[Federal Register: May 23, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 100)]
[Notices]
[Page 28232-28233]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr23my03-97]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Administration for Children and Families
Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request
Title: DHHS/ACF/ASPE/DOL Enhanced Services for the Hard-to-Employ
Demonstration and Evaluation Project Baseline Survey.
OMB No.: New collection.
Description: The Enhanced Services for the Hard-to-Employ
Demonstration and Evaluation Project (HtE) is the most ambitious,
comprehensive effort to learn what works in this area to date and is
explicitly designed to build on previous and ongoing research by
rigorously testing a wide variety of approaches to promote employment
and improve family functioning and child well-being. The HtE project
will ``conduct a multi-site evaluation that studies the implementation
issues, program design, net impact and benefit-costs of selected
programs'' \1\ designed to help Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
(TANF) recipients, former TANF recipients, or low-income parents who
are hard-to-employ. The project is sponsored by the Office of Planning,
Research and Evaluation (OPRE) of the Administration for Children and
Families (ACF), the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and
Evaluation (ASPE) in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
(HHS), and the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL). The evaluation involves
an experimental, random assignment design in six sites, testing a
diverse set of strategies to promote employment for low-income parents
who face serious obstacles to employment, including physical and mental
health problems, substance abuse, human capital deficiencies, and
situational barriers. At least two of the sites included in the
evaluation will feature ``two generation'' models, serving both parents
and their children. Over the next several years, the HtE project will
generate a wealth of rigorous data on implementation, effects, and
costs of these alternative approaches. The data collected will be used
for the following purposes:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ From the Department of Health and Human Services RFP No.:
233-01-0012.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
[sbull] To study the extent to which different HtE approaches
impact employment, earnings, income, welfare dependence, and the
presence or persistence of employment barriers;
[sbull] To collect data on a wider range of outcome measures than
is available through Welfare, Medicaid, Food Stamps, Social Security,
the Criminal Justice System or Unemployment Insurance records in order
to understand the family circumstances and attributes and situations
that contribute to the difficulties in finding employment; job
retention and job quality; educational attainment; interactions with
and knowledge of the HtE program; household composition; childcare;
transportation; health care; income; physical and mental health
problems; substance abuse; domestic violence; and criminal history;
[sbull] To conduct non-experimental analyses to explain
participation decisions and provide a descriptive picture of the
circumstances of individuals who are hard-to-employ;
[sbull] To obtain participation information important to the
evaluation's benefit-cost component; and,
[sbull] To obtain contact information for possible future follow-
up, information that will be important to achieving high response rates
for additional surveys.
Respondents: The respondents to the baseline survey are Temporary
Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients, former TANF
recipients, or low-income individuals who are hard-to-employ from six
states likely to be participating in the HtE Project: California,
Georgia, Kansas, New York, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island. Survey
respondents can be grouped according to four target populations: Ex-
offenders with children; low-income mothers with mental health
barriers; populations connected to the TANF system; and
[[Page 28233]]
programs working with two generations (parents and their children).
Prior to random assignment, basic demographic information for all
survey respondents will be obtained wherever possible from the
program's automated system. In addition, all survey respondents will
receive a core set of questions that will be administered by Audio-
Computer Assisted Self Interview (ACASI-Core). In the site operating a
program aimed specifically at ex-offenders, an additional supplementary
module will be administered by Audio-CASI. Similarly, an additional
supplementary module will be administered by Audio-CASI in the site
operating a program aimed at survey respondents with mental health
problems. Finally, in the two-generation sites (two of the six sites),
survey respondents will complete a two-generation survey administered
by a Computer Assisted Personal Interview (CAPI). Approximately 12,000
respondents will complete the core survey, 2,000 will complete the
criminal justice module, 2,000 will complete the mental health module,
and 4,000 will complete the two-generation CAPI survey.
Annual Burden Estimates
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Number of
Instrument Number of responses per Average burden hours per response Total burden
respondents respondent hours
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Audio-CASI Core.............................. 12,000 1 10 minutes or .17 hrs.................................... 2,000
Criminal Justice Module...................... 2,000 1 12 minutes or .20 hrs.................................... 400.00
Mental Health Module......................... 2,000 1 11 minutes or .18 hrs.................................... 366.67
Two-Generation CAPI.......................... 4,000 1 24 minutes or .4 hrs..................................... 1,600
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 4,366.67.
Additionally Information: Copies of the proposed collection may be
obtained by writing to the Administration for Children and Families,
Office of Information Services, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW.,
Washington, DC 20447, Attn: ACF Reports Clearance Officer.
OMB Comment: OMB is required to make a decision concerning the
collection of information between 30 and 60 days after publication of
this document in the Federal Register. Therefore, a comment is best
assured of having its full effect if OMB receives it within 30 days of
publication. Written comments and recommendations for the proposed
information collection should be sent directly to the following: Office
of Management and Budget, Paperwork Reduction Project, 725 17th Street,
NW., Washington, DC 20503. Attn: Desk Officer for ACF.
Dated: May 16, 2003.
Bob Sargis,
Reports Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 03-12907 Filed 5-22-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-01-M