Submission For OMB Review; Comment Request, 11606-11607 [05-4574]

Agencies

• Census Bureau
• DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 45 (Wednesday, March 9, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11606-11607]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-4574]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Census Bureau


Submission For OMB Review; Comment Request

    DOC has submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for 
clearance the following proposal for collection of information under 
the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. chapter 35).
    Agency: U.S. Census Bureau.
    Title: American Community Survey.
    Form Number(s): ACS-1(2005); ACS-1(2005)SP; ACS-1(2005)PR(SP); ACS-
1(2005)PR; ACS-290; ACS-1(GQ); ACS-4(GQ).

[[Page 11607]]

    Agency Approval Number: 0607-0810.
    Type of Request: Revision of a currently approved collection.
    Burden: 1,917,410 hours.
    Number of Respondents: 3,122,900.
    Avg Hours Per Response: Households: initial survey--38 minutes; 
reinterview--10 minutes. GQ Contacts: initial contact--25 minutes; 
reinterview--10 minutes. GQ persons: 15 minutes.
    Needs and Uses: The U.S. Census Bureau requests authorization from 
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to continue conducting the 
American Community Survey. The Census Bureau has developed a 
methodology to collect and update every year demographic, social, 
economic, and housing data that are essentially the same as the ``long-
form'' data that the Census Bureau traditionally has collected once a 
decade as part of the decennial census. The American Community Survey 
is the information collection tool enabling this continuous measurement 
methodology. Federal and State government agencies use such data to 
evaluate and manage Federal programs and to distribute funding for 
various programs which include food stamps, transportation dollars, and 
housing grants. State, county, and community governments, nonprofit 
organizations, businesses, and the general public use information like 
housing quality, income distribution, journey-to-work patterns, 
immigration data, and regional age distributions for decision making 
and program evaluation.
    In January 2005, the Census Bureau began full implementation of the 
American Community Survey. The American Community Survey will have an 
annual sample of nearly 3 million households. In addition, we will 
select approximately 3,000 residential addresses per month in Puerto 
Rico and refer to the survey as the Puerto Rico Community Survey.
    Using the Master Address File (MAF) from the decennial census that 
is updated each year, we will mail survey forms each month to a new 
group of potential households, use reverse look-up directories to 
obtain telephone numbers of households which have not responded, and 
attempt to conduct interviews over the telephone. Upon completion of 
the telephone follow-up, we will select a subsample of the remaining 
households which have not responded, typically at a rate of one in 
three, to designate a household for a personal interview. Collecting 
these data from a new sample of households every month will not only 
provide more timely data but will lessen respondent burden in the 
decennial census.
    We will continue to use the trimodal data collection operation 
already in place. We will attempt to collect data by mailing the ACS-
1(2005) to the sample households. Households requiring a survey form in 
Spanish can request form ACS-1(2005)(SP). For Puerto Rico households, 
we will mail the ACS-1(2005)PR(SP). An English form ACS-1(2005)PR can 
also be requested. We will use computer-assisted telephone interviewing 
(CATI) to conduct telephone interviews for all households that do not 
respond by mail and for which we are able to obtain telephone numbers. 
We will use computer-assisted personal interviewing (CAPI) to conduct 
personal interviews for a sample of addresses for which we do not have 
a mail or CATI interview.
    In addition to selecting a sample of residential addresses, we will 
select a sample of group quarters (GQs). Starting in January 2006, 
field representatives (FRs) will use the ACS-290(PT) to select a sample 
of people to interview within the GQs.
    We will also conduct a reinterview operation to monitor the 
performance of FRs. Only households that provide an interview via CAPI 
are eligible for reinterview. A reinterview operation will also be 
undertaken for the Group Quarters contacts.
    Affected Public: Individuals or households; business or other for-
profit; not-for-profit institutions; Federal government; State, local 
or tribal government.
    Frequency: The American Community Survey is conducted in a new 
sample of households every month.
    Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.
    Legal Authority: Title 13 U.S.C. Sections 141, 193, and 221.
    OMB Desk Officer: Susan Schechter, (202) 395-5103.
    Copies of the above information collection proposal can be obtained 
by calling or writing Diana Hynek, Departmental Paperwork Clearance 
Officer, (202) 482-0266, Department of Commerce, room 6625, 14th and 
Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20230 (or via the Internet at 
dhynek@doc.gov).
    Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information 
collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice 
to Susan Schechter, OMB Desk Officer either by fax (202-395-7245) or e-
mail (susan_schechter@omb.eop.gov).

    Dated: March 4, 2005.
Madeleine Clayton,
Management Analyst, Office of the Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 05-4574 Filed 3-8-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-07-P