Notice2025-20962
Submission for Office of Management and Budget Review; State Court Improvement Program
Primary source
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Published
November 25, 2025
Issuing agencies
Health and Human Services DepartmentChildren and Families Administration
Abstract
The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) is requesting a 3-year extension of the State Court Improvement Program (SCIP) Strategic Plan Template and Annual Self-Assessment (Office of Management and Budget (OMB) #: 0970-0307, expiration February 28, 2026). There are minor updates to the self-assessment to reflect new legislation as well as to support technical assistance. The collections are necessary to continue operating the program in compliance with congressional reauthorization.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 225 (Tuesday, November 25, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 225 (Tuesday, November 25, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53326-53327]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-20962]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Administration for Children and Families
[OMB #: 0970-0307]
Submission for Office of Management and Budget Review; State
Court Improvement Program
AGENCY: Children's Bureau, Administration for Children and Families,
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
ACTION: Request for public comments.
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SUMMARY: The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) is
requesting a 3-year extension of the State Court Improvement Program
(SCIP) Strategic Plan Template and Annual Self-Assessment (Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) #: 0970-0307, expiration February 28,
2026). There are minor updates to the self-assessment to reflect new
legislation as well as to support technical
[[Page 53327]]
assistance. The collections are necessary to continue operating the
program in compliance with congressional reauthorization.
DATES: Comments due December 26, 2025.
ADDRESSES: The public may view and comment on this information
collection request at: <a href="https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAViewICR?ref_nbr=202511-0970-007">https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAViewICR?ref_nbr=202511-0970-007</a>. You can also obtain copies of the
proposed collection of information by emailing
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#224d5250474b4c444d414d4e4e4741564b4d4c624341440c4a4a510c454d54"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="523d2220373b3c343d313d3e3e3731263b3d3c123331347c3a3a217c353d24">[email protected]</span></a>. Identify all emailed requests by the
title of the information collection.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Description: The SCIP provides federal funding to state courts to
assess their child welfare and judicial practices and develop and
implement improvement plans. States use funds in a variety of ways,
including improving legal representation and hearing quality, enhancing
the engagement of families in court proceedings, and supporting child
welfare and court partnerships. The proposed collection is a
continuation of the current collection and comprised of two
instruments: A strategic plan and self-assessment. The self-assessment
reflects what the state has done in the prior year focusing on its
progress and status within the change management cycle. The strategic
plan looks forward to those interventions and actions the state plans
to undertake to address needs or buttress strengths they have
discovered in their assessment activities. These two instruments serve
as an application for annual SCIP funding as well as a source for data
which are shared back with SCIP grantees to support their community
learning and peer connections, to inform technical assistance, and
support any reporting to Congress and others. Regarding updates to the
self-assessment and strategic plan, a minor change was made early in
2025 to the self-assessment in response to Executive Orders, amounting
to one optional topical box and a few drop-down categories being
removed. Additionally, the following minor changes are proposed to the
currently approved version of the self-assessment. These do not impact
estimated time to respond.
<bullet> Brief questions were added on IV-E funding, self-
assessment point of contact or publishing information, and additional
collaborative partners.
<bullet> Dropdown categories have been added to reduce burden and
improve data where `other' was too often selected.
<bullet> Some questions about technical assistance states
participated in were removed because alternative data sources were
found that reduced burden.
No changes are proposed to the strategic plan.
The next application will be due June 30, 2026.
Respondents: We anticipate the highest state court of every state,
the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands to
respond. All 53 jurisdictions currently participate in the program. One
response from each jurisdiction is anticipated.
Annual Burden Estimates
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Total number of Average burden
Instrument Total number responses per hours per Total burden Annual burden
of respondents respondent response hours hours
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Annual Self-Assessment......... 53 1 40 6360 2,120
Strategic Plan................. 53 * .20 52 1653.6 551.2
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Estimated Total Annual .............. ............... .............. .............. 2,671.20
Burden Hours..............
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* The full Strategic Plan is completed every 5 years. In years when the Strategic Plan is not completed,
respondents may spend minimal time updating relevant sections of the Strategic Plan. This is accounted for in
the estimate for the Annual Self-Assessment.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 629h.
Mary C. Jones,
ACF/OPRE Certifying Officer.
[FR Doc. 2025-20962 Filed 11-24-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-29-P
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