Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; American Community Survey (ACS) Methods Panel Tests, 33215-33217 [2021-13429]
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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 119 / Thursday, June 24, 2021 / Notices
designed to inform on a range of topics
related to households’ experiences
during the Covid-19 pandemic. Topics
to date have included employment,
facility to telework, travel patterns,
income loss, spending patterns, food
and housing security, access to benefits,
mental health and access to care, intent
to receive the COVID–19 vaccine, and
educational disruption (K–12 and postsecondary). The requested revision, if
approved by OMB, will remove selected
items from the questions for which
utility has declined and add questions
based on information needs expressed
via public comment and in consult with
other Federal agencies. The overall
burden to the public will remain
unchanged.
The Household Pulse Survey was
initially launched in April, 2020 as an
experimental project (see https://
www.census.gov/data/experimentaldata-products.html) under emergency
clearance from the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) initially
granted April 19, 2020; regular
clearance was subsequently sought and
approved by OMB on October 30, 2020
(OMB No. 0607–1013; Exp. 10/30/2023).
Affected Public: Households.
Frequency: Households will be
selected once to participate in a 20minute survey.
Respondent’s Obligation: Voluntary.
Legal Authority: Title 13, United
States Code, Sections 8(b), 182 and 196.
This information collection request
may be viewed at www.reginfo.gov.
Follow the instructions to view the
Department of Commerce collections
currently under review by OMB.
Written comments and
recommendations for the proposed
information collection should be
submitted within 30 days of the
publication of this notice on the
following website www.reginfo.gov/
public/do/PRAMain. Find this
particular information collection by
selecting ‘‘Currently under 30-day
Review—Open for Public Comments’’ or
by using the search function and
entering either the title of the collection
or the OMB Control Number 0607–1013.
collection request to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) for
review and clearance in accordance
with the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995, on or after the date of publication
of this notice. We invite the general
public and other Federal agencies to
comment on proposed, and continuing
information collections, which helps us
assess the impact of our information
collection requirements and minimize
the public’s reporting burden. Public
comments were previously requested
via the Federal Register on February 9,
2021 during a 60-day comment period.
This notice allows for an additional 30
days for public comments.
Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of
the Chief Information Officer, Commerce
Department.
Agency: U.S. Census Bureau,
Commerce.
[FR Doc. 2021–13454 Filed 6–23–21; 8:45 am]
Form Number(s): ACS–1, ACS–1(GQ),
ACS–1(PR)SP, ACS CAPI(HU), and ACS
RI(HU).
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Census Bureau
Agency Information Collection
Activities; Submission to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) for
Review and Approval; Comment
Request; American Community Survey
(ACS) Methods Panel Tests
Type of Request: Regular submission,
Request for a Revision of a Currently
Approved Collection.
Number of Respondents:
The Department of Commerce will
submit the following information
Estimated number of respondents
Self-Response Mail Messaging and Contact Strategies Testing .............
Respondent Feedback Pilot .....................................................................
Use of Administrative Data Test ..............................................................
Group Quarters Testing ............................................................................
Content Testing ........................................................................................
Content Testing Followup Interview .........................................................
Internet Instrument Testing ......................................................................
khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
Title: American Community Survey
Methods Panel Testing.
OMB Control Number: 0607–0936.
BILLING CODE 3510–07–P
Test
Respondent Help Testing .........................................................................
Nonresponse Followup Data Collection Testing ......................................
Test A–60,000.
Test B–60,000.
Test C–60,000.
Test D–60,000.
Test E–60,000.
Test F–60,000.
100,000.
100,000.
2,000 administrators.
30,000 residents.
Test A–70,000.
Test B–70,000.
Test A–40,000.
Test B–40,000.
Test A–60,000.
Test B–60,000.
Test C–60,000.
Test D–60,000.
Test E–60,000.
Test F–60,000.
40,000.
100,000.
Average Hours per Response:
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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 119 / Thursday, June 24, 2021 / Notices
Test
Estimated time per response
(in minutes)
Self-Response Mail Messaging and Contact Strategies Testing .............
Respondent Feedback Pilot .....................................................................
40.
42 (40 minutes for the production ACS interview and 2 minutes for the
optional followup questions).
40.
15 for the administrator interview 25 for the resident interview.
40.
40.
40.
10.
40.
Use of Administrative Data Test ..............................................................
Group Quarters Testing ............................................................................
Content Testing ........................................................................................
Content Testing Followup Interview .........................................................
Internet Instrument Testing ......................................................................
Respondent Help Testing .........................................................................
