Five Year Plan Guidelines Justification A 2018

A. Justification: IMLS Grants to States Program “Five Year State Plan Guidelines for State Library Administrative Agencies” (3137-0029)

1. Necessity of the Information Collection

The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) requests an approval of a new three year clearance for the agency’s information collection requests for the for the Grants to States Program “Five Year State Plan Guidelines for State Library Administrative Agencies” under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA).

The Grants to States program is the largest source of Federal funding support for library services in the U.S. Using a population based formula, more than $150 million is distributed among the State Library Administrative Agencies (SLAAs) every year. SLAAs are official agencies charged by law with the extension and development of library services, and they are located in:

• Each of the 50 States of the United States, and the District of Columbia;

• The Territories (the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands); and

• The Freely Associated States (the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of Palau).

Each year, over 1,500 Grants to States projects support the purposes and priorities outlined in the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA). (See 20 U.S.C. 9121 et seq.) SLAAs may use the funds to support statewide initiatives and services, and they may also distribute the funds through competitive subawards (subgrants or cooperative agreements) to public, academic, research, school, or special libraries or library consortia (for-profit and Federal libraries are not eligible). Each SLAA must submit a plan that details library services goals for a five-year period. (20 U.S.C 9134). SLAAs must also conduct a five-year evaluation of library services based on that plan. These plans and evaluations are the foundation for improving practice and informing policy. Each SLAA receives IMLS funding to support the five year period through a series of overlapping, two year grant awards.

2. Purposes and Uses of the Data

The Five Year Program Guidelines provide the structure under which each state and freely associated territory applies for the funds to support a Five Year Plan of library services to their jurisdiction. A separate reporting system (The SPR 3137-0071) currently gathers descriptive information from SLAAs about the project inputs (e.g., budget categories), activities, outputs and narrative fields for describing the results of the plans. This administrative data is used for IMLS program planning, GPRA/PAR and other reporting with the Administration and Congress.

3. Use of Information Technology

IMLS is committed to the use of information technology to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of its programs while reducing burden on SLAA grantees. The State Administrative Agencies submit their plans electronically to IMLS.

4. Efforts to Identify Duplication

This plan information is only collected once every five years.

5. Method Used to Minimize Burden on Small Businesses

Not applicable.

5. Consequences of Less Frequent Data Collection

These collections of information are essential to IMLS in meeting its statutory mission under 20 U.S.C. 9101 et seq. The information collected is necessary to support IMLS in prudently expending its appropriations, monitoring the progress of award completion, and meeting its PAR reporting requirements.

5. Special Circumstances

None of the listed conditions applies.

5. Consultations Outside the Agency

The 60-day notice for this collection was published in the Federal Register February 28, 2018 (83 FR 8711). A 30-day notice requesting comment for this clearance was published in the Federal Register on May

Agency staff consults informally with its communities throughout the year, including regular meetings with professional staff and the chief executive officers of SLAAs.

5. Payments or Gifts to Respondents

No payments or gifts are provided to any of the respondents.

5. Assurance of Confidentiality

Because the requested information is to apply for the federal grant funds, an Authorized Government Official must submit the application. The information is publically available and not confidential.

5. Justification for Sensitive Questions

There are no questions of a sensitive nature.

5. Estimate of Hour Burden to Respondents

The affected public for this date collection are the State Library Administrative Agencies (SLAAs), who number 56 respondents currently, with the Freely Associated States being added to the system by approximately 2020 so the burden estimate has increased proportionally. The estimated average burden per overall response is 90 hours. The total estimated total annual burden is 5310 hours. The total annual costs are $146,928.

5. Estimate of Cost Burden to Respondents

The total estimated burden cost burden to respondents once every five years equals $2490.

5. Estimate of Costs to Federal Government

There are no costs to the Federal Government.

5. Explanation of Change in Burden

When the last three year approval was requested from OMB in 2015, the burden listed was significantly higher for 3137-0029. It included the estimated number of respondents (1721) for all IMLS grant form data collections. In 2016, all the IMLS NOFOs and the grant forms were moved out into different numbers to better track the clearances by similar “notification of funding opportunities and products”.  The Grants to States Program Five Year Plan instructions were all that was left in 3137-0029.  That is why for the new clearance requested now in 2018, it is only 59 entities (states, territories, Freely Associated States, etc.) that will be reporting for the Five Year Plan. The affected public for this date collection are the State Library Administrative Agencies (SLAAs), who number 56 respondents currently, with the Freely Associated States (3) being added to the system by approximately 2020 so the burden estimate has increased proportionally over the three year clearance.

5. Statistical Usage

This is a non-statistical administrative collection.

5. Request to Not Display Expiration Date

Not applicable. The expiration date will be displayed.

5. Exception to Certification Statement

Not applicable.

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