[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 24 (Monday, February 6, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7681-7682]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-02470]


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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; Census Household Panel

AGENCY: Census Bureau, Department of 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 new information collection of the Census Household Panel 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 April 7, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments by 
email to [email protected]. Please reference Census Household Panel 
in the subject line of your comments. You may also submit comments, 
identified by Docket Number USBC-2022-0026, to the Federal e-Rulemaking 
Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. All comments received are part of 
the public record. No comments will be posted to https://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 Cassandra Logan, Survey Director, 301-763-1087 and 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Abstract

    Early research and development work has demonstrated the value of a 
high-quality panel to improve representativeness and significantly 
reduce burden on households in the interests of collecting high-
frequency data. This notice outlines plans for the development of the 
Census Household Panel consisting of a pool of households carefully 
selected and recruited by the Census Bureau to reflect the diversity of 
our Nation's population. Panel participants will opt in to respond to 
different survey requests--or importantly, to participate in the same 
survey over time to produce longitudinal data that measure change over 
time. Development of this Panel at the Census Bureau allows the agency 
to draw representative samples accurately and quickly, responding to 
the need for timely insights on an array of topics and improving data 
outputs inclusive of historically undercounted populations.

[[Page 7682]]

    The initial goal for the size of the Panel is 15,000 panelists and 
households selected for the Panel will come from the Census Bureau's 
gold standard Master Address File. This ensures the Panel is rooted in 
this rigorously developed and maintained frame and available for 
linkage to administrative records securely maintained and curated by 
the Census Bureau. Initial invitations to enroll in the Panel will be 
sent by mail and questionnaires will be mainly internet self-response. 
The Panel will maintain representativeness by allowing respondents who 
do not use the internet to respond via in-bound computer-assisted 
telephone interviewing (CATI). All panelists will receive an incentive 
for each complete questionnaire. Periodic replenishment samples will 
maintain representativeness and panelists will be replaced after a 
period of three years.
    This Panel will become integral to rapidly providing insight on 
national events that may impact social, economic, or demographic 
characteristics of the population. Traditionally, Federal surveys are 
designed to collect and disseminate data on a slower timetable to 
produce statistically robust key measures of the society and economy. 
In keeping with growing needs for more timely information, however, the 
Census Bureau seeks to complement these important, established surveys 
with new mechanisms such as the Census Household Panel which can 
produce data much closer to real time as the events develop. The Panel 
will also help us research questions related to surveys. For example, 
this Panel will allow us to conduct nationally representative field 
tests to test content changes in an efficient and reliable fashion in 
support of other surveys. We also will look at alternative methods for 
enhancing data with administrative and other external data sources and 
developed modeled data. The Panel will provide a critical platform for 
developing adaptive design procedures that use auxiliary data sources. 
Adaptive design has proven to reduce costs, improve data quality, and 
maintain and improve representativeness in the data we collect and use.
    Leveraging its experience reaching and engaging households, and its 
reputation for statistical rigor and transparency in the production of 
Federal statistics, the Census Bureau will build the Census Household 
Panel in-house in a manner that affords users a full understanding of 
the methodology in keeping with Federal statistical standards, 
including response rates and weighting. This transparency into the way 
in which the statistics are developed will provide Federal agencies the 
confidence necessary to use the data in their policy making.

II. Method of Collection

    The Census Bureau will conduct this information collection online 
using Qualtrics as the data collection platform. Qualtrics currently is 
used at the Census Bureau for research and development surveys and 
provides the necessary agility to deploy the Census Household Panel 
quickly and securely. It operates in the Gov Cloud, is FedRAMP 
authorized at the moderate level, and has an Authority to Operate from 
the Census Bureau to collect personally identifiable and Title-
protected data. Panelists will be able to respond online and by inbound 
CATI (computer-assisted telephone interviewing). Inbound CATI will be 
used for respondents who do not want to or cannot complete 
questionnaires online. Outbound CATI nonresponse follow-up will also be 
conducted. Panel recruitment will consist of mail contacts and 
telephone follow-up, with the possibility of personal visit.
    The sample will be drawn from the Census Bureau's Master Address 
File. The sampling plan will be provided in the Supporting Statements. 
Participants will be enrolled via a screener and a baseline 
questionnaire. Following enrollment, participants will be invited to 
complete monthly topical surveys. Incentives will be provided to 
respondents and the strategy for incentives will be outlined in the 
Supporting Statements.

III. Data

    OMB Control Number: 0607-XXXX.
    Form Number(s): Not yet determined.
    Type of Review: Regular submission, New Information Collection 
Request.
    Affected Public: Individuals or households.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 15,000.
    Estimated Time per Response: 5 minutes for screening each of 75,000 
initial sample (6,250 hours) and 20 minutes per response monthly per 
respondent for a maximum of 4 hours per respondent per year (60,000 
hours).
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 66,250 per year.
    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: Data collection from the Panel for Census Bureau 
sponsored surveys is authorized by Title 13, Sections, 131, 141, 161, 
181, 182, 193, and 301. Data collection from the Panel for surveys 
sponsored by other agencies is authorized by 13 U.S.C. 8(b), where the 
Census Bureau is the collection agent, and the various U.S. Code titles 
that authorize those agencies to collect information. The 
confidentiality of information collected on topical surveys in this 
Panel is assured by Title 13, United States Code.

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. 2023-02470 Filed 2-3-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-07-P