[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 71 (Thursday, April 11, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16121-16123]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-9065]
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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.
Currently, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is soliciting comments
concerning the proposed new collection of the ``State Unemployment
Insurance (UI) Wage Records Quality Project.'' A copy of the proposed
information collection request (ICR) can be obtained by contacting the
individual listed below in the addressee section of this notice.
DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the
addressee section below on or before June 10, 1996.
BLS is particularly interested in comments which help the agency
to:
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; and
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.
ADDRESSES: Send comments to Karin G. Kurz, BLS Clearance Officer,
Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Room 3255,
2 Massachusetts Avenue NE., Washington, DC 20212. Ms. Kurz can be
reached on 202--606-7628 (this is not a toll free number).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Background
Interest in developing a National Wage Record Database (NWRD) has
been building for several years. The Northeast-Midwest Institute
recommended that the quarterly records on individual wages (wage
records) maintained by States for the administration of the UI program
be more fully utilized by also using them for program evaluation and
policy research purposes. The Institute sponsored a conference on the
subject in 1989 and subsequently issued a report that recommended the
creation of a NWRD.
The National Commission for Employment Policy (NCEP) also sponsored
studies on various aspects of the use of wage records for evaluation of
employment and training programs and in a report issued in June 1992,
the NCEP recommended that the Department of Labor (DOL) use wage record
data in lieu of the telephone survey data now used for Job Training
Partnership Act (JTPA) performance standards on the basis of cost and
quality. The NCEP recommendations envisioned a system of interstate
data sharing through regional consortia to follow program participants
who may have moved or who work in adjoining States. A requirement for a
NWRD has been present in various versions of the JTPA amendments from
1989-1992.
The Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act
of 1990 mandated that the National Occupational Information
Coordinating Committee (NOICC) establish a demonstration project to
monitor education outcomes for vocational-technical education using
wage and other records. NOICC commissioned a study by the National
Governors' Association (NGA) to determine the extent to which States
are currently using wage records to monitor vocational-technical
education outcomes and to serve as a guide for the Institute for
Family, Work, and Community to use wage records for program follow-up
purposes.
In September 1992, Congress amended section 462(g) of the JTPA to
require the Commissioner of Labor Statistics to determine appropriate
procedures for establishing a national longitudinal wage record
database containing information on the quarterly earnings,
establishment and industry affiliation, and geographic location of
employment for every individual for whom such information is collected
and stored by the State Employment Security Agencies' (SESAs) UI files.
Each employer's wage record lists the total wages and Social Security
Number (SSN) of every employee of that employer during the quarter.
Most States require the employer to submit these data along with their
Quarterly Contribution Report and use the data to determine a worker's
eligibility for UI. This database is intended to be used to obtain
follow-up data for JTPA program completers, as well as a range of other
educational programs including vocational education, community college
programs, and adult education.
In 1994, Employment and Training Administration (ETA) launched the
America's Labor Market Information System (ALMIS) to explore the
technological advances available to improve the collection, processing
and timely dissemination of accurate labor market information (LMI). A
segment of ALMIS involves conducting research to explore the potential
uses of State UI wage record databases as LMI tools. Research conducted
by BLS suggests there are various problems with the quality of the UI
wage record data in the SESAs. With limited staff resources and tight
time constaints, many SESAs are only able to conduct cursory edits of
the wage record data, and there is no set of standardized edits
available to the SESAs at this time. For these reasons, the DOL report
recommended that the ``Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) should
establish a program, in conjunction with State agencies, to ensure the
basic quality and standardization of maintenance of the State wage
record files.'' As a component of ALMIS, BLS has been funded by ETA to
begin work to improve the quality of State UI wage records.
In cooperation with ETA, the BLS requests OMB approval to collect
information needed to develop a quality assurance program to improve
the accuracy of individual wage records maintained by States for the
administration of the UI program. The primary activity is to perform a
one-time personal interview survey of all SESAs to determine current UI
procedures involving wage records and verify the accuracy of State UI
wage record keeping for the purposes of a NWRD. BLS will summarize the
results; prepare an analysis of the findings; and, develop
recommendations for any needed improvements to the State's maintenance
of wage records. The report will be submitted to ETA.
[[Page 16123]]
II. Current Actions
No other information is available to assess State UI wage record
maintenance procedures and determine the accuracy of the wage records
for the development of a NWRD.
Type of Review: New collection.
Agency: Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Title: State Unemployment Insurance (UI) Wage Records Quality
Project.
Affected Public: All State Employment Security Agencies (SESAs),
including the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin
Islands.
Number of Respondents: 53.
Frequency: One time.
Average Time Per Response: 3 hours.
Etimated Total Burden Hours: 159 Hours.
Total Burden Cost (capital/startup): 0.
Total Burden Cost (operating/maintenance): 0.
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 ICR; they also will become a matter of public record.
Signed at Washington, D.C., this 4th day of April, 1996.
Peter T. Spolarich,
Chief, Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor Statistics.
[FR Doc. 96-9065 Filed 4-10-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-24-M