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
24 November 2021
Dear Ms. Block:
Pursuant to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) procedures established at 5 C.F.R.
Part 1320, Controlling Paperwork Burdens on the Public, our study investigators request that the
proposed Department of Defense (DoD) information collection " Personalized Web-based Sexual
Assault Prevention for Service Members," (enclosed) be processed as an emergency clearance
request in accordance with 5 C.F.R. § 1320.13, Emergency Processing.
The project involving the attached survey corresponds to the grant number W8 l XWH20-2-0039
funded by the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program (CDMRP) and aligns with
the Secretary of Defense's call for novel programs to prevent sexual assault within the military.
The aim of this survey is to assist in the adaptation of an existing web-based sexual assault
prevention program for college men and women for use among enlisted Navy Sailors. Responses
to the survey will provide information about the behavior and attitudes of 500 Sailors regarding
alcohol use and sexual assault that will be incorporated into the intervention content and will
help generate an adapted prototype of the sexual assault prevention program (+Change).
This information must be collected prior to the time periods established under Part 1320 of the
regulations and this information collection is essential to ensure that this CDMRP-funded project
is not delayed any further. This NHRC IRB-approved project was meeting scheduled milestones;
however, is now behind schedule due to delays in receiving a determination from the Navy
Survey Approval Office. Considering that the funding agency requires that specific project
milestones are achieved by set dates, we are requesting an expedited approval of the survey to
ensure that this project is not delayed further. If OMB emergency clearance is not granted, data
necessary for the sexual assault prevention intervention development and adaption will not be
available and will significantly affect study execution.
Because this project must meet certain milestones and will use data for the purpose of
adapting an existing intervention using these survey questions, it is impracticable for DoD to
consult in advance with interested agencies and members of the public to minimize the burden of
the collection of information pursuant to C.F.R. § 1320.13(c). Furthermore, the survey items are
consistent with the standards in the field and within the DoD, per consultation with experts in the

DoD Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office (SAPRO). Therefore, DoD requests a 180day emergency clearance to obtain the information required to begin work on this project,
"Personalized Web-based Sexual Assault Prevention for Service Members." During the 180-day
emergency clearance period, DoD will work to establish a regular clearance submission. As this
request for approval concerns an urgent need to make progress on this CDMRP-funded project,
DoD is also seeking OMB's approval to waive the need for the Federal Register Notices
otherwise required by 5 C.F.R l 320.5(a)(l )(iv) and 1320.S(d)(l) prior to publication and
implementation of this disclosure.
We would appreciate if you could please provide an approval/disapproval determination
of this request as soon as possible.

Sincerely,

Executive Director, Force Resiliency