Notice2024-11678
Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment Request; Generic Clearance for Emergency Economic Information Collections
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
May 29, 2024
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 extension of the Generic Clearance for Emergency Economic Information Collections, prior to the submission of the information collection request (ICR) to OMB for approval.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 104 (Wednesday, May 29, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 104 (Wednesday, May 29, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46360-46361]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-11678]
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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; Generic Clearance for Emergency Economic Information
Collections
AGENCY: Census Bureau, Department of 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 extension of the Generic Clearance for Emergency Economic
Information Collections, 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 July 29, 2024.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments by
email to <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#d084b8bfbdb1a3fe9afe83bdb9a4b890b3b5bea3a5a3feb7bfa6"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="8cd8e4e3e1edffa2c6a2dfe1e5f8e4ccefe9e2fff9ffa2ebe3fa">[email protected]</span></a>. Please reference Generic Clearance
for Emergency Economic Information Collections in the subject line of
your comments. You may also submit comments, identified by Docket
Number USBC-2024-0013, 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 Lisa Donaldson, Chief, Economy-Wide Statistics Division, 301-763-
7296, and <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#ef83869c8ec18ac18b80818e838b9c8081af8c8a819c9a9cc1888099"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="0864617b69266d266c676669646c7b6766486b6d667b7d7b266f677e">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Abstract
The U.S. Census Bureau plans to request a 3-year extension of the
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval for the Generic
Clearance for Emergency Economic Information Collections (EEIC). The
EEIC provides the quick turn-around necessary for conducting emergency
economic information collections in response to unanticipated
international, national, or regional declared emergencies or events of
national interest arising as a direct result of declared emergencies
having a significant economic impact on U.S. businesses and/or state or
local governments. The purpose of the collections is to gauge and
monitor the economic impact of such events on U.S. businesses or
organizations and state or local governments.
Emergencies, once declared by the authorized state or federal
official or entity, that could trigger the need for an EEIC may have
global, national, or regional impact on U.S. businesses and
governments, and include the following examples:
--Pandemic or other health emergency
--Natural or manmade disaster
--Acts of war or terrorism
--Civil unrest or insurrection
Other events of national interest arising as a direct result of
declared emergencies may also have a significant impact on U.S.
businesses or governments. General categories of national interest
events arising as a direct result of declared emergencies which could
trigger the need for an EEIC are:
--Economic crises
--Financial crises
--International geo-political instabilities
--Resource shortages
--Cyberterrorism
--New legislation passed as a direct result of a declared emergency
EEIC questions may be included as supplemental questions on
existing Census Bureau surveys or conducted as new special-purpose
surveys. The data will be collected by paper or electronic instruments,
depending on the survey or program.
EEIC questions will be chosen from a pretested Question Bank. For
some subjects, the Question Bank includes specific questionnaire
content. In other cases, the Question Bank includes topics which will
then be addressed with questions designed to meet data needs that arise
during a future
[[Page 46361]]
unknown event. Some questions have been cognitively tested and should
be considered final; some may require testing for final wording.
Questions that may require testing and refinement are annotated in the
Question Bank. As the Question Bank matures with new or revised
content, the Census Bureau will resubmit the bank for review.
Prior to adding EEIC questions to any survey, the Census Bureau
will consult with OMB and submit a request for approval, allowing
between 3 and 10 business days for OMB action. Over the existing period
of clearance, the EEIC Generic Clearance was used to clear supplemental
questions which were added to existing surveys, responsive to both
recession conditions resulting from the COVID-19 Pandemic and various
severe weather events which occurred in 2022.
As data collections will be tailored to the emergency, users of the
data may vary, but may include: federal, state, or local officials
charged with decision- making during the emergency; business leaders
and policymakers wishing to develop plans to ameliorate the effects of
the emergency; academics and members of the press wishing to study and
disseminate information about the emergency; and the public. The data
collected will help us understand how and why data we collect in our
ongoing surveys may be affected by the emergency, as well as allow us
to disseminate data as part of existing releases, new releases, or
experimental releases.
II. Method of Collection
The vast majority of business and government surveys to which EEIC
questions may be added utilize the Census Bureau's online reporting
system called Centurion as their primary collection system. New
information collections conducted under this generic clearance will
also likely collect responses electronically using Centurion.
III. Data
OMB Control Number: 0607-1019.
Form Number(s): None.
Type of Review: Regular submission, Request for an Extension,
without Change, of a Currently Approved Collection.
Affected Public: Business or other for-profit organizations; Not-
for-profit institutions; State, Local, or Tribal government.
Estimated Number of Respondents: 300,000.
Estimated Time per Response: 10 minutes.
Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 50,000.
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: Voluntary.
Legal Authority: Title 13 U.S.C., sections 131, 161 and 182.
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 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. 2024-11678 Filed 5-28-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-07-P
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