[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 11 (Wednesday, January 18, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2566-2567]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-790]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Employment and Training Administration


Comment Request for Information Collection for a Three-Year 
Extension of the Labor Exchange Reporting System (LERS), Extension With 
Revisions

AGENCY: Employment and Training Administration, Labor.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Labor (Department), as part of its 
continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden conducts a 
preclearance 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 Employment and Training Administration (ETA) is 
soliciting comments concerning LERS, Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) Control No. 1205-0240), which facilitates performance reporting 
for the Wagner-Peyser Act funded public employment service activities 
through the ETA 9002 reports and for the Jobs for Veterans' State 
grants' activities through the Veterans' Employment and Training 
Services (VETS) 200 reports. The current expiration date is March 31, 
2012. A copy of the proposed information collection request 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 March 19, 2012.

ADDRESSES: Submit written comments to Karen Staha, Office of Policy 
Development and Research, Employment and Training Administration, U.S. 
Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue NW., Room N-5641, 
Washington, DC 20210. Telephone number: (202) 693-2917 (this is not a 
toll-free number). Fax: (202) 693-3490. Email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    Each quarter, states and territories submit data on individuals and 
employers who receive core employment and workforce information 
services through the public labor exchange and employment services and 
the Jobs for Veterans' state grants in the states' One-Stop delivery 
systems. These data--submitted to the Department via the ETA 9002 and 
VETS 200 reports--are used by ETA and VETS to evaluate performance and 
delivery of labor exchange and employment services within the One-Stop 
delivery system.
    ETA and VETS use the data to track total participants, aggregate 
information about characteristics, services and outcomes of job seeker 
customers. Additionally, ETA and VETS analyze the data to determine the 
delivery of core labor exchange services; to study performance outcomes 
vis-[agrave]-vis performance measures, and state policies and 
procedures; and to help drive the workforce investment system toward 
continuous improvement of outcomes and integrated service delivery. 
Within ETA, the data are used by the Office of Workforce Investment, 
the Office of Unemployment Insurance, the Office of Financial and 
Administrative Management, the Office of Policy Development and 
Research, and the Office of Regional Management (including the regional 
offices). Other Departmental users include the Office of the Assistant 
Secretary for Employment and Training and the Office of the Assistant 
Secretary for Policy.
    The reports and other analyses of the data are made available to 
the states, members of Congress, veterans' organizations, research 
firms and others needing information on public employment and workforce 
information services. Information about labor exchange and employment 
services for veterans are provided to Congress to meet VETS reporting 
requirements codified in Title 38 of the United States Code (U.S.C.).
    Currently, LERS is the only mechanism for collecting performance 
information on Wagner-Peyser Act funded and Jobs for Veterans' state 
grants. As such, this set of reports is necessary for tracking and 
reporting to stakeholders data on the usage and performance of these 
programs. More specifically, these reports are used to monitor the core 
purpose of the program--mainly, tracking how many people found jobs; 
did people stay employed; and what were their earnings.

[[Page 2567]]

    Information is collected on the ETA 9002 and VETS 200 Reports under 
the following authority:
     Wagner-Peyser Act sec. 3(a), 29 U.S.C. 49b(a)
     Wagner-Peyser Act sec. 3(c), 29 U.S.C. 49b(c)
     Wagner-Peyser Act sec. 7(b), 29 U.S.C. 49f(b)
     Wagner-Peyser Act sec. 10(c), 29 U.S.C. 49i(c)
     Wagner-Peyser Act sec. 13(a), 29 U.S.C. 49l(a)
     Wagner-Peyser Act sec. 15(e)(2)(I), 29 U.S.C. 49l-
2(e)(2)(I).
     Provisional Guidance on the Implementation of the 1997 
Standards for Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity, Executive Office of 
the President, Office of Management and Budget (66 FR 3829-3831).
     Revisions to the Standards for Maintaining, Collecting, 
and Presenting Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity (62 FR 58781-58790); 
and
     Priority of Service for veterans in Department of Labor 
job training programs, 38 U.S.C. 4215(a)(2).
    By July 1, 2012, ETA must modify the current reporting system to 
begin the collection of several additional statutorily required pieces 
of information. The first pertains to the priority of service 
provisions contained in the Jobs for Veterans Act, Public Law 107-288. 
These provisions provide that veterans and certain spouses of veterans 
(together comprising the category of covered persons) are entitled to 
priority over non-covered persons for the receipt of employment, 
training, and placement services provided under new or existing 
qualified job training programs. Qualified job training programs are 
defined at 38 U.S.C. 4215(a)(2) as any workforce preparation, 
development or delivery program or service that is directly funded, in 
whole or in part, by the Department.
    Additional items are required under Public Law 112-56, Title II, 
Vow to Hire Heroes, Sections 238 and 239, and pertain to: (1) 
Performance measures on job counseling, training and placement programs 
of the Department, and; (2) clarifications of priority of service for 
veterans in Departmental job training programs.
    These requirements impact both the ETA 9002 and VETS 200 reports. 
Lastly, the expansive focus on veterans reemployment initiatives has 
necessitated collection of additional information on groups of veterans 
(such as Post 9/11 era veterans), targeted services they received, and 
additional aspects of their outcomes in order to monitor and oversee 
their effectiveness.

II. Review Focus

    The Department is particularly interested in comments which:
     Evaluate whether the proposed continuation of the 
collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of 
the functions of the agency, including whether the information has 
considerable 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.

III. Current Actions

    Type of Review: Extension with revisions.
    Title: Labor Exchange Reporting System (LERS).
    OMB Number: 1205-0240.
    Affected Public: State, local and tribal government entities and 
private non-profit organizations.
    Form(s): ETA-9002, VETS-200, The Employment and Training (ET) 
Handbook No. 406, Employment Service Record Layout, Labor Exchange DRVS 
Software Version 7.2 User's Guide.
    Total Annual Respondents: 54.
    Annual Frequency: Quarterly.
    Total Annual Responses: 1944.
    Average Time per Response: 375 hours.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 728,889.
    Total Annual Burden Cost for Respondents: $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.

    Dated: January 2, 2012.
Jane Oates,
Assistant Secretary for Employment and Training.
[FR Doc. 2012-790 Filed 1-17-12; 8:45 am]
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