Emergency Justification Letter

OFFICE OF THE UNDER SECRETARY OF DEFENSE
4000 DEFENSE PENTAGON
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20301-4000

FORCE RESILIENCY

Ms. Sharon Block
Acting Administrator
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs
Office of Management and Budget
725 17th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20503
Dear Ms. Block:
Pursuant to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) procedures established at Title
5 of Code of Federal Regulations (C.F.R.) Part 1320.13, “Emergency Processing,” I request an
emergency clearance for the proposed Department of Defense (DoD) information collection for
the Fiscal Year (FY) 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) Section 557, “Study on
Reducing Barriers to Minority Participation in Elite Units in the Armed Services” (enclosed).
I have determined that this information must be collected prior to the time periods
established under 5 C.F.R. Part 1320, and that the use of normal clearance procedures will cause
DoD to miss the statutory deadlines for the NDAA FY 2021 Section 557.
DoD entered into an agreement with the Institute for Defense Analysis (IDA) to conduct
the FY 2021 NDAA Section 557 study. To meet congressional requirements to understand
barriers that may prevent women and ethnic/racial minorities from joining and remaining in
“covered units,” IDA will need to collect primary data through focus groups. This information
collection is essential to the mission of DoD as underrepresentation of minorities in certain units
and occupational specialties hampers readiness and retention.
As this request for emergency processing concerns an urgent need, DoD requests a 30day emergency clearance and is also seeking OMB’s approval to waive the need for the Federal
Register Notices otherwise required by 5 C.F.R. 1320.5(a)(1)(iv) and 1320.8(d)(1). During the
30-day emergency clearance period, DoD will work to establish a regular clearance submission.
I request your agency’s approval/disapproval determination of this request for emergency
processing by close of business on Thursday, December 17, 2021.
Sincerely,

SALAZAR.CYRUS.
A.1381612550

Digitally signed by
SALAZAR.CYRUS.A.1381612550
Date: 2021.12.06 15:44:06 -05'00'

Mr. Cyrus A. Salazar
Director
Office for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Enclosure:
As stated