[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 40 (Tuesday, March 1, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11484-11485]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-04258]



[[Page 11484]]

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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 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 ``National 
Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979.'' A copy of the proposed information 
collection request (ICR) can be obtained by contacting the individual 
listed in the ADDRESSES section of this notice.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the 
ADDRESSES section below on or before May 2, 2022.

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 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 (NLSY79) is a 
representative national sample of persons who were born in the years 
1957 to 1964 and lived in the U.S. in 1978. These respondents were ages 
14 to 22 when the first round of interviews began in 1979; they were 
ages 57 to 64 as of December 31, 2021. The NLSY79 was conducted 
annually from 1979 to 1994 and has been conducted biennially since 
1994. The longitudinal focus of this survey requires information to be 
collected from the same individuals over many years in order to trace 
their education, training, work experience, fertility, income, and 
program participation.
    In addition to the main NLSY79, the biological children of female 
NLSY79 respondents have been surveyed since 1986. A battery of child 
cognitive, socio-emotional, and physiological assessments was 
administered biennially from 1986 until 2012 to NLSY79 mothers and 
their children. Starting in 1994, children who had reached age 15 by 
December 31 of the survey year (the Young Adults) were interviewed 
about their work experiences, training, schooling, health, fertility, 
self-esteem, and other topics. Funding for the NLSY79 Child and Young 
Adult surveys has been provided by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National 
Institute of Child Health and Human Development through an interagency 
agreement with the BLS and through a grant awarded to researchers at 
the Ohio State University Center for Human Resource Research (CHRR). 
The collection referenced in this notice does not include a collection 
of the NLSY79 Child and Young Adult surveys, but additional collections 
may be contemplated in the future.
    One of the goals of the Department of Labor (DOL) is to produce and 
disseminate timely, accurate, and relevant information about the U.S. 
labor force. The BLS contributes to this goal by gathering information 
about the labor force and labor market and disseminating it to 
policymakers and the public so that participants in those markets can 
make more informed, and thus more efficient, choices. Research based on 
the NLSY79 contributes to the formation of national policy in the areas 
of education, training, employment programs, school-to-work 
transitions, and preparations for retirement. In addition to the 
reports that the BLS produces based on data from the NLSY79, members of 
the academic community publish articles and reports based on NLSY79 
data for the DOL and other funding agencies. To date, more than 2,750 
articles examining NLSY79 data have been published in scholarly 
journals. The survey design provides data gathered from the same 
respondents over time to form the only data set that contains this type 
of information for this important population group. Without the 
collection of these data, an accurate longitudinal data set could not 
be provided to researchers and policymakers, thus adversely affecting 
the DOL's ability to perform its policy- and report-making activities.

II. Current Action

    The BLS seeks approval to conduct Round 30 of the NLSY79. 
Respondents of the NLSY79 will undergo an interview of approximately 69 
minutes during which they will answer questions about schooling and 
training, employment and labor market experiences, family 
relationships, wealth, and expectations about the future. The NLSY79 
Young Adult Survey will not be administered as part of Round 30; future 
collections of this survey are possible but not slated for current 
implementation.
    During the field period, about 100 NLSY79 interviews will be 
validated to ascertain whether the interview took place as the 
interviewer reported and whether the interview was done in a polite and 
professional manner.
    BLS has undertaken a continuing redesign effort to examine the 
current content of the NLSY79 and provide direction for changes that 
may be appropriate as the respondents age. The 2022 instrument reflects 
a number of changes recommended by experts in various fields of social 
science and by our own internal review of the survey's content. 
Additions to the questionnaire are accompanied by deletions of previous 
questions so that the overall time required to complete the survey is 
estimated to be lower than in 2016, 2018, and 2020.
    The Round 30 questionnaire includes new questions on health and 
nutrition, including consumption of fruit and vegetables, incidence of 
and vaccination against COVID-19, social and emotional loneliness, and 
the availability of funds to cover emergency expenses. It also includes 
questions about perceived discrimination in hiring, firing, promotions, 
and medical care. Several questions that have appeared in previous 
rounds of the NLSY79 but not in Round 29 will be cycled back in; these 
include questions about tasks performed on the job, the importance of 
religion to the respondent, and wills that the respondent may maintain.

III. Desired Focus of Comments

    The BLS 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,

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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: National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979.
    OMB Number: 1220-0109.
    Type of Review: Revision of a previously approved collection.
    Affected Public: Individuals or households.

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                                                                                   Average time      Estimated
            Form                   Total           Frequency           Total       per response    total burden
                                respondents                          responses       (minutes)        (hours)
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NLSY79 Round 29 Main Survey.           6,355  Biennially........           6,355              69           7,308
Round 29 Validation                      100  Biennially........             100               6              10
 Interviews.
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    Totals \1\..............           6,355  ..................           6,455  ..............           7,318
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\1\ The difference between the total number of respondents (6,355) and the total number of responses (6,455)
  reflects the fact that about 100 respondents will be interviewed twice, once in the main survey and a second
  time in the 6-minute validation interview.

    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 February 24, 2022.
Eric Molina,
Acting Chief, Division of Management Systems.
[FR Doc. 2022-04258 Filed 2-28-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-24-P