[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 146 (Monday, July 30, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36611-36613]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-16145]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

[Docket No. FR-7001-N-40]


30-Day Notice of Proposed Information Collection: Evaluation of 
the Supportive Services Demonstration

AGENCY: Office of the Chief Information Officer, HUD.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: HUD submitted the proposed information collection requirement 
described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for 
review, in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act. The purpose of 
this notice is to allow for 30 days of public comment.

DATES: Comments Due Date: August 29, 2018.

[[Page 36612]]


ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments regarding 
this proposal. Comments should refer to the proposal by name and/or OMB 
Control Number and should be sent to: Anna P. Guido, Reports Management 
Officer, QDAM, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th 
Street SW, Room 4176, Washington, DC 20410-5000; telephone 202-402-5534 
(this is not a toll-free number) or email at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#6d2c03030c433d432a180409022d051809430a021b"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="d190bfbfb0ff81ff96a4b8b5be91b9a4b5ffb6bea7">[email protected]</span></a> for a 
copy of the proposed forms or other available information. Persons with 
hearing or speech impairments may access this number through TTY by 
calling the toll-free Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anna P. Guido, Reports Management 
Officer, QDAM, Department of Housing and Urban Development, 451 7th 
Street SW, Washington, DC 20410; email Anna P. Guido at 
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#9adbf4f4fbb4cab4ddeff3fef5daf2effeb4fdf5ec"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="a8e9c6c6c986f886efddc1ccc7e8c0ddcc86cfc7de">[email protected]</span></a> or telephone 202-402-5535. This is not a toll-free 
number. Persons with hearing or speech impairments may access this 
number through TTY by calling the toll-free Federal Relay Service at 
(800) 877-8339. Copies of available documents submitted to OMB may be 
obtained from Ms. Guido.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice informs the public that HUD is 
seeking approval from OMB for the information collection described in 
Section A.
    The Federal Register notice that solicited public comment on the 
information collection for a period of 60 days was published on 
February 28, 2018 at 83 FR 8691.

