that sample
to identify youth at age 19 who are not
selected in the sample. This change is
explained further in the discussion on
section 1356.83(e).
Section 1356.83 Reporting
Requirements and Data Elements
This section specifies the NYTD
report periods, deadlines for reporting
data to ACF and the data elements.
In paragraph (a), we require a State to
submit the required data file to ACF on
a semi-annual basis, within 45 days of
the end of each report period.
Comment: A number of commenters
offered alternative deadlines for
submitting a data file to ACF that ranged
from 60 to 90 days after the end of each
report period. Some commenters cited
concerns about having the same State
workers prepare data files for the NYTD
and simultaneously for AFCARS. A

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

couple of commenters believed that in
order to generate a common identifier
for youth reported to both AFCARS and
the NYTD that a State would need to
report their data to AFCARS first.
Response: Our experience has shown
that States can meet the 45-day
requirement for AFCARS and we expect
States can meet it for the NYTD as well.
We understand that States may use the
same workers to extract files for
AFCARS and the NYTD, but believe that
45 days is sufficient time to do both
activities. Timely data is important so
that ACF can conduct the analysis to
share with the States and other
stakeholders.
We do not believe the concern about
common identifiers has merit. Although
we are requiring a State to submit an
identifier for a youth to the NYTD that
is the same as the one submitted to
AFCARS in certain circumstances, the
way this is accomplished is through a
standard encryption routine. When
applied to a State identifier, the routine
will generate the same encrypted result
(i.e., the common identifier) each time.
The act of submitting data to AFCARS
or the NYTD is not what generates the
common identifier so whether the data
is submitted to AFCARS or the NTYD
first is inconsequential. We are not
making changes in response to this
comment.
Comment: While one commenter
supported the twice yearly reporting
cycle, a number of other commenters
suggested moving to an annual reporting
cycle to reduce the burden on States.
Some commenters believed that an
annual report period would ease the
burden of reporting data for States and
ease penalty and outcome calculations
for Federal officials. To keep the
reporting cycles consistent with
AFCARS, some commenters suggested
moving AFCARS to an annual report
period as well.
Response: As stated in the preamble
to the NPRM, we considered a 12-month
reporting period, but believed that a
longer period increases the risk of
inaccurate or missing data. Further,
since we want to preserve our ability to
analyze NYTD data along with AFCARS
data, we want comparable reporting
periods. The six-month report period for
AFCARS is integral to a number of ACF
priorities and legislative requirements.
Comment: A commenter suggested
that local providers be allowed to report
data directly to ACF without the
involvement of the State agency in an
effort to create additional efficiencies for
States.
Response: We disagree with the
suggestion to permit local providers to
report a youth’s data directly to the

PO 00000

Frm 00008

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

Federal government, leaving out the
State agency’s involvement, for a
number of reasons. The State agency is
responsible for ensuring compliance
with the NYTD requirements and
standards under the risk of fiscal
sanctions and, therefore, must be the
responsible party for submitting data to
ACF. Further, we do not believe that
individual providers could ensure that
all information on a youth (i.e.,
demographics, characteristics, services
and outcomes, if applicable) could be
reported in a single youth record as
required by section 1356.83(f) if
multiple providers have engaged a
youth in a report period. Also, we do
not see that such a process would be
efficient for the State as it would have
to maintain oversight of one or more
entities that would submit information
to ACF. However, States are not
prohibited from contracting or
otherwise working with private agencies
to compile the information that States
will ultimately submit to ACF. We are
not changing the final rule to permit any
entity other than the State agency to
submit NYTD data to ACF.
In paragraphs (b) through (e), we
require the State agency to report certain
data elements for each youth depending
on whether the youth is a part of the
served, baseline, or follow-up
populations.
We did not receive comments on
these paragraphs. However, we are
making a technical change to the
reporting requirements for 19-year old
youth in the follow-up population for
those States that sample. In paragraph
(e), we have amended the final rule to
require a State that samples to identify
the 19-year-old youth who participated
in the outcomes data collection as part
of the baseline population at age 17,
who are not in the sample. This
information is required so that we can
determine whether the State meets the
outcomes universe and participation
rate standards (section 1356.85(b)). A
State must identify such youth in the
two semi-annual report periods for the
Federal fiscal year in which the State
reports actual outcomes information on
19-year-old youth who are in the sample
(section 1356.83(g)(34)). States will not
report information on non-sampled
youth again when the youth reach the
age of 21 years old.
This requirement stands in contrast to
our proposal as described in the NPRM
for a State to identify youth who will be
in the follow-up sample at age 17. We
proposed that States would report that
information in a separate data element
entitled ‘‘sampling status’’ for the semiannual report periods in which baseline
outcomes data is due on the 17-year-

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations
olds (71 FR 40359 and 40361–2).
However, the proposal was not viable
because the sampling procedures in
section 1356.84 require the State to
select a sample based on a universe of
all youth in a fiscal year who participate
in the State’s outcome data collection at
age 17. Therefore, we erred in proposing
that a State identify a sample at the end
of each report period before the State
could identify the appropriate and
complete sampling frame of youth. The
final rule provision for identifying
youth who are not in the follow-up
sample when such youth are aged 19
corrects this error. We don’t expect this
revision to be a concern to States as it
will permit States more time to decide
whether and how to sample.
In paragraph (f), we require the State
agency to report all applicable data
elements for an individual youth in a
single record per report period. We did
not receive comments on this paragraph
and are not making changes to the final
rule.

particularly for youth from the juvenile
justice system.
Response: The State is required to use
the same unique identifier for a NYTD
youth as is used for AFCARS if that
youth is or was in foster care in the
State. The State is not required to use
the same identifier used for the youth in
other youth-serving systems. As we
stated in the NPRM, this requirement is
intended to allow us to perform caselevel longitudinal cohort analysis. We
believe the benefits of the usefulness of
this data outweigh the burden on States
to establish rules for a common
identifier for youth across the NYTD
and AFCARS data sets.

Data Element Descriptions

In paragraph (g)(5), the State is to
report the youth’s sex.
Comment: Several commenters
suggested that we not limit the data
element on ‘‘sex’’ to male or female
biology but permit youth to identify
their sexual orientation and/or gender
identity. These commenters believed
that we should track youth services and
outcomes for youth who identify
themselves as gay, lesbian, bisexual,
transgendered, or in some other way
because such youth may be
overrepresented in foster care, have
unique service needs and be at
increased risk for poor outcomes.
Finally, a couple of commenters
disagreed with our description of a
youth’s sex as his or her gender and
recommended that we have an element
that focuses on the youth’s gender as a
matter of identity separate from the
youth’s biological sex.
Response: We agree with the
commenters that the words ‘‘sex’’ and
‘‘gender’’ are not synonymous. We are
amending the regulation text to
eliminate references to the youth’s
gender and instead refer to a youth’s
‘‘sex’’ in reference to this element.
However, we are not amending the data
element to incorporate matters of gender
identity or sexual orientation. This data
element is for basic demographic
purposes and we expect States to cull
this information from its existing child
welfare information system. The
element is not intended to elicit from
youth very personal information on
sexual orientation, gender
characteristics or sex development.

Paragraph (g) includes all of the data
element descriptions for the NYTD.
State
In paragraph (g)(1), we request
information on the State that reports the
youth to the NYTD. We received no
comments on this data element
description and are not making any
changes in the final rule.
Report Date
Paragraph (g)(2) describes the report
date of the NYTD file which indicates
the six-month period that the file
encompasses. The report date is the
month and year that corresponds with
the end of the report period, which will
always end on either March 31 or
September 30 of any given year. We
received no comments on this data
element description and are not making
any changes in the final rule.

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

Record Number
In paragraph (g)(3), we describe the
record number as a unique, encrypted
person identification number that the
State must retain for the youth across all
reporting periods. The State must use a
consistent number for reporting the
same youth to AFCARS and the NYTD.
Comment: A commenter noted that
not all youth in the reporting
populations will have an established
common identifier. The commenter
asserted that a State may need to
conduct a labor-intensive and manual
matching process to avoid identifying
the same youth in multiple ways,

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

Date of Birth
In paragraph (g)(4), we require that a
State report the youth’s date of birth. We
received no comments on this data
element description and are not making
any changes in the final rule.
Sex

PO 00000

Frm 00009

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

10345

Race
In paragraphs (g)(6) through (g)(12) we
describe the data elements in which a
State must report the youth’s race.
These are separate elements that permit
data collection and reporting on
multiple races.
We received no comments on the race
categories of Asian, Black or African
American, Native Hawaiian or other
Pacific Islander, and White and are
making no changes to the final rule for
those elements.
Comment: A couple of commenters
noted that the description of American
Indian or Alaska Native was the only
race category that includes a condition
of community affiliation. The
commenters recommended that this
condition be removed or that we
provide additional guidance on
categorizing persons who do not
maintain tribal affiliation or community
attachments but would otherwise
consider themselves as American Indian
or Alaska Native.
Response: We are not making a
change to this element because it
reflects the Office of Management and
Budget’s (OMB) definition of American
Indian or Alaska Native (see OMB’s
Provisional Guidance on the
Implementation of the 1997 Standards
for Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity,
at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/
inforeg/re_guidance2000update.pdf)
and is consistent with the AFCARS race
category. Since race information is selfselected by the individual or the
individual’s parent, the person may
choose the race category he/she believes
best represents him/her.
Comment: A couple of commenters
sought clarity on whether the race
category of American Indian or Alaska
Native includes youth who have an
attachment or affiliation with a nonfederally recognized tribe.
Response: The race category does
include youth who identify with an
American Indian or Alaska Native tribe
regardless of whether that tribe is
recognized by the Federal government.
Because this race category is reflective
of the OMB definition, we do not
believe a change in the regulation text
is warranted.
Comment: Several commenters were
concerned that we proposed a race
category of ‘‘declined’’ when there is not
a comparable race category in either
AFCARS or the National Child Abuse
and Neglect Data System (NCANDS).
These commenters noted that State
child welfare information systems may
not be programmed to record this
information currently. The commenters
also asked technical questions about

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

10346

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

how they should report declined race
information to AFCARS and NCANDS if
they must make changes to their
information systems.
Response: We have proposed a
comparable change to the race
categories in an NPRM on AFCARS
published in the Federal Register on
January 11, 2008. The changes to the
AFCARS child race elements are
described at 73 FR 2092 and 2130.
NCANDS data is beyond the scope of
this regulation.
Comment: A commenter noted that
AFCARS does not permit a State to
indicate that a person identifies with
multiple races, including one which the
person does not know and questioned
whether there needed to be consistency
for States reporting information across
the data sets.
Response: As noted above, we have
proposed regulatory changes to the
AFCARS race elements to make this
information comparable across the two
data sets.
In reviewing this element, we noted
the need to modify the final rule to
remove the parenthetical remark that a
youth or parent may be unable to
communicate the youth’s race ‘‘due to
age, disability or abandonment.’’ The
phrasing of the parenthetical remark
was unclear as to whom the conditions
of age, disability or abandonment
applied. Further, we believe that the
statement confused the issue of selfidentification of race information
because it suggested that youth who
were abandoned as infants or who were
of a certain age would not be able to
identify a race for themselves. Instead,
we want to reaffirm that self-reporting
or self-identification is the preferred
method for a State to collect data on
race and ethnicity. If this information is
not available in a State’s child welfare
information system (i.e., collected for
foster care purposes), the State should
first solicit this information from a
youth. If the youth is not able to
communicate this information because
of a severe disability or some other
reason, the State should solicit race
information from a parent. Once these
avenues have been exhausted and these
individuals have not been able to
provide a response, the State may report
the youth race as ‘‘unknown.’’ Finally,
we also modified the name of this
element to be solely ‘‘unknown,’’ as
opposed to ‘‘unknown/unable to
determine’’ to avoid confusion.
Hispanic or Latino Ethnicity
In paragraph (g)(13), we describe a
youth of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity as
a person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto
Rican, South or Central American, or

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

other Spanish culture or origin,
regardless of race.
Comment: A couple of commenters
raised a concern about reporting
declined ethnicity information for the
NYTD similar to their concerns
regarding the race declined category.
Response: In the same AFCARS
NPRM we mentioned above, we have
proposed a comparable change to the
ethnicity data. See the proposed
changes at 73 FR 2092 and 2130.
Foster Care Status—Services
In paragraph (g)(14), we require a
State to indicate whether a youth within
the served population is in foster care
consistent with the definition in 45 CFR
1355.20 at any point during the report
period.
Comment: A commenter noted that
some of the measures of permanency
used in the Child and Family Services
Reviews (CFSRs) are calculated based
on the experiences of children who have
been in foster care for eight or more
days (71 FR 32969–32987, June 7, 2006
and 72 FR 2881–2890, January 23,
2007). The commenter requested that
we consider using similar selection
criteria for determining whether a youth
in the served population is considered
to be in foster care for NYTD purposes.
Response: We do not believe that the
data selection rules we use for the
purposes of calculating whether States
achieve certain CFSR outcomes are
appropriate for defining the parameters
of the NYTD. We apply the 8-day
exclusion for the purpose of the CFSR
permanency measure and not as a
condition for which children must be
reported to AFCARS. For the NYTD we
are requiring States to report data on a
youth’s receipt of independent living
services and foster care status to permit
us to determine appropriate
performance measures at a later date
which may or may not include selection
rules. In other words, the data must be
broad so that we have options for how
to interpret and use the data.
We are not making any changes to this
element description in the final rule. We
would like to clarify here, however, that
a youth is in foster care consistent with
the definition of foster care in 45 CFR
1355.20, only if the youth has not yet
reached the State’s age of majority.
Local Agency
In paragraph (g)(15), we require a
State to report either: (1) The county or
equivalent jurisdictional unit that has
primary responsibility for placement
and care of a youth who is in foster care,
or (2) the county with primary
responsibility for providing services to a
youth who is not in foster care. We

PO 00000

Frm 00010

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

received no comments on this data
element and are making only minor
modifications to the language and
adding a cross-reference to the
definition of foster care in 45 CFR
1355.20.
Federally Recognized Tribe
In paragraph (g)(16), the State must
report whether a youth is enrolled in or
eligible for membership in a federally
recognized tribe.
Comment: A few commenters
requested more clarity on this element.
In particular, commenters requested
information on how to categorize youth
whose eligibility or enrollment status is
undetermined, how to report a youth
who resides in a State without any
federally recognized tribes and the
overlap between this element and the
race category of American Indian or
Alaska Native.
Response: We are revising the name of
the data element and the regulation text
to clarify that we are seeking
information on a youth’s enrollment or
eligibility for membership in a federally
recognized tribe only. We understand
that there may be a period of time in
which the youth’s tribal affiliation is
undetermined, and if this remains the
case when data reporting is due to us,
the element should be reported as
missing the information (i.e., a blank
response). If a State is unsure about
whether a youth meets the criteria for
enrollment or is a member of the tribe,
and the youth does not know this
information, the State may contact the
tribe(s) in question. Where a youth
resides is irrelevant for determining
whether the youth is eligible for
membership or enrolled in a federally
recognized tribe.
There are distinctions between this
element and the race category of
American Indian and Alaska Native.
The race category is self-identified
information and is indicative of how a
person views him or herself and his
affiliation with the original peoples of
the Americas. The federally recognized
tribe element focuses on either
enrollment in or eligibility for
membership in one of the over 560
federally recognized tribes only. The
two categories, however, are not
mutually exclusive.
Comment: A commenter suggested
that a simpler description of the element
we are interested in is whether the
Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA)
applies for a youth.
Response: We disagree that the
alternate suggestion to collect
information on whether ICWA applies
to a youth is a viable substitute for
information on whether a young person

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

is enrolled in or eligible for membership
in a federally recognized tribe.
Narrowing the element to identify an
ICWA-protected child would exclude
youth over age 18 and those who are not
involved in a custody proceeding before
a State court from the NYTD population.
As such, we are retaining this element
as proposed.
Adjudicated Delinquent
In paragraph (g)(17), the State is to
indicate whether a youth has been
adjudicated by a Federal or State court
as a juvenile delinquent.
Comment: Several commenters had
concerns about the description of the
data element ‘‘adjudicated delinquent.’’
One commenter suggested that we
instead require States to report whether
a youth had ever been involved with the
juvenile justice system. Other
commenters were concerned about
overrepresentation of delinquent youth
in the dataset and States being held
accountable for the outcomes of
delinquent youth who had spent brief
periods in foster care.
Another concern was one of
comparability as some States have
eligibility criteria which restrict the
availability of independent living
services to certain delinquent youth.
Response: We have reviewed our
description of an adjudicated
delinquent and believe that it accurately
depicts what we are most interested in
measuring, that is, whether a court has
found that the youth has committed an
act of delinquency. We believe that
capturing whether a youth is involved
with the juvenile justice system is too
broad and are not making this change to
the final rule.
In terms of services information,
States will report information on the
youth to whom the State agency
provides an independent living service
that is paid for or provided by the State
agency. In terms of outcomes
information, States will report all 17year-olds in foster care as the baseline
population and follow these youth over
time. To the extent that youth who fall
within these population are also
adjudicated delinquent, such youth
simply reflect the composition of the
State’s foster care and former foster care
populations.
Finally, we believe that the concerns
about comparability and accountability
are premature, as we do not have State
performance measures in place. We
believe the information on youth
characteristics will permit us to better
interpret the data, elucidate where
appropriate comparisons can be made,
and guide how we measure State
performance.

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

Educational Level
In paragraph (g)(18), we require the
State to report the highest educational
level attained by youth. We did not
receive any comments on this data
element or description and we are not
making changes to the regulation text
itself. However, we are changing the
element name in Appendix A from
‘‘Last grade completed’’ to ‘‘Educational
level’’ to match the regulation text.
Special Education Status
In paragraph (g)(19), the State is to
indicate whether the youth is receiving
special education, which is specifically
designed instruction, at no cost to the
parents, to meet the unique needs of a
child with a disability. We received no
comments on this description and are
not making changes to the final rule.
Discussion on General Issues With the
Services-Related Elements
Commenters had general
recommendations and concerns
regarding the service elements in
paragraph (g)(20) through (g)(33). We
address the general comments here and
subsequently address each element in
(g)(20) through (g)(33) individually.
Comment: Several commenters
reported concerns that we were not
proposing to quantify service
information overall and/or with regard
to specific service data elements.
Several proposals were offered to do so.
The commenters urged us to require
States to report service quantity in a
variety of ways, such as the length of the
service period, the frequency of the
service, actual service hours, number of
sessions attended, or the amount of
financial assistance, as applicable.
These commenters believed that we
would enhance our understanding of
the services if we quantified a particular
youth’s service.
Response: We appreciate the
commenters’ concerns about the manner
in which we proposed to collect the
quantity of service data, but we still
believe that our rationale articulated in
the NPRM for quantifying services in a
broad sense is compelling. As we
explained, we considered requiring
States to quantify the hours of services,
but discovered through the pilot test
that caseworkers and supervisors spent
enormous amounts of time locating this
information. Workers had to estimate or
guess how long a youth received a
service, which led us to question the
accuracy of such information. A similar
concern exists with requiring States to
provide general quantity information,
such as number of sessions attended,
days or weeks of a service, or service

PO 00000

Frm 00011

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

10347

frequency. Primarily, the wide variety of
independent living service types,
content and curriculum make this
information unlikely to be comparable
in a way other than the unit of
measurement. Even dollar amounts of
financial assistance can only be fully
interpreted with accompanying
information on how States and youth
use those funds. We believe that our
proposal for the State to report whether
the youth has received a service within
a report period meets the statute’s
mandate regarding quantity and does
not unduly burden workers for little
clear benefit. Therefore, we are not
making a change to the final rule to
quantify a youth’s services further in
any manner suggested.
Comment: A few commenters raised
concerns that the service data elements
are defined too broadly, and suggested
that providing more detailed definitions
would permit us to better differentiate
the service provided to the youth.
Response: In developing the NPRM
and conducting the pilot test, we found
wide variations among States in the
variety of independent living services
available and provided to youth. We
learned from States that collecting more
detailed information on services would
overburden caseworkers unnecessarily.
We explained in the NPRM that these
reasons led us to limit the service
categories to eleven broad categories.
While we acknowledge that we may not
be able to analyze the data on individual
services (e.g., distinctions between
youth who receive vocational training
and youth who undertake an
apprenticeship) we believe that the
categories are distinguishable enough to
provide information about the types of
independent living services youth
receive as required by the law. We are
not further separating the service
category data elements in the final rule
in response to this comment.
Comment: A commenter believed that
the services component of the NYTD
should include some information on
youth satisfaction with independent
living services.
Response: We believe that consumer
satisfaction information exceeds the
statute’s mandate to collect information
on the number and characteristics of
youth who receive independent living
services and the type and quantity of
those services (section 477(f)(1)(B) of the
Act). Further, we believe that consumer
satisfaction is best measured through
program evaluation and not a national
data collection.
Comment: Several commenters noted
that service providers outside the State
agency may typically pay or provide
some of the independent living services

