Notice2023-20256
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; American Community Survey Methods Panel: 2024 Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Test
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
September 19, 2023
Issuing agencies
Commerce DepartmentCensus Bureau
Abstract
The Department of Commerce, in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to comment on proposed, and continuing information collections, which helps us assess the impact of our information collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden. The purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment on the proposed revision of the American Community Survey Methods Panel Tests, prior to the submission of the information collection request (ICR) to OMB for approval.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 180 (Tuesday, September 19, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 180 (Tuesday, September 19, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64404-64407]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-20256]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Census Bureau
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment
Request; American Community Survey Methods Panel: 2024 Sexual
Orientation and Gender Identity Test
AGENCY: Census Bureau, Commerce.
ACTION: Notice of information collection, request for comment.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce, in accordance with the Paperwork
Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995, invites the general public and other
Federal agencies to comment on proposed, and continuing information
collections, which helps us assess the impact of our information
collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden. The
purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment on the
proposed revision of the American Community Survey Methods Panel Tests,
prior to the submission of the information collection request (ICR) to
OMB for approval.
DATES: To ensure consideration, comments regarding this proposed
information collection must be received on or before November 20, 2023.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments by
email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#761715051958060417364a17561e0413104b" http: census.gov">census.gov</a>">acso.pra@<a href="http://census.gov">census.gov</a></a>. Please reference American Community
Survey SOGI Test in the subject line of your comments. You may also
submit comments, identified by Docket Number USBC-2023-0007, to the
Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">http://www.regulations.gov</a>. All comments
received are part of the public record. No comments will be posted to
<a href="http://www.regulations.gov">http://www.regulations.gov</a> for public viewing until after the comment
period has closed. Comments will generally be posted without change.
All Personally Identifiable Information (for example, name and address)
voluntarily submitted by the commenter may be publicly accessible. Do
not submit Confidential Business Information or otherwise sensitive or
protected information. You may submit attachments to electronic
comments in Microsoft Word, Excel, or Adobe PDF file formats.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or
specific questions related to collection activities should be directed
to Elizabeth Poehler, ADC for Survey Methods, U.S. Census Bureau, 301-
763-9305, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#e1848d889b8083849589cf918e84898d8493a1dd80c189938487dc" http: census.gov">census.gov</a>">elizabeth.poehler@<a href="http://census.gov">census.gov</a></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Abstract
The American Community Survey (ACS) is an ongoing monthly survey
that collects detailed housing and socioeconomic data from about 3.5
million addresses in the United States and about 36,000 addresses in
Puerto Rico each year. The ACS also collects detailed socioeconomic
data from about 195,000 residents living in group quarters facilities
in the United States and Puerto Rico each year. Data is collected via
self-response modes (internet and paper) as well as interviewer-
administered modes via telephone and in person. Resulting tabulations
from this data collection are provided on a yearly basis. The ACS
allows the Census Bureau to provide timely and relevant housing and
socioeconomic statistics, even for low levels of geography.
The Census Bureau plans to request Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) approval to conduct a test of sexual orientation and gender
identity questions on the ACS. The test is referred to as the 2024 ACS
Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) Test. Federal agencies
have expressed interest in and identified legal uses for this
information, including civil rights and equal employment enforcement.
The Census Bureau proposes to test question wording, response
categories, and placement of sexual orientation and gender identity
questions on the questionnaire. Of specific interest is how the
questions perform when completed by proxy respondents. In the ACS, one
person at an address typically answers questions about everyone living
there. When one person answers a survey about others, we call this
``proxy reporting.'' Questions on sexual orientation and gender
identity are not currently asked on any federal surveys that use proxy
reporting. The test will build on existing qualitative research
conducted throughout the federal government and private sector,
including work by the Federal Interagency Working Group on Measuring
SOGI, the Measuring SOGI Research Group as part of the Federal
Committee on Statistical Methodology, and the National Academies of
Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM).
We are proposing to test up to two versions of the questions using
a nationally representative, split-panel test. A sample of housing
units will be selected for this test; housing units in sample for the
ACS will not be eligible. We are also proposing to test a variation in
display of the questions in the internet mode. A follow-up reinterview
will also be conducted to assess the reliability and quality of
responses.
Building on recommendations from NASEM and OMB Best Practices, the
Census Bureau proposes to test a two-step gender identity question:
first asking about sex assigned at birth and then asking about current
gender. These questions will replace the existing question on sex.
The proposed `sex assigned at birth' question would ask: What sex
was <Name> assigned at birth? Mark (X) ONE box. The Census Bureau is
proposing to omit the text, ``on your original birth certificate'' from
the sex assigned at birth question as proposed by NASEM and OMB. Asking
the question without this phrase has been used by some federal surveys
and cognitively tested without issue (Asking About SOGI in the CPS:
Cognitive Interview Results (<a href="http://census.gov">census.gov</a>)). Removing the reference to
the birth certificate is more culturally sensitive to non-English
speakers, some of whom may not have a birth certificate or have seen
it. In recent years, many people who have a designation of X on their
birth certificate were assigned male or female at birth before their
parents chose to use X instead. Removing the birth certificate
reference may help parents of those children answer this question. The
Census Bureau also proposes to keep the existing order of the male and
female categories to address a serious concern about how an
inconsistency in the order of male/female categories across Census
Bureau surveys could lead to interviewers accidentally selecting the
wrong response category. Keeping the male/female order also minimizes
the number of changes being tested at once.
The `current gender' question will be asked only of people who are
15 and older. The proposed question is: What is <Name's> current
gender? The response categories will be Male, Female, Transgender,
Nonbinary, and ``This person uses a different term'' (with a space to
write in a response). The proposed question stem aligns with the NASEM
report recommendations. It refers to the subject of the question in the
stem so that respondents are not left to reason what the question is
asking based solely on the response options. The wording is also more
concise when administered in the proxy version of the question as shown
above.
