Submission for OMB Review; Tribal Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program Form 2: Grantee Performance Measures (OMB #0970-0500)

AGENCY:

Office of Early Childhood Development; Administration for Children and Families; Department of Health and Human Services.

ACTION:

Request for public comments.

SUMMARY:

The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) is requesting a 3-year extension of the ACF-Tribal Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (Tribal MIECHV) Program Form 2: Grantee Performance Measures (Office of Management and Budget (OMB) #0970-0500; Expiration date Feb 28, 2023). There are no changes requested to the form.

DATES:

Comments due within 30 days of publication. OMB must make a decision about the collection of information between 30 and 60 days after publication of this document in the Federal Register . Therefore, a comment is best assured of having its full effect if OMB receives it within 30 days of publication.

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. You can also obtain copies of the proposed collection of information by emailing infocollection@acf.hhs.gov. Identify all emailed requests by the title of the information collection.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Description: The MIECHV Program authorizes the Secretary of HHS (in section 511(h)(2)(A)) to award grants to Indian tribes (or a consortium of Indian tribes), tribal organizations, or urban Indian organizations to conduct an early childhood home visiting program. The legislation set aside 3 percent of the total MIECHV program appropriation for grants to tribal entities. Tribal MIECHV grants, to the greatest extent practicable, are to be consistent with the requirements of the MIECHV grants to states and jurisdictions and include conducting a needs assessment and establishing quantifiable, measurable benchmarks.

The ACF, Office of Ealy Childhood Development (ECD), in collaboration with the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB), awards grants for the Tribal MIECHV Program. The Tribal MIECHV grant awards support 5-year cooperative agreements to conduct community needs assessments; plan for and implement high-quality, culturally relevant, evidence-based home visiting programs in at-risk tribal communities; collect and report on performance measures; and participate in research and evaluation activities to build the knowledge base on home visiting among Native populations.

Specifically, the MIECHV legislation requires that State and Tribal MIECHV grantees collect performance data to measure improvements for eligible families in six specified areas (referred to as “benchmark areas”) that encompass the major goals of the program. These include:

1. Improved maternal and newborn health;

2. Prevention of child injuries, child abuse, neglect, or maltreatment, and reduction in emergency department visits;

3. Improvement in school readiness and achievement;

4. Reduction in crime or domestic violence;

5. Improvement in family economic self-sufficiency; and

6. Improvement in the coordination and referrals for other community resources and supports.

Tribal MIECHV grantees are required to propose a plan for meeting the benchmark requirements specified in the legislation and must report on improvement in constructs under each benchmark area. Tribal Home Visiting (HV) Form 2 will provide a template for Tribal MIECHV grantees to report data on their progress in improving performance under the six benchmark areas, as stipulated in the legislation.

ACF will continue to use Tribal HV Form 2 to:

• Track and improve the quality of benchmark measures data submitted by the Tribal grantees;
• Improve program monitoring and oversight;
• Improve rigorous data analyses that help to assess the effectiveness of the programs and enable ACF to better monitor projects; and
• Ensure adequate and timely reporting of program data to relevant federal agencies and stakeholders including Congress and members of the public.

Respondents: Tribal MIECHV Grantees.

Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 11,500.

Authority:Public Law 115-123, section 511(h)(2)(A) of Title V of the Social Security Act.