A. Overview of Information Collection

    Title of Information Collection: Evaluation of the Supportive 
Services Demonstration.
    OMB Approval Number: 2528--New.
    Type of Request: New.
    Form Number: NA.
    Description of the need for the information and proposed use: The 
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has contracted 
with Abt Associates Inc. to conduct an evaluation of HUD's Supportive 
Services Demonstration (SSD), also referred to as Integrated Wellness 
in Supportive Housing (IWISH). The SSD is a three-year demonstration 
sponsored by HUD to test the impact of a new model of housing-based 
supportive services on the healthcare utilization and housing stability 
of low-income older adults. The goal of the SSD model is to help older 
adults in HUD-assisted housing to age in place successfully. The SSD 
model funds a full-time Resident Wellness Director (RWD) and part-time 
Wellness Nurse (WN) to work in HUD-assisted housing developments that 
either predominantly or exclusively serve households headed by people 
aged 62 or over. These services are not typically available in HUD-
assisted housing developments for this population and are anticipated 
to positively impact outcomes.
    Eligible HUD-assisted properties applied for the demonstration and 
were randomly assigned to one of three groups: A ``treatment group'' 
that received grant funding to hire a RWD and WN and implement the SSD 
model (40 properties); an ``active control'' group that did not receive 
grant funding but received a stipend to participate in the evaluation 
(40 properties); and a ``passive control'' group that received neither 
grant funding nor a stipend (44 properties). The random assignment 
permits an evaluation that quantifies the impact of the SSD model by 
comparing outcomes at the 40 treatment group properties to outcomes at 
the 84 properties in the active and passive control groups.
    Under contract with HUD's Office of Policy Development and 
Research, Abt Associates Inc. will conduct a two-part evaluation--a 
process study to describe the implementation of the demonstration and 
an impact study to measure the impact of the SSD model on residents' 
use of healthcare services and housing stability. The evaluation 
features analysis of administrative data and the following types of 
baseline data collection from human subjects: (1) An initial 
questionnaire with housing and wellness staff (RWD, Service 
Coordinator, and/or property management) at each of the 40 treatment 
properties and the 40 active control properties; (2) interviews with 
housing and wellness staff (RWDs, WNs, Service Coordinators, and 
property management) at each of the 40 treatment properties and the 40 
active control properties; (3) 24 focus groups with residents and 
caregivers of residents. The purpose of these activities is to collect 
data from multiple perspectives about implementation experience with 
the demonstration, the strengths and weakness of the model, and how 
resident wellness and service coordination activities compare across 
treatment and control properties. The evaluation will also incorporate 
data collected by The Lewin Group as part of the implementation of the 
demonstration. Information on the SSD information collection was 
published in the Federal Register on January 9, 2017 (FR-5915-N-14).
    Respondents (i.e., Affected Public): Resident Wellness Directors; 
Wellness Nurses; Service Coordinators; housing property staff; HUD-
assisted residents (aged 62 and over); and caregivers of HUD-assisted 
residents.
    Total Estimated Burdens: The estimated average burden for the 
initial questionnaire is 1.5 hours per person per questionnaire. The 
questionnaire will take up to 60 minutes to complete, with an 
additional 30 minutes for scheduling and preparation. There will be one 
to two respondents from each property. The respondents for the initial 
questionnaire are Resident Wellness Directors, Service Coordinators, 
and housing property staff. The estimated number of respondents for the 
initial questionnaire is 120 and the estimated burden is 180 hours.
    The estimated average burden for the interviews is 2.5 hours. The 
interviews will take up to two hours, with an additional 30 minutes for 
scheduling and preparation. The respondents for the interviews are 
Resident Wellness Directors, Wellness Nurses, Service Coordinators, and 
housing property staff. There will be between one and four interview 
respondents per property for an estimated number of respondents of 220 
and an estimated burden of 550 hours.
    The estimated average burden for each focus group with residents is 
1.75 hours. The focus group discussion will last up to 90 minutes, with 
an additional 15 minutes at the start for participants to complete the 
consent process and orient themselves to the group. The respondents for 
the resident focus groups are residents aged 62 and over of HUD-
assisted properties. There will be an average of 10 participants per 
focus group and 21 focus groups, for a total of 210 respondents and 368 
burden hours.
    The estimated average burden for the caregiver focus group is 1.75 
hours. The focus group discussion will take up to 90 minutes, with an 
additional 15 minutes at the start for participants to complete the 
consent process and orient themselves to the group. The respondents for 
the caregiver focus groups are the informal caregivers (mostly friends 
and family) of residents aged 62 and over of HUD-assisted properties. 
There will be an average of 10 participants per focus group and three 
focus groups, for a total of 30 respondents and 53 burden hours.
    Exhibit A-2 provides the total estimated hour and cost burden of 
the information collection. The ``Initial Questionnaire'' category in 
Exhibit A-2 includes three data collection instruments: Initial 
Questionnaire for

[[Page 36613]]

Treatment Properties; Initial Questionnaire for Active Control 
Properties with a Service Coordinator; and Initial Questionnaire for 
Active Control Properties without a Service Coordinator. The 
``Interviews'' category includes five data collection instruments: 
Interview Guide for Resident Wellness Directors at Treatment 
Properties; Interview Guide for Wellness Nurses at Treatment 
Properties; Interview Guide for Housing Property Staff at Treatment 
Properties; Interview Guide for Service Coordinators at Active Control 
Properties; and Interview Guide for Housing Property Staff at Active 
Control Properties. The ``Focus Groups with Residents'' category 
includes three data collection instruments: Moderator Guide for Focus 
Groups with IWISH Participants; Moderator Guide for Focus Groups with 
IWISH Non-Enrollees; and Moderator Guide for Focus Groups with 
Residents of Active Control Properties. The ``Focus Groups with 
Caregivers'' category includes one data collection instrument: 
Moderator Guide for Focus Groups with Caregivers of IWISH Participants.

