Quiero saber acerca de...

8756

Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 25 / Tuesday, February 9, 2021 / Notices
statements to make lending decisions as to borrowers credit worthiness and to assure that loan funds are approved, advanced and disbursed for proper RE
Act purposes. These financial statements are audited by a certified public accountant to provide independent assurance that the data being reported are properly measured and fairly presented.
Estimate of Burden: Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 8.17 hours per response.
Respondents: Business or other forprofit, Not-for-profit institutions.
Estimated Number of Respondents and Recordkeepers: 1,300.
Estimated Number of Responses per Respondent: 1.35.
Estimated Number of Responses:
1,764.
Estimated Total Annual Burden on Respondents: 14,420 hours.
Copies of this information collection can be obtained from Lauren Cusick, Regulations and Paperwork Management Branch, at 202 7201414.
Email: Lauren.Cusick@usda.gov. 205
3660, Fax: 202 7208435.
All responses to this notice will be summarized and included in the request for OMB approval. All comments will also become a matter of public record.
Christopher McLean, Acting Administrator, Rural Utilities Service.
FR Doc. 202102600 Filed 2821; 8:45 am BILLING CODE 341015P

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 Methods Panel Tests Census Bureau, Commerce.
Notice of information collection, request for comment.

AGENCY:
ACTION:

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 publics reporting burden. The purpose of this notice is to allow for 60 days of public comment on the proposed revision of the American Community Survey Methods Panel Tests prior to the
khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with NOTICES

SUMMARY:

VerDate Sep<11>2014

17:07 Feb 08, 2021

Jkt 253001

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 12, 2021.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments by email to acso.pra@census.gov. Please reference American Community Survey Methods Panel Tests in the subject line of your comments. You may also submit comments, identified by Docket Number USBC20210002, 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 G. Brian Wilson, U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey Office, 301763
2819, George.Brian.Wilson@census.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Abstract The American Community Survey ACS is an ongoing monthly survey that collects detailed housing and socioeconomic data from about 3.5
million addresses in the United States and about 36,000 addresses in Puerto Rico each year. The ACS also collects detailed socioeconomic data from about 195,000 residents living in group quarters GQ facilities in the United States and Puerto Rico. Resulting tabulations from this data collection are provided on a yearly basis. The ACS
allows the Census Bureau to provide timely and relevant housing and socioeconomic statistics, even for low levels of geography.
An ongoing data collection effort with an annual sample of this magnitude requires that the ACS continue research, testing, and evaluations aimed at improving data quality, reducing data collection costs, and improving the ACS
questionnaire content and related data collection materials. The ACS Methods Panel is a research program designed to
PO 00000

Frm 00005

Fmt 4703

Sfmt 4703

address and respond to survey issues and needs. As part of the Decennial Census Program, the ACS also provides an opportunity to research and test elements of survey data collection that relate to the decennial census. As such, the ACS Methods Panel can serve as a testbed for the decennial census. From 2021 to 2024, the ACS Methods Panel may test ACS and decennial census methods for reducing survey cost, addressing respondent burden, and improving survey response, data quality, and survey efficiencies. The ACS Methods Panel may also address other emerging needs of the programs.
At this time, plans are in place to propose several tests related to selfresponse, group quarters, and nonresponse follow up data collection operations. Tests may also be conducted to explore the use of administrative records. Because the ACS Methods Panel is designed to address emerging issues, we may propose additional testing as needed. Any testing would focus on methods for reducing data collection costs, improving data quality, improving the respondent experience, revising content, or testing new questions that have a need to be included in the Decennial Census Program. The proposed tests are outlined below.
Self-Response Mail Messaging and Contact Strategies Testing: In response to declining response rates and increasing costs, the Census Bureau plans to study methods to increase selfresponse, the least expensive mode of data collection. The Census Bureau currently sends up to five mailings to a sampled address to inform the occupants that their address has been selected to participate in the ACS and to encourage them to self-respond to the ACS. The proposed tests would evaluate changes to the mailings, such as using plain language to improve communication, changing the look and feel of the materials, updating messages to motivate response, and adding or removing materials included in the mailings. Changes to the contact method, the number of contacts, and the timing of the contacts may also be tested. Multiple tests may be conducted.
Respondent Feedback Pilot Test:
Currently, ACS participants who want to give feedback on their survey experience must call, email, or send letters directly to the Census Bureau.
The Census Bureau is considering adding a method for participants to provide feedback at the end of the survey. Because collecting respondent feedback of this nature is new to the ACS, we conducted cognitive testing to inform recommendations on its wording
E:FRFM09FEN1.SGM

09FEN1