[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 173 (Monday, September 8, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52960-52961]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-22742]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Employment and Training Administration


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, is conducting a pre-clearance 
consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies 
with an opportunity to comment on proposed collections of information 
in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (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 the collection requirements on respondents can be 
properly assessed. Through this notice, the Employment and Training 
Administration is soliciting comments concerning a proposed new 
collection of data on self-services provided by states and local 
workforce areas under the Workforce Investment Act and the Wagner-
Peyser Act.
    A copy of the proposed survey can be obtained by contacting the 
office listed below in the ADDRESSES section of this notice.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the 
ADDRESSES section below on or before November 7, 2003.

ADDRESSES: Daniel Ryan, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and 
Training Administration, Office of Policy Development, Evaluation and 
Research, 200 Constitution Ave, NW., Room N-5637, Washington, DC 20210, 
(202) 693-3649 [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Daniel Ryan, tel. (202) 693-3649.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration 
(ETA) seeks to collect data from employers and other customers of One-
Stop self-services, which are made available under the Workforce 
Investment Act (WIA) and Wagner-Peyser Act (W-P), as well as from a 
comparison group of job seekers who did not use WIA or W-P services. 
The data ETA seeks to collect will provide a snapshot of: (a) 
Employment-related outcomes that users might have achieved since they 
accessed self-services, (b) the demographic characteristics of users, 
(c) their patterns of usage and objectives in using these services, (d) 
their satisfaction with the services, and (e) other competing resources 
that they may have used.
    Collecting this information is important because self-services--
including informational and self-help core services authorized by WIA 
and self-directed labor exchange services provided as part of W-P--have 
become an important feature of the nation's workforce development 
system. Over the past decade, substantial amounts of resources have 
been expended in developing the infrastructure to support self-
services, such as by establishing physical facilities in which 
``Resource Rooms'' can be housed, developing an array of tools and 
resources to meet diverse needs, ensuring that these resources are 
user-friendly and are accessible from remote locations, and promoting 
access and use for customers with special needs. Moreover, the pace of 
investments has dramatically quickened since the enactment of WIA. It 
is expected that self-services must be an essential feature of every 
one of the nation's comprehensive One-Stop centers. WIA requires that 
access to these services must be universally available without 
eligibility restrictions.
    Moreover, self-services are expected to play a critical role in 
meeting the nation's workforce development needs. The vision at the 
heart of WIA is that all adults should have easy access to an array of 
high-quality resources and information tools that they can use to make 
informed career decisions and that, more generally, will improve the 
efficiency of the labor market. Given WIA's emphasis on universal 
access and the limited public funding available to support staff-
intensive workforce development systems, self-services become a 
critical means by which this vision can be realized.
    Currently, however, little is known about how frequently customers 
use self-services and for what purposes, whether they are satisfied 
with the tools at their disposal, and whether use of these services 
improves their employment outcomes. This information vacuum occurs 
partly because users of self-services are not required to become 
registrants under either WIA or W-P, and these services are thus not 
covered by the programs' reporting requirements.
    To fill the information gap, ETA is embarking on two data 
collection efforts focused on self-services. One, the Local Area Survey 
of Self-Directed Labor Exchange Services (OMB number 1205-0438, 
expiration date January, 31, 2006) was covered in a previous Federal 
Register notice (Vol. 67, No. 89, Wed, May 8, 2002: pp. 30965-30966). 
It elicits information from the nation's local workforce investment 
areas about the self-service tools and resources that they make 
available to customers. A second effort, to which this notice applies, 
will entail a questionnaire administered to customers of self-services 
in selected local areas, including both employers and other customers, 
as well as to a comparison group of job seekers. In addition to 
providing important information in its own right, the survey results 
will be combined with administrative data so that a quantitative 
analysis of the outcomes associated with self-services can be 
conducted.

II. Review Focus

    The Department of Labor is particularly interested in comments 
that: (a) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, 
including whether the information has practical utility; (b) 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; (c) enhance the utility, quality and clarity of 
the information to be collected; and

[[Page 52961]]

(d) minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who 
are to respond, including 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.

III. Current Actions

    The Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration 
will be seeking Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval to 
administer the questionnaires to up to 2,000 employer customers, 10,400 
other users of self-services, and 2,600 individuals in a job-seeker 
comparison group. The data will be used to provide a snapshot of 
customers' usage and satisfaction with One-Stop self-service systems.
    Type of Review: New.
    Agency: Employment and Training Administration.
    Title: Customer Surveys of Self-Directed Labor Exchange Services.
    Affected Public: Customers of self-services and other job seekers.
    Total Respondents: 2,000 employer customers of self-services, 
10,400 other users of self-services, 2,600 other job seekers.
    Frequency: Once.
    Total Responses: 15,000.
    Average Time Per Response: 10 minutes per Employer Survey, 20 
minutes per Customer Survey, 10 minutes per Employment-Comparison 
Survey.
    Estimated Total Burden Hours: 3,387.
    Total Burden Cost for Capital and Startup: $0.
    Total Burden Cost for Operation and Maintenance: $0.
    Comments submitted in response to this comment request will be 
summarized and/or included in the request for OMB approval of the 
information collection request; they will also become a matter of 
public record.

    Signed at Washington, DC, this 13th day of August, 2003.
Maria K. Flynn,
Acting Administrator.
[FR Doc. 03-22742 Filed 9-5-03; 8:45 am]
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