Proposed Collection, Comment Request, 10843-10844 [2014-04059]

Download as PDF Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 38 / Wednesday, February 26, 2014 / Notices other unemployed and/or incumbent workers may also be served through this program. These grants are financed by a user fee paid by employers to bring foreign workers into the United States under the H–1B nonimmigrant visa program. This program was authorized under Section 414(c) of the American Competitiveness and Workforce Improvement Act of 1998 (ACWIA), as amended (29 U.S.C. 2916a). Grant awards will be made only to the extent that funds are available. Grants will be awarded to the lead applicant of a public and private partnership of entities that includes: the workforce investment system; training providers, such as community colleges and community-based and faith-based organizations; and, business and business-related groups, trade associations, nonprofit business or industry, organizations functioning as workforce intermediaries for the expressed purpose of serving the needs of businesses, individual businesses, or consortia of businesses. The complete SGA and any subsequent SGA amendments in connection with this solicitation are described in further detail on ETA’s Web site at https://www.doleta.gov/ grants/ or on https://www.grants.gov. The Web sites provide application information, eligibility requirements, review and selection procedures, and other program requirements governing this solicitation. DATES: The closing date for receipt of applications under this announcement is June 19, 2014. Applications must be received no later than 4:00:00 p.m. Eastern Time. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kia Mason, 200 Constitution Avenue NW., Room N–4716, Washington, DC 20210; Telephone: 202–693–2606. Signed: February 20, 2014 in Washington, DC. Eric D. Luetkenhaus, Grant Officer, Employment and Training Administration. [FR Doc. 2014–04037 Filed 2–25–14; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4510–FN–P DEPARTMENT OF LABOR tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES Bureau of Labor Statistics Proposed Collection, Comment Request ACTION: Notice. The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a pre-clearance consultation SUMMARY: VerDate Mar<15>2010 17:24 Feb 25, 2014 Jkt 232001 program to provide the general public and Federal agencies with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA95) [44 U.S.C. 3506(c) (2)(A)]. This program helps to ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is soliciting comments concerning the proposed extension without change of a currently approved collection for the ‘‘Producer Price Index’’ survey. A copy of the proposed information collection request (ICR) can be obtained by contacting the individual listed below in the Addresses section of this notice. DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the Addresses section of this notice on or before April 28, 2014. ADDRESSES: Send comments to Nora Kincaid, BLS Clearance Officer, Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Room 4080, 2 Massachusetts Avenue NE., Washington, DC 20212. Written comments also may be transmitted by fax to 202–691–5111 (this is not a toll free number). FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nora Kincaid, BLS Clearance Officer, at 202–691–7628 (this is not a toll free number). (See ADDRESSES section.) SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: I. Background The Producer Price Index (PPI), one of the Nation’s leading economic indicators, is used as a measure of price movements, as an indicator of inflationary trends, for inventory valuation, and as a measure of purchasing power of the dollar at the primary-market level. It also is used for market and economic research and as a basis for escalation in long-term contracts and purchase agreements. Producer Price Index data provide a description of the magnitude and composition of price change within the economy, and serve a wide range of governmental needs. This family of indexes are closely followed, monthly statistics, which are viewed as sensitive indicators of the economic environment. Price data are vital in helping both the President and Congress set fiscalspending targets. Producer prices are monitored by the Federal Reserve Board Open Market Committee to help decide PO 00000 Frm 00081 