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

10348

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

proposed and recommended that those
services and providers be captured in
NYTD.
Response: As stated earlier, we
recognize that many State agencies
collaborate and coordinate with other
governmental agencies and private
organizations that have their own
resources to help youth achieve selfsufficiency. However, the statute
requires us to collect information on
those independent living services that
the State provides under the CFCIP
(section 477(f)(1)(B) of the Act). In the
NPRM we took an expansive view of
such services to include those that are
provided by or funded by the State
agency rather than strictly those services
that are funded by the CFCIP allotment
(see discussion at 71 FR 40349). As
such, we believe that further extending
the scope of this data collection to
include any independent living service
a youth may receive regardless of the
source is too far removed from the
statutory mandate. We are amending the
service descriptions for several of the
data elements to be clear that this data
collection is limited to the purposes
ascribed by law.
Independent Living Needs Assessment
In paragraph (g)(20), we require the
State to report whether the youth
received an independent living needs
assessment, which is a systematic
procedure to identify a youth’s basic
skills, emotional and social capabilities,
and strengths and needs to match the
youth with appropriate independent
living services.
Comment: One commenter suggested
a change in wording for the definition
of independent living needs assessment
to emphasize that the assessment
identifies a youth’s ‘‘strengths and
training needs’’ instead of ‘‘strengths
and weaknesses.’’
Response: We concur with the
commenter that a change is warranted.
Rather than the suggested language,
however, we have amended the
definition to read ‘‘strengths and
needs,’’ recognizing that the youth may
also have other needs to be met by the
program than training needs.
Comment: A commenter requested
that the data element be changed to
indicate whether the youth’s needs
assessment is still accurate and in effect
at the time of the report period.
Response: We believe that a State
reporting whether the youth received an
independent living assessment within a
six-month report period provides
sufficient information for our purposes.
The purpose of the element is to
identify whether or not the State
completed an assessment of the youth’s

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

strengths and needs. Whether the report
is current is not the primary issue. We
believe that gathering information on
the accuracy of an independent living
service is beyond the scope of the NYTD
and are not making the suggested
change. We do not believe that it is
reasonable to ask the caseworker, youth
or administrator to evaluate and report
the accuracy of such an assessment, as
there is no requirement in the CFCIP for
such an assessment.
Comment: A commenter believed that
the independent living needs
assessment element would provide little
significant information about a certain
State because that State routinely
conducts an assessment when the youth
becomes eligible for the independent
living program and again at the point
the youth ages out of the foster care
system.
Response: We disagree that
understanding whether youth receive
independent living needs assessments,
even for States that conduct them
routinely, is insignificant. Rather,
collecting information on the
independent living services that a State
provides to youth in each State and
nationally is consistent with the
statute’s mandate and provides a frame
of reference for interpreting youth
outcomes.
Academic Support
In paragraph (g)(21), we request
information on whether a youth
received academic services designed to
help a youth complete high school or
obtain a General Equivalency Degree
(GED).
Comment: A few commenters were
concerned that this data element was
not clearly defined.
Response: We have reviewed the
regulatory language and do not see a
need for change. We are quite specific
that academic support includes
activities such as academic counseling,
preparation for a GED, tutoring, help
with homework, literacy training, study
skills training and help accessing
educational resources. The element does
not include the youth’s attendance at
high school or post-secondary supports.
Post-Secondary Educational Support
In paragraph (g)(22), we request
information on whether the youth
received support designed to help the
youth enter or complete college.
Comment: One commenter asked for a
clearer definition of support.
Response: We have reviewed the
regulatory language and did not see a
need for change. We are specifying the
nature of the supports we mean in the
regulatory definition, including test

PO 00000

Frm 00012

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

preparation, college counseling,
assistance applying for college and
securing financial aid and tutoring
while in college. The list is not allinclusive, other supports such as college
tours provided by the agency could fall
within this definition. We have made a
minor change to use the broader term of
‘‘post-secondary’’ versus college in the
regulatory definition, so that we are
clear that it includes all varieties of
colleges (e.g., two-year colleges, fouryear colleges, community and
vocational colleges) and universities.
Career Preparation
In paragraph (g)(23), we require a
State to report services that develop a
youth’s ability to find, apply for, and
retain appropriate employment.
Comment: A couple of commenters
suggested that we include a youth’s
participation in certain volunteer
activities as part of the description of
career preparation or as a part of the
employment programs or vocational
training data element described in
paragraph (g)(24). Another commenter
echoed inclusion of youth volunteer
activities in NYTD as a separate service
data element.
Response: Although volunteer
activities may be a helpful component
to a youth’s development and
preparation for work, we do not believe
it is a service. Therefore, we are not
making a change to the final rule to
incorporate volunteer activities.
Employment Programs or Vocational
Training
In paragraph (g)(24), we require a
State to report whether a youth received
programs and training designed to build
a youth’s skills for a specific trade,
vocation or career through classes or onsite training.
Comment: A commenter suggested
that instead of referring to vocational
training as inclusive of training in
occupational classes to build skills in
‘‘other current or emerging employment
sectors’’ that the description refer to
building skills in ‘‘other high-growth,
high-demand industries.’’
Response: We understand that there
are a variety of ways to capture this
information, but do not see a need to
modify the final rule in response to this
suggestion.
Budget and Financial Management
In paragraph (g)(25), we require a
State to indicate whether the youth
receives training and other practical
assistance related to budget and
financial independent living skills. We
received no comments on this data

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations
element description and are not making
any changes to the final rule.
Housing Education and Home
Management Training
In paragraph (g)(26), the State is to
indicate whether a youth receives
instruction or support services regarding
housing responsibilities and home
management skills. The comments we
received on this element have been
addressed under the general issues on
the services elements. We are not
making any changes to the final rule.
Health Education and Risk Prevention
In paragraph (g)(27), the State must
report if a youth received services
related to health-related educational
topics, but not the receipt of direct
health services. The comments we
received on this element have been
addressed under the general issues on
the services elements. We are not
making any changes to the final rule.
Family Support/Healthy Marriage
Education
In paragraph (g)(28) the State must
report if a youth receives education on
maintaining healthy families, including
parenting and childcare skills, spousal
communication, family violence
prevention and responsible fatherhood.
Comment: One commenter expressed
concern that the use of the term
‘‘healthy marriage’’ within the
description of this element indicates a
bias against non-traditional family
compositions and does not take into
account the youth’s sexual orientation.
Response: We disagree that the data
element indicates a bias for any family
configuration. The focus of this element
is to collect data on youth who receive
education on positive family
relationships, regardless of family
configuration. States have the discretion
to determine the content of such
education and the extent to which it is
individualized for youth.

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

Mentoring
In paragraph (g)(29), mentoring is
defined as programs or services in
which a youth meets regularly with a
screened and trained adult on a one-onone basis.
Comment: We received many
comments suggesting modifications to
the mentoring data element. A majority
of these commenters urged us to
broaden the definition to include
informal relationships with adults, such
as with parents of a youth’s friends,
coaches, teachers, ministers, former
foster parents, former employers, and
any other adult who provides positive
support for the youth whether or not the

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

relationship is facilitated or funded
through the child welfare agency.
Several commenters also suggested that
we remove from this service description
the condition that mentors be screened
and trained.
Response: ACF recognizes that youth
may benefit from many different types
of positive adult relationships that are
not paid for or provided by the State
agency; however, the purpose of this
particular element is to collect data on
mentoring as a service that is provided
by the State agency. We will, however,
gather data on positive adult
relationships in the youth’s life in the
outcomes component of NYTD as
described in paragraph (g)(48). We are
not making any changes to the final rule
in response to this comment.
Comment: A few commenters
suggested that the data elements for
mentoring and connection to adult
described in paragraph (g)(48), be
consolidated into a single element.
Response: While we can appreciate
the desire to have fewer elements, we
will retain the elements separately so
that we can measure distinct concepts.
The mentoring element is intended to
capture whether youth are being
mentored as a part of the independent
living services they receive from the
agency and the connection to adult
element seeks information on whether
youth are connected to adults as an
outcome.
Comment: A commenter sought
clarity on how a State would report to
the NYTD a youth who had a formal
mentor but the mentoring relationship
was not facilitated or funded by the
State agency or its agents.
Response: In the situation described,
a State would indicate that the youth
did not have mentoring as an
independent living service in the data
element described in paragraph (g)(29).
Comment: A commenter asked what
kind of training was envisioned to
qualify a mentor for the purposes of this
data element. Another commenter
posited that a mentoring relationship
would be longstanding only if the
person was a volunteer and unpaid.
Finally, a commenter suggested that
mentors could be an untapped resource
to gather outcomes data on youth.
Response: All of the points raised by
these commenters are matters that are at
the discretion of the State. While the
mentoring description limits the
collection of data on those mentors that
are screened and trained, we are not
prescribing the extent of any screening
or training. The training could range
from an orientation to a structured
mentoring curriculum. We agree that
typically mentoring requires the

PO 00000

Frm 00013

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

10349

voluntary commitment of a caring
individual, but we see no need to
require that mentors be uncompensated.
Finally, the extent to which the State
agency chooses to involve mentors in
some capacity in the collection of
outcomes information from youth is an
idea that may warrant further
exploration, but would be completely
up to the State agency.
Supervised Independent Living
In paragraph (g)(30), a State is to
report whether a youth was served via
a supervised independent living
arrangements under the supervision of
an agency, but without 24-hour a day
supervision.
Comment: One commenter asked if a
youth in a transitional living program
should be reported as in a supervised
independent living program. The
commenter indicated that in a certain
State, supervised independent living
and transitional living were distinctly
different even though they both offer a
supervised living arrangement with less
than 24-hour a day supervision by an
adult and increased youth
responsibilities.
Response: The commenter did not
provide explicit details on its
transitional living program; however,
we understand that the Federal
transitional living program provides
grantees with funding to assist older,
homeless youth in developing skills and
resources to promote their
independence and prevent future
dependency on social services. This
transitional living program provides
housing and a range of services for
youth ages 16 to 21, who are unable to
return to their homes. Former foster care
youth may be served by these
transitional living programs, so whether
to report a youth participating in such
a program as receiving supervised
independent living under this element
depends on whether the youth’s
participation in the program is paid for
or provided by the State agency and is
otherwise consistent with the regulatory
description.
Room and Board Financial Assistance
In paragraph (g)(31), the State is to
report whether the youth is receiving
room and board payments and other
financial assistance such as rent
deposits and utilities. We received no
comments on this description, and we
are not making changes to the final rule.
Educational Financial Assistance
In paragraph (g)(32), we describe
educational financial assistance to
include financial assistance for a
youth’s school books and materials,

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

10350

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

tuition assistance, examination and
application fees, and educational
vouchers for college tuition or
vocational education.
Comment: One commenter suggested
we combine this element on educational
financial assistance with the outcomes
focused element of educational aid
described in paragraph (g)(41), and for
States to report on all youth in the
served, baseline and follow-up
populations.
Response: We are unable to combine
the elements described in paragraph
(g)(32) ‘‘educational financial
assistance’’ and in paragraph (g)(41)
‘‘educational aid’’ because the
applicable populations are different for
each element as well as the scope and
purpose of the elements. ‘‘Educational
financial assistance’’ is a service
element that refers to financial supports
that the State agency pays for or
provides for the youth whereas
‘‘educational aid’’ is an outcome
element and refers to monies or other
types of educational financial aid, from
any source, that helps cover the youth’s
educational expenses as an indicator of
their financial self-sufficiency. We are
retaining the two separate elements in
the final rule so that we obtain data on
both concepts.

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

Other Financial Assistance
In paragraph (g)(33) the State is to
report whether a youth is receiving any
other type of financial assistance from
the State agency to assist the youth to
live independently. We received no
comments on this description, and we
are not making changes to the final rule.
Discussion on General Issues With the
Outcomes-Related Elements
Commenters raised general questions
and concerns about the data elements
that relate to youth outcomes described
in paragraphs (g)(34) through (g)(58). We
also address each of these elements
separately.
Comment: One commenter was
unclear about how ACF would obtain
results about the increase, decrease or
improvement of the six outcome
measures. Another commenter
questioned whether the survey
questions could measure with validity
the six outcomes of interest.
Response: The six outcomes outlined
in this regulation will be measured
based on the data reported by States
through the elements in paragraphs
1356.83(g)(34) through (58). We
formulated the survey questions and
data elements after significant
stakeholder involvement and a pilot test
and believe that they will measure the
outcomes specified. However, we have

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

not yet devised the specific performance
measures upon which to assess State
performance.
Comment: A couple of commenters
asked whether the State is permitted to
conduct data cross-matching with other
administrative databases to gather data
on youth, such as those maintained by
States to support corrections,
Temporary Assistance for Needy
Families, Medicaid, employment,
education, and child support.
Response: For outcomes data
collection, ACF is requiring that the
States use the survey method prescribed
in 45 CFR 1356.82(a)(2). The State must
administer the outcomes survey in
appendix B to youth directly and
therefore, the State may not provide
information in the data elements
described in paragraph (g)(37) through
(g)(58) from any other source. On the
other hand, information on the youth’s
characteristics (e.g., adjudicated
delinquent, educational level, foster
care status, etc.) does not need to be
collected from the youth directly and
may come from a source of
administrative data.
Comment: A commenter asked if we
expect State agencies or the person
administering the outcome survey to the
youth to verify the answers youth
provide.
Response: We are not clear what the
commenter envisions as verifying youth
information and can envision scenarios
where this may or may not be
acceptable. For example, the State may
not ‘verify’ a youth’s answers to the
outcomes survey against information
from a third-party, such as whether the
youth has been referred for a substance
abuse assessment or counseling or
whether the youth has children,.
Alternatively, it may be appropriate for
the State to devise a system of prompts
in an outcomes survey administered on
the internet that ask the youth to ‘verify’
whether he or she meant to provide a
particular answer. Since verification
techniques differ, we prefer to address
specific questions about verification
through policy guidance and technical
assistance, as necessary.
Comment: A commenter requested
clarification of the term ‘‘high risk
behaviors.’’
Response: Section 477(f)(1) of the Act
requires that we develop outcome
measures, one of which is a measure of
high-risk behaviors. During the
consultation process we determined that
we would interpret this term for the
purposes of the NYTD to refer to
substance abuse, incarceration, and
childbearing outside of marriage. These
behaviors will be measured through
outcome 5, reducing high-risk behavior

PO 00000

Frm 00014

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

among young people using data
reported to us in the elements described
in paragraphs (g)(50) through (g)(53).
Comment: One commenter stated that
youth who leave foster care may be
hesitant about sharing their experiences
with high risk behaviors with the State
or Federal government.
Response: We have taken this into
consideration and feel that the option to
decline to answer is sufficient for youth
who are hesitant about sharing their
experiences related to high risk
behavior.
Comment: One State asked if ACF
would be providing detailed mapping
forms with code tables for reporting the
outcome data elements, which the
commenter believed was necessary for
accurate comparison or aggregate
analysis.
Response: Detailed mapping forms
and other technical information are not
provided in the final rule. We will be
providing technical assistance and
guidance outside of the regulatory
process to support States as they
implement the NYTD.
Outcomes Reporting Status
In paragraph (g)(34), we require the
State to indicate if the youth
participated in the outcomes data
collection, and, if not, the reason why
the State was unable to collect the
outcome information.
We did not receive comments on this
paragraph but have made several
modifications to the final rule. One
change reflects the reduced number of
data elements (from 60 to 58 elements).
We have also added language specifying
that when a youth does not participate
in the outcomes data collection, most of
the remaining outcomes elements
should have blank responses.
Finally, we have added a new
response option of ‘‘not in sample’’ for
the State to identify the 19-year-old
youth who are in the follow-up
population but who were not selected in
the State’s sample. See also the previous
discussion on section 1356.83(e). Youth
who are not in the sample do not need
further categorization, as the remaining
response options apply only to those
youth who are in the sample. This
response option will be used only by
those States who sample, once every
three years when outcomes data
collection is due for 19-year-olds in the
follow-up population.
The addition of this response option
obviates the need for the separate
element ‘‘sampling status’’ that we
proposed in the NPRM. We have
removed the sampling status data
element formerly at paragraph (g)(37)

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations
and renumbered the remaining elements
accordingly.
Date of Outcome Data Collection
In paragraph (g)(35) we require a State
to report the last date the State collects
outcome information from the youth.
Comment: One commenter suggested
modifying the element so that the State
reflects just the month and year and not
the day of the data collection. The
commenter believed that because a State
may gather outcome data on a youth
from multiple sources, including
parents, the last day of data collection
may prove overly complicated.
Response: In the date of outcome data
collection element, we require the State
to report the last date that the outcome
information is collected from the youth.
The State cannot collect outcomes data
from the youth’s parent or guardian or
an alternative source. The State reports
the date when the outcomes survey is
completed by the youth directly. For
example, if the youth outcomes survey
is administered in person by the youth’s
caseworker and the youth completes it
over the course of two visits, the State
must report the last date the survey is
completed for this element. We
reviewed the data element description
in light of this comment and believe it
is clear. We have made a modification
to the description only to reflect the
change in the number of data elements.

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

Foster Care Status—Outcomes
In paragraph (g)(36), the State must
report the youth’s foster care status at
the time of the outcomes data collection.
We did not receive comments on this
paragraph and have made no changes to
the regulation. However, we would like
to note that a 19- or 21-year-old youth
would only be in foster care consistent
with the definition of foster care in 45
CFR 1355.20, if the youth has not yet
reached the State’s age of majority.
Current Employment Elements
In paragraph (g)(37) and (g)(38), the
State must report whether the youth
indicates that he or she is employed
full-time or part-time, respectively, as of
the date of information collection.
Comment: A few commenters were
concerned that the NYTD does not
require the State to report more details
about the youth’s employment status,
such as the reason for unemployment,
income level or salary information and
number of hours worked. The
commenters requested more detailed
information on employment income
level so that researchers could
determine youth poverty levels and
whether youth were engaged in other
activities that explained their

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

employment status, such as college
attendance, military enlistment,
incarceration or illness.
Response: We believe that more
detailed data on employment status is
not central to the purposes of the NYTD.
Even though we are not requiring more
detailed information, States will report
information in other elements that
provides additional context consistent
with the commenter’s concern. If a
youth reports that he or she is working
full-time, but still requires public
financial assistance, the State will report
this information in the public financial
assistance element as described in
paragraph (g)(42). Youth who are
attending college or some other type of
higher education would have the
opportunity to provide that information
in the current enrollment and
attendance element described in
paragraph (g)(47). The NYTD also
solicits information on whether youth
have been incarcerated in the past, or
cannot participate in outcomes data
collection because they are incarcerated
at that time. Youth who are enlisted in
the military, inclusive of the reserves
and the guard, are employed and should
indicate their full-time or part-time
working status accordingly. For these
reasons, we are retaining the two
elements as in the NPRM.
Comment: A commenter said that
measuring full-time and part-time
employment as of a specific collection
date would not capture potentially longterm employment if it ended prior to the
outcomes collection date.
Response: We made the choice to
request information on employment on
the date of the outcomes data collection
in the NPRM after considering the
various possible timeframes in which
we could request this information. Since
our primary goal is to gather
information that will help us
understand the experience of youth as a
whole, and the State’s performance,
rather than assessing the outcomes for
individual youth, we believe that the
current employment status of the youth
is sufficient for our purposes.
Comment: Several commenters noted
that the NYTD did not have an element
for reporting multiple jobs, and asked
how a youth should report working
multiple jobs in excess of 35 hours.
Response: We reviewed the data
element descriptions of full-time and
part-time employment in light of this
comment and believe they lacked clarity
about how to report multiple jobs. We
are amending the final rule to specify
that a youth who is employed at least
35 hours per week is considered
working full-time and a youth who is
employed 34 hours a week or less is

PO 00000

Frm 00015

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

10351

considered working part-time for the
purposes of this element, regardless of
whether such employment is in one or
multiple jobs. We do not believe it is
necessary for our purposes to solicit
additional information on the number of
jobs a youth holds.
Employment-Related Skills
In paragraph (g)(39), the State is to
report whether the youth indicates that
he or she has completed an
apprenticeship, internship, or other type
of on-the-job training in the past year.
Comment: One commenter believed
that it would be helpful to find out if the
youth had obtained employment-related
skills during the previous two years,
rather than just the previous year. As
the survey is administered to youth in
two-year intervals, the commenter
believed this particular element should
capture the youth’s entire experiences
since the prior survey.
Response: In creating this element we
took into consideration what we
believed was a reasonable time frame for
a young person to recall employmentrelated training along with our desire to
get the most accurate information
possible from a youth. Since our
primary goal is to gather information
that will help us understand the
experience of youth as a whole and the
State’s performance, rather than
assessing the outcomes for individual
youth, we believe that asking youth
about employment-related skills in the
last year is sufficient for our purposes.
We are not making a change to the final
rule in response to this comment.
Social Security
In paragraph (g)(40), the State is to
report whether a youth indicates that he
or she receives Social Security Income
(SSI) or Social Security Disability
Insurance (SSDI) directly or as a
dependent beneficiary.
Comment: A few commenters asked
for clarification on whether a State
should report a youth who receives SSI/
SSDI payments which are applied to the
cost of foster care or only those that are
paid to the youth directly. Commenters
raised a concern that a youth may not
know he/she was an SSI/SSDI recipient
if such payments were applied to the
cost of foster care and questioned
whether the State should ’correct’ a
youth’s response accordingly.
Response: If the youth is a SSI/SSDI
beneficiary but his or her payment is
going towards the cost of foster care,
then the youth is receiving social
security payments consistent with the
description for the data element in
paragraph (g)(40). However, the State is
not to correct a youth’s response if the

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

10352

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

youth is a beneficiary but responds in
the negative to the social security survey
question. While we recognize that this
may result in some cases of a youth
answering the question incorrectly, we
believe it is important to the integrity of
the survey and data to represent the
youth’s understanding of his or her own
circumstances. We do not believe any
changes are warranted to the final rule
in response to this comment.
Educational Aid
In paragraph (g)(41), the State is to
report whether a youth indicates he or
she is receiving a scholarship, education
or training voucher, grant, stipend,
student loan, or other type of
educational financial assistance.
Comment: A commenter believed that
the element was relevant only if the
youth was enrolled in post-secondary
training or education. The commenter
believed that we would have difficulty
interpreting a ‘‘no’’ response unless we
included an additional response option
for youth who are not enrolled in
school.
Response: This data element is not
limited to educational aid for those
youth enrolled in post-secondary
training or education. Rather, a youth
would report current scholarships,
grants, stipends, and vouchers for any
education, including for a secondary
education. The only limitation is with
regard to a student loan which the
government provides for obtaining a
post-secondary education only. Finally,
the State will report whether a youth
indicates that he or she is enrolled and
attending school currently in the
element described in paragraph (g)(47).
Comment: A commenter believed the
educational aid element to be too broad
and would not reveal what kinds of aid
the youth receives, i.e., Pell grants, ETV
vouchers, or other scholarships. The
commenter was also concerned that the
reference to using educational aid for
living expenses did not seem
appropriate to the nature of the element
or for youth under the age of 18.
Response: We proposed the
educational aid element as an indicator
of youth financial self-sufficiency. The
element is not intended to elicit specific
information on the types of aid the
youth is using to attend school.
However, we agree with the commenter
that the reference to living expenses
may be confusing and are removing the
reference from the final rule. To be
clear, we are seeking information on
17-, 19- and 21-year-olds’ current use of
aid that helps the youth attend school,
rather than how that financial assistance
is used (i.e., for room and board
expenses, books, fees, etc.).

