[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 123 (Tuesday, June 26, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38035-38036]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-15515]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request

    The Department of Commerce will submit to the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) for clearance the following proposal for collection of 
information under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 
U.S.C. chapter 35).
    Agency: U.S. Census Bureau.
    Title: Annual Survey of School System Finances.
    OMB Control Number: 0607-0700.
    Form Number(s): F-33, Survey Announcement, F-33-L1, F-33-L2, F-33-
L3.
    Type of Request: Extension of a currently approved collection.
    Burden Hours: 3,990.
    Number of Respondents: 3,230.
    Average Hours per Response: 1 hour and 14 minutes.
    Needs and Uses: The U.S. Census Bureau requests an extension of the 
current expiration date of the Annual Survey of School System Finances 
(formerly named the Annual Survey of Local Government Finances--School 
Systems) to ensure accurate collection of information about public 
school finances.
    The Census Bureau's collection of school district finance data and

[[Page 38036]]

associated publications are the most comprehensive sources for pre-
kindergarten through grade 12 finance data. The data are collected from 
the universe of school districts using uniform definitions and concepts 
of revenue, expenditure, debt, and assets. This effort is part of the 
Census Bureau's Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances 
(OMB No. 0607-0585). Data collected from cities, counties, states, and 
special district governments are combined with data collected from 
local school systems to produce state and national totals of government 
spending. Local school system spending comprises a significant portion 
of total government spending. In 2010, public elementary-secondary 
expenditures accounted for nearly 30 percent of local government 
spending and 35.8 percent of state government spending.
    This comprehensive and ongoing, time series collection of local 
education agency finances maintains historical continuity in the state 
and local government statistics community. Elementary-secondary 
education related spending is the single largest financial activity of 
state and local governments. Education finance statistics provided by 
the Census Bureau allow for analyses of how public elementary-secondary 
school systems receive and spend funds. Increased focus on education 
has led to a demand for data reflecting student performance, graduation 
rates, and school finance policy--all of which are related to the 
collection of this local education finance data. State legislatures, 
local leaders, university researchers, and parents increasingly rely on 
data to make substantive decisions about education. School district 
finance is a vital sector of the education data spectrum used by 
stakeholders to form policy and to develop new education strategies.
    The education finance data collected and processed by the Census 
Bureau are an essential component of the agency's state and local 
government finance collection and provide unique products for users of 
education finance data.
    The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) use items on Form F-33 to 
develop figures for the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Reported F-33 
data items specifically contribute to the estimates for National Income 
and Product Accounts (NIPA), Input-Output accounts (I-O), and gross 
domestic investments. BEA also uses the data to assess other public 
fiscal spending trends and events.
    The Census Bureau's Government Finances program has made possible 
the dissemination of comprehensive and comparable public fiscal data 
since 1902. School finance data, which comprise nearly 30 percent of 
all local government spending in 2010, are currently incorporated into 
the local government statistics reported on the Annual Survey of State 
and Local Government Finances. The report contains benchmark statistics 
on public revenue, expenditure, debt, and assets. They are widely used 
by economists, legislators, social and political scientists, and 
government administrators. The Census Bureau expects to release school 
finance data as part of its 2012 Census of Governments products.
    The Census Bureau makes available detailed files for all school 
systems from its Internet Web site, www.census.gov/govs/school/. That 
Web site currently contains data files and statistical tables for the 
1992 through 2009 fiscal year surveys. Historical files and 
publications prior to 1992 are also available upon request for data 
users engaged in longitudinal studies. In addition to numerous academic 
researchers who use F-33 products, staff receive inquiries from state 
government officials, legislatures, public policy analysts, local 
school officials, non-profit organizations, and various Federal 
agencies.
    The U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education 
Statistics (NCES) jointly conducts this survey annually with the Census 
Bureau as part of the Common Core of Data (CCD) program. The education 
finance data collected by the Census Bureau are the sole source of 
school district fiscal information for the CCD. NCES data users utilize 
electronic tools to search CCD databases for detailed fiscal and non-
fiscal variables. Additionally, NCES uses F-33 education finance files 
to publish annual reports on the fiscal state of education.
    Affected Public: State, local, or Tribal government.
    Frequency: Annually.
    Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.

    Legal Authority: Title 13, Sections 161 and 182, of the United 
States Code.

    OMB Desk Officer: Brian Harris-Kojetin, (202) 395-7314.
    Copies of the above information collection proposal can be obtained 
by calling or writing Jennifer Jessup, Departmental Paperwork Clearance 
Officer, (202) 482-0336, Department of Commerce, Room 6616, 14th and 
Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20230 (or via the Internet at 
[email protected]).
    Written comments and recommendations for the proposed information 
collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of this notice 
to Brian Harris-Kojetin, OMB Desk Officer either by fax (202-395-7245) 
or email ([email protected]).

    Dated: June 21, 2012.
Glenna Mickelson,
Management Analyst, Office of the Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 2012-15515 Filed 6-25-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-07-P