Supporting Statement for OMB Generic Clearance for the Special Nutrition Programs Quick Response Surveys
Part A
Revision to OMB # 0584-0613, Special Nutrition Programs Quick Response Surveys (SNP QRS)
Amy Rosenthal
Social Science Research Analyst
Office of Policy Support
Food and Nutrition Service
United States Department of Agriculture
1320 Braddock Place
Alexandria, Virginia 22314
Phone: 703-305-2245
Email: [email protected]
TABLE OF CONTENTS
A1. Circumstances Making the Collection of Information Necessary 3
A2. Purpose and Use of the Information 6
A3. Use of Information Technology and Burden Reduction 10
A4. Efforts to Identify Duplication and Use of Similar Information 11
A5. Impacts Small Businesses or Other Small Entities 11
A6. Consequences of Collecting the Information Less Frequently 12
A7. Special Circumstances Relating to the Guideline of 1320.5(D)(2) 12
A8. Comments in Response to the Federal Register Notice and Efforts to Consult with Persons Outside the Agency 13
A9. Explanation of Any Payments or Gifts to Respondents 14
A10. Assurances of Confidentiality Provided to Respondents 14
A11. Justification for Sensitive Questions 16
A12. Estimates of Hour Burden Including Annualized Hourly Costs 16
A13. Estimates of Other Total Annual Cost Burden to Respondents or Record Keepers 18
A14. Annualized Cost to the Federal Government 18
A15. Explanation for Program Changes or Adjustments 19
A16. Plans for Tabulations and Publication and Project Time Schedule 20
A17. Display of Expiration Date for OMB Approval 20
A18. Exception to the Certification Statement Identified in Item 19 of Form OMB 83-1 21
EXHIBITS AND TABLES
A.1 Annualized Cost to Respondents……………………………………………………….……… 17
A Section of Authorizing Statute
B.1 Public Comment 1
B.2 Public Comment 2
B.3 Public Comment 3
B.4 FNS Response to Public Comment 2
B.5 FNS Response to Public Comment 3
C Estimated Annualized Burden
D NASS Comments
E FNS Response to NASS Comments
Explain the circumstances that make the collection of information necessary. Identify any legal or administrative requirements that necessitate the collection. Attach a copy of the appropriate section of each statute and regulation mandating or authorizing the collection of information.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) is responsible for the administration of the Special Nutrition programs (SNPs) at the federal level, including the Special Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), National School Lunch Program (NSLP), School Breakfast Program (SBP), Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP), Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), Food Distribution on Indian Reservations (FDPIR), Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP), and The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP). Although FNS oversees these programs, State Agencies administer them through agreements with local entities that deliver the programs at the local level. To inform current and future policy decisions and effectively oversee these programs, FNS requires information from these State and local entities on specific questions related to operations and administration of the programs.
This information collection request is for a revision to the currently approved Special Nutrition Programs Quick Response Surveys (SNP QRS, OMB Number 0584-0613, expiration date 02/28/2021). This collection is necessary to collect and analyze specific information from State and local administrators of the SNPs in a timely way. Traditionally, FNS conducts large, program-specific studies to collect information on numerous features of each program. Such studies often take several years to complete. The quick response surveys (QRS) provide a mechanism for succinct, quick-turnaround studies to complement the larger SNP studies and to answer policy and implementation questions that result from the larger studies. The SNP QRS information collection enables FNS to administer the SNPs more effectively by facilitating rapid collection of current information on specific and time-sensitive topics.
The two data collections planned under this generic information collection request include: 1) creation of sampling frames and 2) administration and analysis of QRS. Creation of sampling frames of local agencies is a key first step and involves identifying the universe of entities from which to sample for any quick response survey. For any QRS to occur within an abbreviated timeframe, the sampling frame for the relevant program should already be identified. To do this, FNS will request contact information from the State Agencies for the local administrators within their purview. The QRS data collections will use the sampling frame information to contact respondents for the short, quick-turnaround study on program and policy-relevant topics.