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

Public Financial Assistance
In paragraph (g)(42), we require a
State to report whether the youth
indicates that he or she is a current
recipient of ongoing cash welfare
payments from the government to cover
some of his or her basic needs. We
received no comments on this
description. However, we have made
some changes due to our concerns that
this element was not broad enough to
include the types of public financial
assistance in which we were most
interested. The element, as originally
proposed, focused on a youth’s receipt
of cash assistance from a State’s
Temporary Assistance to Needy
Families (TANF) or title IV–A program.
We have since learned that States
provide ongoing cash assistance
designed to meet certain adults’ basic
needs in broader circumstances than
those permitted under the TANF
program. We are more interested in
understanding whether the youth is
receiving any type of public cash
assistance and not just assistance that
meets TANF requirements. Therefore,
we have broadened the definition to
refer more generically to ongoing
welfare assistance. Further, we have
specifically included language that
clarifies that we are interested in
financial payments for basic need versus
other types of government assistance for
particular purposes.
Finally, we discovered that the
element was categorized incorrectly in
Appendix A to the NPRM. We have
corrected the appendix to clarify that
the information on public financial
assistance is collected on youth in the
follow-up population who are no longer
in foster care.

public food assistance have a need for
such assistance.
Response: We appreciate that there
are other ways to determine whether
youth have enough food to meet their
needs and the ways in which youth may
meet that need. However, we reviewed
the element description and believe that
it will provide the information we are
seeking. The law requires us to track the
youth’s reliance on public assistance as
an outcome and that is the primary
reason for us selecting this element.
Whether youth are hungry or lack
sufficient and consistent access to foods
is an important indicator of their wellbeing, but it is not an indicator that we
identified during consultation as one
that the State agency should be held
accountable for and an outcome that
could be measured easily in a data
collection system. Finally, while
community food pantries do provide
food assistance, we do not consider
them to be public assistance. We are
making a minor modification to the title
and description of this element to be
clear that we are seeking information on
‘‘public food assistance’’ and not all
kinds of food assistance. We do not
believe further substantive changes are
necessary in response to these
comments.

Public Food Assistance

Public Housing Assistance
In paragraph (g)(44), the State is to
report whether a youth indicates that he
or she is receiving government-funded
housing assistance. We did not receive
comments on this paragraph, however,
we are making a minor modification to
the title of the element to be clear that
we are seeking information on ‘‘public
housing assistance’’ as opposed to
housing assistance from other sources.
We are not making further changes to
the final rule.

In paragraph (g)(43) the State is to
report whether the youth indicates that
he or she has received public food
assistance.
Comment: A few commenters
suggested alternative approaches to
gathering information on youth who
receive food assistance. A commenter
believed that we should amend the data
element description to include a youth’s
use of ‘‘food pantries.’’ Another
commenter believed that we should
require a State to report whether the
youth has experienced ‘‘food
insecurity’’ which means that the
youth’s access to food is limited by a
lack of money or other resources. This
commenter reasoned that the public
food assistance element as proposed
would not provide information on
whether those youth who do not receive

Other Financial Support
In paragraph (g)(45), the State must
report whether a youth indicates that he
or she receives any other periodic and/
or significant financial resources or
support.
Comment: A commenter suggested
that the element be renamed ‘‘other
financial support’’ to clearly indicate
that only financial support was being
identified in the element.
Response: We concur with the
commenter and have amended the final
rule accordingly.
Comment: A commenter asked for
further clarification on reporting nonfamilial sources of support since the
definition in the proposed Appendix B
referred only to other support
specifically from a spouse or family
member.

PO 00000

Frm 00016

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

Response: We reexamined the
preamble to the NPRM, the proposed
regulatory text and the definition in
Appendix B and found that the
definitions, as well as the examples and
exclusions, were not consistent
regarding this element. We have
amended the final rule to ensure a
consistent definition of other financial
support and to be clear that such funds
may not necessarily be uninterrupted
payments but also may be significant
funding sources of a temporary nature.
An example of both a significant and
non-familial financial support is funds
from a legal settlement, which is listed
in the regulation text.
Highest Educational Certification
Received
In paragraph (g)(46), the State is to
report the youth’s stated highest
educational certificate.
Comment: A commenter thought that
this element should be revised to reflect
all of a youth’s educational
achievements.
Response: We recognize the
importance of educational achievements
at all levels, but our intention with this
element is to ascertain the highest level
of educational certification a youth has
received. This element addresses the
statutory requirement to develop
measures related to educational
attainment. As such, we do not believe
a change is warranted.
Comment: One commenter thought
that high school diploma should be
separated from GED, since long term
outcomes in terms of later educational
completion and earnings vary.
Response: While we recognize that
long term outcomes may differ for youth
who receive a high school diploma
versus a GED, we feel that grouping
them together for this data collection
purpose still provides sufficient
information regarding educational
attainment and the transition from foster
care to self-sufficiency. For this reason
we are keeping high school diploma and
GED as one response option for this
element.
Comment: A commenter asked us to
clarify how we used the terms
‘‘certificate’’ or ‘‘credential’’ so that they
are more consistent with measures used
by other Federal agencies and endorsed
by some employers. The suggested
language was that a certificate or
credential is ‘‘an award made in
recognition of an individual’s
attainment of measurable technical or
occupational skills necessary to gain
employment or advance within an
occupation.’’
Response: We recognize that there are
different ways for defining and

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

classifying degrees, certificates and
credentials that a youth may receive.
Since this survey is going to be
completed by youth, we crafted the
descriptions to be consistent with terms
with which youth are familiar and that
were relatively simple to understand.
For this reason, we are not making
changes to this description.
Current Enrollment and Attendance
In paragraph (g)(47), the State is to
report the youth’s stated enrollment in
and attendance at school.
Comment: A commenter
recommended allowing young adults to
specify the type of school they currently
attend, such as GED, vocational training
or college.
Response: This element was
developed to indicate if youth are
making progress towards meeting
educational goals by being enrolled and
attending some kind of educational
institution, not to identify where youth
are specifically in school. We believe
that the specific type of institution
attended does not contribute
substantially to our ability to identify
educational attainment for youth as
required by the statute. For this reason
we are not amending the element to
allow youth to specify the type of school
they attend currently. However, we did
make a minor modification to the final
rule to be clearer about the situations
when a youth is still considered to be
enrolled in and attending school when
that school is out of session.
Connection to Adult
In paragraph (g)(48), the State is to
report whether a youth has stated his or
her positive connection to an adult who
serves in a mentor or substitute parent
capacity.
Comment: A few commenters asked
us to be clearer about which adults,
particularly adult family members,
youth could identify in this element.
Also, a couple of commenters asked us
to broaden the element to permit youth
to select current family service workers
or caseworkers as an adult to whom
they are connected, as these
relationships may be meaningful for a
young person.
Response: We reviewed the
description of this data element and are
clarifying the definition of this element
in the final rule. A connection to an
adult can include adult relatives,
parents or foster parents but specifically
excludes spouses, partners, boyfriends
or girlfriends and current caseworkers.
While the relationship between a youth
and a current caseworker can be a
positive connection to an adult, we are
attempting to determine if the youth has

PO 00000

Frm 00017

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

10353

a positive relationship to someone
outside of the State agency staff who are
employed to work with the youth.
Homelessness
In paragraph (g)(49), the State is to
report whether the youth indicates he or
she has experienced homelessness.
Comment: A few commenters were
concerned that the NYTD did not
specify the number of homeless
incidents or the duration of
homelessness. The commenters believed
that this information would provide a
clearer understanding of former foster
youth experience(s) with homelessness.
Another commenter requested more
specific information on where youth are
when they are homeless.
Response: During the consultation
process some participants noted that it
is important to measure the duration of
homelessness because there is a
difference in being homeless for a few
nights versus part of a year. However, in
order to lessen the data collection
burden, we decided not to include a
data element about the duration of a
young person’s experience with
homelessness for several reasons. We
believe that it may be difficult for youth
to remember clearly the duration and
episodes of homelessness, particularly
since we are interested in capturing
episodes that may have occurred several
years ago. Additionally, we are not
counting the number of homeless
incidents because we believe that a
youth’s experience with homelessness,
no matter how brief or how frequent,
often has a significant impact on his/her
life and ability to be self-sufficient in a
way that other experiences do not.
Comment: Commenters pointed out
several aspects of our proposed
definition that were not clear. One
commenter said that the phrasing ‘‘no
regular place to live of his own’’ could
be misinterpreted to mean that a youth
may be homeless unless he owns or
leases a home of his or her own.
Another commenter believed that a
youth should not indicate that he has
experienced homelessness if
‘‘temporarily living with a friend’’ as in
our proposed definition. A commenter
also questioned whether the State
should survey youth about
homelessness if the youth is still in
foster care.
Response: We reviewed the proposed
definition of homelessness and agree
that it lacked clarity and could lead to
overreporting of the type of
homelessness in which we are most
interested. Therefore, we are amending
the final rule to remove the language
that caused confusion. We have also
clarified in the definition that the

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

10354

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

homelessness survey question is to be
asked of all youth whether or not they
are in foster care at the time of the data
collection. This is important because
when the question is posed to 17-yearolds, it asks for the youth’s lifetime
experience with homelessness. When
the youth is 19 or 21, the question is
different and solicits information on
whether the youth was homeless at any
time in the past two years. Even if a
youth is in foster care on the date of
outcomes data collection, the youth may
have been homeless at some point
during that timeframe.
Comment: A commenter wanted to
know if the definition of homelessness
was the same as for other Federal
programs and funding streams such as
the McKinney-Vento Homeless
Assistance Act.
Response: There are many different
definitions for homelessness in Federal
programs that vary based on the
intended purposes of those programs.
Our definition of homelessness is based
on, but not identical to, the definition
used in the McKinney-Vento Homeless
Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 11302).
Rather, we chose a simpler and more
general definition of homelessness to
use for our purposes which is that the
youth has no regular or adequate place
to live. This definition includes
situations where the youth is living in
a car, on the street, or staying in a
homeless shelter.
Comment: One commenter suggested
the development of a new measure to
determine the relative stability of living
circumstances for each 17-year-old
during the previous 18 to 24 months
prior to data collection. The commenter
believed that such a measurement
would clarify issues caused by the high
correlation between high relative
stability and positive transitional
service outcomes.
Response: We are not clear which
data elements the commenter believes
would relate to this measure of stability
or what the measure would entail;
however, our intent at this time is to
promulgate data elements that will
allow us to develop appropriate
outcome measurements at a later time.

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

Substance Abuse Referral
In paragraph (g)(50), the State is to
report whether the youth indicates that
he or she has had a referral or selfreferral for alcohol or drug abuse
assessment or counseling. We did not
receive comments specific to this
element description and we are not
making changes to the final rule.

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

Incarceration
In paragraph (g)(51), the State is to
report the youth’s incarceration.
Comment: Several commenters were
concerned that the definition of
‘‘incarceration’’ provided in the NPRM
was inadequate for what the data
element was trying to capture.
Specifically, many thought that the term
was too broad, and several suggested
distinguishing between being arrested,
being detained in a jail or juvenile/
community detention facility because of
an alleged crime, and being convicted.
A couple of commenters were
concerned that wrongful arrests might
reinforce negative stereotypes about
foster youth and unfairly stigmatize this
population, particularly if the youth
were detained for a minor infraction.
Response: We agree that the proposed
definition of incarceration captured too
many different concepts. As such, we
are amending the final rule to focus
more specifically on incarceration,
rather than arrests or convictions,
because the statute requires that we
measure incarceration as an outcome
(section 477(f)(1)(A) of the Act). We
acknowledge that this element may
capture information on youth who are
incarcerated after a wrongful arrest and
for minor infractions, but we do not
have a clear basis upon which to
exclude such information from this data
collection.
Comment: Another commenter was
concerned that as different States have
different laws and definitions for
incarceration, it could prejudice the
outcome measure to use that term for a
nationwide data collection.
Response: States may have different
laws and/or definitions for
incarceration, but we have included a
specific definition for this data
collection process in the final rule.
Further, the purpose of this element is
to present a broad picture of youth
experiences with incarceration and not
to pinpoint the type of alleged crimes or
the nature of the convictions that may
have led to the youth’s incarceration.
Comment: One commenter suggested
that we change the definition of
incarceration in Appendix B from ‘‘an
alleged crime * * * committed by a
youth’’ to ‘‘a crime * * * allegedly
committed by the youth.’’
Response: We agree and have
amended Appendix B accordingly.
Children
In paragraph (g)(52) the State is to
report whether the youth indicates that
he or she gave birth to, or fathered, any
children. We did not receive comments
specific to this element description and
are not making changes to the final rule.

PO 00000

Frm 00018

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

Marriage at Child’s Birth
In paragraph (g)(53), the State is to
report whether the youth was married to
the child’s parent at the time of the birth
of any children reported in the previous
paragraph.
Comment: A few commenters
suggested that the data element specify
that the youth be married to the child’s
other ‘‘biological’’ parent, not just
‘‘other parent.’’
Response: We have examined this
suggestion but do not believe a change
is warranted. This element is crafted to
focus on the outcome of ‘‘nonmarital
childbirth’’ as required by the statute
(section 477(f)(1)(A) of the Act). As
such, we are interested in information
on whether the youth is married to his
or her child’s other biological or legal
parent at the time of the child’s birth.
We did, however, mistakenly specify
the child’s other ‘‘biological parent’’
rather than ‘‘other parent’’ in the NPRM
preamble which may have generated
this comment.
Comment: A commenter pointed out
that in the description of the marriage
at child’s birth element in Appendix B
we referred to any child born ‘‘in the
past year’’ while the definition in the
regulatory text refers to any child
reported in the children element.
Response: The commenter is correct
that we made an error. The two
elements relate, so that if a youth
reports that he or she had a child in his
lifetime (if reporting at age 17) or had a
child within the past two years (if
reporting at age 19 or 21), then the
marriage element relates to whether the
youth was married at the time of the
births during those respective
timeframes. We are amending Appendix
B accordingly.
Medicaid
In paragraph (g)(54), the State must
report whether the youth indicates that
he or she is participating in the State’s
Medicaid program. We did not receive
comments on this paragraph and are
making no changes to the final rule.
Other Health Insurance Coverage
In paragraph (g)(55), the State is to
report whether a youth has indicated
that he or she has health insurance other
than Medicaid. We did not receive
comments on this paragraph and are
making no changes to the final rule.
Health Insurance Elements
In paragraphs (g)(56) through (g)(58),
the State is to report the types of health
insurance the youth indicates he or she
possesses other than Medicaid.
Comment: Several commenters found
that the health insurance elements

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

lacked clarity and simplicity. A
commenter also noted that survey
questions regarding other health
insurance types had been omitted from
the survey in Appendix B.
Response: We agree and have
amended the final rule in a number of
ways to respond to the commenters’
concerns. The survey questions and
elements are structured now to solicit
all types of insurance types the youth
has, rather than pinpointing a particular
combination of insurance. For example,
the youth will be asked separately
whether he has insurance that covers
medical health, mental health, and/or
prescription drugs, rather than whether
he has a plan that combines all three
types. We have also added a response
option of ‘‘I don’t know’’ to the health
insurance type elements in a way that
permits the youth to identify the types
of insurance that he or she knows and
does not know about. We have
eliminated a data element with this
restructuring without any loss in the
information collected. Finally,
Appendix B specifies the survey
questions that reflect these changes.
Recommendations for Additional Data
Elements for Both the Services and
Outcomes Components of NYTD
Comment: A commenter noted the
absence of data elements in the NYTD
that identify youth who have physical
or mental disabilities. The commenter
believes that information regarding
disabilities is essential to a complete
analysis of data on youths’ employment
and educational attainment.
Response: We agree that data on a
youth’s disabilities could inform our
understanding of independent living
services and youth outcomes. However,
States already collect and report this
information to AFCARS. Since we are
requiring States to identify youth in the
same way in both datasets, we believe
we will have the foundation to analyze
youth disabilities information from
AFCARS in conjunction with the
services and outcomes information from
NYTD. We do not believe it necessary
to require States to duplicate this
information and are not making a
change to the final rule.
Comment: A commenter suggested an
additional characteristics element
which identifies the youth’s living
arrangement, particularly whether youth
are in a foster family home, child care
institution or a supervised independent
living arrangement. The commenter
believed that this information could
shed light on the likelihood of youth
receiving informal or formal services.
Response: We disagree that all living
arrangements need to be incorporated

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

into the NYTD as we do not believe that
information on the setting in which an
independent living service is delivered
is essential to fulfilling the statutory
mandate. One exception is that when a
youth is in a supervised independent
living arrangement it would be
indicated as a service to the youth
because it is more than just the child’s
placement. To the extent that other
living arrangement information may
reveal useful information, we can
analyze the NYTD information in
conjunction with AFCARS data on
foster care settings. We are not making
changes to the final rule to incorporate
further living arrangement information.
Comment: Several commenters
believed that the NYTD should have
several elements on youth mental
health. In particular, commenters
requested elements to identify youth
with mental health issues, report
whether such youth are referred for or
receive mental health assessments and
services, and assess prevalence of
mental health problems as an outcome.
These commenters noted that some
research indicates that youth in foster
care have a higher rate of mental health
issues, which if not treated effectively,
can be significant barriers to selfsufficiency.
Response: We reexamined our
exclusion of a mental health element in
the NPRM and believe still that it is not
appropriate for this data collection.
During our consultation process, we
ruled out the inclusion of elements on
health utilization and outcomes,
including mental health. We agreed
with stakeholders that mental health is
an important aspect of a youth’s wellbeing, but it is not generally accepted as
part of the responsibility of a State’s
independent living program. Further,
mental health is an area that is
challenging to measure in a
straightforward manner. As such, we are
not making a change to include mental
health services or outcomes in the final
rule.
Comment: One commenter suggested
that it was not only important to know
if youth needed health services, mental
health services or prescription
medications, but also if youth had been
unable to access appropriate services.
Response: We are interested in
determining to what extent youth have
health insurance as a measure of their
ability to access appropriate services to
meet their needs. As stated previously,
we ruled out measures of health care
utilization during consultation and find
no compelling reason to include them in
the final rule.
Comment: A commenter
recommended that we collect and use

PO 00000

Frm 00019

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

10355

data on the State agency’s efforts to
continue permanency planning for older
youth despite their preparation for
emancipation. The commenter
suggested that this could be
accomplished through services and
outcomes data elements in NYTD or
alternatively through AFCARS.
Response: The NYTD was designed to
collect data specifically about services
offered by the State’s independent living
program and outcomes related to those
services. Although we recognize the
potential value of an agency’s continued
permanency efforts for older youth, we
believe that this dataset is not the
appropriate venue for requesting
information regarding permanency
plans. Rather, to some extent, this
information can be examined more
closely through the existing AFCARS
and the Child and Family Services
Reviews.
Comment: One commenter noticed
the omission of data elements that relate
directly to a youth’s use of education
and training voucher (ETV) funding
pursuant to section 477(h) of the Act
and thought it would be useful to collect
information on the drop-out rates of
youth using the vouchers and the
youths’ reasons for dropping out of postsecondary education.
Response: A youth’s receipt of an ETV
is included in both the services and
outcome elements as part of the
‘‘Educational Financial Assistance’’
service element and the ‘‘Educational
Aid’’ outcomes element. This data
collection system is not designed to be
a program evaluation tool for any one
specific CFCIP activity, and therefore
adding specific questions regarding
ETVs is not consistent with the intent of
this regulation.
Comment: A commenter believed that
we should incorporate additional
elements to assess youth high-risk
behavior due to sexual activity. The
commenter proposed an element for
teen pregnancy at ages 17, 19 and 21, in
addition to born children, so that we
could determine youth abortions or
miscarriages. The commenter also
proposed an element for recording
sexual activity, particularly to obtain a
complete understanding of male
behavior that is not captured in
pregnancy data.
Response: While we recognize that
the suggested elements may provide a
more complete picture of sexual
activity, we are not persuaded that these
are appropriate to measure in this data
collection.
Comment: A commenter suggested
that we require a State to report whether
a youth possessed critical documents,
including a birth certificate, driver’s

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

10356

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

license or other State-issued
identification and social security card.
Response: We considered whether to
include a youth’s possession of critical
documents as an outcome element
during consultation but ruled it out
because we determined that such
information is more appropriate for
program evaluation. We have not
received compelling information that
suggests a different approach and are
not making changes to the final rule in
this regard.
Comment: One commenter requested
data elements that would more
accurately reflect effectiveness of
specific programs implemented
pursuant to the Foster Care
Independence Act.
Response: This data collection system
is not designed to be a program
evaluation tool for any one specific
CFCIP program, which is why we have
not included data elements related to
the implementation of specific
programs.
Comment: One commenter suggested
adding an element that indicates the
method of survey administration, which
would make it possible to identify any
potential biases in the outcomes data
that may be associated with the various
survey methods.
Response: We do not believe it is
necessary to require this information
through a data element; however, we
will provide additional guidance
outside of regulation on how States can
provide us with additional information
that explains or relates to their data
submission.

