Request for Approval

Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of
Routine Customer Feedback” (OMB Control Number: 1530-0023)
TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION:
Exchange Rates Converter Tool Usability Testing
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this study is to gain a deeper understanding in the following areas:
o Uncover any previously undiscovered usability issues that people may have been
experiencing since the launch of the tool.
o Compare and contrast people’s reactions to the designs for an edge case where the
converter tool displays a message informing them that the exchange rate data for a given
currency is unavailable for a certain date.
o Discover additional resources and/or features that would be useful to our target audience
when included alongside the currency converter tool.
DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS:
Tax preparers, CPAs, and taxpayers who are required to file FBAR to declare foreign financial
accounts to the Treasury department.

TYPE OF COLLECTION: (Check one)
[ ] Customer Comment Card/Complaint Form
[X] Usability Testing (e.g., Website or Software
[ ] Focus Group

[ ] Customer Satisfaction Survey
[ ] Small Discussion Group
[ ] Other: ______________________

CERTIFICATION:
I certify the following to be true:
1. The collection is voluntary.
2. The collection is low-burden for respondents and low-cost for the Federal Government.
3. The collection is non-controversial and does not raise issues of concern to other federal
agencies.
4. The results are not intended to be disseminated to the public.
5. Information gathered will not be used for the purpose of substantially informing influential
policy decisions.
6. The collection is targeted to the solicitation of opinions from respondents who have
experience with the program or may have experience with the program in the future.
Bruce A. Sharp
Name:________________________________________________

To assist review, please provide answers to the following question:

1

Personally Identifiable Information:
1. Is personally identifiable information (PII) collected ? [] Yes [X] No
2. If Yes, will any information that is collected be included in records that are subject to the
Privacy Act of 1974? [ ] Yes [ ] No
3. If Yes, has an up-to-date System of Records Notice (SORN) been published? [ ] Yes [ ] No
Gifts or Payments:
Is an incentive (e.g., money or reimbursement of expenses, token of appreciation) provided to
participants? [ ] Yes [ X ] No
BURDEN HOURS
Category of Respondent

No. of
Participation
Respondents Time
12
40 mins

Financial Professionals

Burden
8 hrs

Totals
FEDERAL COST: The estimated annual cost to the Federal government is not known at this
time.
If you are conducting a focus group, survey, or plan to employ statistical methods, please
provide answers to the following questions:
The selection of your targeted respondents
1. Do you have a customer list or something similar that defines the universe of potential
respondents and do you have a sampling plan for selecting from this universe?
[X] Yes
[ ] No
If the answer is yes, please provide a description of both below (or attach the sampling plan)? If
the answer is no, please provide a description of how you plan to identify your potential group of
respondents and how you will select them?
We have a participant database on Airtable of every person who has expressed interest in
participating in research to improve fiscaldata.treasury.gov through a survey. From this database,
we will select participants that vary in background (age, gender, ethnicity, and job title) but have
some familiarity with reporting taxes for foreign financial assets.
Administration of the Instrument
1. How will you collect the information? (Check all that apply)
[X] Web-based or other forms of Social Media
[ ] Telephone
[ ] In-person
[ ] Mail
[ ] Other, Explain
2. Will interviewers or facilitators be used? [X] Yes [ ] No

2