[Federal Register: August 10, 2005 (Volume 70, Number 153)]
[Notices]
[Page 46546-46547]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr10au05-102]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Employment and Training Administration
Proposed Information Collection Request Submitted for Public
Comment and Recommendations; Reporting and Performance Standards System
for the Migrant and Seasonal Farm Worker Program Under Title I, Section
167 of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) of 1998
ACTION: Notice.
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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
Employment and Training Administration (ETA) is soliciting comments on
revised reporting requirements for the Migrant and Seasonal Farm Worker
(MSFW) program. This information collection request is necessary in
order to collect data for calculating a set of common performance
measures of the outcomes achieved by the MSFW program.
DATES: Submit comments on or before October 11, 2005.
ADDRESSES: Send comments to: Mr. John R. Beverly, Administrator, Office
of National Programs, Employment and Training Administration, U.S.
Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Room C-4312,
Washington, DC 20210; telephone: (202) 693-3840 (this is not a toll-
free number); fax: (202) 693-3589; e-mail: ETAperforms@dol.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Alina Walker, Chief, Division of
Migrant and Seasonal Farm Workers, Employment and Training
Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW.,
Room S-4206, Washington, DC 20210; telephone: (202) 693-2706 (this is
not a toll-free number); fax: (202) 693-3945; e-mail:
ETAperforms@dol.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
Each grantee administering funds under the MSFW program is required
to submit a program planning report (ETA Form 9094), a budget
information summary report (ETA Form 9093), and a quarterly program
status report (ETA Form 9095). This latter form contains information
related to levels of participation and service, related assistance
activities, and actual placements in employment. In addition, each
grantee submits a quarterly file of individual records on all
participants who exit the program, called the Workforce Investment Act
Standardized Participant Record (WIASPR).
In 2001, under the President's Management Agenda, OMB and other
Federal agencies developed a set of common performance measures to be
applied to certain federally-funded employment and training programs
with similar strategic goals. As part of this initiative, ETA initially
issued Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) 15-03 and has
more recently issued TEGL 28-04, Common Measures Policy, which
rescinded TEGL 15-03 and reflected updates to the policy. The value of
implementing common measures is the ability to describe in a similar
manner the core purposes of the workforce system--how many people found
jobs; did they keep their jobs; and what were their earnings. Multiple
sets of performance measures have burdened states and grantees as they
are required to report performance outcomes based on varying
definitions and methodologies. By minimizing the different reporting
and performance requirements, implementing a set of common performance
measures can facilitate the integration of service delivery, reduce
barriers to cooperation among programs, and enhance the ability to
assess the effectiveness and impact of the workforce investment system,
including the performance of the system in serving individuals facing
significant barriers to employment.
The common measures are an integral part of ETA's performance
accountability system, and ETA will continue to collect from grantees
the data on program activities, participants, and outcomes that are
necessary for program management and to convey full and accurate
information on the performance of workforce programs to policymakers
and stakeholders.
[[Page 46547]]
This revision to the MSFW program reporting system identifies a
minimum level of information collection that is necessary to comply
with Equal Opportunity requirements, holds grantees appropriately
accountable for the Federal funds they receive, assesses progress
against a set of common performance measures, and allows the Department
to fulfill its oversight and management responsibilities.
The Employment and Training Administration is proposing similar
changes to the reporting requirements for the WIA Title 1B, Wagner-
Peyser Act, and Trade Adjustment Assistance programs. Please note that
ETA will seek comments regarding changes to information collection for
these programs in separate Federal Register notices.
The following three adult common performance measures apply to
grantees of the MSFW program:
Entered Employment.
Employment Retention.
Six Months Earnings Increase.
Grantees are currently required to submit data according to
measures established under the Government Performance and Results Act
(GPRA), which include entered employment, retention, and earnings
increase. While the GPRA measures for the MSFW program are similar to
the common measures, the data elements that are needed to do the
calculations are slightly different, requiring modifications to the
definitions and record layout of the WIASPR. Important changes to note
on the WIASPR include the following:
Elimination of all fields that collect information on
youth served by the MSFW program due to recent budgetary actions.
Elimination of data collection fields associated with the
current MSFW performance standards system to incorporate data for
calculating common performance measures.
A change in the field that tracks the reason the
participant exited the MSFW program, because participants who exited
due to certain reasons, such as becoming institutionalized, are
excluded from calculations of common measures.
Addition of three fields to track whether the participant
was employed in the first, second, and third quarters after program
exit, which are used to calculate the common measures.
Addition of fields to capture wages earned by the
participant in the 1st quarter after program exit and over a six-month
period covering the 2nd and 3rd quarters after program exit to
calculate the earnings increase measure.
II. Desired Focus of Comments
Currently, the Department is soliciting comments concerning the
revised information collection request for the MSFW program in order
to:
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; and
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.
A copy of the proposed ICR can be obtained by contacting the office
listed above in the addressee section of this notice.
III. Current Actions
Type of Review: Revision.
Agency: Department of Labor, Employment and Training
Administration.
Title: Reporting and Performance Standards System for the Migrant
and Seasonal Farm Worker Program under Title I, Section 167 of the
Workforce Investment Act (WIA).
OMB Number: 1205-0425.
Recordkeeping: Three years for States and grantees.
Affected Public: State, local or tribal governments; not-for-profit
institutions.
Cite/Reference/Form/etc: Section 167, Workforce Investment Act of
1998 (Pub. L. 105-220), see table below for list of forms.
Total Respondents: 53 States and grantees.
Frequency: Annually and quarterly.
Total Responses: 159 submissions annually and 29,712 quarterly--
grantees submits an ETA 9095 form and WIASPR files each quarter.
Estimated Total Burden Hours:
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Total Total Average time Total annual
Form/activity respondents Frequency responses per response burden hours
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Plan Narrative............... 53 Annual........... 53 20 1,060
ETA 9093..................... 53 Annual........... 53 15 795
ETA 9094..................... 53 Annual........... 53 16 848
ETA 9095..................... 53 Quarterly........ 212 7 1,484
WIASPR Data.................. 53 Quarterly........ 29,500 2.25 66,375
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Totals................... 53 ................. 29,871 60.25 70,562
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Total Burden Cost (capital/startup): $0.
Total Burden Cost (operating/maintaining): $0.
Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized
and/or included in the request for OMB approval of the information
collection request; they will also become a matter of public record.
Signed in Washington, DC, on August 3, 2005.
Emily Stover DeRocco,
Assistant Secretary for Employment and Training.
[FR Doc. E5-4324 Filed 8-9-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-30-P