SSA Formative Generic

Voices of Freedom

Formative Data Collections for Program Support

0970 - 0531

Supporting Statement

Part A - Justification

February 2021

Submitted By:

Office on Trafficking in Persons

Administration for Children and Families

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

4^th Floor, Mary E. Switzer Building

330 C Street, SW

Washington, D.C. 20201

Project Officers:

Vera Kiefer, Research and Data Collection Analyst

Kimberly Casey, Communications and Prevention Specialist

A1. Necessity for the Data Collection

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) seeks approval for Voices of Freedom under the Formative Data Collections for Program Support (0970-0531).

Initiative Background

Individuals in marginalized communities have experienced forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation in the United States since its founding, yet prior to the passage of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA), these abuses were not defined or clearly designated as a crime in Federal law. Survivors of human trafficking were refused access to justice and services and were often blamed, stigmatized, and criminalized for the exploitation they experienced.

The passage of the TVPA marked a turning point for survivors. For the first time, the Federal government recognized their victimization and committed resources to help identify, protect, and provide access to justice. Public awareness and education about the realities of human trafficking have led to a remarkable change in perspectives about the long-term impact of human trafficking on individuals, families, and communities. Still, there is more work to be done, and the voices of survivors, advocates, and service providers are critical to continued progress towards positive change.

The Office on Trafficking in Persons (OTIP) is planning a series of conversations/interviews with survivors and advocates.

This proposed information collection meets the following goals of ACF’s generic clearance for formative data collections for program support (0970-0531):

• Development of learning agendas and research priorities.

Legal or Administrative Requirements that Necessitate the Collection

There are no legal or administrative requirements that necessitate the collection. ACF is undertaking the collection at the creative discretion of the agency.

A2. Initiative Purpose and Data Collection Procedures

Overview of Purpose and Approach

Interviewees will include survivors who experienced human trafficking prior to the passage of the TVPA and those who have had access to the protections and services provided through the TVPA. Interviews will elicit from survivors and advocates their perspectives on the past, present, and future of the anti-trafficking movement and capture ideas from service providers, advocates, and survivors regarding next steps in the anti-trafficking movement.

Guiding Questions

• What are the experiences of victims and survivors of human trafficking, including their experiences seeking help, leaving trafficking situations, and rebuilding their lives?

• How have these experiences changed over the past 20 years?

• How has the anti-trafficking field evolved and where it should go next?

Initiative Design

StoryCorps (Contractor) will gather insights from survivors of human trafficking, as well as allied professionals and subject matter experts through up to ninety (90) facilitated conversations and an unlimited number of StoryCorps web platform (Connect Activation) submissions.

• Facilitated Conversations: The interviews will be 40-minute conversation between two people who know each other, preserved as an audio recording. A trained facilitator will (virtually) take notes, keep time, and monitor audio. Facilitators are not interviewers, though they may ask a question during the recording to prompt conversation. Participation is entirely voluntary and participants are welcome to share any of their thoughts related to their experiences and the TVPA.

• Connect Activation: Interested individuals will also have the option to record an interview with a close friend, colleague, or family member without a facilitator present. The two individuals will access the web platform, record their interview, and indicate if they want their conversation to remain private, shared with the community, or shared with the public. Participants will have access to a list of sample questions but will have complete control of the content of their conversation.

The Contractor will compile recordings of the facilitated and Connect Activation conversations to deliver audiovisual segments and audio cards for OTIP to share through internal and external channels, such as OTIP’s website and social media accounts, including Facebook and LinkedIn. StoryCorps will retain copies of the produced audio segments and audio cards, which will become part of an archive at the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress with permission from participants.

Universe of Data Collection Efforts

Facilitators will have a list of potential prompting questions to use during the conversations with survivors and allied professionals. These prompts are included as Attachment A: Voices for Freedom Guiding Questions. Participants will be invited to discuss what they would like and are not required to respond to any of the prompts provided.

