[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 129 (Monday, July 6, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40196-40198]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-14413]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Census Bureau


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for Review and Approval; Comment 
Request; Annual Business Survey

AGENCY: U.S. Census Bureau, Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of information collection, request for comment.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce, in accordance with the Paperwork 
Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995, invites the general public and other 
Federal agencies to comment on proposed, and continuing information 
collections, which helps us assess the impact of our information 
collection requirements and minimize the public's reporting burden. The 
purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment on the 
proposed extension and revision to the Annual Business Survey and 
extension of the supplemental questions to the Annual Business Survey 
to capture a baseline of remote work options at businesses in 2019, 
prior to the submission of these information collection requests (ICRs) 
to OMB for approval.

DATES: To ensure consideration, comments regarding this proposed 
information collection must be received on or before September 4, 2020.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments by 
email to [email protected]. Please reference Annual Business 
Survey in the subject line of your comments. You may also submit 
comments, identified by Docket Number USBC-2020-0017, 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 
specific questions related to collection activities should be directed 
to Patrice Hall, Branch Chief, Business Owners Branch, 301-763-7198, 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

    In an effort to improve the measurement of business dynamics in the 
United States, the Census Bureau is conducting the Annual Business 
Survey (ABS). The ABS combines Census Bureau firm-level data 
collections to reduce respondent burden, increase data quality, reduce 
operational costs, and operate more efficiently. The ABS replaced the 
Survey of Business Owners (SBO) for employer businesses, the Annual 
Survey of Entrepreneurs (ASE), and the Business Research and 
Development (R&D) and Innovation for Microbusinesses (BRDI-M) surveys. 
The ABS provides information on select economic and demographic 
characteristics for businesses and business owners by sex, ethnicity, 
race, and veteran status. Further, the survey measures research and 
development for microbusinesses, business topics such

[[Page 40197]]

as innovation and technology, as well as other business 
characteristics. The ABS is sponsored by the National Center for 
Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) within the National Science 
Foundation (NSF) and conducted by the Census Bureau. Title 13, United 
States Code, Sections 8(b), 131, and 182 and Title 42, United States 
Code, Section 1861-76 (National Science Foundation Act of 1950, as 
amended) authorize this collection. Sections 224 and 225 of Title 13, 
United States Code, require response from sampled firms.
    The ABS includes all nonfarm employer businesses filing Internal 
Revenue Service (IRS) tax forms as individual proprietorships, 
partnerships, or any other type of corporation, with receipts of $1,000 
or more. Every five years, the ABS samples approximately 850,000 
employer businesses. The large sample size provides a benchmark and is 
needed to produce detailed comprehensive estimates for women-, 
minority-, and veteran-owned businesses at the 2-6-digit NAICS, U.S., 
state, metropolitan statistical area (MSA), county, and economic place 
levels. The 2018 ABS sampled approximately 850,000 employer businesses. 
The sample size is reduced annually to minimize the burden on survey 
respondents. Starting with the 2019 ABS, the sample was reduced to 
approximately 300,000 employer businesses. The smaller sample size will 
yield summary-level estimates for women-, minority-, and veteran-owned 
businesses at the 2-digit NAICS, U.S., state, and MSA levels. The 
Census Bureau uses administrative data to estimate the probability that 
a firm is minority- or women-owned. Each firm is then placed in one of 
nine frames for sampling. The sampling frames are: American Indian or 
Alaskan Native, Asian, Black or African American, Hispanic, Non-
Hispanic White Men, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, Other, 
Publicly Owned, and Women. The sample is stratified by state, industry, 
and frame. The Census Bureau selects some companies with certainty 
based on volume of sales, payroll, and number of paid employees or 
NAICS. All certainty cases are sure to be selected and represent only 
themselves.
    The Census Bureau plans to request a revision to the currently 
approved ABS collection to approve substantive changes, including 
updated content and the expansion to collect R&D data from tax-exempt 
businesses (otherwise known as nonprofit organizations) who are 
required to complete IRS form 990, in order to compile national 
estimates of R&D performance within this sector. The ABS is designed to 
allow for incorporating new content each year based on topics of 
relevance. Each year new questions are submitted to the OMB for 
approval.
    The Census Bureau also plans to request an extension to a currently 
approved emergency clearance to add supplemental questions about remote 
work to the 2020 ABS. The additional questions are designed to measure 
the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic on business operations and will 
provide a baseline of businesses' remote work activity. The emergency 
clearance is approved under OMB number 0607-1015 and expires November 
30, 2020. The current emergency clearance will not cover the entire 
2020 ABS collection period. Therefore, the Census Bureau requests an 
extension of the emergency approval through January 31, 2021. Similar 
questions will be included on future ABS collections as part of the 
proposed content and will be submitted to OMB for review annually.
    The ABS collects the following information from employer businesses 
and nonprofit organizations:
     Owner characteristics, including sex, ethnicity, race, and 
veteran status from the principal owner(s) of the business.
     Company information including, worldwide sales, domestic 
sales, number of employees, and business ownership from all businesses 
in the sample.
     Business characteristics from all businesses in the 
sample.
     Research and development from businesses with between 1-9 
employees.
     Research and development from nonprofit organizations.
    Additional topics on business owners may include military service, 
owner acquisition, job functions, number of hours worked, primary 
income, prior business ownership, age of owner, education and field of 
degree, citizenship and place of birth, disability, and owner's reason 
for owning the business. Additional topics on the businesses may 
include number of owners and percent ownership, family owned and 
operated, business aspirations, funding sources, profitability, types 
of customers, types of workers, employee benefits, franchise 
operations, work from home practices, and business activity. Potential 
module topics for the ABS may cover innovation, technology and internet 
usage; management and business practices; exporting practices; domestic 
and foreign transactions; design; worker training; and financing.