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 10843 monetary policy. Federal policy-makers at the Department of Treasury and the Council of Economic Advisors utilize these statistics to help form and evaluate monetary and fiscal measures and to help interpret the general business environment. In addition, it is common to find one or more PPIs, alone or in combination with other measures, used to escalate the delivered price of goods for government purchases. In addition to governmental uses, PPI data are regularly put to use by the private sector. Private industry uses PPI data for contract escalation. For one particular method of tax-related Last-InFirst-Out (LIFO) inventory accounting, the Internal Revenue Service suggests that firms use PPI data for making calculations. Private businesses make extensive use of industrial-price data for planning and operations. Price trends are used to assess the condition of markets. Firms commonly compare the prices they pay for material inputs as well as prices they receive for products that they make and sell with changes in similar PPIs. Economic researchers and forecasters also put the PPI to regular use. PPIs are widely used to probe and measure the interaction of market forces. Some examples of research topics that require extensive price data include: the identification of varying price elasticities and the degree of cost passthrough in the economy, the identification of potential lead and lag structures among price changes, and the identification of prices which exert major impacts throughout market structures. II. Current Action Office of Management and Budget clearance is being sought for the Producer Price Index survey. The PPI collection is not a one-time project with an end date. The purpose of the PPI collection is to accumulate data for the ongoing, monthly publication of the PPI family of indexes. The Bureau of Labor Statistics must continue collecting data for the PPI since both policy and business planning are affected by the completeness of the description of price trends. Dollardenominated measures of economic performance, such as Gross Domestic Product, require accurate price data in order to convert nominal to constantdollar values. Inflation-free national income accounting figures are vital to fiscal and monetary policy-makers when setting objectives and targets. It is conservatively estimated that hundredsof-billions of dollars worth of contracts and purchase agreements employ PPIs as part of price-adjustment clauses. E:\FR\FM\26FEN1.SGM 26FEN1 10844 Federal Register / Vol. 79, No. 38 / Wednesday, February 26, 2014 / Notices Failure to calculate these data would tend to extend the time frame required for accurate recognition of and appropriate adaptation to economic events. III. Desired Focus of Comments The Bureau of Labor Statistics is particularly interested in comments that: • Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will have practical utility. • Evaluate the accuracy of the agency’s estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used. • Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected. • Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, Total respondents Form Frequency electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submissions of responses. Type of Review: Extension without change of a currently approved collection. Agency: Bureau of Labor Statistics. Title: Producer Price Index Survey. OMB Number: 1220–0008. Affected Public: Private Sector. Total responses Average Time per response (minutes) Estimated total burden (hours) BLS 1810A, A1, B, C, C1, and E ........................................... BLS 473P ............................................................................... 5,836 26,250 once ............ monthly ........ 5836 * 1,260,000 120 5 11,672 105,000 Totals ............................................................................... 32,086 ..................... 1,265,386 ........................ 116,672 * For monthly repricing, an average of 4 forms are sent to each respondent or on average PPI requests repricing of 105,000 items each month. Total Burden Cost (capital/startup): $0. Total Burden Cost (operating/ maintenance): $0. Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized and/or included in the request for Office of Management and Budget approval of the information collection request; they also will become a matter of public record. Signed at Washington, DC, this 20th day of February 2014. Kimberley D. Hill, Chief, Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor Statistics. [FR Doc. 2014–04059 Filed 2–25–14; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4510–24–P NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION [Notice (14–020)] Notice of Intent To Grant a Partially Exclusive License National Aeronautics and Space Administration. ACTION: Notice of intent to grant partially exclusive license. AGENCY: This notice is issued in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 209(e) and 37 CFR 404.7(a)(1)(i). NASA hereby gives notice of its intent to grant a partially exclusive license in the United States to practice the inventions described and claimed in U.S. Patent No. 6,879,893 B2, ‘‘Tributary Analysis Monitoring System,’’ NASA Case No. LAR–16516– 1; U.S. Patent No. 7,075,295 B2, ‘‘Magnetic Field Response Sensor for tkelley on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with NOTICES SUMMARY: VerDate Mar<15>2010 17:24 Feb 25, 2014 Jkt 232001 Conductive Media,’’ NASA Case No. LAR–16571–1; U.S. Patent No. 7,589,525 B2, ‘‘Magnetic Field Response Sensor for Conductive Media,’’ NASA Case No. LAR–16571–2; U.S. Patent No. 7,759,932 B2, ‘‘Magnetic Field Response Sensor for Conductive Media,’’ NASA Case No. LAR–16571–3; U.S. Patent No. 7,086,593 B2, ‘‘Magnetic Field Response Measurement Acquisition System,’’ NASA Case No. LAR–16908–1; U.S. Patent No. 7,159,774 B2, ‘‘Magnetic Field Response Measurement Acquisition System,’’ NASA Case No. LAR–17280–1; U.S. Patent No. 8,430,327 B2, ‘‘Wireless Sensing System Using Open-Circuit, ElectricallyConductive Spiral-Trace Sensor,’’ NASA Case No. LAR–17294–1; U.S. Patent No. 7,902,815 B2, ‘‘Wireless System and Method for Collecting Motion and NonMotion Related Data of a Rotating System,’’ NASA Case No. LAR–17433– 1; U.S. Patent No. 8,179,203 B2, ‘‘Wireless Electrical Device Using OpenCircuit Elements Having No Electrical Connections,’’ NASA Case No. LAR– 17711–1; U.S. Patent Application No. 13/029,471, ‘‘Wireless Temperature Sensing Having No Electrical Connections and Sensing Method for Use Therewith,’’ NASA Case No. LAR– 17747–1; and U.S. Patent Application No. 13/029,426, ‘‘Wireless Temperature Sensing Having No Electrical Connections and Sensing Method for Use Therewith,’’ NASA Case No. LAR– 18016–1 to Par-Tech, Inc. having its principal place of business in Lake Orion, Michigan. The fields of use may be limited to, but not necessarily limited to, tire measurement and/or monitoring applications including the detection of PO 00000 Frm 00082 Fmt 4703 Sfmt 4703 pressure, temperature, wear and damage. The patent rights in these inventions have been assigned to the United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The prospective partially exclusive license will comply with the terms and conditions of 35 U.S.C. 209 and 37 CFR 404.7. DATES: The prospective partially exclusive license may be granted unless, within fifteen (15) days from the date of this published notice, NASA receives written objections including evidence and argument that establish that the grant of the license would not be consistent with the requirements of 35 U.S.C. 209 and 37 CFR 404.7. Competing applications completed and received by NASA within fifteen (15) days of the date of this published notice will also be treated as objections to the grant of the contemplated partially exclusive license. Objections submitted in response to this notice will not be made available to the public for inspection and, to the extent permitted by law, will not be released under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. 552. ADDRESSES: Objections relating to the prospective license may be submitted to Patent Counsel, Office of Chief Counsel, NASA Langley Research Center, MS 30, (757) 864–3230 (phone), (757) 864–9190 (fax). FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Robin W. Edwards, Patent Counsel, Office of Chief Counsel, NASA Langley Research Center, MS 30, (757) 864– 3230; Fax: (757) 864–9190. Information E:\FR\FM\26FEN1.SGM 26FEN1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 38 (Wednesday, February 26, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10843-10844]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-04059]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Bureau of Labor Statistics


