[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 200 (Wednesday, October 15, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Page 61018]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-24351]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

U.S. Census Bureau


Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Survey of 
Income and Program Participation (SIPP) Wave 3 of the 2008 Panel

AGENCY: U.S. Census Bureau.

ACTION: Notice.

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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 take this opportunity to comment on 
proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C. 
3506(c)(2)(A)).

DATES: To ensure consideration, written comments must be submitted on 
or before December 15, 2008.

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Diana Hynek, Departmental 
Paperwork Clearance Officer, Department of Commerce, Room 6625, 14th 
and Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20230 (or via the Internet 
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 Patrick J. Benton, Census Bureau, Room HQ-6H045, 
Washington, DC 20233-8400, (301) 763-4618.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

    The Census Bureau conducts the SIPP, which is a household-based 
survey designed as a continuous series of national panels. New panels 
are introduced every few years with each panel usually having durations 
of one to four years. Respondents are interviewed at 4-month intervals 
or ``waves'' over the life of the panel. The survey is molded around a 
central ``core'' of labor force and income questions that remain fixed 
throughout the life of the panel. The core is supplemented with 
questions designed to address specific needs, such as obtaining 
information on household members' participation in government programs 
as well as prior labor force patterns of household members. These 
supplemental questions are included with the core and are referred to 
as ``topical modules.''
    The SIPP represents a source of information for a wide variety of 
topics and allows information for separate topics to be integrated to 
form a single, unified database so that the interaction between tax, 
transfer, and other government and private policies can be examined. 
Government domestic-policy formulators depend heavily upon the SIPP 
information concerning the distribution of income received directly as 
money or indirectly as in-kind benefits and the effect of tax and 
transfer programs on this distribution. They also need improved and 
expanded data on the income and general economic and financial 
situation of the U.S. population. The SIPP has provided this data on a 
continuing basis since 1983 permitting levels of economic well-being 
and changes in these levels to be measured over time.
    The 2008 panel is currently scheduled for 4 years and will include 
13 waves of interviewing beginning September 2008. Approximately 65,300 
households were selected for the 2008 panel, of which, 45,000 
households are expected to be interviewed. We estimate that each 
household contains 2.1 people, yielding 94,500 person-level interviews 
in Wave 1 and subsequent waves. The interviews take 30 minutes on 
average. Three waves will occur in the 2008 SIPP Panel during FY 2009. 
The total annual burden for 2008 Panel SIPP interviews would be 141,750 
hours in FY 2009.
    The topical modules for the 2008 Panel Wave 3 collect information 
about:

 Welfare Reform
 Retirement and Pension Plan Coverage

Wave 3 interviews will be conducted from May 2009 through August 2009.
    A 10-minute reinterview of 3,100 people is conducted at each wave 
to ensure accuracy of responses. The reinterviews would require an 
additional 1,553 burden hours in FY 2009.

II. Method of Collection

    The SIPP is designed as a continuing series of national panels of 
interviewed households that are introduced every few years with each 
panel having durations of 1 to 4 years. All household members 15 years 
old or over are interviewed using regular proxy-respondent rules. 
During the 2008 panel, respondents are interviewed a total of 13 times 
(13 waves) at 4-month intervals making the SIPP a longitudinal survey. 
Sample people (all household members present at the time of the first 
interview) who move within the country and reasonably close to a SIPP 
primary sampling unit will be followed and interviewed at their new 
address. Individuals 15 years old or over who enter the household after 
Wave 1 will be interviewed; however, if these individuals move, they 
are not followed unless they happen to move along with a Wave 1 sample 
individual.

III. Data

    OMB Control Number: 0607-0944.
    Form Number: SIPP/CAPI Automated Instrument.
    Type of Review: Regular submission.
    Affected Public: Individuals or households.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 94,500 people per wave.
    Estimated Time Per Response: 30 minutes per person.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 143,303.
    Estimated Total Annual Cost: $0.
    Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.
    Legal Authority: Title 13, United States Code, Section 182.

IV. Request 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: October 8, 2008.
Gwellnar Banks,
Management Analyst, Office of the Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. E8-24351 Filed 10-14-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-07-P