[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 82 (Tuesday, April 29, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23217-23218]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-10928]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Bureau of the Census
Survey of Income and Program Participation Wave 6 of the 1996
Panel
ACTION: Proposed collection; Comment request.
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SUMMARY: The Department of Commerce, as part of its continuing effort
to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public
and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on
proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13 (44 U.S.C.
3506(c)(2)(A)).
DATES: Written comments must be submitted on or before June 30, 1997.
ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to Linda Engelmeier,
Departmental Forms Clearance Officer, Department of Commerce, Room
5327, 14th and Constitution Avenue, NW. Washington, DC 20230.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information or
copies of the information collection instrument(s) and instructions
should be directed to Michael McMahon, Bureau of the Census, FOB 3,
Room 3319, Washington, DC 20233-8400, (301) 457-3819.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. Abstract
The Census Bureau conducts the Survey of Income and Program
Participation (SIPP) which is a household-based survey designed as a
continuous series of national panels, each lasting four years.
Respondents are interviewed once every four months, in monthly
rotations. Approximately 37,000 households are in the current panel.
Each household contains, on average, 2.08 eligible respondents.
The SIPP represents a source of information for a wide variety of
topics and allows information for separate topics to be integrated to
form a single, unified data base so that the interaction between tax,
transfer, and other government and private policies can be examined.
Government domestic policy formulators depend heavily upon SIPP
information concerning the distribution of income received directly as
money or indirectly as in-kind benefits, and the effect of tax and
transfer programs on this distribution. They also need improved and
expanded data on the income and general economic and financial
situation of the U.S. population. The SIPP has provided these kinds of
data on a continuing basis since 1983, permitting levels of economic
well-being and changes in these levels to be measured over time.
The survey is molded around a central ``core'' of labor force and
income questions that will remain fixed throughout the life of a panel.
The core is supplemented with questions designed to answer specific
needs, such as obtaining information about the terms of child support
agreements and whether they are being fulfilled by the absent parent,
examining the program participation status of persons with specific
health and disability statuses, and obtaining detailed information
needed to understand the current status of the employment-based health
care system and changes that have occurred. These supplemental
questions are included with the core and are referred to as ``topical
modules.''
The topical modules for the 1996 Panel Wave 6 collect information
about:
(1) Children's Well-Being
(2) Assets, Liabilities, and Eligibility
(3) Medical Expenses/Utilization of Health Care (Adults/Children)
(4) Work Related Expenses
(5) Child Support Paid
Wave 6 interviews will be conducted from December 1997 through
March 1998.
II. Method of Collection
The SIPP is designed as a continuing series of national panels of
interviewed households that are introduced every 4 years, with each
panel having a duration of 4 years in the survey. All household members
15 years old or over are interviewed using regular proxy-respondent
rules. They are interviewed a total of 12 times (12 waves) at 4-month
intervals, making the SIPP a longitudinal survey. Sample persons (all
household members present at the time of the first interview) who move
within the country and reasonably close to a SIPP Primary Sampling Unit
(PSU) will be followed and interviewed at their new address. Persons 15
years old or over who enter the household after Wave 1 will be
interviewed; however, if these persons move, they are not followed
unless they happen to move along with a Wave 1 sample person.
Interviews are conducted by Census Bureau field representatives (FR)
using a computer assisted personal interview (CAPI). To ensure quality
of the FR's work, 2,500 respondents are reinterviewed during each wave.
III. Data
OMB Number: 0607-0813.
Form Number: SIPP/CAPI Automated Instrument.
Type of Review: Regular.
Affected Public: Individuals or Households.
Estimated Number of Respondents: Interview--77,700; Reinterview--
2,500.
Estimated Time Per Response: Interview--30 minutes; Reinterview--10
minutes.
Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours:
Interview--116,550
Reinterview--1,250
Total--117,800.
Estimated Total Annual Cost: Respondents' only cost is that of
their time to participate in the survey.
Respondent's Obligation: Voluntary.
Legal Authority: Title 13, United States Code, Section 182.
IV. Request for Comments
Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed collection of
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of
the agency, including whether the information shall have practical
utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden
(including hours and cost) of the proposed collection of information;
(c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the
information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the
collection of information on respondents, including through the use of
automated collection techniques or other forms of information
technology.
Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized
and/or included in the request for OMB approval of this information
collection;
[[Page 23218]]
they also will become a matter of public record.
Dated: April 23, 1997.
Linda Engelmeier,
Departmental Forms Clearance Officer, Office of Management and
Organization.
[FR Doc. 97-10928 Filed 4-28-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-07-P
