[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 2 (Tuesday, January 5, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 450-452]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-31209]


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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. The 
Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is soliciting comments concerning the 
proposed revision of the ``National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 
1997.'' A copy of the proposed information collection request (ICR) can 
be obtained by contacting the individual listed 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 March 8, 2010.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to Carol Rowan, BLS Clearance Officer, 
Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Room 4080, 
2 Massachusetts Avenue, NE., Washington, DC 20212, 202-691-7628 (this 
is not a toll free number).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carol Rowan, BLS Clearance Officer, 
202-691-7628. (See ADDRESSES section.)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 (NLSY97) is a 
nationally representative sample of persons who were born in the years 
1980 to 1984. These respondents were ages 12-17 when the first round of 
annual interviews began in 1997; the fourteenth round of annual 
interviews will be

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conducted from September 2010 to May 2011. The Bureau of Labor 
Statistics (BLS) contracts with the National Opinion Research Center 
(NORC) at the University of Chicago to conduct the NLSY97. The primary 
objective of the survey is to study the transition from schooling to 
the establishment of careers and families. The longitudinal focus of 
this survey requires information to be collected from the same 
individuals over many years in order to trace their education, 
training, work experience, fertility, income, and program 
participation.
    One of the goals of the Department of Labor (DOL) is to produce and 
disseminate timely, accurate, and relevant information about the U.S. 
labor force. The BLS contributes to this goal by gathering information 
about the labor force and labor market and disseminating it to 
policymakers and the public so that participants in those markets can 
make more informed, and thus more efficient choices. Research based on 
the NLSY97 contributes to the formation of national policy in the areas 
of education, training, employment programs, and school-to-work 
transitions. In addition to the reports that the BLS produces based on 
data from the NLSY97, members of the academic community publish 
articles and reports based on NLSY97 data for the DOL and other funding 
agencies. To date, more than 130 articles examining NLSY97 data have 
been published in scholarly journals. The survey design provides data 
gathered from the same respondents over time to form the only dataset 
that contains this type of information for this important population 
group. Without the collection of these data, an accurate longitudinal 
dataset could not be provided to researchers and policymakers, thus 
adversely affecting the DOL's ability to perform its policy- and 
report-making activities.

II. Current Action

    The BLS seeks approval to conduct round 14 of annual interviews of 
the NLSY97. Respondents to the NLSY97 will undergo an interview of 
approximately 65 minutes during which they will answer questions about 
schooling and labor market experiences, family relationships, and 
community background.
    During the fielding period for the main round 14 interviews, about 
2 percent of respondents will be asked to participate in a brief 
validation interview a few weeks after the initial interview. The 
purpose of the validation interview is to verify that the initial 
interview took place as the interviewer reported and to assess the data 
quality of selected questionnaire items.
    The BLS proposes to record randomly selected segments of the main 
interviews during round 14. Recording interviews helps the BLS and NORC 
to ensure that the interviews actually took place and that interviewers 
are reading the questions exactly as worded and entering the responses 
properly. Recording also helps to identify parts of the interview that 
might be causing problems or misunderstanding for interviewers or 
respondents. Each respondent will be informed that the interview may be 
recorded for quality control, testing, and training purposes. If the 
respondent objects to the recording of the interview, the interviewer 
will confirm to the respondent that the interview will not be recorded 
and then proceed with the interview.
    During round 14, the BLS proposes to administer a noninterview 
respondent questionnaire to sample members who have missed at least 
five consecutive rounds and who do not complete the round 14 interview 
on first approach. Responses to this questionnaire will enable the BLS 
and NORC to learn more about long-term nonrespondents and therefore 
understand attrition patterns and any nonresponse bias. Other changes 
in round 14 include collecting permission forms from respondents to 
obtain their college transcripts. Permission forms will be sought from 
respondents who have received a high school diploma or General 
Education Development (GED) credential or completed coursework in a 
postsecondary degree program. Collection of permission forms is 
contingent on available funding.
    The round 14 questionnaire includes questions on persons without 
jobs who are too discouraged by their job prospects to look for work. 
These questions on discouraged workers are asked in conjunction with 
existing questions on job search for current gaps in employment. 
Respondents who report having served on active military duty again will 
be asked a series of questions on their military service. Military 
veterans also will be asked about their experience with programs 
designed to help service members make the transition from military to 
civilian life.
    As in prior rounds of the NLSY97, round 14 will include a pretest 
conducted several months before the main fielding to test survey 
procedures and questions and resolve problems before the main fielding 
begins. The round 14 pretest will include a trial collection of birth 
certificates on a small number of survey respondents. Birth 
certificates are the optimal source of information about birth weight, 
a measure of considerable research interest given its relationship with 
child development, lifetime obesity, and other outcomes. This trial 
collection of birth certificates will provide insight into respondent 
reactions and concerns regarding the release of administrative records 
and the logistical issues surrounding the handling, acquiring, and 
coding of such documents. The round 14 pretest also will include a 
trial Internet collection of selected information used to locate 
respondents for interviews. The purpose of the trial is to determine 
whether Internet collection yields information of higher quality when 
compared to the current method of collecting the information as part of 
the interview. The Internet trial also will be used to assess 
respondent acceptance of Internet collection generally and whether such 
collection can reduce respondent burden without reducing the quality of 
the survey information.

III. Desired Focus of Comments

    The Bureau of Labor Statistics is particularly interested in 
comments that:
     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.
     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.
    Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection.
    Agency: Bureau of Labor Statistics.
    Title: National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997.
    OMB Number: 1220-0157.
    Affected Public: Individuals or households.

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                                                                                   Average time      Estimated
             Form                    Total          Frequency          Total       per response    total burden
                                  respondents                        responses       (minutes)        (hours)
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NLSY97 Pretest: July-August                150  Annually........             150              65             163
 2010.
Collection of birth                        100  Once............             100             1.5               3
 certificates in the NLSY97
 Pretest: July-August 2010.
Main NLSY97: September 2010-             7,350  Annually........           7,350              65           7,963
 May 2011.
Round 14 Validation Interview.             147  Annually........             147               4              10
Noninterview Respondent                    120  Annually........             120              10              20
 Questionnaire.
College Transcript Release               6,311  Once............           6,311             1.5             158
 Form.
    Totals....................           7,620  ................          14,178  ..............          8,317
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The difference between the total number of respondents and the total number of responses reflects the fact that
  about 6,311 are expected to complete the main interview and the college transcript release form. In addition,
  about 147 respondents will be interviewed twice, once in the main survey and a second time in the 4-minute
  validation interview.

    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 information collection request; they also will become a 
matter of public record.

    Signed at Washington, DC, this 29th day of December, 2009.
Kimberley D. Hill,
Acting Chief, Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor 
Statistics.
[FR Doc. E9-31209 Filed 1-4-10; 8:45 am]
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