Proposed Information Collection Activity; Comment Request; Proposed Projects: Supporting Healthy Marriage (SHM) Project Baseline Data Collection, 40370 [05-13713]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
• Administration for Children and Families
• Children and Families Administration

[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 133 (Wednesday, July 13, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Page 40370]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-13713]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Administration for Children and Families


Proposed Information Collection Activity; Comment Request; 
Proposed Projects: Supporting Healthy Marriage (SHM) Project Baseline 
Data Collection

    OMB No.: New collection.
    Description: The Administration for Children and Families (ACF), 
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), has launched a new 
demonstration and evaluation called the Supporting Healthy Marriage 
(SHM) Project. The first large-scale, multi-site, multi-year, rigorous 
test of marriage skills programs for low-income married couples, the 
project is motivated by research that indicates that married adults, 
and children raised by their married parents, do better on a host of 
outcomes. Supporting Healthy Marriage is designed to inform program 
operators and policymakers of the most effective ways to help couples 
strengthen and maintain healthy marriages. In particular, the project 
will measure the effectiveness of programs that provide instruction and 
support to improve relationship skills.
    This collection is a baseline survey of study participants. The 
baseline data collection will serve several key functions in the SHM 
study. It will help describe the population being served, which will be 
useful to the programs being studied, to other marriage education 
program providers, and to policy makers who seek to understand the 
characteristics of couples that are interested in marriage education 
services. It will allow the SHM team to define and conduct analyses of 
key sub-groups, addressing the key study question of who benefits most 
and least from marriage education services. A baseline data collection 
will also allow the research team to conduct analyses using pre- and 
post-intervention measures. Lastly, the baseline data collection is an 
opportunity to collect participant contact information, to check the 
validity of random assignment, to assess the quality of survey data and 
attrition, and to increase the precision of estimated impacts.
    Respondents: The target population of the SHM study is low-income 
married couples with children. Both members of the couple must be over 
18 and both must volunteer to participate in the program. The 
respondents for the Supporting Healthy Marriage Project Baseline Data 
Collection will be participants in the SHM study. This will include 
both those receiving SHM program services and those in the SHM study 
control group. The respondents will be both spouses of 1,000 low-income 
married couples (2,000 respondents) in each of up to eight 
demonstration sites. The total number of respondents could be up to 
16,000. The study team will conduct participant intake over the course 
of two years, thus yielding about 8,000 respondents per year.

                                             Annual Burden Estimates
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                                                                     Number of
                                                     Number of     responses per  Average burden   Total burden
                   Instrument                       respondents     respondent       hours per         hours
                                                                       (min)      response (min)
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Eligibility Checklist...........................           8,000               1               5             667
Informed Consent Form...........................           8,000               1              10           1,333
Baseline Information Form.......................           8,000               1              10           1,333
Self-Administered Questionnaire.................           8,000               1              15           2,000
Contact Information Form........................           8,000               1              10           1,333
                                                 -----------------
      Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours:......  ..............  ..............              50           6,666
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    In compliance with the requirements of Section 3506(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 
Administration, Office of Information Services, 370 L'Enfant Promenade, 
SW., Washington, DC 20447, Attn: ACF Reports Clearance Officer. E-mail 
address: grjohnson@acf.hhs.gov./ 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.

    Dated: July 7, 2005.
Robert Sargis,
Reports Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 05-13713 Filed 7-12-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-07-M