FNS will identify the relevant authorizing statutes for data collections submitted under this generic clearance with each generic clearance memorandum submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). In most cases, the following authorizing statute applies (Appendix A):
Section 28 [42 U.S.C. 1769i] of the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (as amended through Public Law 113–79, enacted February 07, 2014, Sec. 28) mandates programs under its authorization to cooperate with USDA program research and evaluation activities.
Program Background
WIC provides Federal grants to States for supplemental foods, health care referrals, and nutrition education for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and non-breastfeeding postpartum women as well as infants and children up to age five who are found to be at nutritional risk.
The NSLP is a federally assisted meal program operating in nearly 100,000 public and non‐profit private schools and residential childcare institutions. The NSLP is usually administered by State education agencies, which operate the program through agreements with school food authorities (SFAs). SFAs that participate in NSLP receive cash subsidies and donated commodities from USDA for each meal they serve.
The SBP is a federally assisted meal program administered by the Food and Nutrition Service that operates in over 90,000 public and nonprofit private schools and residential child care institutions. In 2019, nearly 15 million children received a school breakfast each day. About 85 percent of these meals were served to low-income children certified for free or reduced-price meals.
The FFVP provides free fresh fruits and vegetables to students in participating elementary schools during the school day. The fresh fruits and vegetables are provided separately from the lunch or breakfast meal, in one or more areas of the school. The goal of FFVP is to improve children’s overall diet and create healthier eating habits to impact their present and future health.
The SFSP was established to ensure that low-income children continue to receive nutritious meals when school is not in session. Free meals that meet Federal nutrition guidelines are provided to all children 18 years old and under at approved SFSP sites in areas with significant concentrations of children from families with low income.
CACFP plays a vital role in providing children and adults with access to adequate food while improving the quality and affordability of day care for low-income families. The program subsidizes nutritious meals and snacks served to children and adults in participating day care facilities as well as to children in emergency shelters and eligible after school programs. Providers are reimbursed for each qualifying meal or snack they serve to program participants. Eligible local provider types include child care centers, Head Start programs, family day care homes, and adult day care centers.
The USDA Foods in Schools program supports domestic nutrition programs and American agricultural producers through purchases of 100% American-grown and -produced foods for use by schools and institutions participating in the NSLP, SBP, CACFP and SFSP.
Under TEFAP, commodity foods are made available by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to States. States provide the food to selected local agencies, usually food banks, which in turn distribute the food to soup kitchens and food pantries that directly serve the public.
FDPIR is a Federal program that provides commodity foods to low-income households, including the elderly, living on Indian reservations, and to Native American families residing in designated areas near reservations.
CSFP works to improve the health of low-income pregnant and breastfeeding women, other new mothers up to one year postpartum, infants, children up to age six, and people at least 60 years of age by supplementing their diets with nutritious USDA commodity foods. It provides food and administrative funds to States to supplement the diets of these groups.
Indicate how, by whom, and for what purpose the information is to be used. Except for a new collection, indicate how the agency has actually used the information received from the current collection.
The QRS support the ongoing evaluation of FNS Special Nutrition Programs and enable FNS to respond quickly and effectively to requests for policy-relevant analyses and reporting. The information collected will be used to produce analytical tables and summary reports which will provide timely answers to specific questions that cannot be answered by other FNS studies or data collection. Information collected for the sampling frames will enable the QRS to be conducted more efficiently and quickly. Sampling frame information will also be made available for use by other FNS studies, minimizing duplicate requests for contact information made to State Agencies.
The specific information collected will depend on each generic submission. Broadly, information collected will cover details of SNP operations and outcomes at various administrative levels. For example, previous QRS have collected information on child retention in WIC, fee structures in food distribution programs, and food safety training needs of CACFP adult daycare providers.
