[Federal Register: August 16, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 158)]
[Notices]
[Page 46034-46035]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr16au07-51]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Bureau of the Census
Proposed Data Sharing Activity
AGENCY: Bureau of the Census, Department of Commerce.
ACTION: Notice and request for public comment.
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SUMMARY: The Bureau of the Census (Census Bureau) conducts the Survey
of Industrial Research and Development (R&D) under a joint partnership
agreement with the National Science Foundation (NSF). The U.S. Census
Bureau proposes to provide data collected from the 2004-2009 R&D
surveys to the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) for statistical
purposes exclusively. In accordance with the requirement of Section
524(d) of the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical
Efficiency Act of 2002 (CIPSEA), we are providing the opportunity for
public comment on this data-sharing action. Through the use of these
shared data, the BEA will augment its existing R&D-related data,
identify data quality issues arising from reporting differences in the
BEA and Census Bureau surveys, and improve its survey sample frames.
The NSF will be provided non-confidential aggregate data (public use)
and reports that have cleared Census Bureau disclosure review.
Disclosure review is a process conducted to verify that the data to be
released do not reveal any confidential information.
DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before October 15,
2007.
ADDRESSES: Please direct all written comments on this proposed program
to the Director, U.S. Census Bureau, 4600 Silver Hill Road, Washington,
DC 20233-0100.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information on
this proposed program should be directed to Mr. Richard Hough, Special
Studies Branch, Manufacturing and Construction Division, U.S. Census
Bureau, 4600 Silver Hill Road, Washington, DC 20233-6900, by phone on
(301) 763-4823 or by fax (301) 763-7783.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
CIPSEA (Pub. L. 107-347, Subtitle V) allows the Census Bureau and
the BEA to share certain business data for exclusively statistical
purposes. Section 524(d) of the Act requires a Federal Register notice
announcing the intent to share data (allowing 60 days for public
comment).
Section 524(d) also requires the Census Bureau to provide
information about the terms of the agreement for data sharing. For
purposes of this notice, the Census Bureau has decided to group these
terms by three categories. The categories are:
Shared data.
Statistical purposes for the shared data.
Data access and confidentiality.
Shared Data
The Census Bureau proposes to provide the BEA with data collected
from the 2004-2009 R&D surveys. The agreement also calls for the BEA to
share data from its Foreign Direct Investment in the United States and
U.S. Direct Investment Abroad surveys with the Census Bureau. The BEA
has issued a separate notice addressing this activity.
The BEA will use these data for statistical purposes exclusively.
Through record linkage, the BEA will augment its existing R&D-related
data, identify data quality issues arising from reporting differences
in the BEA and Census Bureau surveys, and improve its survey sample
frames.
Statistical Purposes for the Shared Data
The data collected from the R&D estimate the expenditures of
research and development performed by United States-based industrial
firms. The survey is conducted annually, however, the proposed data to
be shared are from the 2004-2009 surveys only. Statistics from the
annual surveys are published in the NSF's annual publication series
``Research and Development in Industry.'' Data collected by this survey
include company characteristics and R&D spending information.
Characteristics data include net sales, total employment, and
employment of scientists and engineers. R&D spending data include the
following: Total spending; federally funded (total and by agency)
spending for basic and applied R&D, for basic research by field, and
for applied R&D by product group; R&D spending by state; and R&D
financed by domestic firms but performed abroad. All data are collected
under Sections 131, 182, 224, and 225 of Title 13, United States Code
(U.S.C.).
Benefits
The aggregated data will provide a more integrated data set on R&D
performance and funding with domestic and foreign ownership detail and
will lead to a more complete account of international aspects of R&D
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performance and funding, and related economic activity, both in the
United States and abroad. The Census Bureau will also be able to
improve the sample frame for the R&D by adding companies identified in
the BEA frames not currently accounted for in the sample. The Census
Bureau will be able to identify possible data quality issues by
investigating reporting differences contained within the files which
will lead to improved survey estimates.
Data Access and Confidentiality
Section 9 of Title 13, U.S.C., protects the confidentiality of
these data. The data may be seen only by persons sworn to uphold the
confidentiality of the information. Access to the shared data will be
restricted to specifically authorized personnel and will be provided
for statistical purposes only. All BEA employees with access to these
data will attain Census Bureau Special Sworn Status (SSS), per Section
23(c) of Title 13, U.S.C., which provides that they, under penalty of
law, must uphold the data's confidentiality. Selected NSF employees
will provide the BEA with expertise on the aspects of R&D performance
in the United States and by U.S. companies abroad; these NSF
consultants assisting with the work at the BEA also will attain Census
Bureau SSS. No confidential data will be provided to the NSF. To
further safeguard the confidentiality of the data, the Census Bureau
will conduct an Information Technology security review of the BEA prior
to sharing any data files. Any results of this research are subject to
Census Bureau disclosure protection.
Dated: August 10, 2007.
Charles Louis Kincannon,
Director, Bureau of the Census.
[FR Doc. E7-16141 Filed 8-15-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-07-P