[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 7 (Tuesday, January 12, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1407-1408]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-00391]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[Docket No.: ED-2015-ICCD-0124]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the 
Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; Comment 
Request; Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) 2015-
2016 Pension Liabilities Update

AGENCY: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Department of 
Education (ED).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 
U.S.C. chapter 3501 et seq.), ED is proposing an extension of an 
existing information collection.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before 
February 11, 2016.

ADDRESSES: To access and review all the documents related to the 
information collection listed in this notice, please use http://www.regulations.gov by searching the Docket ID number ED-2015-ICCD-
0124. Comments submitted in response to this notice should be submitted 
electronically through the

[[Page 1408]]

Federal eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov by selecting 
the Docket ID number or via postal mail, commercial delivery, or hand 
delivery. Please note that comments submitted by fax or email and those 
submitted after the comment period will not be accepted. Written 
requests for information or comments submitted by postal mail or 
delivery should be addressed to the Director of the Information 
Collection Clearance Division, U.S. Department of Education, 400 
Maryland Avenue SW., LBJ, Room 2E103, Washington, DC 20202-4537.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For specific questions related to 
collection activities, please contact Kashka Kubzdela, 202-502-7411.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Department of Education (ED), in 
accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 
3506(c)(2)(A)), provides the general public and Federal agencies with 
an opportunity to comment on proposed, revised, and continuing 
collections of information. This helps the Department assess the impact 
of its information collection requirements and minimize the public's 
reporting burden. It also helps the public understand the Department's 
information collection requirements and provide the requested data in 
the desired format. ED is soliciting comments on the proposed 
information collection request (ICR) that is described below. The 
Department of Education is especially interested in public comment 
addressing the following issues: (1) Is this collection necessary to 
the proper functions of the Department; (2) will this information be 
processed and used in a timely manner; (3) is the estimate of burden 
accurate; (4) how might the Department enhance the quality, utility, 
and clarity of the information to be collected; and (5) how might the 
Department minimize the burden of this collection on the respondents, 
including through the use of information technology. Please note that 
written comments received in response to this notice will be considered 
public records.
    Title of Collection: Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System 
(IPEDS) 2015-2016 Pension Liabilities Update.
    OMB Control Number: 1850-0582.
    Type of Review: A revision of an existing information collection.
    Respondents/Affected Public: Postsecondary Institution.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 77,600.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 1,050,870.
    Abstract: The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System 
(IPEDS) is a web-based data collection system designed to collect basic 
data from all postsecondary institutions in the United States and the 
other jurisdictions. IPEDS enables The National Center of Education 
Statistics (NCES) to report on key dimensions of postsecondary 
education such as enrollments, degrees and other awards earned, tuition 
and fees, average net price, student financial aid, graduation rates, 
revenues and expenditures, faculty salaries, and staff employed. The 
IPEDS web-based data collection system was implemented in 2000-01, and 
it collects basic data from approximately 7,500 postsecondary 
institutions in the United States and the other jurisdictions that are 
eligible to participate in title IV Federal financial aid programs. All 
title IV institutions are required to respond to IPEDS (section 490 of 
the Higher Education Amendments of 1992; Public Law 102-325). IPEDS 
allows other (non-title IV) institutions to participate on a voluntary 
basis. About 200 institutions elect to respond. IPEDS data are 
available to the public through the College Navigator and IPEDS Web 
sites.
    ED requested emergency clearance processing (approved in November 
2015; OMB# 1850-0582 v.17), due to the Government Accounting Standards 
Board's (GASB) revision of their reporting standards that also impacts 
reporting of some of the institutions in IPEDS, to revise the 2015-16 
IPEDS Finance forms and continue the remaining parts of the 2015-16 
IPEDS collection as previously approved (OMB# 1850-0582 v.13-15). As 
part of the emergency clearance, new screening question was added to 
the 2015-16 IPEDS Finance survey for institutions to indicate whether 
they have additional (or decreased) pension expense, additional pension 
liability (or assets), or additional deferral to report as a result of 
GASB Statement 68. For the institutions that answer ``yes'', four 
fields have been added to collect the amounts of the additional (or 
decreased) expense, additional liability (or assets), deferred inflows 
of resources, and deferred outflows of resources. This submission 
extends the public comment period under regular approval process (with 
a 60-day followed by a 30-day public comment periods) on the revisions 
approved under the emergency clearance process (OMB# 1850-0582 v.17).

    Dated: January 7, 2016.
Kate Mullan,
Acting Director, Information Collection Clearance Division, Office of 
the Chief Privacy Officer, Office of Management.
[FR Doc. 2016-00391 Filed 1-11-16; 8:45 am]
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