Overview
Title
Proposed Collection; Comment Request
Agencies
ELI5 AI
The Department of Defense wants to gather people's help to make sure they keep track of folks who need to leave other countries quickly. They're asking if this plan makes sense, if it’s too much work for people, and how they can make it easier for everyone involved.
Summary AI
The Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness is proposing a public information collection and seeks comments regarding its usefulness, accuracy, and potential burden on respondents. This collection involves the Non-combatant Tracking System and Evacuation Tracking and Accountability System, which document the movement of evacuees from foreign locations to safe havens, ensuring agency reimbursements for related costs. The proposed collection aims to improve evacuee accountability and service provision, with an estimated annual burden of 7,083 hours for 85,000 respondents. Comments are due by February 10, 2025.
Abstract
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.
Keywords AI
Sources
AnalysisAI
The document from the Federal Register outlines a proposed information collection by the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness. The proposal seeks public commentary on its planned collection of data through the Non-combatant Tracking System (NTS) and Evacuation Tracking and Accountability System (ETAS). This initiative aims to gather crucial information about evacuees relocated from foreign countries to safe havens, ensuring accurate tracking and reimbursement for federal and state agencies involved.
Overview of the Proposal
This effort is driven by the need to maintain an accurate count of people evacuated during emergencies and to reclaim expenses incurred by public agencies during such operations. The Department of Defense is looking for feedback to determine whether collecting this data is essential and effective, how accurate their current burden assessments are, and ways to improve the data collection process.
Key Issues and Concerns
There are several notable concerns with this proposal:
Clarity and Access: The document employs technical terms like "Non-combatant Tracking System" and "Evacuation Tracking and Accountability System" without providing a thorough explanation. This might limit understanding among the general public, who are invited to comment on the proposal.
Liaison Role Clarity: The document mentions an "Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison Officer" but does not clarify whether there is a primary liaison officer. Clear points of contact are crucial, especially for those who wish to engage with or inquire about the proposal.
Data Privacy Concerns: As the information collected involves sensitive data related to evacuees, it is essential to address measures ensuring privacy and confidentiality. The document is silent on how these critical issues will be managed.
Burden Calculation Transparency: Although the document states that the average burden per response is five minutes, it does not explain how they arrived at this estimate or if there are further tasks respondents may have to perform.
Impact of Feedback: While public comments are solicited, the document does not specify how feedback will be used to modify or improve the proposed collection processes, raising questions about the responsiveness of the process.
Handling Errors: There's little information on how errors in data collection will be managed and the potential consequences of such mistakes.
Public and Stakeholder Impact
For the general public, the request for commentary offers an opportunity to influence the government's data collection processes related to evacuation procedures. However, without clear explanations of technical aspects, public engagement may be limited.
For evacuees, as direct subjects of this data collection, the assurance of confidentiality and proper tracking is crucial to their well-being. Ensuring their data is securely used to provide necessary services and entitlements is of utmost importance.
The document may impact federal and state agencies financially, as accurate data collection is essential for reimbursement for the costs of conducting evacuations. Efficient data management could improve the speed and accuracy of reimbursements, positively affecting operational and financial planning for these entities.
Overall, while the proposal is essential for operational readiness and financial accountability, there are significant areas for improvement, particularly around transparency, engagement, and privacy.
Issues
• The document specifies an 'Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison Officer,' but it is unclear if there is a primary liaison, which could be important for communication purposes.
• The document uses various technical terms such as 'Non-combatant Tracking System (NTS)' and 'Evacuation Tracking and Accountability System (ETAS)' without providing an in-depth explanation, which might be unclear to the general public.
• The average burden per response is listed as 5 minutes. However, it might be unclear if this includes all necessary actions required by respondents, or if there are additional tasks not accounted for.
• The document mentions input from various parties but does not specify how these inputs will be used to potentially alter the proposed information collection.
• The method for calculating the 'annual burden hours' and the accuracy of these estimates is not detailed, which might raise concerns about how these numbers were derived.
• The document does not address how data privacy and confidentiality of evacuee information will be ensured given the sensitive nature of the information collected.
• While the importance of the information collection is noted, there is limited detail on the potential consequences of errors or omissions in the data collection process and how they will be handled.