82 FR 41676 - Request for Comments on the Renewal of a Previously Approved Information Collection: Generic Clearance for the Collection of Qualitative Feedback on Agency Service Delivery

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Maritime Administration

Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 169 (September 1, 2017)

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces that the Information Collection Request (ICR) abstracted below is being forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and comments. The collection involves collecting, analyzing, and interpreting information to identify strengths and weaknesses of current services and make improvements in service delivery based on feedback. If this information is not collected, vital feedback from customers and stakeholders on the Agency's services will be unavailable. A Federal Register Notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting comments on the following information collection was published on May 19, 2017, (Federal Register 23123, Vol. 82, No. 96).

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 169 (Friday, September 1, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41676-41677]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2017-18593]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Maritime Administration

[Docket No. MARAD-2017-0152]


Request for Comments on the Renewal of a Previously Approved 
Information Collection: Generic Clearance for the Collection of 
Qualitative Feedback on Agency Service Delivery

AGENCY: Maritime Administration, Department of Transportation.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this 
notice announces that the Information Collection Request (ICR) 
abstracted below is being forwarded to the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) for review and comments. The collection involves 
collecting, analyzing, and interpreting information to identify 
strengths and weaknesses of current services and make improvements in 
service delivery based on feedback. If this information is not 
collected, vital feedback from customers and stakeholders on the 
Agency's services will be unavailable. A Federal Register Notice with a 
60-day comment period soliciting comments on the following information 
collection was published on May 19, 2017, (Federal Register 23123, Vol. 
82, No. 96).

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before October 2, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Send comments regarding the burden estimate, including 
suggestions for reducing the burden, to the Office of Management and 
Budget, Attention: Desk Officer for the Office of the Secretary of 
Transportation, 725 17th Street NW., Washington, DC 20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Barbara Jackson, 202-366-0615, Office 
of Management and Administrative Services, Maritime Administration, 
Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., W26-494, 
Washington, DC 20590.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the 
proposed collection of information is necessary for the Department's 
performance; (b) the accuracy of the estimated burden; (c) ways for the 
Department to enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the 
information collection; and (d) ways

[[Page 41677]]

that the burden could be minimized without reducing the quality of the 
collected information. The agency will summarize and/or include your 
comments in the request for OMB's clearance of this information 
collection.
    Title: Generic Clearance for the Collection of Qualitative Feedback 
on Agency Service Delivery.
    OMB Control Number: 2133-0543.
    Type of Request: Renewal of a Previously Approved Information 
Collection.
    Abstract: The information collection activity will garner 
qualitative customer and stakeholder feedback in an efficient, timely 
manner, in accordance with the Administration's commitment to improving 
service delivery. By qualitative feedback we mean information that 
provides useful insights on perceptions and opinions, but are not 
statistical surveys that yield quantitative results that can be 
generalized to the population of study. 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 
communications between the Agency and its customers and stakeholders. 
It will also allow feedback to contribute directly to the improvement 
of program management.
    Feedback collected under this generic clearance will provide useful 
information, but it will not yield data that can be generalized to the 
overall population. This type of generic clearance for qualitative 
information will not be used for quantitative information collections 
that are designed to yield reliably actionable results, such as 
monitoring trends over time or documenting program performance. Such 
data uses require more rigorous designs that address: the target 
population to which generalizations will be made, the sampling frame, 
the sample design (including stratification and clustering), the 
precision requirements or power calculations that justify the proposed 
sample size, the expected response rate, methods for assessing 
potential non-response bias, the protocols for data collection, and any 
testing procedures that were or will be undertaken prior to fielding 
the study. Depending on the degree of influence the results are likely 
to have, such collections may still be eligible for submission for 
other generic mechanisms that are designed to yield quantitative 
results.
    Respondents: Individuals and Households, Businesses and 
Organizations, State, Local or Tribal Government.
    Affected Public: Individuals and Households, Businesses and 
Organizations, State, Local or Tribal Government.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 8,696.
    Estimated Number of Responses: 8,696.
    Estimated Hours per Response: 10 minutes.
    Annual Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 1,449.
    Frequency of Response: Annually.

(Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. Chapter 
35, as amended; and 49 CFR 1.93.).

* * * * *

    By Order of the Maritime Administrator.

    Dated: August 29, 2017.
T. Mitchell Hudson, Jr.,
Secretary, Maritime Administration.
[FR Doc. 2017-18593 Filed 8-31-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-81-P