[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 124 (Friday, June 26, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38394-38395]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-13768]


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NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION


Agency Information Collection Activities: Comment Request

AGENCY: National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, 
National Science Foundation.

ACTION: Submission for OMB review; comment request.

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SUMMARY: The National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics 
(NCSES) within the National Science Foundation (NSF) has submitted the 
following information collection requirement to OMB for review and 
clearance under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. This is the second 
notice for public comment; the first was published in the Federal 
Register and 2 comments were received. NCSES is forwarding the proposed 
renewal submission to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for 
clearance simultaneously with the publication of this second notice. 
The full submission may be found at: http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Comments: Comments regarding (a) whether the collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the NCSES, including whether the information will have practical 
utility; (b) the accuracy of the NCSES's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, 
use, and clarity of the information to be collected, including through 
the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of 
information technology; (d) ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on those who are to respond, including 
through the use of appropriate automated or other forms of information 
technology should be addressed to: Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs of OMB, Attention: Desk Officer for National Science 
Foundation, 725 7th Street NW, Room 10235, Washington, DC 20503, and to 
Suzanne H. Plimpton, Reports Clearance Officer, National Science 
Foundation, 2415 Eisenhower Avenue, Suite 18200, Alexandria, VA 22314 
or send email to [email protected].
    NCSES may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information unless 
the collection of information displays a currently valid OMB control 
number and the agency informs potential persons who are to respond to 
the collection of information that such persons are not required to 
respond to the collection of information unless it displays a currently 
valid OMB control number.
    Title of Collection: Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates 
in Science and Engineering.
    OMB Control Number: 3145-0062.
    Summary of Collection: The Survey of Graduate Students and 
Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering (GSS), sponsored by the NCSES 
within NSF and the National Institutes of Health, is designed to comply 
with legislative mandates by providing information on the 
characteristics of academic graduate enrollments in science, 
engineering and health fields. This request to extend the information 
collection for three years is to cover the 2020, 2021, and 2022 GSS 
survey cycles. The information collected by the GSS is solicited under 
the authority of the National Science Foundation Act of 1950, as 
amended and the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010. Data 
collection starts each fall in October and data are obtained primarily 
through a Web survey. Data are disseminated annually. All information 
will be used for statistical purposes only. Participation in the survey 
is voluntary.
    To improve coverage of postdocs, the GSS periodically collects 
information on postdocs employed in Federally Funded Research and 
Development Centers (FFRDCs). This survey of postdocs at FFRDCs will be 
conducted as part of the 2021 GSS survey cycle.
    Additional details regarding this survey are provided in an earlier 
Federal Register Notice, at 85 FR 19169.
    Use of the Information: The GSS data are routinely provided to 
Congress, other parts of NSF, other Federal agencies, the GSS 
institutions themselves, and several professional societies. In 
addition, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) publish GSS data 
annually in the NIH Data Book https://report.nih.gov/nihdatabook/.
    Expected Respondents: The GSS is an annual census of all eligible 
academic institutions in the U.S. with graduate programs in science, 
engineering, and health fields. The response rate is calculated based 
on the number of reporting units (departments, programs, research 
centers, and health care facilities) that respond to the survey. For 
reference, in 2018, the GSS population was 19,592 units at 715 academic 
institutions. Based on recent cycles NCSES expects the annual response 
rate to be around 99 percent.
    Estimate of Burden: The total estimated respondent burden of the 
GSS, including 1,000 hours for potential methodological studies to 
improve the survey procedures, will be 56,480 hours over the three-
cycle survey clearance period. NCSES may review and revise this burden 
estimate based on

[[Page 38395]]

completion time data collected during the 2019 GSS survey cycle, which 
is ongoing.

                 Table 1--GSS Estimated Response Burden
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                                            Respondents
                                            (number of     Total burden
                Category                      school          (hours)
                                           coordinators)
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Total burden for 2020...................             911          18,424
Total burden for 2021...................             959          18,542
    GSS institutions....................             916          18,469
    FFRDCs..............................              43              73
Total burden for 2022...................             921          18,514
Potential future methodological studies   ..............           1,000
 (across all 3 survey cycles)...........
                                         -------------------------------
    Total estimated burden..............           2,791          56,480
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Estimated average annual burden.........             930          18,827
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Comments: As required by 5 CFR 1320.8(d), comments on the 
information collection activities as part of this study were solicited 
through publication of a 60-Day Notice in the Federal Register on April 
6, 2020, at 85 FR 19169. NCSES received 2 comments.
    NCSES received the first comment on 4 April 2020 from an economics 
professional association requesting a copy of the draft information 
collection request (ICR) including the survey instrument and supporting 
statement. NCSES informed the commenters that the ICR was currently 
undergoing internal review within NCSES with plans to submit it for 
public review in June and that the GSS would be largely unchanged from 
its current design.
    NCSES received a second comment on 6 May 2020 from a group 
representing several organizations. The commenters requested that NCSES 
include measures of sexual orientation and gender identity on the GSS. 
NCSES informed the commenters that it shares their interest in 
improving federal data collections and providing reliable measures for 
important segments of the population. Furthermore, NCSES described its 
process for evaluating possible questionnaire additions, including the 
extensive experimentation involved and the time and resources required. 
Finally, NCSES informed the commenters that it is conducting research 
to evaluate these measures and does not intend to include them in the 
2020-22 GSS.

    Dated: June 22, 2020.
Suzanne H. Plimpton,
Reports Clearance Officer, National Science Foundation.
[FR Doc. 2020-13768 Filed 6-25-20; 8:45 am]
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