                                                Estimated Hour and Cost Burden of Information Collection
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                                             Number of     Frequency of    Responses per    Burden hour    Annual burden    Hourly cost
         Information collection             respondents      response          annum       per response        hour        per response     Annual cost
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Initial Questionnaire...................          120.00            1.00          120.00            1.50          180.00          $34.04       $6,127.20
Interviews..............................          220.00            1.00          220.00            2.50          550.00           34.04       18,722.00
Focus Groups with Residents.............          210.00            1.00          210.00            1.75          367.50            7.90        2,903.25
Focus Groups with Caregivers............           30.00            1.00           30.00            1.75           52.50           27.70        1,454.25
                                         ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Total...............................          580.00  ..............  ..............  ..............        1,151.00  ..............       29,206.70
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    The total estimated annual cost for this information collection is 
$29,206.70.
    To estimate the cost per hour for the questionnaire and interview 
respondents, we use the most recent (May 2016) Bureau of Labor 
Statistics, Occupational Employment Statistics median hourly wage for 
selected occupations classified by Standard Occupational Classification 
(SOC) codes and added 31.7 percent to account for benefits costs. 
(According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Employer Costs for 
Employee Compensation data from September 2017, benefit costs averaged 
31.7 percent of employer costs for employee compensation across all job 
categories.)
    The hourly cost per response for the initial questionnaire, $34.04, 
is a weighted average of the estimated hourly cost for RWDs, service 
coordinators, and property managers. To estimate hourly wage rates for 
resident wellness directors and service coordinators, we used the 
occupation code Healthcare Social Workers (21-1022) with a median 
hourly wage of $25.85 and an estimated cost with benefits of $34.04. 
For property managers, we used the occupation code Property, Real 
Estate, and Community Association Managers (11-940) with a median 
hourly wage of $27.70 and an estimated cost with benefits of $34.04.
    The hourly cost per response for the interviews, $34.04, is a 
weighted average of the estimated hourly cost for RWDs, service 
coordinators, property managers, and WNs. As discussed above, the 
estimated hourly cost for resident wellness directors and service 
coordinators is $34.04 and the estimated hourly cost for property 
managers is $34.04. For WNs, we used the occupation code Registered 
Nurses (29-1141) with a median hourly wage of $34.04 and an estimated 
cost with benefits of $34.04.
    The hourly cost for the focus groups with residents is $7.90. Most 
of the properties in the SSD are funded through HUD's Supportive 
Housing for the Elderly (Section 202) program. According to HUD's 
Picture of Subsidized Households for 2016. (https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/assthsg.html), the average household income for Section 
202 residents is $13,311. Some 98 percent of households have something 
other than wages or welfare benefits as their major source of income, 
in most cases Social Security benefits. To estimate the hourly cost for 
the residents participating in focus groups, we translated the average 
monthly Social Security benefit for retired workers, which in 2017 was 
$1,369 (https://www.ssa.gov/news/press/factsheets/basicfact-alt.pdf) 
into an hourly rate of $7.90 per hour (by multiplying by 12 months and 
dividing by 2,080 hours).
    The hourly cost for the focus groups with caregivers is $27.70. To 
estimate hourly costs for the caregivers participating in focus groups, 
we used the median annual household income from the 2016 American 
Community Survey, $57,617, and divided it by 2,080 hours to arrive at 
an hourly rate of $27.70.

B. Solicitation of Public Comment

    This notice is soliciting comments from members of the public and 
affected parties concerning the collection of information described in 
Section A on the following:
    (1) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including 
whether the information will have practical utility;
    (2) The accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information;
    (3) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and
    (4) Ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
those who are to respond; including through the use of appropriate 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses.
    HUD encourages interested parties to submit comment in response to 
these questions.

    Authority: Section 3507 of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 
44 U.S.C. Chapter 35.

    Dated: July 18, 2018.
Anna P. Guido,
Department Reports Management Officer, Office of the Chief Information 
Officer.
[FR Doc. 2018-16145 Filed 7-27-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4210-67-P


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