DFC-018 - Supporting Statement

DFC-018

Consultation Request Form

SUPPORTING STATEMENT FOR APPROVAL

1. Justification

1. Legal authority for this information collection is found in the Better Utilization of Investments Leading to Development Act of 2018 (the “BUILD Act”), Public Law 115-254. DFC-018 Consultation Request Form shall serve as the public’s first point-of-contact with the business development staff of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (“DFC”), collecting basic business information to help frame an introductory conversation and/or educate the inquirer on the DFC mission and mandate in an efficient manner.

2. The Consultation Request Form will be the principal document used by the agency’s business development officers to record inbound, unsolicited leads and prospects in its customer relationship management (CRM) database to better track and report on market interest by sector and geography, as well as ensure that leads are evaluated through single channels and minimize duplication of business development efforts.

3. This form shall be completed with the use of a web-based application. This provides a secure and efficient means for applicants to transmit the required information to the agency.

3. Although some basic information collected by this form is duplicated in Form DFC-001A (Application for Debt Financing) and DFC-001B (Application for Equity Investment), this form is intended to be submitted prior to either Application and help streamline the pipeline of leads to applicants. In doing so, the burden on applicants and DFC officers reviewing applications will be reduced. The information would not be requested by another federal agency or lending institution since it is applicable solely to DFC’s finance program.

3. Members of the public requesting a consultation with a DFC business development officer include large and small businesses and entrepreneurs. The same questions are asked of all respondents/inquirers.

3. Without a form to collect the information, the amount of staff time needed to gather the requisite information through email exchanges and numerous conference calls would be significantly greater, resulting in multiple requests for information from program users. This would reduce the amount of time that is spent during the incubation stage of business development (i.e. determining whether the lead’s company or project is eligible and/or aligned with agency priorities), thereby improving the productivity and administrative efficiency of the finance program.

3. No special circumstances exist that require the information collection to be conducted in a manner inconsistent with the guidelines of the Paperwork Reduction Act and OMB's implementing regulations.

3. The first Federal Register Notice was published on August 21, 2024 (89 FR 67613). The agency received no public comments in the first 60-day review period. The second Federal Register Notice was published on November 1, 2024 (89 FR 87347).

3. No payments and gifts are offered to respondents.

3. When trade secrets or confidential commercial or financial information are submitted to the agency in this collection, they will be held in confidence to the extent permitted by applicable law including the Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”) at 5 U.S.C. section 552(b)(4) and the agency’s implementing regulations at 22 C.F.R. Part 706.

3. Not applicable. None of the questions on this form are of a sensitive nature.

3. The estimated burden of collecting this information is as follows:

850 respondents (average of range of 700-1000 respondents)

x 1 per respondent

=850 total annual responses

x (0.25 hours per average respondent)

=212.5 respondent hours

x $75/hour for personnel, record-keeping, overhead

$15.937.50 total cost to respondents

Respondents only complete the form once per request for consultation.

3. The estimated annualized cost to respondents is as follows:

   1. Total capital and start-up costs: $0

   2. Total operation and maintenance costs: $0.

All costs associated with the form are part of the normal cost of doing business. Since all submissions will be electronic and stored on DFC’s secure servers, there will be no postage or storage costs.

3. The estimated annualized cost to the Federal government is as follows:

850	respondents per year (average of range of 700-1000 respondents)
x 1	per respondent
850	total annual responses
x 0.25	average hours to review one response
=212.5	total federal hours
x $66.79	GS-14/1 (DCB) hourly wage
$14,192.88	total cost to the Federal government

3. The total annual burden is an increase as it is a new information collection. However, we expect that the form will ultimately result in time savings for both DFC officers as well as the public respondents. In filling out the form, many respondents will have general questions answered in the course of completing it, and DFC officers reviewing submissions will be able to more efficiently respond to (via email or calls) to inquirers with more targeted information.

3. Not applicable. Information provided in the consultation request form is not published externally. Data on the consultation requests will be recorded and reported internally to analyze market interest and help inform the agency’s proactive business development strategy.

3. Not applicable. The OMB expiration date will be printed on each form.

3. Not applicable. No exceptions are being requested on the certification statement.

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