Nonresponse Followup Data Collection Testing ......................................
Burden Hours:
Test
Estimated number of respondents
Estimated time
per response
(in minutes)
Self-Response Mail Messaging and Contact Strategies Testing.
Test A–60,000 ........................
40
Test A–40,000.
Test B–60,000 ........................
Test C–60,000 ........................
Test D–60,000 ........................
Test E–60,000 ........................
Test F–60,000 .........................
100,000 ...................................
100,000 ...................................
2,000 facility administrators ....
30,000 residents .....................
Test A–70,000 ........................
Test B–70,000 ........................
Test A–40,000 ........................
Test B–40,000 ........................
Test A–60,000 ........................
Test B–60,000 ........................
Test C–60,000 ........................
Test D–60,000 ........................
Test E–60,000 ........................
Test F–60,000 .........................
40,000 .....................................
100,000 ...................................
1,312,000 ................................
437,333 ...................................
........................
........................
........................
........................
........................
42
40
15
25
40
........................
40
........................
40
........................
........................
........................
........................
........................
10
40
........................
........................
Test B–40,000.
Test C–40,000.
Test D–40,000.
Test E–40,000.
Test F–40,000.
70,000.
66,667.
13,000.
Respondent Feedback Pilot ......................................................
Use of Administrative Data Test ...............................................
Group Quarters Testing ............................................................
Content Testing ........................................................................
Content Testing Followup Interview .........................................
Internet Instrument Testing .......................................................
Respondent Help Testing .........................................................
Nonresponse Followup Data Collection Testing ......................
Total (over 3 years) * .........................................................
Average per year ...............................................................
Total burden hours
Test A–46,667.
Test B–46,667.
Test A–26,667.
Test B –26,667.
Test A–40,000.
Test B–40,000.
Test C–40,000.
Test D–40,000.
Test E–40,000.
Test F–40,000.
6,667.
66,667.
849,667.
283,222.
khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
* Note: This is the maximum burden requested for these tests. Every effort is taken to use existing production sample for testing when the
tests do not involve content changes.
Needs and Uses: The U.S. Census
Bureau requests authorization from
OMB for the American Community
Survey (ACS) Methods Panel Tests.
The ACS is an ongoing monthly
survey that collects detailed housing
and socioeconomic data from about 3.5
million addresses in the United States
and about 36,000 addresses in Puerto
Rico each year. The ACS also collects
detailed socioeconomic data from about
195,000 residents living in group
quarters (GQ) facilities in the United
States and Puerto Rico. Resulting
tabulations from this data collection are
provided on a yearly basis. The ACS
allows the Census Bureau to provide
timely and relevant housing and
socioeconomic statistics, even for low
levels of geography.
An ongoing data collection effort with
an annual sample of this magnitude
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:19 Jun 23, 2021
Jkt 253001
requires that the ACS continue research,
testing, and evaluations aimed at
improving data quality, reducing data
collection costs, and improving the ACS
questionnaire content and related data
collection materials. The ACS Methods
Panel is a research program designed to
address and respond to survey issues
and needs. As part of the Decennial
Census Program, the ACS also provides
an opportunity to research and test
elements of survey data collection that
relate to the decennial census. As such,
the ACS Methods Panel can serve as a
testbed for the decennial census. From
2021 to 2024, the ACS Methods Panel
may test ACS and decennial census
methods for reducing survey cost,
addressing respondent burden, and
improving survey response, data
quality, and survey efficiencies. Testing
may also include revising content or
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testing new questions. The ACS
Methods Panel may also address other
emerging needs of the programs.
Currently, plans are in place to propose
several tests:
Self-Response Mail Messaging and
Contact StrategiesTesting are focused on
studying methods to increase selfresponse. The proposed tests would
evaluate changes to the mailings, such
as using plain language to improve
communication, changing the look and
feel of the materials, updating messages
to motivate response, and adding or
removing materials included in the
mailings. Changes to the contact
method, the number of contacts, and the
timing of the contacts may also be
tested. The Strategic Framework Field
Test will be conducted in the fall of
2021 to test new mail materials that
were developed building on research
E:\FR\FM\24JNN1.SGM
24JNN1
khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 119 / Thursday, June 24, 2021 / Notices
into best practices in messages. The test
will identify which set of new mail
materials is most successful at
increasing self-response.
The Respondent Feedback Pilot is
designed to collect respondent feedback
at the time of the interview, with the
pilot focusing on internet respondents.
Respondents will not be required to
answer the feedback question.
