COVID-19 Screening Tool for Unaccompanied Children Program Staff and Visitors
OMB Information Collection Request
0970 - 0543
Supporting Statement Part A - Justification
September 2021
Submitted By:
Unaccompanied Children Program
Office of Refugee Resettlement
Administration for Children and Families
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
SUPPORTING STATEMENT A – JUSTIFICATION
This information collection request is for a short survey to assess the risk of COVID-19 among staff and visitors at Unaccompanied Children (UC) care provider facilities. The information from this survey is necessary for the Administration for Children and Families, Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) to protect the health and safety of UC and program staff. If this collection is allowed to expire, it could contribute to further spread of COVID-19, thereby resulting in public harm. ORR requests emergency approval pursuant to 5 CFR 1320.13 in order for the COVID-19 screening tool to continue to be used beyond the current expiration date of September 30, 2021. ORR is concurrently seeking public comment and will address any comments prior to submitting a request for approval beyond that granted through this emergency request.
Circumstances Making the Collection of Information Necessary
The emergence of the COVID-19 infectious disease pandemic necessitated action to help ensure unaccompanied children and program staff health and safety within ORR’s UC Program.
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approved the current COVID-19 screening tool for UC program staff and visitors on September 20, 2020 for one year with the following terms of clearance:
Limiting approval timelines for COVID-specific items; apply for an extension in 1 year if the public health emergency continues and include any updated symptom checklists and procedures.
The public health emergency related to COVID-19 has continued1 so at this time, ACF is requesting an extension of this information collection in order to continue to collect vital information in protecting the health and safety of UC and program staff. There are no changes proposed to the information collection.
Purpose and Use of the Information Collection
The COVID-19 Verbal Screening and Temperature Check tool is verbally administered to all staff and visitors before they are granted access an ORR care provider facility. The tool asks whether the individual displays COVID-19 symptoms, has had close contact with individuals known to test positive for COVID-19, has been tested for COVID-19, has been exposed to someone with known or possible COVID-19, or has been tested for COVID-19. The tool also requests a temperature check.
The information collected by administering this screening tool will help ensure the health and safety of children in our care and our program staff by helping to identify and reduce potential exposure to COVID-19.
Use of Improved Information Technology and Burden Reduction
The tool consists of five short questions and does not require any technology to effectively implement. Respondents will verbally respond to the questions upon arrival at the care provider facility and submit to a temperature check.
Efforts to Identify Duplication and Use of Similar Information
The information collected by this instrument is not obtainable from other sources. In addition, responses are unique to each respondent for each particular day.
Impact on Small Businesses or Other Small Entities
The proposed information collection will not burden or impact small businesses.
Consequences of Collecting the Information Less Frequently
If ORR is unable to screen individuals before they are granted access to ORR care provider facilities, it is possible that COVID-19 positive staff or visitors may be mistakenly allowed into facilities, potentially exposing and putting at risk a significant numbers of staff and children to COVID-19 and continuing the spread of the pandemic.
Special Circumstances Relating to the Guidelines of 5 CFR 1320.5
None of the characteristics outlined in 5 CFR 1320.5(d)(2) apply to the instrument in this collection.
Comments in Response to the Federal Register Notice and Efforts to Consult Outside the Agency
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 this information collection activity. This notice alerted the public to an extension to continue data collection and provided a sixty-day comment period. This notice was published on August 11, 2021, Volume 86, page 44023, and is providing a sixty-day period for public comment. ACF will address any comments prior to publishing a 30-day notice and submitting a request for an extension to OMB.
Explanation of Any Payment or Gift to Respondents
No payment or gift will be provided to the respondents.
Assurance of Confidentiality Provided to Respondents
Individual responses to this questionnaire are strictly for use to protect the public health of UC program staff and UC in ORR care.
Justification for Sensitive Questions
The questions ask for health information that may be considered sensitive. However, this information is necessary to ensure the health and safety of children and staff at ORR care provider facilities.
Estimates of Annualized Burden Hours and Costs
Information Collection Title |
Total Number of Respondents |
Total Number of Responses Per Respondent |
Average Burden Hours Per Response |
Annual Burden Hours |
Average Hourly Wage |
Total Annual Cost |
COVID-19 Verbal Screening and Temperature Check |
15,000 |
260 |
0.033 |
128,700 |
$48.46 |
$6,236,802 |
Estimated Annual Burden Total: |
128,700 |
Estimated Annual Cost Total: |
$6,236,802 |
|||
The majority of respondents are care provider staff and most care provider facilities are located in Texas. Therefore, opportunity cost to respondents was calculated using the hourly mean wage for Texas for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) job code 21-1021 Child, Family, and School Social Workers (accessed June 2021). The rates were multiplied by two to account for fringe benefits and overhead – $24.23 2 = $48.46
https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes211021.htm
Estimates of Other Total Annual Cost Burden to Respondents and Record Keepers
Respondents will not incur any direct monetary costs, other than their time, in the completion of this instrument.
Annualized Cost to the Federal Government
There is no additional cost to the federal government for the administration of this tool.
Explanation for Program Changes or Adjustments
Not applicable.
Plans for Tabulation and Publication and Project Time Schedule
ORR does not plan to publish the information provided by the respondents.
Reason(s) Display of OMB Expiration Date is Inappropriate
Not applicable.
Exceptions to Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions
No exceptions are necessary for this information collection.
1 The most COVID-19 Public Health Emergency was most recently renewed on July 20, 2021. https://www.phe.gov/emergency/news/healthactions/phe/Pages/COVID-19July2021.aspx
| File Type | application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document |
| Author | Freiman, Alex (ACF) |
| File Modified | 0000-00-00 |
| File Created | 2021-09-09 |