SUPPORTING STATEMENT - PART A
2022 Status of Forces Survey of Active Duty Members – 0704-0624
Summary of Changes from Previously Approved Collection
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1. Need for the Information Collection
The purpose of the Status of the Forces Survey (SOFS) of Active Duty Members is to assess the attitudes and opinions of active duty members and to provide key metrics to the Office of the Under Secretary for Personnel and Readiness OUSD(P&R). Results of this and subsequent surveys are used to provide direct feedback on key strategic indicators such as satisfaction and retention. These indicators provide primary data on personnel career plans, retention decisions, morale, commitment, and quality of life and historically provide the ability to evaluate the impact of policies and programs with regard to readiness and retention. The surveys are benchmarks by which senior DoD officials can track trends over time.
Data from the surveys will be presented to the OUSD(P&R), Military Departments, Congress, and DoD policy and program offices. Analysis will include Office of People Analytics (OPA) standard products: a tabulation volume (a set of relative frequency distributions of each question, and cross-tabulations of survey questions by key stratifying variables), briefing slides and reports highlighting key findings, and a statistical methodology report. Ad hoc analyses requested by the policy office sponsors and other approved organizations may be conducted as needed and based on available staff. These projects take approximately one year to complete, including assessment design and development, fielding and administration, and data analysis and reporting.
In addition, as mandated by the Fiscal Year 2016 National Defense Authorization Act, Title VI, Subtitle F, Subpart 661, the Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC), now OPA, fields a financial literacy and preparedness survey within the SOFS annually. 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.
2. Use of the Information
The population of interest consists of approximately 125,000 active duty members who are in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, or Coast Guard and whose paygrade is up to and including pay grade O-6. This survey provides members with a chance to be heard on issues that directly affect them, including policies and programs for deployments, retention, and financial well-being. This may result in improved policies, programs, services, and benefits for active duty members and their families.
This is a paper and web survey. The web survey will be hosted on the operations contractor’s secure website. Respondents enter the survey through a .mil site (https://www.dodsurveys.mil). This site will state the source of the survey’s certification and invite sample members to enter a personal ticket number and click “Continue.” One secure ticket number is assigned to each sample member and remains linked to that member for the duration of the project. That ticket number will be printed (along with the survey URL) in each letter, and emailed to that individual. The sample members will be redirected to the operations contractor’s secure website (https://www.surveysdrc.com). Next, sample members will see a welcome page, which provides a brief survey description and gives them access to the “Frequently Asked Questions” (FAQ). The next two pages will request the respondents create a Personal Identification Number (PIN), and they are provided with the Privacy Advisory. If the sample members agree to do the survey, they will click “Continue” to begin the survey. Respondents complete the survey via the secure website. There are no paper survey instruments used for this data collection. Respondents complete the survey by hitting “submit” on the survey website.
Respondents are sent communications to participate in the survey, which includes a postal announcement and email/postal reminders for members who have not submitted a survey. Typically, we send up to 8-10 communications. This survey will include 10 communications. Those documents are attached to this package. Once surveys are submitted, our survey contractor, Data Recognition Corporation (DRC), handles and processes the surveys. Specifically, once a respondent completes an online survey, data is stored in an indexed file on the web (data) server. Prior to providing each dataset to OPA, the operations contractor copied the indexed file to their internal network using File Transfer Protocol (FTP), converted the data to a sequential format, and processed the validate program to read and load the data to the dataset. The data was then converted to SAS and processed according to OPA-approved administration plans and coding schemes.
Data from this survey will be presented to the OUSD(P&R), Military Departments, Congress, and DoD policy and program offices. Analysis will include OPA’s standard products: a tabulation volume (a set of relative frequency distributions of each question, and cross-tabulations of survey questions by key stratifying variables), briefing slides and reports highlighting key findings, and a statistical methodology report. Ad hoc analyses requested by the policy office sponsors and other approved organizations may be conducted as needed and based on available staff.
3. Use of Information Technology
OPA typically administers the Status of the Forces Surveys via the web, but to increase the response rate, this year’s administration will also include a paper survey option. All responses (100%) are collected electronically (the paper surveys are scanned in so it becomes an electronic record). We use proprietary software developed by OPA’s operations contractor, DRC to administer the survey on the web. Digitally signed e-mails, electronic files, and web-based technology will be used for respondent communications and data collection. To reduce the respondent burden, web-based surveys use “smart skip” technology to ensure respondents only answer questions that are applicable to them.
4. Non-duplication
The information obtained through this collection is unique and is not already available for use or adaptation from another cleared source.
5. Burden on Small Businesses
This information collection does not impose a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small businesses or entities.
6. Less Frequent Collection
In order to meet Congressional requirements to gather information on the financial well-being of active duty members, we need to administer the Status of the Forces Surveys of Active Duty Members annually.
7. Paperwork Reduction Act Guidelines
This collection of information does not require collection to be conducted in a manner inconsistent with the guidelines delineated in 5 CFR 1320.5(d)(2).
8. Consultation and Public Comments
Part A: PUBLIC NOTICE
A 60-Day Federal Register Notice (FRN) for the collection published on Thursday, August 5, 2021. The 60-Day FRN citation is 86 FR 42797 FRN 42797.
