[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 220 (Friday, November 13, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 72686-72687]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-25150]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Office of the Secretary


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission for OMB 
Review; Comment Request; Report on Current Employment Statistics

ACTION: Notice of availability; request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Labor (DOL) is submitting this Bureau of 
Labor Statistics (BLS)-sponsored information collection request (ICR) 
to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in 
accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA). Public 
comments on the ICR are invited.

DATES: The OMB will consider all written comments that agency receives 
on or before December 14, 2020.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed 
information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of 
this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Find this particular 
information collection by selecting ``Currently under 30-day Review--
Open for Public Comments'' or by using the search function.
    Comments are invited on: (1) Whether the collection of information 
is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the 
Department, including whether the information will have practical 
utility; (2) if the information will be processed and used in a timely 
manner; (3) the accuracy of the agency's estimates of the burden and 
cost of the collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used; (4) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility and clarity of the information collection; and (5) ways to 
minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are 
to respond, including the use of automated collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anthony May by telephone at 202-693-
4129 (this is not a toll-free number) or by email at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 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. For additional substantive information about this 
ICR, see the related notice published in the Federal Register on July 
20, 2020 (85 FR 43878).
    This information collection is subject to the PRA. A Federal agency 
generally cannot conduct or sponsor a collection of information, and 
the public is generally not required to respond to an information 
collection, unless the OMB approves it and displays a currently valid 
OMB Control Number. In addition, notwithstanding any other provisions 
of law, no person shall generally be subject to penalty for failing to 
comply with a collection of information that does not display a valid 
OMB Control Number. See 5 CFR 1320.5(a) and 1320.6.
    DOL seeks PRA authorization for this information collection for 
three (3) years. OMB authorization for an ICR cannot be for more than 
three (3) years without renewal. The DOL notes that information 
collection requirements submitted to the OMB for existing ICRs receive 
a month-to-month extension while they undergo review.
    Agency: DOL-BLS.
    Title of Collection: Report on Current Employment Statistics.
    OMB Control Number: 1220-0011.

[[Page 72687]]

    Affected Public: Businesses or other for-profits institutions; Not-
for-profit institutions; Individuals and households; State, local, and 
tribal governments.
    Total Estimated Number of Respondents: 295,548.
    Total Estimated Number of Responses: 1,875,612.
    Total Estimated Annual Time Burden: 277,763 hours.
    Total Estimated Annual Other Costs Burden: $0.

    Authority:  44 U.S.C. 3507(a)(1)(D).

    Dated: November 6, 2020.
Anthony May,
Management and Program Analyst.
[FR Doc. 2020-25150 Filed 11-12-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-24-P