Supporting Statement A

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SUPPORTING STATEMENT
Part A




Generic Clearance for the Collection of Qualitative Feedback on Agency Service Delivery



OMB Control Number 0935-0179



Version: 10/26/2026





Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)

Table of Contents

A. Justification	3
1. Circumstances that make the collection of information necessary	3
2. Purpose and Use of Information	4
3. Use of Improved Information Technology	4
4. Efforts to Identify Duplication	5
5. Involvement of Small Entities	5
6. Consequences if Information Collected Less Frequently	5
7. Special Circumstances	5
8. Federal Register Notice and Consultations Outside the Agency	5
9. Payments/Gifts to Respondents	5
10. Assurance of Confidentiality	6
11. Questions of a Sensitive Nature	6
12. Estimates of Burden Hours and Costs	6
13. Estimates of Annualized Respondent Capital and Maintenance Costs	8
14. Estimates of Annualized Cost to the Government	8
15. Changes in Hour Burden	8
16. Time Schedule, Publication and Analysis Plans	8
17. Exemption for Display of Expiration Date	9
List of Attachments:	9

	


    A. JUSTIFICATION

    1. Circumstances Making the Collection of Information Necessary
About AHRQ:
The mission of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) set out in its authorizing legislation, The Healthcare Research and Quality Act of 1999 (see Healthcare Research and Quality Act of 1999 | Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality [ahrq.gov] or Attachment A), is to enhance the quality, appropriateness, and effectiveness of health services, and access to such services, through the establishment of a broad base of scientific research and through the promotion of improvements in clinical and health systems practices, including the prevention of diseases and other health conditions.  AHRQ shall promote health care quality improvement by conducting and supporting:
    1. research that develops and presents scientific evidence regarding all aspects of health care; and
    2. the synthesis and dissemination of available scientific evidence for use by patients, consumers, practitioners, providers, purchasers, policy makers, and educators; and
    3. initiatives to advance private and public efforts to improve health care quality.
Summary of this Information Collection Request (ICR):
This ICR is for an extension without change for the generic clearance 0935-0179, “Collection of Qualitative Feedback on Agency Service Delivery.” The current expiration date for 0935-0179 is 11/30/2026.  AHRQ requests a new expiration date, three years from approval of this ICR. 
Executive Order 12862 directs Federal agencies to provide service to the public that matches or exceeds the best service available in the private sector. To work continuously to ensure that our programs are effective and meet our customers’ needs, AHRQ (hereafter “the Agency”) seeks to obtain OMB approval of a generic clearance to collect qualitative feedback on our service delivery.  By qualitative feedback, we mean information that provides useful insights on perceptions and opinions and are not statistical surveys that yield quantitative results that can be generalized to the population of study.
This collection of information is necessary to enable the Agency to garner customer and stakeholder feedback in an efficient, timely manner, in accordance with our commitment to improving service delivery.  The information collected from our customers and stakeholders will help ensure that users have an effective, efficient, and satisfying experience with the Agency’s programs.  This feedback will provide insights into customer or stakeholder perceptions, experiences and expectations, provide an early warning of issues with service, or focus attention on areas where communication, training or changes in operations might improve delivery of products or services.  These collections will allow for ongoing, collaborative and actionable communication between the Agency and its customers and stakeholders.  It will also allow feedback to contribute directly to the improvement of program management. 
Attachment D lists all the data collections currently approved under this generic clearance.  Table 1 in the attachment lists the data collections that AHRQ is requesting to continue under this ICR extension.  Table 2 in the attachment lists the approved data collections AHRQ is requesting to be discontinued.
    2. Purpose and Use of Information 
Improving agency programs requires ongoing assessment of service delivery, by which we mean systematic review of the operation of a program compared to a set of explicit or implicit standards, as a means of contributing to the continuous improvement of the program.  The Agency will collect, analyze, and interpret information gathered through this generic clearance to identify strengths and weaknesses of current services and make improvements in service delivery based on feedback.  The solicitation of feedback will target areas such as timeliness, appropriateness, accuracy of information, courtesy, efficiency of service delivery, and resolution of issues with service delivery.   Responses will be assessed to plan and inform efforts to improve or maintain the quality of service offered to the public.  Without  this information, vital feedback from customers and stakeholders on the Agency’s services will not be available.
The Agency will only submit a collection for approval under this generic clearance if it meets the following conditions:   
    • Information gathered will be used only internally for general service improvement and program management purposes and is not intended for release outside of the agency (if released, procedures outlined in section 16 will be followed);
    • Information gathered will not be used for the purpose of substantially informing influential policy decisions 1;
    • Information gathered will yield qualitative information; the collections will not be designed or expected to yield statistically reliable results or used as though the results are generalizable to the study population.  
    • The collections are voluntary;