Information will be collected from State, Local and Tribal governments and businesses. State, Local and Tribal government respondents will include: (1) State program directors, including WIC State Agency directors and nutrition education and breastfeeding coordinators, directors of the Child Nutrition programs (NSLP, SBP, FFVP, SFSP, CACFP), directors of State Distributing Agencies (TEFAP, CSFP, USDA Foods in Schools), and FDPIR State Agency and Indian Tribal Organizations directors; and (2) local-level program administrators, including local WIC agencies and sites, SFAs, schools, SFSP sponsors and sites, USDA Foods in Schools local agencies and providers, TEFAP eligible recipient agencies (ERAs) and emergency feeding organizations (EFOs), and CSFP local agencies. Business respondents will include not-for-profit local WIC agencies and sites, not-for-profit SFSP sponsors and sites, for-profit and not-for-profit CACFP sponsors and providers (including child care centers, Head Start providers, family day care homes, and adult day care centers), not-for-profit TEFAP ERAs and EFOs, and not-for-profit CSFP local agencies.
In most cases, FNS expects that any survey of State Agencies will be a census, while surveys of local agencies and businesses will use a nationally representative sample. Sample sizes will range from approximately 90 to 2,500 for each survey, depending on the specific program and research questions. Survey sampling approaches are discussed in more detail in Part B.
In addition to the QRS itself, information will be collected from relevant State Agencies to create the sampling frame for local entities. Each year FNS will determine the SNP(s) for which a QRS will be conducted, and a sampling frame will be created for the local program administrators representing programs expected to be surveyed that year. This collection of local entity contact information will be a census of State Agencies, and the number of Agencies that will be asked to provide sampling frame information will range from 52 to 112, depending on the program.
Information will be collected for the QRS using brief, online surveys, generally up to 20 questions or with an average time to complete that is no longer than 20 minutes. Recruitment and follow-up to enhance response rates will likely use multiple methods (i.e., phone and email).
For the sampling frames, State Agencies will be contacted via email and asked to provide data files via email. Data collected for the sampling frames will include local agency director name, title, telephone number, email address, and mailing address.
Methods for data collection will be further specified for each QRS. Before data collection activities are undertaken for any QRS, FNS will provide OMB with a memo describing the study, sample design, data collection activities, burden estimates, and a copy of survey instruments. Some survey items will be taken from existing survey instruments, while others may be new and developed specifically for the particular study. If the instruments contain new items, then the new items will be pretested and the findings from the pretests will be included in the memo. The information collections under this clearance will be voluntary.
Up to two QRS are expected per year, and any SNP respondent group will not be recruited for participation more than once annually. The exact number of QRS performed during any given year will depend on the demand from FNS.
FNS will only assemble sampling frames for those SNP respondent groups that will be surveyed that year. State Agency burden will be minimized as they will not be contacted to provide sampling information that will not be used. Each spring (March-April timeframe) FNS will provide OMB with an annual memo describing the sampling frames that will be developed in that year based on the anticipated research needs for each SNP (provided that the frames differ from the data and burden estimates submitted as part of this revision).
Publicly-available results will be presented in aggregated form in final reports made available in the research section of the USDA Food and Nutrition Service web site (http://www.fns.usda.gov/ops/research-and-analysis).
This revision makes changes to the information collection as originally approved. The major change is the inclusion of Businesses as a respondent group. Because they may be non-profit or for-profit entities, we now designate some of the local WIC agencies, local WIC sites, SFSP sponsors, SFSP sites, TEFAP ERAs, TEFAP EROs, and all of the CACFP sponsors, CACFP providers, and CSFP local agencies as businesses, instead of just designating them as State, Local or Tribal Government. To better reflect the ways in which programs would be surveyed, given overlapping respondent groups and FNS oversight, the USDA Foods in Schools program is included as a separate program while the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program is included with the NSLP and SBP respondent group. Minor updates to the sample sizes reflect the most recent estimates of the number of State, Local and Tribal Agencies and Businesses involved in the SNP as well as revisions to the anticipated response rate to reminder emails. The type of information to be collected, the methods of collection, and the frequency of collection will remain the same. To better reflect communications with respondents to minimize non-response, we have included in the burden table advance notification and survey recruitment emails for each QRS as well as an additional reminder email for sampling frame data collection. We also slightly revised the estimated time per response to email reminders to be the same for responsive and non-responsive responses (1 minute or .0167 hours).
