85 FR 220 pgs. 72686-72687 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; Report on Current Employment Statistics
Type: NOTICEVolume: 85Number: 220Pages: 72686 - 72687
Pages: 72686, 72687FR document: [FR Doc. 2020–25150 Filed 11–12–20; 8:45 am]
Agency: Labor Department
Official PDF Version: PDF Version
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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Office of the Secretary
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; Report on Current Employment Statistics
ACTION:
Notice of availability; request for comments.
SUMMARY:
The Department of Labor (DOL) is submitting this Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS)-sponsored information collection request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA). Public comments on the ICR are invited.
DATES:
The OMB will consider all written comments that agency receives on or before December 14, 2020.
ADDRESSES:
Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular information collection by selecting "Currently under 30-day Review-Open for Public Comments" or by using the search function.
Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Department, including whether the information will have practical utility; (2) if the information will be processed and used in a timely manner; (3) the accuracy of the agency's estimates of the burden and cost of the collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (4) ways to enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the information collection; and (5) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Anthony May by telephone at 202-693-4129 (this is not a toll-free number) or by email at DOL_PRA_PUBLIC@dol.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
The Current Employment Statistics (CES) program provides current monthly statistics on employment, hours, and earnings, by industry and geography. CES estimates are among the most visible and widely-used Principal Federal Economic Indicators (PFEIs). CES data are also among the timeliest of the PFEIs, with their release each month by the BLS in the Employment Situation, typically on the first Friday of each month. The statistics are fundamental inputs in economic decision processes at all levels of government, private enterprise, and organized labor.
The CES monthly estimates of employment, hours, and earnings are based on a sample of U.S. nonagricultural establishments. Information is derived from approximately 295,000 reports (from a sample of 150,000 employers with State Unemployment Insurance (UI) accounts comprised of 697,000 individual worksites), as of April 2020. Each month, firms report their employment, payroll, and hours on forms identified as the BLS-790. The sample is collected under a probability-based design. Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands collect an additional 8,500 reports.
A list of all form types currently used appears in the table below. Respondents receive variations of the basic collection forms, depending on their industry. The CES program is a voluntary program under Federal statute. Reporting to the State agencies is voluntary in all but three States (New Mexico, Oregon, and South Carolina), Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. To our knowledge, the States that do have mandatory reporting rarely exercise their authority. The collection form's confidentiality statement cites the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency Act and mentions the State mandatory reporting authority. For additional substantive information about this ICR, see the related notice published in the Federal Register on July 20, 2020 (85 FR 43878).
This information collection is subject to the PRA. A Federal agency generally cannot conduct or sponsor a collection of information, and the public is generally not required to respond to an information collection, unless the OMB approves it and displays a currently valid OMB Control Number. In addition, notwithstanding any other provisions of law, no person shall generally be subject to penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information that does not display a valid OMB Control Number. See 5 CFR 1320.5(a) and 1320.6.
DOL seeks PRA authorization for this information collection for three (3) years. OMB authorization for an ICR cannot be for more than three (3) years without renewal. The DOL notes that information collection requirements submitted to the OMB for existing ICRs receive a month-to-month extension while they undergo review.
Agency: DOL-BLS.
Title of Collection: Report on Current Employment Statistics.
[top] OMB Control Number: 1220-0011.
Affected Public: Businesses or other for-profits institutions; Not-for-profit institutions; Individuals and households; State, local, and tribal governments.
Total Estimated Number of Respondents: 295,548.
Total Estimated Number of Responses: 1,875,612.
Total Estimated Annual Time Burden: 277,763 hours.
Total Estimated Annual Other Costs Burden: $0.
Authority:
44 U.S.C. 3507(a)(1)(D).
Dated: November 6, 2020.
Anthony May,
Management and Program Analyst.
[FR Doc. 2020-25150 Filed 11-12-20; 8:45 am]
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