II. Method of Collection

    The ABS primary collection method is via an electronic instrument. 
Those selected for the survey receive an initial letter informing the 
respondents of their requirement to complete the survey as well as 
instructions on accessing the survey. Responses will be due 
approximately 30 days from initial mailing. Respondents will also 
receive a due date reminder approximately one week before responses are 
due. The Census Bureau plans to conduct two follow-up mailings and an 
optional third follow-up if deemed necessary based on check-in. 
Nonrespondents may receive a certified mailing for the second and third 
follow-up mailings. The Census Bureau may also plan to conduct an email 
follow-up to select nonrespondents reminding them to submit their 
report in the electronic instrument. Follow-up operations may also 
include a paper questionnaire to assist with collecting data from 
select nonrespondents. Response data will be processed as they are 
received. Upon the close of the collection period, data processing will 
continue and records will be edited, reviewed, tabulated, and released 
publicly.

III. Data

    OMB Control Number: 0607-1004 and 0607-1015.
    Form Number(s): ABS-1.
    Type of Review: Regular submission, Request for a Revision of a 
Currently Approved Collection (ABS--0607-1004) and Request for an 
Extension, without Change, of a Currently Approved Collection 
(Supplemental questions--0607-1015).
    Affected Public: Business or other for-profit organizations (large 
and small employer businesses), nonprofit organizations.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 300,000.
    Estimated Time per Response: ABS--52 minutes; Supplemental 
questions--3 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: ABS--260,000; Supplemental 
questions--15,000.
    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: Mandatory.
    Legal Authority: Title 13, United States Code, Sections 8(b), 131, 
and 182 and Title 42, United States Code,

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Section 1861-76 (National Science Foundation Act of 1950, as amended) 
authorize this collection. Sections 224 and 225 of Title 13, United 
States Code, require response from sampled firms.

IV. Request for Comments

    We are soliciting public comments to permit the Department/Bureau 
to: (a) Evaluate whether the proposed information collection is 
necessary for the proper functions of the Department, including whether 
the information will have practical utility; (b) Evaluate the accuracy 
of our estimate of the time and cost burden for this proposed 
collection, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions 
used; (c) Evaluate ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of 
the information to be collected; and (d) Minimize the reporting burden 
on those who are to respond, including the use of automated collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology.
    Comments that you submit in response to this notice are a matter of 
public record. We will include, or summarize, each comment in our 
request to OMB to approve this ICR. Before including your address, 
phone number, email address, or other personal identifying information 
in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment--
including your personal identifying information--may be made publicly 
available at any time. While you may ask us in your comment to withhold 
your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot 
guarantee that we will be able to do so.

Sheleen Dumas,
Department PRA Clearance Officer, Office of the Chief Information 
Officer, Commerce Department.
[FR Doc. 2020-14413 Filed 7-2-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-07-P