Notice2026-08584
Submission for Office of Management and Budget Review; Safe Access for Victims' Economic Security, Data Collection for Safety in Child Support Program Research (New Collection)
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
May 4, 2026
Issuing agencies
Health and Human Services DepartmentChildren and Families Administration
Abstract
The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) is requesting public comments on a proposed information collection as part of the Safe Access for Victims' Economic Security (SAVES) Demonstration research on safety in the child support program. The SAVES Center, responsible for providing technical assistance and conducting evaluation for SAVES, will conduct one-time data collection activities with domestic violence (DV) survivors, advocates, and child support staff to understand their experiences and to identify barriers and promising practices related to safety in the child support program. These activities are part of ACF's efforts to improve safety in the child support program under SAVES.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 85 (Monday, May 4, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 85 (Monday, May 4, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23993-23995]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-08584]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Administration for Children and Families
Submission for Office of Management and Budget Review; Safe
Access for Victims' Economic Security, Data Collection for Safety in
Child Support Program Research (New Collection)
AGENCY: Office of Child Support Enforcement, 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 public comments on a proposed information collection as part
of the Safe Access for Victims' Economic Security (SAVES) Demonstration
research on safety in the child support program. The SAVES Center,
responsible for providing technical assistance and conducting
evaluation for SAVES, will conduct one-time data collection activities
with domestic violence (DV) survivors, advocates, and child support
staff to understand their experiences and to identify barriers and
promising practices related to safety in the child support program.
These activities are part of ACF's efforts to improve safety in the
child support program under SAVES.
DATES: Comments due June 3, 2026.
ADDRESSES: The public may view and comment on this information
collection request at: <a href="https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAViewICR?ref_nbr=202604-0970-009">https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAViewICR?ref_nbr=202604-0970-009</a>. You can also obtain copies of the
proposed collection of information by emailing
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#167f78707975797a7a7375627f797856777570387e7e6538717960"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="036a6d656c606c6f6f6660776a6c6d436260652d6b6b702d646c75">[email protected]</span></a>. Identify all emailed requests by the title
of the information collection.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Description: SAVES is a 5-year demonstration project funded by
ACF's Office of Child Support Enforcement that aims to increase safe
access to child support, parenting time, and establishment of paternity
services for DV survivors.
The project was awarded in September 2022, to child support
programs in 12 states and one tribal jurisdiction and is now entering
year four. It aims to support grant recipients
[[Page 23994]]
in implementing comprehensive domestic violence safety policies,
procedures, and outreach strategies to improve access to child support
and parenting time services for parents who have not engaged with the
child support program due to safety concerns. The overarching goal is
to ensure that DV survivors who need child support services can access
them safely.
As part of the research and evaluation component for SAVES, the
SAVES Center is conducting a series of data collection efforts to
understand the needs of DV survivors, the perspectives of DV advocates,
and the experiences of child support professionals at the 13
demonstration sites when implementing DV practices.
The SAVES Center proposes collecting new information to help
achieve the project's goals of increasing safety in the child support
program. Data collection for each instrument will occur once in year 4
of SAVES. Each respondent will respond to one instrument in year 4 and
all respondents will only provide one response to one instrument. The
proposed information collection will occur through the following
activities:
SAVES Mixed-Methods Information Collection with DV Survivors: This
includes in-depth qualitative interviews (Instrument 1: SAVES
Qualitative Interviews with DV Survivors) and a quantitative online
survey (Instrument 2: SAVES Quantitative Survey with DV Survivors) with
DV survivors to explore their experiences with and perceptions of the
child support program. The goal is to understand how safety concerns--
such as the risk of re-engagement with an abusive partner, fear of
retaliation, concerns about personal information being shared, or
negative experiences with legal or court processes--affect survivors'
decisions to engage with or avoid the child support program. By
capturing both individual- and system-level barriers and facilitators,
this data collection will provide critical insights for DV advocates,
researchers, and child support agencies seeking to make the child
support program more accessible and responsive to survivors' safety
needs.