Despite a downward revision of the estimated sample sizes for some respondent groups and the anticipated time for some responses, FNS estimates a reporting burden of approximately 8,011 more hours and 111,512 more responses over three years. These increases are due primarily to the inclusion of the QRS advance notification and recruitment emails and the additional reminder email for sampling frame data collection.
Describe whether, and to what extent, the collection of information involves the use of automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses, and the basis for the decision for adopting this means of collection. Also describe any consideration of using information technology to reduce burden.
FNS is committed to complying with the E-Government Act, 2002 to promote the use of technology. Online surveys enable efficient, secure survey participation. Surveys can be started and returned when convenient for the respondent, and password-protected logins allow for secure transmission. Also, programming checks ensure respondents see only relevant questions and constrain data ranges, keeping responses within a certain length and simplifying data cleaning.
For a QRS, selected participants will be notified in advance of the survey through communication channels established by FNS. With notification, the selected participants will be provided a list of the specific information that will be asked for on their survey. Respondents will be able to complete surveys over the phone if that is preferable, and telephone, email, and on-line support will be available.
All of these procedures are designed to minimize the burden on respondents. At this time, FNS estimates that 95% of the QRS responses (approximately 102,915 (34,305 annually) responses over the three-year period) will be collected electronically. This estimate includes the State Agency, Local Agency, and Business survey responses, as shown in Appendix C. Overall, out of an estimated 362,257 (120,752 annually) responses for this collection over the three-year period, FNS estimates that 102,915( 34,305 annually) responses over the three-year period (approximately 28%) will be collected electronically.
Describe efforts to identify duplication. Show specifically why any similar information already available cannot be used or modified for use for the purposes described in Question 2.
Every effort will be made to avoid duplication. The annual sampling frame data collection will reduce burden to States for similar requests. As it is compiled, FNS will make sampling frame information available for other data collection efforts, which will prevent FNS from requesting similar information repeatedly from States during the same year. Individual QRS will be motivated by the lack of information from other studies or administrative data collection to address specific research questions. FNS routinely reviews information available from private sources such as the School Nutrition Association and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities to avoid duplication of information requests.
If the collection of information impacts small businesses or other small entities (Item 5 of OMB Form 83-I), describe any methods used to minimize burden.
The impact on small entities will depend on the specific target of a QRS. For example, a survey of Child Nutrition State Agencies will not have any impact, while many respondents to a survey of SFSP sites would likely be small entities. Using the upper bound number of respondents presented in Appendix C, we estimate that out of the 36,200 annual respondents for this collection (108,599 over the three-year period), approximately 52 percent will be small entities (approximately 18,894 respondents annually and 56,682 over the three-year period).
We plan to minimize respondent burden by:
keeping the survey instrument short (20 questions or an average of 20 minutes to complete);
providing advance notification of the survey and the information it will request of respondents;
employing a user-friendly web interface and giving respondents the option to complete surveys over the phone;
and providing technical support in various modalities (i.e., email, phone, web).
Requests for sampling frame information will only be made of State Agencies, which are not small entities.
Describe the consequence to Federal program or policy activities if the collection is not conducted, or is conducted less frequently, as well as any technical or legal obstacles to reducing burden.
This is an ongoing, voluntary data collection that assists FNS in managing its statutory-required programs. Information will only be collected once for any generic submission (which will include recruitment, advance notification of the request and follow-up). The SNPs operate in each State and Territory and represent an annual investment of more than $20 billion of Federal funds. To manage these programs effectively, FNS must collect and analyze data regarding topics such as program operations, funding, and compliance at the State and local levels. FNS has many information needs, including those to address current policy issues associated with these programs that cannot be answered with current program data. This data collection fills the information gaps remaining from the traditional long-term studies that FNS conducts on the SNPs. Each survey will be motivated by a time-critical need that must be filled in order to adequately administer and implement programs.
