[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 139 (Monday, July 20, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43878-43879]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-15594]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Bureau of Labor Statistics


Information Collection Activities; Comment Request

AGENCY: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Department of Labor.

ACTION: Notice of information collection; request for comment.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to 
reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a pre-clearance 
consultation program to provide the general public and Federal agencies 
with an opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing 
collections of information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995. This program helps to ensure that the requested data can 
be provided in the desired format, reporting burden (time and financial 
resources) is minimized, collection instruments are clearly understood, 
and the impact of collection requirements on respondents can be 
properly assessed. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is soliciting 
comments concerning the proposed revision of the ``Report on Current 
Employment Statistics.'' A copy of the proposed information collection 
request can be obtained by contacting the individual listed below in 
the ADDRESSES section of this notice.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the 
ADDRESSES section of this notice on or before September 18, 2020.

[[Page 43879]]


ADDRESSES: Send comments to Carol Rowan, BLS Clearance Officer, 
Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Room 4080, 
2 Massachusetts Avenue NE, Washington, DC 20212. Written comments also 
may be transmitted by email to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carol Rowan, BLS Clearance Officer, 
202-691-7628 (this is not a toll free number). (See ADDRESSES section.)

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The Current Employment Statistics (CES) program provides current 
monthly statistics on employment, hours, and earnings, by industry and 
geography. CES estimates are among the most visible and widely-used 
Principal Federal Economic Indicators (PFEIs). CES data are also among 
the timeliest of the PFEIs, with their release each month by the BLS in 
the Employment Situation, typically on the first Friday of each month. 
The statistics are fundamental inputs in economic decision processes at 
all levels of government, private enterprise, and organized labor.
    The CES monthly estimates of employment, hours, and earnings are 
based on a sample of U.S. nonagricultural establishments. Information 
is derived from approximately 295,000 reports (from a sample of 150,000 
employers with State Unemployment Insurance (UI) accounts comprised of 
697,000 individual worksites), as of April 2020. Each month, firms 
report their employment, payroll, and hours on forms identified as the 
BLS-790. The sample is collected under a probability-based design. 
Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands collect an additional 8,500 reports.
    A list of all form types currently used appears in the table below. 
Respondents receive variations of the basic collection forms, depending 
on their industry.
    The CES program is a voluntary program under Federal statute. 
Reporting to the State agencies is voluntary in all but three States 
(New Mexico, Oregon, and South Carolina), Puerto Rico, and the Virgin 
Islands. To our knowledge, the States that do have mandatory reporting 
rarely exercise their authority. The collection form's confidentiality 
statement cites the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical 
Efficiency Act and mentions the State mandatory reporting authority.

II. Current Action

    Office of Management and Budget clearance is being sought for the 
Report on Current Employment Statistics.
    Automated data collection methods are now used for most of the CES 
sample. Approximately 150,000 reports are received through Electronic 
Data Interchange. Web data collection accounts for 65,000 reports. 
Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing is used to collect 65,000. 
Touchtone Data Entry is used for 6,000 reports.
    The balance of the sample is collected through other methods 
including submission of transcripts, emails, fax, and other special 
arrangements.

III. Desired Focus of Comments

    The Bureau of Labor Statistics is particularly interested in 
comments that:
     Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility.
     Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the 
burden of the proposed collection of information, including the 
validity of the methodology and assumptions used.
     Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected.
     Minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate 
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting 
electronic submissions of responses.
    Title of Collection: Report on Current Employment Statistics.
    OMB Number: 1220-0011.
    Type of Review: Revision of a currently approved collection.
    Affected Public: State or local governments; Businesses or other 
for profit; Non-profit institutions.

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                                                    Minutes per    Frequency of       Annual       Annual burden
            Industry                  Reports         report         response        responses         hours
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A--Mining and Logging...........           1,091              10              12          13,092           2,182
B--Construction.................          10,963              10              12         131,556          21,926
C--Manufacturing................           9,580              10              12         114,960          19,160
E--Service Providing Industries.         189,875              10              12       2,278,500         379,750
G--Public Administration........          65,168               6              12         782,016          78,202
S--Education & Health Services..          18,771               6              12         225,252          22,525
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    Total.......................         295,448  ..............  ..............       3,545,376         523,745
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    Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized 
and/or included in the request for Office of Management and Budget 
approval of the information collection request; they also will become a 
matter of public record.

    Signed at Washington, DC, on July 13, 2020.
Eric P. Molina,
Acting Chief, Division of Management Systems.
[FR Doc. 2020-15594 Filed 7-17-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-24-P