The Use of Administrative Data to
reduce burden of existing questions by
allowing for modification of the
questions will be tested. A field test is
proposed for questions that may need to
remain on the questionnaire but be
modified in conjunction with the use of
administrative records.
Group Quarters Testing will focus on
evaluating an internet version of the
ACS available to non-institutional group
quarters residents, especially in college
dorms, military barracks, and group
homes.
Content Testing is conducted by the
Census Bureau periodically to improve
data quality. The current proposal
includes changes to the following
questions: Household roster,
educational attainment, health
insurance, disability, means of
transportation to work, income, weeks
worked, Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance Program (SNAP),
condominium fees, and home heating
fuel. Additionally, three new questions
on solar panels, electric vehicles, and
sewage disposal were proposed. The
objective of content testing is to
determine the impact of changing
question wording and response
categories, as well as redefining
underlying constructs, on the quality of
the data collected.
Internet Instrument Testing is
proposed to test and evaluate revised
features of the internet instrument.
Respondent Help Testing will focus
on methods to answer respondent
questions about the survey and improve
operational efficiency, specifically
testing updates to the Interactive Voice
Recognition (IVR) system as well as
exploring the use of other methods such
as online chat.
Nonresponse Followup Data
Collection Testing is proposed to
evaluate the use of adaptive survey
design techniques for the ACS
Computer-Assisted Personal
Interviewing (CAPI) Nonresponse
Followup operation.
Affected Public: Individuals or
households.
Frequency: Multiple one-time tests
over a 3-year period.
Respondent’s Obligation: Mandatory.
Legal Authority: Title 13 U.S.C.
Sections 141, 193, and 221.
VerDate Sep<11>2014
19:19 Jun 23, 2021
Jkt 253001
This information collection request
may be viewed at www.reginfo.gov.
Follow the instructions to view the
Department of Commerce collections
currently under review by OMB.
Written comments and
recommendations for the proposed
information collection should be
submitted within 30 days of the
publication of this notice on the
following website www.reginfo.gov/
public/do/PRAMain. Find this
particular information collection by
selecting ‘‘Currently under 30-day
Review—Open for Public Comments’’ or
by using the search function and
entering either the title of the collection
or the OMB Control Number 0607–0936.
Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of
the Chief Information Officer, Commerce
Department.
[FR Doc. 2021–13429 Filed 6–23–21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510–07–P
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Census Bureau
Census Bureau, Commerce.
Notice of information collection,
request for comment.
AGENCY:
ACTION:
The Department of
Commerce, in accordance with the
Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of
1995, invites the general public and
other Federal agencies to comment on
proposed, and continuing information
collections, which helps us assess the
impact of our information collection
requirements and minimize the public’s
reporting burden. The purpose of this
notice is to allow for 60 days of public
comment on the proposed extension of
the Quarterly Survey of Public Pensions
prior to the submission of the
information collection request (ICR) to
OMB for approval.
DATES: To ensure consideration,
comments regarding this proposed
information collection must be received
on or before August 23, 2021.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are
invited to submit written comments by
email to Thomas.J.Smith@census.gov.
Please reference Quarterly Survey of
Public Pensions in the subject line of
your comments. You may also submit
comments, identified by Docket Number
USBC–2021–0014, to the Federal eSUMMARY:
Frm 00012
Fmt 4703
Rulemaking Portal: https://
www.regulations.gov. All comments
received are part of the public record.
No comments will be posted to https://
www.regulations.gov for public viewing
until after the comment period has
closed. Comments will generally be
posted without change. All Personally
Identifiable Information (for example,
name and address) voluntarily
submitted by the commenter may be
publicly accessible. Do not submit
Confidential Business Information or
otherwise sensitive or protected
information. You may submit
attachments to electronic comments in
Microsoft Word, Excel, or Adobe PDF
file formats.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Requests for additional information or
specific questions related to collection
activities should be directed to Phillip
Vidal, Chief, Pensions Statistics Branch,
Economy-Wide Statistics Division, U.S.
Census Bureau, Headquarters,
Washington, DC 20233; email:
phillip.m.vidal@census.gov;
301.763.1749.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Agency Information Collection
Activities; Submission to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) for
Review and Approval; Comment
Request; Quarterly Survey of Public
Pensions
PO 00000
33217
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I. Abstract
The Census Bureau plans to request
clearance for the form necessary to
conduct the Quarterly Survey of Public
Pensions. The quarterly survey was
initiated by the Census Bureau in 1968
at the request of both the Council of
Economic Advisers and the Federal
Reserve Board.