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

Electronic Reporting
In paragraph (h), we require a State to
submit NYTD data electronically.
Comment: We heard generally
positive comments about using
Extensible Mark-up Language (XML) to
transmit data files. We also had several
requests from commenters for more
detail on how States should prepare
their electronic files and submit their
files to us.
Response: We appreciate that
commenters responded to our request
for feedback on using XML. We still are
not regulating a particular method for
submitting data here, but will provide
States with detailed technical
information on preparing and
submitting their data files outside of
regulation.
Section 1356.84 Sampling
In paragraph (a), we describe the
option for a State to sample youth who
participate in outcomes data collection
at age 17 and collect outcomes data on
the sample at ages 19 and 21.

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

Comment: Several commenters
supported sampling for the follow-up
population at ages 19 and 21 as a viable
method to collect data in some States.
Alternatively, a commenter objected to
our proposal to allow a State to survey
a sample of youth in the follow-up
population. This commenter believed
that it was reasonable to expect States
to follow all youth over time given the
staggered outcomes data collection
schedule and the participation rates.
Response: We proposed to permit
sampling because we believe that there
are challenges inherent in States
following very large populations of
youth over time, including significant
financial costs. As such, we are
retaining the provision which permits
States to sample.
In paragraph (b), we specify how the
State must select the follow-up sample
and describe the sampling universe. The
State agency must use simple random
sampling procedures based on random
numbers generated by a computer
program, unless ACF approves another
sampling procedure.
Comment: A commenter interpreted
our proposed requirements regarding
sampling methodology to mean that a
State must use a simple random
sampling approach. The commenter
believed that a stratified random
sampling approach based on counties
would be more appropriate for some
States.
Response: We agree with the
commenter that the simple random
sampling approach may not be an
appropriate method for all States. For
this reason, we are retaining in the final
rule our proposal for the use of an ACFapproved alternate sampling
methodology. ACF will consider all
alternate sampling methods proposed by
a State that utilize accepted sampling
methodologies. No changes are needed
to the final rule in response to this
comment.
In paragraph (c), we require the State
to base the sample size on the number
of youth in the baseline population who
participated in the State agency’s data
collection at age 17. The State will use
one of two formulas based on whether
the sampling frame is less than or
greater than 5,000 youth and will
increase the resultant sample size by 30
percent to allow for attrition.
Comment: A commenter objected to
using the number of 17-year-olds as
reported in AFCARS to forecast the
number of youth who will receive
independent living services in the
State’s random sample since actual
youth in foster care fluctuate over time.
The commenter suggested that we

PO 00000

Frm 00020

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

instead publish guidance which
indicates actual sample sizes.
Response: There is no requirement to
use AFCARS data for the sample. In the
preamble to the NPRM we provided
State-specific numbers of 17-year-olds
in foster care and the potential sample
sizes using AFCARS data for illustrative
purposes only. However, the actual
sample size will depend on the number
of youth in the baseline population who
participate in the outcomes data
collection at age 17. States will then
track this sample of youth over time and
administer the outcomes survey when
those youth turn age 19 and 21. No
changes are warranted in response to
this comment.
Comment: A commenter offered a
strategy to decrease sample attrition
which involves adding a series of
questions to the survey about people
who can be contacted by the State
agency to help locate the youth over
time.
Response: We agree with the
sentiment expressed by the commenter
that if a State solicits contact
information from youth when
administering the survey, it could
increase the State’s success in locating
the youth later. Such a practice is
allowable, however, we do not believe
it is necessary to mandate particular
tracking methods or otherwise amend
our survey or sampling procedures in
response to this comment. Rather, we
intend to provide ongoing technical
support of this nature to States in
meeting the requirements of the NYTD.
Section 1356.85

Compliance

In this section we define the
standards we will use to determine a
State’s compliance with NYTD and our
process for determining whether the
State is in compliance with the
standards.
File Submission Standards
In paragraph (a), we specify the file
submission standards. The State must
achieve these minimal standards for
timeliness, formatting, and quality
information in order for us to process
the State’s data appropriately.
In paragraph (a)(1), we specify the
timely data file standard. To be timely,
we must receive the State’s data file
within 45 days of the end of each sixmonth report period, consistent with the
reporting period and timeline specified
in section 1356.83(a). There were no
comments specific to this section other
than those we addressed previously in
the discussion of the submission
deadline in section 1356.83(a). We are
not making changes to the final rule.

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations
In paragraph (a)(2) we specify the
format file standard. To meet this
standard the State must send us a data
file in a format that meets our
specifications.
Comments: A few commenters raised
issues related to data file formatting
specifications in the context of the
availability of technical assistance and
software programs (i.e., utilities) that
can be used to detect formatting errors
in a data file prior to submitting a data
file to ACF.
Response: At this time we cannot
outline the exact transmission method
and/or formatting requirements for the
NYTD data as explained in the preamble
to the NPRM. In brief, we have decided
not to regulate the technical
requirements for formatting or
transmitting the NYTD data file. Instead,
we will issue technical requirements
and specifications through official ACF
policy. We have learned through out
experience with AFCARS that it is more
prudent not to regulate the technical
specifications for formatting and
receiving data because of inevitable
future advances in technology. Further,
we will consider what form of technical
assistance may be needed by State
agencies to meet the NYTD file
submission. No changes are needed in
the final rule in response to these
comments.
In paragraph (a)(3) we specify the
error-free information file standard. A
State must submit 100% error-free data
for the basic demographic elements
described in section 1356.83(g)(1)
through (g)(5), (g)(14) and (g)(36) for
every youth in the reporting population.
Comment: A few commenters were
concerned that the proposed 100
percent error-free information standard
was unreasonably high. One of these
commenters requested that we lower the
standard to 98 percent, particularly to
accommodate larger States that may find
such exact quality control challenging.
Response: The error-free information
file standard is consistent with the
importance we place on quality
information for the seven basic
elements: State, report date, record
number, date of birth, sex, foster care
status—services, and foster care status—
outcomes. As we explained in the
preamble of the NPRM, we believe the
State agency can report readily on these
seven elements, but more importantly,
they are essential to our capacity to
analyze the data and determine whether
the State is in compliance with the
remaining NYTD data standards. For
example, these elements allow us to
determine whether the youth should be
surveyed for outcomes as part of the
baseline population because the youth

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

is 17 years old and in foster care, and
whether the State has achieved the
foster care participation standard. We
are not making changes to the final rule
in response to this comment.
Data Standards
In paragraph (b), we specify the set of
data standards a State must meet to be
in compliance with NYTD
requirements.
Error Free
In paragraph (b)(1), we require the
State to meet the standard that the
remaining data elements, i.e.,
demographic, service and outcomes
elements defined in section
1356.83(g)(6) through (13), (g)(15)
through (35), and (g)(37) through (58),
must be 90 percent error-free. No
comments were received on this
standard and we are not making any
changes in the final rule.
Outcomes Universe
In paragraph (b)(2), we describe the
outcomes universe standard. To meet
this standard the State must submit
complete or partial outcomes
information or a reason explaining why
there is no outcomes data for each youth
in the follow-up population (or the
sample) who participated in the
outcomes data collection as part of the
baseline population.
We received no comments on this
section, but have modified the final rule
to account for the provision at section
1356.83(e) which requires a State to
identify youth who are not in the
follow-up sample of 19-year-olds. The
final rule now specifies that for those
States that sample, the State must
submit outcomes reporting status
information on all 19-year-olds in the
follow-up population, whether or not
they are in the sample. States that
sample will meet the outcomes universe
standard if they submit at least the
outcomes reporting status on all of the
21-year-olds in the follow-up sample.
Outcomes Participation Rates
In paragraph (b)(3), we require the
State to obtain full or partial outcomes
information from a certain percent of
youth in the follow-up population.
Comment: A couple of commenters
noted that we did not propose to adjust
the calculation of the participation rate
to exclude youth who are deceased or
institutionalized consistent with
accepted survey methodologies.
Response: After reviewing various
survey methodologies, we believe that a
change in the regulation is warranted.
We are amending paragraph (b)(3) to
exclude youth who are reported by the

PO 00000

Frm 00021

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

10357

State as deceased, incapacitated or
incarcerated in the follow-up
population in our calculation of the
participation rate. Excluding
individuals who should not participate
due to the nature of the survey from the
calculation of response rates is a
standard practice. We will use the data
States report in the outcomes reporting
status element described in section
1356.83(g)(34) in calculating the
participation rate. For example, for a
State that does not sample there are 215
17-year-old youth in the baseline
population who participate in the
outcomes survey. Two years later, none
of the 215 youth are in foster care and
5 of these youth become incapacitated,
incarcerated or deceased. In another two
years, 10 more of the original baseline
youth become incapacitated,
incarcerated or deceased. ACF will
calculate whether the State has reported
some outcomes information on 60% of
the remaining 200 youth in the followup population at age 21 to determine
whether the State has met its
participation rate.
However, we want to be clear that
even though outcomes information for
incapacitated, incarcerated and
deceased youth will be unavailable for
the report period, a State must still
report all other information for such
youth. For example a State may not
report outcome data for an incarcerated
youth during a report period, but must
report service information if she
received independent living services
that were paid for or provided by the
State agency at some point in the report
period. We will provide more technical
guidance on these issues, as necessary,
outside of regulation.
Comment: A few commenters
objected to our basing compliance on a
fixed participation rate at this time and
suggested alternative approaches. One
such commenter requested that we
reconsider using a contact standard in
which the State’s compliance would be
based on efforts to engage the youth
rather than their actual participation.
Another commenter suggested that we
conduct a pilot study before deciding on
any particular response rate, and a third
suggested that we write into the
regulation the option to reevaluate and
revise the participation rates after
implementation.
Response: As stated in the preamble
to the NPRM, we ruled out using a
contact rate standard upon which to
base State compliance with the NYTD
requirements. A contact rate would give
the State credit for its efforts to solicit
a youth’s participation; however, we
found difficulty in establishing an
appropriate measure of a bona fide

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

10358

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

Discharged Youth Participation Rate
In paragraph (b)(3)(ii), we specify the
discharged youth participation rate. To
comply, the State must report outcome
information on at least 60 percent of
youth who are in the follow-up
population who are no longer in foster
care on the date of outcomes data
collection as indicated in section
1356.83(g)(35) and (g)(36).
Comment: Many commenters
disagreed with the proposed discharged
youth participation rate of 60 percent
because they assert that it will be
difficult to track young adults who may
not continue to receive services from the
State agency. Some commenters
recommended reducing the
participation rate because they believed
that States should not be held
responsible for the actions of young
adults for whom they have no control or
Foster Care Youth Participation Rate
authority. Several of the commenters
In paragraph (b)(3)(i) we specify that
who opposed the 60 percent standard
the State must report outcome
came up with a variety of alternative
information on at least 80 percent of
approaches, such as lowering the rate
youth in the follow-up population who
for 21-year-old youth, applying the rate
are in foster care on the date of
to only those youth who are receiving
outcomes data collection as indicated in services, and initially lowering the rate
section 1356.83(g)(35) and (g)(36).
and then raising it over time.
Comment: Several commenters
Alternatively, several commenters
disagreed with the proposed foster care
recommended that we increase the
youth participation rate of 80 percent,
discharged youth participation rate to
asserting that it is not achievable. On
70 percent or higher in hopes of
the other hand, several other
achieving a more accurate picture of
commenters believed that the foster care outcomes for former foster youth. These
youth participation rate of 80 percent
commenters were concerned that States
was achievable because locating youth
would inadvertently report data on only
who are still in the State agency’s
the most successful youth which would
custody should not be problematic.
skew the outcomes information.
Response: We reassessed the
Response: In developing our proposal
discharged youth participation rate in
we carefully considered the available
light of the comments on both sides of
research on this population, what we
this issue and continue to believe that
believed was a reasonable expectation
60 percent is appropriate. While we
for States who still have responsibility
agree that the process of collecting
for the youth’s care and placement, and
outcomes data from youth no longer in
our necessity for ample information to
the State’s foster care will be
meet the statutory mandate. We believe
challenging, we are seeking a standard
that the 80 percent participation rate is
that will provide us with a level of
an appropriate standard and are
retaining the proposed rate accordingly. confidence in the outcome information
We want to be clear, however, that youth that is reported to us. After considering
the research on response rates and
are only considered to be in foster care
reviewing the Office of Management and
if they meet the definition in 45 CFR
Budget’s guidance on surveys (see
1355.20, as referenced in section
various publications at http://
1356.83(g)(36). This means that they
www.whitehouse.gov/omb/inforeg/
must be children under the State’s age
statpolicy.html#pr), we do not believe
of majority who are under the
placement and care responsibility of the that a rate lower than 60 percent would
State title IV–B/IV–E agency. We are not serve our purposes. We believe that
aware of any State in which 19- and 21- compliance with this standard may be
more difficult during the early part of
year-olds are in foster care in
NYTD implementation since States
accordance with this definition at this
must have tracking procedures in place
time as typically States have defined
their age of majority as 18. Therefore, in at startup to later locate youth no longer
receiving services. Therefore, we believe
practical terms States will have to meet
that we can address many of the
the 60 percent discharged youth
commenters’ concerns by giving States
participation rate.

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

contact. Further, a contact rate could not
provide us with enough assurance that
we would get sufficient data upon
which to measure youth outcomes.
We do not believe another pilot study
is warranted nor do we concur with the
recommendation to build in an
opportunity to lower the rate. We
carefully considered the available
research on similar populations of youth
in our participation rate proposal and
see no need to further delay
implementation of the NYTD. Further,
permitting a later reduction in the
participation rates sets a low
expectation that States will achieve the
participation rate and suggests that we
will not hold States accountable for
achieving the rates. As such, we will
retain specific participation rates in the
final rule.

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

PO 00000

Frm 00022

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

two full fiscal years to implement the
NYTD. We believe that giving States
more time to develop tracking
procedures and to utilize technical
assistance to address the challenges in
obtaining outcomes data from this
population is a better alternative to
compromising our standard for
obtaining data.
Effect of Sampling on Participation
Rates
In paragraph (b)(3)(iii), we explain
how the outcome participation rates
will be applied to State agencies that
choose to sample in accordance with
section 1356.84.
We received no comments on this
section. However, we are making a
wording change to this provision to
clarify that in calculating the
participation rate for States that sample,
we will apply the appropriate rate to the
required sample size inclusive of the 30
percent attrition allowance. The
previous wording used the phrasing
‘‘minimum’’ sample size, which may
have suggested that we would apply the
participation rate against the number
resulting from the formula prior to
increasing the sample by 30 percent to
allow for attrition.
Errors
In paragraph (c) we define further the
concept of data in error.
In paragraph (c)(1) we define missing
data as any element that has a blank
response, when a blank response is not
a valid response option as described in
the data element descriptions in section
1356.83(g).
Comment: One commenter informed
us that we could expect missing data
since the States are able to indicate that
a youth declined participation or is
otherwise unavailable to participate in
the outcomes data collection.
Response: We believe the commenter
may misunderstand what we mean by
‘‘missing data’’ and would like to take
this opportunity to clarify the term.
Situations in which the State reports
that the youth did not participate in the
outcomes data collection is not a
missing data error. Rather, this
information may be a factor in
calculating the outcomes data
participation rates as described in
section 1356.85(b)(3).
For the purposes of the NYTD,
‘‘missing data’’ occurs when an element
has a blank response when this is not a
valid response option, such as a missing
record number or no date of birth. Blank
responses are valid when the youth is
not in the reporting population to which
an element applies as described within
the data element descriptions. For

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

example, a State should report blank
responses in the outcomes elements for
a 15-year-old youth in the served
population. Blank responses are also
valid in the outcomes elements (g)(37)
through (g)(58) when a youth does not
participate in the outcomes data
collection element as described at
section 1356.83(g)(34)(ii) through (ix).
We will provide a more complete
accounting of missing data and other
errors outside of regulation.
In paragraph (c)(2) we define out-ofrange data as any element that contains
a value that is outside the parameters of
acceptable responses or exceeds, either
positively or negatively, the acceptable
range of response options as described
in section 1356.83(g). No comments
were received on this section and we are
not making changes in the final rule.
In paragraph (c)(3) we define
internally inconsistent data as any
element that fails an internal
consistency check designed to evaluate
the logical relationship between
elements in each record. No comments
were received on this section, and we
are retaining this provision as proposed.
Review for Compliance
In paragraph (d) we describe our
process of reviewing a State’s data file
for compliance with the aforementioned
standards.
Comment: One commenter requested
clarification as to whether the NYTD
would allow the use of default values
and/or default mapping procedures. The
commenter maintained that State
agencies are not permitted to use default
values and/or default mapping
procedures in their State AFCARS.
Response: Defaulting, from our
perspective, is the practice of
automatically converting missing data
for an element into a valid response
option. We reject this practice in
AFCARS generally because defaulting
results in a misleading and inaccurate
account of the information or lack of
information collected, and as such we
will not accept the practice in the
NYTD. We have provided guidance
regarding the use of defaults in AFCARS
(see the National Resource Center for
Child Welfare Data and Technology’s
Web site http://www.nrccwdt.org/rscs/
rscs_facts_defaults.html) and intend to
do so for the NYTD as well. However,
because of the technical nature of
defaulting procedures, more information
will be provided outside the regulatory
process.
In subparagraph (d)(1)(i), we explain
that as long as the State is in compliance
with the file submission standards, ACF
will continue to assess the remaining
file for compliance with the data

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

standards. No comments were received
on this section, and we are retaining this
provision as proposed.
In subparagraph (d)(1)(ii), we explain
that we will notify the State if the State
has not met the file submission
standards so that the State can submit
corrected data. No comments were
received on this section and no changes
are warranted to the final rule.
In paragraph (d)(2), we explain that
we may use other monitoring tools that
are not explicitly mentioned in the
regulation to determine whether the
State meets all requirements of the
NYTD.
No comments were received on this
section, and we are not making changes
in the final rule.
Submitting Corrected Data and
Noncompliance.
In paragraph (e), we outline a State’s
opportunity to correct any data that
does not meet the compliance
standards. No comments were received
on this section, and we are retaining the
provision as proposed.
In paragraph (e)(1), we explain that a
State must submit a corrected file no
later than the end of the subsequent
reporting period as defined in section
1356.83(a) (i.e., by September 30 or
March 31). No comments were received
on this section, and we are not making
changes in the final rule.
In paragraph (e)(2), we explain that
we will make a final determination that
a State is out of compliance if a State’s
corrected data file does not meet the
compliance standards described in
section 1356.85. Similarly, we explain
that we will determine that a State is out
of compliance if the State chooses not
to submit a corrected data file or
submits a corrected data file
inconsistent with the requirements
described in section 1356.85(e)(1). This
final determination of noncompliance
means that the State will be subject to
the penalties described in section
1356.86. No comments were received on
this section, and we are not making
changes in the final rule.
Section 1356.86 Penalties for
Noncompliance
This section sets forth a penalty
structure for States agencies that are out
of compliance with the NYTD standards
following an opportunity to submit
corrected data.
In paragraph (a) we define which
funds will be subject to a penalty for a
State agency that is out of compliance
with NYTD standards.
Comment: We received many
comments requesting that a State’s
annual allotment of ETV funds (section

PO 00000

Frm 00023

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

10359

477(h)(2) of the Act) be excluded from
the penalty pool. Most of the
commenters pointed out that unlike the
general CFCIP funds which States can
use broadly to fund independent living
services, the ETV program provides
direct financial assistance to former
foster youth who are working
productively to achieve independence
through a higher education. Therefore,
reducing ETV funds for a State’s failure
to comply with data collection
requirements was contrary to the goals
of the ETV program because it would
deprive certain youth of an opportunity
to pursue post-secondary education.
Other commenters believed that
including ETV funds in a penalty was
inconsistent with Congressional intent
because the data collection and penalty
provisions in the law preceded the
enactment of the ETV program. A few
commenters maintained that a State’s
annual allotment of ETV funds should
not be subject to a penalty for
noncompliance with NYTD data
requirements because those
requirements are more focused on
general independent living services
rather than education and training
vouchers.
Response: We have given serious
consideration to the commenters
concerns and are persuaded that there
are good reasons for excluding ETV
funds from the funds subject to a
penalty for State noncompliance with
the data requirements. When we look at
the law as a whole, there is support for
concluding that ETV funds should be
excluded from the penalty pool because
ETV funds may not generally be used
for the data collection activities required
by NYTD. The statute and our policy
permit a State to use ETV funds only for
vouchers to youth for higher education
and the associated administrative
activities necessary to provide the
vouchers (section 477(h)(2) of the Act
and Child Welfare Policy Manual
Section 3.3F Q/A #1). Therefore,
including ETV funds in the penalty pool
for lack of compliance with NYTD
requirements would have the
incongruous consequence of depriving a
State of funds which it could not use for
NYTD.
We also reviewed the legislative
history, and there is no indication that
Congress considered the inclusion of the
ETV funds in the data collection penalty
pool. Rather, the legislative history
indicates quite clearly that the ETV
funds are authorized and appropriated
separately from the CFCIP funds so that
they could be dedicated to funding
higher education for youth (House
Report 107–281, pp. 12, 21–22).
Including ETV funds in the penalty pool

