Proposed Collection; Comment Request

AGENCY:

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

ACTION:

Information collection notice.

SUMMARY:

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness announces a proposed public information collection and seeks public comment on the provisions thereof. Comments are invited on: Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical utility; the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed information collection; ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and ways to minimize the burden of the information collection on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

DATES:

Consideration will be given to all comments received by October 4, 2021.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments, identified by docket number and title, by any of the following methods:

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

Mail: DoD cannot receive written comments at this time due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Comments should be sent electronically to the docket listed above.

Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name, docket 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

To request more information on this proposed information collection or to obtain a copy of the proposal and associated collection instruments, please write to Defense Human Resources Activity, 4800 Mark Center Drive, Suite 08F05 Alexandria, VA 22350, LaTarsha Yeargins, 571-372-2089.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

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

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, and suicide awareness. Data are aggregated by appropriate demographics, including Service, paygrade, gender, race/ethnicity, and other indicators. In order to be able to meet reporting requirements for DoD leadership, the Military Services, and Congress, the survey needs to be completed by winter 2021. The legal requirements for the SOFS-A can be found in the FY2016 NDAA, 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 or households.

Annual Burden Hours: 4,125 hours.

Number of Respondents: 16,500.

Responses per Respondent: 1.

Annual Responses: 16,500.

Average Burden per Response: 15 minutes.

Frequency: Annually.