[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 242 (Friday, December 17, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 79027-79028]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-31697]
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Bureau of Labor Statistics
Proposed Collection; Comment Request
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
Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is soliciting comments concerning the
proposed reinstatement of the ``Current Population Survey (CPS).'' A
copy of the proposed information collection request (ICR) can be
obtained by contacting the individual listed below in the Addresses
section of this notice.
DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the
ADDRESSES section below on or before February 15, 2011.
ADDRESSES: Send comments to Carol Rowan, BLS Clearance Officer,
Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Room 4080,
2 Massachusetts Avenue, NE., Washington, DC 20212. Written comments
also may be transmitted by fax to 202-691-5111 (this is not a toll-free
number).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carol Rowan, BLS Clearance Officer,
[[Page 79028]]
202-691-7628 (this is not a toll free number). (See ADDRESSES section.)
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
The CPS has been the principal source of the official Government
statistics on employment and unemployment for 70 years. The labor force
information gathered through the survey is of paramount importance in
keeping track of the economic health of the Nation. The survey is the
only source of monthly data on total employment and unemployment. The
Employment Situation report contains data from this survey and is
designated as a Principle Federal Economic Indicator (PFEI). Moreover,
the survey also yields data on the basic status and characteristics of
persons not in the labor force. The CPS data are used monthly, in
conjunction with data from other sources, to analyze the extent to
which, and with what success, the various components of the American
population are participating in the economic life of the Nation.
The labor force data gathered through the CPS are provided to users
in the greatest detail possible, in conjunction with the demographic
information obtained in the survey. In brief, the labor force data can
be broken down by sex, age, race, ethnicity, marital status, family
composition, educational level, and other characteristics. Since 2009,
a breakdown by disability status has also been possible. Through such
breakdowns, one can focus on the employment situation of specific
population groups as well as on general trends in employment and
unemployment. Information of this type can be obtained only through
demographically oriented surveys such as the CPS.
The basic CPS data also are used as an important platform on which
to base the data derived from the various supplemental questions that
are administered in conjunction with the survey. By coupling the basic
data from the monthly survey with the special data from the
supplements, one can get valuable insights on the behavior of American
workers and on the social and economic health of their families.
There is wide interest in the monthly CPS data among Government
policymakers, legislators, economists, the media, and the general
public. While the data from the CPS are used in conjunction with data
from other surveys in assessing the economic health of the Nation, they
are unique in various ways. Specifically, they are the basis for much
of the monthly Employment Situation report, a PFEI. They provide a
monthly, nationally representative measure of total employment,
including farm work, self-employment, and unpaid family work; other
surveys are generally restricted to the nonagricultural wage and salary
sector, or provide less timely information. The CPS provides data on
all jobseekers, and on all persons outside the labor force, while
payroll-based surveys cannot, by definition, cover these sectors of the
population. Finally, the CPS data on employment, unemployment, and on
persons not in the labor force can be linked to the demographic
characteristics of the many groups that make up the Nation's
population, while the data from most other surveys are devoid of
demographic information. Many groups, both in the government and in the
private sector, are eager to analyze this wealth of demographic and
labor force data.
II. Current Action
Office of Management and Budget clearance is being sought for the
Current Population Survey (CPS). A reinstatement, without change, of
this previously approved collection for which approval has expired is
needed to provide the Nation with timely information about the labor
force status of the population.
III. Desired Focus of Comments
The Bureau of Labor Statistics is particularly interested in
comments that:
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.
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.
Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized
and/or included in the request for Office of Management and Budget
approval of the information collection request; they also will become a
matter of public record.
Type of Review: Reinstatement of a currently approved collection.
Agency: Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Title: Current Population Survey (CPS).
OMB Number: 1220-0100.
Affected Public: Households.
Total Respondents: 55,000 per month.
Frequency: Monthly.
Total Responses: 660,000.
Average Time per Response: 7.5 minutes.
Estimated Total Burden Hours: 82,500 hours.
Total Burden Cost (capital/startup): $0.
Total Burden Cost (operating/maintenance): $0.
Signed at Washington, DC, this 13th day of December 2010.
Kimberley Hill,
Chief, Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor Statistics.
[FR Doc. 2010-31697 Filed 12-16-10; 8:45 am]
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