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

10360

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

would be contrary to the purpose of the
program, and we are amending the final
rule to exclude ETV from the
calculation of the penalty.
Comment: A few commenters
suggested that States should not be
subject to a penalty for noncompliance
with NYTD standards.
Response: Section 477(e)(2) of the Act
requires us to assess a penalty against a
State that fails to comply with the
information collection plan as
implemented by ACF. We crafted the
penalty structure carefully within the
statutory parameters with the goal of
obtaining quality data that can be used
to understand services and improve
youth outcomes. As such, in line with
the statute, we are retaining the penalty
as proposed in the NPRM with the
modification to exclude ETV funds from
the calculation of the NYTD penalty
pool.
In paragraph (b) we specify the
penalty amounts that will be assessed
for States we determine to be out of
compliance with NYTD file submission
and data standards.
Comment: Several commenters
suggested that we provide financial
incentives to State agencies that meet or
exceed NTYD standards. The
commenters suggested that we could
integrate such State financial incentives
into the penalty structure for State
noncompliance with NYTD standards.
One commenter disagreed with the
approach to an incentive structure as we
described in the NPRM and suggested
we conceptualize incentives in terms of
‘‘added rewards rather than a penalty
reduction.’’
Response: Section 477 of the Act does
not make funds available to the States
for achieving or exceeding a specified
NYTD standard. Further, the
requirement to assess a penalty against
a State that fails to comply with a data
reporting requirement is statutory and
specified in section 477(e)(2) of the Act.
Therefore, we cannot provide financial
incentives. In the preamble of the
NPRM, we described our initial thinking
on how a penalty reduction could be an
unconventional incentive that works
within the statutory framework.
However, we did not receive any
comments that indicated that a penalty
reduction would provide an incentive to
States and we are not including it as a
feature in the final rule.
Comment: Several commenters
requested that we permit a State to use
funds that would otherwise be
penalized for noncompliance with
NYTD requirements if the State agency
agrees to correct the identified
deficiencies in the State’s data. These
commenters referred to this as a

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

‘‘reinvestment’’ approach that could
replace the penalty structure for
noncompliance with NTYD standards.
Response: The statute requires us to
take a penalty for State noncompliance
with NYTD data requirement pursuant
to section 477(e)(2) of the Act. We
believe that it would be contrary to the
purposes of the statute to assess a
penalty against a State agency for
noncompliance and then subsequently
make any portion of those funds
available to the State. Therefore, we are
not permitting States to reinvest
penalized funds in the final rule.
In paragraph (b)(1), we specify that we
will assess a penalty in the amount of
two and one-half percent (2.5 percent)
of the funds subject to a penalty for each
reporting period in which we make a
final determination that the State’s data
file does not comply with the file
submission standards defined in section
1356.85(a).
Comment: A commenter was
concerned that a file submission penalty
in the amount of 2.5 percent would have
a negative impact on the CFCIP
independent living services available to
youth in the State.
Response: The statute requires us to
penalize States in an amount that ranges
from 1 percent to 5 percent of their
CFCIP allotment for not complying with
the data collection requirements. As we
explained in the preamble to the NPRM,
we proposed to assess the largest
possible penalty (for the reporting
period) if the State did not achieve any
one of the file submission timeliness,
format, and quality standards. We
reasoned that we will not have useable
information in a timely fashion if the
State agency does not meet such
standards described in section
1356.85(a). We are not persuaded by the
commenter that the amount specified is
unreasonable and warrants a change to
the final rule.
In paragraph (b)(2)(i), we specify that
ACF will assess a penalty in the amount
of one and one quarter percent (1.25
percent) of the funds subject to a
penalty for each reporting period in
which ACF makes a final determination
that the State agency’s data file does not
comply with the data standard for errorfree data as defined in section
1356.85(b)(1).
Comment: One commenter expressed
a concern that the 1.25 percent penalty
for non-compliance with the data
standard for error-free data for each
reporting period, as defined in section
1356.85(b)(1), is too costly for States.
Response: As we stated in the NPRM,
we have applied a significant penalty
amount to the error-free compliance
standard because we believe the State

PO 00000

Frm 00024

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

must ensure that NYTD data reported to
us meet important quality standards.
Errors in the demographic, service, and
outcome data (i.e., missing, out-of-range,
and/or internally inconsistent data)
significantly undermine the aims of the
NYTD. Given the degree of importance
of error-free data to this dataset, we have
made no changes in the final rule in
response to this comment.
In paragraph (b)(2)(ii), we specify that
ACF will assess a penalty in the amount
of one and one quarter percent (1.25
percent) of the funds subject to a
penalty for each reporting period in
which ACF makes a final determination
that the State agency’s data file does not
comply with the outcome universe
standard as defined in section
1356.85(b)(2). No comments were
received on this section, and no changes
have been made to the final rule.
In paragraph (b)(2)(iii) we specify that
ACF will assess a penalty in the amount
of one half of one percent (0.5 percent)
of the funds subject to a penalty for each
reporting period in which ACF makes a
final determination that the State
agency’s data file does not comply with
the foster care youth participation rate
defined in section 1356.85(b)(3)(i).
Comment: One commenter asked
whether there are acceptable reasons for
a State’s inability to report youth
outcomes information to us. If so, the
commenter asked whether a State would
be subject to a penalty if youth
outcomes information could not be
reported to us for such acceptable
reasons.
Response: We are not prescribing
‘acceptable reasons’ for the State’s
inability to obtain outcomes
information, rather the State must meet
participation rates for the population as
a whole to be in compliance with the
NYTD requirements. We require the
State to report the reason it is unable to
collect outcomes information on a youth
in the baseline or follow-up reporting
populations through the outcomes
reporting status data element described
in section 1356.83(g)(34). The State will
be held accountable for achieving 80
percent participation from the follow-up
population in foster care and 60 percent
participation from the follow-up
population no longer in foster care. As
noted in the discussion on section
1356.85(b)(3), there are three subgroups
that we will not include in calculating
whether a State achieved the youth
participation rate (deceased,
incapacitated and incarcerated), which
means that the State will not be
penalized for failing to collect outcomes
data on these youth.
In paragraph (b)(2)(iv) we specify that
ACF will assess a penalty in the amount

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations
of one half of one percent (0.5 percent)
of the funds subject to a penalty for each
reporting period in which ACF makes a
final determination that the State
agency’s data file does not comply with
the discharged youth participation rate
standard defined in section
1356.85(b)(3)(ii).
Comment: We received a number of
comments opposing a penalty for States
that we find out of compliance with the
discharged youth participation rate
standard. Primarily, commenters
believed we should not penalize States
for not reporting information on youth
for whom the State has no control or
authority.
Response: As we stated in the NPRM,
we recognize that collecting outcome
data directly from youth discharged
from foster care is one of the most
challenging aspects of the NYTD.
However, we consider the 0.5 percent
penalty to be a relatively small penalty
amount. Further, we chose a 0.5 percent
penalty because the amount of the
penalty had to be small enough so that
in combination with other potential
penalties, the maximum penalty would
not be exceeded for the Federal fiscal
year (5.0 percent). Additionally, we
wanted to ensure that the penalties for
failing to meet the participation rates
did not exceed the penalties for a State
failing to submit data on the outcomes
universe. Thus, we have made no
changes to the final rule in response to
these comments.
In paragraph (c), we describe how we
will take into account the assessed
penalties in determining a final amount
of a State’s penalty for noncompliance
with NYTD file submission and data
standards.
Comment: One commenter disagreed
with the approach to ‘‘round-up’’ the
State agency penalty amount to one
percent, if it is actually less than that.
Response: The statute at section
477(e)(2) of the Act requires us to assess
a penalty in an amount of at least one
percent of a State’s CFCIP allotment for
the Federal fiscal year for
noncompliance with NYTD standards.
As we discussed in the preamble to the
NPRM, a State’s assessed penalty could
be less than one percent for the first
reporting period because we proposed
penalties based on State compliance for
each six-month reporting period. In
such a situation, we will determine that
the State’s penalty amount is one
percent of the State’s annual CFCIP
allotment for the first reporting period
accordingly. However, in the event that
the State is in noncompliance with any
standard in the subsequent six-month
reporting period in the Federal fiscal
year, we will not penalize the State

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

more than the actual calculated penalty
amount for the fiscal year. We have
made only minor editorial changes to
this provision and no substantive
changes in response to these comments.
In paragraph (d), we describe how we
will notify States officially of our final
determination that the State is out of
compliance with the file submission or
data standards following an opportunity
for corrective action. We received no
comments on this section, and we are
not making changes in the final rule.
In paragraph (e), we explain that a
State will be liable for applicable
interest on the amount of funds we
penalize, in accordance with the
regulations at 45 CFR 30.13. We
received no comments on this section
and are not making changes in the final
rule.
In paragraph (f), we explain that a
State will have an opportunity to appeal
a final determination that the State is
out of compliance to the HHS
Departmental Appeals Board (DAB)
consistent with DAB regulations in 45
CFR part 16. We received no comments
on this section. However, we are making
a couple of technical changes to refer
consistently to the body as the
Departmental Appeals Board and
remove the language in the NPRM that
referred to an appeal of ‘‘any subsequent
withholding or reduction of funds.’’ We
have made this change to clarify that a
State can appeal ACF’s final
determination of noncompliance which
will include an assessment of a financial
penalty, but that there is not an
opportunity for appeal to the DAB
associated with ACF’s withholding of
funds that is separate from the final
determination of noncompliance.
Comments on Cost and Burden
Estimates
Comment: One commenter stated that
this rule was an ‘‘unfunded mandate.’’
Response: The Unfunded Mandates
Reform Act requires us to assess
whether the rule imposes mandates on
governments or the private sector that
will result in an annual expenditure of
$100 million or more. We have
determined that the approximate annual
costs to States to comply with the
information collection requirements
identified in the ‘‘Paperwork Reduction
Act’’ section will be approximately $13
million, which includes costs that may
be reimbursed by the Federal
government as SACWIS expenditures.
The hour burden associated with the
information collection requirements is
anticipated to be approximately $3
million for all States annually, some of
which may be paid for with CFCIP

PO 00000

Frm 00025

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

10361

funds. Therefore, this rule will not
impose costs of $100 million or more.
Comment: A commenter requested
that we clarify the components of the
NYTD requirements that we require to
be incorporated into SACWIS and
therefore may be claimed as title IV–E
administrative costs under SACWIS.
Response: States that have elected to
build a SACWIS must incorporate
NYTD information collection and
reporting activities related to children in
foster care into their SACWIS system.
Regulations at 45 CFR 1355.53(b)(3) and
(4) as well as policy at ACF–OISM–001
(part IV) direct States to incorporate all
case management and service functions
for children in foster care into their
SACWIS. Specific components of the
NYTD that are included in a State’s
SACWIS are subject to the APD process.
More specific guidance on SACWIS
requirements and allowable costs will
be issued outside of this regulation.
Comment: A couple of commenters
requested guidance on the Federal
funding sources States may use to pay
for the costs related to the NYTD and
whether title IV–E reimbursement is
available for States that do not
incorporate NYTD functionality into
their SACWIS systems.
Response: A State may use CFCIP
funds for any and all costs associated
with implementing the NYTD. A State
with a SACWIS must incorporate NYTD
information collection and reporting
activities related to children in foster
care into their SACWIS system and may
claim such information system costs as
administrative costs under title IV–E to
the extent they are allowable and
consistent with a State’s APD and cost
allocation plan (45 CFR 1355.50–
1355.57 and 1356.60(e)).
A State may not claim reimbursement
under title IV–E for NYTD information
system costs that are not incorporated
into an approved APD for a SACWIS.
The authority to claim information
systems costs under title IV–E in section
1356.60(d) is limited to collecting and
reporting data necessary to meet the
AFCARS requirements in 45 CFR
1355.40 and those necessary for the
proper and efficient administration of
the title IV–E State plan and not the
CFCIP plan.
Comment: A number of commenters
requested additional Federal funding to
meet aspects of the NYTD requirements,
particularly those related to the
outcomes component. For example,
commenters requested funds for
contracting out the responsibility to
track and survey older youth for their
outcomes, for fiscal incentives to
encourage the participation of youth in
the outcomes survey, and for

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

10362

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

entitlement funding to reimburse States
for some portion of the information
system costs that are not currently
reimbursable under SACWIS or for
those States that do not have a SACWIS.
These commenters believed that the
Federal government should offset the
costs associated with complying with
this rule to eliminate the possibility of
States reducing the level of services to
youth.
Response: There is no additional
Federal funding set-aside for the NYTD.
The CFCIP program was created with a
mandate for States to collect data, but
the statute does not set-aside funds for
that specific purpose. As mentioned
previously, in addition to CFCIP funds,
certain costs may be eligible for Federal
financial participation under title IV–E
at the 50 percent matching rate
depending on whether the costs to
develop and implement the NYTD are
allowable costs under a State’s APD for
SACWIS. In these ways, the Federal
government is providing funding to
assist States in complying with the
NYTD requirements.
Comment: Many commenters
disagreed with our description of the
cost to the States as a result of this rule
as minor per Executive Order 12866.
These commenters asserted the NPRM
underestimates the actual costs the
States would incur to implement the
mandates of this rule, a few of whom
provided their own estimates, although
most did not. The commenters’
estimates addressed different aspects of
the costs. Two commenters estimated
that tracking costs for approximately
240 to 300 youth in the follow-up
population would cost $36,000 to
$54,000 per year. Another commenter
estimated State information technology
costs at between $100,000 and $150,000
for the first 5 years of implementation.
A different commenter suggested the
overall costs of the rule to be between
$200,000–$300,000 during the first three
years of implementation.
Response: The comments we received
from States regarding anticipated startup and annual costs are in line with our
original estimates. We expect that, on
average, business process start-up costs,
travel and training, process
development, IT start-up operational
and maintenance costs will be
approximately $250,000 per State per
year. Many of these costs can be
matched at 50 percent Federal financial
participation for a State that has a
SACWIS. We originally characterized
these costs as minor, but we are aware
of the impact the cost of implementation
will have on States. In order to be in
compliance with the statutory
requirements we must collect the

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

necessary independent living service
and youth outcome information.
Comment: Several commenters
acknowledged that costs to implement
this rule would vary across the States.
A commenter believed that smaller
States would be disproportionately
impacted by this rule because system
development costs are independent of
the size of the population served, i.e.,
States with smaller service populations
would have to devote a greater
percentage of their Federal CFCIP funds
to meet the NYTD requirements relative
to States with larger service populations
of youth targeted by this rule. Another
commenter explained that countyadministered States would find
implementation of this rule more
challenging because of the increased
responsibility to coordinate among the
counties.
Response: We recognize that the
reporting and recordkeeping burden is
disproportionately higher for small
States because they need to develop the
same functionality as large States
regardless of the number of youth
reported. Some State costs are not
affected by the number of youth in the
reporting population. We also recognize
that county-administered States may
face more challenges in implementation;
but see no need to change the rule in
response. Each State will have different
costs depending on its population of
youth and the changes required in its
information system and business
procedures to meet the requirements in
the regulation.
Comment: Many comments we
received noted that current State agency
staff are already overburdened with
meeting existing expectations, and are,
therefore, unable to implement this rule.
In this vein, many commenters
expressed a concern that we
underestimated the costs of
implementing this rule by not factoring
in the cost of hiring extra staff and/or
specialized staff to meet the
requirements of the NYTD.
Response: We realize that some States
may wish to hire additional staff to
implement this rule. However, in
general, we do not think that that
implementing the NYTD will put an
excessive burden on State agency staff
given our burden estimates. We do
acknowledge that the NYTD represents
a change in the way that some State
agencies conduct their business and
there is burden associated with that
change. Our estimates take into
consideration a range of State costs,
inclusive of staff time, that may result
from this rule.
Comment: We received many
comments that disagreed with our

PO 00000

Frm 00026

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

determination of burden estimates and
asserted that we underestimated the
actual amount of staff time that is
required to collect and record services,
demographic and characteristics data;
track the whereabouts of the youth in
the follow-up population; garner youth
consent; and collect and report outcome
survey data. A couple of commenters
believed that more realistic estimates to
collect outcomes data from youth would
be between 30 to 60 minutes. Another
commenter estimated it would take one
quarter hour for staff just to report
outcome data, and the collection of such
data would require extra time. A final
commenter believed that we should
pilot test the final NYTD to come up
with better estimates of hour burden.
Response: We have reexamined our
initial estimates related to collecting
and recording services, demographics,
characteristics data as well the outcome
data. The estimate for the average
amount of staff time per youth to collect
and record services, demographic and
characteristics data of 30 minutes per
youth per reporting period is based on
a pilot test and on experience with
AFCARS and other data systems. Most,
if not all, of the information required for
these three areas should be readily
available either in the case file or
through the case worker. We do not
expect that the time spent collecting and
recording this information for each
youth will take longer than 30 minutes
on average.
We do agree with the commenters that
the estimate in the NPRM for
completing the youth outcomes survey
is low and have adjusted our estimate
upwards to take into account the
necessary time for the youth to complete
the survey and for the State to
incorporate that information into the
State’s database. In reexamining the
number of questions on the outcomes
survey, we estimate that it will take
youth approximately one half hour to
complete the survey and 15 more
minutes for States to record the
outcomes information.
IV. Impact Analysis
Executive Order 12866
Executive Order 12866 requires that
regulations be drafted to ensure that
they are consistent with the priorities
and principles set forth in the Executive
Order. The Department has determined
that this final rule is consistent with
these priorities and principles. In
particular, we have determined that a
regulation is the best and most costeffective way to implement the statutory
mandate for a data collection system to
track the independent living services

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations
States provide to youth and develop
outcome measures that may be used to
assess State performance. Moreover, we
have consulted with the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) and
determined that these rules meet the
criteria for a significant regulatory
action under Executive Order 12866.
Thus, they were subject to OMB review.
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis
The Secretary certifies under 5 U.S.C.
605(b), as enacted by the Regulatory
Flexibility Act (Pub. L. 96–354), that
this rule will not result in a significant
impact on a substantial number of small
entities. This final rule does not affect
small entities because it is applicable
only to State agencies that administer
child and family services programs and
the title IV–E CFCIP program.
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act
The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act
(Pub. L. 104–4) requires agencies to
prepare an assessment of anticipated
costs and benefits before proposing any
rule that may result in an annual
expenditure by State, local, and tribal
governments, in the aggregate, or by the
private sector, of $100 million or more
(adjusted annually for inflation). This
rule does not impose any mandates on
State, local or tribal governments, or the
private sector that will result in an
annual expenditure of $100 million or
more.

We estimate State costs per year will
be approximately $250,000 per State for
an annual total of about $13 million per
year. Many of the costs that States incur
as a result of the NYTD may be eligible
for Federal financial participation under
title IV–E at the 50 percent rate. We
therefore estimate the Federal
government to reimburse States for
approximately $6.5 million of their
costs annually. States may also use their
allotment of Federal CFCIP funds to
implement NYTD. Additional costs to
the Federal government to develop and
implement a system to collect NYTD
data are expected to be minimal.
Paperwork Reduction Act
Under the Paperwork Reduction Act
(Pub. L. 104–13), all Departments are
required to submit to OMB for review
and approval any reporting or recordkeeping requirements inherent in a
proposed or final rule. This final rule
contains information collection
requirements in sections 1356.82 and
1356.83 that the Department has
submitted to OMB for its review. ACF
will publish a second Federal Register
notice when the associated information
collection requirements have been
approved by OMB and are effective. The
respondents to the information
collection in this final rule are State
agencies.
The Department requires this
collection of information to address the

10363

data collection requirements of the John
H. Chafee Foster Care Independence
Program. Specifically, the law requires
the Secretary to track youth
demographics, characteristics and
independent living services and to
develop outcome measures that can be
used to assess the performance of States
in operating independent living
programs.
This information collection will be
comprised of a:
(1) Data File. The State’s submission
to ACF of two semi-annual data files
that contain information on all data
elements regarding youth services,
demographics, characteristics and
outcomes. A State will collect this
information on an ongoing basis. The
total annual burden will vary from year
to year; the burden will be lower in
years in which States do not have to
collect information on youth outcomes.
Years in which a State must expend
effort to track or maintain contacts with
youth as they age from 17 years old
through 21 and collect outcomes data
will have the highest total burden hours;
and,
(2) Youth Outcome Survey. A survey
composed of up to 22 questions on
youth outcomes (that correspond with
22 data elements in the first instrument)
to be completed by youth in the baseline
and/or follow-up populations.
The following are estimates:

FFY 2011
Instruments (subcomponents)

Number of
respondents

Number of responses per
respondent

Average burden per response (hrs)

1. Data File ......................................................................................................
Services ....................................................................................................
Outcomes .................................................................................................
Tracking ....................................................................................................
2. Youth Outcome Survey ...............................................................................

52
........................
........................
........................
39,832

2
........................
........................
........................
1

1,355
1,259
*96
0
0.5

140,920
130,936
9,958
0
19,916

Total burden for both collections .......................................................

........................

........................

........................

160,836

Instruments (subcomponents)

Number of
respondents

Number of responses per
respondent

Average burden per response (hrs)

1. Data File ......................................................................................................
Services ....................................................................................................
Outcomes .................................................................................................
Tracking ....................................................................................................
2. Youth Outcome Survey ...............................................................................

52
........................
........................
........................
0

2
........................
........................
........................
0

1642
1,259
0
383
0

170,768
130,936
0
39,832
0

Total burden for both collections .......................................................

........................

........................

........................

170,768

Total burden
hours (hrs)

*Number is rounded.

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

FFY 2012

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

PO 00000

Frm 00027

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

Total burden
hours (hrs)

10364

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations
FFY 2013
Instruments (subcomponents)

Number of
respondents

Number of responses per
respondent

1. Data File ......................................................................................................
Services ....................................................................................................
Outcomes .................................................................................................
Tracking ....................................................................................................
2. Youth Outcome Survey ...............................................................................

52
........................
........................
........................
31,876

2
........................
........................
........................
1

1719
1,259
*77
383
0.5

178,737
130,936
7,969
39,832
15,938

Total burden for both collections .......................................................

........................

........................

........................