Proposed Collection, Comment Request

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to 
reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a pre-clearance 
consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies 
with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing 
collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995 (PRA95) [44 U.S.C. 3506(c) (2)(A)]. This program helps to 
ensure that requested data can be provided in the desired format, 
reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized, 
collection instruments are clearly understood, and the impact of 
collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. The 
Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is soliciting comments concerning the 
proposed extension without change of a currently approved collection 
for the ``Producer Price Index'' survey. A copy of the proposed 
information collection request (ICR) can be obtained by contacting the 
individual listed below in the Addresses section of this notice.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the 
Addresses section of this notice on or before April 28, 2014.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to Nora Kincaid, BLS Clearance Officer, 
Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Room 4080, 
2 Massachusetts Avenue NE., Washington, DC 20212. Written comments also 
may be transmitted by fax to 202-691-5111 (this is not a toll free 
number).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nora Kincaid, BLS Clearance Officer, 
at 202-691-7628 (this is not a toll free number). (See Addresses 
section.)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The Producer Price Index (PPI), one of the Nation's leading 
economic indicators, is used as a measure of price movements, as an 
indicator of inflationary trends, for inventory valuation, and as a 
measure of purchasing power of the dollar at the primary-market level. 
It also is used for market and economic research and as a basis for 
escalation in long-term contracts and purchase agreements.
    Producer Price Index data provide a description of the magnitude 
and composition of price change within the economy, and serve a wide 
range of governmental needs. This family of indexes are closely 
followed, monthly statistics, which are viewed as sensitive indicators 
of the economic environment. Price data are vital in helping both the 
President and Congress set fiscal-spending targets. Producer prices are 
monitored by the Federal Reserve Board Open Market Committee to help 
decide monetary policy. Federal policy-makers at the Department of 
Treasury and the Council of Economic Advisors utilize these statistics 
to help form and evaluate monetary and fiscal measures and to help 
interpret the general business environment. In addition, it is common 
to find one or more PPIs, alone or in combination with other measures, 
used to escalate the delivered price of goods for government purchases.
    In addition to governmental uses, PPI data are regularly put to use 
by the private sector. Private industry uses PPI data for contract 
escalation. For one particular method of tax-related Last-In-First-Out 
(LIFO) inventory accounting, the Internal Revenue Service suggests that 
firms use PPI data for making calculations. Private businesses make 
extensive use of industrial-price data for planning and operations. 
Price trends are used to assess the condition of markets. Firms 
commonly compare the prices they pay for material inputs as well as 
prices they receive for products that they make and sell with changes 
in similar PPIs.
    Economic researchers and forecasters also put the PPI to regular 
use. PPIs are widely used to probe and measure the interaction of 
market forces. Some examples of research topics that require extensive 
price data include: the identification of varying price elasticities 
and the degree of cost pass-through in the economy, the identification 
of potential lead and lag structures among price changes, and the 
identification of prices which exert major impacts throughout market 
structures.

II. Current Action

    Office of Management and Budget clearance is being sought for the 
Producer Price Index survey.
    The PPI collection is not a one-time project with an end date. The 
purpose of the PPI collection is to accumulate data for the ongoing, 
monthly publication of the PPI family of indexes. The Bureau of Labor 
Statistics must continue collecting data for the PPI since both policy 
and business planning are affected by the completeness of the 
description of price trends. Dollar-denominated measures of economic 
performance, such as Gross Domestic Product, require accurate price 
data in order to convert nominal to constant-dollar values. Inflation-
free national income accounting figures are vital to fiscal and 
monetary policy-makers when setting objectives and targets. It is 
conservatively estimated that hundreds-of-billions of dollars worth of 
contracts and purchase agreements employ PPIs as part of price-
adjustment clauses.

[[Page 10844]]

Failure to calculate these data would tend to extend the time frame 
required for accurate recognition of and appropriate adaptation to 
economic events.

III. Desired Focus of Comments

    The Bureau of Labor Statistics is particularly interested in 
comments that:
     Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility.
     Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the 
burden of the proposed collection of information, including the 
validity of the methodology and assumptions used.
     Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected.
     Minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate 
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting 
electronic submissions of responses.
    Type of Review: Extension without change of a currently approved 
collection.
    Agency: Bureau of Labor Statistics.
    Title: Producer Price Index Survey.
    OMB Number: 1220-0008.
    Affected Public: Private Sector.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                   Average  Time     Estimated
             Form                   Total          Frequency           Total       per response    total  burden
                                 respondents                         responses       (minutes)        (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BLS 1810A, A1, B, C, C1, and            5,836  once.............            5836             120          11,672
 E.
BLS 473P.....................          26,250  monthly..........     * 1,260,000               5         105,000
                              ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Totals...................          32,086  .................       1,265,386  ..............        116,672
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* For monthly repricing, an average of 4 forms are sent to each respondent or on average PPI requests repricing
  of 105,000 items each month.

    Total Burden Cost (capital/startup): $0.
    Total Burden Cost (operating/maintenance): $0.
    Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized 
and/or included in the request for Office of Management and Budget 
approval of the information collection request; they also will become a 
matter of public record.

    Signed at Washington, DC, this 20th day of February 2014.
Kimberley D. Hill,
Chief, Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor Statistics.
[FR Doc. 2014-04059 Filed 2-25-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-24-P
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