A3. Improved Information Technology to Reduce Burden

Web-based submission is a novel technological approach that reduces the burden on participants allowing more survivors and allied professionals to opt-in to the initiative and share their thoughts than would be otherwise possible solely through facilitated conversations.

A4. Efforts to Identify Duplication

We do not believe there have been any similar efforts to obtain and document the reflections of survivors of trafficking or allied professionals.

A5. Involvement of Small Organizations

Not applicable.

A6. Consequences of Less Frequent Data Collection

This is a one-time collection of conversations.

A7. Special Circumstances

There are no special circumstances for the proposed data collection efforts.

A8. Federal Register Notice and Consultation

Federal Register Notice and Comments

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13) and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations at 5 CFR Part 1320 (60 FR 44978, August 29, 1995), ACF published a notice in the Federal Register announcing the agency’s intention to request an OMB review of the overarching generic clearance for formative information collection. This notice was published on October 13, 2020, Volume 85, Number 198, page 64480, and provided a sixty-day period for public comment. A subsequent notice provided a thirty-day period for public comment. This notice was published on December 28, 2020, Volume 85, Number 248, page 84343, and provided a thirty-day period for public comment. During the notice and comment periods, no substantive comments were received.

Consultation with Experts Outside of the Study

No experts outside of the initiative have been consulted.

A9. Incentives for Respondents

There are no incentives offered to respondents for this collection.

A10. Privacy of Respondents

StoryCorps is a nationwide initiative to record oral and audiovisual reflections with volunteer participants. The Participant Data Sheet provided to respondents requests name, email address, and basic demographic information (all voluntary). With permission, names and photos of participants will be shared publicly per the terms of the Contractor’s release. See Attachment B: StoryCorps Participant Data Sheet and Attachment C: StoryCorps General Release Form.

Participants will be provided with a recording of their conversation and StoryCorps will retain a second copy, which will become part of an archive at the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress. Participants who sign the StoryCorps General Release Form acknowledge that StoryCorps intends to retain and archive the recording.

A11. Sensitive Questions

There are no sensitive questions in this data collection.

A12. Estimation of Information Collection Burden

Total Burden Requested Under this Information Collection

Instrument	Total Number of Respondents	Number of Responses Per Respondent	Average Burden Hours Per Response	Annual Burden Hours	Average Hourly Wage	Total Annual Cost
StoryCorps Suggested Prompts (Facilitated Conversation and Web Plaform-Based Submissions)	220	1	1.5	330	51.44	$16,975.20
Estimated Totals				330		$16,975.20

Total Annual Cost

The cost to respondents was calculated using the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) May 2019 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates mean hourly wage for All Occupations [00-0000], which is $25.72. To account for fringe benefits and overhead the rate was multiplied by two which is $51.44. The estimated annual cost to respondents for an estimated total burden of 330 hours is $51.44 times 330 hours or $16,975.20. https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_nat.htm

A13. Cost Burden to Respondents or Record Keepers

There are no additional costs to respondents.

A14. Estimate of Cost to the Federal Government

The total cost for the data collection activities under this current request will be $3,372.80.

The Contractor will be responsible for compiling recordings to produce audiovisual segments and audio cards for the Government. The deliverables will be reviewed by salaried staff who will determine how to best distribute the materials through internal and external channels, and factor insights into the development of learning agendas and research priorities. ACF anticipates that this effort will require 80 hours and will cost $42.16 per hour (job code 19-3099, mean hourly wage data from May 2019) resulting in an annual total of $3,372.80 in staff time.

A15. Change in Burden

This is for an individual information collection under the umbrella formative generic clearance for program support (0970-0531).

A16. Plan and Time Schedule for Information Collection, Tabulation and Publication

StoryCorps, with the assistance of the Government, will begin scheduling facilitated conversations and will make the web platform available for individual user submissions beginning March 2021. StoryCorps will provide all resulting materials to OTIP by September 2021.

A17. Reasons Not to Display OMB Expiration Date

All instruments will display the expiration date for OMB approval.

A18. Exceptions to Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions

No exceptions are necessary for this information collection.

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