No comments were received during the 60-Day Comment Period.
A 30-Day Federal Register Notice for the collection published on Tuesday, March 15, 2022. The 30-Day FRN citation is 87 FR 14522 FRN 14522-14523.
Part B: CONSULTATION
No additional consultation apart from soliciting public comments through the Federal Register was conducted for this submission.
9. Gifts or Payment
No payments or gifts are being offered to respondents as an incentive to participate in the collection.
10. Confidentiality
The survey website includes a Privacy Advisory/Additional Information webpage that all sample members view before taking the survey. This page will include the instruction “Click Continue if you agree to take the survey.” Informed consent is indicated by clicking the ‘Continue’ button and answering the survey questions. OPA does not expect the data collection procedures to involve any risk to participants although the survey includes some sensitive questions related to suicide prevention. Survey respondents will not experience any individual or personal direct benefit from participating in the survey. However, by participating in the survey, they will assist OUSD(P&R) in evaluating programs, which may assist active duty members in the future. Participants can withdraw from the study at any time, and can also request that their data be withdrawn from the study after they’ve submitted it. Procedures for withdrawing data are provided on the survey communications.
A System of Record Notice (SORN) is not required for this collection because records are not retrievable by PII.
A Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) is not required for this collection because PII is not being collected electronically.
Computer Records Disposition: PERMANENT. Transfer on completion of the report to the National Archives in accordance with 36 CFR 1228.270 and 36 CFR 1234.
Summary reports (electronic or paper) disposition: Delete/destroy when no longer needed for operational purposes.
Survey questionnaires and census forms disposition: Destroy after computer records have been created and validated.
11. Sensitive Questions
Yes, this survey includes questions regarding suicidal ideation, plans, and attempts. This data is collected for the Office of Force Resiliency (OFR) and the Defense Suicide Prevention Office (DSPO) for program evaluation and OSD metrics. The “Informed Consent” and “Thank You” web screens provide suicide resources that respondents may contact, if needed.
12. Respondent Burden and its Labor Costs
Part A: ESTIMATION OF RESPONDENT BURDEN
Collection Instrument(s)
Status of Forces Survey of Active Duty Members
Number of Respondents: Approximately 16,500
Number of Responses Per Respondent: 1
Number of Total Annual Responses: 16,500
Response Time: 0.33
Respondent Burden Hours: 5,445 hours
Total Submission Burden
Total Number of Respondents: 16,500
Total Number of Annual Responses: 16,500
Total Respondent Burden Hours: 5,445 hours
Part B: LABOR COST OF RESPONDENT BURDEN
Collection Instrument(s)
Status of Forces Survey of Active Duty Members
Number of Total Annual Responses: 16,500
Response Time: 0.25 hours
Respondent Hourly Wage: $40
Labor Burden per Response: $10
Total Labor Burden: $165,000
Overall Labor Burden
Total Number of Annual Responses: 16,500
Total Labor Burden: $165,000
Source for average national wage: http://www.dol.gov/dol/topic/wages/index.htm
13. Respondent Costs Other Than Burden Hour Costs
There are no annualized costs to respondents other than the labor burden costs addressed in Section 12 of this document to complete this collection.
14. Cost to the Federal Government
Part A: LABOR COST TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
Collection Instrument(s) 2021 Status of Forces Active Duty Survey
Number of Total Annual Responses: 16,500
Processing Time per Response: .238 hours
Hourly Wage of Worker(s) Processing Responses: $75.50
Cost to Process Each Response: $17.97
Total Cost to Process Responses: $296,488.5
Overall Labor Burden to the Federal Government
Total Number of Annual Responses: 16,500
Total Labor Burden: $296,488.5
Part B: OPERATIONAL AND MAINTENANCE COSTS
Cost Categories
Equipment: $0
Printing: $0
Postage: $185,596
Software Purchases: $0
Licensing Costs: $0
Other (printing, paper, etc.): $93,457
Total Operational and Maintenance Cost: $279,053
Part C: TOTAL COST TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
Total Labor Cost to the Federal Government: $296,488.5
Total Operational and Maintenance Costs: $279,053
Total Cost to the Federal Government: $575,541.5
15. Reasons for Change in Burden
The burden has increased since the previous approval due to an increase in survey questions.
16. Publication of Results
The 2022 Status of Forces Survey of Active Duty Members will field in the spring for approximately 10 weeks. Data analysis and reporting will occur from the time the survey is closed through a year later. After the survey quality assurance review is completed, tabulation volumes, briefings, and reports are created. The financial well-being items, which are Congressionally-mandated are reported to the Financial Readiness Office in early fall to be included in their report to Congress. Data may still be analyzed after the mandatory report date for further analyses to support research.
17. Non-Display of OMB Expiration Date
We are not seeking approval to omit the display of the expiration date of the OMB approval on the collection instrument.
18. Exceptions to “Certification for Paperwork Reduction Submissions”
We are not requesting any exemptions to the provisions stated in 5 CFR 1320.9.
| File Type | application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document |
| Author | Kaitlin Chiarelli |
| File Modified | 0000-00-00 |
| File Created | 2022-03-18 |