The Census Bureau proposes to add ``nonbinary'' as a response
option. Estimates suggest that over one million adults in the U.S. use
this term to describe themselves. In previous research (e.g., CPS
pretesting), respondents have commented that this category should be
added and that not every person who is nonbinary considers themselves
transgender. Data on the nonbinary population was also part of requests
from federal agencies.
The OMB best practices suggest using a `mark all that apply'
instruction for the gender question. However, most federal surveys do
not use `mark all that apply' for this question. Additionally, the
California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) decided not to implement
`mark all that apply' in part due to concerns about ``the potential for
increases in
[[Page 64406]]
gender minority reporting from those who do not primarily identify as
non-cisgender'' artificially inflating estimates. Given the lack of
consensus in this area, the Census Bureau proposes to test two
treatments. A treatment that allows only one response category to be
marked will be compared to a treatment that allows multiple categories
to be marked.
Consistent with recommendations, a verification question will also
be asked for anyone whose answer to the `sex assigned at birth'
question and `current gender' question does not match. In addition, for
evaluation purposes, the Census Bureau is considering asking the
verification question to a sample of respondents whose answers are the
same in the two questions. The Census Bureau is also proposing to add
an open-ended write-in question to gather additional information about
a person's gender identity for research purposes.
The `sexual orientation' question will be asked only of people who
are 15 and older. The proposed question is: Which of the following best
represents how <Name> thinks of themselves? With response categories
of: Gay or lesbian, Straight--that is not gay or lesbian, Bisexual, and
This person uses a different term (with space to write-in a response).
This question is in alignment with current recommendations of how to
ask about sexual orientation, however it omits an explicit ``I don't
know'' response category. This approach follows the conventions of the
ACS, which does not offer an explicit ``don't know'' response option
for any topics in the survey to minimize item nonresponse and increase
data quality. Respondents can skip this question on the internet and
paper modes. Interviewers can mark ``don't know'' and ``refusal'' in
the computer-assisted personal interview (CAPI) instrument.
To help address sensitivity in interviewer-led modes, especially if
other household members are present, the Census Bureau is also
proposing to use a flashcard for in-person interviews and use numbered
response categories for both in person and telephone interviews so that
respondents can indicate a response category number to select the
appropriate category or categories.
Both the `current gender' and `sexual orientation' question allow a
write-in response. In the internet mode we will test two versions of
the write in. In the first version the respondent will see the
question, response categories, and the write-in field when they get to
the screen with the question. In the second version, the respondent
will only see the question and response categories when they get to the
screen with the question. If the respondent selects the ``This person
uses a different term'' category, then the write-in space will display,
and the respondent can provide a write-in response. This display
experiment will be embedded within the question wording experiment.
A follow-up content reinterview is also proposed for this test. A
subset of the ACS questions will be re-asked in the reinterview to
measure response reliability. For half of the reinterview sample, we
will reinterview the sample respondent as the original interview, for
the other half we will reinterview another adult member of the
household. This will allow us to compare response reliability for proxy
vs. self-responses. We will also compare the reliability of the SOGI
questions to other questions in the ACS.
II. Method of Collection
Data collection for the test will mirror the data collection
protocol for the ACS, which includes internet, paper, telephone, and
in-person interviewing. In addition, a content follow-up reinterview
will be conducted, most likely by telephone, though other modes such as
internet are being considered. Interviews will be administered in
English and Spanish.
III. Data
OMB Control Number: 0607-0936.
Form Number(s): ACS-1, ACS-1(SP), ACS CAPI(HU).
Type of Review: Regular submission, Request for a Revision of a
Currently Approved Collection.
Affected Public: Individuals or households.
Estimated Number of Respondents: We estimate that 271,680 sampled
housing units will respond to the test of the 480,000 housing units
sampled for the test. Additionally, responding housing units are
eligible for a content follow-up reinterview. We estimate that 65,280
sampled housing units will also complete the reinterview.
Estimated Time per Response: 40 minutes for the average household
questionnaire and 20 minutes for the content follow-up reinterview.
Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 203,015 hours.
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Estimated number Estimated burden Total estimated
of respondents (in hours) burden hours
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ACS interview.......................................... 271,680 0.667 181,211
Content Follow-up Reinterview.......................... 65,280 0.334 21,804
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Total.............................................. ................. ................. 203,015
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Estimated Total Annual Cost to Public: $0. (This is not the cost of
respondents' time, but the indirect costs respondents may incur for
such things as purchases of specialized software or hardware needed to
report, or expenditures for accounting or records maintenance services
required specifically by the collection.)
Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.
Legal Authority: Title 13 U.S. Code, Sections 141, 193, and 221.
IV. Request for Comments
We are soliciting public comments to permit the Department/Bureau
to: (a) Evaluate whether the proposed information collection is
necessary for the proper functions of the Department, including whether
the information will have practical utility; (b) Evaluate the accuracy
of our estimate of the time and cost burden for this proposed
collection, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions
used; (c) Evaluate ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of
the information to be collected; and (d) Minimize the reporting burden
on those who are to respond, including the use of automated collection
techniques or other forms of information technology.
Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of
public record. We will include, or summarize, each comment in our
request to OMB to approve this ICR. Before including your address,
phone number, email address, or other personal identifying information
in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment--
including your personal identifying information--may be made publicly
available at any time. While you may ask us in your comment to withhold
your personal identifying information from public review, we
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cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Under Secretary for
Economic Affairs, Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2023-20256 Filed 9-18-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-07-P
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