81 FR 783 - Proposed Information Collection Activity; Comment Request

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Administration for Children and Families

Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 4 (January 7, 2016)

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 4 (Thursday, January 7, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 783-784]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2016-00054]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Children and Families


Proposed Information Collection Activity; Comment Request

    Proposed Projects: Application for Grants to States.
    Title: State Access and Visitation Grant Application.
    OMB No.: 0970-NEW.
    Description: The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity 
Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) created the ``Grants to States for 
Access and Visitation'' program (AV grant program). Funding for the 
program began in FY 1997 with a capped, annual entitlement of $10 
million. The statutory goal of the program is to provide funds to 
states that will enable them to provide services for the purpose of 
increasing noncustodial parent (NCP) access to and visitation with 
their children. State governors decide which state entity will be 
responsible for implementing the AV grant program in addition to 
determining who will be served, what services will be provided, and 
whether the services will be statewide or in local jurisdictions. The 
statute specifies certain activities which may be funded including: 
Voluntary and mandatory mediation, counseling, education, the 
development of parenting plans, supervised visitation, and the 
development of guidelines for visitation and alternative custody 
arrangements. Even though OCSE manages this program, the funding for 
the AV grant is separate from funding for federal and state 
administration of the Child Support program.
    Section 469B(e)(3) of the Social Security Act (Pub. L. 104-193) 
requires that each state receiving an AV grant award shall monitor, 
evaluate and report on such programs in accordance with regulations. 
Additionally, the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance, states that 
there is an application requirement for Grants to States for Access and 
Visitation Programs (93.597). The application process will assist OCSE 
in complying with this requirement and will reflect a greater emphasis 
on program efficiency, coordination of services, and increased 
attention to family safety.
    The application will require states to submit a program plan, 
indicating how they anticipate spending their funds within the program 
statue and regulations. The applications will cover three fiscal years 
and any changes made to the plan during the three year period will 
require a notification of change to OCSE.
    OCSE will review the applications to ensure that planned services 
meet the requirements laid out in Section 469B(e)(3) of the Social 
Security Act (Pub. L. 104-193). This review will include monitoring of 
program compliance and the safe delivery of services. In addition to 
monitoring, the report will also assist in OCSE's ability to provide 
technical assistance to states that would like assistance.
    Respondents: Recipients of the Access & Visitation Grant (54 states 
and territories).

                                             Annual Burden Estimates
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                                                                  Number of     Average  burden
                 Instrument                      Number of      responses per      hours  per      Total burden
                                                respondents       respondent        response          hours
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Fillable word document......................              54                1               10              540
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[[Page 784]]

    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 540.
    In compliance with the requirements of Section 506(c)(2)(A) of the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Administration for Children and 
Families is soliciting public comment on the specific aspects of the 
information collection described above. Copies of the proposed 
collection of information can be obtained and comments may be forwarded 
by writing to the Administration for Children and Families, Office of 
Planning, Research and Evaluation, 370 L'Enfant Promenade SW., 
Washington, DC 20447, Attn: ACF Reports Clearance Officer. Email 
address: [email protected]. All requests should be identified 
by the title of the information collection.
    The Department specifically requests comments on: (a) Whether the 
proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper 
performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the 
information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the 
agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of 
information; (c) the quality, utility, and clarity of the information 
to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection 
of information on respondents, including through the use of automated 
collection techniques or other forms of information technology. 
Consideration will be given to comments and suggestions submitted 
within 60 days of this publication.

Robert Sargis,
Reports Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2016-00054 Filed 1-6-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-01-P