2020-07740. Proposed Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request

AGENCY:

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

ACTION:

Notice, request for comment.

SUMMARY:

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) invites comment on a proposal to extend for three years, without revision, the Ongoing Intermittent Survey of Households (FR 3016; OMB No. 7100-0150).

DATES:

Comments must be submitted on or before June 12, 2020.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments, identified by FR 3016, by any of the following methods:

• Agency Website: https://www.federalreserve.gov/​. Follow the instructions for submitting comments at https://www.federalreserve.gov/​apps/​foia/​proposedregs.aspx.
• Email: [e-mail]. Include the OMB number in the subject line of the message.
• Fax: [phone] or [phone].
• Mail: Ann E. Misback, Secretary, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, 20th Street and Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20551.

All public comments are available from the Board's website at https://www.federalreserve.gov/​apps/​foia/​proposedregs.aspx as submitted, unless modified for technical reasons or to remove personally identifiable information at the commenter's request. Accordingly, comments will not be edited to remove any identifying or contact information. Public comments may also be viewed electronically or in paper in Room 146, 1709 New York Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20006, between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. on weekdays. For security reasons, the Board requires that visitors make an appointment to inspect comments. You may do so by calling [phone]. Upon arrival, visitors will be required to present valid government-issued photo identification and to submit to security screening in order to inspect and photocopy comments.

Additionally, commenters may send a copy of their comments to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Desk Officer—Shagufta Ahmed—Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, New Executive Office Building, Room 10235, 725 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20503, or by fax to [phone].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

A copy of the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) OMB submission, including the reporting form and instructions, supporting statement, and other documentation will be placed into OMB's public docket files, if approved. These documents will also be made available on the Board's public website at https://www.federalreserve.gov/​apps/​reportforms/​review.aspx or may be requested from the agency clearance officer, whose name appears below.

Federal Reserve Board Clearance Officer—Nuha Elmaghrabi—Office of the Chief Data Officer, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Washington, DC 20551, [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

On June 15, 1984, OMB delegated to the Board authority under the PRA to approve and assign OMB control numbers to collections of information conducted or sponsored by the Board. In exercising this delegated authority, the Board is directed to take every reasonable step to solicit comment. In determining whether to approve a collection of information, the Board will consider all comments received from the public and other agencies.

Request for Comment on Information Collection Proposal

The Board invites public comment on the following information collection, which is being reviewed under authority delegated by the OMB under the PRA. Comments are invited on the following:

a. Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the Board's functions, including whether the information has practical utility;

b. The accuracy of the Board's estimate of the burden of the proposed information collection, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used;

c. Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected;

d. Ways to minimize the burden of information collection on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology; and

e. Estimates of capital or startup costs and costs of operation, maintenance, and purchase of services to provide information.

At the end of the comment period, the comments and recommendations received will be analyzed to determine the extent to which the Board should modify the proposal.

Proposal Under OMB Delegated Authority To Extend for Three Years, Without Revision, the Following Information Collection

Report title: Ongoing Intermittent Survey of Households.

Agency form number: FR 3016.

OMB control number: 7100-0150.

Frequency: Monthly.

Respondents: Individuals and households.

Estimated number of respondents: 500.

Estimated average hours per response: 1.6 minutes.

Estimated annual burden hours: 160.

General description of report: The Board uses the Ongoing Intermittent Survey of Households survey to study consumer financial decisions, attitudes, and payment behavior. The Board has a contract with the University of Michigan's Survey Research Center (SRC) to include survey questions on behalf of the Board in an addendum to the SRC's regular monthly Survey of Consumer Attitudes and Expectations. The SRC conducts the survey by telephone with a sample of 500 households and includes questions of special interest to the Board.

Legal authorization and confidentiality: The FR 3016 is authorized by sections 2A and 12A of the Federal Reserve Act (FRA). Section 2A of the FRA requires that the Board and the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) “maintain long run growth of the monetary and credit aggregates commensurate with the economy's long run potential to increase production, so as to promote effectively the goals of the maximum employment, stable prices, and moderate long-term interest rates.” ^[1] Under section 12A of the FRA, the FOMC is required to implement regulations relating to the open market operations conducted by Federal Reserve Banks “with a view to accommodating commerce and business and with regard to their bearing upon the general credit situation of the country.” ^[2] The information collection under the FR 3016 is used to fulfill these obligations. Survey submissions under the FR 3016 are voluntary.

Location information associated with individual responses to the FR 3016 may be kept confidential under exemption 6 of the Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”),^[3] which protects information “the disclosure of which would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.” Individual responses to other data fields from the FR 3016 may be kept confidential on a case-by-case basis. The Board will consider whether information collected through these surveys may be kept confidential under FOIA exemption 6, or any other applicable FOIA exemption.

Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, April 8, 2020.

Michele Taylor Fennell,

Assistant Secretary of the Board.

Footnotes

1.  12 U.S.C. 225a.

2.  12 U.S.C. 263(c).

3.  5 U.S.C. 552(b)(6).