[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 175 (Tuesday, September 14, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51112-51113]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-19805]


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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; American Community Survey

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 extension of the American Community Survey, 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 November 15, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments by 
email to [email protected]. Please reference the American Community 
Survey in the subject line of your comments. You may also submit 
comments, identified by Docket Number USBC-2021-0019, 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 Dameka Reese, U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey Office, 
301-763-3804, [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Abstract

    Since its founding, the U.S. Census Bureau has balanced the demands 
of a growing country requiring information about its people and 
economy, with concerns for respondents' confidentiality and the time 
and effort it takes respondents to answer questions. Beginning with the 
1810 Census, Congress added questions to support a range of public 
concerns and uses, and over the course of a century, federal agencies 
requested to add questions about agriculture, industry, and commerce, 
as well as individuals' occupation, ancestry, marital status, 
disabilities, place of birth and other topics. In 1940, the Census 
Bureau introduced the long-form census in order to ask more detailed 
questions to only a sample of the public.
    In the early 1990s, the demand for current, nationally consistent 
data from a wide variety of users led federal government policymakers 
to consider the feasibility of collecting social, economic, and housing 
data continuously throughout the decade. The benefits of providing 
current data, along with the anticipated decennial census benefits in 
cost savings, planning, improved census coverage, and more efficient 
operations, led the Census Bureau to plan the implementation of the 
continuous measurement survey, later called the American Community 
Survey (ACS). After years of testing, the ACS replaced the long form in 
2005. The ACS is conducted throughout the United States and in Puerto 
Rico, where it is called the Puerto Rico Community Survey (PRCS). Each 
year a sample of approximately 3.5 million households and about 170,000 
persons living in group quarters (GQ) in the United States are selected 
to participate in the ACS and PRCS.

II. Method of Collection

    To encourage self-response in the ACS, the Census Bureau sends up 
to five mailings to housing units selected to be in the sample. The 
first mailing, sent to all mailable addresses in the sample, includes 
an invitation to participate in the ACS online and states that a paper 
questionnaire will be sent in a few weeks to those unable to respond 
online. The second mailing is a letter that reminds respondents to 
complete the survey online, thanks them if they have already done so, 
and informs them that a paper form will be sent at a later date if we 
do not receive their response. In a third mailing, the questionnaire 
package is sent only to those sample addresses that have not completed 
the online questionnaire within two weeks. The fourth mailing is a 
postcard that reminds respondents to respond and informs them that an 
interviewer may contact them if they do not complete the survey. A 
fifth mailing is sent to respondents who have not completed the survey 
within five weeks. This letter provides a due date and reminds the 
respondents to return their questionnaires to be removed from future 
contact. The Census Bureau will ask those who fill out the survey 
online to provide an email address, which will be used to send an email 
reminder to households that did not complete the online form. The 
reminder asks them to log back in to finish responding to the survey. 
If the Census Bureau does not receive a response or if the household 
refuses to participate, the address may be selected for computer-
assisted personal interviewing (CAPI).
    Some addresses are deemed unmailable because the address is 
incomplete or directs mail only to a post office box. The Census Bureau 
currently collects data for these housing units using both online and 
CAPI.
    For sample housing units in the Puerto Rico Community Survey 
(PRCS), a different mail strategy is employed. The Census Bureau 
continues to use the previously used mail strategy with no references 
to an internet response option. The Census Bureau sends up to five 
mailings to a Puerto Rico address selected to be in the sample. The 
first mailing includes a prenotice letter. The second and fourth 
mailings include the paper survey. The third and fifth mailings serve 
as a reminder to respond to the survey. Puerto Rico addresses deemed 
unmailable because the address is incomplete or directs mail only to a 
post office box are collected by CAPI.
    The Census Bureau employs a different strategy to collect data from 
GQs. The Census Bureau defines GQs as

[[Page 51113]]

places where people live or stay, in a group living arrangement that is 
owned or managed by an entity or organization providing housing and/or 
services for the residents, such as college/university student housing, 
residential treatment centers, skilled nursing facilities, group homes, 
military barracks, correctional facilities, workers' group living 
quarters and Job Corps centers, and emergency and transitional 
shelters. The Census Bureau collects data for GQs primarily through 
personal interview. The Census Bureau will obtain the facility 
information by conducting a personal visit interview with a GQ contact. 
During this interview, the Census Bureau obtains roster of residents 
and randomly selects them for person-level interviews. During the 
person-level phase, an FR uses CAPI automated instrument to collect 
detailed information for each sampled resident. FRs also have the 
option to distribute a bilingual (English/Spanish) questionnaire to 
residents for self-response if unable to complete a CAPI interview.

III. Data

    OMB Control Number: 0607-0810.
    Form Number(s): ACS-1, ACS-1(SP), ACS-1(PR), ACS-1(PR)SP, ACS-
1(GQ), ACS-1(PR)(GQ), GQFQ, ACS CAPI (HU), ACS RI (HU), AGQ QI, and AGQ 
RI.
    Type of Review: Regular submission, Request for an Extension, 
without Change.
    Affected Public: Individuals or households.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 3,540,000 for household 
respondents; 20,000 for contacts in GQ; 170,000 persons in GQ; 43,200 
households for reinterview; and 2,000 GQ contacts for reinterview. The 
total estimated number of respondents is 3,775,200.
    Estimated Time per Response: 40 minutes for the average household 
questionnaire; 15 minutes for a GQ facility questionnaire; 25 minutes 
for a GQ person questionnaire; 10 minutes for a household reinterview; 
10 minutes for a GQ-level reinterview.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 2,360,000 for household 
respondents; 5,000 for contacts in GQ; 70,833 for GQ residents 7,200 
households for reinterview; and 333 GQ contacts for reinterview. The 
estimate is an annual average of 2,443,366 burden hours.

                            Table 1--Annual ACS Respondent and Burden Hour Estimates
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                                                                                     Estimated
                                                                      Annual        minutes per
                                        Forms or instrument used     estimated     respondent by      Annual
       Data collection operation           in data collection        number of         data          estimated
                                                                    respondents     collection     burden hours
                                                                                     activity
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I. ACS Household Questionnaire, Online  ACS-1, ACS 1(SP), ACS-         3,540,000              40       2,360,000
 Survey, Telephone, and Personal Visit.  1PR, ACS-1PR(SP),
                                         Online Survey,
                                         Telephone, CAPI.
II. ACS GQ Facility Questionnaire       CAPI GQFQ...............          20,000              15           5,000
 CAPI--Telephone and Personal Visit.
III. ACS GQ CAPI Personal Interview or  CAPI, ACS-1(GQ), ACS-            170,000              25          70,833
 Telephone, and Paper Self-response.     1(GQ)(PR).
IV. ACS Household Reinterview--CATI/    ACS HU-RI...............          43,200              10           7,200
 CAPI.
V. ACS GQ-level Reinterview--CATI/CAPI  ACS GQ-RI...............           2,000              10             333
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    Totals............................  ........................       3,775,200             N/A       2,443,366
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Estimated Annualized Respondent Burden 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: Mandatory.
    Legal Authority: Title 13 U.S.C. Section 141 and 193.

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. 2021-19805 Filed 9-13-21; 8:45 am]
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