Explain any special circumstances that would cause an information collection to be conducted in a manner:
requiring respondents to report information to the agency more often than quarterly;
requiring respondents to prepare a written response to a collection of information in fewer than 30 days after receipt of it;
requiring respondents to submit more than an original and two copies of any document;
requiring respondents to retain records, other than health, medical, government contract, grant-in-aid, or tax records for more than three years;
in connection with a statistical survey, that is not designed to produce valid and reliable results that can be generalized to the universe of study;
requiring the use of a statistical data classification that has not been reviewed and approved by OMB;
that includes a pledge of confidentiality that is not supported by authority established in statute or regulation, that is not supported by disclosure and data security policies that are consistent with the pledge, or which unnecessarily impedes sharing of data with other agencies for compatible confidential use; or
requiring respondents to submit proprietary trade secret, or other confidential information unless the agency can demonstrate that it has instituted procedures to protect the information's confidentiality to the extent permitted by law.
There are no special circumstances. The collection of information is conducted in a manner consistent with the guidelines in 5 CFR 1320.5.
If applicable, provide a copy and identify the date and page number of publication in the Federal Register of the agency's notice, required by 5 CFR 1320.8 (d), soliciting comments on the information collection prior to submission to OMB. Summarize public comments received in response to that notice and describe actions taken by the agency in response to these comments. Specifically address comments received on cost and hour burden.
Describe efforts to consult with persons outside the agency to obtain their views on the availability of data, frequency of collection, the clarity of instructions and recordkeeping, disclosure, or reporting format (if any), and on the data elements to be recorded, disclosed, or reported.
A notice of this study was published in the Federal Register on Friday, December 18, 2020, Volume 85, Number 244, pages 82428-82431. The public comment period ended on February 16, 2021. FNS received three comments, available in Appendices B.1 – B.3. The first comment suggested the study should not be funded (see Appendix B.1). The commenter did not provide contact information, so FNS did not provide a direct response. The second comment (see Appendix B.2) pertained to a notice for another study, so it was forwarded to the correct party for consideration (see Appendix B.4). The final comment expressed support for the study (see Appendix B.3), and FNS provided a general response (see Appendix B.5).
Efforts to consult with persons outside the agency The 60-day notice published in the Federal Register allows the public and stakeholders an opportunity to comment on this collection. In addition, the agency solicits input from stakeholders through feedback mechanisms such as those previously approved by OMB, annual plans and reports and personal contacts at meetings and other venues. Due to the nature of this generic clearance, participants for future focus groups, interviews, Web-based surveys and other testing instruments will not be pre-selected, and for this reason there will be no opportunity to consult with them prior to conducting formative research. Since the agency found it challenging and didn’t seek outside consultation on this primary package without the supplementary information collection, the program should seek out and provide three (3) contacts for the supplementary packages submitted separately under this collection.
Explain any decision to provide any payment or gift to respondents, other than remuneration of contractors or grantees.
Respondents to the QRS or sampling frame information request will not receive any incentive payments or gifts. Those participating in a pretest may be offered an honorarium of approximately $20-$40 for their participation.
Describe any assurance of confidentiality provided to respondents and the basis for the assurance in statute, regulation, or agency policy.
FNS published a system of record notice (SORN) titled FNS-8 USDA/FNS Studies and Reports in the Federal Register on April 25, 1991, volume 56, pages 19078-19080, that discusses the terms of protections that will be provided to respondents. FNS and the contractors will comply with the requirements of the Privacy Act of 1974. No confidential information is associated with this collection of information, and no such assurances of confidentiality are provided. The contractor on the specific QRS project handles IRB clearance on these studies where appropriate.
All personal information gathered from State and local administrators will be for research purposes only and kept private to the full extent allowed by law. Responses will be grouped with those of other study participants, and no individual program administrators will be identified in any study report. Being part of this study will not affect any USDA benefits received by the participating programs. The submissions under this generic clearance do not generally include consent forms or disclosure statements, though they may include a notice that identifiable information will be suppressed in any report or summary unless otherwise noted.
While the QRS asks for contact information to allow the study team to follow up with respondents to clarify responses, personally identifiable information will not be used to retrieve survey records or data. When invited to participate in a survey, respondents will be assured that their personal information (i.e., name, phone number, and email) will remain private. The contractor will create a unique ID for each participant and transfer the survey data back to FNS linked only to the unique ID. A separate file will be transferred that links the unique ID to the respondents’ private information.
