[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 118 (Wednesday, June 19, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 41690-41691]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-15375]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE


Census Bureau

2002 Survey of Business Owners and Self-Employed Persons (SBO)

ACTION: Proposed collection; comment request.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort 
to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public 
and other Federal agencies to comment on proposed and/or continuing 
information collection, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995, Public Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)).

DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before August 19, 2002.

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Madeleine Clayton, 
Departmental Paperwork Clearance Officer, Department of Commerce, Room 
6608, 14th and Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20230, or via 
e-mail at [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
copies of the information collection instrument(s) and instructions 
should be directed to Valerie Strang, (301) 457-3316, Bureau of the 
Census, CSD, Room 1183-3, Washington, DC 20233-6400 or via e-mail at 
[email protected].

[[Page 41691]]


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

I. Abstract

    The Census Bureau plans to conduct the 2002 Survey of Business 
Owners and Self-Employed Persons (SBO), previously known as the Survey 
of Minority-Owned Business Enterprises and the Survey of Women-Owned 
Business Enterprises (SMOBE/SWOBE). This survey will provide the only 
comprehensive, regularly collected source of information on selected 
economic and demographic characteristics for businesses and business 
owners by race, ethnicity, and gender. The survey is conducted as part 
of the economic census program which is required by law to be taken 
every five years under Title 13 of the United States Code, Sections 
131, 193, and 224.
    Businesses will be eligible to be selected for this survey if they 
reported any business activity on any one of the following Internal 
Revenue Service tax forms: 1040 (Schedule C), ``Profit or Loss from 
Business'' (Sole Proprietorship); 1065, ``U.S. Partnership Return of 
Income''; or any one of the 1120 corporate tax forms.
    The following changes have been made to the 2002 SBO:
     The questions about race and ethnicity have been modified 
to meet OMB guidelines to allow respondents the opportunity to select 
more than one race category, and the ``Some other race'' classification 
has been omitted. Also, per the OMB guidelines, the Hispanic origin 
question is placed before the race question.
     Background research suggested difficulty with aggregate 
reporting of race and ethnicity combinations for multiple owners. Thus, 
the survey adopts person-level reporting for a variety of 
characteristics for up to three persons owning majority interest in the 
business. Based on summaries from the 1997 SMOBE/SWOBE showing 75 
percent of businesses surveyed had three or fewer owners, the SBO-1 
questionnaire will capture information for, at most, three owners of 
firms that are not sole proprietorships. Sole proprietors will be 
mailed the SBO-2 questionnaire, a shorter version of the SBO-1 form, 
which will capture information for up to two owners.
     Several new questions have been borrowed from the former 
Characteristics of Business Owners survey, which has not been funded 
for the upcoming economic census. These items will fill the void for 
many data users, including the Small Business Administration and other 
interested associations. Some of these new questions have been 
incorporated into the individual owner questions, while others are 
asked about the entire business.
    The owner questions ask for age, education, if the owner is 
disabled, the average number of hours spent managing or working in the 
business, and whether the business provided the owner's primary source 
of income. The business questions ask for the year the earliest owner 
established, purchased, or acquired the business; whether the business 
was home-based or family-owned; whether the business operated as a 
franchise; which types of customers accounted for 10 percent or more of 
the business's sales; and if the business obtained financing for 
expansion, capital improvements or start-up during 2002.
     A new question has been added to increase our 
understanding of businesses' use of alternative employment 
arrangements.
    To alleviate reporting problems encountered on the 1997 SMOBE/SWOBE 
and to test the aforementioned changes, a pretest of the proposed 2002 
SBO form has been conducted using principles of questionnaire design 
and methodological research. Cognitive interviews were completed with 
more than sixty respondents in two rounds of testing of the early 
versions of the SBO form. Then a voluntary mailout/mailback survey of 
the revised form was conducted in February 2002, which canvassed an 
additional 6,629 respondents. After two mail report form follow-ups, 37 
percent of the pretest forms were returned. The form underwent further 
review and analysis and additional revisions were made in an effort to 
reflect, where feasible, comments received from the pretest 
respondents. This resulted in the final versions of 2002 SBO-1 and SBO-
2 questionnaires to be submitted to OMB.

II. Method of Collection

    The Census Bureau will use a mailout/mailback survey form to 
collect the data. The questionnaires will be mailed from our National 
Processing Center in Jeffersonville, Indiana. Two mail report form 
follow-ups will be conducted at approximately one-month intervals. Upon 
closeout of the survey, the response data will be edited and reviewed.

III. Data

    OMB Number: Not available.
    Form Number: SBO-1, ``Survey of Business Owners and Self-Employed 
Persons'' (for firms other than sole proprietorships) and SBO-2, 
``Survey of Business Owners and Self-Employed Persons'' (for sole 
proprietorships).
    Type of Review: Regular review.
    Affected Public: Large and small businesses, other for-profit and 
nonprofit organizations, and publicly held corporations.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 2.5 million.
    Estimated Time Per Response: 10 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 416,666.
    Estimated Total Annual Cost: $8,712,486.
    Respondent's Obligation: Mandatory.

    Legal Authority: Title 13, United States Code, Sections 131, 
193, and 224.

IV. Requests for Comments

    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the agency, including whether the information shall have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden 
(including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information; 
(c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on respondents, including through the use of 
automated collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology.
    Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized 
and/or included in the request for OMB approval of this information 
collection; they also will become a matter of public record.

    Dated: June 13, 2002.
Madeleine Clayton,
Departmental Paperwork Clearance Officer, Office of the Chief 
Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 02-15375 Filed 6-18-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-07-P