[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 10 (Friday, January 15, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 3993-3994]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-00872]


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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; Quarterly Summary of State & Local Government Tax Revenues

AGENCY: 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 revisions of the Quarterly Summary of State & Local Government 
Tax Revenues, prior to the submission of the information collection 
request (ICR) to OMB for approval.

DATES: To ensure consideration, comments regarding this proposed 
information collection must be received on or before March 16, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments by 
email to [email protected]. Please reference Quarterly Summary 
of State & Local Government Tax Revenues in the subject line of your 
comments. You may also submit comments, identified by Docket Number 
USBC-2020-0035, 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 Kristina Pasquino-Frates, Chief, State Finance and Tax Statistics 
Branch, Economy-Wide Statistics Division, U.S. Census Bureau, 
Headquarters, 5K071, Washington, DC 20233; email: 
[email protected], by phone: 301-763-5034.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

    The Census Bureau conducts the Quarterly Summary of State and Local 
Government Tax Revenue, using the F-71 (Quarterly Survey of Property 
Tax Collections), F-72 (Quarterly Survey of State Tax Collections), and 
F-73 (Quarterly Survey of Non-Property Taxes) forms. The Quarterly 
Summary of State and Local Government Tax Revenue provides quarterly 
estimates of state and local government tax revenue at the national 
level, as well as detailed tax revenue data for individual states. The 
information contained in this survey is the most current information

[[Page 3994]]

available on a nationwide basis for state and local government tax 
collections.
    The Census Bureau needs state and local tax data to publish 
benchmark statistics on taxes, to provide data to the Bureau of 
Economic Analysis for Gross Domestic Product (GDP) calculations and 
other economic indicators, and to provide data for economic research 
and comparative studies of governmental finances. Tax collection data 
are used to measure economic activity for the Nation as a whole, as 
well as for comparison among the various states. Economists and public 
policy analysts use the data to assess general economic conditions and 
state and local government financial activities.
    The Census Bureau plans to revise the F-72 (Quarterly Survey of 
State Tax Collections). We plan to add the collection of cannabis and 
sports betting sales taxes. Sports betting will include pari-mutuels, 
which were previously shown separately. This will modernize the 
survey's content to maintain the relevancy and sustainability of these 
data. License taxes will no longer be collected on a quarterly basis; 
they will continue to be provided on an annual basis through the 
related Annual Survey of State Tax Collections, reducing duplication of 
effort. Additionally, cognitive testing showed the addition and removal 
of questions did not impact overall response time.

II. Method of Collection

    For the Quarterly Survey of Property Tax Collections (Form F-71) 
the Census Bureau will mail letters quarterly to a sample of 
approximately 5,500 local tax collection agencies, known to have 
substantial collections of property tax, requesting their online data 
submissions.
    For the Quarterly Survey of State Tax Collections (Form F-72) the 
Census Bureau will email letters to each of the 50 state governments 
and the District of Columbia quarterly requesting their online data 
submissions or continued coordinated submission through the state 
government revenue office.
    For the Quarterly Survey of Non-Property Taxes (Form F-73) the 
Census Bureau will mail letters quarterly to a sample of approximately 
1,800 local tax collection agencies, known to have substantial 
collections of local general sales and/or local individual/corporation 
net income taxes, requesting their online data submissions.
    F-71 and F-73 survey data will be collected via the internet. Data 
for the F-72 survey are collected via email or compilation of data in 
coordination with the state government revenue office.
    In addition to reporting current quarter data, respondents may 
report data for the previous eight quarters or submit revisions to 
their previously submitted data. In the event that a respondent cannot 
report online, they may request a form.
    In those instances when the Census Bureau are not able to obtain a 
response, follow-up operations will be conducted using email and phone 
calls. Nonresponse weighting adjustments are used to adjust for any 
unreported units in the sample. These adjustments are based on the 
latest available data.

III. Data

    OMB Control Number: 0607-0112.
    Form Number(s): F-71, F-72, F-73.
    Type of Review: Regular submission, Request for a Revision of a 
Currently Approved Collection.
    Affected Public: State and Local Governments and the Government of 
the District of Columbia.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 7,351.
    Estimated Time per Response: F-71 = 15 minutes, F-72 = 30 minutes, 
F-73 = 20 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 8002 hours.
    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 161 and 182.

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. 2021-00872 Filed 1-14-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-07-P