194,675

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

Burden Estimates in FFY 2010
In FFY 2010, States will have to begin
changing their internal business
procedures and information systems to
meet the information collection
requirements in the subsequent fiscal
year. However, actual data collection
and reporting is required in the
subsequent fiscal year so there is no
hour burden associated with the
information collection for FY 2010 in
accordance with the PRA.
Burden Estimates in FFY 2011
With regard to the data file
instrument, we estimate that there will
be approximately 2,518 youth who
receive services annually per State. Each
State will expend on average
approximately 30 minutes (0.5 hours) to
collect the services, demographics and
characteristics information from those
youth resulting in an hour burden of
1,259 per State each report period. FFY
2011 will be the first year the State
administers the youth outcomes survey
for the baseline population of 17-yearolds in foster care. We estimate on
average 15 minutes (0.25 hours) for
States to record the youth survey
outcome information that will be
reported in the data file. We estimate
that there will be approximately 766 17year-old youth in foster care at this time
resulting in 96 burden hours to record
this information each report period. We
are not estimating a burden related to
maintaining contacts with youth (i.e.,
tracking) during this year as we expect
States to know the whereabouts of the
17-years-olds still in foster care. Total
hour burden for the data file instrument
is 140,920.
With regard to the youth outcome
survey instrument, we are estimating
that it will take the estimated 39,832
youth nationwide approximately 30
minutes to complete the outcomes
survey, resulting in a total of 19,916
burden hours.
Burden Estimates in FFY 2012
With regard to the data file
instrument, we estimate the same 1,259
hour burden per State per report period

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

associated with collecting and reporting
youth independent living services,
demographics and characteristics
information as in the previous year. In
FFY 2012, however, there will be no
youth outcome survey administered, so
there is no burden associated with such
reporting. However, States will have to
maintain contacts with youth who have
participated in the baseline population
at age 17 so that they can solicit their
participation in the youth outcomes
data instrument collection when such
youth turn 19-years-old. Therefore, we
have estimated that each State will
spend approximately 30 minutes (0.5
hours) per youth per report period to
track approximately 766 youth,
resulting in a total burden of 383 burden
hours per State. Total hour burden for
this instrument in year 2 is 170,768.
There is no outcomes data collection
in FFY 2012, so there are no hour
burdens associated with the youth
outcome survey instrument.
Burden Estimates in FFY 2013
With regard to the data file
instrument, the only difference from the
previous year is with regard to the
addition of an estimate for outcomes
data recording and reporting related to
the 19-year-olds in the follow-up
population. We are estimating on
average 15 minutes (0.25 hours) for
States to record the outcomes
information that will be reported in the
data file for the approximately 613
youth in each State per report period.
The number of youth is reduced as we
expect States to obtain the participation
of 80 percent of those youth who
participated previously at age 17 (766).
This results in approximately 77 burden
hours per State per report period. Total
hour burden for the data file is 178,737.
With regard to the outcome survey
instrument, we are estimating that it
will take the estimated 31,876 youth
nationwide approximately 30 minutes
to complete the outcomes survey,
resulting in a total of 15,938 burden
hours. Again, we have estimated that
approximately 80 percent of the youth
who participated in the outcomes data

PO 00000

Frm 00028

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

Average burden per response (hrs)

Total burden
hours (hrs)

collection at age 17 will participate
again at age 19 during this fiscal year.
The three year average hour burden
(FFYs 2011 through 2013) for both data
files is 175,426.
The reader should note that the
numbers of youth used for this estimate
is based on the same data cited in the
NPRM (see 71 FR 40369 to 40370). More
recent AFCARS data indicate that the
number of youth in foster care has
declined somewhat, but since these
numbers can fluctuate, we thought it
best to use the same numbers for
comparison purposes and to minimize
confusion. The actual number of youth
in any given year may change and affect
these estimates, as would the decision
of a State to sample youth rather than
follow the larger population of youth
who participate in the outcomes data
collection. Finally, we chose to separate
the year burdens into multiple charts to
aid the reader in distinguishing the hour
burdens associated with different fiscal
years of implementation.
Congressional Review
This regulation is not a major rule as
defined in 5 U.S.C. Chapter 8.
Assessment of Federal Regulations on
Policies and Families
Section 654 of the Treasury and
General Government Appropriations
Act of 1999 requires Federal agencies to
determine whether a proposed policy or
regulation may affect family well-being.
If the agency’s determination is
affirmative, then the agency must
prepare an impact assessment
addressing criteria specified in the law.
These regulations will not have a
significant impact on family well-being
as defined in the legislation. By tracking
independent living services provided to
youth, developing outcome measures,
and assessing a State’s performance in
operating an independent living
program, we expect that States will be
able to improve their programs for youth
in foster care based on an understanding
of how their services affect youth
outcomes through this data, which will
lead to positive influences on the

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations
behavior and personal responsibility of
youth.
Executive Order 13132
Executive Order 13132 on Federalism
requires that Federal agencies consult
with State and local government
officials in the development of
regulatory policies with Federalism
implications. Consistent with Executive
Order 13132, we specifically solicit
comment from State and local
government officials on this final rule.
List of Subjects in 45 CFR Part 1356
Adoption and Foster Care.
[Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance
Program Number 93.658, Foster Care
Maintenance]
Dated: September 7, 2007.
Daniel C. Schneider,
Acting Assistant Secretary for Children and
Families.
Approved: November 9, 2007.
Michael O. Leavitt,
Secretary, Department of Health and Human
Services.

For the reasons set out in the
preamble, 45 CFR part 1356 is amended
as follows:

■

PART 1356—REQUIREMENTS
APPLICABLE TO TITLE IV–E
1. The authority citation for part 1356
continues to read as follows:

■

Authority: 42 U.S.C. 620 et seq., 42 U.S.C.
670 et seq.; 42 U.S.C. 1302.
■ 2. Add §§ 1356.80 through 1356.86 to
part 1356 to read as follows:

§ 1356.80 Scope of the National Youth in
Transition Database.

The requirements of the National
Youth in Transition Database (NYTD)
§§ 1356.81 through 1356.86 of this part
apply to the agency in any State, the
District of Columbia, or Territory, that
administers, or supervises the
administration of the Chafee Foster Care
Independence Program (CFCIP) under
section 477 of the Social Security Act
(the Act).

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

§ 1356.81

Reporting population.

The reporting population is
comprised of all youth in the following
categories:
(a) Served population. Each youth
who receives an independent living
service paid for or provided by the State
agency during the reporting period.
(b) Baseline population. Each youth
who is in foster care as defined in 45
CFR 1355.20 and reaches his or her 17th
birthday during Federal fiscal year
(FFY) 2011, and such youth who reach
a 17th birthday during every third year
thereafter.

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:26 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

10365

(c) Follow-up population. Each youth
who reaches his or her 19th or 21st
birthday in a Federal fiscal year and had
participated in data collection as part of
the baseline population, as specified in
section 1356.82(a)(2) of this part. A
youth has participated in the outcomes
data collection if the State agency
reports to ACF a valid response (i.e., a
response option other than ‘‘declined’’
and ‘‘not applicable’’) to any of the
outcomes-related elements described in
section 1356.83(g)(37) through (g)(58) of
this part.

consistent with the sampling
requirements described in section
1356.84 of this part to satisfy the data
collection requirements in paragraph
(a)(3) of this section for the follow-up
population. A State that samples must
identify the youth at age 19 who
participated in the outcomes data
collection as part of the baseline
population at age 17 who are not in the
sample in accordance with 45 CFR
1356.83(e).

§ 1356.82

(a) Reporting periods and deadlines.
The six-month reporting periods are
from October 1 to March 31 and April
1 to September 30. The State agency
must submit data files that include the
information specified in this section to
ACF on a semi-annual basis, within 45
days of the end of the reporting period
(i.e., by May 15 and November 14).
(b) Data elements for all youth. The
State agency must report the data
elements described in paragraphs (g)(1)
through (g)(13) of this section for each
youth in the entire reporting population
defined in section 1356.81 of this part.
(c) Data elements for served youth.
The State agency must report the data
elements described in paragraphs (g)(14)
through (g)(33) of this section for each
youth in the served population defined
in section 1356.81(a) of this part.
(d) Data elements for baseline youth.
The State agency must report the data
elements described in paragraphs (g)(34)
through (g)(58) of this section for each
youth in the baseline population
defined in section 1356.81(b) of this
part.
(e) Data elements for follow-up youth.
The State agency must report the data
elements described in paragraphs (g)(34)
through (g)(58) of this section for each
youth in the follow-up population
defined in section 1356.81(c) of this part
or alternatively, for each youth selected
in accordance with the sampling
procedures in section 1356.84 of this
part. A State that samples must identify
in the outcomes reporting status
element described in paragraph (g)(34),
the 19-year-old youth who participated
in the outcomes data collection as a part
of the baseline population at age 17,
who are not in the sample.
(f) Single youth record. The State
agency must report all applicable data
elements for an individual youth in one
record per reporting period.
(g) Data element descriptions. For
each element described in paragraphs
(g)(1) through (58) of this section, the
State agency must indicate the
applicable response as instructed.

Data collection requirements.

(a) The State agency must collect
applicable information as specified in
section 1356.83 of this part on the
reporting population defined in section
1356.81 of this part in accordance with
the following:
(1) For each youth in the served
population, the State agency must
collect information for the data elements
specified in section 1356.83(b) and
1356.83(c) of this part on an ongoing
basis, for as long as the youth receives
services.
(2) For each youth in the baseline
population, the State agency must
collect information for the data elements
specified in section 1356.83(b) and
1356.83(d) of this part. The State agency
must collect this information on a new
baseline population every three years.
(i) For each youth in foster care who
turns age 17 in FFY 2011, the State
agency must collect this information
within 45 days following the youth’s
17th birthday, but not before that
birthday.
(ii) Every third Federal fiscal year
thereafter, the State agency must collect
this information on each youth in foster
care who turns age 17 during the year
within 45 days following the youth’s
17th birthday, but not before that
birthday.
(iii) The State agency must collect this
information using the survey questions
in Appendix B of this part entitled
‘‘Information to collect from all youth
surveyed for outcomes, whether in
foster care or not.’’
(3) For each youth in the follow-up
population, the State agency must
collect information on the data elements
specified in sections 1356.83(b) and
1356.83(e) of this part within the
reporting period of the youth’s 19th and
21st birthday. The State agency must
collect the information using the
appropriate survey questions in
Appendix B of this part, depending
upon whether the youth is in foster care.
(b) The State agency may select a
sample of the 17-year-olds in the
baseline population to follow over time

PO 00000

Frm 00029

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

§ 1356.83 Reporting requirements and
data elements.

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

10366

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

(1) State. State means the State
responsible for reporting on the youth.
Indicate the first two digits of the State’s
Federal Information Processing
Standard (FIPS) code for the State
submitting the report to ACF.
(2) Report date. The report date
corresponds with the end of the current
reporting period. Indicate the last month
and the year of the reporting period.
(3) Record number. The record
number is the encrypted, unique person
identification number for the youth. The
State agency must apply and retain the
same encryption routine or method for
the person identification number across
all reporting periods. The record
number must be encrypted in
accordance with ACF standards.
Indicate the record number for the
youth.
(i) If the youth is in foster care as
defined in 45 CFR 1355.20 or was
during the current or previous reporting
period, the State agency must use and
report to the NYTD the same person
identification number for the youth the
State agency reports to AFCARS. The
person identification number must
remain the same for the youth wherever
the youth is living and in any
subsequent NYTD reports.
(ii) If the youth was never in the
State’s foster care system as defined in
45 CFR 1355.20, the State agency must
assign a person identification number
that must remain the same for the youth
wherever the youth is living and in any
subsequent reports to NYTD.
(4) Date of birth. The youth’s date of
birth. Indicate the year, month, and day
of the youth’s birth.
(5) Sex. The youth’s sex. Indicate
whether the youth is male or female as
appropriate.
(6) Race: American Indian or Alaska
Native. In general, a youth’s race is
determined by the youth or the youth’s
parent(s). An American Indian or Alaska
Native youth has origins in any of the
original peoples of North or South
America (including Central America),
and maintains tribal affiliation or
community attachment. Indicate
whether this racial category applies for
the youth, with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no.’’
(7) Race: Asian. In general, a youth’s
race is determined by the youth or the
youth’s parent(s). An Asian youth has
origins in any of the original peoples of
the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the
Indian subcontinent including, for
example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan,
Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the
Philippine Islands, Thailand, and
Vietnam. Indicate whether this racial
category applies for the youth, with a
‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no.’’

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

(8) Race: Black or African American.
In general, a youth’s race is determined
by the youth or the youth’s parent(s). A
Black or African American youth has
origins in any of the black racial groups
of Africa. Indicate whether this racial
category applies for the youth, with a
‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no.’’
(9) Race: Native Hawaiian or Other
Pacific Islander. In general, a youth’s
race is determined by the youth or the
youth’s parent(s). A Native Hawaiian or
Other Pacific Islander youth has origins
in any of the original peoples of Hawaii,
Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.
Indicate whether this racial category
applies for the youth, with a ‘‘yes’’ or
‘‘no.’’
(10) Race: White. In general, a youth’s
race is determined by the youth or the
youth’s parent(s). A White youth has
origins in any of the original peoples of
Europe, the Middle East, or North
Africa. Indicate whether this racial
category applies for the youth, with a
‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no.’’
(11) Race: unknown. The race, or at
least one race of the youth is unknown,
or the youth and/or parent is not able
to communicate the youth’s race.
Indicate whether this category applies
for the youth, with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no.’’
(12) Race: declined. The youth or
parent has declined to identify a race.
Indicate whether this category applies
for the youth, with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no.’’
(13) Hispanic or Latino ethnicity. In
general, a youth’s ethnicity is
determined by the youth or the youth’s
parent(s). A youth is of Hispanic or
Latino ethnicity if the youth is a person
of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South
or Central American, or other Spanish
culture or origin, regardless of race.
Indicate which category applies, with
‘‘yes,’’ ‘‘no,’’ ‘‘unknown’’ or ‘‘declined,’’
as appropriate. ‘‘Unknown’’ means that
the youth and/or parent is unable to
communicate the youth’s ethnicity.
‘‘Declined’’ means that the youth or
parent has declined to identify the
youth’s Hispanic or Latino ethnicity.
(14) Foster care status—services. The
youth receiving services is or was in
foster care during the reporting period if
the youth is or was in the placement
and care responsibility of the State title
IV–B/IV–E agency in accordance with
the definition of foster care in 45 CFR
1355.20. Indicate whether the youth is
or was in foster care at any point during
the reporting period, with a ‘‘yes’’ or
‘‘no’’ as appropriate. If the youth is not
in the served population this element
must be left blank.
(15) Local agency. The local agency is
the county or equivalent jurisdictional
unit that has primary responsibility for
placement and care of a youth who is

PO 00000

Frm 00030

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

in foster care consistent with the
definition in 45 CFR 1355.20, or that has
primary responsibility for providing
services to a youth who is not in foster
care. Indicate the five-digit Federal
Information Processing Standard (FIPS)
code(s) that corresponds to the identity
of the county or equivalent unit
jurisdiction(s) that meets these criteria
during the reporting period. If a youth
who is not in foster care is provided
services by a centralized unit only,
rather than a county agency, indicate
‘‘centralized unit.’’ If the youth is not in
the served population this element must
be left blank.
(16) Federally recognized tribe. The
youth is enrolled in or eligible for
membership in a federally recognized
tribe. The term ‘‘federally recognized
tribe’’ means any Indian tribe, band,
nation, or other organized group or
community of Indians, including any
Alaska Native village or regional or
village corporation, as defined in or
established pursuant to the Alaska
Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C
1601 et seq.), that is recognized as
eligible for the special programs and
services provided by the United States
to Indians because of their status as
Indians pursuant to the Indian SelfDetermination and Educational
Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450 et seq.).
Indicate ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’ as appropriate. If
the youth is not in the served
population this element must be left
blank.
(17) Adjudicated delinquent.
Adjudicated delinquent means that a
State or Federal court of competent
jurisdiction has adjudicated the youth
as a delinquent. Indicate ‘‘yes,’’ or ‘‘no’’
as appropriate. If the youth is not in the
served population this element must be
left blank.
(18) Educational level. Educational
level means the highest educational
level completed by the youth. For
example, for a youth currently in 11th
grade, ‘‘10th grade’’ is the highest
educational level completed. Postsecondary education or training refers to
any post-secondary education or
training, other than an education
pursued at a college or university.
College refers to completing at least a
semester of study at a college or
university. Indicate the highest
educational level completed by the
youth during the reporting period. If the
youth is not in the served population
this element must be left blank.
(19) Special education. The term
‘‘special education,’’ means specifically
designed instruction, at no cost to
parents, to meet the unique needs of a
child with a disability. Indicate whether
the youth has received special

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations
education instruction during the
reporting period with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’ as
appropriate. If the youth is not in the
served population this element must be
left blank.
(20) Independent living needs
assessment. An independent living
needs assessment is a systematic
procedure to identify a youth’s basic
skills, emotional and social capabilities,
strengths, and needs to match the youth
with appropriate independent living
services. An independent living needs
assessment may address knowledge of
basic living skills, job readiness, money
management abilities, decision-making
skills, goal setting, task completion, and
transitional living needs. Indicate
whether the youth received an
independent living needs assessment
that was paid for or provided by the
State agency during the reporting period
with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’ as appropriate. If
the youth is not in the served
population this element must be left
blank.
(21) Academic support. Academic
supports are services designed to help a
youth complete high school or obtain a
General Equivalency Degree (GED).
Such services include the following:
Academic counseling; preparation for a
GED, including assistance in applying
for or studying for a GED exam; tutoring;
help with homework; study skills
training; literacy training; and help
accessing educational resources.
Academic support does not include a
youth’s general attendance in high
school. Indicate whether the youth
received academic supports during the
reporting period that were paid for or
provided by the State agency with a
‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’ as appropriate. If the
youth is not in the served population
this element must be left blank.
(22) Post-secondary educational
support. Post-secondary educational
support are services designed to help a
youth enter or complete a postsecondary education and include the
following: Classes for test preparation,
such as the Scholastic Aptitude Test
(SAT); counseling about college;
information about financial aid and
scholarships; help completing college or
loan applications; or tutoring while in
college. Indicate whether the youth
received post-secondary educational
support during the reporting period that
was paid for or provided by the State
agency with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’ as
appropriate. If the youth is not in the
served population this element must be
left blank.
(23) Career preparation. Career
preparation services focus on
developing a youth’s ability to find,
apply for, and retain appropriate

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

employment. Career preparation
includes the following types of
instruction and support services:
Vocational and career assessment,
including career exploration and
planning, guidance in setting and
assessing vocational and career interests
and skills, and help in matching
interests and abilities with vocational
goals; job seeking and job placement
support, including identifying potential
employers, writing resumes, completing
job applications, developing interview
skills, job shadowing, receiving job
referrals, using career resource libraries,
understanding employee benefits
coverage, and securing work permits;
retention support, including job
coaching; learning how to work with
employers and other employees;
understanding workplace values such as
timeliness and appearance; and
understanding authority and customer
relationships. Indicate whether the
youth received career preparation
services during the reporting period that
was paid for or provided by the State
agency with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’ as
appropriate. If the youth is not in the
served population this element must be
left blank.
(24) Employment programs or
vocational training. Employment
programs and vocational training are
designed to build a youth’s skills for a
specific trade, vocation, or career
through classes or on-site training.
Employment programs include a youth’s
participation in an apprenticeship,
internship, or summer employment
program and do not include summer or
after-school jobs secured by the youth
alone. Vocational training includes a
youth’s participation in vocational or
trade programs and the receipt of
training in occupational classes for such
skills as cosmetology, auto mechanics,
building trades, nursing, computer
science, and other current or emerging
employment sectors. Indicate whether
the youth attended an employment
program or received vocational training
during the reporting period that was
paid for or provided by the State agency,
with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’ as appropriate. If
the youth is not in the served
population this element must be left
blank.
(25) Budget and financial
management. Budget and financial
management assistance includes the
following types of training and practice:
Living within a budget; opening and
using a checking and savings account;
balancing a checkbook; developing
consumer awareness and smart
shopping skills; accessing information
about credit, loans and taxes; and filling
out tax forms. Indicate whether the

PO 00000

Frm 00031

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

10367

youth received budget and financial
management assistance during the
reporting period that was paid for or
provided by the State agency with a
‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’ as appropriate. If the
youth is not in the served population
this element must be left blank.
(26) Housing education and home
management training. Housing
education includes assistance or
training in locating and maintaining
housing, including filling out a rental
application and acquiring a lease,
handling security deposits and utilities,
understanding practices for keeping a
healthy and safe home, understanding
tenants rights and responsibilities, and
handling landlord complaints. Home
management includes instruction in
food preparation, laundry,
housekeeping, living cooperatively,
meal planning, grocery shopping and
basic maintenance and repairs. Indicate
whether the youth received housing
education or home management training
during the reporting period that was
paid for or provided by the State agency
with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’ as appropriate. If
the youth is not in the served
population this element must be left
blank.
(27) Health education and risk
prevention. Health education and risk
prevention includes providing
information about: Hygiene, nutrition,
fitness and exercise, and first aid;
medical and dental care benefits, health
care resources and insurance, prenatal
care and maintaining personal medical
records; sex education, abstinence
education, and HIV prevention,
including education and information
about sexual development and
sexuality, pregnancy prevention and
family planning, and sexually
transmitted diseases and AIDS;
substance abuse prevention and
intervention, including education and
information about the effects and
consequences of substance use (alcohol,
drugs, tobacco) and substance avoidance
and intervention. Health education and
risk prevention does not include the
youth’s actual receipt of direct medical
care or substance abuse treatment.
Indicate whether the youth received
these services during the reporting
period that were paid for or provided by
the State agency with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’
as appropriate. If the youth is not in the
served population this element must be
left blank.
(28) Family support and healthy
marriage education. Such services
include education and information
about safe and stable families, healthy
marriages, spousal communication,
parenting, responsible fatherhood,
childcare skills, teen parenting, and

