# Agency Recordkeeping/Reporting Requirements Under Emergency Review by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
*Title:* State Court Improvement Program.
*OMB No.:* New Collection.
*Description:* The Court Improvement Program (CIP) is composed of three grants, the basic, data, and training grants, governed by two separate Program Instructions (PIs). The training and data grants are governed by the “new grant” PI and the basic grant is governed by the “basic grant” PI. Current PIs require separate applications and program assessment reports for each grant. Every State applies for at least two of the grants annually and most States apply for all three. As many of the application requirements are the same for all three grants, this results in duplicative work and high degrees of repetition for State courts applying for more than one CIP grant.
The purpose of this Program Instruction is to streamline and simplify the application and reporting processes by consolidating the PIs into one single PI and requiring one single, consolidated application (App) package and program assessment report (PAR) per State court annually. These revisions will satisfy statutory programmatic requirements and reduce both the number of required responses and associated total burden hours for State courts.
This new PI also describes programmatic and fiscal provisions and reporting requirements for the grants, specifies the application submittal and approval procedures for the grants for fiscal years 2012 through 2015, and identifies technical resources for use by State courts during the course of the grants. The agency uses the information received to ensure compliance with the statute and provide training and technical assistance to the grantees.
*Respondents:* Highest State Courts of Appeal.
| Instrument | Number of | Number of | Average | Total burden hours |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Application | 52 | 1 | 92 | 4784 |
| Program Assessment Report | 52 | 1 | 86 | 4472 |
*Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours:* 9256.
*Additional Information:* ACF is requesting that OMB grant a 180 day approval for this information collection under procedures for emergency processing by December 20, 2011. A copy of this information collection, with applicable supporting documentation, may be obtained by calling the Administration for Children and Families, Reports Clearance Officer, Robert Sargis at (202) 690-7275.
Comments and questions about the information collection described above should be directed to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Attn: OMB Desk Officer for ACF, Office of Management and Budget, Paperwork Reduction Project, 725 17th Street NW., Washington, DC 20503; FAX: (202) 395-7285; email: *[email protected]* .
Robert Sargis,
Reports Clearance Officer.