SAVES Quantitative Survey with DV Advocates: This activity involves
a quantitative online survey (Instrument 3: SAVES Quantitative Survey
with DV Advocates) with DV advocates to gather insights about the
challenges and support needs of those assisting survivors who are
navigating the child support program. The survey aims to understand
where and how safety concerns arise for survivors--such as risks during
court proceedings, information-sharing with abusive partners, or
pressure to engage with systems--that may not feel safe. It also
explores how advocates assess and mitigate those risks, coordinate with
child support agencies, and identify gaps in policy or practice that
affect survivor safety. Findings will inform efforts to strengthen
cross-agency collaboration and ensure that child support processes
better align with trauma-informed, survivor-centered practices.
SAVES Qualitative Data Collection with Child Support Staff and
Clients at Demonstration Sites: This component includes focus groups
with child support staff (Instrument 4: SAVES Focus Groups with Child
Support Staff at Demonstration Sites) and one-on-one interviews with
clients (Instrument 5: SAVES Qualitative Interviews with Clients
Receiving Safety-Focused Intervention Services at Demonstration Sites)
at the 13 SAVES demonstration sites. These instruments are designed to
assess how safety-focused child support interventions--such as enhanced
DV screening and assessment, specialized staff, modifications to court
service, parenting time, and paternity establishment--are being
implemented and experienced. For child support staff, the focus is on
understanding how these practices are integrated into daily operations,
what challenges they face, and how they perceive the impact on survivor
safety. For survivor clients, interviews aim to capture how safety
interventions affect their ability to safely access services, make
informed decisions, and maintain their well-being. Together, this data
will help identify promising practices and inform continued improvement
of survivor-centered approaches within the child support program.
Respondents
<bullet> DV survivors who are parents and either have engaged with
the child support program or are eligible but have not engaged
(Instruments 1 and 2).
<bullet> DV advocates who work with DV survivors accessing child
support (Instrument 3).
<bullet> Child support staff at the 13 SAVES demonstration sites,
who have been involved with designing and/or implementing safety-
focused interventions (Instrument 4).
<bullet> DV survivors who are clients at one of the 13 SAVES
demonstration sites and have been receiving safety-focused
interventions (Instrument 5).
All instruments will be completed one time in year 4. Respondents
will not be asked to complete more than one instrument.
Annual Burden Estimates
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Number of
Number of responses per Avg. burden
Instrument respondents respondent per response Total burden
(total over (total over (in hours) (in hours)
request period) request period)
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Instrument 1: SAVES Qualitative Interviews 100 1 .083 8.3
with DV Survivors, Screener Only...........
Instrument 1: SAVES Qualitative Interviews 100 1 1 100
with DV Survivors, Screener & Interview....
Instrument 2: SAVES Quantitative Survey with 2,000 1 0.083 166
DV Survivors, Screener Only................
Instrument 2: SAVES Quantitative Survey with 2,000 1 0.33 660
DV Survivors, Screener & Survey............
Instrument 3: SAVES Quantitative Survey with 1,200 1 0.33 396
DV Advocates...............................
Instrument 4: SAVES Focus Groups with Child 65 1 1.5 98
Support Staff at Demonstration Sites.......
Instrument 5: SAVES Qualitative Interviews 65 1 0.75 49
with Clients Receiving Safety-Focused
Intervention Services at Demonstration
Sites......................................
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Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours..... ................ ................ .............. 1,477.3
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[[Page 23995]]
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 1315. (<a href="https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2023-title42/pdf/USCODE-2023-title42-chap7-subchapXI-partA-sec1315.pdf">https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2023-title42/pdf/USCODE-2023-title42-chap7-subchapXI-partA-sec1315.pdf</a>)
Mary C. Jones,
ACF/OPRE Certifying Officer.
[FR Doc. 2026-08584 Filed 5-1-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-41-P
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