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

10368

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

domestic and family violence
prevention. Indicate whether the youth
received these services that were paid
for or provided by the State agency
during the reporting period with a ‘‘yes’’
or ‘‘no’’ as appropriate. If the youth is
not in the served population this
element must be left blank.
(29) Mentoring. Mentoring means that
the youth has been matched with a
screened and trained adult for a one-onone relationship that involves the two
meeting on a regular basis. Mentoring
can be short-term, but it may also
support the development of a long-term
relationship. While youth often are
connected to adult role models through
school, work, or family, this service
category only includes a mentor
relationship that has been facilitated,
paid for or provided by the State agency
or its staff. Indicate whether the youth
received mentoring services that were
paid for or provided by the State agency
during the reporting period with a ‘‘yes’’
or ‘‘no’’ as appropriate. If the youth is
not in the served population this
element must be left blank.
(30) Supervised independent living.
Supervised independent living means
that the youth is living independently
under a supervised arrangement that is
paid for or provided by the State agency.
A youth in supervised independent
living is not supervised 24 hours a day
by an adult and often is provided with
increased responsibilities, such as
paying bills, assuming leases, and
working with a landlord, while under
the supervision of an adult. Indicate
whether the youth was living in a
supervised independent living setting
that was paid or provided by the State
agency during the reporting period with
a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’ as appropriate. If the
youth is not in the served population
this element must be left blank.
(31) Room and board financial
assistance. Room and board financial
assistance is a payment that is paid for
or provided by the State agency for
room and board, including rent
deposits, utilities, and other household
start-up expenses. Indicate whether the
youth received financial assistance for
room and board that was paid for or
provided by during the reporting period
with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’ as appropriate. If
the youth is not in the served
population this element must be left
blank.
(32) Education financial assistance.
Education financial assistance is a
payment that is paid for or provided by
the State agency for education or
training, including allowances to
purchase textbooks, uniforms,
computers, and other educational
supplies; tuition assistance;

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

scholarships; payment for educational
preparation and support services (i.e.,
tutoring), and payment for GED and
other educational tests. This financial
assistance also includes vouchers for
tuition or vocational education or
tuition waiver programs paid for or
provided by the State agency. Indicate
whether the youth received education
financial assistance during the reporting
period that was paid for or provided by
the State agency with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’
as appropriate. If the youth is not in the
served population this element must be
left blank.
(33) Other financial assistance. Other
financial assistance includes any other
payments made or provided by the State
agency to help the youth live
independently. Indicate whether the
youth received any other financial
assistance that was paid for or provided
by the State agency during the reporting
period with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’ as
appropriate. If the youth is not in the
served population this element must be
left blank.
(34) Outcomes reporting status. The
outcomes reporting status represents the
youth’s participation, or lack thereof, in
the outcomes data collection. If the State
agency collects and reports information
on any of the data elements in
paragraphs (g)(37) through (g)(58) of this
section for a youth in the baseline or
follow-up sample or population,
indicate that the youth participated. If a
youth is in the baseline or follow-up
sample or population, but the State
agency is unable to collect the
information, indicate the reason and
leave the data elements in paragraph
(g)(37) through (g)(58) of this section
blank. If a 19-year old youth in the
follow-up population is not in the
sample, indicate that the youth is not in
the sample. If the youth is not in the
baseline or follow-up population this
element must be left blank.
(i) Youth participated. The youth
participated in the outcome survey,
either fully or partially.
(ii) Youth declined. The State agency
located the youth successfully and
invited the youth’s participation, but the
youth declined to participate in the data
collection.
(iii) Parent declined. The State agency
invited the youth’s participation, but the
youth’s parent/guardian declined to
grant permission. This response may be
used only when the youth has not
reached the age of majority in the State
and State law or policy requires a
parent/guardian’s permission for the
youth to participate in information
collection activities.
(iv) Incapacitated. The youth has a
permanent or temporary mental or

PO 00000

Frm 00032

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

physical condition that prevents him or
her from participating in the outcomes
data collection.
(v) Incarcerated. The youth is unable
to participate in the outcomes data
collection because of his or her
incarceration.
(vi) Runaway/missing. A youth in
foster care is known to have run away
or be missing from his or her foster care
placement.
(vii) Unable to locate/invite. The State
agency could not locate a youth who is
not in foster care or otherwise invite
such a youth’s participation.
(viii) Death. The youth died prior to
his participation in the outcomes data
collection.
(ix) Not in sample. The 19-year-old
youth participated in the outcomes data
collection as a part of the baseline
population at age 17, but the youth is
not in the State’s follow-up sample. This
response option applies only when the
outcomes data collection is required on
the follow-up population of 19-year-old
youth.
(35) Date of outcome data collection.
The date of outcome data collection is
the latest date that the agency collected
data from a youth for the elements
described in paragraphs (g)(38) through
(g)(58) of this section. Indicate the
month, day and year of the outcomes
data collection. If the youth is not in the
baseline or follow-up population this
element must be left blank.
(36) Foster care status—outcomes.
The youth is in foster care if the youth
is under the placement and care
responsibility of the State title
IV–B/IV–E agency in accordance with
the definition of foster care in 45 CFR
1355.20. Indicate whether the youth is
in foster care on the date of outcomes
data collection with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’ as
appropriate. If the youth is not in the
baseline or follow-up population this
element must be left blank.
(37) Current full-time employment. A
youth is employed full-time if employed
at least 35 hours per week, in one or
multiple jobs, as of the date of the
outcome data collection. Indicate
whether the youth is employed fulltime, with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’ as
appropriate. If the youth does not
answer this question indicate
‘‘declined.’’ If the youth is not in the
baseline or follow-up population this
element must be left blank.
(38) Current part-time employment. A
youth is employed part-time if
employed between one and 34 hours per
week, in one or multiple jobs, as of the
date of the outcome data collection.
Indicate whether the youth is employed
part-time, with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no.’’ If the
youth does not answer this question,

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations
indicate ‘‘declined.’’ If the youth is not
in the baseline or follow-up population
this element must be left blank.
(39) Employment-related skills. A
youth has obtained employment-related
skills if the youth completed an
apprenticeship, internship, or other onthe-job training, either paid or unpaid,
in the past year. The experience must
help the youth acquire employmentrelated skills, such as specific trade
skills such as carpentry or auto
mechanics, or office skills such as word
processing or use of office equipment.
Indicate whether the youth has obtained
employment-related skills, with a ‘‘yes’’
or ‘‘no’’ as appropriate. If the youth does
not answer this question, indicate
‘‘declined.’’ If the youth is not in the
baseline or follow-up population this
element must be left blank.
(40) Social Security. A youth is
receiving some form of Social Security
if receiving Supplemental Security
Income (SSI) or Social Security
Disability Insurance (SSDI), either
directly or as a dependent beneficiary as
of the date of the outcome data
collection. SSI payments are made to
eligible low-income persons with
disabilities. SSDI payments are made to
persons with a certain amount of work
history who become disabled. A youth
may receive SSDI payments through a
parent. Indicate whether the youth is
receiving a form of Social Security
payments, with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’ as
appropriate. If the youth does not
answer this question, indicate
‘‘declined.’’ If the youth is not in the
baseline or follow-up population this
element must be left blank.
(41) Educational aid. A youth is
receiving educational aid if using a
scholarship, voucher (including
education or training vouchers pursuant
to section 477(h)(2) of the Social
Security Act), grant, stipend, student
loan, or other type of educational
financial aid to cover educational
expenses as of the date of the outcome
data collection. Scholarships, grants,
and stipends are funds awarded for
spending on expenses related to gaining
an education. ‘‘Student loan’’ means a
government-guaranteed, low-interest
loan for students in post-secondary
education. Indicate whether the youth is
receiving educational aid with a ‘‘yes’’
or ‘‘no’’ as appropriate. If the youth does
not answer this question, indicate
‘‘declined.’’ If the youth is not in the
baseline or follow-up population this
element must be left blank.
(42) Public financial assistance. A
youth is receiving public financial
assistance if receiving ongoing cash
welfare payments from the government
to cover some of his or her basic needs,

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

as of the date of the outcome data
collection. Public financial assistance
does not include government payments
or subsidies for specific purposes, such
as unemployment insurance, child care
subsidies, education assistance, food
stamps or housing assistance. Indicate
whether the youth is receiving public
financial assistance, with ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’
as appropriate, and ‘‘not applicable’’ for
a youth still in foster care. If the youth
does not answer this question, indicate
‘‘declined.’’ If the youth is not in the
baseline or follow-up population this
element must be left blank.
(43) Public food assistance. A youth is
receiving public food assistance if
receiving food stamps in any form (i.e.,
government-sponsored checks, coupons
or debit cards) to buy eligible food at
authorized stores as of the date of the
outcome data collection. This definition
includes receiving public food
assistance through the Women, Infants,
and Children (WIC) program. Indicate
whether the youth is receiving some
form of public food assistance with
‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no,’’ and ‘‘not applicable’’ for
a youth still in foster care. If the youth
does not answer this question, indicate
‘‘declined.’’ If the youth is not in the
baseline or follow-up population this
element must be left blank.
(44) Public housing assistance. A
youth is receiving public housing
assistance if the youth is living in
government-funded public housing, or
receiving a government-funded housing
voucher to pay for part of his/her
housing costs as of the date of the
outcome data collection. CFCIP room
and board payments are not included in
this definition. Indicate whether the
youth is receiving housing assistance
with ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’ and ‘‘not
applicable’’ for a youth still in foster
care. If the youth does not answer this
question, indicate ‘‘declined.’’ If the
youth is not in the baseline or followup population this element must be left
blank.
(45) Other financial support. A youth
has other financial support if receiving
any other periodic and/or significant
financial resources or support from
another source not listed in the
elements described in paragraphs (g)(41)
through (g)(44) of this section as of the
date of outcome data collection. Such
support can include payments from a
spouse or family member (biological,
foster or adoptive), child support that
the youth receives for him or herself, or
funds from a legal settlement. This
definition does not include occasional
gifts, such as birthday or graduation
checks or small donations of food or
personal incidentals, child care
subsidies, child support for a youth’s

PO 00000

Frm 00033

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

10369

child, or other financial support which
does not benefit the youth directly in
supporting himself or herself. Indicate
whether the youth is receiving any other
financial support with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no.’’
If the youth does not answer this
question, indicate ‘‘declined.’’ If the
youth is not in the baseline or followup population this element must be left
blank.
(46) Highest educational certification
received. A youth has received an
education certificate if the youth has a
high school diploma or general
equivalency degree (GED), vocational
certificate, vocational license,
associate’s degree (e.g., A.A.), bachelor’s
degree (e.g., B.A. or B.S.), or a higher
degree as of the date of the outcome data
collection. Indicate the highest degree
that the youth has received. If the youth
does not answer this question, indicate
‘‘declined.’’ If the youth is not in the
baseline or follow-up population this
element must be left blank.
(i) A vocational certificate is a
document stating that a person has
received education or training that
qualifies him or her for a particular job,
e.g., auto mechanics or cosmetology.
(ii) A vocational license is a document
that indicates that the State or local
government recognizes an individual as
a qualified professional in a particular
trade or business.
(iii) An associate’s degree is generally
a two-year degree from a community
college.
(iv) A bachelor’s degree is a four-year
degree from a college or university.
(v) A higher degree indicates a
graduate degree, such as a Master’s
Degree or a Juris Doctor (J.D.).
(vi) None of the above means that the
youth has not received any of the above
educational certifications.
(47) Current enrollment and
attendance. Indicate whether the youth
is enrolled in and attending high school,
GED classes, or postsecondary
vocational training or college, as of the
date of the outcome data collection. A
youth is still considered enrolled in and
attending school if the youth would
otherwise be enrolled in and attending
a school that is currently out of session.
Indicate whether the youth is currently
enrolled and attending school with a
‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no.’’ If the youth does not
answer this question, indicate
‘‘declined.’’ If the youth is not in the
baseline or follow-up population this
element must be left blank.
(48) Connection to adult. A youth has
a connection to an adult if, as of the date
of the outcome data collection, the
youth knows an adult who he or she can
go to for advice or guidance when there
is a decision to make or a problem to

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

10370

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

solve, or for companionship when
celebrating personal achievements. The
adult must be easily accessible to the
youth, either by telephone or in person.
This can include, but is not limited to
adult relatives, parents or foster parents.
The definition excludes spouses,
partners, boyfriends or girlfriends and
current caseworkers. Indicate whether
the youth has such a connection with an
adult with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no.’’ If the youth
does not answer this question, indicate
‘‘declined.’’ If the youth is not in the
baseline or follow-up population this
element must be left blank.
(49) Homelessness. A youth is
considered to have experienced
homelessness if the youth had no
regular or adequate place to live. This
definition includes situations where the
youth is living in a car or on the street,
or staying in a homeless or other
temporary shelter. For a 17-year-old
youth in the baseline population, the
data element relates to a youth’s lifetime
experiences. For a 19- or 21-year-old
youth in the follow-up population, the
data element relates to the youth’s
experience in the past two years.
Indicate if the youth has been homeless
with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no.’’ If the youth does
not answer this question, indicate
‘‘declined.’’ If the youth is not in the
baseline or follow-up population this
element must be left blank.
(50) Substance abuse referral. A youth
has received a substance abuse referral
if the youth was referred for an alcohol
or drug abuse assessment or counseling.
For a 17-year-old youth in the baseline
population, the data element relates to
a youth’s lifetime experience. For a 19or 21-year-old youth in the follow-up
population, the data element relates to
the youth’s experience in the past two
years. This definition includes either a
self-referral or referral by a social
worker, school staff, physician, mental
health worker, foster parent, or other
adult. Alcohol or drug abuse assessment
is a process designed to determine if
someone has a problem with alcohol or
drug use. Indicate whether the youth
had a substance abuse referral with a
‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no.’’ If the youth does not
answer this question, indicate
‘‘declined.’’ If the youth is not in the
baseline or follow-up population this
element must be left blank.
(51) Incarceration. A youth is
considered to have been incarcerated if
the youth was confined in a jail, prison,
correctional facility, or juvenile or
community detention facility in
connection with allegedly committing a
crime (misdemeanor or felony). For a
17-year-old youth in the baseline
population, the data element relates to
a youth’s lifetime experience. For a 19-

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

or 21-year-old youth in the follow-up
population, the data element relates to
the youth’s experience in the past two
years. Indicate whether the youth was
incarcerated with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’. If the
youth does not answer this question,
indicate ‘‘declined.’’ If the youth is not
in the baseline or follow-up population
this element must be left blank.
(52) Children. A youth is considered
to have a child if the youth has given
birth herself, or the youth has fathered
any children who were born. For a 17year-old youth in the baseline
population, the data element relates to
a youth’s lifetime experience. For a 19or 21-year-old youth in the follow-up
population, the data element refers to
children born to the youth in the past
two years only. This refers to biological
parenthood. Indicate whether the youth
had a child with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no.’’ If the
youth does not answer this question,
indicate ‘‘declined.’’ If the youth is not
in the baseline or follow-up population
this element must be left blank.
(53) Marriage at child’s birth. A youth
is married at the time of the child’s birth
if he or she was united in matrimony
according to the laws of the State to the
child’s other parent. Indicate whether
the youth was married to the child’s
other parent at the time of the birth of
any child reported in the element
described in paragraph (g)(52) of this
section with a ‘‘yes’’ or ‘‘no’’. If the
youth does not answer this question,
indicate ‘‘declined.’’ If the answer to the
element described in paragraph (g)(52)
of this section is ‘‘no,’’ indicate ‘‘not
applicable.’’ If the youth is not in the
baseline or follow-up population this
element must be left blank.
(54) Medicaid. A youth is receiving
Medicaid if the youth is participating in
a Medicaid-funded State program,
which is a medical assistance program
supported by the Federal and State
government under title XIX of the Social
Security Act as of the date of outcomes
data collection. Indicate whether the
youth receives Medicaid with ‘‘yes,’’
‘‘no,’’ or ‘‘don’t know’’ as appropriate. If
the youth does not answer this question,
indicate ‘‘declined.’’ If the youth is not
in the baseline or follow-up population
this element must be left blank.
(55) Other health insurance coverage.
A youth has other health insurance if
the youth has a third party pay (other
than Medicaid) for all or part of the
costs of medical care, mental health
care, and/or prescription drugs, as of the
date of the outcome data collection.
This definition includes group coverage
offered by employers, schools or
associations, an individual health plan,
self-employed plans, or inclusion in a
parent’s insurance plan. This also could

PO 00000

Frm 00034

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

include access to free health care
through a college, Indian Health
Service, or other source. Medical or
drug discount cards or plans are not
insurance. Indicate ‘‘yes’’, ‘‘no,’’ or
‘‘don’t know,’’ as appropriate, or ‘‘not
applicable’’ for youth participating
solely in Medicaid. If the youth does not
answer this question, indicate
‘‘declined.’’ If the youth is not in the
baseline or follow-up population this
element must be left blank.
(56) Health insurance type: Medical. If
the youth has indicated that he or she
has health insurance coverage in the
element described in paragraph (g)(55)
of this section, indicate whether the
youth has insurance that pays for all or
part of medical health care services.
Indicate ‘‘yes’’, ‘‘no’’, or ‘‘don’t know’’
as appropriate, or ‘‘not applicable’’ if the
youth did not indicate any health
insurance coverage. If the youth does
not answer this question, indicate
‘‘declined.’’ If the youth is not in the
baseline or follow-up population this
element must be left blank.
(57) Health insurance type: Mental
health. If the youth has indicated that he
or she has medical health insurance
coverage as described in paragraph
(g)(56) of this section, indicate whether
the youth has insurance that pays for all
or part of the costs for mental health
care services, such as counseling or
therapy. Indicate ‘‘yes’’, ‘‘no’’, or ‘‘don’t
know’’ as appropriate, or ‘‘not
applicable’’ if the youth did not indicate
having medical health insurance
coverage. If the youth does not answer
this question, indicate ‘‘declined.’’ If the
youth is not in the baseline or followup population this element must be left
blank.
(58) Health insurance type:
Prescription drugs. If the youth has
indicated that he or she has medical
health insurance coverage as described
in paragraph (g)(56) of this section,
indicate whether the youth has
insurance coverage that pays for part or
all of the costs of some prescription
drugs. Indicate ‘‘yes’’, ‘‘no’’, or ‘‘don’t
know’’ as appropriate, or ‘‘not
applicable’’ if the youth did not indicate
having medical health insurance
coverage. If the youth does not answer
this question, indicate ‘‘declined.’’ If the
youth is not in the baseline or followup population this element must be left
blank.
(h) Electronic reporting. The State
agency must report all data to ACF
electronically according to ACF’s
specifications and Appendix A of this
part.

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations
§ 1356.84

Sampling.

(a) The State agency may collect and
report the information required in
section 1356.83(e) of this part on a
sample of the baseline population
consistent with the sampling
requirements described in paragraphs
(b) and (c) of this section.
(b) The State agency must select the
follow-up sample using simple random
sampling procedures based on random
numbers generated by a computer
program, unless ACF approves another
sampling procedure. The sampling
universe consists of youth in the
baseline population consistent with 45
CFR 1356.81(b) who participated in the
State agency’s data collection at age 17.
(c) The sample size is based on the
number of youth in the baseline
population who participated in the State
agency’s data collection at age 17.
(1) If the number of youth in the
baseline population who participated in
the outcome data collection at age 17 is
5,000 or less, the State agency must
calculate the sample size using the
formula in Appendix C of this part, with
the Finite Population Correction (FPC).
The State agency must increase the
resulting number by 30 percent to allow
for attrition, but the sample size may not
be larger than the number of youth who
participated in data collection at age 17.
(2) If the number of youth in the
baseline population who participated in
the outcome data collection at age 17 is
greater than 5,000, the State agency
must calculate the sample size using the
formula in Appendix C of this part,
without the FPC. The State agency must
increase the resulting number by 30
percent to allow for attrition, but the
sample size must not be larger than the
number of youth who participated in
data collection at age 17.

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

§ 1356.85

Compliance.