    • The collections are low burden for respondents (based on considerations of total burden hours, total number of respondents, or burden hours per respondent) and are low-cost for both the respondents and the Federal Government;
    • The collections are non-controversial and do not raise issues of concern to other Federal agencies; 
    • Any collection is targeted at the solicitation of opinions from respondents who have experience with the program or may have experience with the program in the near future; and
    • Except for information needed to provide renumeration for participants of focus groups and cognitive laboratory studies, personally identifiable information (PII) is collected only to the extent necessary and is not retained. 
If these conditions are not met, the Agency will submit an information collection request to OMB for approval through the normal PRA process.  
To obtain approval for a collection that meets the conditions of this generic clearance, a standardized form will be submitted to OMB along with supporting documentation (e.g., a copy of the comment card).  The submission will have automatic approval, unless OMB identifies issues within 5 business days.
The types of collections that this generic clearance covers, but are not limited to:
    • Customer comment cards/complaint forms
    • Small discussion groups
    • Focus Groups of customers, potential customers, delivery partners, or other stakeholders
    • Cognitive laboratory studies, such as those used to refine questions or assess usability of a website;
    • Qualitative customer satisfaction surveys (e.g., post-transaction surveys; opt-out web surveys)
    • In-person observation testing (e.g., website or software usability tests)
The Agency has established a manager/managing entity to serve for this generic clearance and will conduct an independent review of each information collection to ensure compliance with the terms of this clearance prior to submitting each collection to OMB. 
    3. Use of Improved Information Technology
If appropriate, agencies will collect information electronically and/or use online collaboration tools to reduce burden.
    4.  Efforts to Identify Duplication 
No similar data are gathered or maintained by the Agency or are available from other sources known to the Agency.
    5.  Involvement of Small Entities
Small businesses or other small entities may be involved in these efforts, but the Agency will minimize the burden on them of information collections approved under this clearance by sampling, asking for readily available information, and using short, easy-to-complete information collection instruments.  
    6. Consequences if Information Collected Less Frequently
Without this type of feedback, the Agency will not have timely information to adjust its services to meet customer needs.
    7. Special Circumstances
There are no special circumstances. The information collected will be voluntary and will not be used for statistical purposes.
8   Federal Register Notice and Consultations Outside the Agency
8.a. Federal Register Notice
In accordance with 5 CFR 1320.8(d), a 60-day notice for public comment was published in the Federal Register on July 30, 2026, on Page 48112, Volume 91, and allowed 60 days for public comment.  No comments were received. 
8.b. Consultations Outside the Agency
AHRQ will consult with statistical and other expert staff in-house, in other Federal agencies, and in other organizations that have conducted, or may engage in similar preliminary research activities.  AHRQ will establish an independent internal review process to ensure the development, implementation, and analysis of high-quality research.
    9. Payment or Gift
AHRQ will, on a case-by-case basis, consider modest remuneration for survey respondents and focus group participant’s time and travel.  In such cases, the remuneration will typically not exceed $30 per individual.  AHRQ may ask for a higher amount for hard-to-reach populations.  Remuneration for focus group participation is a recognized standard industry practice, without which, it would be difficult to achieve appropriate and adequate participation.
    10.  Assurance of Confidentiality 
If a confidentiality pledge is deemed useful and feasible, the Agency will only include a pledge of confidentiality that is supported by authority established in statute or regulation, applicable disclosure and data security policies, and that does not unnecessarily impede sharing of data with other agencies for compatible confidential use.  If the agency includes a pledge of confidentiality, it will include a citation for the statute or regulation supporting the pledge.
    11. Questions of a Sensitive Nature
No questions will be asked that are of a personal or sensitive nature.
    12. Estimates of Burden Hours and Costs 
Exhibit 1 shows the estimated total burden hours for the respondents.  Mail surveys are estimated to average 15 minutes, telephone surveys 40 minutes, web-based surveys 10 minutes, focus groups two hours, and in-person interviews are estimated to average 50 minutes.  Mail surveys may also be sent to respondents via email and may include a telephone non-response follow-up.  Telephone non-response follow-up for mailed surveys does not count as a telephone survey.  The total annualized burden hours is estimated to be 1130 hours.
Exhibit 2 shows the estimated cost burden for the respondents.  The total annualized cost burden for the clearance is estimated to be $75,800.
Exhibit 1.  Estimated annualized burden hours*
Type of Information Collection
Number of Respondents
Number of responses per respondent
Hours per response
Total Burden hours
Mail/email**
 1,667
1
15/60
 417
Telephone
 67
1
40/60
45
Web-based
 1,667
1
10/60
278
Focus Groups
 167
1
2.0
334
In-person
 67
1
50/60
56
Total
 3,635
N/A
N/A
1,130
*The total burden hours in ROCIS were originally calculated for the full three years. This burden table presents the estimates annually, which included rounding when calculating. The rounding results in slightly different totals shown in SSA versus ROCIS, but they are based on the same burden estimates. 
** May include telephone non-response follow-up, in which case, the burden will not change.

