G414: LSAC Surveys Submission Request

Request for Approval under the “Generic Clearance for the Collection of Routine Customer Feedback” (OMB Control Number: 0651-0080 )

TITLE OF INFORMATION COLLECTION: G414: Legal Secretaries and Administrators Conference (LSAC) Surveys

PURPOSE: USPTO’s Office of Stakeholder Experience (OPSE) provides support for legal secretaries and administrators via the LSAC. The survey will obtain feedback from attendees regarding their experience, and suggestions for topics and improvements to future conferences. Information collected will assist the USPTO agency-wide, as well as improve educational resources and training offerings for legal secretaries and administrators regarding USPTO examination processes, operations, and services.

DESCRIPTION OF RESPONDENTS: Respondents are individuals who registered for the Legal Secretaries and Administrators Conference to broaden their knowledge of USPTO patent examination processes and procedures.

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:

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.

Business Unit Certification: Jolyn Eley - OPSE

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, is the information that will be collected included in records that are subject to the Privacy Act of 1974? [ ] Yes [ ] No

3. If Applicable, has a System or Records Notice 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
Legal Secretaries and Administrators Conference End of Training Survey for end of day 1	60	10 minutes	10 hrs
Legal Secretaries and Administrators Conference End of Training Survey for end of day 2	60	10 minutes	10 hrs
Totals	120	- - -	20 hrs

The USPTO estimates that 100% of the surveys will be conducted electronically.

FEDERAL COST:

The USPTO estimates that it takes a GS-14 step 8, 4 hours for summary, data analysis, and reporting for the 2 individual surveys combined.

The hourly rate for a GS-14, step 8, is currently $82.38 according to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management’s (OPM’s) 2024 wage chart, including locality pay for the Washington, DC area.  When 30% is added to account for a fully loaded hourly rate (benefits and overhead), the rate per hour for a GS-14, step 8, is $107.09. 

The total estimated annual cost to the Federal government for the Legal Secretaries and Administrators Conference End of Training Surveys is the combined average hourly rate of $107.09 per hour * 4 = $428.

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?

The Legal Secretaries and Administrators Conference will be a two-day event in which we anticipate approximately 60 attendees. All registered attendees will be requested to complete a survey at the close of each day’s programming.

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? [] Yes [X] No

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

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