Justification

Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of Qualitative Feedback on Agency Service Delivery”

(OMB Control Number: 2030-0051; EPA ICR Number: 2434.243)

TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: EPA Water Quality Standards Academy Student Course Evaluation

PURPOSE:

The WQS Academy (WQSA) provides WQS development and implementation information to WQS professionals associated with the federal, state, tribal and local agencies as well as the private sector. This highly structured training course covers all aspects of the water quality standards regulations, including the technical, scientific, administrative, and procedural aspects.

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS:

The WQSA is an introductory course designed for those with six months to one year experience with water quality standards and criteria programs. However, others may benefit from the course, including veterans of the water quality standards program who want a refresher course. The EPA hosts the live virtual WQSA sessions in a half-day format held over 6 consecutive business days to allow for participation from multiple time-zones. The virtual session is typically offered twice each year, in the spring and winter.

TYPE OF COLLECTION: (Check one)

[ ] Customer Comment Card/Complaint Form [ X] Customer Satisfaction Survey

[ ] Usability Testing (e.g., Website or Software [ ] Small Discussion Group

[ ] Focus Group [ ] Other: ______________________

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

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 [ X] 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 Respondents	Participation Time	Burden Hours
Individual WQSA attendee Spring WQSA	100 per session	10 min	16.67 hours
Individual WQSA attendee Winter WQSA	100 per session	10 min	16.67 hours
Totals	200 per year	10 min	33.34 total hours per year

FEDERAL COST: The estimated annual cost to the Federal government is: $0.

The EPA plans to conduct 2 virtual sessions of the WQSA each year, typically in the spring and winter. The EPA typically receives evaluation responses from approximately ~100 participants per session. There is no additional cost incurred by utilizing this customer satisfaction survey, as it is given to students already attending the session.

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?

Survey respondents will be limited to the student attendees of each online WQSA session.

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

[ X ] Other, Explain

The EPA is providing the survey to attendees via electronic means such as a web-based platform, email, or PDF form.

2. Will interviewers or facilitators be used? [ ] Yes [ X ] No

Please make sure that all instruments, instructions, and scripts are submitted with the request.

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.

Name: Melissa Dreyfus, OW/OST/SHPD

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