Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request; Mandatory Civil Rights Data Collection, 37529-37530 [2013-14783]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 120 (Friday, June 21, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37529-37530]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-14783]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[Docket No.: ED-2013-ICCD-0079]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request; 
Mandatory Civil Rights Data Collection

AGENCY: Department of Education (ED), OCR.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 
U.S.C. chapter 3501 et seq.), ED is proposing a new information 
collection.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before 
August 20, 2013.

ADDRESSES: Comments submitted in response to this notice should be 
submitted electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at 
https://www.regulations.gov by selecting Docket ID number ED-2013-ICCD-
0079 or via postal mail, commercial delivery, or hand delivery. Please 
note that comments submitted by fax or email and those submitted after 
the comment period will not be accepted. Written requests for 
information or comments submitted by postal mail or delivery should be 
addressed to the Director of the Information Collection Clearance 
Division, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW., LBJ, 
Room 2E105, Washington, DC 20202-4537.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Electronically mail 
ICDocketMgr@ed.gov. Please do not send comments here.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Department of Education (ED), in 
accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 
3506(c)(2)(A)), provides the general public and Federal agencies with 
an opportunity to comment on proposed, revised, and continuing 
collections of information. This helps the Department assess the impact 
of its information collection requirements and minimize the public's 
reporting burden. It also helps the public understand the Department's 
information collection requirements and provide the requested data in 
the desired format. ED is soliciting comments on the proposed 
information collection request (ICR) that is described below. The 
Department of Education is especially interested in public comment 
addressing the following issues: (1) Is this collection necessary to 
the proper functions of the Department; (2) will this information be 
processed and used in a timely manner; (3) is the estimate of burden 
accurate; (4) how might the Department enhance the quality, utility, 
and clarity of the information to be collected; and (5) how might the 
Department minimize the burden of this collection on the respondents, 
including through the use of information technology. Please note that 
written comments received in response to this notice will be considered 
public records.
    Title of Collection: Mandatory Civil Rights Data Collection.
    OMB Control Number: 1870--NEW.
    Type of Review: A new information collection.
    Respondents/Affected Public: State, Local, or Tribal Governments.

[[Page 37530]]

    Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 17,620.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 1,499,890.
    Abstract: The collection, use and reporting of education data is an 
integral component of the mission of the U.S. Department of Education 
(ED). EDFacts, an ED initiative to put performance data at the center 
of ED's policy, management, and budget decision-making processes for 
all K-12 education programs, has transformed the way in which ED 
collects and uses data. For school years 2009-10 and 2011-12, the Civil 
Rights Data Collection (CRDC) was approved by OMB as part of the 
EDFacts information collection (1875-0240). For school years 2013-14 
and 2015-16, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is clearing the CRDC as 
a separate collection from EDFacts. ED's CRDC information collection is 
modeled after the most current EDFacts information collection approved 
by OMB (1875-0240). As with previous CRDC collections, the purpose of 
the 2013-14 and 2015-16 CRDC is to obtain vital data related to the 
civil rights laws requirement that public local educational agencies 
(LEAs) and elementary and secondary schools provide equal educational 
opportunity. ED has extensively analyzed the uses of every data element 
collected in the 2011-12 CRDC and sought advice from experts across ED 
to refine, improve, and where appropriate, add or remove data elements 
from the collection. The 2013-14 and 2015-16 CRDC redesign effort 
ensured that, while several new indicators were added to the 
collection, data elements also were removed where appropriate. ED also 
made the CRDC data definitions and metrics consistent with other 
mandatory collections across ED wherever possible. The proposed 
additions and changes to the 2013-14 and 2015-16 CRDC reflect the need 
for a deeper understanding of and accurate data about the educational 
opportunities and school context for our nation's students. ED seeks 
OMB approval under the Paperwork Reduction Act to collect from LEAs, 
the elementary and secondary education data described in the sections 
of Attachment A. In addition, ED requests that LEAs and other 
stakeholders respond to the directed questions found in Attachment A-5.

    Dated: June 17, 2013.
Stephanie Valentine,
Acting Director, Information Collection Clearance Division, Privacy, 
Information and Records Management Services, Office of Management.
[FR Doc. 2013-14783 Filed 6-20-13; 8:45 am]
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