[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 97 (Tuesday, May 19, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29923-29924]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-10677]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

 Census Bureau


Proposed Information Collection; Comment Request; Small Business 
Pulse Survey

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 and as required by the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, invites the general public and other 
Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on a proposed 
extension of the collection of information on the effects of the COVID-
19 pandemic on the functioning of small businesses. The original 
collection was approved by the Office of Management and Budget on April 
22, 2020 under the emergency approval provisions of the Paperwork 
Reduction Act.

DATES: To ensure consideration, written comments must be submitted on 
or before July 20, 2020.

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Thomas Smith, PRA Liaison, 
U.S. Census Bureau, 4600 Silver Hill Road, Room 7K250A, Washington, DC 
20233 (or via the internet at [email protected]). You may also submit 
comments, identified by Docket Number USBC-2020-0012, to the Federal e-
Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. All comments received 
are part of the public record. No comments will be posted to http://www.regulations.gov for public viewing until after the comment period 
has closed. Comments will generally be posted without change. All 
Personally Identifiable Information (for example, name and address) 
voluntarily submitted by the commenter may be publicly accessible. Do 
not submit Confidential Business Information or otherwise sensitive or 
protected information. You may submit attachments to electronic 
comments in Microsoft Word, Excel, or Adobe PDF file formats.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or 
copies of the information collection instrument(s) and instructions 
should be directed to Nick Orsini, Associate Director for Economic 
Programs, ADEP-8H132, Washington, DC 20278 (or via the internet at 
[email protected]).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

    On April 22, 2020, The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
granted approval under the emergency approval provisions of the 
Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) for the U.S. Census Bureau to immediately 
begin collecting information on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on 
the functioning of small businesses through the Small Business Pulse 
Survey (SBPS).
    The SBPS will provide weekly national, state, and large MSA 
information on changes in business operations, employment, worker 
hours, and the availability of consumer goods and services are 
impacting American life. The rapidly changing dynamics of the COVID-19 
pandemic creates an acute need for data on small businesses that sheds 
light on the situation as it is unfolding. The Census Bureau has the 
infrastructure in place to provide large-scale coverage across all non-
farm single-location employer businesses. Our proposed survey will 
reach nearly 1M businesses.
    Additionally, the Census Bureau proposes this platform as a pilot 
to develop a capability that can be used for future economic crises to 
provide near real time information to policymakers and the public. 
Through this process, the Census Bureau will learn valuable insights 
about executing a high-frequency, quick turnaround business survey, 
including systems development, data collection and quality, and 
coordination with existing Census Bureau business surveys and 
dissemination programs. This survey allows us to test internal 
processes and systems, while also gauging external interest and 
understanding how businesses react to such a collection. We will also 
gain insights about the quality of the data in high frequency 
collections and how it could be improved in future iterations. This 
pilot may also serve as a model for a more encompassing federal 
statistical community collection activity.
    The 16-question, 5-minute, multiple choice survey captures 
information on concepts such as business closings, changes in 
employment and hours, disruptions to supply chain, and expectations for 
future operations. These economic data will be used to understand how 
changes due to the response to the COVID-19 pandemic are affecting 
American businesses and the U.S. economy.
    The sample is designed to be sufficiently large to allow 
publication of survey results by sector and state and for the top most 
populous 50 MSAs, but this is contingent on response and the ability to 
meet disclosure avoidance thresholds.
    Due to the need to begin collecting this information right away, we 
were unable to allow for the time periods normally required for 
clearance under the PRA. The approval granted by OMB is through October 
31, 2020. This approval allows the Census Bureau to conduct the SBPS 
for up to 6 months. The Census Bureau now seeks to extend clearance for 
the COVID-19 supplemental questions for an additional three years. 
Currently, there is no way to anticipate an end to the impact of the 
COVID-19 pandemic on the economy. Therefore, the Census Bureau needs to 
be prepared for the possibility of collecting these data for an 
extended period of time.

II. Method of Collection

    The only method of collecting information for this survey is 
electronically through the Census

[[Page 29924]]

Bureau's online reporting system, Centurion. The collection instrument 
is optimized for mobile response to further reduce respondent burden. 
We deem this the most efficient and least burdensome way to collect the 
information.

III. Data

    OMB Control Number: 0607-1014.
    Form Number(s): The online survey instrument has no form number.
    Type of Review: Regular submission.
    Affected Public: Businesses.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 940,713.
    Estimated Time per Response: 5 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 78,397.
    Estimated Total Annual Cost to Public: $0. (This is not the cost of 
respondents' time, but the indirect costs respondents may incur for 
such things as purchases of specialized software or hardware needed to 
report, or expenditures for accounting or records maintenance services 
required specifically by the collection.)
    Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.
    Legal Authority: Title 13 U.S.C. Sections 131 and 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.

Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Chief Information 
Officer, Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2020-10677 Filed 5-18-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-07-P