Employment and Training Administration January 11, 2013 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department of Labor (Department), as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a pre-clearance consultation program to provide the 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 [44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)]. This program helps 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. Currently, ETA is soliciting comments on the current data collection for the Registered Apprenticeship-College Consortium (RACC). The RACC exists to facilitate applying the Registered Apprenticeship completion certificate towards college credit. RACC post-secondary members agree to accept apprentice graduates from member Registered Apprenticeship sponsors who have the approximate amount of credit toward college that has been designated by a third party evaluator. The Department has modeled the RACC after the Servicemembers Opportunities Colleges Consortium supported by the Department of Defense. The RACC data collection includes three application forms to join the consortium, differentiated by membership type: (1) The application for Registered Apprenticeship sponsors requests contact information for the national, regional or single guideline standards or program; all participating training centers, if applicable; and the value of the apprenticeship program toward college credit, recommended by a third party evaluator; (2) the application for two- and four-year post-secondary institutions requests contact, degree and credit transfer information; and (3) the application for national, regional or State organizations that represent sponsors and/or two- and four-year post-secondary colleges and will facilitate membership in the consortium requests contact information and the nature of the relationship with sponsors or colleges. Subsection II of the Supplementary Information paragraphs below provides greater detail on the types of comments that would be most helpful.