[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 36 (Friday, February 22, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12293-12294]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-04067]



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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

U.S. Census Bureau


Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Survey of 
Income and Program Participation (SIPP) 2014 Panel

AGENCY: U.S. Census Bureau, Commerce.

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 April 23, 2013.

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Jennifer Jessup, Departmental 
Paperwork Clearance Officer, Department of Commerce, Room 6616, 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 Jason M. Fields, Census Bureau, Room HQ-7H069 
Washington, DC 20233-8400, (301) 763-2465 (or via the Internet at 
[email protected]).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract

    The Census Bureau plans to conduct the Survey of Income and Program 
Participation 2014 Panel (SIPP) in 4 waves beginning in February 2014. 
Wave 1 of the SIPP 2014 Panel will be conducted from February to May of 
2014. Wave 2 is scheduled to be conducted from January to April of 
2015. Wave 3 is scheduled to be conducted from January to April of 
2016. Wave 4 is scheduled to be conducted from January to April of 
2017. The SIPP is a household-based survey designed as a continuous 
series of national panels. The SIPP represents a source of information 
for a wide variety of topics and allows the integration of information 
for separate topics to form a single, unified database allowing for the 
examination of the interaction between tax, transfer, and other 
government and private policies. Government domestic policy formulators 
depend heavily upon SIPP information concerning the distribution of 
income received either directly as money or indirectly as in-kind 
benefits and the effect of tax and transfer programs on that 
distribution. They also need improved and expanded data on the income 
and general economic and financial situation of the U.S. population, 
which the SIPP has provided on a continuing basis since 1983. The SIPP 
has measured levels of economic well-being and permitted measurement of 
changes in these levels over time.
    A portion of the 2014 SIPP Panel will use an Event History Calendar 
(EHC) that facilitates the collection of dates of events and spells of 
coverage. The EHC should assist the respondent's ability to recall 
events accurately over the one year reference period and provide 
increased data quality and inter-topic consistency for dates reported 
by respondents. The EHC is intended to help respondents recall 
information in a more natural ``autobiographical'' manner by using life 
events as triggers to recall other economic events. The EHC was 
previously used in the 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013 SIPP-EHC field tests. 
The content of the 2014 SIPP Panel will match that of the 2013 SIPP-EHC 
very closely. The 2014 Panel SIPP design does not contain freestanding 
topical modules; however, a portion of traditional SIPP topical module 
content is integrated into the 2014 SIPP Panel interview. Examples of 
this content include questions on medical expenses, child care, 
retirement and pension plan coverage, marital history, adult and child 
well-being, and others.
    The 2014 SIPP Panel is a brand new ``wave 1'' sample with new 
survey respondents who were not interviewed in the previous 2010-2013 
SIPP-EHC field tests. The 2014 SIPP Panel wave 1 will interview 
respondents using the previous calendar year 2013 as the reference 
period and will proceed with annual interviewing going forward. The 
2014 SIPP Panel will use a revised interviewing method structure that 
will follow adults (age 15 years and older) who move from the prior 
wave household. Consequently, future waves will incorporate dependent 
data, which is information collected from the prior wave interview 
brought forward to the current interview.
    The Census Bureau plans to use Computer Assisted Recorded Interview 
(CARI) technology for some of the respondents during the 2014 SIPP 
Panel. CARI is a data collection method that captures audio along with 
response data during computer-assisted personal and telephone 
interviews (CAPI & CATI). With the respondent's consent, a portion of 
each interview is recorded unobtrusively and both the sound file and 
screen images are returned with the response data to a central location 
for coding.
    By reviewing the recorded portions of the interview, quality 
assurance analysts can evaluate the likelihood that the exchange 
between the field representative and respondent is authentic and 
follows critical survey protocol as defined by the sponsor and based on 
best practices. The 2014 SIPP Panel instrument will utilize the CARI 
Interactive Data Access System (CARI System), an innovative, 
integrated, multifaceted monitoring system that features a configurable 
web-based interface for behavior coding, quality assurance, and 
coaching. This system assists in coding interviews for measuring 
question and interviewer performance and the interaction between 
interviewers and respondents.
    Approximately 45,000 households are expected to be interviewed for 
the 2014 SIPP Panel. We estimate that each household contains 2.1 
people aged 15 and above, yielding approximately 94,500 person-level 
interviews per wave in this panel. Interviews take approximately 60 
minutes per adult on average, consequently the total annual burden for 
2014 SIPP-EHC interviews will be 94,500 hours per year in FY 2014, 
2015, 2016, and 2017.

II. Method of Collection

    The 2014 SIPP Panel instrument will consist of one interview per 
person per wave (year) resulting in four total interviews over the life 
of the panel. Each interview will reference the previous calendar year 
depending on the wave. The interview is conducted in person with all 
household members 15 years old or over using regular proxy-respondent 
rules. In the instances where the residence is not accessible or the 
respondent makes a request the interview may be conducted by telephone.

III. Data

    OMB Control Number: 0607-0957.
    Form Number: SIPP/CAPI Automated Instrument.
    Type of Review: Regular.
    Affected Public: Individuals or Households.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 94,500 people per wave.
    Estimated Time per Response: 60 minutes per person on average.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 94,500 hours per wave.

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    Estimated Total Annual Cost: The only cost to respondents is their 
time.
    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: February 15, 2013.
Glenna Mickelson,
Management Analyst, Office of the Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 2013-04067 Filed 2-21-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3511-07-P