Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Public Employment and Payroll Forms

Federal Register, Volume 83 Issue 38 (Monday, February 26, 2018)

Federal Register Volume 83, Number 38 (Monday, February 26, 2018)

Notices

Pages 8241-8242

From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov

FR Doc No: 2018-03810

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Census Bureau

Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Public Employment and Payroll Forms

AGENCY: U.S. Census Bureau, Commerce.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

DATES: To ensure consideration, written comments must be submitted on or before April 27, 2018.

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Jennifer Jessup, Departmental Paperwork Clearance Officer, Department of Commerce, Room 6616, 14th and Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20230 (or via the internet at email protected).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or copies of the information collection instrument(s) and instructions should be directed to Dale C. Kelly, Chief, International Trade Management Division, U.S. Census Bureau, Room 5K158, 4600 Silver Hill Road, Washington, DC 20233; or by email email protected.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

1. Abstract

   The Census Bureau plans to request clearance for the collection tools necessary to conduct the public employment and payroll program, which consists of an annual collection of information. During the upcoming three years, we intend to conduct the 2019 Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll, the 2020 Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll, and the 2021 Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll.

   Under Title 13, Sections 161 and 182, of the United States Code, the Secretary of Commerce is authorized to conduct the public employment and payroll program, which collects and disseminates state and local government data by function for full-time and part-time employees, payroll, and number of part-time hours worked.

   The burden hours we will request are based on the expected 2019, 2020 and 2021 Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll collection from 16,357 respondents for each survey year. In addition, burden hours include data received via data arrangements, which are explained in further detail within the method of collection section.

   The state and local government statistics produced cover national, state, and local aggregates on various functions with comparative detail for individual governments for the pay period that includes March 12.

   The Census Bureau provides these employment data to the Bureau of Economic Analysis for constructing the functional payrolls in the public sector of the Gross Domestic Product; payroll being the single largest component of current operations. The public employment and payroll program has increasingly been used as the base for reimbursable programs conducted by the Census Bureau for other Federal agencies such as: (1) The government portion of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey commissioned by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality to provide timely, comprehensive information about health care use and costs in the United States, and (2) the Criminal Justice Expenditure and Employment Survey, sponsored by the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), which provides criminal justice expenditure and employment data on spending and personnel levels.

   Statistics are produced as data files in electronic formats. The program has disseminated comprehensive and comparable governmental statistics since 1940. The users of the public employment and payroll program data include Federal agencies, state and local governments and related organizations, public interest groups, and many business, market, and private research organizations

2. Method of Collection

   An estimated 20,231 state agencies, county governments, consolidated city-county governments, independent cities, towns, townships, special district governments, and public school systems designated for the 2019, 2020 or 2021 Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll will be sent a mailed invitation for internet collection or their data will be collected through a data sharing arrangement between the Census Bureau and the governmental unit.

   The Census Bureau developed central collection arrangements with state and large local government officials to collect the data from their dependent agencies and report to the Census Bureau as a central respondent. Based on the 2017 Census of Governments, Survey of Public Employment & Payroll, these arrangements eliminate the need to individually canvass approximately 3,716 state agencies and 158 school systems. The arrangements reduce burden by greatly reducing the number of people who have to complete an on-line form as the data are acquired from a centralized source instead of from multiple sources. Currently, the Census Bureau has central collection arrangements with forty-six states and four local school district governments.

3. Data

   OMB Control Number: 0607-0452.

   Form Number(s): E-1, E-2, E-3, E-4, E-5, E-6, E-7, E-8, E-9, E-10.

   Type of Review: Regular submission.

   Affected Public: State and local governments.

   Estimated Number of Respondents: 16,357/sample year.

   Estimated Time per Response: The average for all forms is 50 minutes.

   Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 13,631/sample year.

   Estimated Total Annual Cost to Public: $0. (This is not the cost of

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   respondents' time, but the indirect costs respondents may incur for such things as purchases of specialized software or hardware needed to report, or expenditures for accounting or records maintenance services required specifically by the collection.)

   Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.

   Legal Authority: Title 13 U.S.C. Sections 161 and 182.

4. Request for Comments

   Comments are invited on: (a) 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; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden (including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

   Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized and/or included in the request for OMB approval of this information collection; they also will become a matter of public record.

   Sheleen Dumas,

   Departmental PRA Lead, Office of the Chief Information Officer.

   FR Doc. 2018-03810 Filed 2-23-18; 8:45 am

   BILLING CODE 3510-07-P