Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

AGENCY:

Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness (OUSD(P & R)), Department of Defense (DoD).

ACTION:

30-Day information collection notice.

SUMMARY:

The DoD has submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for clearance the following proposal for collection of information under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act.

DATES:

Consideration will be given to all comments received by August 21, 2024.

ADDRESSES:

Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular information collection by selecting “Currently under 30-day Review—Open for Public Comments” or by using the search function.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Reginald Lucas, 571-372-7574, or whs.mc-alex.esd.mbx.dd-dod-information-collections@mail.mil.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The Status of Forces Active Duty Survey (SOFS-A) is a DoD-wide annual survey of active duty members that is used to evaluate existing policies and programs, establishing baseline measures before implementing new policies and programs, and monitoring the progress of established policies/programs. The survey assesses topics such as financial well-being, satisfaction, readiness, stress, and retention intention.

Title; Associated Form; and OMB Number: Status of the Forces Survey of Active Duty Members; OMB Control Number 0704-0624.

Type of Request: Revision.

Number of Respondents: 16,500.

Responses per Respondent: 1.

Annual Responses: 16,500.

Average Burden per Response: 15 minutes.

Annual Burden Hours: 4,125.

Needs and Uses: The Status of Forces Active Duty Survey (SOFS-A) is an annual DoD-wide large-scale survey of active duty members that is used in evaluating existing policies and programs, establishing baseline measures before implementing new policies and programs, and monitoring the progress of existing policies/programs. The survey assesses topics such as financial well-being, retention intention, stress, tempo, readiness, food security and suicide awareness. Data are aggregated by appropriate demographics, including Service, paygrade, gender, race/ethnicity, and other indicators. The legal requirements for the SOFS-A can be found in the Fiscal Year 2016 National Defense Authorization Act, Title VI, Subtitle F, Subpart 661. This legal requirement mandates that the SOFS-A solicit information on financial literacy and preparedness. Results will be used by the Service Secretaries to evaluate and update financial literacy training and will be submitted in a report to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives.

Affected Public: Individuals and households.

Frequency: Annually.

Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.

OMB Desk Officer: Ms. Jasmeet Seehra.

You may also submit comments and recommendations, identified by Docket ID number and title, by the following method:

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments.

Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name, Docket ID number, and title for this Federal Register document. The general policy for comments and other submissions from members of the public is to make these submissions available for public viewing on the internet at http://www.regulations.gov as they are received without change, including any personal identifiers or contact information.

DOD Clearance Officer: Mr. Reginald Lucas.

Requests for copies of the information collection proposal should be sent to Mr. Lucas at whs.mc-alex.esd.mbx.dd-dod-information-collections@mail.mil.