[Federal Register: March 31, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 60)]
[Notices]
[Page 14513-14514]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr31mr09-34]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Census Bureau
Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Survey of
Income and Program Participation (SIPP) Wave 4 of the 2008 Panel
AGENCY: U.S. Census Bureau, Commerce.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort
to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public
and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on
proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C.
3506(c)(2)(A)).
DATES: To ensure consideration, written comments must be submitted on
or before June 1, 2009.
ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Diana Hynek, Departmental
Paperwork Clearance Officer, Department of Commerce, Room 7845, 14th
and Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20230 (or via the Internet
at dHynek@doc.gov).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or
copies of the information collection instrument(s) and instructions
should be directed to Patrick J. Benton, Census Bureau, Room HQ-6H045,
Washington, DC 20233-8400, (301) 763-4618.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION
I. Abstract
The Census Bureau conducts the SIPP, which is a household-based
survey designed as a continuous series of national panels. New panels
are introduced every few years with each panel usually having durations
of one to four years. Respondents are interviewed at 4-month intervals
or ``waves'' over the life of the panel. The survey is molded around a
central ``core'' of labor force and income questions that remain fixed
throughout the life of the panel. The core is supplemented with
questions designed to address specific needs, such as obtaining
information on household members participation in government programs
as well as prior labor force patterns of household members. These
supplemental questions are included with the core and are referred to
as ``topical modules.''
The SIPP represents a source of information for a wide variety of
topics and allows information for separate topics to be integrated to
form a single, unified database so that the interaction between tax,
transfer, and other government and private policies can be examined.
Government domestic-policy formulators depend heavily upon the SIPP
information concerning the distribution of income received directly as
money or indirectly as in-kind benefits and the effect of tax and
transfer programs on this distribution. They also need improved and
expanded data on the income and general economic and financial
situation of the U.S. population. The SIPP has provided
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these kinds of data on a continuing basis since 1983 permitting levels
of economic well-being and changes in these levels to be measured over
time.
The 2008 panel is currently scheduled for 4 years and will include
13 waves of interviewing beginning September 2008. Approximately 65,300
households were selected for the 2008 panel, of which 45,000 households
are expected to be interviewed. We estimate that each household
contains 2.1 people, yielding 94,500 person-level interviews in Wave 1
and subsequent waves. Interviews take 30 minutes on average. Three
waves will occur in the 2008 SIPP Panel during FY 2009. The total
annual burden for 2008 Panel SIPP interviews would be 141,750 hours in
FY 2009.
The topical modules for the 2008 Panel Wave 4 collect information
about:
Assets, Liabilities, and Eligibility.
Child Well-Being.
Medical Expenses and Utilization of Health Care (Adults
and Children).
Work Related Expenses and Child Support Paid.
Wave 4 interviews will be conducted from September 1, 2009 through
December 31, 2009.
A 10-minute reinterview of 3,100 people is conducted at each wave
to ensure accuracy of responses. Reinterviews would require an
additional 1,553 burden hours in FY 2009.
II. Method of Collection
The SIPP is designed as a continuing series of national panels of
interviewed households that are introduced every few years with each
panel having durations of one to four years. All household members 15
years old or over are interviewed using regular proxy-respondent rules.
During the 2008 panel, respondents are interviewed a total of 13 times
(13 waves) at 4-month intervals making the SIPP a longitudinal survey.
Sample people (all household members present at the time of the first
interview) who move within the country and reasonably close to a SIPP
primary sampling unit will be followed and interviewed at their new
address. Individuals 15 years old or over who enter the household after
Wave 1 will be interviewed; however, if these individuals move, they
are not followed unless they happen to move along with a Wave 1 sample
individual.
III. Data
OMB Control Number: 0607-0944.
Form Number: SIPP/CAPI Automated Instrument.
Type of Review: Regular submission.
Affected Public: Individuals or households.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 94,500 people per wave.
Estimated Time per Response: 30 minutes per person.
Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 143,303.
Estimated Total Annual Cost: $0.
Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.
Legal Authority: Title 13, United States Code, Section 182.
IV. Request for Comments
Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of
the agency, including whether the information shall have practical
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden
(including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information;
(c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the
collection of information on respondents, including through the use of
automated collection techniques or other forms of information
technology.
Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized
and/or included in the request for OMB approval of this information
collection; they also will become a matter of public record.
Dated: March 26, 2009.
Gwellnar Banks,
Management Analyst, Office of the Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. E9-7117 Filed 3-30-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-07-P