Exhibit 2.  Estimated annualized burden cost
Type of Information Collection
Total Burden hours
Average Hourly Wage Rate*
Adjusted Average Hourly Wage Rate**
Total Cost Burden (Total Burden Hours x Adjusted Average Hourly Wage Rate)
Mail/email
417
$33.54
$67.08
$27,972
Telephone
45
$33.54
$67.08
$3,019
Web-based
278
$33.54
$67.08
$18,648
Focus Groups
334
$33.54
$67.08
$22,405
In-person
56
$33.54
$67.08
$3,756
Total
1,130
$33.54
$67.08
$75,800
*Bureau of Labor & Statistics on “Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2025” for Cross-Industry, Private, Federal, State, and Local (000000) (all occupations [00-0000]) found at the following URL: https://data.bls.gov/oes/#/area/0000000/2025 for the respondents.  
**Adjusted Average Hourly Wage Rate is 200% of the average hourly rate.  It is a fully loaded rate that includes the benefit costs of respondents.
    13. Estimates of Annualized Respondent Capital and Maintenance Costs	
Capital and maintenance costs include the purchase of equipment, computers or computer software or services, or storage facilities for records, as a result of complying with this data collection.  There are no direct costs to respondents other than their time to participate in the study.
    14. Estimates of Annualized Cost to the Government 
Information collections conducted under this generic clearance will in some cases be carried out under contract. Assuming the contract cost per survey are $54,636.35 - $109,272.70*, which includes $21,855 for each focus group (10 focus groups per fiscal year), total contract costs could run $1,639,091 per year** (10 focus groups x $81,955 average survey cost).  An additional adjusted annual cost of about $163,104 for agency staff would be associated with this, assuming 10 surveys and 10 focus groups per fiscal year with 10 GS 14/5 program analysts or project officers ($163,104 annual salary*) at 5% of their time each fiscal year. The total annual cost to the government is estimated to be $1,802,195 as shown in Exhibit 3.

Exhibit 3: Estimated Annual Cost to the Federal Government

*These amounts were based on the previous estimates for the last package approval, inflated by an average of 3% per year for three years (2025, 2026, 2027).
**Adjusted annual cost is 200% of the annual cost. 
***Annual salaries based on 2026 OPM Pay Schedule for Washington/DC area: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries-wages/salary-tables/pdf/2026/DCB.pdf  
    15. Changes in Hour Burden
There is no change in the total number of burden hours. 
    16. Time Schedule, Publication and Analysis Plans
Feedback collected under this generic clearance provides useful information, but it does not yield data that can be generalized to the overall population. Findings will be used for general service improvement, but are not for publication or other public release.  
Although the Agency does not intend to publish its findings, the Agency may receive requests to release the information (e.g., congressional inquiry, Freedom of Information Act requests).  The Agency will disseminate the findings when appropriate, strictly following the Agency's "Guidelines for Ensuring the Quality of Information Disseminated to the Public", and will include specific discussion of the limitation of the qualitative results discussed above. 
    17. Exemption for Display of Expiration Date
AHRQ does not seek this exemption.
List  of Attachments:
Attachment A– Healthcare Research and Quality Act of 1999
Attachment B – Generic Clearance Submission Template
Attachment C – 60-day Federal Register notice and correction notice 
Attachment D – Data collections currently approved under 0935-0179