The Quarterly Survey of Public
Pensions currently provides national
summary data on the asset holdings of
the largest pension systems of state and
local governments.
These data are used by the Federal
Reserve Board to track the public sector
portion of the Flow of Funds Accounts.
Economists and public policy analysts
use these data to assess general
economic conditions and state and local
government financial activities.
Data are collected from a panel of
defined benefit plans of the 100 largest
state and local government pension
systems as determined by their total
cash and security holdings reported in
the 2012 Census of Governments. The
defined benefit plans of these 100
largest pension systems comprise 87.2
percent of financial activity among such
entities, based on the 2012 Census of
Governments.
II. Method of Collection
Survey data are collected through the
Census Bureau’s web collection system
that enables public entities to respond
to the questionnaire via the internet.
E:\FR\FM\24JNN1.SGM
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 119 (Thursday, June 24, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33215-33217]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-13429]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Census Bureau
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment
Request; American Community Survey (ACS) Methods Panel Tests
The Department of Commerce will submit the following information
collection request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for
review and clearance in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of
1995, on or after the date of publication of this notice. We invite the
general public and other Federal agencies to comment on proposed, and
continuing information collections, which helps us assess the impact of
our information collection requirements and minimize the public's
reporting burden. Public comments were previously requested via the
Federal Register on February 9, 2021 during a 60-day comment period.
This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public comments.
Agency: U.S. Census Bureau, Commerce.
Title: American Community Survey Methods Panel Testing.
OMB Control Number: 0607-0936.
Form Number(s): ACS-1, ACS-1(GQ), ACS-1(PR)SP, ACS CAPI(HU), and
ACS RI(HU).
Type of Request: Regular submission, Request for a Revision of a
Currently Approved Collection.
Number of Respondents:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Test Estimated number of respondents
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Self-Response Mail Messaging and Test A-60,000.
Contact Strategies Testing.
Test B-60,000.
Test C-60,000.
Test D-60,000.
Test E-60,000.
Test F-60,000.
Respondent Feedback Pilot.............. 100,000.
Use of Administrative Data Test........ 100,000.
Group Quarters Testing................. 2,000 administrators.
30,000 residents.
Content Testing........................ Test A-70,000.
Test B-70,000.
Content Testing Followup Interview..... Test A-40,000.
Test B-40,000.
Internet Instrument Testing............ Test A-60,000.
Test B-60,000.
Test C-60,000.
Test D-60,000.
Test E-60,000.
Test F-60,000.
Respondent Help Testing................ 40,000.
Nonresponse Followup Data Collection 100,000.
Testing.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Average Hours per Response:
[[Page 33216]]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Estimated time per response (in
Test minutes)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Self-Response Mail Messaging and 40.
Contact Strategies Testing.
Respondent Feedback Pilot.............. 42 (40 minutes for the
production ACS interview and 2
minutes for the optional
followup questions).
Use of Administrative Data Test........ 40.
Group Quarters Testing................. 15 for the administrator
interview 25 for the resident
interview.
Content Testing........................ 40.
Content Testing Followup Interview..... 40.
Internet Instrument Testing............ 40.
Respondent Help Testing................ 10.
Nonresponse Followup Data Collection 40.
Testing.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Burden Hours:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Estimated time
Test Estimated number of per response Total burden hours
respondents (in minutes)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Self-Response Mail Messaging and Contact Test A-60,000............. 40 Test A-40,000.
Strategies Testing.
Test B-60,000............. .............. Test B-40,000.
Test C-60,000............. .............. Test C-40,000.
Test D-60,000............. .............. Test D-40,000.
Test E-60,000............. .............. Test E-40,000.
Test F-60,000............. .............. Test F-40,000.
Respondent Feedback Pilot............... 100,000................... 42 70,000.
Use of Administrative Data Test......... 100,000................... 40 66,667.
Group Quarters Testing.................. 2,000 facility 15 13,000.
administrators.
30,000 residents.......... 25 ..........................
Content Testing......................... Test A-70,000............. 40 Test A-46,667.
Test B-70,000............. .............. Test B-46,667.
Content Testing Followup Interview...... Test A-40,000............. 40 Test A-26,667.
Test B-40,000............. .............. Test B -26,667.
Internet Instrument Testing............. Test A-60,000............. 40 Test A-40,000.
Test B-60,000............. .............. Test B-40,000.
Test C-60,000............. .............. Test C-40,000.
Test D-60,000............. .............. Test D-40,000.
Test E-60,000............. .............. Test E-40,000.
Test F-60,000............. .............. Test F-40,000.