(a) File submission standards. A State
agency must submit a data file in
accordance with the following file
submission standards:
(1) Timely data. The data file must be
received in accordance with the
reporting period and timeline described
in section 1356.83(a) of this part;
(2) Format. The data file must be in
a format that meets ACF’s
specifications; and
(3) Error-free information. The file
must contain data in the general and
demographic elements described in
section 1356.83(g)(1) through (g)(5),
(g)(14), and (g)(36) of this part that is
100 percent error-free as defined in
paragraph (c) of this section.
(b) Data standards. A State agency
also must submit a file that meets the
following data standards:

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

(1) Error-free. The data for the
applicable demographic, service and
outcomes elements defined in section
1356.83(g)(6) through (13), (g)(15)
through (35) and (g)(37) through (58) of
this part must be 90 percent error-free
as described and assessed according to
paragraph (c) of this section.
(2) Outcomes universe. In any Federal
fiscal year for which the State agency is
required to submit information on the
follow-up population, the State agency
must submit a youth record containing
at least outcomes data for the outcomes
status element described in section
1356.83(g)(34) of this part on each youth
for whom the State agency reported
outcome information as part of the
baseline population. Alternatively, if the
State agency has elected to conduct
sampling in accordance with section
1356.84 of this part, the State agency
must submit a record containing at least
outcomes data for the outcomes status
element described in section
1356.83(g)(34) of this part on each 19year-old youth in the follow-up
population, inclusive of those youth
who are not in the sample, and each 21year-old youth in the follow-up sample.
(3) Outcomes participation rate. The
State agency must report outcome
information on each youth in the
follow-up population at the rates
described in paragraphs (b)(3)(i) through
(iii) of this section. A youth has
participated in the outcomes data
collection if the State agency collected
and reported a valid response (i.e., a
response option other than ‘‘declined’’
or ‘‘not applicable’’) to any of the
outcomes-related elements described in
section 1356.83(g)(37) through (g)(58) of
this part. ACF will exclude from the
calculation of the participation rate any
youth in the follow-up population who
is reported as deceased, incapacitated or
incarcerated in section 1356.83(g)(34) at
the time information on the follow-up
population is required.
(i) Foster care youth participation
rate. The State agency must report
outcome information on at least 80
percent of youth in the follow-up
population who are in foster care on the
date of outcomes data collection as
indicated in section 1356.83(g)(35) and
(g)(36) of this part.
(ii) Discharged youth participation
rate. The State agency must report
outcome information on at least 60
percent of youth in the follow-up
population who are not in foster care on
the date of outcomes data collection as
indicated in section 1356.83(g)(35) and
(g)(36) of this part.
(iii) Effect of sampling on
participation rates. For State agencies
electing to sample in accordance with

PO 00000

Frm 00035

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

10371

section 1356.84 and Appendix C of this
part, ACF will apply the outcome
participation rates in paragraphs (b)(2)(i)
and (ii) of this section to the required
sample size for the State.
(c) Errors. ACF will assess each State
agency’s data file for the following types
of errors: Missing data, out-of-range
data, or internally inconsistent data. The
amount of errors acceptable for each
reporting period is described in
paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section.
(1) Missing data is any element that
has a blank response when a blank
response is not a valid response option
as described in section 1356.83(g) of this
part.
(2) Out-of-range data is any element
that contains a value that is outside the
parameters of acceptable responses or
exceeds, either positively or negatively,
the acceptable range of response options
as described in section 1356.83(g) of this
part; and
(3) Internally inconsistent data is any
element that fails an internal
consistency check designed to evaluate
the logical relationship between
elements in each record. The evaluation
will identify all elements involved in a
particular check as in error.
(d) Review for compliance.
(1) ACF will determine whether a
State agency’s data file for each
reporting period is in compliance with
the file submission standards and data
standards in paragraphs (a) and (b) of
this section.
(i) For State agencies that achieve the
file submission standards, ACF will
determine whether the State agency’s
data file meets the data standards.
(ii) For State agencies that do not
achieve the file submission standards or
data standards, ACF will notify the State
agency that they have an opportunity to
submit a corrected data file by the end
of the subsequent reporting period in
accordance with paragraph (e) of this
section.
(2) ACF may use monitoring tools or
assessment procedures to determine
whether the State agency is meeting all
the requirements of section 1356.81
through 1356.85 of this part.
(e) Submitting corrected data and
noncompliance. A State agency that
does not submit a data file that meets
the standards in section 1356.85 of this
part will have an opportunity to submit
a corrected data file in accordance with
paragraphs (e)(1) and (e)(2) of this
section.
(1) A State agency must submit a
corrected data file no later than the end
of the subsequent reporting period as
defined in section 1356.83(a) of this part
(i.e., by September 30 or March 31).

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

10372

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

(2) If a State agency fails to submit a
corrected data file that meets the
compliance standards in section
1356.85 of this part and the deadline in
paragraph (e)(1) of this section, ACF
will make a final determination that the
State is out of compliance, notify the
State agency, and apply penalties as
defined in section 1356.86 of this part.
§ 1356.86

Penalties for noncompliance.

(a) Definition of Federal funds subject
to a penalty. The funds that are subject
to a penalty are the CFCIP funds
allocated or reallocated to the State
agency under section 477(c)(1) of the
Act for the Federal fiscal year that
corresponds with the reporting period
for which the State agency was required
originally to submit data according to
section 1356.83(a) of this part.
(b) Assessed penalty amounts. ACF
will assess penalties in the following
amounts, depending on the area of
noncompliance:
(1) Penalty for not meeting file
submission standards. ACF will assess a
penalty in an amount equivalent to two
and one half percent (2.5%) of the funds
subject to a penalty for each reporting
period in which ACF makes a final
determination that the State agency’s
data file does not comply with the file

submission standards defined in section
1356.85(a) of this part.
(2) Penalty for not meeting certain
data standards. ACF will assess a
penalty in an amount equivalent to:
(i) One and one quarter percent
(1.25%) of the funds subject to a penalty
for each reporting period in which ACF
makes a final determination that the
State agency’s data file does not comply
with the data standard for error-free data
as defined in section 1356.85(b)(1) of
this part.
(ii) One and one quarter percent
(1.25%) of the funds subject to a penalty
for each reporting period in which ACF
makes a final determination that the
State agency’s data file does not comply
with the outcome universe standard
defined in section 1356.85(b)(2) of this
part.
(iii) One half of one percent (0.5%) of
the funds subject to a penalty for each
reporting period in which ACF makes a
final determination that the State
agency’s data file does not comply with
the participation rate for youth in foster
care standard defined in section
1356.85(b)(3)(i) of this part.
(iv) One half of one percent (0.5%) of
the funds subject to a penalty for each
reporting period in which ACF makes a
final determination that the State

agency’s data file does not comply with
the participation rate for discharged
youth standard defined in section
1356.85(b)(3)(ii) of this part.
(c) Calculation of the penalty amount.
ACF will add together any assessed
penalty amounts described in
paragraphs (b)(1) or (b)(2) of this section
to determine the total calculated penalty
result. If the total calculated penalty
result is less than one percent of the
funds subject to a penalty, the State
agency will be penalized in the amount
of one percent.
(d) Notification of penalty amount.
ACF will advise the State agency in
writing of a final determination of
noncompliance and the amount of the
total calculated penalty as determined
in paragraph (c) of this section.
(e) Interest. The State agency will be
liable for interest on the amount of
funds penalized by the Department, in
accordance with the provisions of 45
CFR 30.13.
(f) Appeals. The State agency may
appeal, pursuant to 45 CFR part 16,
ACF’s final determination to the HHS
Departmental Appeals Board.
3. Add Appendices A, B, and C to part
1356 to read as follows:

■

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

APPENDIX A TO PART 1356—NYTD DATA ELEMENTS
Element
#

Element name

1 ............
2 ............

State ........................................................................
Report date ..............................................................

3 ............

Record number ........................................................

4 ............

Date of birth .............................................................

5 ............

Sex ..........................................................................

6 ............

Race—American Indian or Alaska Native ...............

7 ............

Race—Asian ............................................................

8 ............

Race—Black or African American ...........................

9 ............

Race—Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander ..

10 ..........

Race—White ...........................................................

11 ..........

Race—Unknown ......................................................

12 ..........

Race—Declined .......................................................

13 ..........

Hispanic or Latino Ethnicity .....................................

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

PO 00000

Responses options

Frm 00036

Applicable population

2 digit FIPS code.
CYYMM.
CC= century year (i.e., 20).
YY = decade year (00–99).
MM = month (01–12).
Encrypted, unique person
identification number.
CCYYMMDD.
CC= century year (i.e., 20).
YY = decade year (00–99).
MM = month (01–12).
DD= day (01–31).
Male.
Female.
Yes ................................... All youth in served, baseline and follow-up populations.
No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Unknown.
Declined.

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

10373

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

APPENDIX A TO PART 1356—NYTD DATA ELEMENTS—Continued
Element
#

Element name

Responses options

14 ..........

Foster care status—services ...................................

15 ..........

Local agency ...........................................................

16 ..........

Federally-recognized tribe .......................................

17 ..........

Adjudicated delinquent ............................................

18 ..........

Education level ........................................................

19 ..........

Special education ....................................................

20 ..........

Independent living needs assessment ....................

21 ..........

Academic support ....................................................

22 ..........

Post-secondary educational support .......................

23 ..........

Career preparation ..................................................

24 ..........

Employment programs or vocational training ..........

25 ..........

Budget and financial management .........................

26 ..........

Housing education and home management training.

Yes ...................................
No.
FIPS code(s).
Centralized unit.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Less than 6th grade .........
6th grade.
7th grade.
8th grade.
9th grade.
10th grade.
11th grade.
12th grade.
Postsecondary education
or training College, at
least one semester.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.

27 ..........

Health education and risk prevention .....................

28 ..........

Family Support/Healthy Marriage Education ...........

29 ..........

Mentoring .................................................................

30 ..........

Supervised independent living ................................

31 ..........

Room and board financial assistance .....................

32 ..........

Education financial assistance ................................

33 ..........

Other financial assistance .......................................

34 ..........

Outcomes reporting status ......................................

Youth Participated ............
Youth Declined
Parent Declined
Youth Incapacitated
Incarcerated.
Runaway/Missing.
Unable to locate/invite.
Death.
Not in sample.

35 ..........

Date of outcome data collection .............................

36 ..........

Foster care status-outcomes ...................................

37 ..........

Current full-time employment ..................................

CCYYMMDD .................... Baseline and follow-up populations.
CC= century year (i.e., 20).
YY = decade year (00–99).
MM = month (01–12).
DD= day (01–31).
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Declined.

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:26 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

PO 00000

Frm 00037

Applicable population
Served population only.

Served population only.

No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.
Yes.
No.

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

Baseline and follow-up populations (with the exception of the response option ‘‘not in sample’’
which is applicable to 19-year olds in the followup only).

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

10374

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

APPENDIX A TO PART 1356—NYTD DATA ELEMENTS—Continued
Element
#

Element name

38 ..........

Current part-time employment ................................

39 ..........

Employment-related skills .......................................

40 ..........

Social Security .........................................................

41 ..........

Educational aid ........................................................

42 ..........

Public financial assistance ......................................

43 ..........

Public food assistance ............................................

44 ..........

Public housing assistance .......................................

45 ..........

Other financial support ............................................

46 ..........

Highest educational certification received ...............

47 ..........

Current enrollment and attendance ........................

48 ..........

Connection to adult .................................................

49 ..........

Homelessness .........................................................

50 ..........

Substance abuse referral ........................................

51 ..........

Incarceration ............................................................

52 ..........

Children ...................................................................

53 ..........

Marriage at child’s birth ...........................................

54 ..........

Medicaid ..................................................................

55 ..........

Other health insurance coverage ............................

56 ..........

Health insurance type—medical .............................

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

PO 00000

Responses options

Frm 00038

Applicable population

Yes.
No.
Declined.
Yes.
No.
Declined.
Yes.
No.
Declined.
Yes.
No.
Declined.
Yes ...................................
No.
Not applicable.
Declined.
Yes.
No.
Not applicable.
Declined.
Yes.
No.
Not applicable.
Declined.

Follow-up population not in foster care.

Yes ...................................
No.
Declined.
High school diploma/GED.
Vocational certificate.
Vocational license.
Associate’s degree.
Bachelor’s degree.
Higher degree.
None of the above.
Declined.
Yes.
No.
Declined.
Yes.
No.
Declined.
Yes.
No.
Declined.
Yes.
No.
Declined.
Yes.
No.
Declined.
Yes.
No.
Declined.
Yes.
No.
Not applicable.
Declined.
Yes.
No.
Don’t know.
Declined.
Yes ...................................
No.
Don’t know.
Not applicable.
Declined.
Yes.
Don’t know.
Not applicable.

Baseline and follow-up population.

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

Baseline and follow-up population.

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

10375

APPENDIX A TO PART 1356—NYTD DATA ELEMENTS—Continued
Element
#

Element name

57 ..........

Health insurance type—mental health ....................

58 ..........

Health insurance type—prescription drugs .............

Responses options

Applicable population

Declined.
Yes.
No.
Don’t know.
Not applicable.
Declined.
Yes.
No.
Don’t know.
Not applicable.
Declined.

APPENDIX B TO PART 1356—NYTD YOUTH OUTCOME SURVEY
Topic/element #

Question to youth and response options

Definition

INFORMATION TO COLLECT FROM ALL YOUTH SURVEYED FOR OUTCOMES, WHETHER IN FOSTER CARE OR NOT
Current full-time employment (37) ......................

Current part-time employment (38) ....................

Employment-related skills (39) ...........................

Social Security (40) ............................................

Educational Aid (41) ...........................................

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

Other financial support (45) ...............................

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

Currently are you employed full-time?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDeclined ........................................................
Currently are you employed part-time?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDeclined ........................................................
In the past year, did you complete an apprenticeship, internship, or other on-the-job
training, either paid or unpaid?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDeclined ........................................................
Currently are you receiving social security
payments (Supplemental Security Income
(SSI, Social Security Disability Insurance
(SSDI), or dependents’ payments)?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDeclined ........................................................
Currently are you using a scholarship, grant,
stipend, student loan, voucher, or other
type of educational financial aid to cover
any educational expenses?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDeclined ........................................................
Currently are you receiving any periodic and/
or significant financial resources or support
from another source not previously indicated and excluding paid employment?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDeclined ........................................................

PO 00000

Frm 00039

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

‘‘Full-time’’ means working at least 35 hours
per week at one or multiple jobs.

‘‘Part-time’’ means working at least 1–34
hours per week at one or multiple jobs.

This means apprenticeships, internships, or
other on-the-job trainings, either paid or unpaid, that helped the youth acquire employment-related skills (which can include specific trade skills such as carpentry or auto
mechanics, or office skills such as word
processing or use of office equipment).
These are payments from the government to
meet basic needs for food, clothing, and
shelter of a person with a disability. A youth
may be receiving these payments because
of a parent or guardian’s disability, rather
than his/her own.
Scholarships, grants, and stipends are funds
awarded for spending on expenses related
to gaining an education. ‘‘Student loan’’
means a government-guaranteed, low-interest loan for students in post-secondary education.
This means periodic and/or significant financial support from a spouse or family member (biological, foster or adoptive), child
support that the youth receives or funds
from a legal settlement. This does not include occasional gifts, such as birthday or
graduation checks or small donations of
food or personal incidentals, child care subsidies, child support for a youth’s child or
other financial help that does not benefit the
youth directly in supporting himself or herself.

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

10376

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations
APPENDIX B TO PART 1356—NYTD YOUTH OUTCOME SURVEY—Continued
Topic/element #

Question to youth and response options

Definition

Highest educational certification received (46) ..

What is the highest educational degree or
certification that you have received?
lHigh school diploma/GED ............................
lVocational certificate ....................................
lVocational license ........................................
lAssociate’s degree (e.g., A.A.) ....................
lBachelor’s degree (e.g., B.A. or B.S.) .........
lHigher degree ...............................................
lNone of the above ........................................
lDeclined ........................................................

Current enrollment and attendance (47) ............

Currently are you enrolled in and attending
high school, GED classes, post-high school
vocational training, or college?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDeclined ........................................................

Connection to adult (48) .....................................

Currently is there at least one adult in your
life, other than your caseworker, to whom
you can go for advice or emotional support?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDeclined ........................................................

Homelessness (49) ............................................

Have you ever been homeless?
OR ....................................................................

‘‘Vocational certificate’’ means a document
stating that a person has received education or training that qualifies him or her
for a particular job, e.g., auto mechanics or
cosmetology. ‘‘Vocational license’’ means a
document that indicates that the State or
local government recognizes an individual
as a qualified professional in a particular
trade or business. An Associate’s degree is
generally a two-year degree from a community college, and a Bachelor’s degree is a
four-year degree from a college or university. ‘‘Higher degree’’ indicates a graduate
degree, such as a Masters or Doctorate degree. ‘‘None of the above’’ means that the
youth has not received any of the above
educational certifications.
This means both enrolled in and attending
high school, GED classes, or postsecondary vocational training or college. A
youth is still considered enrolled in and attending school if the youth would otherwise
be enrolled in and attending a school that is
currently out of session (e.g., Spring break,
summer vacation, etc.).
This refers to an adult who the youth can go
to for advice or guidance when there is a
decision to make or a problem to solve, or
for companionship to share personal
achievements. This can include, but is not
limited to, adult relatives, parents or foster
parents. The definition excludes spouses,
partners, boyfriends or girlfriends and current caseworkers. The adult must be easily
accessible to the youth, either by telephone
or in person.
‘‘Homeless’’ means that the youth had no regular or adequate place to live. This includes
living in a car, or on the street, or staying in
a homeless or other temporary shelter.

Substance abuse referral (50) ...........................

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

Incarceration (51) ...............................................

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

In the past two years, were you homeless at
any time?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDeclined.
Have you ever referred yourself or has someone else referred you for an alcohol or drug
abuse assessment or counseling?
OR ....................................................................

In the past two years, did you refer yourself,
or had someone else referred you for an alcohol or drug abuse assessment or counseling?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDeclined.
Have you ever been confined in a jail, prison,
correctional facility, or juvenile or community detention facility, in connection with allegedly committing a crime?
OR ....................................................................

PO 00000

Frm 00040

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

This includes either self-referring or being referred by a social worker, school staff, physician, mental health worker, foster parent,
or other adult for an alcohol or drug abuse
assessment or counseling. Alcohol or drug
abuse assessment is a process designed to
determine if someone has a problem with
alcohol or drug use.

This means that the youth was confined in a
jail, prison, correctional facility, or juvenile
or community detention facility in connection with a crime (misdemeanor or felony)
allegedly committed by the youth.

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations

10377

APPENDIX B TO PART 1356—NYTD YOUTH OUTCOME SURVEY—Continued
Topic/element #

Question to youth and response options

Children (52) .......................................................

Marriage at Child’s Birth (53) .............................

Medicaid (54) ......................................................

Other Health insurance Coverage (55) ..............

Health insurance type—medical (56) .................

Health insurance type—mental health (57) ........

Health insurance type—prescription drugs (58)

In the past two years, were you confined in a
jail, prison, correctional facility, or juvenile
or community detention facility, in connection with allegedly committing a crime?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDeclined.
Have you ever given birth or fathered any
children that were born?
OR ....................................................................
In the past two years, did you give birth to or
father any children that were born?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDeclined.
If you responded yes to the previous question, were you married to the child’s other
parent at the time each child was born?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDeclined ........................................................
Currently are you on Medicaid [or use the
name of the State’s medical assistance program under title XIX]?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDon’t know ....................................................
lDeclined ........................................................
Currently do you have health insurance, other
than Medicaid?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDon’t know ....................................................
lDeclined ........................................................

Does your health insurance include coverage
for medical services?
lYes ...............................................................
lDon’t know ....................................................
lDeclined ........................................................
Does your health insurance include coverage
for mental health services?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDon’t know ....................................................
lDeclined ........................................................
Does your health insurance include coverage
for prescription drugs?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDon’t know ....................................................
lDeclined ........................................................

Definition

This means giving birth to or fathering at least
one child that was born. If males do not
know, answer ‘‘No.’’

This means that when every child was born
the youth was married to the other parent
of the child.

Medicaid (or the State medical assistance
program) is a health insurance program
funded by the government.

‘‘Health insurance’’ means having a third party
pay for all or part of health care. Youth
might have health insurance such as group
coverage offered by employers or schools,
or individual policies that cover medical
and/or mental health care and/or prescription drugs, or youth might be covered under
parents’ insurance. This also could include
access to free health care through a college, Indian Tribe, or other source.
This means that the youth’s health insurance
covers at least some medical services or
procedures. This question is for only those
youth who responded ‘‘yes’’ to having
health insurance.
This means that the youth’s health insurance
covers at least some mental health services. This question is for only those youth
who responded ‘‘yes’’ to having health insurance with medical coverage.
This means that the youth’s health insurance
covers at least some prescription drugs.
This question is for only those youth who
responded ‘‘yes’’ to having health insurance
with medical coverage.

ADDITIONAL OUTCOMES INFORMATION TO COLLECT FROM YOUTH OUT OF FOSTER CARE

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

Public financial assistance (42) ..........................

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

Currently are you receiving ongoing welfare
payments from the government to support
your basic needs? [The State may add and/
or substitute the name(s) of the State’s welfare program].
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDeclined ........................................................

PO 00000

Frm 00041

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

This refers to ongoing welfare payments from
the government to support your basic
needs. Do not consider payments or subsidies for specific purposes, such as unemployment insurance, child care subsidies,
education assistance, food stamps or housing assistance in this category.

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

10378

Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 38 / Tuesday, February 26, 2008 / Rules and Regulations
APPENDIX B TO PART 1356—NYTD YOUTH OUTCOME SURVEY—Continued
Topic/element #

Question to youth and response options

Definition

Public food assistance (43) ................................

Currently are you receiving public food assistance?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDeclined ........................................................

Public housing assistance (44) ..........................

Currently are you receiving any sort of housing assistance from the government, such
as living in public housing or receiving a
housing voucher?
lYes ...............................................................
lNo .................................................................
lDeclined ........................................................

Public food assistance includes food stamps,
which are government-issued coupons or
debit cards that recipients can use to buy
eligible food at authorized stores. Public
food assistance also includes assistance
from the Women, Infants and Children
(WIC) program.
Public housing is rental housing provided by
the government to keep rents affordable for
eligible individuals and families, and a
housing voucher allows participants to
choose their own housing while the government pays part of the housing costs. This
does not include payments from the child
welfare agency for room and board payments.

Appendix C to Part 1356—Calculating
Sample Size for NYTD Follow-Up
Populations

population of one to 5,000 youth, because the
sample is more than five percent of the
population.

1. Using Finite Population Correction
The Finite Population Correction (FPC) is
applied when the sample is drawn from a

• Z = 1.645 (90 percent confidence
interval)

• N = number of youth from whom the
sample is being drawn

2. Not Using Finite Population Correction
The FPC is not applied when the sample
is drawn from a population of over 5,000
youth.

ER26FE08.001

[FR Doc. E8–3050 Filed 2–25–08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184–01–P

VerDate Aug<31>2005

20:05 Feb 25, 2008

Jkt 214001

PO 00000

Frm 00042

Fmt 4701

Sfmt 4700

E:\FR\FM\26FER2.SGM

26FER2

ER26FE08.000

jlentini on PROD1PC65 with RULES2

ER26FE08.002

• Acceptable level of error = .05 (results
are plus or minus five percentage points from
the actual score)

ER26FE08.003

• (Py)(Pn), an estimate of the percent of
responses to a dichotomous variable, is
(.50)(.50) for the most conservative estimate.