[Federal Register: August 30, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 168)]
[Notices]
[Page 51570-51571]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr30au06-45]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request
DOC will submit to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for
clearance the following proposal for collection of information under
the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. chapter 35).
Agency: U.S. Census Bureau.
Title: Quarterly Services Survey (QSS).
Form Number(s): QSS-1(A), QSS-1(E), QSS-2(A), QSS-2(E), QSS-3(A),
QSS-3(E), QSS-4(A), QSS-4(E), QSS-5(A), QSS-5(E).
Agency Approval Number: 0607-0907.
Type of Request: Revision of a currently approved collection.
Burden: 11,922 hours.
Number of Respondents: 13,000.
Avg. Hours per Response: 13.75 minutes.
Needs and Uses: The U.S. Census Bureau requests an extension with
revision of the current OMB approval of the Quarterly Services Survey
(QSS). The QSS currently canvasses and collects data from employer
businesses in select service industries. These industries include
information; professional, scientific and technical services;
hospitals; nursing and residential care facilities; and administrative
and support and waste management and remediation services industries.
The QSS provides the most current reliable measures of total operating
revenue and percentage of revenue by class of customer on a quarterly
basis. In addition, the QSS provides the only current quarterly measure
of total operating expenses from tax-exempt firms in industries that
have a large not-for-profit component. All respondent data are received
by mail, fax, telephone, or Internet reporting.
Before the QSS economic indicator existed for the service sector,
which accounts for nearly 55 percent of all economic activity, the only
data available were from the Service Annual Survey (SAS) and 5-year
economic census. The QSS was developed to address and provide more up-
to-date estimates of services output. Based on this effort, the QSS is
a major source for the development of quarterly Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) and an indicator of short-term economic change.
The total operating revenue estimates produced from the QSS provide
current trends of economic service industry activity in the United
States from service providers with paid employees.
[[Page 51571]]
In addition to revenue, we also collect total operating expenses
from tax-exempt firms in industries that have a large not-for-profit
component. Operating expenses provide a better measure of the economic
activity of these firms. Expense estimates produced by the QSS, in
addition to inpatient days and discharges for the hospital industry,
are used by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to
project and study hospital regulation, Medicare payment adequacy, and
other related projects.
Beginning in January 2007, the Census Bureau will expand the QSS to
include coverage of truck transportation; couriers and messengers;
warehousing and storage; rental and leasing; ambulatory healthcare
services; social assistance; arts, entertainment, and recreation;
repair and maintenance; personal and laundry services; grant making,
civic, professional, and similar organizations from employer
businesses.
The QSS expansion will be based on data collection from four new
forms: QSS-4(A); QSS-4(E); QSS-5(A); and QSS-5(E). The QSS-4(A/E) will
only ask for quarterly revenue. The QSS-5(A/E) will ask for quarterly
revenue and the percentage of admissions revenue.
In year 2007, for select questionnaires, we may replace select
questions with industry specific variable content. This questionnaire
adjustment was proposed by the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA).
According to the BEA, an implementation of such proposed changes would
assist them in making better use of the QSS data and lead to improved
estimates of Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) services.
The BEA is the primary Federal user of data collected in the QSS.
The BEA utilizes this timely data to make improvements to the national
accounts for service industries. In the National Income and Product
Accounts (NIPA), the quarterly data allow more accurate estimates of
both PCE and private fixed investment. For example, recently published
revisions to the quarterly NIPA estimates resulted from the
incorporation of new source data from the QSS. Revenue data from the
QSS are also used to produce estimates of gross output by industry that
allow BEA to produce a much earlier version of the gross domestic
product by industry estimates.
Estimates produced from the QSS are used by the BEA as a component
of quarterly GDP estimates. The estimates also provide the Federal
Reserve Board (FRB) and Council of Economic Advisors (CEA) with timely
information on current economic performance. All estimates collected
from this survey are used extensively by various government agencies
and departments on economic policy decisions; private businesses; trade
organizations; professional associations; academia; and other various
business research and analysis organizations
The CMS uses the QSS data to develop hospital spending estimates in
the National Accounts. In addition, the QSS data improve their ability
to analyze hospital spending trends. They also use the data in their
healthcare indicator analysis publication; ten-year health spending
forecast estimates; and studies in hospital regulation and Medicare
policy, procedures, and trends.
The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPac) utilizes the QSS
data to assess payment adequacy in the current Medicare program.
The FRB and the CEA use the QSS information to better assess
current economic performance. In addition, other government agencies,
businesses, and investors use the QSS data for market research,
industry growth, business planning and forecasting.
Affected Public: Business or other for-profit, non-profit
institutions.
Frequency: Quarterly.
Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.
Legal Authority: Title 13 U.S.C., Section 182.
OMB Desk Officer: Susan Schechter, (202) 395-5103.
Copies of the above information collection proposal can be obtained
by calling or writing Diana Hynek, Departmental Paperwork Clearance
Officer, (202) 482-0266, Department of Commerce, room 6625, 14th and
Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20230 (or via the Internet at
dhynek@doc.gov).
Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information
collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice
to Susan Schechter, OMB Desk Officer either by fax (202-395-7245) or e-
mail (susan_schechter@omb.eop.gov).
Dated: August 24, 2006.
Madeleine Clayton,
Management Analyst, Office of the Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. E6-14369 Filed 8-29-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-07-P