Respondent Help Testing................. 40,000.................... 10 6,667.
Nonresponse Followup Data Collection 100,000................... 40 66,667.
Testing.
Total (over 3 years) *.............. 1,312,000................. .............. 849,667.
Average per year.................... 437,333................... .............. 283,222.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* Note: This is the maximum burden requested for these tests. Every effort is taken to use existing production
sample for testing when the tests do not involve content changes.
Needs and Uses: The U.S. Census Bureau requests authorization from
OMB for the American Community Survey (ACS) Methods Panel Tests.
The ACS is an ongoing monthly survey that collects detailed housing
and socioeconomic data from about 3.5 million addresses in the United
States and about 36,000 addresses in Puerto Rico each year. The ACS
also collects detailed socioeconomic data from about 195,000 residents
living in group quarters (GQ) facilities in the United States and
Puerto Rico. Resulting tabulations from this data collection are
provided on a yearly basis. The ACS allows the Census Bureau to provide
timely and relevant housing and socioeconomic statistics, even for low
levels of geography.
An ongoing data collection effort with an annual sample of this
magnitude requires that the ACS continue research, testing, and
evaluations aimed at improving data quality, reducing data collection
costs, and improving the ACS questionnaire content and related data
collection materials. The ACS Methods Panel is a research program
designed to address and respond to survey issues and needs. As part of
the Decennial Census Program, the ACS also provides an opportunity to
research and test elements of survey data collection that relate to the
decennial census. As such, the ACS Methods Panel can serve as a testbed
for the decennial census. From 2021 to 2024, the ACS Methods Panel may
test ACS and decennial census methods for reducing survey cost,
addressing respondent burden, and improving survey response, data
quality, and survey efficiencies. Testing may also include revising
content or testing new questions. The ACS Methods Panel may also
address other emerging needs of the programs. Currently, plans are in
place to propose several tests:
Self-Response Mail Messaging and Contact StrategiesTesting are
focused on studying methods to increase self-response. The proposed
tests would evaluate changes to the mailings, such as using plain
language to improve communication, changing the look and feel of the
materials, updating messages to motivate response, and adding or
removing materials included in the mailings. Changes to the contact
method, the number of contacts, and the timing of the contacts may also
be tested. The Strategic Framework Field Test will be conducted in the
fall of 2021 to test new mail materials that were developed building on
research
[[Page 33217]]
into best practices in messages. The test will identify which set of
new mail materials is most successful at increasing self-response.
The Respondent Feedback Pilot is designed to collect respondent
feedback at the time of the interview, with the pilot focusing on
internet respondents. Respondents will not be required to answer the
feedback question.
The Use of Administrative Data to reduce burden of existing
questions by allowing for modification of the questions will be tested.
A field test is proposed for questions that may need to remain on the
questionnaire but be modified in conjunction with the use of
administrative records.
Group Quarters Testing will focus on evaluating an internet version
of the ACS available to non-institutional group quarters residents,
especially in college dorms, military barracks, and group homes.
Content Testing is conducted by the Census Bureau periodically to
improve data quality. The current proposal includes changes to the
following questions: Household roster, educational attainment, health
insurance, disability, means of transportation to work, income, weeks
worked, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), condominium
fees, and home heating fuel. Additionally, three new questions on solar
panels, electric vehicles, and sewage disposal were proposed. The
objective of content testing is to determine the impact of changing
question wording and response categories, as well as redefining
underlying constructs, on the quality of the data collected.
Internet Instrument Testing is proposed to test and evaluate
revised features of the internet instrument.
Respondent Help Testing will focus on methods to answer respondent
questions about the survey and improve operational efficiency,
specifically testing updates to the Interactive Voice Recognition (IVR)
system as well as exploring the use of other methods such as online
chat.
Nonresponse Followup Data Collection Testing is proposed to
evaluate the use of adaptive survey design techniques for the ACS
Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) Nonresponse Followup
operation.
Affected Public: Individuals or households.
Frequency: Multiple one-time tests over a 3-year period.
Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.
Legal Authority: Title 13 U.S.C. Sections 141, 193, and 221.
This information collection request may be viewed at
www.reginfo.gov. Follow the instructions to view the Department of
Commerce collections currently under review by OMB.
Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information
collection should be submitted within 30 days of the publication of
this notice on the following website www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain.
Find this particular information collection by selecting ``Currently
under 30-day Review--Open for Public Comments'' or by using the search
function and entering either the title of the collection or the OMB
Control Number 0607-0936.
Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Chief Information
Officer, Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2021-13429 Filed 6-23-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-07-P
