Proposed Collection; Comment Request

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Bureau of Labor Statistics

Proposed Collection; Comment Request

ACTION: Notice.

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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 (PRA95) (44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)). 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

[[Page 49489]]

properly assessed. Currently, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is

soliciting comments concerning the proposed extension of he ``Standard

Industrial Classification (SIC) Refiling Forms.''

A copy of the proposed information collection request (ICR) can be

obtained by contacting the individual listed below in the addressee

section of this notice.

DATES: Written comments must be submitted to the office listed in the

addresses section below on or before November 19, 1996. BLS is

particularly interested in comments which help the agency to:

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, including the

validity of the methodology and assumptions used;

Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the

information to be collected; and

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.

ADDRESSES: Send comments to Karin G. Kurz, BLS Clearance Officer,

Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Room 3255,

2 Massachusetts Avenue N.E., Washington, D.C. 20212. Ms. Kurz can be

reached on 202-606-7628 (this is not a toll free number).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

The ES-202 Report, produced for each calendar quarter, is a summary

of employment, wage, and contribution data submitted to State

Employment Security Agencies (SESAs) by employers subject to State

Unemployment Insurance (UI) laws. Also included in each State report

are similar data for Federal Government employees covered by the

Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees Program. These data are

submitted by all 50 States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and

the Virgin Islands and then summarized for the Nation by the Bureau of

Labor Statistics (BLS).

The ES-202 program is a comprehensive and accurate source of

monthly employment and quarterly wage data, by industry, at the

National, State, and county levels. It provides a virtual census on

nonagricultural employees and their wages. In addition, about 40

percent of the workers in agriculture are covered. As the most complete

universe of monthly employment and quarterly wage information by

industry, county, and State, the ES-202 series has broad economic

significance in evaluating labor trends and major industry

developments, in time series analysis and industry comparisons, and in

special studies such as analysis of wages by size of firm.

The program provides data necessary to both the Employment and

Training Administration (ETA) and the SESAs in administering the

employment security program. These data accurately reflect the extent

of coverage of the State Unemployment Insurance laws and are used to

measure UI revenues and disbursements; National, State, and local area

employment; and total and taxable wage trends. Further, the information

is used in actuarial studies; it is used in determination of experience

ratings, maximum benefit levels, and areas needing Federal assistance;

and it helps ensure the solvency of Unemployment Insurance funds.

The ES-202 data are also used by a variety of other BLS programs.

They serve, for example, as the basic source of benchmark information

for employment by industry and by size of unit in the Current

Employment Statistics (BLS-790) Program and the Occupational Employment

Statistics (OES) Survey Program. They are used as the basic source of

place-of-work employment data for non-metropolitan areas in the Local

Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) Program. The Quarterly Unemployment

Insurance Name and Address File, developed in conjunction with the ES-

202 Report, serves as a national sampling frame for establishment

surveys by the Occupational Compensation Surveys, Employment Cost

Index, Producer Price Index, and Occupational Safety and Health

Statistics programs. The Bureau of Economic Analysis of the Department

of Commerce uses ES-202 wage data as a base for estimating a large

portion of the wage and salary component of national personal income

and gross national product. These estimates are instrumental in

determining Federal allocation of revenue-sharing funds to State and

local governments. Finally, the ES-202 is one of the best sources of

detailed employment and wage statistics used by business and public and

private research organizations.

To assure the continued accuracy of these published economic

statistics in terms of industrial classification, the information

supplied by the employers must be periodically reviewed and updated.

For this purpose, the Industry Verification Statement (both Single and

Multiple Worksite), and the Industry Classification Statement (both All

Industry and Public Administration) are used in conjunction with the

Unemployment Insurance tax reporting system in each State. The

information collected on these forms is used to review the current SIC

code assigned to each establishment. The SIC for establishments whose

business activity has changed since the last review are updated to

reflect this change. As a result of these updates, the industry detail

data that the Bureau and State Agencies publish reflect changes that

occur in the industrial composition of the economy.

II. Current Actions

If the industrial coding review process were not performed, the

reliability of estimates for industrial and occupational employment,

hours and earnings, producer prices, productivity, and industry wage

data would be considerably reduced. All of these programs and their

uses (as well as others) are dependent on accurate industrial coding in

the design and maintenance of their samples. Inaccurate industrial

coding can also adversely affect payments that businesses and/or

employees receive from contracts that use industrial earnings data for

estimating escalating labor costs.

In addition to obtaining industry data from employers, the Industry

Verification Statement and the Industry Classification Statement are

designed to obtain information on the type of ownership (private

industry or Federal, State, or local government) and geographic

location. The ownership data have assumed greater importance since

current coding procedures classify establishments engaged in similar

activities into the same industry code regardless of ownership. The

geographic information is used to assign or verify the location of the

establishment. Both ownership and geographic data must be reviewed

periodically and updated if necessary, to provide a complete and

current industry/area database by ownership. We plan to continue the

review of employers' SIC, ownership and geographic codes on a three-

year cycle for the entire Unemployment Insurance (UI) universe of

accounts, presently numbering approximately 7.2 million units. Each

year approximately

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one-third of these reporting units, and every five years all accounts

classified in public administration, will be reviewed. Data for the ES-

202 Program and Unemployment Insurance Name and Address Files are

classified according to industry categories listed in the SIC Manual

(SICM).

Type of Review: Revision.

Agency: Bureau of Labor Statistics.

OMB Number: 1220-0032.

Affected Public: Business or other for-profit; Not-for-profit

institutions; Farms; Federal government; State, Local or Tribal

Government.

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Average Estimated

Total Total time per total

Form respondents Frequency responses response burden

(hours) (hours)

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BLS 3023-VS................... 5,984,250 Every 3 Yrs................. 1,994,750 .083 165,564

BLS 3023-VM................... 114,590 Every 3 Yrs................. 38,197 .75 28,647

BLS 3023-CA................... 53,000 Annually.................... 53,000 .167 8,851

BLS 3023-P.................... ........... Every 5 Yrs................. ........... ........... ...........

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Totals.................... ........... ............................ 2,085,947 ........... 203,062

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Total Burden Cost (capital/startup): $0.

Total Burden Cost (operating/maintaining): $0.

Comments submitted in response to this comment request will be

summarized and/or include in the request for Office of Management and

Budget approval of the information collection request; they will also

become a matter of public record.

Signed at Washington, D.C., this 17th day of September, 1996.

W. Stuart Rust, Jr.,

Acting Chief, Division of Management Systems, Bureau of Labor

Statistics.

[FR Doc. 96-24191 Filed 9-19-96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4510-24-M