Department of Health and Human Services Announces Information Collection Request for Sexual Risk Avoidance Education National Evaluation Impact Study

The Administration for Children and Families operating under the Department of Health and Human Services announced a formal request for public comments regarding a proposed data collection effort. Published in the Federal Register on November 5 2026 the notice outlines plans by the Office of Planning Research and Evaluation and the Family and Youth Services Bureau. The agencies seek to implement the Sexual Risk Avoidance Education National Evaluation Impact Study focusing on co-regulation facilitation strategies within established educational programs.

Background and Objectives

The statutory foundation for the initiative rests upon federal legislation under 42 U.S.C. 710 which mandates a national evaluation of sexual risk avoidance education programs. The primary objective of the newly proposed study is to test and evaluate the efficacy of training and coaching program facilitators to use co-regulation strategies. Co-regulation refers to supportive adult-child interactions that help youth manage their emotions thoughts and behaviors. By assessing how facilitators apply these strategies federal researchers aim to understand the direct connection between facilitator practices and youth participant outcomes.

The research design encompasses both an impact study and an implementation study. The implementation study will examine how facilitators utilize co-regulation techniques during program delivery and how those methods influence the overall experience of participating youth. Meanwhile the impact study will analyze data gathered directly from study participants to estimate the measurable effects of the specialized coaching on both staff and youth.

Methodology and Data Collection Instruments

To gather the necessary empirical evidence the study team proposes several distinct data collection instruments tailored to reduce respondent burden compared to earlier drafts. The proposed instruments include a youth survey administered twice before programming and immediately after program completion. Youth participants will also complete brief exit tickets following up to six program lessons.

For program staff the evaluation plan incorporates a semi-structured facilitator interview protocol administered an average of three times alongside facilitator logs completed six times over the study period. Additionally the research will incorporate existing data from performance measures entry and exit surveys previously approved under Office of Management and Budget control number 0970-0536. Federal officials adjusted the burden estimates downward significantly for the current request. For instance the youth survey duration was shortened to eight minutes and the estimated completion time for facilitator logs was reduced to two minutes per response resulting in a total annual burden of approximately 140.9 hours across all participating respondents.

Public Participation and Next Steps

Interested stakeholders including legal professionals academic researchers policymakers and members of the public have until December 7 2026 to submit public comments on the information collection request. The Office of Planning Research and Evaluation intends to use the collected data to expand the existing evidence base for sexual risk avoidance education. This information will ultimately guide grant recipients in refining their program implementation and improving service delivery across participating sites nationwide.