All personal contact information gathered from SA contacts pertaining to local-level contacts is for research purposes only and will be kept private to the full extent allowed by law. State administrators providing this information will be assured that respondent contact information (i.e., name, phone number, and email) will remain private and will only be used for the purposes of contacting local SNP staff to participate in a QRS or other FNS study.
Only those designated on the contractor study team as well as FNS research staff will have access to files containing respondent contact information. Analyses or summaries of the data that do not identify respondents may or may not be published publicly. More specific information as to contractors’ security practices will be included in the generic submissions.
Neither the survey nor any other data collection materials in this collection requires a Privacy Act Statement. Miguel Marling, USDA FNS Privacy Officer, reviewed this submission and indicated on January 21, 2021 that he had no privacy-related concerns.
Provide additional justification for any questions of a sensitive nature, such as sexual behavior or attitudes, religious beliefs, and other matters that are commonly considered private. This justification should include the reasons why the agency considers the questions necessary, the specific uses to be made of the information, the explanation to be given to persons from whom the information is requested, and any steps to be taken to obtain their consent.
This information collection does not include any questions of a sensitive nature.
Provide estimates of the hour burden of the collection of information. Indicate the number of respondents, frequency of response, annual hour burden, and an explanation of how the burden was estimated.
This is a revision of a currently approved collection. With this submission, over three years, there are 108,599 respondents (87,202 responsive and 21,400 non-responsive), 362,257 responses (243,010 responsive and 119,247 non-responsive), and approximately 42,534 burden hours (40,542 responsive and 1,991 non-responsive). The average number of responses per respondent is 3.3 (362,257 responses/108,599 respondents). Appendix C (Estimated Annualized Burden) shows the estimates of the annual respondent burden for the proposed data collection, including the number of annual respondents, frequency of response, average time to respond, and annual hour burden. The estimates listed in this supporting statement and reported as the burden for this collection are the three-year projections based on the estimates shown in Appendix C. These estimates reflect FNS administrative data, sampling frames created under the initial SNP QRS generic clearance, consultations with FNS staff, and prior experience collecting similar data.
Annualized costs for each QRS will be submitted with each request. Exhibit A.1 provides estimates of the annual costs to each of the three types of respondents. The total costs over the three-year period are $1,302,179.38
Exhibit A.1. Annualized Cost to Respondents
Respondent Type |
Instrument(s) |
Total Annual Burden Hours |
Hourly Wage |
Respondent Cost |
State Agency |
Sampling Frame Info Request/Survey |
765.5 |
$41.55 |
$31,808.07 |
Local Agency |
Survey |
6,538.7 |
$28.51 |
$184,419.22 |
Business |
Survey |
6,873.6 |
$31.40 |
$215,832.38 |
Total |
|
14,177.9* |
|
$434,059.79 |
*Totals do not add up due to rounding
The estimate of annualized cost to State and local government agencies is based on the burden estimates and mean hourly wage data for the NAICS Code 999200 State Government, Occupational Group 11-9000 (Other Management Positions) for State Agency directors and Occupational Group 11-9051 (Food Service Managers) for local agency respondents. The hourly mean wage for 11-9000 is $41.55 per staff hour, and the hourly mean wage 11-9051 is $28.51 per staff hour (U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2019 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates: NAICS 999200 – State Government, excluding schools and hospitals, https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics4_999200.htm).
The estimate of annualized cost to businesses is based on the burden estimates and mean hourly wage data for the May 2019 National Occupational and Wage Statistics, NAICS Code 722300 Special Food Services, Occupational Group 11-9051 (Food Service Managers). The hourly mean wage is $31.40 per staff hour (U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2019 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates: NAICS 722300 - Special Food Services, https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/naics4_722300.htm).
Including an additional $143,239.73 to account for a fully loaded wage rate ($434,059.79 x 0.33), the estimated annualized total cost to respondents associated with this collection is $577,299.53. For the three-year costs, an additional $429,719.20 will be added ($1,302,179.38 x 0.33), for an estimated annualized total cost of $1,731,898.58.
