Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed eCollection eComments Requested; Revisions to a currently approved collection

AGENCY:

Office on Violence Against Women, Department of Justice

ACTION:

60-Day notice.

SUMMARY:

The Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) will be submitting the following information collection request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

DATES:

Comments are encouraged and will be accepted for 60 days until October 16, 2017.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Written comments and/or suggestion regarding the items contained in this notice, especially the estimated public burden and associated response time, should be directed to Cathy Poston, Office on Violence Against Women, at 202-514-5430 or Catherine.poston@usdoj.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Written comments and suggestions from the public and affected agencies concerning the proposed collection of information are encouraged. Your comments should address one or more of the following four points:

(1) Evaluate 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) Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used;

(3) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and

(4) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses.

Overview of This Information Collection

(1) Type of Information Collection: Revisions to a currently approved collection.

(2) Title of the Form/Collection: Annual Progress Report for the STOP Formula Grants Program.

(3) Agency form number, if any, and the applicable component of the Department of Justice sponsoring the collection: Form Number: 1122-0003. U.S. Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women.

(4) Affected public who will be asked or required to respond, as well as a brief abstract: The affected public includes the 56 STOP state administrators (from 50 states, the District of Columbia and five territories and commonwealths (Guam, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Virgin Islands, Northern Mariana Islands)) and their subgrantees. The STOP Violence Against Women Formula Grants Program was authorized through the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 (VAWA) and reauthorized and amended by the Violence Against Women Acts of 2000, 2005 and 2013. Its purpose is to promote a coordinated, multi-disciplinary approach to improving the criminal justice system's response to violence against women. The STOP Formula Grants Program envisions a partnership among law enforcement, prosecution, courts, and victim advocacy organizations to enhance victim safety and hold offenders accountable for their crimes of violence against women. OVW administers the STOP Formula Grants Program. The grant funds must be distributed by STOP state administrators to subgrantees according to a statutory formula.

OVW is proposing revisions to the progress reporting form to reflect statutory changes as a result of the reauthorization of VAWA grant programs in 2013 which added seven new purpose areas: Developing and promoting legislation and policies to enhance best practices for responding to domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking; Developing Sexual Assault Response Teams and related coordinated community responses to sexual assault; improving investigation and prosecution of sexual assault cases and appropriate treatment of victims; responding to sexual assault against men, women, and youth in correctional settings; responding to backlogs of sexual assault evidence including developing protocols and policies for notifying and involving victims; improving responses to male and female victims whose ability to access traditional services and responses is affected by their sexual orientation or gender identity; and supporting prevention or educational programming (limited to five percent of the award amount). The reauthorization also ensured that domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking are included in all the statutory purpose areas and added legal assistance in purpose area for “victim assistance”.

(5) An estimate of the total number of respondents and the amount of time estimated for an average respondent to respond/reply: It is estimated that it will take the 56 respondents (STOP administrators) approximately one hour to complete an annual progress report. It is estimated that it will take approximately one hour for roughly 2500 subgrantees to complete the relevant portion of the annual progress report. The Annual Progress Report for the STOP Formula Grants Program is divided into sections that pertain to the different types of activities that subgrantees may engage in and the different types of subgrantees that receive funds, i.e. law enforcement agencies, prosecutors' offices, courts, victim services agencies, etc.

(6) An estimate of the total public burden (in hours) associated with the collection: The total annual hour burden to complete the annual progress report is 2,556 hours.

If additional information is required contact: Melody Braswell, Deputy Clearance Officer, United States Department of Justice, Justice Management Division, Policy and Planning Staff, Two Constitution Square, 145 N Street NE., 3E, 405B, Washington, DC 20530.