Provide estimates of the total annual cost burden to respondents or recordkeepers resulting from the collection of information, (do not include the cost of any hour burden shown in questions 12 and 14). The cost estimates should be split into two components: (a) a total capital and start-up cost component annualized over its expected useful life; and (b) a total operation and maintenance and purchase of services component.
There are no capital/start-up or ongoing operation/maintenance costs associated with this information collection.
Provide estimates of annualized cost to the Federal government. Provide a description of the method used to estimate cost and any other expense that would not have been incurred without this collection of information.
The cost to the Federal Government will depend on the number of hours Federal employees work on each survey, the number of surveys, and the associated contractor costs. These costs will be specified in the generic clearance submissions. We estimate that Federal employees at the GS-13 level will spend approximately 480 hours per year overseeing the surveys and that Federal employees at the GS-14 level will spend approximately 50 hours per year overseeing the surveys. Most of these hours will be spent by employees in the National Office, with some spent by staff in Regional Offices. Using the Washington, DC-area wage rates of $49.19 per hour for a GS-13, Step 1 employee and $67.82 per hour for a GS-14, Step 6 employee (Office of Personnel Management, Salary table 2020-GS, https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries-wages/salary-tables/pdf/2020/DCB_h.pdf), we estimate $27,002.20 ($23,611.20 for the GS-13 employees and $3,391 for the GS-13 employee(s)) in wages ($81,006.6 for the three-year period). Adding in $8,910.73 to account for fully loaded wages ($24,130 x 0.33), total Federal employee costs per year are estimated at $35,912.93. For the three-year costs, an additional $26,732.18 will be added to account for fully-loaded wages, for a total cost of $53,734.38 per year.
Explain the reasons for any program changes or adjustments reported in Items 13 or 14 of the OMB Form 83-1.
This is a revision of the currently approved collection for OMB Number 0584-0613 Special Nutrition Programs Quick Response Surveys. This information collection is currently approved with 34,523 burden hours and 250,745 responses over three years (approximately 11,508 burden hours and 83,582 responses annually). The addition of QRS advance notification and recruitment emails and an additional reminder email for sampling frame data collection are program changes that account for an increase of 9,124 (approximately 3,041 annually) in requested burden hours over the three-year period. Adjustments to the current request include revisions to the respondent sample sizes, response rates to reminder emails, program groupings, and estimated hours for some responses, which resulted in a net reduction of approximately 1,113 (approximately 371 annually) hours over the three-year period . Overall, FNS estimates that the burden will increase by 8,011 (approximately 2,670 annually) burden hours and 111,512 (approximately 37,170 annually) responses over the three-year period. Therefore, with this revision, FNS estimates that this information collection will have a total of 42,534 (approximately 14,178 annually) burden hours and 362,257 (approximately 120,752 annually) responses over the three-year period.
For collections of information whose results are planned to be published, outline plans for tabulation and publication.
All contact information collected for sampling frames will be compiled in aggregated form in electronic spreadsheets. This information may be shared with relevant FNS employees and contractors who are involved in other studies involving the same SNP respondents in order to reduce the burden of duplicate information collections. This information will not be shared with the general public.
Data file preparations and analysis of the QRS would begin immediately after the data collection period. Because each survey will be tailored to the specific needs of FNS, the data tabulations and analysis will be generated per the goals of the particular project. Typically, data files, tables, and a short summary will be produced. FNS programs may decide to share the results with program operators and/or publish findings on their website for the larger public.
If seeking approval to not display the expiration date for OMB approval of the information collection, explain the reasons that display would be inappropriate.
The agency plans to display the expiration date for OMB approval of the information collection on all instruments.
Explain each exception to the certification statement identified in Item 19 of the OMB 83-I “Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act.”
The agency is able to certify compliance with all provisions under Item 19 of OMB Form 83-I.
| File Type | application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document |
| File Title | PART A OMB SMO |
| Author | MATHEMATICA |
| File Modified | 0000-00-00 |
| File Created | 2021-02-27 |